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captainscanadian · 4 years

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Love Me Blue | Bucky Barnes x Reader (Poornima)

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Summary: Perhaps Bucky Barnes should thank his insomnia for being the reason why he met you. But you should thank the Hindu God of Love and Compassion for bringing Bucky into your life.

Word Count: 4500+

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Tamilian!Hindu!Reader

Warnings: MINIMAL TAMIL SONG LYRICS (I’m more than happy to translate!) & TAMIL CULTURE, References to Hinduism, PTSD, Insomnia, Endgame References.

A/N: This is my entry for @bucky-smiles‘s 3K Diversity Writing Challenge! My prompt was to write a fic with a Hindu reader. I decided to write this fic with a Tamilian reader because I am Tamilian. I was born in Sri Lanka and my mother’s side of the family are Hindu. Although I consider myself an agnostic theist, I do enjoy reading the epics of Mahabhrata and Ramayana. @jalapenobarnes & @fafulous, THIS ONE IS FOR YOU, MY CHELLANGALA!

It had been five months since the final battle against Thanos and his army had taken place. With Tony Stark’s demise and Steve Rogers’ decision to return to the past, Bucky Barnes found himself trying to reintegrate into society on his own and to the best of his ability.

Rhodey had been kind enough to offer him one of the spare residential apartments at the Avengers’ compound, and Sam was there to provide him with some counselling for the time being. There had been some talks about a designated therapist being appointed at the facility, but nothing had been finalized about that. It was very much needed though, as all of the heroes had suffered severe amounts of trauma due to the blip. Bucky wasn’t alone in that.

Even when he had a compound full of the earth’s mightiest heroes to aid him in his recovery, Bucky still felt as though he was going through it all on his own. He felt disconnected from reality and unbelievably lonely in this particular battle. Not to mention having to lose the one person whom he had known his whole life to old age. He really was alone in this battle with his own mind. There was no denying that.

While the rest of the team were slowly getting back into going on missions, he could not do the same. He had been fighting his whole life and needed to stop at some point. But it was easier said than done.

Bucky had a much harder time adjusting to life after the blip, considering that he was also trying to cope with more than seventy years of torture along with literally ceasing to exist in a matter of seconds. It seemed as though he could never get a break.

Needless to say, it was a rarity for Sergeant Barnes to sleep through the night. He would wake up in a cold sweat from some murderous nightmare almost every single night since he had fully moved into the compound. Finding himself unable to fall back asleep, he would pace back and forth in his bedroom until the crack of dawn before joining Sam for his usual workout session at the facility’s gym.

It was one of those dreadful nights when he had found himself having woken up from a nightmare. Pacing back and forth in his bedroom for what seemed like hours and desperately in need of some fresh air, he decided to step outside of his living quarters and take a walk around the compound. Being cooped up in his bedroom until the morning did not seem all that helpful to Bucky, so he might as well make use of the quietness of the night and sit by the lake for a few hours in hopes that it would calm down his nerves.

He still hadn’t told Sam about his nightmares, fearing that it might make the rest of the team feel weary about him. The last thing he wanted was for everyone to assume that the Winter Soldier was still buried deep within him. He wanted to forget him and move on with his life in the twenty-first century, even though he couldn’t just walk away from his guilt.

Throwing on his henley over his sweatpants, Bucky slipped into his shoes and stepped out into the brisky full moon night. He walked across the freshly cut grass, his destination being the lonely bench by the water where he would find refuge until the morning. But it wasn’t until he had reached the boardwalk that led up to the gazebo did Bucky realize that he wasn’t the only one who was up at this hour.

He saw the unfamiliar woman huddled under an oversized hoodie who sat cross legged on the bench. A pashmina scarf that was patterned with peacock feathers wrapped around her shoulders as she stared out into the moon’s reflection against the lake.

He stopped for a moment, wondering who she might be. He hadn’t seen her around the compound before, but he did not feel threatened by her presence either. After all, the compound was an extremely private property. Not everyone could easily enter the compound, or stay overnight as this woman was. And if there was one thing that Bucky knew about the occupants of the facility - everyone was meant to be a friend.

As the full moon reflected against the lake, the woman shrugged off her hood to reveal her thick curly hair that had been tied into a ponytail. A sigh escaped her lips as she pulled her scarf up to her neck.

She hummed an unknown tune for a moment before singing rather softly, in a language Bucky had never heard before. Yet he could not deny that she had the sweetest voice on the planet.

Nila malarntha iravinil thendral ulaavidum nadhiyil

Neela nirathu baalagan oruvan kuzhal oodhi nindraan

Kaalamellaam.. Kaalamellaam avan kaadhalai enni

Urugumo en ullam…

Kaatrinile varum geetham

Kangal panithida pongum geetham

Kallum kaniyum geetham

Kaatrinile varum geetham

Bucky’s lips curled into a small smile as he gathered up the courage to approach her, taken over by his own curiosity and certainly in need of a distraction from the reason why he had woken up at this hour in the first place.

The sound of his footsteps approaching had startled you slightly, making you gasp in response and turn around. Your eyes grew wide upon coming face to face with this rather familiar man although you were strangers. If it wasn’t his bright blue eyes or silky long hair that made you recognize him, the moonlight reflecting off of his metal hand certainly confirmed that he was exactly who you thought he was.

Up until now, you had only read about him in books and watched videos of him in the archival footage from the Second World War. Seven years ago, you had seen him on the news when he had been framed for the Vienna attack. But now seeing him in person, you could tell that he was anything but what the news outlets had made him out to be. He was an innocent man who meant no harm, and that made you feel at ease about his presence.

The super soldier froze in his tracks upon gaining your attention, his eyes growing wide at the realization that he had startled you. “Uh… hi.” He gave you a rather nervous smile as he slipped his hands into the pockets of his sweatpants.

“Sergeant Barnes.” You did not realize that you had been holding onto your breath until you exhaled upon saying his name. It was a sigh of relief and gratitude that you hadn’t been attacked by an unknown threat at the witching hour.

“Bucky.” He corrected you as he walked up to the gazebo. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“Oh no, it’s fine… I just didn’t think anyone else was awake at this time.” You gave him a small smile as you shifted across the bench to make some room for him. “And I hate to admit that… recent events have caused me to act extra vigilant at times.”

“That makes two of us.” Bucky admitted with a sigh, walking around the bench to take a seat next to you.

You chuckled softly before nodding. “What’s got you up at this hour, Bucky?”

“Just couldn’t sleep.” He told you, not wanting to disclose the truth about his insomnia to a complete stranger. “How about you?”

“Jet lag.” You shrugged. “A few hours ago, I was relaxing on a farm in India. But now I’m in this highly secure compound that’s home to earth’s mightiest heroes. Sleep seems to be the last of my worries at the moment.”

Bucky was growing more curious about you, but he could not help but crack a smile at your choice of words. “Forgive me for not being aware of who you are, but I… I don’t think I’ve seen you around here before.”

“Oh right, I’m so sorry. I should have introduced myself.” You chuckled softly as you held out your hand for him to shake. “I’m Y/N Y/L/N, former SHIELD Agent and… currently second-in-command to Agent Hill. I’m here to oversee the Avengers while Agent Hill and Director Fury are busy with an undisclosed mission.”

“Hm… you’re the new boss lady that everyone’s been talking about.” Bucky noted, laughing softly as he shook your hand. “Pleasure to meet you, Agent Y/L/N.”

“Y/N.” You clarified, laughing softly. “I’m not sure how a mortal non-enhanced inexperienced human being like myself could ever be the boss of the finest team of superheroes. Just hours ago, I was living a fairly normal life on my family’s dairy farm in South India… hiding out from the harsh realities of the world, milking cows and hand churning butter. But Fury plucked me out of there, threw me on a Quinjet and told me that I was meant for something more than being a milkmaid… which according to him was leading the Avengers. Really puts my life into perspective, doesn’t it?”

He could not help but laugh softly at that, nodding his head in agreement. “Take it from the guy who was raising a bunch of goats in Wakanda before I was yanked from there and into the war against Thanos. After all that I’d been through, you’d think that I would want to stop fighting. And I do… sometimes, I want a normal life. I want to figure out my place here. But one thing I had to learn the hard way was that normal is relative and the best you could do is… try to find your new normal.” Perhaps, Bucky should take his own advice. “What’s the worst that could happen, right?”

“I have to be the boss of War Machine and the Falcon.” You reminded him. “Nothing worse could happen to me.”

Laughing softly, he shook his head. “Honestly, I’d pay to see that birdbrain be bossed around by someone.” He admitted.

But unbeknownst to him Sam had become quite fond of you after the events of the Battle of the Triskelion and he knew a little more about your interest in his supersoldier friends than the rest of the team. You better hope that he wouldn’t try to spill the beans to Bucky in an attempt to embarrass you.

“So, what’s your first order of business as the new lady of the house?” Bucky asked you.

You looked over at him before letting out a sigh. “My first order of business? Give my best friend the farewell she deserved. She sacrificed her life to save the world and no one even bothered to give her a proper funeral. I’ve made arrangements at the local Hindu temple in the city... to do what I can to pray that she rests in peace. She never believed in any of that, but I do.”

The next day, you found yourself rearranging the furniture around your living quarters, which was coincidentally adjacent to Bucky’s. You had set up a shrine for Lord Krishna in the corner of your living room, a few brass and wooden idols that you had brought from home arranged on a shelf along with a few oil lamps.

