Know Your India

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satyam
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Re: Know Your India

Post by satyam »

Acute poverty in 8 Indian states: new UNDP measure

http://www.business-standard.com/india/ ... /101089/on
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Re: Know Your India

Post by SwamyG »

^^^^
Psy-ops, hidden agenda or whatnot; it is a bad report on our leadership.
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Re: Know Your India

Post by svinayak »

satyam wrote:Acute poverty in 8 Indian states: new UNDP measure

http://www.business-standard.com/india/ ... /101089/on
Few hundered cr investment in few district of these states will change the picture dramatically. Poorest dist should be targeted with investment in health, education and small scale industry and this will change the lives of those people very much.

I am working with an MP from my dist. This MP has already created water source which was not done for 50 years in those taluk. With no water in that taluk the girls in those village were not getting any marriage alliance and also nobody wanted to come to those taluk. Borewell was giving only yellow brackish water.

Water was being transported from TUngabadra dam to other places in AP nearby but this taluk was not getting any water.
Last edited by svinayak on 12 Jul 2010 21:16, edited 1 time in total.
Rahul M
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Re: Know Your India

Post by Rahul M »

true but they have taken significant liberties with truth. for one it's the poorest nations of africa, not all of it. secondly the total population also needs to be compared. it's like saying 'India has the (2nd) largest number of dying people per day', well no wonder, we have the second highest population ! there are far better ways of gauging the situation than sensationalist garbage.
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Re: Know Your India

Post by Murugan »

Plastic Surgery and Inoculation were practiced by Ayurvedic Doctors before these were claimed to be originated in UKstan.

UKstani's account of late 18th century.

from IISc's Digital Library of India website, Indian Journal of History of Scienc 17(1); 154-163

http://www.new.dli.ernet.in/rawdatauplo ... f6_154.pdf
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Re: Know Your India

Post by Carl_T »

I know rhinoplasty was a known technique, what other forms of plastic surgery were known?

One big advance was using brass and silver instruments.
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Re: Know Your India

Post by Murugan »

Sushrut Samhita is a major work on Ayurvedic Medicines and Surgery

Wiki Source

Contents
The Sushruta samhita is in two parts, the Purva-tantra in five sections and the Uttara-tantra. Those two parts together encompass, apart from Salya and Salakya, the other specialities like medicine, pediatrics, geriatrics, diseases of the ear, nose, throat and eye, toxicology, aphrodisiacs and psychiatry. Thus the whole Samhita, devoted as it is to the science of surgery, does not fail to include the salient portions of other disciplines too. In fact, Sushruta emphasises in his text that unless one possesses enough knowledge of relevant sister branches of learning, one cannot attain proficiency in one's own subject of study. The Samhita is thus an encyclopaedia of medical learning with special emphasis on Salya and Salakya. The Sutra-sthana, Nidana-sthana, Sarira-sthana, Kalpa-sthana and Chikitsa-sthana are the five books of the Purvatantra containing one hundred and twenty chapters. Incidentally, the Agnivesatantra known better as the Charaka Samhita and the Ashtanga Hridayam of Vagbhata also contain one hundred and twenty chapters in all. The Nidana-sthana gives the student the knowledge of aetiology, signs and symptoms of important surgical diseases and those ailments, which have a bearing on surgery. The rudiments of embryology and anatomy of human body along with instructions for venesection (cutting of veins), the positioning of the patient for each vein, and protection of vital structures (marma) are dealt with in the Sarira-sthana. This also includes the essentials of obstetrics. Principles of management of surgical conditions including obstetrical emergencies are contained in the Chikitsa-sthana, which also includes a few chapters on geriatrics and aphrodisiacs. The Kalpa-sthana is mainly Visa-tantra, dealing with the nature of poisons and their management. Thus the Purva-tantra embraces four branches of Ayurveda. The Uttara-tantra, contains the remaining four specialities, namely Salakya, Kaumarabhrtya, Kayacikitsa and Bhutavidya. The entire Uttara-tantra has been called Aupadravika since many of the complications of surgical procedures like fever, dysentery, cough, hiccough, krmi-roga, pandu, kamala, etc., are briefly described here. The Salakya-tantra portion of the Uttara-tantra contains various diseases of the eye, the ear, the nose and the head. Thus the whole Samhita is one comprehensive treatise on the entire medical discipline.

On the whole, the entire Samhita is a complete work on medicine with special attention to Salya and Salakya tantras. The succinct and sombre style and the overall superiority of the Sushrutasamhita led to the extinction of other treatises which preceded this compilation or were contemporary. As a text-book, it is unrivalled in respect of composite teaching of the subject of surgery with reference to all allied branches of medical learning required by a surgeon. It is a forerunner of Vagbhata's Astanga-sangraha.

