UPSC News Diary Today 19-09-2022

”UPSC News Diary Today” is every day published in the evening between 6-7 PM and contains all current affairs articles from the day on a single platform. ”UPSC News Diary Today” covers various topics from UPSC Syllabus and is very helpful and time managing for UPSC Aspirants. The framing of this daily current affairs compilation article is easy to read and understandable also.

In the ”UPSC News Diary Today” article, we focus on both UPSC Preliminary and Mains exam-oriented current affairs & prepare a gist of daily important news articles from leading National Newspapers, PIB, and other various official sources.

 

UN General Assembly Session

 

Why in news?

• The high-level segment of the 77th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) will begin in the third week of September in New York.
• In some ways, this will be the first “normal” UNGA after 2019.

What is the theme this year?

The theme of the 77th UNGA is ‘A Watershed Moment: Transformative Solutions to Interlocking Challenges’.

About UNGA

• The UN General Assembly (UNGA) is the main policy-making organ of the UN.
• Comprising all Member States, it provides a unique forum for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues covered by the Charter of the United Nations. Each of the 193 Member States of the United Nations has an equal vote.
• The UNGA also makes key decisions for the UN, including:

• • appointing the Secretary-General on the recommendation of the Security Council
  • electing the non-permanent members of the Security Council
  • approving the UN budget
• The Assembly meets in regular sessions from September to December each year, and thereafter as required.
• It discusses specific issues through dedicated agenda items or sub-items, which lead to the adoption of resolutions.

 

L-69 Group

 

Why in news?

During the high-level week(77th) of UNGA, a significant side event will be a high-level ministerial meeting to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the L.69 Group.

What is L-69?

• The L-69 Group consists of developing countries from Asia, Africa, Latin America, Caribbean and Small Island Developing States, focused on reforms of the UN Security Council.
• L-69 is committed to comprehensive reform of the UN Security Council (UNSC).
• They form a major bloc that is united by the common cause of achieving the lasting and comprehensive reform of the United Nations Security Council The group currently has 42 countries as its members. (en)
• L-69 gets its name from the draft resolution number L.69 tabled by this group in 2007, which eventually led to establishing the informal Intergovernmental Negotiation (IGN) process in the UN in 2008, the deliberations of which are supposed to lead the member-States towards Security Council reform.

 

Atomic Clocks

 

What are Atomic Clocks?

• By space navigation standards, quartz crystal clocks aren’t very stable. After only an hour, even the best-performing quartz oscillators can be off by a nanosecond (one billionth of a second).
• After six weeks, they may be off by a full millisecond (one thousandth of a second), or a distance error of 185 miles (300 kilometers). That would have a huge impact on measuring the position of a fast-moving spacecraft.
• Atomic clocks combine a quartz crystal oscillator with an ensemble of atoms to achieve greater stability. NASA’s Deep Space Atomic Clock will be off by less than a nanosecond after four days and less than a microsecond (one millionth of a second) after 10 years. This is equivalent to being off by only one second every 10 million years.

What are Atoms?

• Atoms are composed of a nucleus (consisting of protons and neutrons) surrounded by electrons. Each element on the periodic table represents an atom with a certain number of protons in its nucleus. The number of electrons swarming around the nucleus can vary, but they must occupy discreet energy levels, or orbits.

 

National Logistics Policy (NLP)

 

National Logistics Policy (NLP)- Relevance for UPSC Exam

• GS Paper 2: Governance, Administration and Challenges
  • Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

 

National Logistics Policy (NLP) 2022 in News

• Recently, the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi launched the National Logistics Policy (NLP) at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.
• PM Modi called the launch of the National Logistics Policy a significant step in fulfilling the ‘Pran’ of India being a developed country.