You were certainly grateful that Director Fury had allowed for you to pack your bags before he had flown you out here, considering that you wouldn’t have been able to live without your idol of Radha and Krishna no matter where you went. You may be a high ranking SHIELD Agent, but you were always a devotee of Lord Krishna before anything else. Being thousands of miles away from home was not going to change that.

A framed portrait of Natasha Romanoff hung in your office, a flower garland hanging around it. A part of you was well aware that she would loathe the fact that you had taken things this far, but you had your own beliefs. She was your best friend, so you would honour her in everything you did.

“Nick’s never been wrong about anything, Nat. I sure hope he wasn’t wrong about me either.” You thought to yourself, hoping that she’d heard you from wherever she was and that she was rooting for you to succeed in this new job that had just fallen into your lap.

Bucky had been sitting in the common kitchen when you had walked in. A smile on his lips upon seeing you enter, he kept his head down on the plate of eggs in front of him. He was not one to make small talk during breakfast and usually kept to himself, but that was about to change momentarily.

“Good morning, folks.” You greeted the team before pouring yourself a cup of coffee and pulling up a chair for yourself between Sam and Wanda. “I was hoping to catch up with some of you before you all went off to do your own things.”

The Falcon smiled as he leaned over to pull you into a side hug. “I missed ya, Y/N.”

“I’m sure you did, Wilson.” You chuckled softly as you returned his hug. “It is good to be back. I was getting pretty lonely without you guys.”

“Mornin’ Y/N.” Rhodey greeted you from the stove as he flipped his omelette and looked over at you with a smile. “You want some breakfast?”

“No, thank you, Rhodey. I just ate at the temple.” You told him with a shrug. “But I do have something to ask you… if you wouldn’t mind, could you round up the whole team for a briefing tomorrow morning? As much as I would love to lounge around, I do have work to do.”

“Will do..”

“So, Fury really did leave you in charge, huh?” Sam asked you with his eyebrow raised. “But why you?”

“Believe me, I’ve been asking myself the same thing.” You admitted, laughing softly before taking a sip of your coffee. “As far as I know, him and Agent Hill are away on an undisclosed mission and won’t be around to oversee the Avengers. For some reason, he trusts me to do that for him.”

“To be honest, I’m glad it’s someone we know and love.” Wanda smiled at you. “We wouldn’t take orders from anyone else.”

“My job’s pretty simple though. I oversee your missions, you report to me. I really hope you don’t put me in a position where I would need to reprimand your asses or have to snitch on you to Fury. I know that the last few months have been rough for all of you… it’s been rough for me too. But we all have work to do so… let’s just… figure out a way to get back into the swing of things, yeah? The least thing I want is to have to be a boss from hell.”

“Yes, ma’am…” Sam gave you a nod before turning over to look at Bucky. “Have you two met yet?”

“Yeah, we have.” You replied, taking a sip of your coffee as you prayed to Lord Krishna that the Falcon wouldn’t spill the beans at that moment. From the look on his face though, you knew he wanted to. “Very briefly.”

“Have you geeked about your thesis like you did with Cap?” He asked.

Wanda almost choked on her toast as he mentioned your thesis. “Oh God… not her thesis.” She shook her head, but you knew that she was enjoying this just as much as her fellow Avenger.

After all, it had been a running joke during your time working with the Avengers to give you shit about your choice of study during your time at graduate school. Tony and Nat were the ones who gave you the most shit about it, and would probably be thrilled to know that their legacy when it came to this had certainly lived on with Sam and Wanda. Perhaps, keeping the joke going would give you all a sense of normalcy, as embarrassing as it was for you.

“Sam, please don’t…” You shook your head, avoiding the supersoldier’s gaze as you took another sip of your coffee. “I just got here.”

Bucky looked over at Sam with a rather confused expression on his face. “What are you two talking about?”

“Nothing!” You exclaimed. “Nothing important…”

“Don’t lie to him, Y/N.” Rhodey scolded you, which was followed by a snicker. “He’s going to have to find out at some point.”

“Come on, Rhodes. You’re not taking their side on this.” You groaned before deciding to give in. As Bucky Barnes had told you last night, what’s the worst that could happen, right? “Fine, Sam… knock yourself out.”

A smirk on his lips as he took a sip of his coffee, Sam Wilson turned over to look at Bucky and wiggled his eyebrows. “Before Y/N joined SHIELD as an agent, she was a grad student at NYU. She taught a history class on the Second World War.”

“She did her master’s thesis on the Howling Commandos.” Rhodey added. “I hate to say it as it is, Barnes, but she’s kind of obsessed with you.”

You felt your cheeks heat up in embarrassment and sunk in your seat. The last time you were this embarrassed, Nat had told Captain America that you were obsessed with him and then tried to set you up on a date with him. “It wasn’t an obsession. It was an academic interest. I’m a published academic and I expect you to treat me as such.”

“She was obsessed.” Sam corrected, causing you to smack him in his arm.

“Hey, watch your mouth. I’m supposed to be your boss now.” You pointed out, rolling your eyes before you took another sip of your coffee.

Bucky finally lifted his gaze from his breakfast to meet your eyes, his bright blue ones gleaming with a slight amusement. “You studied history and then started working for SHIELD?”

“History and politics, actually.” You replied with a shrug of your shoulders. “My father was a diplomat, so I always saw myself having a career in international relations. But that just never happened, so I decided to become an agent.”

“What made you want to become an agent though?”

“My grandmother. She told me that an Indian girl like me was not meant for a career in diplomacy, and that my place was within the household and not the UN. She said that I belonged in the kitchen, serving a husband.” You replied, chuckling softly. “I just became an agent out of spite, to prove to myself that I was actually meant for something more than just being a typical Indian wife. But I stuck around until the very end of SHIELD because I wanted to do what was right. That’s why I’m still here.”

That night Bucky found himself tossing and turning in bed once again. Even if he did manage to fall asleep though, the pitter patter of the rain against his bedroom window had woken him up in an instant and caused him to struggle to fall back asleep. He eventually decided to give up on his attempt to get some shut eye that night and climbed out of bed. He just had to admit that his insomnia was going to get the worst of him.

Stepping out of his living quarters, he decided to head towards the facility’s gym in hopes that working up a sweat would somehow tire him enough for him to sleep it off. But the moment he heard the clashing sound of what seemed like pots and pans coming from the common kitchen, he stopped in his tracks and turned around.

The whiff of melted butter wafted up his nostrils and his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He was unsure if anyone at the compound would be up at this witching hour, let alone cooking up a storm. For as long as he’s resided at the facility, he hadn’t really seen anyone cook. Usually, Sam or Rhodey would make breakfast for the rest of the team. Other than that, the common kitchen was rarely used.

But Bucky followed the aroma of butter and spices over to the kitchen to see your sleepless self, much to his surprise.

Dressed in a pair of pajama shorts and an NYU hoodie, you trotted bare footed around the kitchen, your curly hair tied up in a bunch and bouncing on top of your head as you danced around to the music that was playing from your phone.

Avvaaru nokinaal evvaaru naaduven

Kannaadi mun nindru paarthu kondaen

Ondraaga seithida oru nooru naadagam

Othigai seidhu edhir paarthirundhen

In your own little zone as you stirred a pot of what seemed like rice and vegetables, you paid no heed to the supersoldier who stood against the doorframe and watched as you cooked. On the counter laid several platters of multiple dishes that he had never heard of and he wondered how long you had been up if you had managed to make that many dishes through the night.

Edhir paaramaley avan

edhir paaramaley avan

“Y/N?”

You gasped as you turned around to see Bucky standing by the entrance to the kitchen. “Bucky.”

oh.. pin irundhu vandhu ennai

pambaramaai sulatri vittu

ulagunda pervaayan endhan

vaayodu vaai padhiththaan

As you stood there stunned by his sudden arrival, your cheeks heated up in embarrassment yet again. You wondered how long you had been standing there. The song playing from your phone continued on, but as your lips moved along to the words as your eyes stayed glued to his bright blue ones.

Ingu boologam endroru porul ulladhai

indha poongodhai marandhaal adi

But you snapped out of it before the next verse of the song, and quickly turned down your music. “Bucky, what are you doing up this late?”

“Hi… sorry, I didn’t mean to intrude.” His lips curled into a smile as he walked into the kitchen, eyeing the platters of food you had laid out on the counter. “But what are you doing up this late?”

“I hate to admit it, but… the homesickness is really kicking my ass.” You admitted, laughing softly before you motioned towards the counter. “I couldn’t sleep, so I decided to splurge out on some South Indian comfort food.”

“Hm…” He nodded, looking down at the food and back at you. “Must be hard being back here when you could be relaxing on a farm in India.”

Turning off the stove and removing the pot of your rice dish from the heat, you set it next to the rest of the food on the counter. “Well, it’s not just relaxing though. Yeah, sure it’s quiet and it’s nice to just… take care of your cows and live off of fresh dairy without a care in the world. But the farm was my home, you know? It’s where I grew up, before all of that chaos with SHIELD and HYDRA... and Thanos. The farm was my happy place, but it’s just not the same anymore. It’s not the same without my grandmother… and my father” You admitted, sighing. “Change is not something that I was able to get used to.”

“That makes two of us.” Bucky agreed with a shrug of his shoulders. “It hasn’t been easy… trying to catch up.”

“I can imagine.” You nodded as you cleaned up the kitchen, not wanting to leave behind a mess when Sam or Rhodey came down to make breakfast in the morning. “Then it’s a good thing that you’ve got a history major as your next door neighbor, huh?”

His smile grew wide at your words, and he shoved his hands into the pockets of his sweatpants. “I thought you majored in The Howling Commandos, doll. Are you sure that makes you an expert on what happened after the war?”