Sushruta has pointed out that haemorrhage can be arrested by apposition of the cut edges with stitches, application of styptic decoctions, by cauterisation with chemicals or heat. That the progress of surgery and its development is closely associated with the great wars of the past is well known. The vrana or injury, says Sushruta, involves breakdown of body-components and may have one or more of the following seats for occurrence, viz., skin, flesh, blood-vessels, sinews, bones, joints, internal organs of chest and abdomen and vital structures. Classically vrana, the wound, is the ultimate explosion of the underlying pathological structure. It is, in Sushruta's words, the sixth stage of a continuous process, which starts with sotha (inflammation). Sushruta says that in the first stage, the ulcer is unclean and hence called a dusta-vrana. By proper management it becomes a clean wound, a suddha-vrana. Then there is an attempt at healing and is called ruhyamana-vrana and when the ulcer is completely healed, it is a rudha-vrana. Sushruta has advocated the use of wine with incense of cannabis for anaesthesia.[2] Although the use of henbane and of Sammohini and Sanjivani are reported at a later period, Sushruta was the pioneer of anaesthesia.

Sushruta describes eight types of surgical procedures: Excision (chedana) is a procedure whereby a part or whole of the limb is cut off from the parent. Incision (bhedana) is made to achieve effective drainage or exposure of underlying structures to let the content out. Scraping (lekhana) or scooping is carried out to remove a growth or flesh of an ulcer, tartar of teeth, etc. the veins, hydrocele and ascitic fluid in the abdomen are drained by puncturing with special instrument (vyadhana). The sinuses and cavities with foreign bodies are probed (esana) for establishing their size, site, number, shape, position, situation, etc. Sravana (blood-letting) is to be carried out in skin diseases, vidradhis, localised swelling, etc. in case of accidental injuries and in intentional incisions, the lips of the wound are apposed and united by stitching (svana).

To obtain proficiency and acquiring skill and speed in these different types of surgical manipulations, Sushruta had devised various experimental modules for trying each procedure. For example, incision and excision are to be practised on vegetables and leather bags filled with mud of different densities; scraping on hairy skin of animals; puncturing on the vein of dead animals and lotus stalks; probing on moth-eaten wood or bamboo; scarification on wooden planks smeared with beeswax, etc. On the subject of trauma, Sushruta speaks of six varieties of accidental injuries encompassing almost all parts of the body.

Sushruta also gives classification of the bones and their reaction to injuries. varieties of dislocation of joints (sandhimukta) and fractures of the shaft (kanda-bhagna) are given systematically. He classifies and gives the details of the six types of dislocations and twelve varieties of fractures. He gives the principles of fracture treatment, viz., traction, manipulation, appositions and stabilisation. Sushruta has described the entire orthopaedic surgery, including some measures of rehabilitation, in his work.

As war was a major cause of injury, the name Salya-tantra for this branch of medical learning is derived from Salya, the arrow of the enemy, which in fights used to be lodged in the body of the soldiers. He emphasises that removal of foreign bodies is fraught with certain complications if the seat of the Salya be a marma.

Sushruta also discusses certain surgical conditions of ano-rectal region, he has given all the methods of management of both haemorrhoids and fistulae. Different types of incision to remove the fistulous tract as langalaka, ardhalangalaka, sarvabhadra, candraadha (curved) and kharjurapatraka (serrated) are described for adoption according to the type of fistula.

Sushruta was well aware of the urinary stones, their varieties; the anatomy of urinary bladder along with its relations is well recorded in the chapter on urinary stones. Varieties of stones, their signs and symptoms, the method of extraction and operative complication are given in detail. Apart from the above, surgery of intestinal obstruction (baddha-gudodara), perforated intestines (chidrodara), accidental injuries to abdomen (assaya-bhinna) in which protrusion of omentum occurs are also described along with their management.

Though the contributions of Sushruta are mainly in the field of Plastic and Cataract surgery,[3] a number of his other contributions to medicine are listed below:




[edit] Plastic Surgery
Sushruta lays down the basic principles of plastic surgery by advocating a proper physiotherapy before the operation and describes various methods or different types of defects, viz., (1) release of the skin for covering small defects, (2) rotation of the flaps to make up for the partial loss and (3) pedicle flaps for covering complete loss of skin from an area. He has mentioned various methods including sliding graft, rotation graft and pedicle graft. Nasal repair or rhinoplasty has been described in greater detail, which to this day has stood the test of time and is mentioned as the Indian method of rhinoplasty in the books of plastic surgery. Lastly, labioplasty too has received his attention. In short, all the principles of plastic surgery, viz., accuracy, precision, economy, haemostasis and perfection find an important place in Sushruta's writings on this subject.
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Re: Know Your India

Post by Murugan »

ramana
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Re: Know Your India

Post by ramana »

From Pioneer. I dont agree that this is not a rarest of rare cases. The hoble judges are not correct....
FLASH | Wednesday, July 14, 2010 | Email | Print | | Back


Khairlanji case: 6 escape death penalty

IANS | Nagpur

The Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court Wednesday commuted the death sentences of six people accused in the massacre of a Dalit family in Khairlanji in 2006 and gave them life imprisonment of 25 years each. The much awaited verdict was given by a division bench comprising Justices AP Lawande and R.C. Chauhan that turned down a plea by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) challenging the lower court's ruling giving life to two of the eight accused while sentencing to death six people.

Ruling that the case did not fall in the "rarest of rare" category, a division bench gave 25 years imprisonment to all the eight accused.


"I have not been given justice in the tragic matter," Bhaiyyalal Bhotmange, who saw his wife, daughter and two sons being tortured and killed, told reporters shortly after the verdict.

CBI had pleaded for death penalties for all the accused. It also asked the high court to charge them under the stringent SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act, 1987.