National Logistics Policy (NLP)

• Background: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman mentioned the need of a comprehensive National Logistics Policy (NLP) in her Union Budget 2020-21 Speech.
• Need: The need for a national logistics policy was felt since the logistics cost in India is high as compared to other developed economies.
  • It is imperative to reduce the logistics cost in India for improving the competitiveness of Indian goods both in domestic as well as export markets.
  • Reduced logistics cost improves efficiency cutting across various sectors of the economy, encouraging value addition and enterprise.
• About: National Logistics Policy is a comprehensive effort to address issues of high cost and inefficiency by laying down an overarching interdisciplinary, cross-sectoral and multi-jurisdictional framework for the development of the entire logistics ecosystem,
• Key Objectives: National Logistics Policy 2022 aims to ensure seamless movement of goods and services across the country and cut elevated logistics costs, often considered the biggest structural bottleneck for both external and internal trade in India.
  • National Logistics Policy 2022 aims to trim the country’s logistics costs from as much as 13-14 per cent of its GDP to a single digit over the next few years.
• Parent Ministry: The National Logistics Policy formulated by the Commerce and Industry Ministry.

Significance of National Logistics Policy (NLP) 2022

• National Logistics Policy (NLP) will help in improving both, Ease of Doing Business and Ease of Living in India.
• The policy is an endeavour to improve the competitiveness of Indian goods, enhance economic growth and increase employment opportunities.
• National Logistics Policy will complement other initiatives such as PM Gati Shakti Pariyojna and Bharatmala Initiative to to break the silos and improve the logistics efficiency of the country.
• National Logistics Policy 2022 will improve India’s trade competitiveness, create more jobs, improve India’s performance in global rankings and pave the way for India to become a logistics hub.

Key Features of National Logistics Policy (NLP) 2022

New Logistic Policy 2022 has following four critical features-

• Integration of Digital System (IDS):30 different systems of seven different departments will be integrated digitally including the road transport, railway, customs, aviation, foreign trade and commerce ministries.
  • It will improve shorter cargo movement.
• Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP):It will bring all the digital services related to the transportation sector into a single portal, freeing the exporters from a host of very long and cumbersome processes.
  • It will also lead to smooth cargo movement.
• Ease of Logistics (ELOG):A new policy will be implemented to simplify the rules and ease the logistics business.
  • Through this portal, industry associations can directly take up any such matters which are causing problems in their operations and performance with the government agencies.
  • A complete system has also been put in place for the speedy resolution of such cases.
• System Improvement Group (SIG):monitoring all logistics-related projects regularly and tackling all obstacles.

Status of logistics Sector in India

• India’s logistics sector is highly defragmented and the aim is to reduce the logistics cost from the present 14% of GDP to less than 10% by 2022.
• India’s logistics sector is very complex with more than 20 government agencies, 40 PGAs, 37 export promotion councils, 500 certifications, 10000 commodities, 160 billion market size.
• It also involves 12 million employment base, 200 shipping agencies, 36 logistics services, 129 ICDs, 168 CFSs, 50 IT ecosystems and banks & insurance agencies.
• Further, 81 authorities and 500 certificates are required for EXIM.
• The Indian logistics sector provides livelihood to more than 22 million people and improving the sector will facilitate 10 % decrease in indirect logistics cost leading to the growth of 5 to 8% in exports.
• Further, it is estimated that the worth of Indian logistics market will be around USD 215 billion in next two years compared to about USD 160 billion at present.

LEADS Survey 2022

 

Women SHGs Conference 2022

 

Women SHGs Conference 2022- Relevance for UPSC Exam

• GS Paper 2: Governance, Administration and Challenges- Development processes and the development industry- the role of NGOs, SHGs, various groups and associations, donors, charities, institutional and other stakeholders.

Women SHGs Conference 2022 in News

• Recently, the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi participated in the Self Help Group Sammelan organised at Karahal, Sheopur, Madhya Pradesh.
• On the occasion, the Prime Minister also inaugurated four Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTG) skilling centres under PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana.
• The Prime Minister also handed over Bank Loan Sanction letters to SHG members and Kits under the Jal Jeevan Mission were also handed over by him.

