Secularism in India

"I do not expect India of my dreams to develop one religion, i.e., to be

whollyHindu or wholly Christian or wholly Mussalman, but I want it to be wholly
tolerant, with its religions working side by side with one another.'' So said
Mahatma Gandhi.

India has been declared a secular state by its written constitution and it is every Indians
duty to stand by and believe in this declaration. And yet recent political and social
events have questioned this declaration. Is India a secular country only on paper or
does secularism actually exist in India; or is in the form of pseudo- secularism, a term
the BJP and its allies seem to repeatedly harp on.

During the freedom struggle, secularism was emerging as the most dominant principle.
The leaders of the Indian National Congress; Gandhi, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Nehru
and others were deeply committed to the ideal of secularism, though each expressed it
in very different manners. Secularism became the mantra of the Indian nation, a nation
exhausted by partition and sectarian riots and above all the assassination of Gandhiji,
did not want any more divisive talk. The founding fathers represented the aspirations of
the different sections of society and it is due to the struggles of these different people
that secular principles got enshrined into the Indian constitution.

Under Jawaharlal Nehru and later under his successors in the Congress Party, the
concept of a secular nation-state was officially adopted as India's path to political
modernity and national integration. Unlike in the West, where secularism came mainly
out of the conflict between the Church and the State, secularism in India was conceived
as a system that sustained religious and cultural pluralism.

In the post Independent scenario the social dynamics was very complex. The process of
secularisation/industrialisation was going on at a slow pace. Even at this stage, though
constitution was secular, the state apparatus: the bureaucracy, the judiciary, the army
and the police were infiltrated by communal elements. The Congress government,
though predominantly secular, had many leaders in important positions who were
influenced by a Hindu communal ideology. This resulted in a social development that
was mixed; on the one hand secularism thrived and on the other though communalism
remained dormant, was never dead. With the social changes of the late 70's and the
early 80's, communalism got a strong boost and it started attacking secularism in a big
way.

The B.J.P. was quick to take up the mantle of 'the' communal party, riding on the wave
of the post-mandal upper class/caste backlash. The BJP began attacking, what they
called "pseudo-secularism", which pampered the minorities at the expense of the
majority and demanded that special rights for minorities be taken away.

Supporting the BJP was the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, a relatively new outfit with
branches all over the world and drawing on support, both moral and financial, from the
Hindu diaspora in the West. This took an aggressive form when the Babri
Masjid\Ramjanambhoomi controversy erupted. This period also saw the rise of other
militant Hindu organizations such as the BajrangDal and the Shivsena. These groups
quickly mushroomed and poisoned the social space with communal rhetoric and the
agenda of Hindu Rashtra; and launched an ideological, social and political onslaught on
secular ethos, syncretic culture and composite nationalism. They refused to recognize
the contributions of Muslims and other minorities, to India's history and culture. They
selectively concentrated on intolerant Muslim rulers, extending their often-brutal conduct
to the entire period of Muslim rule and, even to all Muslims. But such prejudices were
not openly aired in public; but now they have not only gained legitimacy, but have also
almost become the mainstream opinion.

The attack on the Mosque at Ayodhya led to a rash of violence across the country. The
events leading to the demolition of Babri Masjid and their aftermath of communal
carnage mark a watershed in the history of free India. The traumatic events clearly
exposed the chasm that had been created between the two communities by communal
forces.

The year 2002 witnessed one of the most devastating riots in Gujarat where mobs went
on a rampage, destroying Muslim homes and businesses, killed Muslims, including men
women and children and drove thousands of people away from their homes. The
ostensible reason for this fury was the burning of a train coach that was carrying Hindu
pilgrims returning from Ayodhya. Fifty-nine people including women and children died in
the fire. This action, sparked off, as the state's Chief Minister put it, in Newtonian terms,
a reaction, except that it was grossly disproportionate to the original crime. A Human
Right's Watch report paints a chilling picture of state complicity in the religious violence
in Gujarat. This marks the first time when the state has emerged as a major player and
actor in violence by mobs, a qualitative change from previous such situations in India. It
is in this backdrop that one has to understand, as to why it is only during the last decade
and a half that secularism has come under a cloud and the concept of a Hindu Rashtra
is being asserted aggressively.

Today, the biggest challenge to the Indian nation is coming from forces claiming to
represent the mainstream majority. There is an emergence of extremist voices that
claim to speak for Hindus and they are laying down demands that threaten the very idea
of a secular India. The biggest area of concern is that the state has emerged to be
complicit, as an actor and player in mounting this challenge to Indian pluralism, which
goes under the name of Hindutva.

The communal forces are actively propagating the myth that Secularism is a new mask
of fundamentalism. They denigrate the secular policies, which are a hindrance to Hindu
Right's unobstructed march to subjugate the oppressed in general and minorities in
particular. They are equating fundamentalism with Islam; and the policies of Indian
rulers with secularism, and the appeasement of mullahs as being synonymous with
secular policies. Further, Hindutva forces accuse that secularism pampers the Muslims
as a vote bank. The Muslims are accused of extra-territorial loyalty because they
allegedly cheer for Pakistan whenever India and Pakistan play cricket. Since Muslims
are being thought synonymous to fundamentalism; therefore the assertion that the
Indian state is appeasing fundamentalists in the name of secularism. It is precisely on
this charge that the Father of Indian Nationalism, Mahatma Gandhi, was assassinated
by one of the votaries of Hindutva.

The Christians, who are much lesser in number, are accused of being more loyal to the
Vatican, another outside force and of trying to convert poor Hindus with inducements of
education and food. Who can forget the brutal burning of Graham Staines and his two
minor sons by a member of the Bajrang Dal in the name ofreligion? Or even the rape of
some sisters in Gujarat, their fault being the spreading of the word of their God.

The fact, however, is that the social and the economic conditions of
the Muslimcommunity is dismal. If at all the opportunist political policies of various
governments have struck compromises, it has been with certain religious leaders of the
minorities and the minorities have been kept in abysmal conditions. In that sense, the
govt. policies have been anti-oppressed, rather than pro Muslim. Further, the fact that
130 million Muslims decided to stay back in India rather than joining Pakistan, should
settle their status as true citizens.

Secularism introduces science, technology and rationalism in the society and forms the
basis of a modern secular state. In the process, it has to oppose and struggle against
the clergy and vested forces in the society. And as such, the fundamentalist communal
onslaughts are the 'other' of secularism and secularization. The oppressed sections join
the secular movement to wrest the accompanying liberal space that can be the base for
launching the struggles for their rights. Fundamentalism is the regressive reaction of
feudal elements and sections of middle classes in league with the clergy, to crush the
aspirations of oppressed class, whose movements for their rights is a big source of
tension for them. The secularization process and the accompanying movements of the
oppressed increase the insecurity of fundamentalist forces. They try to lure these
classes into their fold through religion and liberal use of money and muscle power.

The burgeoning neo-middle classes have emerged as pivotal points that embraced
consumerism as modernity but simultaneously began looking towards culture and
tradition for support. The advent of globalization has been welcomed in India but it has
also shaken people who fear that their own cultures will be destroyed. Hence they show
an inclination towards the conservative Hindu identity. It's all about culture, religion and
ritual, all cleverly juxtaposed with nationalism: what is Hindu is Indian and from that
follows, what is not Hindu is not Indian.