The Bhandara district court in 2008 gave death to Shatrughana Dhande, Vishwanath Dhande, Ramu Dhande, Sakru Binjewar, Jagdish Mandlekar and Prabhkar Mandlekar. Two others, Shishupal Dhande and Gopal Binjewar, were given life imprisonment and three acquitted.

Defence lawyer Neeraj Khandewale, who represented all the accused members of Dhande clan in the high court, contended that "the prosecution case was full of loopholes, based on lies, false witnesses and fabricated evidences".

The high court ruling came after the case was tried on a day-to-day basis for over 30 days during March-April this year.

The horrific incident unfolded on the evening of Sep 29, 2006, when a group of villagers descended on the Bhotmange family in Khairlanji village in Maharashtra’s Bhandara district.

They dragged out Surekha Bhaiyyalal Bhotmange, 44, her sons Roshan, 23, Sudhir, 21 and daughter Priyanka, 18, assaulted them brutally, paraded them naked in the village, sexually abused them with sticks and then hacked them to death. The women were gangraped.

The attackers mutilated the private parts of the two sons - all this in full public view of many other villagers.

Surekha’s husband, Bhaiyyalal, who had gone to work in the fields also witnessed the incident while hiding in a nearby hut. He managed to escape the mob brutality.

A few days before the incident - which led to widespread Dalit protests all over Maharashtra - Surekha Bhotmange had lodged a police complaint in a land dispute against some villagers. The attacks on the Bhotmanges were a revenge for Surekha’s daring.
Justice must not only be done but should be seen to be proper. Letting go of mass murderers under life imprisonment is not proper.
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Re: Know Your India

Post by ramana »

The press is quoting lawyers to claim that the initial FIR did not invoke the caste angle and hence death penalty wasn't upheld by High Court bench. However the fact remains that six people killed a woman and her three children publically and that is plain murder. How come they weren't charged with dacoity laws? What has caste got to do with it?
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Re: Know Your India

Post by RamaY »

+1 Ramanaji. They should have been given death-penalty. There is a fair chance that they will get released on Oct 2 or Aug 15 or Jan 26.
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Re: Know Your India

Post by ramana »

Is there a study or paper on how the people below the poverty line (BPL) live on $2/day?
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Re: Know Your India

Post by niran »

Murugan wrote:http://www.spiritindia.com/health-care- ... -5214.html

I never claimed I can cure AIDS - Ramdev
The claim was
"through Yoga and Ayurveda medicine, CD4(killer cells) CD8(suppressor some times killer) count can be, has been maintained at normal levels"
This is perfectly inline with
current Modern Medicine therapy, the aim is to contain HIV virus and maintain or increase
CD4/CD8 cell counts. Modern Medicine have many adverse effects, ranging from
dyspepsia to Cancer, and the cost is prohibitive, while Yoga is free, Ayurveda medicine
for AIDS treatment is adverse effect free.
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Re: Know Your India

Post by sum »

Not sure if this is the right thread but felt very touched on reading this story ( esp in the dog eat dog era of today) :
A modern day Shravan Kumar
World is fast changing and people are opting for more modern gadgets to make their life comfortable. But some of the practices continue to remind us of the stories narrated in epics and other hoary texts. Now, the mission undertaken by a 36-year old man reminds one of Shravan Kumar of great epic Ramayana.

Kailash Giri Brahamchari has resolved to visit all important religious places in the country to fulfill the vow taken by his mother Kirti Devi. A resident of Wargi village of Madhya Pradesh, Brahamchari has been carrying his blind mother Kirti Devi in her 80s in a makeshift swing suspended from a pole across his shoulder. While the woman sits in one of the baskets, Brahamachari keep his clothes, utensils and some other heavy items in the other to act as counter balance.

“When I was about eight years old, I fell from the treetop and suffered fracture. Expensive treatment was not possible because of financial difficulties. It was then my mother prayed for my recovery. She vowed to undertake a journey to some of the religious places, if I was cured. Her prayer bore the fruit and I recovered quickly and that too without any medicine. She could not perform the thanksgiving trip for one reason or the other. But when I turned 24, I started taking my mother to the religious places,” recalled Brahamchari.

He has taken his mother to places Ayodhya, Chirtrakut, Kashi, Tarapith, Basukinath Dham (in Jharkhand) and Tarakeshwar in the past 12 years.

Kirti Devi had asked Brahmachari a few times to end this religious travel but he is insistent on completing it. Brahmachari faces embarrassing moments at times as people seek his blessings because of his true love for his mother. The new-age Shravan Kumar gets good response from the people and at many places the locals make arrangements for food and shelter for the two.

Another article on the same:
Modern day Shravan Kumar


By Pranita Das
Berhampur: He hasn't seen 'Bhagwan', has no knowledge of the recent laws for protecting the well being of aged parents at the hands of modern progenies. In an age when 'Dads and Moms' are facing a raw deal at the hands of their grown up children, rustic Kailash Giri is an antithesis. He has enlivened the myth of Shravan Kumar of Ramayan in real life in this 21st Century.

He is carrying his 80-year-old blind mother Kirti Devi on his shoulders on a 'Char Dham' yatra on foot. His every step on the highway

is proving to be a slap on the faces of people who do not look after their aged parents. His parched shoulders speak of the pain he has taken since more than 11 years to fulfill his mother's wish.

