South Asia

This paper attempts to find out the water issues between India and Pakistan and its implications over relations of these bilateral states. This study investigates the conflicts over constructing dams or water storages on cross boundary rivers for example the building of Baghliar Dam, Kishanganga Plant and Wullar Barrage by India and also investigates Pakistan's response to these projects, judgment of intercontinental Court of Arbitration, responses of both sides and confidence building measures signed regarding the issue. This study explores that the water issue would prove disastrous if it was not solved in time. For peace in South Asia, solution of this conflict is necessary as early as possible.

Leprosy is strongly stigmatized in South Asia, being regarded as a manifestation of extreme levels of spiritual pollution going back through one or more incarnations of the self. Stigma has significant social consequences, including surveillance , exclusion, discipline, control, and punishment; biologically speaking, internalized stigma also compounds the disfigurement and disability resulting from this disease. Stigma results from an othering process whereby difference is recognized, meaning is constituted, and eventually, sufferers may be negatively signified and marked for exclusion. This paper traces the history of leprosy's stigmatization in South Asia, using archaeology and an exegesis of Vedic texts to examine the meaning of this disease from its apparent zero-point—when it first appears but before it was differentiated and signified—in the mature Indus Age. Results suggest that early in the second millennium BCE, leprosy was perceived as treatable and efforts were apparently made to mitigate its impact on the journey to the afterworld. Ignominy to the point of exclusion does not emerge until the first millennium BCE. This paper uses archaeology to create an effective history of stigma for leprosy, destabilizing what is true about this disease and its sufferers in South Asia today.

The conflict in the State of Jammu & Kashmir has roots in the multi-layered identity politics of the State. Often disregarded is the knowledge of the plurality of the society, as it is an abode to diverse cultures, religions, ethnicities, and languages. The demographic pattern, coupled with an overlapping and heterogenous identity, has equally contributed to the varied political opinions of the people of the State. The operating diversities in the State of Jammu & Kashmir have led to identity politics and there has never been a homogenized representation of the political stand of the State. The conflict has been going on for seven decades and cannot be solved without cooperation and mutual understanding of all concerned parties.

This work is a beguiling prospect for anyone who has been involved in South Asia or has an interest in the region. The idea of analysing so many distinct insurgencies and counter-insurgency (COIN) campaigns within the covers of a single book is both ambitious and tantalising. Unfortunately, and in spite of occasional good moments, this book provides few of the answers. It has a clunky structure, is peppered with editorial and factual errors and unsupported statements. The British General Templer in Malaya argued that COIN should only be 25% shooting. The remainder should be winning "hearts and minds". Sadly this has all too rarely been the case in South Asia where many of the COIN campaigns have been heavy-handed and brutal. Partly this is a function of capability; effective COIN needs excellent intelligence and highly trained and equipped Special Forces. Yet it is interesting to reflect that two "successful" COIN operations of recent years; the Indian defeat of the Khalistan movement and President Rajapaksa's suppression of the Tamil Tigers owed little to Templer or the proponents of minimum force

The Human Organism: Introduction to Biological Anthropology ----

OPEN ACCESS (FREE) ONLINE SINHALA TEXTBOOK

“Minis Saththwaya” offers an introduction to Biological (Physical) Anthropology with a focus on humans as biological organisms. Using an evolutionary perspective and a bio-cultural approach, this resource outlines the principles of Biological Anthropology, describing humanity. This online open access resource is designed to make anthropological knowledge accessible in Sinhala for A-Level students, University students, instructors and the general public.
Author: Samanti Kulatilake, PhD
Associate Professor, Mount Royal University, Canada


ජෛව මානව විද්‍යාව හදාරන සිසු සිසුවියන්ට මෙන්ම මිනිසාගේ ජෛවී තොරතුරු විමසන්නන් හට සිංහල බසින් ලියැවුණු මූලාශ්‍ර දුර්ලභ ය. මෙම විෂයය පිළිබඳව අවබෝධය පුළුල් කිරීම පිණිස වඩාත් විස්තරාත්මකව නව තොරතුරු සහ අදහස් ඇතුළත් කර, ජෛව මානව විද්‍යාව පිළිබඳ තොරතුරු ප්‍රචලිත කිරීමේ මූලික අභිලාෂය පෙරටු කොට ගෙන මෙම කෘතිය ඉදිරිපත් කරමි.