Women Self Help Groups (SHGs) Sammelan

• About: Women SHGs Sammelan is witness to the attendance of thousands of women Self Help Group (SHG) members/community resource persons that are being promoted under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM).
• Venue: Women Self Help Groups (SHGs) Sammelan 2022 was organised at Karahal, Sheopur, Madhya Pradesh.
• Participation: About one lakh women who are members of SHGs were present on the occasion and about 43 lakh women were connected from various centres.

Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM)

• DAY-NRLM aims to mobilise rural poor households into SHGs in a phased manner and provide them long-term support to diversify their livelihoods and improve their incomes and quality of life.
• The Mission is also working towards empowering the women SHG members through awareness generation and behaviour change communication on issues like domestic violence, women’s education and other gender-related concerns, nutrition, sanitation, health etc.

What are Self Help Groups (SHGs)?

• About: Self Help Groups are informal associations of people who come together to find ways to improve their living conditions. They help to build social capital among the poor, especially women.
• Members: The SHG members generally have similar socio-economic background.
• Key Objectives: Self Help Groups are formed with following key objectives-
  • To encourage and motivate its members to save,
  • To persuade them to make a collective plan for generation of additional income,
  • To act as a conduit for formal banking services to reach them.
• Significance: Such groups work as a collective guarantee system for members who propose to borrow from organised sources.
  • Consequently, Self-Help Groups have emerged as the most effective mechanism for delivery of micro-finance services to the poor.
• SHG examples: SEWA in Gujarat, MYRADA in Karnataka, TANWA in Tamil Nadu, Ramkrishna mission in Jharkhand, ADITHI in Bihar.

Self Help Groups and Eshakti: Definition, Importance, Challenges and Recommendations

 

Cheetahs Released in Kuno National Park

Cheetahs Released in Kuno National Park- Relevance for UPSC Exam

• GS Paper 3: Environment- Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation.

Cheetahs Released in Kuno National Park in News

• Recently, PM Modi released three of the eight cheetahs that arrived in India, in an ambitious project to reintroduce the big cats starting from Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park.
  • PM Modi also appealed for patience from the public before visiting cheetahs.
• PM Modi added that though India declared cheetahs extinct in 1952, it is unfortunate that no constructive efforts were made to reintroduce them for decades.

Tracing the Re-introduction of Cheetahs in India

• Beginning: The State Wildlife Board of Andhra Pradesh was the first to suggest the policy in 1955, on an experimental basis in two districts of the state.
• Government on Re-introduction: In the 1970s, the Department of Environment formally requested Iran, which had 300 Asiatic cheetahs at the time, for some cheetahs.
  • However, the Shah of Iran was deposed before any deal could be reached.
• Revival of Demand: Attempts to bring cheetahs to India were revived once more in 2009, and the Wildlife Trust of India conducted a meeting to discuss the feasibility of cheetah reintroduction.
  • Several sites were chosen, of which Kuno-Palpur National Park was seen as the most suitable.
  • This was because the area had a large habitat area available and significant investments had already been made to displace the villagers inhabiting the site.
• Supreme Court on Reintroduction of Cheetah: The Supreme Court in 2010 stayed the order to reintroduce cheetah to Kuno- Palpur because the National Board for Wildlife had not been privy to the matter.
  • The court said that priority should be given to the reintroduction of the Asiatic lion, which is only found in Gir National Park, Gujarat.
  • In 2020, while responding to a plea by the government, the Supreme Court announced that African cheetahs could be introduced in a “carefully chosen location” on an experimental basis.
• Re-introduction of Cheetah: recently PM Modi released three of eight cheetah in the Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park.
  • These cheetah were flown from Namibia’s capital Windhoek.
  • Among eight wild Cheetahs that were brought to India, five are females and three are males.