Kailash Giri hails from Hinota village of Jabalpur district in Madhya Pradesh. He is now trotting along the NH 5 on his way to Puri carrying the heavy load of self imposed penance on his shoulders.

Kailash entered Orissa from Andhra Pradesh about a week ago. He has already taken his mother to places such as Prayag, Kashi, Chitrakoot, Ayodhya, Rameswaram, Madurai, Tirupati and a trip along the length of Narmada River during past 11 years.

It was a hard torturous journey. He carried his mother in a makeshift swing on his shoulders. Kailash's makeshift swing comprises a strong bamboo shaft with two swings attached to its two ends that he carries on his shoulders. On one swing sits his mother while his day-to-day articles balance the weight on the other side.

He manages to cover mere four to five kilometers in a day. Roadside temples become resting places for this mother and son duo. He cooks the food and serves it before his mother as a holy offering. And both of them sit down to eat together. Till date the common men he met on his way have been his only help for sustenance. But he feels his mother's affection is his greatest strength. And he wants every youth who come across him to consider parents as embodiment of God.

Kailash had started this arduous journey when he was around 21 years of age to fulfill his mother's wish to take up the 'Char Dham' yatra. His mother had desired it after she recovered from a long ailment. He had lost his father and elder brother when he was young. He had no desire to take financial help from anyone. Having faith on his own will power he decided to take up this journey on his own physical efforts.

His journey would not end at Puri. After reaching Puri they would start for Kolkata via Bhubaneswar. Their next destination would be Pashupatinath in Nepal, Badrinath and Dwaraka to complete the 'Char Dham' yatra.

He only prays to God to grant a long life to his mother. Kailash has no dreams for his own future as he has already dedicated his life to his mother's wish. He has not taken Sanyas. But in his mind and action he has become a true Sanyasi. He is well attached to 'Sansara' but he is not part of it.
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Re: Know Your India

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http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi ... 216665.cms
Silently, and without much sarkari fanfare, dramatic changes are taking place in the population indicators of some states that you won't see reflected in country-level data.

Crude birth rate, that is, the number of live births per 1,000 population dipped from 26.4 to 22.8 for the whole country between 1998 and 2008. That's a 14% decline. But in eight major states, the decline was much more. In Punjab, birth rate fell by a whopping 23%, followed by Kerala and Maharashtra (both 20%) and West Bengal (18%).

Countrywide, the crude death rate, that is, the number of deaths per 1,000 population, came down by 18% in a decade. Again, there were surprises in the toppers' list. Both Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan saw a 23% dip in death rates, closely followed by Bihar (22%) and UP (20%).

Subtracting deaths from births gives the natural growth rate of the population. For India, this key indicator declined by 11%, but in Kerala and Punjab, the rate of population growth slowed down by as much as 32%. In Maharashtra, it was down by 23% and in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, by about 18%.
and
Experts believe a combination of factors is responsible for these positive changes, including more institutional deliveries, better sanitation and availability of life-saving drugs. Larger socio-economic factors like better rural incomes in West Bengal, high education levels in Kerala and better economic standards in Punjab are obviously contributing to state level changes in life conditions.

India is passing through a demographic transition to a society where population will grow slowly, and people will live longer, hopefully leading a healthier life.
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Re: Know Your India

Post by shiv »

On the other hand - from India's friends in Oxford comes the Qxford poverty index
Image
Thus, OPHI research suggests that as compared with 410 million multi-dimensionally poor people resident in 26 of the poorest African countries there are as many as 421 million in just eight of the poorer Indian states (Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal). Further, if we take an indicator such as the proportion of malnourished children, progress with dealing with acute malnourishment seems non-existent: the figure across India stood at 46 per cent in 2005-06 as compared with 47 per cent in 1998-99.
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Re: A Nation on the March

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Re: Know Your India

Post by Cosmo_R »

Don't know if this belongs here but...

http://shekharkapur.com/blog/2010/07/a- ... -in-india/

Very funny and touching at the same time. Shows how much talent there is and how little of it is rewarded or nurtured.
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Re: Know Your India

Post by Raghavendra »

In Wi-Fi classrooms, Bangalore’s poor catch up http://www.indianexpress.com/news/in-wi ... up/657507/
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Re: Know Your India

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The Indian capacity for innovation and make-do that helps enterprise flourish against all odds is an invaluable, if intangible, asset that is not easy to replicate, says Swaminathan S Anklesaria Aiyar

Success Despite Govt, Courtesy jugaad

NO LESS than 93% of Chinese businessmen say the main reason for their spectacular success is network connections (guangxi), especially with government officials. Indian businessmen, however, have succeeded despite the government: 81% say the main reason for their success is jugaad, the ability to find innovative way round prohibitive rules and institutions.

This is the key finding of a survey of 4,000 businessmen in the two countries by YouGov, a top online survey organisation, and the Legatum Institute, an independent think tank. The survey represents the subjective view of Indian and Chinese entrepreneurs, but has a ring of truth.

China is in many ways a governmentled success. Chinese businessmen add that the government’s regulations remain major hurdles, but see a much more positive side to officialdom than in India. Only 11% of Indians view the government as ‘very good’ against 30% in China.