You crossed your arms against your chest. “To think that I spent years studying your life... only for you to undermine my expertise a decade later.” You shook your head as you laughed. “Come on, I’m going to need some help eating all this food.”

“Uh… okay?” Truth be told, he wasn’t going to assume that you were going to eat the entire amount of food you had made since it did seem like too much food for one person. He could not help but wonder if you had figured out his secret when you had offered to share the food with him. “You know, I’ve never had Indian food before. But Sam’s told me that it’s spicy.”

As you grabbed a few of the platters and set them on a cart so that you could bring it up to your quarters, you turned back to look at him. “I’m sure you’ve had some well-seasoned food in Wakanda though. I can’t imagine your taste buds being completely dead with all of the boiled and unseasoned nonsense that they used to call food back in the forties.”

Bucky snickered at your words as he lent you a hand on transferring the big pot of rice onto the cart. “You can’t trash the food of the forties. It was the Great Depression, Y/N.” He defended, to which you rolled your eyes.

“I looked into your family records, Sarge. Apparently you guys owned a car during the Great Depression… which I refused to believe until Steve was able to confirm when I asked him out of utter curiosity. You must have been loaded.” You pointed out, teasingly. “It’s a shame that all that money couldn’t have gotten you any kind of seasoning.”

“Alright, if you’re going to drag me through mud… then perhaps I might cook for you some time.” He offered. “In return of you sharing this food with me and to show you that I’m not a completely unseasoned man.”

You raised your eyebrow at him as you walked over to the fridge, grabbing the rolled up banana leaf that you had left in there. “If you insist, then I’ll have you know that Wakanadan lamb is out of the question. I’m vegetarian.”

“Good to know.” He agreed as he began walking back towards the door, his metal arm pulling the cart of food along with him. “May I know the reason why?”

“I’m Hindu.” You replied, shrugging. “I don’t eat red meat because my beloved Hindu god, Lord Krishna... was said to be a cowherd. But dairy’s fine though. Krishna loved butter and so do I.”

Having been raised Protestant in the 1930s, he could not help but feel slightly curious about your religion. He was no stranger to the never-ending battle between the Protestants and the Catholics across the pond, something that he had learned after befriending Steve and meeting his Irish immigrant mother.

But he never would have realized that there were much more religions in the world when he was a boy. But now in the twenty-first century, all he could do was learn more about the different people in the world that seemed to have shrunk since the Great Depression. He had learned as much as he could during his two years in Wakanda. But he wanted to learn more, to readjust to life in the twenty-first century. So he might as well start with the woman who lived next door.

#3kdiversity #aj writes #love me blue #poornima #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x you #bucky barnes x desi!reader #bucky barnes x y/n #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes fanfic #bucky barnes fic #bucky barnes series #bucky barnes fluff

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desbianherstory · 4 years

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another random blogger decided to say that trans people had nothing to do with the section 377 win so i thought i’d address that claim in more detail. apart from the fact that several of the petitioners on the section 377 challenge were trans, the impact of the nalsa verdict must also be considered. the nalsa verdict in 2014 was a victory specifically for trans people, but it was part of the climate that lead to the section 377 win:

The historic verdict reading down Section 377 would not have been possible but for a steady evolution in the law on the subject after the Supreme Court set aside the Delhi High Court judgment decriminalising same-sex relations between consenting adults in 2013. The two major decisions that contributed to this turnaround were the rulings in the NALSA case and the privacy matter.

The first glimmer of hope appeared in 2014, in the National Legal Services Authority vs Union of India case, wherein a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court recognised transgenders as a third gender. The bench of Justices K S Radhakrishnan and A K Sikri ruled that “hijras, eunuchs, apart from binary gender, be treated as ‘third gender’ for the purpose of safeguarding their rights under Part III of our Constitution and the laws made by Parliament and State Legislature.” It upheld the right of transgenders “to decide their self-identified gender” and directed the Centre and state governments “to grant legal recognition of their gender identity such as male, female or as third gender.”

The court recognised what is known as the ‘Yogyakarta principles on the application of international law in relation to issues of sexual orientation and gender identity” and extended it to apply to Indian law. The Yogyakarta principles outline the rights that sexual minorities enjoy as human beings under the protection of international law.

from an article written at the time of the nalsa verdict:

But even as they celebrate it, lawyers and activists point out that this judgement glaringly contradicts the December 11 judgement, by a different bench of the Supreme Court, which upheld the controversial Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code that criminalises “sex against the order of nature”. That judgement has been a huge blow to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. Though yesterday's judgement makes a number of references to Section 377, it is only for the benefit of only the transgenders. “The December judgement claimed that Section 377 does not have an impact on the lives of LGBT people, despite affidavits submitted by many about the torture and violence they have faced,” said Arvind Narrain, a lawyer from the Alternative Law Forum.

The NALSA judgement, on the other hand, quotes from several such testimonies of suffering by transgenders, and acknowledges the role that Section 377 has played in facilitating discrimination against them. “The judgement does not hesitate to make a point about the negative impact of Section 377, but does not say anything about its constitutionality,” said Narrain.

Instead, yesterday's judgement states: “A Division Bench of this Court...has already spoken on the constitutionality of Section 377 IPC and, hence, we express no opinion on it since we are in these cases concerned with an altogether different issue pertaining to the constitutional and other legal rights of the transgender community and their gender identity and sexual orientation.”

However, even as it leaves out a commentary on the validity of Section 377, the NALSA judgement says a great deal about the nature of sexual orientation (“an individual’s enduring physical, romantic and/or emotional attraction to another person”) and gender identity (“each person’s deeply felt internal and individual experience of gender”). “Each person’s self-defined sexual orientation and gender identity is integral to their personality and is one of the most basic aspects of self-determination, dignity and freedom,” the judgement reads.

It also refers to sections of the Indian Constitution to support its case for transgender rights – Article 14 (equality), 15 (not discriminating on the grounds of sex), 16 (equal opportunities for employment), 19 (freedom of expression) and 21 (protection of life and personal liberty).

“These are the very articles that we had invoked to demand a repealing of Section 377,” said LGBT rights activist Ashok Row Kavi, referring to the case filed by the non-profit Naz Foundation to decriminalise homosexuality. “The judgement is such a paradox.”

By side-stepping the previous Supreme Court ruling on Section 377, the new judgement poses a grave constitutional dilemma for the court, says Delhi-based advocate Menaka Guruswamy. “Can you have non-discrimination, protection, treatment as equals, recognition of inherent dignity and legal cognizance of harassment and abuse of the same community by a colonial law – while at the same time finding that same law to be constitutional?” asked Guruswamy.

the gap between the 2013 koushal verdict and the 2014 nalsa verdict clearly was something that had to be addressed and was addressed in the 2018 case which decriminalized homosexuality.

menaka guruswamy explicitly made this point in her arguments:

“This Hon’ble Court has held that the State has a positive obligation to create a just and equal society under Articles 15 and 16 of the Constitution. Section 377 IPC interferes with this obligation, by creating a section of Indian citizens who have consistently faced discrimination and an inability to exercise constitutional rights. As held in NALSA v Union of India, (2014) 5 SCC 438 (pp. 60-131 of the Compilation), “The basic spirit of our Constitution is to provide each and every person of the nation equal opportunity to grow as a human being, irrespective of race, caste, religion, community, and social status…There cannot be social reforms till it is ensured that each and every citizen of this country is able to exploit his/her potentials to the maximum.” (para 98, p. 496)”

“However, LGBT persons cannot lobby their elected representatives to seek protection of their fundamental rights or the passage of legislation that would protect their interests. There are also no known cases of persons who openly identify as sexual minorities contesting elections. 5.11 By contrast, following this Court’s judgment in NALSA v. Union of India, members of the transgender community have sought to participate the democratic process. There are prominent examples of transgender persons who have held elected office, such as C. Devi, who contested in the RK Nagar constituency of Tamil Nadu (p. 512-514 of the Compilation). Mumtaz became the first transgender candidate to contest the Punjab Assembly polls last year (p. 515-516 of the Compilation). In 2015, Madhu Kinnar became Raigarh, Chattisgarh’s first transgender mayor (p. 517-519 of the Compilation). Evidently, the continued criminalization of sexual minorities has had a chilling effect on their participation in the democratic process.”

the other arguments submitted on behalf of the petitioners also refer to nalsa repeatedly:

“The instant batch of cases relate to a group of individuals, commonly referred to as ‘LGBT’. While there is already a declaration as to the rights of transgenders by the NALSA, yet, in view of the existence of Section 377 of the IPC, their sexual activities would also be an offence. It may be stated that in NALSA, transgenders have been recognized as a third gender, apart from male and female and given certain rights. It is submitted that the same rights inhere in the ‘LGB’ community also and Section 377 ought to be struck down/ read down qua LGBT as a whole so as to confine Section 377 only to the offence of bestiality and non-consensual sex (because the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO) is already on the statute books in so far as children and minors are concerned)”

“When transgenders have been granted equal protection under Article 14, there is no justification in denying the same to persons who have a sexual orientation towards people of the same sex. Indeed, in NALSA, it has been held that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity violates the guarantee of equal protection of laws. Section 377, which makes consensual same-sex relationship a crime, denies equal protection of laws to LGBT community. Similarly, the decision in NALSA recognizes gender identity as a matter of choice by an individual and an inseparable part of human life. If this is an inseparable part of human life, then sexual orientation and the right to have a same-sex relationship must equally be so.”

if you read the full judgment on section 377, you will find that the nalsa arguments were considered seriously:

“The eminence of identity which has been luculently stated in the NALSA case very aptly connects human rights and the constitutional guarantee of right to life and liberty with dignity. With the same spirit, we must recognize that the concept of identity which has a constitutional tenability cannot be pigeon-holed singularly to one‘s orientation as it may keep the individual choice at bay. At the core of the concept of identity lies self-determination, realization of one‘s own abilities visualizing the opportunities and rejection of external views with a clear conscience that is in accord with constitutional norms and values or principles that are, to put in a capsule, ―constitutionally permissible. In Suresh Koushal (supra), this Court overturned the decision of the Delhi High Court in Naz Foundation (supra) 157 thereby upholding the constitutionality of Section 377 IPC and stating a ground that the LGBT community comprised only a minuscule fraction of the total population and that the mere fact that the said Section was being misused is not a reflection of the vires of the Section. Such a view is constitutionally impermissible.”

even if you frame the nalsa win as trans people getting rights before lgb people (which is to ignore the fact that many trans people are lgb, and that regardless, section 377 put trans people at risk of violence/blackmail) you can see that the nalsa win played a large role in the overturning of section 377 which is to say that the recognition of gender identity played a large role in the recognition of same-sex rights in india.

i’ve said this again and again: this blog is for factual content about south asian lesbian history. i cite everything because i am attempting to compile a useful, factual blog here. if you have a good faith criticism of how i have represented something then you are free to make it, but if you are determined to lie about our histories, then do not interact with my blog. there are plenty of discourse blogs you can interact with that will give you the echo-chamber validation you crave. learn to be appropriate.

#mod post #section 377

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rusykohli · 4 years

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From The Bubonic Plague To COVID-19: Impact On The Legal Profession In India

https://www.barandbench.com/author/rusy-kohli

The COVID-19 Pandemic has fundamentally disrupted our social and economic order. It has affected the functioning of most institutions and the Indian Judiciary is no exception. The Guardian of Law now finds itself compelled to guard against this deadly virus, its fraternity and litigants alike. The declaration of lockdown in India was accompanied with Courts across the country restricting functioning to limited matters in order to curb the number of lawyers / litigants entering court complexes. Soon, all hearings were being conducted through videoconferencing only, in order to avoid any human contact whatsoever. However, just like previous health emergencies in India like the Bubonic Plague of the late 19th century and the Spanish Flu of 1918, Corona Virus has made many its victims including the Judiciary, and the legal profession. In order to fully appreciate the impact of the virus, the author attempts to provide an account of the effect of Covid-19 with reference to historical health emergencies and their impact on the judicial apparatus.

Pendency in Indian Courts:

The Indian Judiciary has been over-burdened for several years and COVID-19 is only adding to this menace. As of May 27, 2020, there are approximately 3.24 crore pending cases in India’s subordinate courts[i] and about 48.2 lakh pending cases in the High Courts[ii].

The Supreme Court via its Notification dated March 13, 2020 restricted functioning of the Court to “ urgent matters ” only ( w.e.f. March 16, 2020 )[iii], thereby only entertaining bail matters, suspension of sentence matters and the like.

High Courts too have restricted their functioning to urgent matters. In normal course, a High Court hears north of 400 matters a day. However, since late March, High Courts across the country are hearing anywhere between 10-100 matters a day.[iv]

Subordinate courts account for over 80 % of the pendency of cases. On April 30, 2020 the Karnataka High Court extended the closure of all District Courts, Family Courts, Labour Courts and Industrial Tribunals in the State until May 16, 2020[v]. On April 29, 2020 the Punjab & Haryana High Court ordered that all the district and sub-divisional Courts in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh will function “restrictively” from May 1 “till the lockdown / curfew is in force in the respective area”[vi]. These restrictive measures have led to a glut of pending cases, thereby increasing the burden on courts.

Justice Delayed Is Justice Denied:

Pendency in India’s courts has always been a hindrance in securing timely justice for people, if not denying justice altogether. As the usual functioning of courts has been disrupted, many under-trials and even many of those whose appeals are pending are left with no recourse. It can hardly be denied that the subject adage has particular force in the criminal sphere.

In pursuance of the Apex Court’s directions dated March 23, 2020, States and Union Territories have been asked to constitute High Powered Committees “ to determine which class of prisoners can be released on parole or an interim bail for such period as may be thought appropriate. ” Therefore, each State is free to determine its own criteria for granting bail. Further the Supreme Court has clarified vide its order dated April 13, 2020 that it has not directed the States / Union Territories “ to compulsorily release the prisoners from their respective prisons.”[vii] This clarification has allowed High Courts to further restrict the nature of cases in which they are prepared to grant bail.

On March 29, 2020, the Insolvency And Bankruptcy Board Of India announced the insertion of regulation “ 40 C ”, which laid down that the period of lockdown imposed in the wake of COVID19 shall not be counted for the purposes of the time-line for any activity that could not be completed due to such lockdown, in relation to the corporate insolvency resolution process ( CIRP )[viii]. While this move has come as a relief for companies undergoing the CIRP, it has left creditors waiting for repayment of dues for longer than the mandated 330-day period. NCLT benches across the country are hearing only urgent matters until the lockdown is lifted. This has left many other matters, which do not qualify as urgent, pending. [ix]

Plight Of Advocates:

A PIL was filed in the Supreme Court urging that non-payment of rent for professional premises belonging to advocates should not be made a ground for eviction, during lockdown. However, on April 30, 2020 the Apex Court refused to entertain the plea remarking that it was "not going to enter into this issue," and dismissed the petition as withdrawn. [x] Further on May 8, 2020 a three- Judge bench of the Supreme Court dismissed a plea urging the court to direct the government to formulate a uniform welfare scheme for lawyers affected across the country.[xi]

Daily appearances in court are the main source of income for most advocates, and cash flow has come to a drip, if not completely dried up. In the month of April, 82,725 cases were filed in India’s courts as compared to 8,80,000 cases in March [xii]. This steep decline in cases filed has consequently resulted in a significant dip in court fee, besides Lawyers’ income.

Younger lawyers are left with little or no work. Today, a senior lawyer has the time, and the need to address minor matters, if any, personally, rather than refer them to a junior, which may have been done prior to the lockdown.

A petition was filed in the Madras High Court, seeking a direction to the State and the Bar Council to release Rs. 50,000/- to advocates, in order to compensate for the loss of work[xiii]. However, the Bar Council Of Tamil Nadu & Puducherry has resolved to disburse only Rs. 4000/- each to needy lawyers. The Bar Council was not in a position to release any more money because of limited resources.[xiv]

Law Firms:

Law Firms have also been severely affected. Many partners have either chosen to renounce salaries this financial year or agreed to take significant pay cuts. Firms which charged clients anywhere between Rs. 20,000 and Rs 75, 000 per hour, our now renegotiating their fee, since cash-strapped clients are no longer willing to pay exorbitant sums. Moreover, clients are questioning the actual amount of time that firms are spending on their matters, thereby making firms consider implementing technology that would track the number of hours spent by an executive on a client’s job, in order to provide proof to clients[xv]. This is great innovation; however, it comes with a significant cost in a day and age when law firms are suffering unprecedented lows in business.

Prisoners:

Corona Virus cases have already sprung up in various jails across India. Amongst other jails, there are over 180 cases in Mumbai’s Arthur Road Jail[xvi]. Authorities have been compelled to take drastic measures such as - release a large number of inmates, shift inmates to different prisons and designate temporary places as jails for keeping new undertrials.

By end February, nearly the cases (233 of 565) of COVID-19 reported in Wuhan, China, were from the city’s prison system.[xvii] This fact is reflective of just how dangerous prisons are today.

Indian prisons have historically been overcrowded and may potentially become breeding grounds when threatened by a contagion like Covid19. Considering the difficult living conditions and lack of hygiene, which is an unfortunate reality of our prisons, containing the spread would become nearly impossible.

Coping With This Challenge:

We are now in the age of what has come to be known as “Virtual Courts ” which function through videoconferencing, e-filing, telephonic mentioning of urgent matters and online payment of court fees. These are not bereft of teething problems. Perhaps, the biggest drawback of this new system is the inability to provide public access to courtroom proceedings. Virtual proceedings are being held in camera, and are therefore not open to public which is discordant with what has been held in Naresh Shridhar Mirajkar v State of Maharashtra[xviii], where the Apex Court observed that the public has a right to be present in court and to watch proceedings.

Lawyers are facing problems with basics such as uploading petitions on the Supreme Court website, since the data restrictions put in place are just 5 MB for a petition and 2 MB for additional documents, thereby compelling lawyers to break up the file into multiple volumes.[xix]

Déjà Vu

Historically, the Bubonic Plague of the late 19th century and Spanish Flu of 1918 are two points of reference when the entire framework of judiciary was disrupted on account of a health emergency.

The arrival of the Bubonic Plague in Bombay ( now Mumbai ) in 1896, brought courts to a grinding halt. A J C Mistry, a managing clerk at the Bombay law firm, Wadia Ghandy & Co. has given a grim account of the situation in early 1897. Mistry noted that the judges of the Bombay High Court “had no work to do.” The staff of the firm returned to work after four months, however over the next decade three members fell victim to the plague and died.

Mahatma Gandhi on page 72 in his book - The Law and The Lawyers[xx], while discussing an appeal which was to be heard in Veraval in Gujarat, writes that there were as many as fifty cases heard daily ( a lot of cases for that day and age ) in the Court at Veraval which had a population of about 5,500 people, however at the time of writing the “plague was raging ” and it was “ practically deserted ”. This anecdote bears a striking semblance to the scenario today.