මානව විවිධත්වය සහ පරිණාමය විද්‍යාත්මකව වටහා ගැනීම කාලීන අවශ්‍යතාවකි. ජෛව (භෞතික) මානව විද්‍යා විෂය පිළිබඳව හැඳින්වීමක් “මිනිස් සත්ත්වයා: ජෛව මානව විද්‍යා ප්‍රවේශය” කෘතියෙන් ඉදිරිපත් වෙයි. පරිණාමවාදී දෘෂ්ටිකෝණයක් තුළින් සහ ජෛව සංස්කෘතික ප්‍රවේශයක් හරහා මිනිසා ජෛව ලෝකයේ සාමාජිකයකු ලෙස අධ්‍යයනය කරන අන්දම මෙහිදී හඳුන්වා දෙනු ලැබේ. මානව විද්‍යාත්මක දැනුම සිංහල භාෂාවෙන් ප්‍රචලිත  කිරීමේ අභිලාෂයෙන් නිර්මාණය කර ඇති මෙම විවෘත ප්‍රවේශ මූලාශ්‍රය උසස් පෙළ සහ විශ්ව විද්‍යාල සිසුන්ට මෙන්ම ආචාර්යවරුන්ට සහ පොදු පාඨකයන්ට ද ප්‍රයෝජනවත් වනු ඇත.

කර්තෘ: සමන්ති කුලතිලක, PhD
සහය මහාචාර්ය, මවුන්ට් රෝයල් විශ්ව විද්‍යාලය, කැනඩාව

Written for the centenary year of the presence of the Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB) in South Asia, this article looks back at their methods of communication during the pioneering years, describes  the many communication initiatives undertaken across the century, takes stock of the situation in the year of its publication, and proposes possibilities for the flourishing of SDB communication in South Asia beyond 2006.

The writing of this paper was prompted by the discovery of several manuscripts of mediaeval yoga texts which contain lists of more than eighty-four āsana-s, a canonical number mentioned in several yoga texts.  Until now, lists of eighty-four āsana-s have been found in only two recently published yoga texts, namely, the Haṭharatnāvalī and the Jogapradīpyakā.  The manuscript evidence presented in this article indicates that these published texts are not isolated accounts of mediaeval yoga systems with many complex āsanas. In fact, it is clear that more than eighty-four āsana-s were practised in some traditions of Haṭha Yoga before the British arrived in India.  The majority of these āsana-s were not seated poses, but complex and physically-demanding postures, some of which involved repetitive movement, breath control and the use of ropes.  When the āsana-s in the sources which I shall analyse in this article are considered in their totality, antecedents can be identified for many non-seated and inverted postures in twentieth-century systems of Indian yoga.

What shape does ethical reasoning assume in the face of potentially contradictory commitments? Drawing on fieldwork in a private clinic in Chennai, the capital of the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu, I examine how patients, their families, and the clinic’s staff navigated ethically complex situations in which one was called on as both family member and patient. I argue that the doctors and counselors at the clinic attempted to reconfigure the relationship between what were experienced as divergent or contradictory commitments—to treatment and to close kin—in terms of what I call hierarchical subsumption. This mode of response worked not simply to recast treatment as noncontradictory with familial obligations; rather, the commitment to therapy became hierarchically subsumed by and therefore necessary to the fulfillment of such kin-based commitments. In attending to those ordinary moments in which commitments are felt to be at odds, I suggest that we might develop a better understanding of the particular styles of ethical reasoning that people employ to manage such conflictual situations, which refuse the kind of tacitness that scholars have associated with everyday life.

Paper for the panel: The Viṣṇudharma and the Śivadharma: points of influence and divergence, 33. Deutscher Orientalistentag, Jena, Germany, 18–22 September 2017 

* Published now in the Introduction to the book "A Śaiva Utopia" on Academia * :
https://www.academia.edu/67886226/A_%C5%9Aaiva_Utopia_The_%C5%9Aivadharma_s_Revision_of_Brahmanical_Var%E1%B9%87%C4%81%C5%9Bramadharma 

In a recent papers examining the Śivadharma[śāstra], I analyzed that way the author of this work has recast several of the distinctive categories of Smārta Brahmanical dharma, particularly the four-āśrama model, affirming the varṇa (social class) categories but extending the range of ritual agency available to Śūdras and women through devotional observances (and in one verse, even to foreigners, 1.26), and generalizing acts of generosity and hospitality prescribed in Dharmaśāstra only for high-status recipients so as to benefit the needy regardless of status. In general terms, the Viṣṇudharma, apparently dating to roughly the same period, likewise adapts the varṇāśrama-dharma of early Dharmaśāstra to a sectarian religious orientation — in this case, Bhāgavata rather than Māheśvara — but with notably different results. First, where the Śivadharmaśāstra evidently presupposes the older non-sequential āśrama model of the Dharmasūtras, the Viṣṇudharma adopts the sequential model introduced in Manu's code (ca. 200 CE). Whereas the Śivadharma redirects the Smārta guest-reception rite and madhuparka meal for the benefit of Śiva-bhaktas (lay Śaivas adhering to a formal vow), no comparable rite appears in the Viṣṇudharma (where the elements of guest reception appear only as part of the ceremony of worshiping deities or ancient sages). Most notably, the Viṣṇudharma (especially in chapters 24–25, 66, and 105) enters into sectarian polemic against the threat posed in this decadent Kali age by " heretics " (pāṣaṇḍas) of many stripes, including Buddhists, Jains, Sāṃkhyas, skeptics, and false ascetics. Arguments framed in foreign languages (hetuvādair … mlecchabhāṣānibandhaiḥ) are singled out for condemnation (105.44), and Śūdras who become ascetics and go about without caste-markers provoke serious concern. The Śivadharmaśāstra makes no reference to " heretics " (and only the most circumspect allusion to other religious groups), and adopts a more inclusive social policy. In short, the Viṣṇudharma's conception of Viṣṇu-bhakti pointedly defends classical Smārta status hierarchy and its prerogatives, foregoing the Śivadharma's modest moves toward social inclusion. This paper concludes by setting these observations in the context of later trends in the two traditions.

