YEH MERA INDIA

40% of rural India lives on Rs 33 a day!

New Delhi: Forty percent of rural India lives on Rs 33 a day, official data showed, exposing the hollowness of the tall claims of economic reforms and inclusive growth.
According to data released by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO), the bottom 10 percent people in rural India lived on just Rs 16.78 per day in the 2011-12 financial year.
“The poorest 10 percent of India’s rural population have an average monthly per capita expenditure of Rs. 503.49,” the NSSO said.
In rural India, half of the population belong to households with monthly per capita expenditure below Rs 1,000 and nearly 40 percent of the rural population have monthly per capita expenditure below Rs 922.
The situation is not very different in urban areas as well.
The poorest 10 percent of the urban population has an average monthly per capita expenditure of Rs. 702.26. It means the bottom 10 percent people in urban areas live on Rs. 23.40 per day.
The top 10 percent of the rural population, ranked by monthly per capita expenditure, have an average monthly per capita expenditure of  Rs 3,459.77, about 6.9 times that of the bottom 10 percent.
The top 10 percent of t he urban population have an average monthly per capita expenditure of  Rs. 7651.68, about 10.9 times that of the bottom 10 percent.
In urban areas of India, half of the population is living with monthly per capita expenditure below Rs 1759. About 70 percent of population have monthly per capita expenditure above Rs 1295, and nearly 30 percent have above Rs 2464.
The provisional results of the national Sample Survey’s 68th round are based on the central sample consisting of 7391 villages (59070 sample households) in rural areas and 5223 urban blocks (41602 sample households) spread over almost all states and union territories in the country.

Rain water harvesting-a listless citizenry

Mumbai: Rainwater harvesting has hardly any takers in the city. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in October 2002 had made the implementation of the rainwater harvesting system mandatory for all new constructions. Only 3,875 out of 6,855 newly built constructions in Mumbai have adopted this scheme since 2002. Even on World Environment Day they are not going to conduct any functions. 

“BMC has done enough awareness campaigns since 2005, we have hardly missed any important occasion in last couple of years. We have had an event scheduled on world environment day but due to some unavoidable reasons it has been cancelled. We are trying to create  awareness at grass root levels by introducing water harvesting lessons in text books of 1st standard to 10th standard,” said, Suprabha Marathe, Executive Engineer, Rain water harvesting and water conservation cell.

Till 2007, 171 new buildings implemented rainwater harvesting. In a span of three years from 2007 to 2010, around 1,480 new constructions followed the norm. Till May 2012, only 197 buildings, which belong to BMC, have the mechanism in place.

For better implementation of the system, the BMC amended the clause in 2007. The revised rules made it mandatory that every plot area of 300 square metres, implement rainwater harvesting. Earlier in 2002, the minimum plot area was 1,000 square metres 

"The awareness campaign of BMC is clueless, circulating books to school going children will not help, BMC should conduct awareness workshops in societies and corporate complexes. The newly built MHADA buildings are also not implementing this scheme, this clearly shows that BMC is itself incurious and unaware about this scheme," said, Vinayak Mungekar, Water harvesting expert.

Shelters for homeless lying vacant: HC 

Mumbai: Observing that many shelters for homeless citizens were unoccupied, the Bombay High Court has asked the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and NGOs to give wide publicity about availability of such shelter homes. The directions were given recently by a bench of Chief Justice Mohit Shah and Justice Nitin Jamdar who went through the reports mentioning conditions of shelters for homeless citizens. The reports of joint inspection of the shelter homes by NGOs and authorities conducted in February 2012 were relied upon by Homeless Collective in their petition praying that the state was not doing enough to provide shelter to the homeless.

Cops rescue 24 minors from begging

Mumbai: Twenty four children who were allegedly forced to beg were rescued by a team of officers of the Social Service (SS) Branch of the Mumbai police. The raids carried out by the SS branch over a tip-off was conducted in the D B Marg and Gamdevi areas of south Mumbai. According to the police, the rescued children are all under 14 years of age and were being forced to beg against their will. The police have booked the arrested persons under several sections of the Juvenile Justice Act.

NGOs running school in Pimpri allege harassment 

Mumbai: Pardhi community and Dinbandhu, an NGO, which is working at the grassroot levels in Pimpri village of Yevatmal district Maharashtra, has come up with several complaints along with civil society against Rashtriya Swayam Sevak (RSS) who attack the organisation on a regular basis.

Dr Dilip Gawde founder of Satya Shodhak Samaj in Yevatmal and Nitin Sardar a founder member of Dinbandhu alleges that, RSS with its fellow members along with ex MP Jambuwantrao Dhote had attacked their school where they have started teaching 7-8  years old girls and boys of Pardhi Community.

“Since 16 June 2012, after the attack made on school staff, it is closed because of the regular attempt made by the regional branch of RSS and its members who cannot see the Pardhis studying,’ said Prakash Kulmadi,  the father of a girl who is studying in a Kinder Garten opened by Dinbandhu and its members. According to Nitin Sardar, twice there  were attempts by RSS and ex-MP Jambhuwantrao Dhote in which they have entered with choppers and swords in our school where 20 kids of Pardhi Community study everyday. Moreover the Pardhi Community and its Graam Panchayat member, Prakash believes that Pardhis were never considered as human, when their kids have started studying, it is not acceptable for the higher class. Which is the only reason of continuous harassment and attack on our only hope of education, which has been initiated by Dinbandhu NGO for our children.

Abhijeet Parage, a member of Dinbandhu and a resident of Yevatmal, said “education is the only way by which this community can get recognition in this modern world. So this was our first option when we started school a year back in which 20 girls and boys were granted free admission. And we have a list of 300 students who want to study from this year. But if there is an obstruction by violent methods and without any reason then what is the future of Pardhis.” According to Pardhis, the case was registered against those who attacked after they protested against the accused but no action has been taken yet, allege villagers of Pimpri. Dr Abraham Mathai president of Indian Christian Voice believes this issue is of a primary concern which will be taken to the home minister and chief minister of Maharashtra.  Dinbandhu is an NGO who is rehabilitating and restoring the backward community by means of basic education.

Support of civil society:

Along with Maulana Mustaqeem Azmi leader of Jamiat Ulema-e-Maharashtra, film director Mahesh Bhatt requested that the Pardhis must be considered as a human being first, then only this community can be uplifted by education. Whereas the Pardhis are always used in vote bank policies of government since independence, added Azmi.