Property which was seized in discharge of debts those days included pots, pans, utensils, bedding etc. These items were regularly hauled in and out of court. Legal historian Mitra Sharafi on page 48 in her book - Law and Identity in Colonial South Asia: Parsi Legal Culture, 1772–1947, writes that this practice of bringing property inside court rooms had become a “ particularly unsavoury phenomenon when the bubonic plague swept through the city. ”

When the Spanish Flu arrived in 1918, the judiciary was hit once again. Jurors, lawyers and assistants of the Calcutta High Court were severely affected. The Court was functioning on somewhat similar lines of how the courts are functioning today, thereby causing consequent pendency issues. [xxi]

Even in Bombay, law offices were bought to a standstill. In late June 1918 the Times Of India reported,

“ Nearly every house in Bombay has some of its inmates down with [influenza] fever and every office is bewailing the absence of clerks. ”

The flu soon found its way into jails and a need was felt to decongest prisons as inmates began to fall sick and the jails were short-staffed. The District Magistrate of Bijapur particularly wanted to release sick prisoners from jail, but the then Government was not ready to cooperate.[xxii]

It may be relevant to mention here that an eminent lawyer by the name of, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was himself laid down with the Spanish flu with a faltering heartbeat. However, destiny had charted out a different path for him, and India.

Conclusion:

This piece has only covered some of the ramifications of COVID-19 on the legal profession and there are other areas such as legal education which also need to be addressed on a priority. The existing delays in the legal system will only be exacerbated by the impediments COVID-19 will inevitably present to the progress of investigations, charging decisions, pre-trial processes etc. It appears that Corona Virus is here to stay, and the Judiciary needs to cope with it. We have been through a pandemic before and have come out of it as well. Normal functioning or rather “ New Normal ” functioning of courts is going to take its own time. Hopefully, it shouldn’t take too long, lest Lady Justice will soon have to, along with a blindfold, sword and scales, be adorned with — a mask.

Rusy Kohli

The author is a Post Graduate from Punjab University and a keen student of current affairs with context to lessons from history.

[i] “ Pending Dashboard ”: National Judicial Data Grid (District and Taluka Courts of India).

[ii] National Judicial Data Grid For High Courts.

[iii] Supreme Court Notification, March 13, 2020.

[iv] Data collected from Daily Cause Lists of various High Courts.

[v] Vide Notification No. DJA.I/550/1993, dated April 30, 2020.

[vi] Vide Order No. 13/Spl./RG/Misc. , dated April 29, 2020.

[vii] Suo Motu Writ Petition (Civil) No.1 Of 2020 ( In Re : Contagion Of Covid 19 Virus In Prisons ): Order dated April 13, 2020.

[viii] Vide Notification No. IBBI/2019-20/GN/REG059 Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (Insolvency Resolution Process for Corporate Persons) (Third Amendment) Regulations, 2020. , dated March 29, 2020

[ix] NCLT Notice dated April 20, 2020.

[x] Writ Petition (Civil) Diary No.11055/2020 ( ALJO K. JOSEPH Vs. UNION OF INDIA & ANR.): Order dated April 30, 2020.

[xi] Writ Petition (Civil) Diary No(S). 11049/2020 ( Abhinav Ramkrishna Vs. Union Of India & Ors. ): Order Dated May 8, 2020

[xii] “ How lockdown has hit judiciary, in numbers — April cases fall to 82k from 14 lakh avg in 2019 ”: The Print, May 4, 2020.

[xiii] W.P.No.7419 of 2020: ( Dr.A.E. Chelliah vs. The Chairman and Members of the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry and an. )

[xiv] Bar Council Of Tamil Nadu & Puducherry: Press Release Dated 08-05-2020

[xv] Covid-19 Fallout: Pressure on hourly fee of top consultants, lawyers: The Economic Times, May 1, 2020

[xvi] “ After 180 cases from Arthur Road Jail, Maharashtra to release half the state’s prisoners ”: The Indian Express, May 12, 2020.

[xvii] Mainland China adds 573 coronavirus infections, eyes risks abroad: Reuters.com, March 1, 2020

[xviii] (1966) 3 SCR 744

[xix] “ ‘ Public hearing fundamental to democracy’: Lawyers on SC hearings via video conference ”, The Print, April 20, 2020.

[xx] The Law and The Lawyers By: M. K. Gandhi

[xxi] Pandemic or poison? How epidemics shaped Southasia's legal history by Mitra Sharafi: Himal Southasian, April 20, 2020.

[xxii] GD 353, 1918 GOB to District Magistrate, Bijapur, 13 November, 1918.

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ayushwanders101-blog · 5 years

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Kodaikanal: The "Mist-ical" love affair

I was in Chennai while pursuing my Degree in Psychology. While being there I have explored most of the part of the city life and weekend getaways like Pondicherry and Mahabalipuram. Though these places were satisfactory, deep down I always had this urge to visit mountains again as I use to do back at my home town Delhi.

To be honest, in the beginning, I was sceptical about mountain ranges in South India because I already was in love to the ranges of the Himalayas in North, I was a big-time advocate of those beautiful hills in Uttarakhand and Himachal region.

So… here is my story from Just A Hill Away,

NOTE: The following travel journal was planned on “A low budget” due to traveller’s personal choice, hence minimal luxury but un-compromised safety were essential elements of this trip.

The Expense of my trip will be mentioned at the end of this blog...

Prior Arrangements:

1. Pre-booked train tickets in a General compartment (As I was going towards the mountains AC was not required). Travel time was almost 9hrs.

2. Pre-booked a verified hotel (3-star) through a third-party booking website. I prefer sharing rooms as it saves expenses.

3. Minimal luggage (depending upon the weather)

Day 1: The beginning

Started my journey around the evening to the central railway station via the public transportation service of the city to catch the Palakkad express. I prefer night travel mostly as sleep-time allows me to skip some monotony of train route without getting tired.

Day 2: The arrival

Kodaikanal is a city in the hills of the Dindigul district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India

I reached Palani station (destination) by morning 7am, from the station I choose to walk around 2kms to reach the bus depot to board a direct local-bus to Kodaikanal (bus service is good but has designated time slots) there is a counter to pre-book bus seat (sometimes there can be overcrowding). The bus departed at 9am (till then I spent time listening to the music and roaming around munching snacks) and there started the beautiful scenic journey to the "Princess Hill"

(Bus Ride to Kodaikanal with Palani Temple View from the front seat)

After breaking for light snacks, it took around 2.5hrs. of scenic bus journey to reach Kodaikanal bus depot.

Time: 12.15pm

Finally, It was the time to inhale the cold mountain air and exhale all the worries. I swear mountain air has some sort of magic to dissolve all the tiredness and stress.

I headed to the hotel which I have already booked and checked-in. The hotel was beautiful with a pretty natural ambience around. I got into my room and took a hot shower first and headed for lunch in the nearby market. The market has a wide variety of pocket-friendly cafes and eateries serving most of the common India cuisine, you can also find outlets like Domino's Pizza. I like to eat local foods while travelling because of 1. its "LOCAL" 2. its budget-friendly.

Places I visited on DAY 2:

The Union Church

Lutheran Church (1932); A Gothic styled architecture

lake side shops

Evening by the Kodai lake

DAY 3: The Hike

Places I visited on DAY 3:

The Suicide Point

- This is one of the most magical views in Kodaikanal though it's boundaries are covered with large grills for safety purpose. You can try bread-omelette here and light snacks from the local shops.

The Pillar Rock

- There's a ticket for the entry and a separate ticket for carrying a camera.

The Guna Caves

- It's a beautiful place to experience a "mist shower" on the face if you go in the right season, although the caves have been restricted now to enter.

- There is an entry ticket for the venue

The Moir Point

- Requires an entry ticket

- Here you can also buy a tourist bus ticket if you are interested in going further in Kodaikanal hills.

The Pine Forest

- The forest is amazing in itself, full of pine trees; makes a good photo backdrop, will remind you of "harry potter".

- You can also enjoy horse riding here

The Fairy Falls

- Located on an isolated inner village area

- Offers a good solitude and a rich calming experience

The Liril Falls ( Liril Soap advt. was filmed here)

- This is a natural "movie studio"

- You can stop here to buy natural soaps, oils and other organic products from local shops

Upper Lake viewpoint

- Experience the whole Kodai in a snapshot from here.

The whole hiking experience was overall great but also requires a moderate level of endurance and stamina, the walk offers magical views with birds chirping sounds, small waterfalls, dogs, birds, the aroma of Eucalyptus oil etc.

Most of the spots I mentioned here had local snack points to keep you fill but they all open only after 10am.

I hiked from Kodaikanal to Moir Point, it took around 3hrs. to reach. While returning back I hitch-hiked half-way back, the roads up-hill is very decent and is well maintained, though early mornings these roads are quite empty and vacant, so one needs to also take care of one's safety, on some stretch you may even find it difficult to spot a single person. Although it appeared safe to my experience.

I reached back from the hike at around 2pm and realized it was a Sunday, which in a way is something special for Kodaikanal, there is a weekly market which sets up on the street of Kodaikanal where the merchants sell a range of things from Mobile phone to pickles and spices to "magic mushrooms" ahhmm yes!! you will be approached by the sellers, don't worry.!! but CAUTION!!

Day 4

So this was my last day in Kodai, woke up as early as I could and I had already covered most of the places, hence I decided to move on a bit slower pace and enjoy the true essence of the place as if a localite from this place. But first things first, so I confirmed by return bus timings from the Kodaikanal bus depot (it was early evening). Roamed around the whole day with my camera, documenting the life in this small town. And yes I had enough time to explore a few places which were in the vicinity.