A new disturbing trend has been witnessed in recent years where villages are no longer
tranquil as urban-rural interactions have become much more intense. With subdivisions
of land holdings, there are few jobs left in the villages for the agricultural class. They are
looking outside the village and getting involved with the issues and ideas that have a
reach beyond the village. The prosperous classes in rural India have also actively
promoted the VHP and other communal forces. We can no longer ignore the possibility
that post Gujarat 2002, villages too can become sites of ethnic riots.
There is a blatant attempt to subvert history, change school curricula and create a new
set up in line with a Hindu Rastra. There is a new, muscular nationalism, one that holds
up the nuclear bomb as a sign of strength and wants to keep neighbours and internal
minorities in their place, and which derives its strength from invented mythology; and
has taken over the polity. Indian secularism, once thought to be non-negotiable, is
beginning to look shaky now. In a country with over 140 million Muslims and million of
Christians, to say nothing of hundreds of other castes and communities, this can have
very dangerous consequences.

It is not so much a question of defending or preserving the existing secular character of

the Indian polity, but rather a need to create and build a secular polity in the nation. Only
the ideal of building a secular democratic nation can stem the tide of communal fascism
in the country. Sarva Dharma Sambhav has to operate at the personal as well as the
social level, while Dharma Nirpekshata or Secularism per se continues to be the state
policy. Religious clergy, bigotry, dogmas and rituals cannot be allowed to guide the
state.

Mahatma Gandhi has rightly said: "I swear by my religion, I will die for it. But it is my
personal affair. The State has nothing to do with it. The State would look after your
secular welfare, health, communications, foreign relations, currency and so on, but not
your or my religion. That is everybody's personal concern!!"

Hinduism is a faith that on the whole is favorable to the development of the secular state
in India. It also has a strong tradition of freedom of conscience and tolerance of religious
diversity that is not rightly projected by the Hindutva forces.

This strength of the Hindu religion is now viewed as a weakness. Secularism in the
Indian context should imply respect for pluralism and a non-coercive and a voluntary
recourse to change. Respect for diversity not only embodies thedemocratic spirit, it is
the real guarantee of unity. We should value democratic, not fascistic, unity. No
democratic society can downgrade diversity and pluralism in the name of unity. Secular
ethics can be strengthened only when the acts of vandalism are sternly dealt with and
the guilty are made to pay for it. With secularism that insists on the inalienable rights of
the citizens and a due process of law, it will be easier to mount public pressure against
sectarian killers and those who promote hatred. The battle of secularism and
democracy has also to be fought at the grass root levels where a set ideals generating
strong idealism is required to mobilize and prepare the masses for struggle.

In the end, secularism begins in the heart of every individual. There should be no feeling
of "otherness" as we all have is a shared history. India being a traditional society that
contains not one, but many traditions owing their origin in part to the different religions
that exist here, has so far managed to retain the secular character of its polity. Ours is a
society where Sufis and Bhakti saints have brought in a cultural acceptance for each
other. Are we going to let it all go to waste and listen to people who have concern for
their careers as politicians or leaders rather than our welfare at heart? Let us instead
concentrate our efforts at making India a powerful and progressive nation.
Corruption In India
All luxury corrupts either the morals or the state.

- Joubert

Corruption in the Indian society has prevailed from time immemorial in one form or the
other. The basic inception of corruption started with our opportunistic leaders who have
already done greater damage to our nation. People who work on right principles are
unrecognized and considered to be foolish in the modern society. Corruption in India is
a result of the connection between bureaucrats, politiciansand criminals. Earlier, bribes
were paid for getting wrong things done, but now bribe is paid for getting right things
done at right time. Further, corruption has become something respectable in India,
because respectable people are involved in it. Social corruption like less weighing of
products, adulteration in edible items, and bribery of various kind have incessantly
prevailed in the society.

In today’s scenario, if a person wants a government job he has to pay lakhs of rupees to
the higher officials irrespective of satisfying all the eligibility criteria. In every office one
has either to give money to the employee concerned or arrange for some sources to get
work done. There is adulteration and duplicate weighing of products in food and civil
supplies department by unscrupulous workers who cheat the consumers by playing with
the health and lives of the people. In the assessment of property tax the officers charge
money even if the house is built properly according to the Government rules and
regulations.

Political corruption is worst in India. The major cause of concern is that corruption is
weakening the political body and damaging the supreme importance of the law
governing the society. Nowadays politics is only for criminals and criminals are meant to
be in politics. Elections in many parts of the country have become associated with a
host of criminal activities. Threatening voters to vote for a particular candidate or
physically prevent voters from going in to the polling booth – especially weaker sections
of the society like tribals, dalits and rural woman occurs frequently in several parts of the
country. Recently, the Government increased the salary of the M.P.’s from Rs.16, 000
to Rs.50, 000, that is 300% increase to the existing salary. But many of them are
unhappy with rise and want the Government to increase the salary to a much more
extent. This clearly shows how the politicians are in constant thirst for monetary benefits
and not caring about the welfare of the people. Tax evasion is one of the most popular
forms of corruption. It is mostly practiced by Government officials and politicians who
lead to the accumulation of black money which in turn spoils the moral of the people.

Major Factors Responsible For Corruption:

1. The most important factor is the nature of the human being. People in general,
have a great thirst for luxuries and comforts and as a result of which they get
themselves involved in all unscrupulous activities that result in monetary or material
benefits.
2. Moral and spiritual values are not given utmost importance in educational
system, which is highly responsible for the deterioration of the society.
3. The salary paid to employees is very less and as a result of which they are
forced to earn money by illegal ways.
4. The punishments imposed on the criminals are inadequate.
1. The political leaders have spoiled the society completely. They lead a
luxurious life and do not even care about the society.
2. People of India are not awakened and enlightened. They fear to raise their
voice against anti-social elements prevailing in the society.
Measures To Control Corruption:
There are some specific measures to control increasing corruption.
1. The Right to Information Act (RTI) gives one all the required information about
the Government, such as what the Government is doing with our tax payments. Under
this act, one has the right to ask the Government on any problem which one faces.
There is a Public Information Officer (PIO) appointed in every Government department,
who is responsible for collecting information wanted by the citizens and providing them
with the relevant information on payment of a nominal fee to the PIO. If the PIO refuses
to accept the application or if the applicant does not receive the required information on
time then the applicant can make a complaint to the respective information commission,
which has the power to impose a penalty up to Rs.25, 000 on the errant PIO.
2. Another potent check on corruption is Central Vigilance Commission (CVC). It
was setup by the Government to advise and guide Central Government agencies in the
areas of vigilance. If there are any cases of corruption or any complaints thereof, then
that can be reported to the CVC. CVC also shoulders the responsibility of creating more
awareness among people regarding the consequences of giving and taking of bribes
and corruption.
3. Establishment of special courts for speedy justice can be a huge positive aspect.
Much time should not elapse between the registration of a case and the delivery of
judgment.
4. Strong and stringent laws need to be enacted which gives no room for the guilty
to escape.
5. In many cases, the employees opt for corrupt means out of compulsion and not
by choice. Some people are of the opinion that the wages paid are insufficient to feed
their families. If they are paid better, they would not be forced to accept bribe.

