CSIPASS,Puthiyara(A Fellowship of CSI Puthiyara Church members.(CALICUT(Kozhikode)-4,Kerala,South INDIA).This is a Registered SOCIAL SOCIETY ORGANIZATION under the Indian Societies Act, working for Social Justice,rights and benefits of church members and engaged in Social Work. We are not against any Laymen,Bishops,Priests or Church workers.But we are here to expose the people who give disregard to the Laws of the Land.
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Monday, October 20, 2014
Lynching of boy underlines how the curse of caste still blights India
Sai Ram, burned alive because of a stray goat, was just one of 17,000 Dalits to fall victim to caste violence in the state of Bihar
In another time, another place, Sai Ram might have escaped serious harm. But he died in great pain last week, a casualty of a bitter, barely reported conflict that still claims many lives every year.
Ram, 15, was a goatherd in a village in the poor eastern Indian state of Bihar. He was a Dalit, from the lowest rung of the caste hierarchy that still defines the lives, and sometimes the deaths, of millions of people in the emerging economic power.
His alleged killer, currently being held by local police, is from a higher landowning caste. He took offence when one of the teenager’s goats strayed on to his paddy field and grazed on his crops. Ram was overpowered by the landowner and a group of other men. He was badly beaten.
Then petrol was poured over him and lit, Ram’s father, Jiut Ram, said. “He was crying for help, then went silent,” the 50-year-old daily wage labourer told the Guardian.
The incident took place at Mohanpur village, about 125 miles (200km) south-west of Bihar’s capital, Patna, in an area known for caste tensions. It was the latest in a series of violent incidents that have once again highlighted the problems and discrimination linked to caste, particularly in lawless and impoverished rural areas.
Earlier this month, five Dalit women were allegedly gang-raped by upper-caste men in central Bihar’s Bhojpur district. In September, hundreds of Dalit families were forced from their homes in two other districts of Bihar after a man from the community tried to contest a local election against higher caste candidates.
Several political, social and economic factors usually lie behind such upsurges in caste-related violence. One reason for Bihar’s recent incidents may be the appointment in May of Jitan Ram Manjhi, a Dalit, as the chief minister of the state.
Since taking power Manjhi has announced measures to help other Dalits in Bihar, one of India’s poorest states, and is reported to have urged the community to have more children to become a more powerful political force.
Dalits account for some 15% of Bihar’s population of 103.8 million.
The chief minister’s call was not well received by members of other castes, local observers said.
Sachindra Narayan, a prominent Patna-based social scientist with the National Human Rights Commission in Delhi, said: “The prime reason [for the violence] is that [Dalits] feel empowered after seeing someone from their community at the head of the state and have begun to assert their rights. This is purely a retaliation from the dominant social groups.”
Manjhi claims a temple in northern Bihar was ritually cleaned and idols washed with holy water after his visit to the shrine. Such ceremonies are still performed by upper castes to eradicate “pollution” left by lower-caste visitors.
“A deep-rooted bias prevails against … those from the downtrodden sections of society … I have myself been a victim of caste bias,” the 70-year-old said.
Opponents claim Manjhi was stoking caste tensions for political advantage.
In the vast neighbouring state of Uttar Pradesh, caste is also a major political issue, with power contested by two parties that broadly represent two different caste communities. That of Mayawati explicity campaigns for Dalits, while the ruling Samajwadi party is seen by many as representing the Yadavcommunity, once pastoralists.
Caste became a factor in recent national elections too. The prime minister, Narendra Modi, comes from a poor family from the lower-caste Ghanchicommunity, which is associated with selling oil. His rise from humble origins to leader of 1.25 billion people has inspired many – but also provoked scorn from elite politicians who have mocked his background.
The origins of caste are contested. Some point to ancient religious texts, others to rigid classifications of more local definitions of community and identities by British imperial administrators. The word “caste” is of Portuguese origin.
Regardless of its origins, the word still has the power to stir controversy. Arundhati Roy, the Booker prize-winning author, recently accused Mahatma Gandhi, India’s revered independence leader, of discrimination and called for institutions bearing his name to be renamed because of his attitude to caste.
She said: “It is time to unveil a few truths about a person whose doctrine of nonviolence was based on the acceptance of the most brutal social hierarchy ever known, the caste system … Do we really need to name our universities after him?”
Sociologists say the rapid urbanisation of India has weakened the caste system as the realities of living in overcrowded Indian cities make reinforcing social separation and discrimination through rituals or violence much harder.
But if change is coming to places like rural Bihar, it is often accompanied by violence.
Last October a roadside bomb killed Sunil Pandey, a landowner who was alleged to be a senior figure in a militia formed in 1994 to enforce the interests of higher castes in the state, but which has been largely dormant recently.
The Ranvir Sena militia, formed by men of the Bhumihar caste of landlords, is held responsible for a series of massacres of Dalits in the 1990s. These murders, in effect reprisals against local Maoist guerrillas, who have also killed many, reached a bloody climax with the deaths of 58 men, women and children with no connection to extremism in the village of Lakshman Bathe in 1998. Ranvir Sena and Pandey were blamed.
