Dilip D'Souza @DeathEndsFun
Dear @smritiirani , let's be clear:
1) There's zero wrong if Sunita Viswanath and Rahul Gandhi meet.
2) There's zero wrong in being an "associate" of George Soros.
3) Soros is critical of our Government. That doesn't make him anti-India.

Who Is Sunita Viswanath And What’s The Controversy Surrounding Her Meeting With Rahul Gandhi In US?  by Ritesh K Srivastava https://www.msn.com/en-in/news/India/who-is-sunita-viswanath-and-what-s-the-controversy-surrounding-her-meeting-with-rahul-gandhi-in-us/ar-AA1dc9Hi

A women's rights activist, Sunita Viswanath is the co-founder of Hindus for Human Rights. In 2001, she co-founded the nonprofit humanitarian organization Women for Afghan Women (WAW). In 2011, Sunita Viswanath co-founded Sadhana: Coalition of Progressive Hindus - a progressive Hindu movement aligned with social justice commitments to anti-casteism and anti-racism.

She has also been accused of being a “proxy” for George Soros in the backdrop of allegations that her NGO for Afghan women received funds from the billionaire US investor.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gj_WVZ5CWSE  Smiriti Iranis Press Conference..

From Sunita Vishwanath: https://mailchi.mp/e29f61a2f80a/they-can-sue-us-but-they-cant-silence-us-10140551?e=92f3be0cc3 Our organization, Hindus for Human Rights, is dedicated to mobilizing the Hindu diaspora community to reclaim our religion from the clutches of Hindu nationalist ideology, epitomized by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). We have tirelessly fought against this regressive mentality, co-leading protests in New York and Washington, DC during Mr. Modi's recent United States visit.

 Minister of Minority Rights, Smriti Irani, brandished a photo of me sitting next to Rahul Gandhi, alleging ties with George Soros and unfounded claims that Soros intends to dismantle the Republic of India. These outrageous accusations, propagated by the BJP IT Cell and Hindu nationalist platforms, seek to discredit our genuine efforts for equality and justice.

The Hindu Nationalists Using the Pro-Israel Playbook https://jewishcurrents.org/the-hindu-nationalists-using-the-pro-israel-playbook 

To counter what they view as a rising tide of prejudice, the HAF and other Hindu American groups , ... Indian Americans have mode led their congressional activism on that of the American Jewish Committee (AJC) and AIPAC; Indian lobbyists have partnered with these groups to achieve shared defense goals, including arms deals between India and Israel and a landmark nuclear agreement between India and the US. Along the way, these Jewish groups have trained a generation of Hindu lob byists and advocates, offering strategies at joint summits and providing a steady stream of informal advice. “We shared with them the Jewish approach to political activism,” Ann Schaffer, an AJC leader, told the Forward in 2002. “We want to give them the tools to further their political agenda.” Shukla told Jewish Currents that the HAF continues to work closely with the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and the AJC, whether by “being co-amici curiae on briefs to the US Supreme Court,” or by “lending our support to one another’s letters to Congress.”

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Hindu American activists also founded a new cohort of organizations focused less on “matters in the ‘homeland’” than on “the terrain of Indian-American life,”( The protean forms of Yankee Hindutva by Biju Mathew & Vijay Prashad   https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/014198700328971?journalCode=rers20

https://www.ucanews.com/news/police-block-access-to-indian-catholic-school/101782 June 27, 2023 

Police block access to Indian Catholic school

St. John’s Senior Secondary School in Madhya Pradesh's Damoh town compelled to hold online classes for its 2,300 students 

“We have been using the approach road for 35 years and it is closed now,” said Sister Sophy Bharat, principal of St. John’s Senior Secondary School in Damoh district in Madhya Pradesh.

“A contingent of police personnel on June 22 night descended in front of the school gate and dumped construction materials and immediately erected close to a 100-meter-long wall. It blocked our entry and exit through the approach road,”

Superintendent of Police Rakesh Kumar Singh told UCA News on June 27 the road was on police land. “It was not their road, let them construct their [own] way in their [own] land.”

Saket Gokhale @SaketGokhale Jun 24, 2023

Modi Govt OVERPAYS for US drones in deal signed by PM Modi (like Rafale) PM Modi signed an agreement in the US to purchase 31 MQ9B Predator drones for $3.1 billion+. That's ~ $110 million per drone. Now let's compare that with the actual price for the SAME drone . The MQ9B drone being purchased by Modi Govt is also knows as MQ9B Reaper (or Predator) & is made by General Atomics. Now remember - US purchases drones from pvt companies at market prices.