The one thing that needs to be ensured is proper, impartial, and unbiased use of
various anti-social regulations to take strong, deterrent, and timely legal action against
the offenders, irrespective of their political influences or money power. Firm and strong
steps are needed to curb the menace and an atmosphere has to created where the
good, patriotic, intellectuals come forward to serve the country with pride, virtue, and
honesty for the welfare of the people of India.

Why is the Indian Economy still affected by Floods and Droughts?

In India, agriculture is the mainstay of the economy. Contribution of agriculture to the
economy of India can be estimated from the fact that 70% of India population is
dependent on cultivation and agriculture contributes to 18% of the Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) of India. Out of the total sown area, 60% is dependent on the rainfall,
thus prone to floods and droughts. Thus flood and droughts occurring repetitively after
some years have an adverse affect on our country economy.

In India major rainfall is received from southwest monsoon in the summer season. The
vagaries of this monsoon are the main cause of floods/drought in our country. Floods
are associated with excessive rainfall while the draughts are the result of deficient
rainfall. However, other factor also plays a role in establishing the condition for these
calamities including hydrology, deforestation, soil nature, erosion etc. At present our
country is encountering the drought condition due to the deficient rainfall. While last
year many regions of the country faced the situation of flood.

Since the majority of population (approximately 70%) is dependent on cultivation

droughts and floods have significant economic, environmental and social
consequences. Due to these natural calamities the product of farm gets damaged. The
farmers who have taken huge loans to fund their operations from the private
moneylender become unable to pay their debts. The quality of land gets deteriorated
transforming into wasteland. Along with the current season productivity reduction next
seasons crop also get reduced. The conditions of the marginal farmers become more
vulnerable as they left with no or reduced produce of current crops and reduced land
capacity for future. Last year due to the flood in Bihar 3 million people migrated from
that area to the urban area in the search of work.

Impact of drought and flood is not only limited to the farmers but felt over the entire
country. Food security that is already a concern, due to prevailing poverty and huge
population, in the country turns severe. Due to reduced productivity food prices rises
resulting inflation. This inflation is also the result of corrupt and malpractices of
middlemen. Reduced purchasing capacity of common man bring decline in demands of
other products and because of demand and supply rule the industries get affected. In
this view economy of the country becomes somewhat stagnant.

Electricity, which is still not available to 400 million people, is very important requirement
for the growth of economy of country. During draught due to the water deficiency
hydroelectric power generation having 25% share in total power generation also gets
affected. With the reduced power production almost all activities related to cultivation,
industries, household etc. get adversely affected. Thus the output get reduced which is
reflected in the GDP of country.

Drought and floods adverse affect on our economy get exaggerated due existing
poverty in India (still approx. 6.8 crores families are below poverty line as planning
commission). The conditions of poor farmers get more deteriorated and it becomes
difficult for them to earn the basic needs. The government is running many programs
like Bharat Nirman, National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, and Rastiriya Krishi
Vikas Yoazana.etc. for poverty alleviation and enlistment of rural life.
The population in India is growing at faster rate. As an estimate the population of India
will be 1.43 billion by 2031-32. To feed this burgeoning population the challenge on the
yield of farm is increasing day by day. When such a calamity occurs it pushes a large
population towards hunger including the cultivator. To meet this deficiency grains has to
import from other countries. This results in reduction of the foreign currency that has a
direct impact on economic state of country. Recently in the wake of Deficient rainfall in
this year the finance minister Shri Pranab Mukherjee announced for the import of food
for 700 million population of India.

The present drought situation the country is undergoing is very serious. More than 246
districts in the country have been affected by the malady caused by deficient rainfall.
The severe drought like conditions is the result of climatic imbalances caused by the
failure of the monsoon.

Due the sufficient grain stock, better transportation and communication facilities and
advancement of technology situation of famine will not be encountered which is the
result of floods and drought in the past. But still the impact these calamities on the
overall economy can be felt. Though the government is taking several measures yet all
those fall short to mitigate the affect of these situations.

Measures for flood mitigation were taken from 1950 onwards. As against the total of 40
million hectares prone to floods, area of about 18.22 million hectares has been
protected by construction of embankments. A number of dams and barrages have been
constructed. The State Governments have been assisted to take up mitigation programs
like construction of raised platforms.

Floods continue to be a menace however mainly because of the huge quantum of silt
being carried by the rivers emanating from the Himalayas. As per an estimate, every
year about 2/3rd of the irrigation projects pond, tanks etc become ineffective due to
siltation. Thus, the maintenance of these irrigation projects is very important that is not
being carried out efficiently. In UP there are 100,000 personnel to carry out the task of
maintenance but their output is nil. In between 1992 to 2004 around 200 minor and
major irrigation projects were made but their capacity has left only about 3.4 hectare.

To fight with the condition of draught various projects are running Drought Prone Area
Programme (DPAP), Desert Development Programme (DDP), and National Watershed
Development Project for Rain fed Areas (NWDPRA), Integrated Water Development
Project (IWDP). Water of the major rivers has to be diverted to area depleted of the
rainfall. However the output of these programs is not satisfactorily. To gain the output of
these programs these should be run more effectively and efficiently.

Much is being done but lot has to be done to conquer the adverse affect of Drought and
floods. Along with the planned construction of new means the maintenance of existing
one is also very important otherwise affect of these calamities will always remain on the
economy of our country.
Women Empowerment: Challenges and Prospects
It is disheartening to note that the phrase “empowerment of Women” is considered as a
mere phase in the multistage process of giving women what they really deserve. The
very mention about “empowerment” clearly indicates the upper hand men enjoy in the
social structure. But India has come a long way in empowering women. According to
Upanishads, the primary duty of women is to be in the service of her husband. We now
talk about one third seats for women in the highest decision making body in the country
(parliament). India has come a long way. The different phases India took in the women
empowerment is here: 
Ancient India - Primary duty of women is “Husband Service”
Medieval India- Don’t let women out. Don’t let her express. If her husband dies, she
should die too.
Modern India Pre Independence- Guys, lets stop Sati. Let her stay inside the house
forever after her husband dies!
1950s- Lets send women children to schools and colleges!
1960-Dowry Prohibition Act
1990s-Women should occupy responsible positions in the social structure
2001- Women's Empowerment Year
2010- 1/3rd seats should be reserved for Women in parliament.

The chart above summarizes the position of women in Indian society at various points in
time. Some good Prospects

Lets talk about some of the good policy steps taken by our government in the area of
women empowerment.

Firstly, the move to reserve one-third seats in the parliament for women could probably
be the boldest and biggest step taken by Indian government in the area of women
empowerment. The bill, if passed would result in more than 180 seats in the lower
house occupied by women compared to less than 30 occupied currently. This might
also produce a “Trickle down effect” where even the state governments would pass a
similar bill to reserve 1/3rd seats for women in the State Legislatures.

Secondly, to provide integrated social empowerment of women, the government

initiated a scheme called as “Swayamsidha” in 2001 which helps them in establishing
self-reliant Women’s self help groups(SHG's) The objective is to achieve all-round
empowerment of women by ensuring direct access and control over resources. It helps
in creating confidence and awareness among the members of SHGs regarding health,
nutrition, education, hygiene and economic upliftment. A number of rural women have
already been benefited through this scheme and this project is one of the long term
strategic initiatives taken by the government in the area of women’s empowerment.

