Courtesy my friend RealityCheck (emphasis added); please try and ignore the absurdity of the headline in (as RealityCheck so memorably puts it) “a chest thumping secular country“. From 2 more minority lists put up, cut-offs dip further by Bhavya Dore, Hindustan Times, Mumbai, June 22, 2012, this brief excerpt:
At NM College in Vile Parle, the commerce cut-off for Gujarati minority students fell from 90.91% last year to 89.64% this year.
..At Hinduja College, students who fall in the Sindhi quota will be given walk-in admissions until Friday morning.  Earlier this week, cut-offs at …

“I once more appeal to you to forget the past…You have got what you wanted.
You have got a separate state and, remember, you are the people who were responsible for it, and not those who remain in Pakistan
What is it that you want now?

…Now again you tell me and ask me to say for the purpose of securing the affection of the younger brother I must agree to the same thing again, to divide the country again in the divided part.
For God’s sake understand that we have also got some …

How many of you noticed this piece of “news” from about 2 months ago (emphasis added)?
The Centre is proposing to introduce reservation for Muslims in educational institutions and employment on the lines of Andhra Pradesh government, Union Minister for Law and Justice Salman Khursheed indicated in Hyderabad on Sunday.
Talking to reporters here after participating in a ‘Solidarity Meeting on Palestine’ organised by the Indo-Arab League here, he said: “I don’t know whether it is a Bill. There will be separate reservation. It is not necessary to have another Bill. It …

…a brazen attempt was underway to further divide India – one bit at a time…Read about this and the “twilight zone where inclusive turns into exclusive“, courtesy, this post from RealityCheck’s blog that is worth further dissemination, discussion and debate..Reproduced verbatim below:
*** Independence day adhoc benefit reminder by Reality Check***
Half page ad seen in major papers on the occasion of Independence Day.
Blogged for the record.

Special benefits platform to prevent free agents.
Some points are not clear in the image (trying to get a better quality picture) :

75+ Lakh scholarships awarded till …

Dear All: I am reproducing below a brief but very interesting email exchange between Sh Yoginder Sikand and Sh Jay Vachani precipitated by a recent article in Tehelka by Sh Sikand, titled, Converted dalits get no justice. In the article, Sh Sikand has suggested that “Muslim and Christian Dalits should be given reservation just like those who embraced Sikhism and Buddhism“. This argument is not new but Sh Vachani has done a fine job of exposing the core of it – viz. caste being a sociological phenomenon…Pl read on (Thanks …

Maulana Kalbe Sadiq, Vice President, All-India Muslim Personal Law Board on reservations for Muslims:

‘‘Koi bhi qaum baisakhion ke sahare hamesha nahin chal sakti…usme jaan paida karni hogi*..”
*Translation: No community can move forward on crutches…we need to instil life into it.

He further said:
Muslim quota will not prove beneficial in the long run. The Muslim leadership is responsible for illiteracy and backwardness of the community…
Muslim leaders should now atone for their sins by promoting literacy, creating better avenues for jobs and improving their lot instead of harping on issues …

Last week, I spent some time at a very unusual small company in Bengaluru. It was one of the most uplifting experiences I have had in a very long time.
The company is called Vindhya E-Infomedia.
What makes it unusual is that almost 95% of its staff of 200 youngsters comprises differently-abled and physically challenged youngsters. What makes it special is their team-spirit, their dedication, their sincerity and commitment to their work. What made the experience uplifting was the palpable feeling of pride, dignity and achievement I sensed that day.
In their …

Last week, while catching up on news-reports re. the Ranganath Misra Commission, I was struck by how slowly but steadily we keep chipping away at an already fragile sense of national identity…by pitting one region against another, by pitting “caste” against “caste” …and now one religion against another.
But I am getting side-tracked. The Ranganath Misra Commission is not about “national identity”; it is about “development and progress”. And how is this development and progress going to be measured? By improving numbers in government employment, of course. So we have:
Since the …

Thanks to Sh KSV Subramanian for alerting me to this. In a comment yesterday, he asked:
Kerala government has announced writing off loans upto Rs.25,000 to converted Christians. Is this not discrimination on the basis of religion?”
I decided to dig further. Here is what I unearthed…courtesy the Budget Speech of Dr Thomas Isaac, Minister for Finance, Govt. of Kerala:
8 (iv). The penal interest and loan amounts up to Rs.25000/- in regard to loans drawn by scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and converted Christian communities from government departments, corporations and co-operatives will …

Start the weekend with this fascinating piece on a flawed understanding of intelligence.
Move on to a persuasive piece by Swaminathan S Aiyar on why direct cash transfers may provide better relief  to the drought hit than NREGA.
Next, read Aseem Shukla on why Scotland’s myopic act of mercy in releasing Abdel Megrahi may cost the world dearly.
And finally, read RealityCheck on why  Below Poverty Level is not “Below Poverty Level”.
Enjoy the weekend. Stay Safe and Keep Healthty.
Excerpts from all the above articles below, as always.
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