How much does US Air Force pays for these drones? $56.5 million per drone

Another country which purchased MQ9B drones from General Atomics in 2016 is the UK. UK in 2016 paid £180 million (i.e. $200 million) for a total of 16 drones to be delivered in 2024. How much did the UK pay for ONE MQ9B drone? About $12.5 million per drone.

Australia signed a deal to buy 12 MQ9B drones for $1.65. That's ~ $130 million per drone. BUT wait - this came with MANY EXTRA SYSTEMS that India is NOT GETTING for $ 110 million per drone. AND - Australia canceled this deal later for being TOO EXPENSIVE.

Just like the Rafale deal, it seems that Modi Govt is AGAIN purchasing US drones at a SUPER OVERPRICED cost.

Question:

Why is Modi Govt purchasing overpriced drones from US when cheaper similar versions are available?

Whatever happened to "Atmanirbhar Bharat"?

Also, for those claiming that the premium price paid by the Modi Govt includes "transfer of technology", here's what the govt told Parliament in 2017:

Drone is being purchased under Buy (Global) category and THERE IS NO TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGY envisaged.

If that has changed, Modi Govt should clarify

Jun 26 How the Modi Govt suddenly chickened out & changed its stance on the price of drones being bought from the US: This happened after I pointed out how other countries have gotten the same drone at much cheaper prices. Here's how the shocking u-turn by the Modi Govt unfolded

Two days ago, I wrote an extensive tweet thread pointing out that Modi Govt was purchasing MQ9 drones from the US at an INFLATED price. I pointed out the comparison between $3 billion being announced as India's purchase cost with what other countries have paid.
Yesterday, Modi Govt's @PIBFactCheck claimed my tweet was "misleading" about the price of the deal & the Ministry of Defense also released a press release. The ONLY part of my tweet they've disputed is the price of $3 billion for 31 drones. Nothing else. Now let's look at various news reports that were published reporting the drone deal to be signed by PM Modi & President Biden during Modi's US visit.

EVERY news report has stated the price as $3 billion for 31 drones. In fact, India Today claimed $4 billion.

 
Now, none of these news reports were disputed by the Modi Govt when they were published

In fact, BJP & Modi Govt did a propaganda blitz over the reports of this $3 billion drone deal to be signed by PM Modi

 And then, suddenly, after I pointed out how this drone deal was OVERPRICED compared to what other countries are paying, the Modi Govt immediately made a u-turn

Now, Modi Govt suddenly claims that "price of drones is yet to be approved & negotiated"

Saket Gokhale @SaketGokhale  Why did the Modi Govt not dispute a SINGLE news report that published the price of the drone deal as $3 billion until my tweet? Why did Modi Govt not dispute reports stating that Govt's Defense Acquisition Council had approved $3bn for the drone deal? During PM Modi's US visit, it was claimed that the deal was "signed".

And after I pointed out this deal is OVERPRICED, Modi Govt suddenly made a u-turn & claims "deal is not finalized". Modi Govt's lies have been exposed again & now they're again trying to mislead people

Anil #BRS @OnlyTRS Jun 26 How can a deal be signed without price negotiations , terms and conditions. Looks like they kept a ‘margin’ for electoral bonds and changed the time after getting caught.

गुजरात में मोदी लाए अमेरिका से इन्वेस्टमेंट! जय शाह लाये वर्ल्ड कप फाइनल!_PM Modi Gujarat Investment https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gS1qvfXHb-o

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbumUH7pOx0 25000 crore?

https://twitter.com/Jairam_Ramesh/status/1673951689190113280

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FzsSLt6XgAEl1y8

Saket Gokhale After TMC, the Congress too has raised very serious questions regarding irregularities in the MQ9B drone deal with the US

India's 1st & 2nd largest parties in Parliament have asked questions on this deal that the Modi Govt is slyly evading

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02rLC5P8vZg प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी यूएसए में: अमरीका में जनतंत्र की मृत्यु का महाभोज | PM Narendra Modi In US

CommentL @dilbaghsingh5182
One thing needs to be understood properly that India is a large country with largest democracy and of course a beautiful country and the need of the hour is to maintain this identity of this country which apparently is under threat in the present scenario. It is also to be understood that It is the country which is more important than any individual. Whoever is given a warm welcome abroad is bcz of this country and its greatness and not otherwise. We wish to take pride in every individual who does the things in the interest of this country and to make this country proud , and a better and better country for future. Let’s hope the things to improve in future. One more aspect we are still not understanding is that : what is the need of doing Hindu-Muslims or ignoring the public on several issues of importance when you are having a clear and comfortable majority already and If doing good for the country, automatically the voters will give you majority for future as well .