China’s dazzling infrastructure and energy-driven Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a US$1 trillion investment across Eurasia and beyond, has lost its shine. Increasingly, China’s leveraging of the initiative is being perceived by a growing number of recipients and critics alike as a geopolitical power play, a tool to shape a new world order partly populated by autocrats and authoritarians, and progressively characterized by intrusive surveillance, potential debt traps, and perceived as a self-serving way to address domestic overcapacity

Anglo-Indians, a designation acquired in the 1911 Indian Census, had previously been known as Eurasians, East Indians, Indo-Britons and half-castes. ‘Anglo-Indian’ had previously denoted, and among some scholars continues to denote, Britons long resident in India. We will define Anglo-Indians as a particular mixed race Indo-European population arising out of the European trading and imperial presence in India, and one of several constructed categories by which transient Britons sought to demarcate racial difference within the Raj’s socio-racial hierarchy. Anglo-Indians were placed in an intermediary (and differentially remunerated) position between Indians and Domiciled Europeans (another category excluded from fully ‘white’ status), who in turn were placed below imported British superiors. The domiciled community (of Anglo-Indians and Domiciled Europeans, treated as a single socio-economic class by Britons) were relied upon as loyal buttressing agents of British rule who could be deployed to help run the Raj’s strategically sensitive transport and communication infrastructure, and who were made as a term of their service to serve in auxiliary military forces which could help to ensure the internal security of the Raj and respond to strikes, civil disobedience or crises arising from international conflict.

The thesis reveals how calls for Indianisation of state and railway employment by Indian nationalists in the assemblies inaugurated by the 1919 Government of India Act threatened, through opening up their reserved intermediary positions to competitive entry and examination by Indians, to undermine the economic base of domiciled employment. Anglo-Indian leaders responded with varying strategies. Foremost was the definition of Anglo-Indians as an Indian minority community which demanded political representation through successive phases of constitutional change and statutory safeguards for their existing employment. This study explores various strategies including: deployment of multiple identities; widespread racial passing by individuals and families; agricultural colonisation schemes; and calls for individual, familial or collective migration.

This essay traces the literary afterlife of Hindi writer Gajanan Madhav Muktibodh (1917-64). Like many in his generation, Muktibodh's life and world-view were transformed by his encounter with communism during the years of World War II. Though much of his poetry remained unpublished while he was alive, Muktibodh was posthumously recognised as one of the most significant writers of the Nehruvian period and has been a cult figure in the Hindi literary world since the 1970s. By tracking the influence of Muktibodh's elliptical poetry and prose on modern Hindi literature and cinema, this essay reconstructs the rise and fall of the late colonial vision of a possible 'Soviet India'.

Asian economic and aid Giant Japan and rising power and emerging donor China-the Asian Dragon give aid to Bangladesh in the name of development. But what are the politics and policy of aid that shape their engagement with Bangladesh? And as a recipient what is Bangladesh to do in the shifting balance of power scenario between these two rivals?

Despite affirmative actions such as reserved government employment, incentives and subsidies for employers, tax exemptions, skill development training etc., employment opportunities for persons with disabilities in India continue to be characterized by lower workforce participation, lower wages, lack of or limited career advancement, and discrimination in the workplace. While there has been some research on the presence of persons with disabilities in formal employment, such studies have lacked critical assessment of the underlying conceptions of (dis)ability and its interface with changes in the wider political and economic context. Using a case study approach, this article examines the outcomes of three employment initiatives in India. We contend that work and employment opportunities for persons with disabilities remain trapped in constructs of ableism; while neoliberalism has resulted in complex, often adverse outcomes that have received little attention. The article calls for developing a more critical research agenda and building capacities for wider contestation against ableism and neoliberalism. This article examines the outcomes of recent efforts to employ persons with disabilities in India. It attempts to unmask the underlying ableist assumptions of such efforts and to critique the complex interface between ableism and neoliberalism. We begin with a brief overview of the present employment status of persons with disabilities in India, followed by a brief account of recent efforts to increase their employment opportunities, which highlights the popularity and