Last year 24 men had their convictions for that massacre overturned by Bihar’s high court, prompting renewed clashes.
The authorities have pledged rapid justice for Ram, the 15-year-old burned to death last week. But of nearly 17,000 pending trials in Bihar involving charges of violence against Dalits only a 10th were dealt with last year.
“We are going to … start speedy trial of the case,” Chandan Kumar Kushwaha, the local superintendent of police, said, while the chief minister told reporters he was taking a personal interest in the case.
“I have talked to the state’s director general of police and district superintendent of police concerned, and ordered them to … deliver instant justice to the victim [sic] family,” Manjhi said.
For the teenager’s father, nothing can compensate for the death of his son. “My entire world is lost now,” he said.
crtsy-The guardian
Thursday, October 16, 2014
അന്ധവിശ്വാസത്തിന്റെ ചുരുളഴിച്ച് സയന്സ് മിറാക്കിള് ഷോ-BEMGHSS,Calicut
on 17-October-2014
കോഴിക്കോട്: "ഈ സ്കൂളിന്റെ സ്ഥാനം ശരിയല്ല... വാസ്തുവിദ്യപ്രകാരം ഇവിടെ ഒരു വിദ്യാഭ്യാസ സ്ഥാപനം നിര്മിക്കാന് പാടില്ല...'-ക്ലാസെടുക്കാന് വന്ന അധ്യാപകന് തറപ്പിച്ച് പറഞ്ഞപ്പോള് വിദ്യാര്ഥികള് അമ്പരന്നു. തുടര്ന്ന് അധ്യാപകന് സ്കൂള് പരിസരത്തെ കുറച്ച് മണ്ണെടുത്ത് അതില് പച്ചവെള്ളമൊഴിച്ചു. മണ്ണ് ആളിക്കത്താന് തുടങ്ങിയപ്പോള് വിദ്യാര്ഥികളുടെ മുഖത്ത് വീണ്ടും അത്ഭുതം. മണ്ണ് കത്തിയത് വാസ്തു തെറ്റിയതുകൊണ്ടല്ലെന്നും അതിനു പിന്നില് ശാസ്ത്രതത്വമാണെന്നും അധ്യാപകന് തന്നെ വിശദീകരിച്ചു. മണ്ണിനടയില് ഒളിപ്പിച്ച കാത്സ്യം കാര്ബൈഡും സോഡിയവും ചേര്ന്നുണ്ടായ രാസപ്രവര്ത്തനമായിരുന്നു തീയുണ്ടാവാന് കാരണം. ബിഇഎം ഗേള്സ് ഹയര് സെക്കന്ഡറി സ്കൂളിലാണ് ഈ രംഗം. ശാസ്ത്രസാഹിത്യ പരിഷത്തിന്റെ ശാസ്ത്രബോധ ക്യാമ്പയിനിന്റെ ഭാഗമായി നടത്തുന്ന "സയന്സ് മിറാക്കിള് ഷോ'യുടെ ജില്ലാതല ഉദ്ഘാടനത്തോടനുബന്ധിച്ചാണ് വിദ്യാര്ഥികളെ വിസ്മയത്തിലാക്കുന്ന പരിപാടി അരങ്ങേറിയത്. അന്ധവിശ്വാസങ്ങളുടെ പിറകിലെ ശാസ്ത്രതത്വങ്ങളുടെ അനാവരണമായിരുന്നു ഇത്. ഹൈസ്കൂള് വിദ്യാര്ഥികളുടെ പാഠ്യഭാഗങ്ങളിലുള്ള കാര്യങ്ങള് ഉള്ക്കൊള്ളിച്ചാണ് ഷോ ഒരുക്കിയത്. ശാസ്ത്രതത്വത്തെ അന്ധവിശ്വാസത്തില് പൊതിഞ്ഞാണ് പൊതുജനങ്ങളെ മന്ത്രവാദികള് കബളിപ്പിക്കുന്നതെന്ന് ഷോയിലൂടെ വിദ്യാര്ഥികള് മനസ്സിലാക്കി. മന്ത്രവാദികള് സത്യം തെളിയിക്കാനുപയോഗിക്കുന്ന കുപ്പിമാജിക് സയന്സ് ക്ലാസില് പഠിച്ച പാസ്കല് നിയമത്തിന്റെ പ്രായോഗികരീതിയാണെന്നും പരിപാടിയില് വിശദീകരിച്ചു. ദിവ്യന്മാര് കര്പ്പൂരം കത്തിച്ച് വായില് ഇട്ടു കാണിക്കുന്നത് ആര്ക്കും ചെയ്യാമെന്നും വ്യക്തമാക്കി. ദിവ്യന്മാരുടെ പൊള്ളത്തരം വ്യക്തമാക്കാന് പത്താംക്ലാസ് വിദ്യാര്ഥി സാനിയ സുല്ത്താന കത്തിച്ച കര്പ്പൂരം വായിലിട്ടപ്പോള് സദസില് ഉയര്ന്നത് കരഘോഷം. ജില്ലാ പഞ്ചായത്ത് പ്രസിഡന്റ് കെ ജമീല ഉദ്ഘാടനം ചെയ്തു. സ്കൂള് ഹെഡ്മിസ്ട്രസ് വത്സല ജോണ് അധ്യക്ഷയായി. പരിഷത് സംസ്ഥാന കമ്മിറ്റി അംഗം മണലില് മോഹനന് സ്വാഗതവും ജില്ലാ പ്രസിഡന്റ് കെ പ്രഭാകരന് നന്ദിയും പറഞ്ഞു. പി പ്രസാദ്, എ സുരേഷ്, യു പി നാസര്, എ സുരേന്ദ്രന്, പി ശ്രീനിവാസന്, സത്യപാലന് എന്നിവരുടെ നേതൃത്വത്തിലുളള സംഘമാണ് സ്കൂളുകളില് സയന്സ് മിറാക്കിള് ഷോ സംഘടിപ്പിക്കുന്നത്. ജില്ലയില് 130 സ്കൂളുകള് ഇതിനകം രജിസ്റ്റര് ചെയ്തിട്ടുണ്ട്. ബുധനാഴ്ച പേരാമ്പ്ര ഗവ. എച്ച്എസ്എസിലാണ് പരിപാടി.