@creativeperspectives2712
Indian ciitizens have to realize that there is a choice. People have fought in the name of caste, religion , race for thousands of years. Now the question is if they want to fight for the next thousand years or take a different direction. Taking a different direction means making peace within the country and with the neighboring countries. Peace is a pre requisite for growth and development.

@amarbirsinghchugh3798
We have been forced to take sides in this time of polarization. It is so unnecessary. India is a diverse country and its strength is in its diversity. This must be preserved and encouraged. We as citizens are being pitted against one another. This is a waste of our energy. We must realize that History can only be corrected by making our society may more progressive where the rule of law prevails. This is the only way forward.

@benukakati9915
We read in history book, " When Rome is burning, Nero is fiddling"
Similarly when Manipur is burning, the country"s PM is yoging in US at the International Yoga Day at his busy schedule . Ethnic violance is going on for 7 weeks with 107 dead, thousands of people displaced ,houses burning ,food and drinks are in short supply and prizes escalating , our homourable PM has not said a word nor tweeted once about this.But he was quick in response following train disaster in Odissa including being there next day , so was he quickly reacted to Gujrat Cyclone ,Biparjay!Is it not discrimanative behaviour by the country"s PM against Manipur, because it is far away from mainland, being in North East?

Gopal Krishna <This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.>

Influence of Russia and other asbestos producers prevents inclusion of chrysotile asbestos in UN list of “hazardous”chemicals

Listing of carcinogenic chrysotile asbestos in UN list being “deferred” for last 17 years

Indian manufacturers of asbestos based products are also guilty of manslaughter

Read more …

Forest Foods of Konkan Western Ghats

Bharat Mansata (6-7-22)

End summer and early monsoon is the season of maximum abundance of forest foods at Vanvadi – a 28-year old, collectively regenerated forest in the Sahyadri foothills of the Western Ghats.
The months of May and June saw the fruiting and ripening of Karvanda, Mahua, Mango, Jambul, Tembrun … With the first rains, also emerged the shoots of Shevla. Brilliantly coloured and exotic looking at closer sight, this locally relished vegetable is cooked in a special way with another forest plant, to remove its itchiness. It fetches a fancy price in the not-too-distant towns like Badlapur and Kalyan; also in the Dadar market of Mumbai. All through June, small hordes of neighbouring villagers fanned out in the Vanvadi forest to hunt for the Shevla. Also the tender, young shoots of several varieties of creepers that are cooked as a delicious vegetable, and are quite abundantly available till about mid-July.

A few varieties of tubers like Ol-Kand, are also consumed in the rains by the older generation of the local people, who swear by their high nutritional value. The Ol-Kand tubers are securely tied in a small cloth bundle and left overnight in a flowing stream; then boiled and eaten the following day. The elders recall that in the past, especially during periods of food shortage, they survived quite healthily on this tuber.

The history of farming is barely 10,000 years old, according to India’s National Commission on Farmers. Before that, humans – like all other creatures on earth – depended entirely on food provided directly by nature. And we faced no nutritional handicap in our evolution!

There are an estimated 80,000 edible plant species on earth, says the ‘Gaia Atlas of Planet Management’ (Ed. Norman Myers, Pan Books, 1985), not counting the many edible varieties of each species. These uncultivated foods are free, nourishing gifts of Nature, growing wild, requiring no human labour, except in harvesting or gathering.

Today, with the spread of extensive industrial monocultures – grown with toxic chemicals for distant urban markets, barely 20 plant species now provide 90% of the entire human diet. And just 8 crops (of a very few varieties) provide three quarters of all human food! That is a miniscule 0.01% (or one in ten thousand) of the edible species gifted by Nature. So under all the glitter and packaging of our current ‘multi-brand’ market economy, are we really progressing, or getting nutritionally impoverished?