Another initiative is a program called as STEP(Support to Training and Employment

Program for Women). The objective of this program is to empower women by provide
sustainable employment opportunities. The project helps in upgrading their
skills(primarily in Agriculture, Dairy and Handlooms), forming viable groups, providing
access to credit facilities and arranging for marketing linkages . This program has
already made a significant impact in the lives of a number of women in the traditional
sectors. Many Tough Challenges

As we see, government is taking some concrete steps in empowering women by

helping women to help themselves and their families. But are these programs sufficient?
Are they brining about a change in the attitude of a patriarchic society? Here are some
bitter answers:

 The maternal mortality rate in India is the second highest in the world. India
accounts for more than 25% of all maternal deaths in the world.
 In a survey conducted by WHO, more than 80% of pregnant Indian women are
found to be anemic. This results in exceptionally high rates of child malnutrition.
Malnourished women give birth to malnourished children, perpetuating the cycle
 Only 39% of Indian women attend primary schools. Most families pull them out of
out of school, either to help out at home or from fear of violence.
 While women are guaranteed equality under the constitution, legal protection has
little effect in the face of prevailing patriarchal traditions. Women lack power to decide
who they will marry, and are often married off before they reach the age of 18.

As we see, the challenges we face in empowering women are far away from the
prospects of development programs initiated by our government. Though some of the
recent steps taken by the government seem to indicate that these are the right steps to
take, but what India really needs right now are sizable leaps! The move to reserve one-
third seats in the parliament is definitely one such.

As we progress from a developing nation towards a developed nation, every care must
be taken to compositely develop and empower women along the way to stand true to
what our great Jawaharlal Nehru said “You can tell the condition of a nation by looking
at the status of its women”!
Communal harmony and the internal security of India are
interlinked
Communalism is ‘the loyalty to a sociopolitical grouping based on religious or ethnic
affiliation rather than to society as a whole’. It is an ideology which takes three forms or
stages, one following the other. The first stage starts with a belief that those who follow
the same religion have common secular interests, that is, common political, economic,
social and cultural interests. The second stage is characterized by the notion that in a
multi-religious society like India, the secular interests of followers of one religion are
dissimilar and divergent from that of the followers of another religion. In the third stage it
is believed that the interests of the followers of different religions are mutually
incompatible, antagonistic and hostile.

The communist ideology in India went through all these stages during the freedom
struggle against the British. The hard earned, precious independence of India was won
after decades of glorious struggle but along with a bloody, tragic partition that ripped
apart the fabric of the emerging free nation. Thousands of lives were lost from both the
sides, that of the Hindus and the Muslims in the communal riots and being left with no
other alternative, a separate Muslim state of Pakistan was conceded. India was made a
secular country with provisions for protection of minority communities. Despite
precautionary and preventive measures having been taken, the communal legacy still
continues.

At the time of freedom and partition, it was believed by great leaders like Mahatma
Gandhi and Pandit Nehru that partition was a temporary phenomenon and once the
communist fervour subsides, a United and strong India would be formed. However,
contrary to their expectations, India and Pakistan stand apart as separate nations and
the fraught question of their bilateral relations remains unsolved till date. The disputed
State of Kashmir has been ravaged by violence, civilian casualties, damage of property,
curfew and the resulting disruption of normal life. Communal problem, which is the root
cause, with all its social, political and economic ramifications remains unabated even
today and bedevils the State.

With the passage of time, the path taken by communalism has changed. Earlier it was
the large scale communal riots, now it has taken the route of terrorism. Bomb blasts and
shooting attacks have rent asunder the major cities like Mumbai, New Delhi, Pune,
Ahmedabad and others. Hundreds of people were killed and thousands were maimed
and devastated. Authorities blame terror groups ranging from Islamic insurgents of
Kashmir to the Hindu terror groups in Maharashtra. Whatever the reason or religion
behind such activities be, the loss is to humanity as a whole. All the religions basically
preach love and the feeling of brotherhood towards fellow beings. It is only the parties
with vested interests that sow the seeds of communal hatred and violence in the minds
of people.
 “The mullahs of the Islamic world and the mullahs of the Hindu world and the
mullahs of the Christian world are all on the same side. And we are against them
all”.

–Arundhati Roy

India is a developing country, and the fourth largest economy in the world in terms of
purchasing power parity. The vision of our national leaders is to make India a
‘developed nation’ and an ‘economic superpower’. However, the internal security of the
nation is a pre-requisite for the attainment of this vision. As long as the communal
tensions inside the country do not ease, the internal security of the nation cannot be
ensured, despite the strength of the army or paramilitary employed to control the
situation. Once the communal tension inside the country subsides and India becomes
internally secure, then the problems in the bilateral relations between the twin nations of
India and Pakistan can be smoothly dealt with.

In order to strike at the base, that is, to bring about communal harmony, there must be
harmony in the minds of the people. ‘Aaman ki aasha’ is a voluntary initiative taken to
improve Indo-Pak relationship. Similar voluntary organizations that encourage
communal harmony should come up. Minorities complain that they are looked upon as
aliens and trouble-makers in their own land and the Majority community in turn puts the
blame on the Minorities. Mental revolution among people, considering the fellow citizens
as brethren is essential to bring about communal harmony in the country. The
communal harmony thus attained is a sine-qua-non for the internal security of the
country.

Only when the internal security is ensured can the nation embark on the path towards
development and economic advancement. Recently, the Allahabad High Court gave its
judgement regarding the Ayodhya controversy, dividing the disputed land into 3 parts
and distributing them among the three contesting parties involved, the Nirmohi Akhara,
the Sunni Central Board of Waqf and the Ramlalla Virajman. The peaceful air that
surrounded the country following the verdict, bodes well for the nation.
Globalization will kill Small-Scale Industries in India
Globalization is the metamorphosis of the individual nations into an integrated entity by
means of their interconnection on an economic, social and cultural level, fuelled by easy
transport and communication among them. It is the modern renaissance that makes
ideas, goods, services, trade, technology and culture permeate into the entire
geography of the world thus turning it into a global village.

While globalization is a large scale phenomenon, small scale enterprises are a local
phenomenon but having effects of dimensions as large as it’s global ‘friend and foe’.
Friend- because both globalization and small scale industries are the two wheels of the
vehicle of economic growth and prosperity; foe- because some argue that given the
developing nation that India is, Small Scale Industries(SSIs) can suffer and strangulate
to death by the fierce competition put up by globalization. Let us observe and decide.