Sunday, October 12, 2014
‘Missionaries yet to get due honour’-Writer Na D"souza
Despite laudable contributions in the field of education and health, Christian Missionaries are yet to get due respect and honour in the country, writer Na D’souza has said.
Inaugurating the bicentenary celebrations of Basel Mission at the Baselion auditorium here on Sunday, Mr. Na D’souza claimed that Christian missionaries were instrumental in sensitising the Indian people to the significance of education in their lives.
Elaborating on the arrival of missionaries in the country and their work in providing education to people by opening schools and colleges, Mr. Na D’souza said that missionaries established schools for girls only with the objective of providing them education when they found that people were reluctant to send girls to co-education schools.
He said that missionaries also provided a voice to the widows, opened hospitals, orphanages and old age homes for the poor and the oppressed.
He recalled the contribution of various missionaries who to Kannada literature, art and culture.
Paper
A.V. Navada presented a paper, “Contribution of Basel Missionaries to Kannada language and Literature”, while Rev. Ratnakar Sadananda spoke on the “Contribution of Basel Missionaries to medical and educational field”.
Presiding over the function, Bishop of Karnataka Northern Diocese Reverend Ravikumar J. Niranjan spoke on the significance of the celebrations. Heads of various dioceses were present. The bicentenary celebrations began earlier with a ‘Thanksgiving workshop Service’ at Hebich Memorial Church where Reverend G .Dyvasiravadam, Rt. Rev. Thomas K. Oommen, Rev. Rathnakar Sadanand, advocate Robert Bruce, Rt. Rev. John S. Sadanand, Rt. Rev. Baker Ninan Fenn and Rt. Rev. Timothy Ravinder took part.
Basel Mission bicentenary
celebrations begin
crtsy.The Hindu
Friday, October 10, 2014
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
BASEL MISSSION 200-MISSION MOVES
As we know, Basel Mission is one the foremost missionary organizations worked in South India and contributed significantly to the life of the Church and the Society in our country. Since 2015 is the bicentenary of the establishment of the Basel Mission in Basel, the CSI Synod has decided to have a yearlong celebration to thank God for the life and work of the missionaries from Basel Mission and their contributions to various spheres of our society. The Basel Mission 200 will be celebrated with the theme "Mission moves"
The celebration will begin with the inaugural function organized by the CSI Karnataka Northern Diocese at Dharwad on Sunday 12th October 2014. The festivities will begin with a Thanksgiving Service arranged at 8.30 a.m. at the CSI Hebich Memorial Church, Dharwad followed by a Seminar on the contributions of Basel Mission to the Society. The Moderator the Most Rev. Dr. G. Dyvasirvadam will inaugurate the celebration and preach the Word of God in the Thanksgiving Service, and the Deputy Moderator, the General Secretary, and Hon. Treasurer of the Synod and other dignitaries will also participate in the Service. There will also be a cultural show arranged in the evening of the same day.
An International Seminar will be organized in Mangalore during the month of February-March 2015 hosted by the Karnataka Southern Diocese. We will also arrange a mobile photo exhibition showcasing the mission and ministry of Basel Mission in our country which will tour the Dioceses of North Karnataka, South Karnataka, North Kerala and Coimbatore between February and September 2015. The Grand Finale of the Celebrations will be held in Calicut in October 2015 and hosted by the North Kerala Diocese.
Rt. Rev. Timothy Ravinder, Bishop in Coimbatore Diocese will be then Convener and Rev. Dr. Royce Manoj Victor, CSI-EMS Liaison Officer will be the Co-ordinator of the year-long Celebration, Basel Mission 200.
You are cordially invited to attend the inaugural function at Dharwad and participate in the festivities.
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