In February 2014, I was fortunate to attend a vibrant Tribal Food Festival at Bissam Cuttack in the Niyamgiri foothills of Odisha. Over 600 adivasis, about 80% women, gathered from over 200 tribal villages of different states in eastern and central India – to celebrate the rich diversity of their traditional foods. More than 1500 food varieties – cultivated and uncultivated, raw and cooked – were on display, including over 900 uncultivated forest foods, and 400 ready-to-eat recipes for sampling.

***
Almost two decades earlier, in 1994, a number of us had pooled resources to buy undulating land, now known as Vanvadi, in the foothills of north Western Ghats; our primary aim – ecological regeneration and local self-reliance. Over the years, the clear-felled land regenerated into a magnificent forest: tall, dense, and rich in biodiversity. A survey of the botanical wealth of Vanvadi, based on local tribal knowledge, surprised us with 52 species of uncultivated forest foods that provide edible yield (leaf, fruit, flower, stem, tuber/root), usually at a certain time of the year. The peak availability in our region is in early monsoon, when the agricultural produce of the past year has been largely consumed; and the farming population needs nourishment for the hard work of the new planting season.
Of the 52 edible species listed at Vanvadi, we identified the botanical names of about 30 plants, and verified their use as food from ‘The Wealth of India’ and ‘Food from Forests’. The former – a multi-volume encyclopaedia of India’s biological wealth, published by the National Institute of Science Communication and Information Resources, CSIR (www.niscair.res.in) – is a treasure-trove of information on the myriad useful plant species of India. The latter – published by the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE), 590 pages – provides an account of almost 600 uncultivated food yielding species from various forested regions of India; and there are many more.

Yet another very valuable resource is, ‘A Dictionary of the Economic Products of India’, by Sir George Watt, first published by Oxford University in 1889-90 (10 volumes), and digitized in 2006. For more condensed data – drawn from ‘The Wealth of India’ – ‘The Useful Plants of India’ (918 pages), published by the ‘Publications and Information Directorate’ of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), provides summary information on over 5,000 useful plant species, including their local names in various vernacular languages for easy cross-identification.

***

It is a tragedy that our GDP-driven ‘e-con-omic’ civilization pays scant attention to the rich diversity of organic, nutritious foods, that our natural forests provide free in a most ecologically efficient manner – without any external input whatsoever of energy, water or fertility! Indeed, the forests are by far the most efficient agents of harvesting solar energy, sequestering carbon, ameliorating climate change, conserving and regenerating our soils and their fertility, fostering biodiversity, and recharging groundwater, besides providing a huge variety of useful produce.
Late Debjeet Sarangi of Living Farms (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) – that helped organize the Tribal Food Festival in Odisha – stated: “Uncultivated foods provide a critical supplement to the diets of the local native communities. Often, in bio-diverse natural forests, there is year-long supply of several hundred varieties of foods, ensuring diversity and nutritional balance in the local diets. While the gathering and consumption of uncultivated foods varies across regions, communities, seasons, a recent study by Living Farms revealed that there was not a single household in its sample study (of the adivasis of Niyamgiri hills and forests) which reported that it does not collect or consume uncultivated foods like wild tubers, greens, mushrooms, fruits, etc. A wealth of living knowledge yet exists in our indigenous communities regarding their forest bio-resources.”

An adivasi of the Pahari Korba tribe declared, “We Pahari Korba have always enjoyed a long and healthy life for generations, without any major ailments or diseases. For every minor disease, symptom or discomfort we depended on forest herbs, plants, vegetables, to get well, and we never visited a drug store, hospital, or took any injections.”

Other adivasi tribals at the Festival related how their uncultivated forest foods have been dependable sources of nutrition even in the most critical times of drought and agricultural failure, caused by increasingly erratic or scant rainfall.

Forest Foods of Konkan Western Ghats Bharat Mansata (6-7-22)

But in many places, communities are now reporting a decline in the availability and consumption of uncultivated foods, due to a variety of external factors. Deforestation, displacement, urbanization, big dams, industrial mining, mega-plants, the spread of cash-crops and monocultures – all constitute a relentless assault on the biological and socio-cultural habitats of our enormously rich diversity of uncultivated foods, evolved over millennia.