Most Indian business owners view the government as corrupt, wasteful and ineffective. They acknowledge major gains from liberalisation but see corruption as a terrible problem that merits top priority in the future.

India’s main successes are in the private sector, while its main failures are in the government sector. That is surely a major reason why India has lagged behind China for three decades. It may yet overtake China in the next decade because of its demographic dividend. In 2011-20, India’s workforce will increase by 110 million, but China’s by less than 20 million, according to a Goldman Sachs study. This advantage may translate into faster GDP growth.

But even India’s workforce surge is surely a private sector success. You could call it private initiative in the bedroom. Cynics will disagree: they will say our demographic dividend is due to the utter failure of the state in family planning in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan! These states have by far the highest fertility rate: four children per woman. The fertility rate is half that in progressive states.

The YouGov-Legatum survey provides many other fascinating insights. It says 62% of entrepreneurs in China and 48 % in India think their own country will be the biggest global economic power in 20 years.

One-fifth in India and just over onethird in China believe the global financial crisis has made starting and running a business more difficult.

This suggests that China has been less resilient than India in facing the financial crisis. This probably flows from China’s greater dependence on exports.

Large majorities — 81% in China and 65% in India — believe they are more naturally entrepreneurial than other societies. Indians think they have more jugaad. Now, Europeans beat the pants off Chinese and Indian businessmen after the industrial revolution.

But the confidence now exuded by Indian and Chinese entrepreneurs shows that feelings of inferiority induced by the colonial era are almost entirely gone.

Chinese entrepreneurs say the main reason for starting businesses is to make money. Indians give money a lower priority, and say their main motivation is independence, being one’s own boss.

In both countries, businessmen seek not just money but community improvement. Nearly two-thirds of business owners in both countries say that improving the quality of life in their communities is ‘very important, a main motivation for what I do’. Cynics will scoff. But entrepreneurs see business as aiding, not coming in the way of, social development.

Only a small fraction — 6% in China and 2% in India — sees philanthropy or volunteerism as the primary means for creating social impact.

IN INDIA, the immediate family is most important for a business. In China, with its emphasis on networks, the extended family matters more. Indian entrepreneurs get money for startups mainly from their immediate family, while Chinese businessmen depend more on conventional debt and investors. In China, 37% of business owners use loan as the primary source of financing for their startup, against 19% in India. And in India, 39% start with family resources, against 19% in China. Clearly, access to finance is more difficult in India, and ‘priority sector’ obligations on banks do not translate into actual loans to startups.

Ironically, the Chinese are so used to easy finance that they cite lack of it as the greatest reason for business failure, while Indians say it is the bureaucracy.

In India, the biggest immediate motivation to start a business is another entrepreneur (27% of those surveyed). In China, the biggest motivation (23%) is what was taught in school or college. Clearly, Chinese schools and colleges do a better job in this respect.

Chinese respondents cite pro-business efforts by universities, government communications and the media as key factors in their decision to start a business. However, most Indian entrepreneurs are motivated by the family, finance availability and friends.

The most common source of business advice among Indian entrepreneurs is family or friends. But Chinese entrepreneurs seek out other businessmen, and hire consultants at twice the Indian rate.

No single survey can capture all dimensions and problems of entrepreneurship. Yet, the YouGov-Legatum survey provides some useful lessons for public policy.

First, economic liberalisation needs to proceed much faster. The bureaucracy continues to be a major problem, so we need get rid of many pointless rules and regulations. The quality of governance is poor, so we need administrative and legal reforms to reduce corruption and improve access to common justice. Access to finance is a major problem in India, and so the Reserve Bank of India must abandon its ultra-conservative policy in licensing more banks and branches.

Finally, jugaad is a vital ingredient of success. India may not have ample natural resources like oil or copper, but it has jugaad, which is more valuable. Natural resources like oil are often a curse: they can lead to government kleptocracy and authoritarianism. But jugaad helps foil government kleptocracy and authoritarian regulations. It enabled Indian business to survive the licence-permit raj, and to blossom after the 1991 reforms.

Jugaad cannot be measured, and so cannot be incorporated in economic models. That is why most economic analyses of India are incomplete.

ET, 11th August 2010, pg 20
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Re: Know Your India

Post by Raghavendra »

A race against time to preserve India's Parsi past http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/new ... 291973.cms
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Re: Know Your India

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Burqa to khaki: Gujarat mother is first Muslim woman DySP http://in.news.yahoo.com/48/20100812/80 ... fir_1.html
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Re: Know Your India

Post by Raghavendra »

Behind the success story of universal PDS in Tamil Nadu http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/article562922.ece
ramana
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Re: Know Your India

Post by ramana »

R, This thread is for bad news stories for some senior members to wash dirty linen so they dont go posting everywhere.

Good news stories go into the "A Nation on the March".

I dont want you wasting your time posting good news stories here.

