#bastar

[warship005]

Bastar the piglin

Dropping more art of my sona here because I like how they're turning out.

[infantisimo]

In Bastar: fear at the funeral

Tribal families who follow Christianity in Chhattisgarh are finding it difficult to conduct the last rites and ceremonies of loved ones who

Instead, the family was subjected to heckling and intimidation – influential members of the village, egged on by right-wing leaders had decided to take advantage of their vulnerability. They decreed that Shyamlal’s funeral would be allowed in the village on one condition: the family had to convert from Christianity to Hinduism and conduct the last rites according to Hindu rituals.

...

The grieving family were mobbed by right-wing supporters who told them they had no access to the cemetery in the village where the burials have been happening for all these years. “We are being targeted only because we chose to follow a particular faith. But you can follow whatever religion you want to follow. I have read that in the news,” says Sukmiti.

...

What’s more, “they wouldn’t even let us bury Shyamlal in our backyard,” she adds. “That’s where we had buried his grandmother. We thought the two could rest next to each other. But we were told we couldn’t do it because we stood up to them and refused to convert.”

...

Right-wing groups are targeting families that have lost their loved ones. One gram sabha even passed a resolution which disallowed cremation for the people following Christianity within the boundary of the village. Shyamlal’s last rites seemed like mere logistics. It was rushed through. “It felt like we didn’t send him off properly,” says the family.

...

“This is largely a post-covid phenomenon,” says Benjamin. “Before that, the right-wingers attempted to convert Christians to Hinduism using various methods, but death was respected by and large. Sadly, not anymore.”

...

The family stood its ground. Nag insisted on not giving into majoritarian pressure. “We own a three-acre farmland and what we do on it is our business,” he says. “We decided to bury her over there. We wouldn’t have it any other way.” The members of the Bajrang Dal eventually backed down and the burial went through without further disruptions. Even then, people were distracted, looking out for one while giving Aayati a respectable send-off. “Is it too much to expect peace while conducting last rites?” he asks. “Yes, we won that battle. But we don’t want our children growing up in this atmosphere. Even the village heads didn’t stand by us.”

...

The marginalisation of tribal Christians has been going on. “We aren’t allowed to fetch water from the common well in the village anymore,” Kosha says. “We have to do it clandestinely.”

Back in Arracote, Sukmiti says the family were not allowed to go to a wedding in a neighbouring village because it was a Christian family getting married: “The family had to throw away the food they had prepared for the guests because nobody could reach there.”

Despite the Constitution (Article 25) stating that “Freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion,” tribal Christians are facing hostility and intimidation.

“The situation is such that when someone dies in a Christian family, our first reaction is fear and logistics, not grief. What sort of death is this?” she says.

[munnabaghelclicks]

Brown-headed barbet #brownheadedbarbet #wildlifephotography #wildnature #wildrenss #wildlifeinstituteofindia #wildchhatisgarh #wildlife #wildlifelovers #bridsofkangervalley #brids #channelofindia #chhattisgarh #bastar #Jagdalpur #incredibleindia #instagood #india #junglesafari #kangervalley #kangerjunglesafari #dekhochhattisgarh #photooftheday #photographers_of_india #netgeoindia #forest #gochhattisgarh #munna_baghel_clicks #munnabaghelphotography #instadaily (at Kanger Valley National Park) https://www.instagram.com/p/CiuCeyxr65H/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[indizombie]

Public health expert Dr Antony KR said PPP in the health sector has often resulted in a loss to the government and taxpayers and has been beneficial to the private sector. “Very few philanthropic organisations and charitable trusts have sincerely collaborated with the government for the common good,” he said. “This PPP model of giving away district hospitals to private medical colleges should not end up in a similar fiasco.” Antony pointed out that the Chiranjeevi scheme in Gujarat – meant to give women from poor families access to institutional deliveries in private hospitals – had resulted in the weakening of well-utilised public health institutions in the Surat, Ahmedabad and Baroda regions. Also, the scheme had no takers for areas such as Kutch, which is poorly served by the government, he said. Similarly, when Chhattisgarh wanted to outsource diagnostic services in district hospitals, there were no bidders for the tribal divisions of Bastar and Sarguja. The private sector bid only for the Raipur and Bilaspur divisions, where they could make a profit, said Antony, who is an independent monitor for the Centre’s National Health Mission. Citing the example of Rishikesh in Uttarakhand, he stressed that private companies were reluctant to carry out public health programmes like immunisation, maternal and child health, and family planning in response to calls by the government, while being very keen on offering diagnostic services.

Sumi Sukanya Dutta, ‘Privatisation of district hospitals: Wheels set in motion in 5 states’, Moneycontrol

[poetryoffailures]

Brown

Brown stains on the concrete pavements

A smell so pungent of sulphur

Scattered splinters shining in the faint light

A few empty magazines and a tear-gas shell

Sobs of street-dogs and moles and rats

A blazing postal van and letters

Destined to be read by that teen,

To whom power lies at the gun’s barrel,

A dream to rid dinners of ant-eggs

In the brown plains of Bastar

Invaded by the ore-sharks

And pervert gangs of men in uniforms,

But all that lay on the concrete is a brown stain.

Brown, not red, was his favourite colour.

[villings]

Hacerlo todo. Contarlo todo. Cantarlo todo. Creerlo todo. Precisión. Nada esperar. Sólo se logra paz en pensamiento. Y, sin sobrar, nos basta.

José-Miguel Ullán

[coshalart]

Giving bunch of reason why should we use bamboo products. . . . . . . . Still need reasons!!! Comment down below. . Share more and more.. . . . . . . #bamboo #bamboocraft #bambooproducts #gogreen #bambooplant #sustainableliving #sustainable #green #saveearth #zerowaste #healthylifestyle #CoshalArt #facts #factfriday Hashtags coshal arts #handicraft #indianhandicrafts #CraftsofChhattisgarh #CoshalArt #Chhattisgarh #raipur #bastar #handmade #handmadeindia #madeinindia #art #artistofindia #Socialstartup #makeinindia #beVOCALshopLOCAL (at Chhattisgarh) https://www.instagram.com/p/CNuIuuoJH-Y/?igshid=1n1iteuh530vs

[arthistorywitches]

Lajja Gauri is a Hindu Goddess associated with abundance and sexuality, interpreted by some as the Creator deity.  Her worship is prevalent throughout India, especially in tribal regions of Central and Southern India.  Her power is emphasized by symbolic representation of the vulva. 

Devi, the Great Mother Goddess of Hinduism, in Her form as Lajja Gauri, is the most ancient Goddess form in Hinduism, whose worship is prevalent in tribal villages of Gujarat.  The Badami Cave Temples have a sculpture of the deity at the local Archeological Museum, originally found in Naganatha Temple, and has an extant temple dedicated to the goddess dating to Chalukya Empire which flourished around 6th century C.E.