An elderly adivasi woman, participating in the 2014 Tribal Food Festival, lamented: “Now we see our own children, educated the modern way, getting culturally alienated from us. This younger generation knows little about our rich heritage and traditional, season based food practices. I fear that our whole life, livelihood and culture may be lost forever if we do not start educating our children and future generations to conserve nature, live harmoniously with the seasons, and revive our traditional bio-diverse nutritional security.”

Devinder Sharma, a food and agricultural policy analyst states, “Modern living has snapped the symbiotic relationship that existed with nature. Not many know that India is a mega-diversity region with over 51,000 plant species existing, but with hardly a handful being cultivated.”
***

At Vanvadi, a primary listing yielded over 120 forest species known to have various traditional uses. Apart from food yielding species, we discovered we had more than 45 plant species of known medicinal use; and at least 20 timber species, including four rated as ‘first grade timbers’. And then there are plants that yield natural dyes, soaps, edible oils, bio-fuels, gums and resins, botanical pesticides, leaf plates, etc., apart from fodder, fuel, fibre, manure, hedge protection, craft material, etc.
Many species have multiple uses. For example, the flowers of the Mahua tree are used to make jaggery, liquor and dozens of food recipes among the adivasi communities of Central and Eastern India. The fresh, green fruits can be cooked and eaten as a vegetable, or sun-dried and consumed months later. In our region of north Konkan Western Ghats, the seed of the Mahua fruit is crushed to yield a cooking-oil, far more wholesome than any brand available in the market. And the residual cake after extracting the oil is used to fertilise farm crops. It is also burnt with dried cow-dung to smoke out mosquitoes. When the Mahua tree dies at a ripe, old age, its wood is used for making carriages, furniture, sports goods, musical instruments, agricultural implements; and also for house and ship building.

The rich natural inheritance of our forested regions sustained our adivasi communities for generations beyond count. Today, if there are any people left on this earth who can teach our floundering ‘millennium generation’ the fine art and science of co-existing in harmony with the forest, it is these tribals. Or rather, just those among them now, who still retain the knowledge, the skills, and the native cultural perspective.

https://indianexpress.com/article/education/iit-madras-director-v-kamakoti-engineers-taking-up-non-core-jobs-is-a-waste-of-resources-8657696/

In an interview to The Indian Express, Kamakoti, a cyber security expert and the man behind India’s first indigenous computer microprocessor ‘Shakti’, said, “I am deeply concerned about the current situation. With India’s increasing number of infrastructure and aviation projects, I worry about the availability of civil and aerospace engineers. Recently, during my travels, I have met alumni from IIT Madras who pursued careers in big four companies, such as marketing or high-frequency trading. When asked about their (engineering) background, it becomes apparent that their career choices are completely unrelated to what they have studied. It’s a waste of resources.”
A lesson from IIT | Parental pressure might push you towards engineering but seriously consider a science degree, writes IIT Mandi professor

Delving into the reasons, Kamakoti said, two aspects stand out: pay and work environment. “The higher pay and the comfort of working from home, even while attending to ho usehold chores, make these opportunities appealing. Remote work allows me to enjoy the comforts of home, including home-cooked meals, and the flexibility to watch Netflix while completing tasks. In contrast, as a civil engineer,

https://indianexpress.com/article/education/was-nilekanis-path-wrong-cant-question-who-generate-national-wealth-employment-iit-bombay-director-defends-engineers-non-core-career-choices-jee-advanced-2023-8689403/

The Big Con
Pankaj Mishra on Modi’s India and the New World Order  https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v45/n09/pankaj-mishra/the-big-con

Adani was not only a beneficiary of the new political and economic order devised by Modi to consolidate Hindu supremacism in India. The neglected details of his frictionless rise show that after their calamitous romance with Russia’s oligarchy, Western politicians, journalists and bankers facilitated the ascent of another hyper-nationalist elite with dubiously sourced wealth and an extreme aversion to the rule of law and civil liberties...

Since becoming prime minister in 2014, Modi has repaid the favour: he turned Adani into India’s biggest operator of private airports and ports, as well as its leading producer of power from coal-fired plants. While presiding over an environmental crisis – India suffers from toxic smog, heatwaves, dry riverbeds, falling groundwater reserves and land subsidence – Modi has helped Adani, a fossil fuel tycoon, position himself as India’s champion of decarbonisation.