Cheetah in India- Tracing the Extinction Journey of Cheetah in India

• Hunting with the cheetahs: The cheetah, which was relatively easy to tame and less dangerous than tigers, was frequently used by Indian nobility for sport-hunting.
  • The earliest available record for cheetahs being used for hunts in India, comes from the 12th century Sanskrit text Manasollasa, which was produced by the Kalyani Chalukya ruler, Someshvara III (reigned from 1127-1138 CE).
  • Emperor Akbar, who reigned from 1556-1605, was particularly fond of the activity and is recorded to have collected 9,000 cheetahs in total.
  • Emperor Jahangir (ruled from 1605-1627) took after his father and is said to have caught more than 400 antelopes by cheetah coursing in the pargana of Palam.
  • The capture of wild cheetahs for hunting and the difficulty to breed them in captivity was leading to a decline in the cheetah population, even before the entry of the British.
• Near extinction under the British Raj: they preferred to hunt big game, such as tigers, bison and elephants.
  • Under the British Raj, forests were extensively cleared, so as to develop settlements and to set up indigo, tea and coffee plantations.
  • This further resulted in the loss of habitat for big cats, contributing to their decline.
  • British officials considered the animal as “vermin” and also distributed monetary rewards for the killing of cheetahs from at least 1871 onwards.
  • The rewards for bounty hunting likely caused the decline of cheetahs, as even the removal of a small number would have negatively affected the ability of wild cheetahs to reproduce even at the lowest level required for survival.
  • As a result, wild cheetahs became very rare in India by the 20th century.
• Extinction of Cheetah from India: In 1952, the Indian government officially declared the Cheetah extinct in the country.
  • Maharaja Ramanuj Pratap Singh Deo of Korea, Madhya Pradesh, is widely believed to have killed the last three recorded cheetahs in India in 1947.

 

19th Meeting of NTCA: 50 Cheetah to be introduced in next 5 years

 

Centre adds 4 new tribes to Scheduled Tribes (ST) List

 

Centre adds 4 new tribes to Scheduled Tribes (ST) List- Relevance for UPSC Exam

General Studies II- Indian Constitution – historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure.

In News

The Union Cabinet under the chairmanship of PM has approved the addition of four tribes to the list of Scheduled Tribes (ST), including those from Himachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Chhattisgarh.

1. Hatti tribe in the Trans-Giri area of Sirmour district in Himachal Pradesh
2. Narikoravan and Kurivikkaran hill tribes of Tamil Nadu and
3. Binjhia tribe in Chhattisgarh, which was listed as ST in Jharkhand and Odisha but not in Chhattisgarh

• The Cabinet also approved ‘Betta-Kuruba’ as a synonym for the Kadu Kuruba tribe In Karnataka.

Who are the Scheduled Tribes?

• The term ‘Scheduled Tribes’ first appeared in the Constitution of India.
• Article 366 (25) defined scheduled tribes as “such tribes or tribal communities or parts of or groups within such tribes or tribal communities as are deemed under Article 342 to be Scheduled Tribes for the purposes of this constitution”.
• Article 342 prescribes procedure to be followed in the matter of specification of scheduled tribes.

• Among the tribal groups, several have adapted to modern life but there are tribal groups who are more vulnerable.
• The Dhebar Commission (1973) created a separate category “Primitive Tribal Groups (PTGs)” which was renamed in 2006 as “Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs)”.

How are STs notified?

• The first specification of Scheduled Tribes in relation to a particular State/ Union Territory is by a notified order of the President, after consultation with the State governments concerned.
• These orders can be modified subsequently only through an Act of Parliament.

• Status of STs in India

• The Census 2011 has revealed that there are said to be 705 ethnic groups notified as Scheduled Tribes (STs).
• Over 10 crore Indians are notified as STs, of which 1.04 crore live in urban areas.
• The STs constitute 8.6% of the population and 11.3% of the rural population.