OPEN LETTER TO PM MODI
SIR, YOU RESPECT DIVERSITY BUT RSS MOURNS IT, WHOM DO WE BELIEVE?
My Dear Prime Minister Modi ji,
Namaskar.
It is heartening to note that you as PM of our democratic-secular state have underlined the great diversities in the Indian nation which needed to be celebrated. While addressing a conference on 'Islamic Heritage: Promoting Understanding and Moderation' in the presence of the King of Jordan, Abdullah II in Delhi on March 1, 2018 you were kind enough to declare that India's democracy was "a celebration of our age-old plurality" recalling that "religions and beliefs from all over the world" flourished in the country. It was great to hear you to commit that "We Indians are proud of our diversity." While specially addressing the Muslim youth of India you were kind enough to advise them to hold Quran in one hand and computer in the other for an all-inclusive progress and welfare. However, I would beg to say that this call for Quran or any other scripture in one hand is a risky proposition. The US taught Afghan youth Quran in one hand and AK47 in other hand and what price Afghan Muslims paid for it is well known.
Read the whole letter....

The aim of this article is to introduce the main ways in which Asia has been approached in an innovative and inter-disciplinary manner at the Institute of the Middle and Far East. How do we – its faculty – teach to understand the complexity of Asian contexts in order to equip the students with certain knowledge and skills, useful also in the rising business and economic environment in Poland and abroad. The emphasis will be put on the interdepartmental and international cooperation and projects both already con-ducted and planned for the nearest future.

Pier Paolo Pasolini ha scritto un libro con questo titolo "Odore dell'India". Già… Ma che odore è? Chi l'ha conosciuto non lo scorda più. E' un misto d'incenso, smog, fiori, aria calda, di cocco, di polvere che entra dalle narici e investe l'anima. Lo ricordano per sempre il cervello e il cuore. E' la prima sensazione che s'avverte la mattina, spalancate le finestre del proprio appartamento nell'ashram di Sathya Sai Baba a Puttaparthi; un villaggio dell'Andra Pradesh nel sud dell'India.

In the present world, there are traditional as well as non-traditional threats to the survival and development of a sovereign state. These non-traditional threats come in the form of terrorism, extremism, drug trafficking, serious communicable diseases, piracy, illegal immigration, environmental security, economic and financial security, and information security. The aim of this paper is to highlight the areas that are critical to Pakistan's internal security and to evaluate the level of understanding of these threats and to assess the effectiveness of the measures to check these threats, to develop an academic discourse for finding ways and means to address these national security threats. Pakistan is a culturally and ethnically diverse country where a number of issues remain unresolved, thus making room for centrifugal forces for their dissenting activities against the federation. Pakistan has more internal threats than external. Some of the threats that Pakistan is facing today internally make it vulnerable for a sustainable socio-political and economic development. The internal threats to Pakistan's security are many as observed today but it is quite reassuring to note that none of these is insurmountable. The present scene in the first view appears quite disturbing but a careful examination would reveal that there are strong possibilities of curing the ailment. The internal landscape is galore with strife and scuffle but there is a need to make a careful distinction between the threats having indigenous origins and those driven internationally. Pakistan at the moment does not paint a happy picture of its internal scene. A number of internal threats have emerged posing serious challenges to the security of Pakistan. Terrorism, religious extremism, sectarianism, looming energy crisis, impending economic crisis, endemic diseases, insurgency in Balochistan, food shortages and institutional dead locks are a part of the long list. The situation in the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan although quite disturbing cannot be exactly described or categorized as internal threat. It has clear linkages with the war on terror involving many international actors. Insurgency Purely on the domestic front, the most serious threat emanates from the armed resistance by the disgruntled elements in the province of Balochistan and some settled districts of the former civil division of Swat. These threats are very real, though a few years ago when pointed out by the academia were treated as hypothetical by the decision makers. For several years now, the revolts by dissidents against the government are going on in Balochistan. Regular clashes between Baloch insurgents and the forces of government

This course examines the dynamic relationship among environment, technology and society in Asia. During the first seven weeks the students would be exposed to the major theoretical, conceptual and analytical frameworks for the study ofinteractions between society and technology. Themes covered during this period will include: what is technology? How our understanding of technology evolved over the years? How society’s influence on environment was/is mediated through use of various technologies? In the last seven weeks, the course will focus on case studies from Asian regions/countries to develop a nuanced understanding of major environmental challenges/issues in Asia. The course will draw upon theoretical and empirical literature from multiple disciplines, such as, science and technology studies, environmental studies, economic sociology, and development studies.