Sorry wanted to let you know.
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Re: Know Your India

Post by krisna »

SLAPP suit
Greenpeace India is being targeted by a SLAPP suit (Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation) filed by the TATA group, India's largest business empire in the Delhi High Court. The next hearing is on August 12. The suit seeks $2.1 million in damages for supposed "defamation and trademark infringement" as a result of a Greenpeace online game called "Turtle Vs Tata," in which players have to help a turtle "escape pursuing TATA demons." TATA is facing severe criticism for its role in the development of a massive port at Dhamra on India's east coast, dangerously close to ecologically sensitive areas.
After Tatas, Sholay makers to sue Greenpeace
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Re: Know Your India

Post by Raghavendra »

ramana wrote:R, This thread is for bad news stories for some senior members to wash dirty linen so they dont go posting everywhere.

Good news stories go into the "A Nation on the March".

I dont want you wasting your time posting good news stories here.

Sorry wanted to let you know.
Point noted :)
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Re: Know Your India

Post by Murugan »

One in three Indians 'utterly corrupt': watchdog head

NEW DELHI — Almost one-third of Indians are "utterly corrupt" and half are "borderline", the outgoing head of the country's corruption watchdog has said, blaming increased wealth for much of the problem.

Pratyush Sinha, who retired as India's Central Vigilance Commissioner this week, said the worst part of his "thankless job" was observing how corruption had increased as people became more materialistic.

"When we were growing up I remember if somebody was corrupt, they were generally looked down upon," he said. "There was at least some social stigma attached to it. That is gone. So there is greater social acceptance."

Transparency International, the global anti-graft body, puts India 84th on its corruption perception index with a 3.4-point rating, out of a best possible score of 10.

New Zealand ranks first with 9.4 points and Somalia last on 1.1 points.

The campaign group has said that each year millions of poor Indian families have to bribe officials for access to basic public services.

Sinha told the Mint newspaper in an interview published on Tuesday that 20 percent of Indians were "honest, regardless of the temptations, because this is how they are. They have a conscience.

"There would be around 30 percent who would be utterly corrupt. But the rest are the people who are on the borderline," he said, adding that corruption was "palpable".

Sinha said that in modern India "if somebody has a lot of money, he is respectable. Nobody questions by what means he has got the money."

Recent corruption scandals in India have focused on construction projects for the Commonwealth Games that open in New Delhi next month, and alleged tax evasion in the lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket tournament.

India is also regarded as a hotbed of illegal betting syndicates, with gamblers and bookmakers involved in "spot-fixing" -- the gambling that has engulfed the current Pakistani cricket tour of England.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has often spoken out against the damaging effect that bribes, extortion and fraud have on all levels of life, and warned that the problem threatens India's future economic prospects.
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Re: Know Your India

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India part of $90 billion counterfeit drug industry
India, the world’s biggest manufacturer of generic pharmaceuticals has now become a major center for counterfeit and substandard drugs. This, according to Indian officials has severely damaged the nation’s image as well as that of its exporters.
While the legitimate pharmaceutical manufacturing industry is currently worth about $8.5 billion annually, the (global) fake drug industry is worth more than $90 billion. The latter is also responsible for the “deaths of almost a million people a year (mostly in Africa and Latin America) and is contributing to drug resistance worldwide.”
The Indian government currently estimates that .04% of the country’s drugs are fake, and that 8% are substandard. However, according to independent sources the figures are more like 12%-25%.
the headline suggests that India is a major country with fake drugs. there are no other countries mentioned. it looks as if India alone is repsonsible for this.
legit pharma industry sales -8.5 billion while fake one is 90billion. why combine Indian pharma with global one. :?: it is very odd.
the statistics quoted are very broad ranging from miniscule 0.04% to 12-25%.
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Re: Know Your India

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84 percent of Indian rural populace oblivious of internet
While the urban India digs into technology and internet for the completion of minutest of things, around 84 percent of rural Indians are unaware of the internet. This was revealed in a research jointly conducted by Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and IMRB.
The research added that 38 percent of people in rural India do not feel the need for internet, while 31 percent of them do not have internet access point. Other figures of interest thrown up by the research say 25 percent population has no Internet connection and about 22 percent has no electricity.
Another impediment cited for the lack of internet penetration in rural India is the lack of personal ownership of digital gadgets. Presently, the primary modes of accessing internet in these areas are through the common service centers (CSCs) and cyber cafes.
Around 70 percent of rural populace access internet through the aforesaid means. This figure brings forth the need to improve the infrastructural setup with Government of India's schemes like CSCs and State Wide Area Network (SWAN) Scheme.
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Re: Know Your India

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India lost over US$125 billion in illicit outflows between 2000-2008

India's economic boom continues with an average growth rate of over eight percent between 2004 and 2009 by GFI calculations. As the money flows, however, the poor continue to stay poor. Corruption is rampant in India as it is in almost all developing countries. Both corrupt political and corporate officers manage to siphon off funds - intended to aid the people of India - off to political and private sector elite. Recent efforts in India to challenge this corrupt affront on humanity have been met with severe violence.

As India develops economically and builds better infrastructure, one would think that all Indian citizens would see an increased standard of living and that the income inequality levels would fall. However, the gini coefficient, which measures income inequality, has actually increased over the time period measured, 2000-2005, from 0.32 to 0.37 on a scale of 0 to 1, with 1 being the highest income inequality. We see in India - as in other currently developing countries - that as the economy grows, so do illicit flows. This positive correlation exhibits the increased incentives to conduct illicit flows, mostly because more money is flowing within the system to steal away and constant greed is tapping into that pool.

