Climate Change: Blindfolded Indian Researchers

Across India the issue of the climate change has not moved beyond the rooms of babus preparing for the agenda and documents for various international summits across the world. The breaucrats and politicians are busy in holding the bull of climate change by its horn. It seems the NGOs, Corporates and Journoes are interested in climate change related negotiations in exchange with monitory benefits by 'capitalizing the climate change causes' i.e. Carbon markets and Green Technology. Though some of the national institutions have been contributed towards the Global climate studies we in India find diffcult to make the researchers understand the symentics of climate change. The universities and government departments have been organising lots of the seminar, workshops and debates on the climate change - co-terminus with the Environment, pollution, disaster and mitigation. All is right while dealing it as an individual subjects, but climate change research needs to look into the regional impact scenarios data in order to really work on the mitigation and adoption model. The state and district level agencies are still to get information on the scenarios in order to workout the change in development schemes, techniques and technologies for the their upcoming plans.

We have already started planning for the 12th five year plan and scenarios for the 2012-2017 and next 50 years should be incorporated in the prespective plans of the nation and state in order to generate documents and facts to add to the climate change issues. The research communities mainly the earth and social sciences stream needs to work together inorder to generate regional or state level scenario and prepare an effective mitigation plan. Why we are not able to wake up the researchers working in these areas in right direction? Are we as a researchers have become blindfolded by own attitudes...? At least start the change now!!

Mahgai Dayan..Price Rise and Urban Agriculture

You all are reeling under the emerging price rise in the agricultural produce in the urban markets. People in metros are severely affected by the price rise mainly in perishable food items such as milk and vegetables. Metros keep on getting agricultural products from distant places and relies heavily in India on its immediate hinterland. But situation is changing fast in your urban hinterland too, they are no more interested in just supplying food to cities. Also their lands are gobbled up by up coming modern townships and Special Economic Zones.

The present vegetable crisis (High Prices) in cities like Delhi and Mumbai is definately due to neglect of urban agriculture practices which was encouraged in bygone era and cities themselves ensured their supplies. Now farming communities cannot afford or would not be allowed to cultivate in the city limits by the land sharks and neglect by the city administrations.

City managers are increasingly required relooking into ways to understand it--both from a regulation perspective, but also to determine what is needed to foster and support these agricultural activities within the ambit of city regions. Some clue can be taken from Kolkata..where the urban agriculture still has retained some form.

The rationale for supporting agriculture within cities isn't immediately obvious--it isn't prominent in modern cities, nor has it ever really been typical, to have food production within urban areas. In many ways, being surrounded by agricultural fields was always a sign that one had ventured outside the city limits--it was a defining non-urban factor.

The urban agriculture is still widely practiced in the small and medium towns throughout the country but it lacks its presence in the large cities. Cities like Delhi and Mumbai needs to comeback on the trail of urban agriculture as an essential uses in their land use plans. The neglect of the important activities have caused crisis in their own markets and causes the city to cry hoarse. The far cry of 'Mahngai Dayan' in film 'Pipli Live' is the reality of urban India, joined by the neglect of the farms for farming and using a peice of land for party and recreation spots.

Till we understand the need for Urban Agriculture in our city planning we would go on and on...saying Mahngai Dayan....Khai Jat Hai...

Kolkata Stands 63rd in Top 65 Global Cities

The Global Cities Index 2010 - An FP Special Report Foreign Policy


In the Global cities Kolkata stands 63rd position amongst the 65 large cities assessed by the agency. Please Visit this site to get the information on the Global Cities.

Geospatial Industry: Bitten by Identity Bug..

A huge lot of contracts for the survey and mapping are being awarded throughout the country to the firms interested in entering into the business. The mega sales team entering the GoI offices have increased their rounds, each targetting a client to boost their sales. Similarly state government departments hanging large projects to lure the industry enterents. To all this we are yet to frame a overarching geospatial policy, when mapping was restricted to 11 entities, since then government queitly opened the policy. A large amount at stake the industrial houses entered into the business of Geospatial services. Very few became successful in completing the projects, even departments flattered after investing huge amount on spatial data creation and so call building 'GIS' capabilities.