 

19^th ASEAN-India Economic Ministers’ Meeting

 

19^th ASEAN-India Economic Ministers’ Meeting- Relevance for UPSC Exam

• GS Paper 2: International Relations- Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.

ASEAN-India Economic Ministers’ Meeting 2022 in News

• Recently, Smt. Anupriya Patel, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry along with H.E. Pan Sorasak, Minister of Commerce, Kingdom of Cambodia co-chaired the 19th ASEAN-India Economic Ministers’ meeting 2022.

19^th ASEAN-India Economic Ministers’ Meeting

• 19^th ASEAN-India Economic Ministers’ Meeting was held on 16^thSeptember 2022 in Siem Reap City, Cambodia.
• The Economic Ministers or their representatives from all the 10 ASEAN countries Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam attended the 19th ASEAN-India Economic Ministers’ Meeting.

Key Outcomes of ASEAN-India Economic Ministers’ Meet 2022

• Bilateral Trade: The members highlighted that he two-way trade between ASEAN and India reached USD 91.5 billion in 2021 increasing by 39.2 per cent year-on-year.
  • The Ministers also took note of the recommendations made by ASEAN India Business Council (AIBC) to enhance the ASEAN India economic partnership and the activities undertaken by AIBC in 2022.
• Post Covid-19 Recovery: The Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to take collective actions to mitigate the economic impact of the pandemic and work towards a sustainable post-COVID-19 recovery.
• Supply Chain Strengthening: The Ministers welcomed ASEAN and India to forge collective actions in securing a robust supply chain connectivity to maintain the flow of essential goods and services through-
  • Launching of ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) Upgrade Negotiations,
  • Mutual recognition of COVID-19 vaccination, vaccines production, public health surveillance, and medical technologies in moving forward with the post-pandemic recovery responses and facing future health crises.
• Mutual Support in WTO: The Ministers welcomed the successful outcomes of the Twelfth World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference held on 12-17 June 2022 in Geneva, Switzerland.
  • They also reiterated their support for a rules-based, non-discriminatory, open, fair, inclusive, equitable, and transparent multilateral trading system, as embodied in the WTO.
• Strengthening AITIGA: Ministers endorsed the Scope of the Review of the AITIGA to make it more user-friendly, simple, and trade facilitative for businesses, as well as responsive to the current global and regional challenges including supply chain disruptions.
  • The Ministers also activated the AITIGA Joint Committee to undertake the review of AITIGA expeditiously.

INDIA-ASEAN Relations

After independence India did not have good relations with ASEAN because of ideological difference with ASEAN which was under the US camp during the Cold War. After the end of Cold War, India – ASEAN relations have evolved from just economic ties to strategic heights owing to common threats and aspirations.

• 1996- India became a member of ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) for security dialogue in Asia in which members can discuss current regional security issues and develop cooperative measures to enhance peace and security in the region.
• 2002- India and ASEAN begin to hold annual summit level meetings.
• 2009- India- ASEAN Free trade Agreement in Goods was concluded.
• 2012- India – ASEAN Strategic Partnership was concluded
• 2014- India – ASEAN Free Trade Agreement in Services and Investment was signed with an aim to facilitate movement of manpower and investments between India and ASEAN.
• 2018- India ASEAN celebrated 25 years of their relationship by holding a commemorative Summit. Leaders of all ten ASEAN countries were invited as Chief Guests for the Republic Day parade on January 26,2018.

India-ASEAN Economic Cooperation

• ASEAN is India’s fourth largest trading partner.
• The ASEAN-India Free Trade Area has been completed.
• ASEAN India-Business Council (AIBC) was set up in 2003 to bring key private sector players from India and the ASEAN countries on a single platform.