Netas and Babus Have Looted India

Even as India's economic growth continues, the poor continue to stay poor with rampant corruption siphoning out over $125 billion in illicit capital flight between 2000-2008, says a Washington think tank. Noting that "much of the funds flowing out are generated at home within India and then sent illegally abroad," an upcoming report from Global Financial Integrity (GFI) says, “So the growth of corruption and India's underground economy contributes significantly to illicit financial flows from the country.”

"Corruption is rampant in India as it is in almost all developing countries. Both corrupt political and corporate officers manage to siphon off funds —intended to aid the people of India ...," research arm of Centre for International Policy said.

“Recent efforts in India to challenge this corrupt affront on humanity have been met with violence,” Junior GFI Economist Karly Curcio said in a blog post on the report on illicit financial flows (IFF) from India and explaining links between IFFs, poverty, corruption, and crime.

"As India develops economically and builds better infrastructure, one would think that all Indian citizens would see an increased standard of living and that the income inequality levels would fall," says the blog post following a news report about recent crimes in India against whistleblowers.

"However, the gini coefficient, which measures income inequality, has actually increased over the time period measured, 2000-2005, from 0.32 to 0.37 on a scale of 0 to 1, with 1 being the highest income inequality," Curcio wrote.

Noting that “in India ... as the economy grows, so do illicit flows,” she wrote: "This correlation exhibits the increased incentives to conduct illicit flows, because more money is flowing within the system to steal away...."

India ranks 84 out of 180 countries in Transparency International's 2009 Corruptions Perceptions Index ranking.
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Re: Know Your India

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India fails to make significant progress in MDGs
India has performed poorly in meeting the Millennium Development Goals despite sustained growth, with high levels of maternal and child mortality rates amidst very low public spending on health, analysts have said ahead of next week's UN summit on MDGs in New York.India is not going to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) -- sharp reduction in extreme poverty and hunger, improvement in maternal health, reducing child mortality, and HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases by 2015.The MDGs are both global and local, tailored by each country to suit specific development needs and they were adopted by world leaders in the year 2000.
India has low investment around 3 per cent in health" as compared to many African countries, which had decided to scale up investments for health to about 15 per cent of GDP, says Michel Kazatchkine, the Global Fund's executive director.Kazatchkine, who visited India recently, told reporters that India has to increase its outlay for the health sector adding that the government is responsive to the needs in health and other social sectors.
Though India makes an annual contribution of USD 10 million to The Global Fund, it managed to be one of its highest recipients.The Global Fund chief said he made a special appeal to finance minister Pranab Mukherjee to increase India's contribution in line with its economic growth and change.
without improvement in social and health aspects of the population economic progress will decline in the long run.
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Re: Know Your India

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Rural India growing at faster rate
While rural India is perceived to be poor, illiterate, isolated and dependent on agriculture for revenue; in reality, rural India is poised for change. Ghosh said that not only does rural India house a sizeable population (higher than the US, the UK, France, Japan, Italy and Germany put together); but also boasts of a considerable GDP, higher than Switzerland's. A report estimates that by 2012, two-thirds of rural income will be non-farm.

Among the reasons for growth, accessibility is most significant. The number of FMCG outlets in 2009 increased by 6 per cent over 2007 in urban markets; while in rural India, this figure was 27 per cent. Development on the infrastructure front - road connectivity, education and sanitation -- has also led growth. Corporate initiatives, such as ITC e-Choupal, HUL's Shakti and Tata Kisan Sansar, have all worked towards empowerment of rural consumers.
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Re: Know Your India

Post by Jarita »

Did not know where to put this but this is truly a horror

Read more: Streetkids in grip of STDs - The Times of India
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city ... z12m9nLvxF


KOLKATA: Did you know that almost every child living on the city's pavements is subjected to sexual abuse? If this doesn't surprise you, you should know that of these children a vast majority has contracted sexually transmitted diseases?

A recently-concluded survey among streetchildren in certain parts of the city show that at least 15,000 of them are either HIV positive or have contracted sexually transmitted diseases like Syphilis, Gonorrhea, warts, hepatitis and herpes. The survey was recently conducted by the National Institute for Cholera and Enteric Diseases (Niced) along with Unicef, a number of NGOs who have been working with street children. The survey was conducted in 54 wards of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation.

According to the report, a copy of which is to be sent to the ministry of health, most of the kids in question are between 18 months and 14 years of age. While only 15,000 have already contracted infections, almost every street child that the survey team came across during the survey, has been exposed to sexual abuse.

Among the NGOs who have worked with Niced in this survey are, Network Positive that works with HIV positive people and Medical Bank. Five zones in the city were chosen for the survey and the results were alarming. Pavements at the port area, Nimtala Ghat, Jagannath Ghat, Shovabazar Metro and Sonagachhi, were chosen for the survey.

"These pavements turn into mobile sex districts by night. It is not that only girls are vulnerable. Even boys are exposed to the worst kind of sexual abuse from a very young age," said a researcher connected with the survey. It was conducted under the leadership of Kamalesh Sarkar, deputy director of Niced.

Most of these children are orphans and have not yet been adopted by state-run or NGO-run homes or shelters. Naturally they are at the mercy of the senior neighbours on the pavements who force them into sexual activities in return for food, clothing and a percentage of the "income", according to the survey.