Places I visited:

A morning walk in The Bryant Park in the cold mountain breeze

A walk-way with the breathtaking valley by your side

Boating at Kodai Lake

God bless the People who keep benches at such heavenly places

Highlights of the day:

- Bought some Home-made Chocolates and wine

- Bought organic soaps and eucalyptus oil

Snapshots from the eateries during my visit:

Andd..we seize the day with Chai

DAY 5: The Return

Reached Chennai early morning and guess what I attended the college same day :)

The total expenditure of my trip to Kodaikanal came nearly INR.3200/- for 5 days including everything.

#travelminimal #kodaikanal #budgettraveller #southindia #justahillaway #india

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lighthouseofthewanderess · 5 years

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Experiment

Have you ever done something you clearly know isn’t meant for you? If yes, welcome to the club of Unlucky yet Brave Experimenters. UBE was a one member secret club for the longest time before the founder, me, dissolved it out of realization that life itself was about experimenting. But I could resurrect it and we can pretend to be the Illuminati or something.

My years of experimenting started long ago. I don’t know if we can count it, but I ate chalk when I was in kindergarten. In my head, I had eaten earth from the garden and it had tasted so rich. The texture was brilliant, and the color stuck to my fingertips. Some of the earth got under my nails and I could snack on that later. Chalk I thought was no different. But when I ate it, oh boy it tasted so much better! It even came in an easy stick format to break off into bites. My grandpa on my mother’s side looked amused every time I bounced up to him demanding slate chalk. I would always say it got over, I’m studying well, or that my friends stole it from me. He willingly gave into my trickery till he caught me chewing on it while practicing my alphabets on the slate. I just couldn’t help it; I need to think and chewing chalk helped. After that, my grandpa made it a rule that I drink a glass of milk -- “she’s eating chalk because her body needs calcium.” he would scold my grandma like it was her duty to have figured this out before him.

Anyhoo, I kept UBE a secret affair. The caterpillar that just won’t float on water? I really thought they were capable of it. The dolls with eyes carved out and replaced with marble? Why was it creepy, she had beautiful eyes now. For a long time I stuck to things around me and it fueled my curiosity but I also got bored of it too soon. I gave it up -- for the poor butterflies, the ants, and flowers that were getting tortured by me. My heart was a noble one. Head held high I went about life accepting things the way they were. Then I got the brilliant idea of experimenting with myself. The mission was simple; do one unexpected thing every day. What was I on the search for? The million different parts of me that make me who I am. It started with the coloring. My teachers in India complained that I might have an eye problem. “She is coloring roses blue and all.” I wish I can see their faces now when there’s not just blue but black roses as well. Ha! Then I thought why not fight for the things I believed in. I undid the red ribbon of a girl in class and when she yanked it from my hand, I yanked it back. It turned into a fight just like I expected and we stood on top of the benches and wrestled with each other. That experiment ended up with bruised elbows and a 100 ‘I am sorry’ on the blackboard. Damn that girl. I was just trying to see if I had a fighter in me. UBE would have to some basic rules that saved them from situations like this. Rule #1: If your experiment involves a person, an animal, a flower or any living thing… do not harm it. Fate will boomerang back. That left me the only choice of putting myself in awkward situations. After pre-school, mom would take about 2 hours to come pick me up. Her job was tricky. So I would play around, seesaw on my own or just sleep on benches. A light bulb went off in my head during one of those slumbers. Next day after I finished up, I climbed the stairs and sat inside the 5th grade class. The teacher didn’t object, the students welcomed me with open arms. Literally. They picked me up and took turns seating me on their lap. The blackboard swarmed with letters and symbols I didn’t understand but I stared at it fully in awe. In my eyes, this experiment was a successful one. I would come back and wait right on time for mom to pick me up. I was so used to the routine that even the lunch my mom packed would be forgotten, eaten only minutes before she arrived. One unlucky day she caught me eating my lunch, which had kind of gotten spoilt in the summer heat, on the steps by myself. I looked super content, but my mom almost burst into tears. After that she got an aaya to pick me up right after school and keep me with her, make sure I was fed on time. Time for UBE to have another rule. Rule #2 - Tread with caution when there are moms involved. They have the power to banish all experiments.

With these two rules, I had my fill of experimenting without hurting anyone for years. Even in the US. Climbing trees, hanging like a bat, fries in my ice cream. Life was so rich when every day was a new affair. There was one time I took UBE to the next level. A midnight release of a new Harry Potter book was announced. There would be games and exciting gifts, almost the whole school was going. But I wasn’t a fan. I knew nothing the other potter heads knew. Rise to the experiment, oh brave one I told myself and dragged my mom with me. At the library every one had dressed up. Polaroids were being clicked. There were cauldrons with little wands. There was a line of people waiting to answer and get their prizes. I happily went and stood there. As my turn approached, I didn’t have the slightest fear that I wouldn’t be able to answer. The point wasn’t to win, it was to experiment. The lady at the counter asked me a question.

“What was the name of Ron’s brothers?” Um, no clue. I shook my head. The line behind me gasped. I heard them whisper that I didn’t know even the basics.

“Okay. Here’s an easy one, hon.” She asked me about the platform number. Someone in line even offered to answer for me. I shook my head again.

“I just wanted to know what the prize was, that’s all.” I said to her, shrugging my shoulders. She smiled and gave me one last questions.

“Who are Muggles?” I paused to give it a thought. The line was getting restless, they hated my guts. Well, everyone has to human right? Plus she used ‘who’.

“Humans?” I stated. Everyone broke into an applause and some even clapped me on my back. Well done they said. At least you know the difference between the wizard and the human world. I was just happy I get the gift. It was a pack of gummy worms. Aw man, really? Rule #3: A smart experimenter assesses risks.

From there I went on try one thing after another. Spanish classes. Adding ‘ito’ to everything didn’t work so I stepped out of class. Bharatnatyam went on for a bit but Ballet was more fascinating. Swimming felt like I still needs to sprout some fins so I made a mental note to try it out later. Caramel apples. Plaster-of-Paris. Swinging from the door. They all went down in UBE’s history. I remember playing the piano for a recital. I practiced with a Casio keyboard at home and rendered the beautiful ‘To a wild rose’ by McDowell. Bach. Beethoven. It started getting too sad for some reason. Switch to something else. Karate. Held onto that till the gold belt and then tossed that away too. I was super restless. I was focused so much on getting my little feet into everything that I never stuck to anything for too long. What if I’m meant to do something more? Ice skating. The flute. Singing. It was all a whirlwind when I look at it now. I don’t even know if I had a favorite hobby. Well, maybe climbing trees. But I couldn’t choose one. Too much experimenting. Rule #4: UBE practices a good interval between two experiments. To learn and experiment better in the future.

Somehow, on the way to India, I lost UBE. Maybe I packed it with the wrong boxes. Maybe I have to join another secret club when I land there. I knew it the minute cranberry juice was placed in front of me, a thousand feet above sea level. I didn’t feel like trying it out. What? That doesn’t normally happen. I tried to sleep it off. Then I blamed it on the jet lag. Then came the ‘national’ language called Hindi and what a horrible experiment. When my Principal, John Zachariah, admitted me in the middle of the year he asked me why I was hell bent on Hindi. Why not try French? “I am a secret experimenter” I whispered when my mom stood far, straining to hear what we were discussing. In a year, I changed that to Tamil, another experiment but a successful one at that. I tried my hand at throwball, loved the matches in the rain. For the sports day, I did the ridiculous thing of trying out for tug-o-war. Here was another joke -- this girl was underwait, a thin fragile thing and she fainted a lot. But when pitched with others at the tryout, I won all three. Pure bone weight. All those glasses of milk and chalk must have nursed my bones. The last significant thing I tried, apart from writing, was the National Cadet Corps. NCC in a lot of ways made me tougher, even thought I was just eyeing the 15% marks that would come out of it. On my first NCC camp, I tried a lot of new things and every night I would ache all over but feel intensely successful as a member of UBE. In the early morning jogs and yoga, I came to realize two things about me. I am not a morning person and Yoga made me sleeps. And just like that, I was able to draw observations about myself after every lab session. Even from the ones I think I would suck at the most. Rule #5 - When you’re unsure about it, that’s the UBE sixth sense telling you that you have to do it.

I have been following these rules for a long time now. I have surprised myself time and again with the things I set out to do. Solo travel. Tattoos. Gardening. Oh what the hell, even babysitting. And I think the only mistake one can make as a member of UBE is fearing the outcome. That gives birth to normalcy and monotony. The kind that makes you pick the same things from a menu, the same colors from the clothes aisle. Choose a heavier ball when you go bowling, take a different route to work, eat Doritos with chopsticks. Sometimes I’ve taken a chance on people too; meeting them once just to see how it goes. I love getting to know them and experimenting in understanding what I feel for them. Even if this goes against Rule#1, I know I wouldn’t harm them no matter what. I know to step back from there. One can argue that repetition of certain tasks and decisions forms tastes, styles, and shapes one’s personality. And I agree. Yes, comfort in the familiar is a safe thing, but then again as Tove Lo puts it, ‘If you had any flavor in the world, would you still choose vanilla?’

#nanowrimo #nano 2018 #nano writing #lifestruggles #life story #life stories #writedaily #loveforwriting #writing #wrimo #day19 #anecdote #experimental #experimentation

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swedna · 4 years

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A health worker collects a swab sample for Covid-19 rapid antigen testing, in Gurugram. Coronavirus update: With over 19,000 cases being reported in the last 24 hours, India's total tally of coronavirus cases has crossed the 600,000 mark. At present, the country has 605,775 cases, of which 17,855 are fatalities.