Micro and small scale enterprises have existed in India since ages in the form of
traditional skills and knowledge based products made by people for the self sufficiency
of rural India. Today as per the government definition, “An industrial undertaking in
which the investment in fixed assets in plant and machinery whether held on ownership
terms on lease or on hire purchase does not exceed Rs. 10 million, can be categorized
as small scale undertaking”. After independence, the Indian government made various
laws to help revive and flourish the SSI because of the employment potential it had at a
low capital cost. It needed mediocre technical knowledge and minimal infrastructure to
set up. Thus it was and is the most ideal form of employment opportunity for both the
urban and rural population. It not only encourages entrepreneurship among people but
also makes them self reliant. Govt. funding, support and intensive promotion has aided
people to participate more in this successful phenomenon making SSI the second
largest employment sector after agriculture. It forms about 45-50% of our exports. The
products also form a large percentage of our domestic market too with SSI producing a
number of products like confectionaries, spices, beverages, natural essence oils, dyes,
sports goods, wooden furniture, glass, ceramic and earthen wares, cotton and woolen
knitted products, silk and synthetic wear, leather shoes, bags, garments and novelty
items, plastic items, survey instruments, auto parts, clocks and watches, musical
instruments, lab chemicals, basic metallic and non-metallic mineral products. They are
the dynamic sectors of our economy. It also leads to the preservation of many traditional
and indigenous skills and products our country is famous for. It is the road to rural
industrialization and ‘rural urbanization’ thus creating a regional balance.

India was self reliant and self sufficient but with the march of the world towards
industrialization India found its closed policy of trade leading to an impending economic
crisis. The main reason behind this was the focus of efforts on heavy industries and lack
of it on the consumption goods. From 1991 India witnessed a major change as the govt.
introduced liberalization, privatization and globalization reforms to pep up the economy.
Soon the world realized what a big 1billion-population-market India was. They brought
their goods to India which were mass produced and therefore cheaper and of better
quality than the local goods. They started challenging the SSI and thus posed an end to
them. Further with the introduction of Special Economic Zones (SEZs), the MNCs were
facilitated with areas with liberal economic and trade laws, round the clock facilities and
concessions to enhance foreign investments and promote exports. This endangered the
existence and survival of SSIs.

But this is not the complete picture. A lot of foreign entrepreneurs who do not have the
time or funds to build the infrastructure for their own manufacturing unit in India engage
a number of SSI owners to produce goods for them in a short span of time and sell
them to cater to the international demand. In other words they outsource the
manufacturing to the Indians. Thus it leads to more labour absorption and growth of
SSIs. Many of the SSIs have turned into LSIs this way. Also the demand for SSI goods
will never finish as a lot of their products are not lucrative options for the MNCs. For
example, the incense sticks or agarbatties, bangles, pickles, etc. are not a catch for
LSIs but have a constant demand and thus SSIs have a great opportunity in identifying
such areas.

So it can be said that both globalization and SSIs are the essentials of Indian economy
and India must make efforts to promote, sustain and aid both in a fair and unbiased
way. A fruitful measure would be to reserve certain goods for production exclusively by
the SSIs and their intelligent outsourcing by the govt. to ensure maximum benefits. Also
the govt. should advertise the indigenous goods worldwide so that the foreign folk also
go in for the ethnic items produced here like khadi, silk, wool, statues, gems,
ornaments, etc. as these represent the traditional art form and culture of the region. As
far as the financial aids are concerned, the govt. is doing good work to make things
simple and possible for the interested individuals by funding and financial support. Also
the setting up of institutes for technical training and skill enhancement of the workforce
is helping in a big way.

While globalization has put us on the map of superpower countries, SSIs have
empowered the common man to walk with the same stride as the big-wigs. For India to
be a superpower, it is must make efforts to strengthen each and every thread of its
economic fabric to make the flag of its success fly high.
White collar crimes are wide spread in society
White-collar crime and its consequences are recognized from centuries which
categorize number of crimes. Mostly business and government professionals are
involved in series of frauds termed as white-collar crime because these are lucrative,
comparatively risk-free, and nearly socially up to standard. Due to high occurrence of
these crimes, security officials plan modern technique to fight back through prevention,
investigation, and prosecution. When the term white-collar crime is conversed, people
are encouraged to think decisively about the nature of crime, law, and criminal justice.
In the criminal justice system, the focal point of the investigative efforts on the crimes of
the poor. If it is viewed from same legal eye of the state, the crimes of the powerful are
hidden. White-collar crime is defined as "those illegal acts which are characterized by
deceit, concealment, or violation of trust and which are not dependent upon the
application or threat of physical force or violence.

Individuals and organizations commit these acts to obtain money, property, or services;
to avoid the payment or loss of money or services; or to secure personal or business
advantage. Generally the white collar criminals commit range of frauds to get personal
financial gain. White collar crimes do not show any vicious activity, but the extent of
these crimes are intense and it can bring about great economic loss for companies,
investors. Computer fraud is characterized as the crime committed to perform a plan or
illegal activity and the targeting of a computer with the intention to modify, damage, or
put out of action the data of computer system. There are many examples of crimes
which include offering missing goods to a buyer, stealing someone's funds by hacking
into his bank or credit card account. Hackers find passwords and delete information,
create programs to steal passwords, or even rummage through company garbage to
find secret information. Embezzlement is another type of white collar crime, termed as
the misuse of items with which a person has been assigned. Charges of embezzlement
can even be levied if the embezzler intended to return the property later. Employee theft
is most common example of embezzlement. Company employees can have access to
company property so they can easily misuse the property. Numerous examples can be
quoted such as theft of retail items, discounted sale of retail items, and theft from cash
registers.

Health care frauds are a stereotypical white collar crime in which highly qualified
medical practitioners and health supervisory abuse their posts and professional skills
through misleading nonviolent tactics such as fake bills just for individual financial gain.
Environmental crimes are the infringement of laws which are made to protect the
environment and human health. Littering, Improper waste disposal, Oil spills,
Destruction of wetlands are some of the Environmental crimes. Perpetrator of
Environmental law violation is fined, put on experimentation, sent to jail. Financial
crimes are major white collar crimes. These are any non-violent felony that is committed
by or against an individual or corporation and lead to great fiscal loss. These frauds
include tax evasion, cheating of company funds, and the sale of fictitious insurance
plans.
Another category of serious white collar crime is government fraud, which is an unlawful
act that deliberately rid the government of funds through trickery. When the government
gets fiddled, taxpayers pay the price. Procurement and contractor fraud are examples of
costliest government fraud. In Identity theft the criminal use the personal information of
another in order to commit fraud. Crooks of this type of crime have to face heavy
penalties if trapped. Insurance fraud is very common in which offender forged claims to
an insurance company, personal injury and property damage claims that are overstated
in order to collect extra reimbursements. Mail fraud is committed by using Postal
Service or any private or commercial interstate mail carrier, such as Mailboxes, etc.
Money laundering is a felony in which lawbreakers hide the resource and objective of
illegitimately acquired funds. Public corruption is an act of violating the public official's
duty of faith towards his or her society. Anyone who is elected, appointed, hired, or
employee of a constituency of citizens commits crime on the state, or local level when
an official takes favorable decision in exchange of offered some value. Securities fraud
is committed by white collar criminal such as corporations, broker-dealers, analysts, and
private investors when the executor intentionally deceives investors for financial profits.
The culprit of tax evasion deliberately and illegally avoids paying mandatory taxes to the
government. Telemarketing fraud fall under white collar criminal in which wrongdoer
make some plan that uses telephone contact to fraudulently rid its victims of funds or
assets. The most regular type of telemarketing frauds are prize offers and sweepstakes,
magazine sales, credit card sales.

In today's hi-tech world, white collar crimes are creating a serious trouble for
government. People who commit white-collar crimes are sometimes the same kind of
people who are in a position to see to it that their crimes are not defined too detrimental.
While the impact of white-collar criminals leave an immense impact on the nation but
the cost to each individual is petite. Practically it is observed that no effort from police
department goes into skirmishing white-collar crime.