"The youngest are the worst off. Kids as young as six to eight years old are forced to have sex night after night for a paltry sum of Rs 50! Of this they have to give up Rs 40," revealed Goutam Panja, spokesperson of the NGO, Network Positive. About 30 kids between 18 months and 14 years of age who are affected by sexual diseases have enrolled in this NGO as members.

The survey found that at least 80% of the affected kids are orphans who have left their original "homes" to migrate elsewhere and are working as child labourers. "Their right to work is attached with their willingness to offer themselves for sexual abuse by employers and sometimes even by clients'.

Even children who live with their parents are vulnerable. The survey has found that most women on the pavements work as part-time sex workers. After a certain age they push their children into the sex trade.

"The fact that both parents and children can earn many times more from such activities is the biggest incentive. We have found that not a single woman among pavement dwellers works as household help. Initially they were not forthcoming but later they revealed the truth. Most even confessed that they have pushed their children into the trade because of ready money," said D. Ashish, spokesperson of Medical Bank that has partnered the survey.
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Re: Know Your India

Post by wig »

India’s population will exceed China’s in 20 yrs
India’s population was 1.02 billion in 2001 and is expected to be nearly 1.19 billion in 2011. It is estimated that in another 20 years it will exceed that of China, which is a matter of concern. With just 2 per cent of world’s land and 17 per cent of world’s population, India’s development can’t be sustained without population stabilization, Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad says.
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2010/20101117/nation.htm#3
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Re: Know Your India

Post by niran »

Jarita wrote:Did not know where to put this but this is truly a horror

Read more: Streetkids in grip of STDs - The Times of India
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city ... z12m9nLvxF
something is not right, the article does not mention the nationality of those surveyed. AFAIK 90% Kolkata pavement people are illegal immigrants from Bangladesh and these people are very much hostiles to survey of any kind from any body. so how did they manage to survey those hostile 100,000 people?
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Re: Know Your India

Post by ShauryaT »

Inadequate sanitation costs India the equivalent of 6.4 per cent of GDP
Inadequate sanitation causes India considerable economic losses, equivalent to 6.4 per cent of India’s GDP in 2006 at US$53.8 billion (Rs.2.4 trillion), according to The Economic Impacts of Inadequate Sanitation in India, a new report from the Water and Sanitation Program (WSP), a global partnership administered by the World Bank.
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Re: Know Your India

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Year of scandal
Corruption in India is synonymous with the molecules of national character. Cheating, deceiving, thieving and plundering are characteristics of over 70% Indians. Theories abound and the pundits say this is a result of feudal inheritance, The British had taught corrupt practices and absence of social and moral codes never filtered down to India psyche. These remained as story books, part of religious monotony and the thuggy mentality in modern India was not less cruel than the historical thuggy movement. Some pundits now admit that scandals in public and political lives are as common as dust particles in the air. We have to live with that.
good article on corruption by MK Dhar
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Re: Know Your India

Post by Vipul »

NRIs can now vote back home.

Non-resident Indians (NRIs) can now cast votes in their home constituencies as the governmenthas notified rules in this regard, fulfilling the longstandingdemand of such people estimated to be 11 million.

The rules make it clear that the NRIs would have toregister as voters and be "physically present" with theirpassport on the polling day to exercise their franchise.There is no provision for postal balloting.

"Every citizen of India staying in a foreign country,who has not acquired citizenship of a foreign country, and hascompleted 18 years of age as on January 1 of the year, canmake an application for being registered in the roll for theconstituency pertaining to the locality in which his place ofresidence in India as mentioned in the passport is located,"said the notification prepared in consultation with theElection Commission.

This meets the longstanding demands of the NRIs andfulfills the promise made by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh atlast year''s Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, an annual congregrationof Indian diaspora here.

As per the law so far, the name of an NRI would bedeleted from the voters'' list if he or she did not stay attheir residence in India for six months at a stretch.

The NRI voters now can submit the application directlyto the electoral registration officer of the constituencywithin which the place of residence is mentioned in thepassport.

The application can either be submitted directly orsent by post.

According to the Representation of the People Act,once a person is registered as a voter, he automatically has aright to contest polls also.

As per the Representation of the People (Amendment)Act, 2010, so far a person who has gone out of the country forbusiness or employment should be treated as having moved outof that place. Mere ownership or possession of a building orother immovable property did not bestow on the owner, theresidential qualification.

There are a large number of citizens of India residingoutside India due to various reasons. They have beenpersistently demanding for conferring them voting rights, theAmendment Act said.

Though the issue had been receiving the attention ofthe Government for quite some time, the demand could not beacceded to owing to certain "practical difficulties" inenrolling them in the electoral rolls of the concernedconstituency.

The Act says the right to vote as demanded by thecitizens of India living abroad is "their legitimate right."Conferring such right will enable them to participate in thedemocratic process of elections in their motherland and willalso boost their involvement in the nation building.
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Re: Know Your India

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Kudos for doing the Noble deed which most of us unable or don't want to do.
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Re: Know Your India

Post by Raghavendra »

Do rich Indians donate as much as rich Americans? http://cantfindagoodname.blogspot.com/2 ... -rich.html
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