Around 90 per cent of total infections in India are in just 10 states — Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana and Karnataka. On Monday, the government had announced "Unlock 2", under which more economic activities have resumed, even as containment zones continue to remain under lockdown.

Coronavirus world update: More than 10.8 million people around the world have been diagnosed with Covid-19. While more than 5.9 million have recovered, 519,313 have died so far, show Worldometer data.

Country-wise, the United States continues to be the most affected, with 2,779,953 coronavirus cases and 130,798 deaths. It is followed by Brazil (1,453,369 cases, deaths 60,713), Russia (654,405 cases, 9,536 deaths), and India (605,220 cases, 17,848 deaths).

Stay tuned for all coronavirus LIVE updates CATCH ALL THE LIVE UPDATES Auto Refresh 02:52 PM Yesterday, as many as 229,588 people got tested for Covid-19: Government of India Till now, 90,56,173 tests conducted through a diagnostic testing network. There are now 1,065 testing labs in the country. 768 in public sector and 297 private labs. Yesterday, as many as 229,588 people got tested for COVID-19: Government of India

02:49 PM Coronavirus pandemic LIVE: Pakistan Covid-19 tally reaches 217,809 Pakistan reported 4,339 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, taking the tally to 217,809, the health ministry said on Thursday. The country also reported 78 deaths due to the disease, taking the COVID-19 death toll to 4,473. A total of 2,723 patients were in critical condition, the ministry said. As many as 1,04,694 patients have recovered so far, making it almost half of the total cases in the country, news agency PTI reported. Sindh province recorded the maximum number of cases with 86,795 patients, followed by Punjab with 77,740 patients, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa 26,938 patients, Islamabad 13,082 patients and Balochistan 10,608 patients, Gilgit-Baltistan 1,511 patients and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir with 1,135 patients. So far, 1,327,638 tests have been done in the country. In the last 24 hours, 22,128 tests have been conducted. Special Assistant on Health Dr Zafar Mirza said the number of COVID-19 cases were decreasing due to the 'smart lockdowns'. He said the monsoon season would further help reduce the number of cases. Mirza said 28 laboratories were conducting tests across the country. 02:30 PM LIVE: Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope rules out community transmission of Covid-19 in the state 02:28 PM Scientists use weather forecasting technique to predict Covid-19 spread Scientists have employed methods normally used to forecast weather to predict how rapidly COVID-19 could spread in different countries as lockdown is eased, as well as assess the effectiveness of measures put in place, according to a PTI report. An international team, including meteorologists from the University of Reading in the UK, applied data assimilation, a technique that combines multiple sources of information to estimate how a situation will develop over time, to the pandemic. The study, submitted to the journal Foundations of Data Science, suggests it is possible to make reasonably accurate predictions of how easing measures might affect the spread of the virus up to two weeks in advance. This technique is usually used to pair computer simulations with real weather observations to forecast future weather, the researchers said. "A key result from this work is that we can estimate accurately how the reproductive (R) number varies in time in response to implementing or loosing up various mitigation measures," said Professor Geir Evensen, from the NORCE: Norwegian Research Centre, who led the study. R number is the number of people a person with COVID-19 is likely to infect. 02:13 PM IndiGo to give 25% discount on airfare to doctors and nurses till year-end IndiGo said on Thursday it will give a 25 percent discount on the airfare to doctors and nurses till the end of 2020 as they are at the forefront of the battle against the coronavirus pandemic, news agency PTI reported. "The nurses and doctors will be required to provide valid hospital IDs at the time of check-in as a proof of their identity," the airline said in a press release. "The discount will be offered while booking through IndiGo's website, valid for sale and travel from July 01, 2020 till December 31, 2020," it added. Passenger loads continue to be low in domestic flights, the operations of which resumed on May 25 after a gap of two months. Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Twitter on Thursday that 71,471 passengers travelled on 785 flights on July 1. This means, on an average, there were 91 passengers in a plane on Wednesday. Since the commonly used A320 aircraft has around 180 seats in it, this means that the passenger load was just around 50 per cent on July 1. IndiGo has termed the aforementioned scheme as a "Tough Cookie" campaign. "As part of the initiative, IndiGo will track the Tough Cookie journey to make it special every step of the way, starting from a complementary cookie tin at check-in, welcome announcement at the boarding gate, special Tough Cookie sticker on the PPE and in-flight announcement giving them a warm welcome on-board," it said. Scheduled international passenger flights continue to remain suspended in India.

IndiGo Q2 preview: Rupee depreciation may dent EBITDAR margin ... 02:06 PM Will assess feasibility of conducting CA exams amid spike in Covid-19 cases, ICAI tells SC The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) informed the Supreme Court on Thursday that it would assess the feasibility of conducting CA exams, scheduled between July 29 and August 16, in view of the spike in number of COVID-19 cases across the country and consult states and examination centres on this issue, news agency PTI reported. The ICAI's counsel told a bench headed by Justice A M Khanwilkar that cases of coronavirus have increased and some of the states have extended the restrictions imposed amid the spike in the number of infection. He sought time from the bench, also comprising Justices Dinesh Maheshwari and Sanjiv Khanna, for contacting examination centres to access the ground situation and explore the feasibility of conducting the exams. The top court was hearing through video conferencing a plea which has challenged the 'opt out' option provided by the ICAI to the candidates alleging that it "arbitrarily" discriminates between the aspirants in the May cycle of CA examination, according to a PTI report. The apex court, after hearing the submissions, said it would hear the matter on July 10. On June 29, the apex court had observed that ICAI should be flexible in conducting exams amid the COVID-19 pandemic and take care of candidates' concerns. It had suggested that option for change in examination centre should be made available to the candidates till the last week before the scheduled exams considering the fact that an area may become a containment zone due to the coronavirus situation. 01:57 PM Coronavirus LIVE: Covid-19 death toll rises to 27 in Odisha Odisha reported two more Covid-19 fatalities on Thursday, taking the death toll due to the disease to 27 in the state, while the total tally rose to 7,545 with 229 fresh cases, a health department official said. Two men, aged 49 and 57, succumbed to the disease at the Covid hospitals in Ganjam and Angul districts, news agency PTI reported. "Regret to inform the deaths of two Covid positive patients, while under treatment in hospitals," the official said. Of the 27 deaths so far in Odisha, Ganjam, the worst-hit district, accounts for 15, followed by five in Khurda, four in Cuttack, and one each in Bargarh, Puri and Angul, he said. Eight other coronavirus patients had died earlier but their deaths were attributed to "non-Covid reasons", the official said. The state had reported its first Covid-19 fatality in Bhubaneswar on April 6. Of the new 229 positive cases, 193 were reported from quarantine centres where people returning from other states are lodged for preliminary observation and care, while 36 others were detected as a result of the contact-tracing exercises. 01:45 PM More than 46,000 accredited social health activists working closely with local communities to fight Covid-19: Health Ministry #CoronaVirusUpdates#IndiaFightsCorona

ASHAs of #Odisha: overcoming #COVID19 related stigma and discrimination.

More than 46,000 ASHAs working closely with local communities to fight #COVID19.

More at:https://t.co/1KmomqQXSC pic.twitter.com/vnJvWy4DsX

— Ministry of Health (@MoHFW_INDIA) July 2, 2020 01:39 PM Coronavirus pandemic LIVE: South Africa reports 8,124 new Covid-19 cases South Africa is reporting another record daily number of 8,124 coronavirus cases. The country has the most cases in Africa with more than 159,000, as what had been one of the world's strictest lockdowns continues to loosen, news agency AP reported. Johannesburg is a new hot spot with hundreds of health workers infected. Gauteng province that contains Johannesburg has more than 45,000 confirmed cases. The African continent has more than 405,000 confirmed cases overall. 01:26 PM MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan holds 1st cabinet meeting after new ministers took oath

#Covid-19

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news24fresh · 4 years

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Tamil Nadu custodial deaths | Madras High Court finds prima facie material to book Sattankulam policemen for murder

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The Madras High Court (Madurai Bench) on Tuesday found prima facie material to book the policemen allegedly involved in the custodial deaths of trader P. Jayaraj and his son J. Benicks in Sattankulam for murder, thanks to a woman head constable’s statement, the medical report and the judicial magistrate’s report.

To ensure that the inquiry into the case was not scuttled, a Bench of…

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#HC finds prima facie material to book policemen for murder

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liveindiatimes · 4 years

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High Court To Tamil Nadu Government

https://liveindiatimes.com/high-court-to-tamil-nadu-government/

The Tamil Nadu government plans to convert J Jayalalithaa’s residence in Chennai into a memorial

Chennai:

The Madras High Court on Wednesday asked the Tamil Nadu government to reconsider its decision to convert late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa’s residence in Chennai into a memorial and declared her niece and nephew as the legal heirs of her property worth several crores.

A division bench of Justices N Kirubakaran and Abdul Quddhose also suggested that ‘Veda Nilayam’, located in the upmarket Poes Garden, be converted into the official residence of the Chief Minister of the state, while a portion of the property can be a memorial if needed.

The court order came days after Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit promulgated an ordinance to allow the state government take temporary possession of ‘Veda Nilayam’ and set up a foundation under Chief Minister K Palaniswami for the purpose of converting it into a memorial, allowing the petition by Jayalalithaa’s nephew and niece – Deepak and Deepa, respectively, seeking letters of administration to administer her properties, the bench said, “Deepak and Deepa are second class legal heirs of the late Chief Minister, being the son and daughter of her late brother Jayakumar.”