Our social system is corrupted by number of white collar crime and it is a great
challenge for us to discover suitable resolution to the increasing menace of white-collar
crime. These crimes are directly affecting the economy of the nation and the public's
confidence, therefore corrective action must be taken immediately for preventing,
detecting, investigating, and prosecuting economic crimes in order to minimize their
outcome. Main blockade to get to the bottom of the white-collar crime hazard is that the
public is not aware of its seriousness. It is more important to create wakefulness and
businesses, and the nation's lawmakers must be convinced with its significance in
identifying that such high-tech and economic crimes have an undesirable effect on
society. Mostly people are innocent and they are not aware of the degree to which their
lives, financial status, businesses, families, or privacy might be pretentious by electronic
crime. A rock-hard inspection or accounting background is obliging to detect white-collar
crime because swindlers are very clever and they can manipulate the situation very
well.
The New Child Labour Law
“The child is father of the man”- William Wordsworth

Child is a bundle of joys a flower incarnate in person. A flickering smile of the child pleases
everyone. The brightness and future welfare of the society is closely interwoven with the brightness
of the child and its careful upbringing. Childhood is the most important period of life, as it shapes
adulthood. The very initiation of life-making starts at childhood. The early lesson of the child starts
from the cradle. Parents adopt different methods to rear up the child in different ages, to make it a
happy man or woman later. The mother being closer, has a greater responsibility to train up the child
well from the very infancy.

If one desires to know a nation, he should look for it into its children. Child is not only the future of
the nation and its aspirations but also, and mainly, its strength in reserve. The future of nation is best
insured if its children are healthy and active, educated and informed, disciplined and trained, as well
as free from social prejudices, having a scientific outlook. It is, therefore a duty cast on the society at
large to protest this crop of nation from the damaging effects of excessive exposure to vagaries of
climate, as well as, from social oppression and injustice.

Talking all the aspects as a whole, the childhood is the most significant period of one’s life. It is
considered, and rightly so, to be the very foundation of life on which depends the entire structure the
whole personality as such child the father of man – is the natural future leader of the nation in every
walk of life, may it be industry, education, politics, social services, administration defence, civil
services or anything else. It is during this formative period of moulding that the life begins to acquire
shape and substance, and the attitudes, behaviours, manners and emotions do get developed.

Concept of Child Labour

The term ‘Child Labour‘ is, at times, used as a synonym for ‘employed child’ or ‘working child’. In this
sense it is co-extensive with any work done by a child for profit or reward. But more commonly than
not, the term ‘child labour’ is used in a derogatory sense. It suggests something which is hateful and
exploitative.

Thus, child labour is recognized by the sociologists, development workers, educationists and
medical professionals as hazardous and injurious to the child, both physically and mentally.

According to Shri. V.V.Giri, former president of India, has thus distinguished the two concepts of
the ‘child labour’s: the term ‘child labour’ is commonly interpreted in two different ways: first, as an
economic practice and secondly, as a social evil. In the first context it signifies employed of the
children in gainful occupations with a view to adding to the labour income of the family. It is in the
second context that the term child labour is now more generally used. In assessing the nature and
extent of the social evil, it is necessary to take into account the character of the jobs on which the
children are engaged, the dangers to which they are exposed and the opportunities of development
which they have been denied.”

The term ‘child labour’ applies to children engaged in all types of activities whether these be
industrial or non-industrial but which are determined to their physical, mental, moral and social well
being and development. The brain of a child develops anatomically till the age of ten, the lungs till
the age of fourteen and the muscles till the age of seventeen. Anything which obstructs the natural
growth of any or all of these vital organs should be considered as determinate to natural physical
growth, or even hazardous.

Some Historical Aspect on Child Labour in India

In ancient India it was the duty of the king to educate every girl and boy and parents could be
punished for not sending their children to school called ashrams, which were really residential
schools under a guru (a learned sage). Child labour existed only in the form of child slaves children,
sometimes even less than 8 years of age, were purchased, to do so-called low and dishonorable
work. Kautilya (4th century B.C) considered it degrading to make children work on such jobs and
hence prohibited the purchase and sale of slave children below 8 years.

Children, however, helped their parents in household activities and family crafts. They learnt the
skills by observing and participating in such activities. A predominantly rural society is inevitably
characterized by small and marginal economic units. India, through its medieval period, was no
exception. Increasing pressure on land led to fragmentation of holdings. Growing families had to look
beyond personal cultivation for subsistence. A class of landless labourers came into existence, often
bonded to the large landowners. These labourers used their children to help in their economic
activities. The rural artism rarely worked alone. Infact the entire family was a work unit with the ‘pater
familia’ being the master craftsman. Occupations were determined largely on the basis of heredity,
and children were introduced to their traditional craft at a young age.

Nature of Child Work

From time immemorial it has been the practice that children were to engage themselves in some sort
of work or the other, both in home and in the field. In olden days, children of tender age performed
even toilsome work alongwith adult agricultural and other workers. In the medieval period, children
used to be engaged as trainees under the guidance of their parents to learn traditional crafts of the
family.

In agriculture, children are employed not on agricultural operations but in non-agricultural operations
also. They are employed in such diverse agricultural operations as ploughing, sowing, transplanting,
weeding, harvesting threshing and guarding the crops, etc.

In plantations, child labour is a part of family labour. They assist their parents in plucking of leaves
and coffee berries, or collecting of latex, or they do some secondary jobs, such as, weeding,
spreading of fertilizers, the care of nurseries, digging of drains, etc. they are also employed to pick
out stalks and coarse leaves of tea spread over the green leaves in the shadow.

There is also an increasing concern about the accident and disease incident among child agricultural
workers, controls on hazardous insecticides and pesticides are deficient and neither the children nor
their parents receive any instruction as how to use them safely. The same is true of mechanical
operations.

Children in cities perform much larger varieties of activities than those in villages because of the
extensively diversified structure of urban economics. Often, children are employed for packing,
labeling, etc., in the factories. Other industries in which children are engaged are match factories,
bidi manufacturing, mica cutting, wood and cork, furniture and fixture, printing, publishing and allied
trades, leather products, rubber and rubber products, machinery, transport equipment, lock factories,
gem cutting and polishing, potteries, glass bangle industries, brass work, carpet industries and
personal services like laundaries, deying and cleaning.

Millions of small boys and girls are engaged in the unorganized sector, comprising hotels,
restaurants, canteens, wayside ‘dhabas’, shops, repair workshop, and establishments of various
types. They also work as hawkers, coolies, shoe-shine boys and venders. In big cities, children can
be seen cleaning and washing automobiles just for a trip. The bigger the city, the higher is the
persistent demand for teenagers to work as domestic servants and it is there that they are often
subjected to worst types of exploitation without any means of protections-legal or social on the
kitchen floor and are, as a rule, not permitted to attend school. Sexual abuse is also reported to be
frequent.

In a good number of occupations child worker is invariably exposed to risks of various nature
because of his tender age. For instance, he is likely to suffer burn injuries while working round about
big ovens, or while carrying hot beverages; the newspaper hawkers and shoe-shine boys are
exposed to the risk of road accident; rag-pickers may get cut injuries from glass pieces or broken tin
cans; or the child working on construction sites alongwith his parents may sustain injuries while
carrying brick or stone loads.