• Financial assistance has been provided to ASEAN countries from the following Funds:
  • ASEAN-India Cooperation Fund
  • ASEAN-India S&T Development Fund
  • ASEAN-India Green Fund
• Delhi Declaration identifies cooperation in the Maritime Domain.
• Delhi Dialogue:Annual dialogue for discussing politico-security and economic issues between ASEAN and India.
• ASEAN-India Centre (AIC):To undertake policy research, advocacy and networking activities with organizations and think-tanks in India and ASEAN.
• Political Security Cooperation:India places ASEAN at the centre of its Indo-Pacific vision of Security and Growth for All in the Region.

 

18th India-ASEAN Summit

 

KRITAGYA Hackathon

 

KRITAGYA Hackathon- Relevance for UPSC Exam

• GS Paper 3: Indian Agriculture: e-technology in the aid of farmers; Technology missions.

KRITAGYA 3.0 Hackathon in News

• Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) with its National Agricultural Higher Education Project and Crop Science Division is organizing Hackathon 3.0 ‘’KRITAGYA” on promoting ‘speed breeding for crop improvement’.

KRITAGYA 3.0 Hackathon 2022

• About: KRITAGYA 3.0 Hackathon is an initiative to promote use of technology in development and promotion of agriculture.
  • KRI-TA-GYA explains, KRI for Krishi (Agriculture), TA for Taknik (Technology) and GYA for Gyan (Knowledge).
• Objective: KRITAGYA Hackathon will provide an opportunity to students/faculties/entrepreneurs/innovators and others to showcase innovative approaches and technology solutions to promote innovation for crop improvement.
  • KRITAGYA Hackathon also takes forward the vision of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi through National Education Policy-2020.
• Organizing Body: KRITAGYA Hackathon is organized by Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).
• Importance: KRITAGYA Hackathon will give impetus to the desired rapid results in the crop sector with the ability to learn, innovation and solutions, employability and entrepreneurship.
  • It will also encourage greater adoption of technology enabled solutions in the country.
  • This event is also extending the support to winners for further development in their concept propositions, its scalability and future plan in collaboration with Agri Business Incubators, MSMEs and other investors through support of ICAR.
• Participation: In the KRITAGYA 3.0 Hackathon, students, faculty and innovators/entrepreneurs from any university/technical institute across the country can apply and participate in the program as a group.
  • The participating group shall consist of maximum 4 participants, with not more than one faculty and / or more than one innovator or entrepreneur.
  • Participating students can collaborate with local start-ups, students from technology institutes and can win up-to INR 5 Lakhs.

Previous KRITAGYA Hackathons

• During 2020-21 and 2021-22 NAHEP in association with Agricultural Engineering and Animal Science Divisions of ICAR organized Hackathon 1.0 and 2.0 to promote the innovation in Farm Mechanization and in Animal Science, respectively.
• The events witnessed immense participation across the country where more than 784 teams i.e., 3,000 participants actively participated in hackathon 1.0 and more than 269 teams participated in hackathon 2.0.
• At national level, 4 teams were awarded by Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Shri Tomar with a cash prize of Rs. 9 lakhs.

About National Education Policy (NEP) 2020

• It is the third education policy of our country. The earlier two was launched in 1968 and 1986.
  • This national policy came after a gap of 34 years.
• It is based on the recommendations of Kasturirangan committee.
• It renames the Ministry of Human Resource Development to Ministry of Education.
• It proposes a 5+3+3+4 curricular and pedagogical structure.

 

Stages	Years	Class	Features
Foundational	3-8	3 years of pre-primary and 1-2	Flexible, multi-level, activity-based learning
Preparatory	9-11	3-5	Light textbooks, more formal but interactive classroom learning
Middle	12-14	6-8	Introduction of subject teachers for learning of more abstract concepts, experimental learning
Secondary	15-18	9-12	Reading in-depth, critical thinking, greater attention to life aspirations

 

Technology in Agriculture: Remote Sensing Crop Model

 

Erode Venkatappa Ramasamy: Father of the Dravidian movement

 

Erode Venkatappa Ramasamy: Father of the Dravidian movement- Relevance for UPSC Exam

General Studies I- Modern Indian History.