What the industry is lacking? As a expert we can feel the lack of training and exposure of the government towards the technology and its potentials. The companies are interested in selling their product then improving the geospatial business of the clients. The solutions and hardwares are sold in bulk (from mid 1990s to 2005) to increase the sales pitch and enter into the services area (where solutions needs to be customised). As industry dealing with customization in the geospatial solutions are negligible the clients are not backing the new ideas and enterents in the field.

There are plenty of pilot projects abadoned in order to avoid the challenges of implementation and responsibility towards the technology developers. The huge tracking and services market is being ballooned out in last two years with solutions not approaching clients as per their requirements or neither the clients allowing any changes in existing protocols. Thus creating a deadlock on the technology penetration and development. Large corporates though have capacity to play a key role in industry finds lagging behind in development of human resources.

Our universities and institutions of higer learning have failed to educate professionals on this technology, ever since a lot of universities have started Masters programme of Geoinformatics/GIS/RS the trainers are hard to find. The teaching material itself is highly underdeveloped and not available in the right format. The dependence on the government run application centre for the research on RS/GIS is paying bad divindings in country like India. The research outputs and learning were never seriously documented and presented to the community outside. Lets see how we deal with this new identity bug

Caste and Census 2011 : Debating researchers

Yesterday it happened to be a quite a long afternoon in an heated discussion on the 'inclusion of caste in Census 2011'. Eminent Sociologists acting as panalists dwelled on the the impact and modalities of the caste based census. The following are the observations;

For those Opposing the caste census:
(a) Caste is tricky issue diffecult to enumerate and collect the right information on the individual castes.
(b) People tend to confuse between caste and sub caste would never be able to give the correct information.
(c) Enumeration of Caste at the state level and National level would be different, when caste categories are overlapped, diffrently placed and represented in various parts of country.
(d) Diffecult to draw questionnare.
(e) Our forefathers who drafted the constitution has aimed at casteless society and culturally lot of changes has taken place in Marraiges, customs and caste identieties. Whether the caste enumeration would lead to division in the the society. This would not be rational decision.
(f) The issue of caste has been raised for political gains to take accounts of Other Backward aste (OBC) and would further create tensions in society.
(g) Census of India has no capacity to conduct the caste based census.
(h) The present government is not conducting the caste based census with Census 2011 but seperate excercise which may not be repeated in next census.
(i) Sociologists have never accepted or recommended caste based census in India.

For those Supporting the Caste Based Census

(a) The caste is reality of Indian society, identity of its people and there is no harm in accounting or collecting data as we collect information on other variables of households.
(b) The upper caste and those who are on high social ladder does not want caste to be included in census, since they fear the power of the OBC would be known.
(c) The intellectuals and government officials who holds key position are taking undue advantage of the their position and trying to stop genuine assertation of the backward castes.
(d) The caste based census is not the only demand of the political parties but also of the social organisations working for the backward castes.
(e) Traditionally the census of India has taken counting of the Scheduled Tribes and Castes which have not created any kind of disharmoney rather we were able to concentrate on the development of these social groups. Similarly, the counting of the other caste would also be helpful for the planners to target the communities.
(f) The methodological difficulties needs to be overcome in this case and there are ways to conduct the caste based census.
(g) By our insufficient methods for caste enumeration we can not allow the neglect of very important excercise.

In our view those who are opposing the caste in census are taking caste only as an sociological phenomena and forgets that it also has administrative, political and economic importance. This needs to be better understood after conducted in the census.

The interpretation of the claims of the individuals are subject to discussion by the sociologists, but an individual need not get certificate from the sociologists. Its the immediate society where his or their claims needs to be settled. The claims of the individuals can be settled by the local bodies, panchayats and village elders. The law of heritage makes it stand on the intercaste marraiges, and Hindu Marraige Act also specifies it, then where is fear of placing the bracket.

The simple enumeration excercise as regards to caste categories have been complicated by the misconceived notion of sociologists to tide over the social desires. The identity of persons cannot remain same forever and if he claims to be of 'X' caste then it is their choice. The issue of grants of rights and previlages of the castes rests with the communities. If there is no caste identities or changes caste identities which helps the households to take benefits of social networks then let him do so..at his own will.

Our law does allow any person to change name and claims of caste can only be challenged by the society. Let the census take place and help us in understanding the desires and nature of these castes in India.