Interestingly, children are sometimes also employed as performing artists. They are given roles in
films, and in circus they perform acrobatic feats, Magicians and jugglers use them as ‘Jamura’ (the
helping boy) and they are also used by them for arousing public sympathy at wayside shows for
alms.

Some writers and social workers are of the view that begging is a major field of operations where
children are put to work. Mrs. Sengupta has observed.:
“Our seething millions where child employment is rife and has become a various form of exploitation
….. begging is becoming a real profession and there are scaring rumours that gangsters and
syndicates of inhuman beings trade in human babies and children. Certainly the mother clad in a rag
and clutching a baby in her arms is a sight that is shameful. Children are drugged or even, one
hears, tortured. To see pavement dwellers in all their horrors living in filth, children picking up
rejected and popping food mixed with filth into their mouths makes one feel desperate: but no one
seem to do prevent from flaunting drugged babies or little tots on the road and to use them for
employment purposes.”

Curiously, some well to do urban families, having connections in the country-side, take in some child
of a poor relative, ostensibly, for supporting the child out of sympathy for the for the poor relatives,
but he or she eds up as a domestic servant with no opportunity for education.

It has been also discovered that a sizable number of children ranging between 5 to 12 years of age
had actually been kidnapped from different places to weave carpets and were forced to work for as
long as 22 hours a day. These children treated like virtual slaves, were found to bear scar marks of
torture. They were, reportedly, severely beaten even with iron rods, if they were deficient in work or
committed errors in weaving.

The most nefarious rather barbarian form of child exploitation is the practice of bonded labour. The
child is handed over by the loaner as security or collateral security against small sums of loan
obtained at an exorbitant rate of interest. The bonded child usually gets only a handful of coarse
grain for his subsistence. He has to toil very hard and exists at the mercy of his lord for the whole of
life without the least hope of redemption. The mortgagee is usually some big landlord, money –
lender or the village businessman and the mortgager is the poor landless labourer. Through this
practice is prevalent in many parts of rural India, it is predominant in Vellore district of Tamil Nadu
but with a distinguishing feature that there the bonded child is allowed to stay with his parents on the
condition that he must present him self at work daily at 8 a.m. The practice of bounded labour is still
prevalent dispite stringent laws against it which provide for imprisonment of, and imprisonment of,
and imposition of fine on, the guilty.

Causes Of Child Labour

Child labour is a socio-economic phenomenon. It is generally concerned that illiteracy, ignorance,

low wages, unemployment, poor standard of living, stark poverty, deep social prejudices and
appalling backwardness of the country-side are all, severally and collectively, the root causes of
child labour. Mr Madan, Deputy Director, Ministry of Labour, is of the view that “the children are
required to seek employment either to augment the income of their families or to have a gainful
occupation in the absence of availability of school going facilities at various places.”

It has been officially stated that, “child labour is no longer a medium of economic exploitation but is
necessitated by economic necessity of the parents and in many cases that of the child
himself.” Prof. Gangrade believes that child labour is a product of such factors as customs,
traditional attitude, lack of school or reluctance of parents to send their children to school,
urbanization, industrialization, migration and so on.

Age Limit

The Indian constitution in its article 24 lays down that, “No child below the age of 14 years shall be
employed to work in any factory or mine or engaged in any other hazardous employment.” The
abuse of the tender age can be stopped by bringing these vast unorganized sectors under legislative
control. We see that children employed in different occupations and different states are subject to
different set of regulations and treatment. But our primary interest is to save the tender aged children
from health risks, hazardous and other forms of exploitation. The complex socio-economic
conditions in different social milieu may not advocate the uniform age limit. But this should not rule
out the possibility of acceptance of age uniformity, though child labour (Prohibitions and Regulation)
Act has brought about much needed uniformity in certain cases. Not only in our country, but also in
almost all other countries of the world the non-uniformity of age regulation is still in existence. The
most widely covered and most strictly regulated sector is industry. Fifty-four of the member countries
for which such information is available, have fixed the minimum age for industrial employment at 14.
A higher age – 15 or 16 is the general rule in another forty-five and a lower one -12 or 13 – in just
over a dozen. In case of non-industrial employment national laws and regulations are naturally
extremely diverse. The majority of countries have, in principle, a uniform minimum age of 14, 15 or
16 years for all employment (disregarding agriculture for the moment).

But in our country where dire poverty is manifest in every walk of life what will be the minimum age
for child labour? The International Labour Organization in its Convention No. 138 (1973), in Article 3
had clearly stated, “The minimum age for admission to any type of employment or work which by its
nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out is likely to jeopardise the health, safety or
morals of young persons shall not be less than 18 years.” If India ratifies this convention, millions of
children will be thrown out of employment. In the present socio-economic condition in the country it
is difficult to prescribe the minimum age. It will make the problem of unemployment and poverty
more acute. But for the sake of uplifting the future standards of employment as well as to protect the
children from such abuse of their tender age, at least we can appeal to our government to provide
free and compulsory education to every child up to the age of 14 years. The law –makers must keep
in mind the recommendation of the Convention No. 138. age limits should be gradually raised to a
level consistent with the fullest physical and mental growth and development of child workers as
recommended by the International Labour Organization to save the children from the clutches of
social injustice and deprivation and to ensure for them a happy normal growth in the national interest
of every country.

Hours of Work

The health and efficiency of the workers depend mostly on the hours of work. Long hours of work
are harmful not only for moral and physical development, but also retard efficiency. Considering our
climate and geophysical conditions the hours of work should be lowered. The long working days
minimize the working life. So it is less productive in the long run. Shorter working days are also less
productive, but it provides more employment. The socio-economic conditions of India demands
shorter working hours. The tender age of the working children should be protected from the
onslaught of rigorous working hours. The environment of the working places, such as, hotels,
restaurants, tea-stalls, and sweet-shops is most uncongenial to the development of the child. But the
working children devote 16 to 20 hours daily to serve the clients.

According to the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, no child shall be permitted to
work more than a period of 6 hours inclusive one hours rest in one day. Moreover short working
hours, with rest intervals would enable the child workers to perform their duties efficiently and
happily. The most surprising thing is that the employer hardly takes any care to make a difference
between the child and the adult worker. Naturally working children become the victim of exploitation.
Working hour should be restricted in such a way that they may be permitted to part time education.
The most striking thing is that no special provision have been made regarding the condition of work,
conservancy services whole- some drinking water, medical facilities, accident benefits, rest, etc., for
the child workers. They should enjoy the same facilities like the adult workers.

Implementation of Schemes

Our constitution provides, as a fundamental right, that no child below the age of fourteen years shall
be employed in any factory, or mine, or be engaged in any other hazardous occupation. Once Dr.
Rajendra Prasad had remarked, “We might search our hearts and ask ourselves whether we have
done everything possible to implement this directive.”

According to the report of the National Commission on Labour, the employment of children in
factories, mines, plantations or in other organized sectors has been decreasing. However, this report
adds that it continues to persist in varying degrees in the unorganized sector, such as, small
plantations, restaurants, hotels, cotton ginning and weaving, carpet weaving, stone breaking, brick
kiln, handicrafts and road building, etc. Employment of children, who are below the prescribed age,
was also reported to be continuing at far off places and in rural areas where enforcement of statutory
provisions was all the more difficult.