Context

• We celebrate Periyar E.V. Ramasamy’s birth anniversary (September 17) as Social Justice Day.

Who is Periyar?

• Erode Venkatappa Ramasamy, revered as Periyar or Thanthai Periyar, was an Indian social activist and politician who started the Self-Respect Movement and Dravidar Kazhagam.
• He is known as the ‘Father of the Dravidian movement’.
• He rebelled against Brahminical dominance and gender and caste inequality in Tamil Nadu.

Self-respect movement

• The self-respect movement was founded by V.Ramaswamy Naicker, commonly known as Periyar.
• It was a dynamic social movement aimed at destroying the contemporary Hindu social order in its totality and creating a new, rational society without caste, religion and God.

Periyar: The Vaikom Hero

• V. Ramasamy Periyar led the famous Vaikom Satyagraha in 1924, where the people of down trodden community were prohibited to enter into the temple.
• Finally, the Travancore government relaxed such segregation and allowed the people to enter into the temple.
• Periyar was given the title of ‘Vaikom Hero’.
• The Satyagraha began with the active support of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee.
• Within a week all its leaders were behind bars. George Joseph sought directions from Gandhi and C. Rajagopalachari. He also wrote to Periyar pleading with him to lead the satyagraha.
• Periyar was in the midst of political work as he was then the president of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee, Periyar handed over temporary charge to Rajaji before reaching Vaikom in 1924.
• From that date to the day of the victory celebrations in 1925, he was in the struggle giving it leadership at a critical juncture.

Periyar’s role

• Periyar presided over the satyagraha in the face of violence and indignity inflicted by the orthodox and the repression of the police.
• To mobilise support, he visited villages in and around Vaikom and delivered public speeches in several towns.
• When the Kerala leaders asked for Gandhi’s permission to make the satyagraha an all-India affair, Gandhi refused saying that volunteers from Tamil Nadu would keep it alive.
• The British Resident said in his report to the government of Madras: “In fact, the movement would have collapsed long ago but for the support it has received from outside Travancore…”
• Historian T.K. Ravindran observes that Periyar’s arrival gave “a new life to the movement”.

His Vision for the future

• When he presented his thoughts, there was nuance, honesty, and an explicitness, which prompted even people practising different faiths to discuss and debate his ideas on rationality and religion.
• Periyar himself said, “Everyone has the right to refute any opinion. But no one has the right to prevent its expression.”

• Periyar is often referred to as an iconoclast, for the rebellious nature of his ideas and the vigour with which he acted.
• His vision for the future was a part of all his actions and did not merely aim at the eradication of social evils; he also wanted to put an end to activities that do not collectively raise standards of society.

Foundation of rationalism

• Periyar’s vision was about inclusive growth and freedom of individuals. He was an important ideologue of his day because of the clarity in his political stand. More importantly, he understood the evolution of political thought and was able to glide through time with this.
• He said, “Wisdom lies in thinking. The spearhead of thinking is rationalism.” Periyar was way ahead of his time. He further said “Whomsoever I love and hate, my principle is the same. That is, the educated, the rich and the administrators should not suck the blood of the poor.”
• There have been several social reformers in Tamil Nadu who shared their revolutionary thoughts with the people in the past century. In that spectrum, Periyar occupies a unique place because he made interactions of multiple worlds possible.

Periyar said, “Any opposition not based on rationalism or science or experience, will one day or other, reveal the fraud, selfishness, lies, and conspiracies.”

Conclusion

• His works against the Brahminical dominance, oppression of women in Tamil Nadu, caste prevalence is exemplary.
• Periyar promoted the principles of rationalism, self-respect, women’s rights and eradication of caste.
• He opposed the exploitation and marginalization of the people of South India and the imposition of what he considered Indo-Aryan India.

 

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