The real enforcement lies in the implementation. The positive side of implementation is that law
should have and validity. The greedy employers do not care the existing laws. Like all other
countries several industrial activities such as manufacturing, mines, construction and various kind of
transport are dealt with by separate laws and regulations. On the other hand the immature children
are in the dark about legal protection. Like all laws should be properly administered. The essential
feature of the administration of labour law is inspection. A peculiar feature is that the employer
always tries to draw a screen before the inspector. Inspector hardly gets any opportunity to identify
the child for verify his age and the other working conditions. Children do not come openly to the
inspector to report about their grievances.

International Labour Organization and Child Labour

The basic aim of the ILO to abolish Child Labour altogether is yet a distant goal in view of the
present economic setup of the World. It has taken measures to protect the working children and to
ameliorate their working and living conditions and to impart job-based education. The United Nations
declaration of the rights of the child says:

“The child shall enjoy special protection and shall be given opportunities and facilities, by
law and by other means, to enable him to develop physically, mentally, spiritually and
socially in a healthy and normal manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity. In the
enactment of laws for this purpose the best interests of the child shall be the paramount
consideration.”
It further states that: “the child shall be protected against all forms of neglect, cruelty and
exploitation. He shall not be the subject of traffic, in any form. The child shall not be admitted
to employment before an appropriate minimum age; he shall in no case be caused or
permitted to be engaged in any occupations or employment which would prejudice his health
or education, or interfere with his physical, mental or moral development.”

Best blessings on those

Little, innocent lives
Bloomed on earth,
Who have brought the message
Of joy from heavenly garden
- Rabindra Nath Tagore

It is the bounded duty of the country to provide for atleast free primary education for all children. One
must remember that the industrialization can wait but youth does not last long. This right to primary
education must be for all the present time, and not a dubious or ambiguous must be for the present
for some defined future. The basic guarantees of our Constitutional must be fulfilled here and now.

Therefore, so far as the projects for development of human resources are concerned, the
programme for welfare of children must be given top priority. It is only in this way that children can
be trained to be good future citizen, mentally alert and prosperous. We should aim at providing
proper and equal opportunities for development to all children in the light of the above mentioned
constitutional directives. It is only then that we can fulfill our aspirations and achieve our objectives of
social justice and equality enshrined in our constitution.
Deforestation: Major environmental problem
Deforestation is a main environmental concern in the world. Deforestation includes the
cutting down, burning, and destructing of forests. Numerous researches suggests that
deforestation may be the first link in a chain of environment degradation that includes
erosion, climatic changes, loss of biodiversity and genetic endowment, air pollution,
decline in watershed functions, and the apparent loss of hardwood, fuel wood, and
aesthetic stocks.

Population explosion is major basis for decline of the rain forests. These forests are
being cut down at a petrifying rate to supply man with lumber, pasture land, and farm
land. The outcome of such human activities is deforestation; the world's most valuable
environment is being ruined. Plants and animals life is gradually diminishing as the
natural habitats are bested. Deforestation occurs because people need land for
agricultural. Large companies clear vast amounts of land, often for cattle pastures to fill
the beef market. They also use the land for large plantations and use pesticides and
irrigation systems that are very harmful to the land. The chemicals which are used to
destroy pests also kill other animals and cause a lot of damage to surrounding areas.
The rain washes the chemicals into the water system killing the aquatic life. The use of
Land in such a way affects negatively the surrounding areas. It also can take centuries
to re-grow.

There is solid cause of deforestation which is mainly related to a competitive global

economy. It forces countries to utilize their only resource for funds. This process takes
place at local and national level. Locally, people use land for farming to generate
income because of poverty and population growth. Nationally, governments sell logging
concessions to cover debts and develop industries. People are using their rainforests
only for a short-term solution and could not assess the long term effects of their
distractive activities. It is predicted that half the rain in tropical countries comes from
evaporation of moisture from the covering of the trees. As trees and plants are
destroyed, the moist awning of the tropical rain forest rapidly reduces. Evaporation and
Evapotranspiration processes from the trees and plants return large quantities of water
to the local atmosphere, promoting the formation of clouds and precipitation. Due to less
evaporation, more of the Sun's energy is able to warm the surface and the air above
which leads to increase in temperatures and the drying of land. Today, it is novel
policies and program of development; rapid industrialization, urbanization and growing
consumerism that have resulted in the large scale destruction of the forests. Due to the
difficulty of deforestation, a major environmental issue, many clashes have arisen
between environmental activist groups and those concerned in deforestation activities.
The solutions to crisis of deforestation lie in dealing with the root cause. To resolve the
issue, experts have to consider the economic problems that lie at the heart of the
situation. Many proposals have been offered such as sustainable wood sources. If
deforestation continues at its current rate then in just 100 years, there will be no more
rainforests left at all and people will be the most sufferers.
Governments and environmentalists are facing major challenge- what steps must be
taken to stop deforestation so that current environmental conditions would not get
poorer. Scarcity and over population are main causes which alarms to governments.
Policies must be made to overcome such problems so that we can save our forest and
animals. Environmentalists and forestry supporters have been telling people and
governments to instantly act on the problem regarding continued deforestation practices
all around the world. Deforestation could be gradually stopped if people would be more
environmentally mindful. That means, to speed up efforts in stopping deforestation. We
must start participating in recycling programs. Governments should also implement
legislations that would successfully prevent the deforestation process. Government
must encourage reforestation which is the sought-after healing process

Everyone must understand that rainforest are splendid, exceptional gift of nature on our
valuable Earth. If preventive measures are not taken immediately to stop the effects of
deforestation, humans will be under grip of severe crisis. They may lose animals, plants,
and there are great possibilities for dreaded diseases that are killing off our own race.
All people must join their hands to work out a plan that is appropriate for businesses,
governments, and most importantly the environment. Another important threat to human
is that deforestation leads not only to species annihilation but also to loss of the genetic
diversity that could help certain species adjust to a changing world. People are well
familiar with the environmental crisis which can happen due to deforestation. Still they
are destroying speedily.

The effects of deforestation can be devastating. It can lose the land of its natural
aesthetic. In coming years, dangerous consequences will be visible. Deforestation can
damage to the environment, usually stemming from its ability to cause land erosion.
When an area is cleared, the soil under the surface is essentially stripped of the roots
that provided it structural integrity and support. Without this support, the force of water,
gravity, or both can cause the land to move, either as one piece, or more commonly,
steadily and incrementally. Soil erosion due to deforestation is the main cause of Costa
Rica's environmental calamity such as flooding, desertification and sedimentation in
rivers, long-term hydroelectric shortages, loss of wildlife diversity, and the obvious
depletion of the wood resources. Such a severe climate change can be arrested
through reducing tropical deforestation. Deforestation bans and moratoria can
effectively work if implemented properly.

Deforestation of is a severe environmental destruction which can not be revived if

damaged at current rate. People cut down trees to meet out their own need without
considering future outcome. They do not recognize about the damage they are doing.
The deforestation affects the plant life. People have general impression that if trees are
cuts down, it will grow back in a few years. Plants will ultimately grow back, but the
forest will be changed into a secondary forest and may never be the same