It also made it clear that the two were entitled for administration in respect of the estate held individually by the late Jayalalithaa or in the names of firms or companies and the credits of the former AIADMK chief.

Deepak and Deepa shall allot a few properties according to their discretion and create a registered public trust in the name of their late aunt for the purpose of doing social service within a period of eight weeks from the date of receipt of the order copy.

The court then posted the matter for reporting compliance with regard to creation of a trust after eight weeks.

The bench dismissed another plea moved by AIADMK cadre K Pugalenthi seeking to appoint him as administrator of the properties of the late chief minister.

In August last, the court, while reserving the orders had sought to know why a portion of Jayalalithaa’s properties should not be allotted for welfare of the public, as she was the leader who always said she was made by the people and worked for the people.

The petitioners submitted they had no objection in doing so, since it was their aunt’s wish.

“But as the only legal heirs of Jayalalithaa, we are entitled to all her properties. We have plans to establish a trust in her name and do charity to the people through it,” they stated in the petition.

According to the petitioners, they had approached the jurisdictional tahsildar on August 16, 2017, urging issue of legal heir certificates in their favour to inherit properties of Jayalalithaa, who died on December 5, 2016.

But through a reply dated September 22, 2017, the official refused to issue the certificates and directed them to obtain it by approaching the appropriate civil court.

On May 22, the Governor had promulgated an ordinance to temporarily take possession of ‘Veda Nilayam.’ It said the ordinance was also meant to establish Puratchi Thalaivi Dr J Jayalalithaa Memorial Foundation for making long-term arrangements to convert Veda Nilayam into a memorial.

The government had said the ordinance was promulgated since “the building of ‘Veda Nilayam’, including the movable items such as furniture, books, jewels, etc. are in a state of disuse for more than three years.”

So the government decided to transfer all the immovable and movable properties to the government for its upkeep until the acquisition process is complete,” it had said.

The government, while formally commencing the process of acquiring the sprawling three-storeyed residence early this month, had said that the legal heir for the building was yet to be ascertained.

Fondly addressed as “Amma”, meaning mother in Tamil, by her supporters, Jayalalithaa died in December 2016 after undergoing treatment at the Apollo Hospitals for 75 days.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Live India Times

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ravisinghdigital · 5 years

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Madras HC Grants Anticipatory Bail to Kamal Haasan for Hindu Terrorist Remark

The Madras High Court on Monday granted anticipatory bail to Kamal Haasan in a case filed against him by the Hindu Munnani (Front) party for his comments on Nathuram Godse.

Haasan told the court that his comments “did not incite hatred. What I said was about co-existence and was not aimed at inciting hatred. What I said are historical facts”. The actor who had recently floated his own political outfit called the Makkal Needhi Maiyam (MNM) had stirred a controversy when during a campaign speech he said that the first terrorist of independent India was a Hindu and his name was Nathuram Godse, the assassin of Mahatma Gandhi.

A day later, the Tamil Nadu police booked him on the charge of spreading enmity on the grounds of religion and he moved the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court, seeking anticipatory bail. In his petition, Haasan said he believed in universal brotherhood and was for peaceful co-existence. He claimed that the crux of his speech was not about promoting enmity or disharmony among religious groups or sections of people. Contending that he was falsely implicated in the alleged offence, Haasan said he was willing to abide by the conditions for grant of anticipatory bail.

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margdarsanme · 4 years

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NCERT Class 12 English Chapter 1 The Last Lesson

NCERT Class 12 English :: Chapter 1 The Last Lesson

(English Flamingo Prose)

QUESTIONS FROM TEXTBOOK SOLVED:

THINK AS YOU READ Q1. What was Franz expected to be prepared with for school that day?Ans: That day Franz was expected to be prepared with participles because M. Hamel had said that he would question them on participles. Franz did not know anything about participles.

Q2. What did Franz notice that was unusual about the school that day?Ans: Usually, when school began, there was a great bustle, which could be heard out in the street. But it was all very still that day. Everything was as quiet as Sunday morning. There was no opening or closing of desks. His classmates were already in their places. The teacher’s great ruler instead of rapping on the table, was under M. Hamel’s arm.

Q3. What had been put up on the bulletin-board?Ans: For the last two years all the bad news had come from the bulletin-board. An order had come from Berlin to teach only German in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine. The Germans had put up this notice on the bulletin-board.

THINK AS YOU READ Q1. What changes did the order from Berlin cause in school that day?Ans: M. Hamel had put on his best dress—his beautiful green coat, his frilled shirt and the little black silk cap, all embroidered. The whole school seemed so strange and solemn. On the back benches that were always empty, the elderly village people were sitting quietly like the kids.

Q2. How did Franz’s feelings about M. Hamel and school change?Ans: Franz came to know that it was the last lesson in French that M. Hamel would give them. From the next day they will be taught only German. Then he felt sorry for not learning his lessons properly. His books, which seemed a nuisance and a burden earlier were now old friends. His feelings about M. Hamel also changed. He forgot all about his ruler and how cranky he was.

UNDERSTANDING THE TEXT Q1. The people? in this story suddenly realise how1 precious their language is to them. What shows you this? Why does this happen?Ans: M. Hamel told the students and villagers that henceforth only German would be taught in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine. Those who called themselves Frenchmen would neither be able to speak nor write it. He praised French as the most beautiful, the clearest and most logical language in the world. He said that for the enslaved people, their language was the key to their prison. Then the people realised how precious their language was to them. This shows people’s love for their own culture, traditions and country. Pride in one’s language reflects pride in the motherland.

Q2. Franz thinks, “Will they make them sing in German, even the pigeonsT’ What could this mean?(There could he more than one answer.)Ans: This comment of Franz shows a Frenchman’s typical reaction to the imposition of learning German, the language of the conquerors. Being deprived of the learning of mother tongue would mean cutting off all bonds with the motherland. Teaching the pigeons to sing in German indicates how far the Germans would go in their attempts of linguistic chauvinism.

TALKING ABOUT THE TEXTQ1. “When a people are en slaved, as long as th ey hold fast to their language it is as if they had the key to their prison.”Can you think of examples in history where a conquered people had their lan¬guage taken away from them or had a language imposed on them?Ans: Mother tongue helps a person to express his feelings and thoughts most lucidly and intimately. Conquerors try to subdue and control the people of the enslaved territory by enforcing many measures such as use of force to crush dissent and imposing their own language on them.From time immemorial the victorious nations have imposed their own language on the conquered people and taken away their own language from them. The Romans conquered many parts of Europe and replaced the local languages by their own language— Latin. Later on Spanish, Pourtuguese, Italian and French developed from Latin. The Muslim invaders imposed Arabic and Persian in the countries of Asia overpowered by them. In many Arab countries the local religion and language have disappeared. In India, a new language Urdu developed from the mixture of Persian and Hindi.

Q2. What happens to a linguistic minority in a state? How do you think they can keep their language alive? For example:Punjabis in BangaloreTamilians in MumbaiKannadigas in DelhiGujaratis in KolkataAns. The linguistic minority in any state is easily marked and faces the same discrimination as the religious, social or ethnic minorities. There is, however, a pronounced difference in the treatment meted out and the level of acceptance displayed by the majority community in that region/city. Some cities like Delhi, Mumbai are cosmopolitan in outlook.The linguistic minority tries to preserve its identity through an intimate contact, interaction and preservation of their language in social get-togethers, family functions and festivals of their own region. Adherence to social customs and traditions in family gatherings/group meetings of women also promote the unity between members of the linguistic minority.In short, they create a mini-Punjab in Bangalore, mini-Chennai in Mumbai, mini-Bangalore in Delhi and mini-Surat in Kolkata.

Q3. Is it possible to carry pride in one’s language too far? Do you know what “lin¬guistic chauvinism” means?Ans. ‘Linguistic chauvinism’ means an aggressive and unreasonable belief that your own language is better than all others. This shows an excessive or prejudiced support for one’s own language. Sometimes pride in one’s own language goes too for and the linguistic enthusiasts can be easily identified by their extreme zeal for the preservation and spread of their language. In their enthusiasm, love and support for their own language, they tend to forget that other languages too have their own merits, long history of art, culture and literature behind them. Instead of bringing unity and winning over others as friends, having excessive pride in one’s own language creates ill-will and disintegration. The stiff-resistance to the acceptance of Hindi as national language by the southern states of India is a direct outcome of the fear of being dominated by Hindi enthusiasts. The result is that ‘One India’ remains only a slogan.

WORKING WITH WORDS Q1. English is a language that contains words from many other languages. This inclusiveness is one of the reasons it is now a “world language”. For example’.petite – Frenchkindergarten – Germancapital – Latindemocracy – Greekbazaar – HindiFind out the origins of the following words:tycoon barbecue zerotulip veranda skilogo robot trekbandicootAns.Word Origin Word OriginTycoon Japanese Veranda PortugueseTulip Persian Robot CzechLogo Greek Zero ArabicBandicoot Telugu Ski NorwegianBarbecue Spanish Trek South African Dutch

Q2. Notice the underlined words in these sentences and tick the option that best explains their meaning:(a) “What a thunderclap these words were to me!”The words were(i)loud and clear.(ii)startling and unexpected.(iii) pleasant and welcome.(b)“When a people are enslaved, as long as they hold fast to their language it is as if they had the key to their prison.”It is as if they have the key to the prison as long as they(i)do not lose their language.(ii)are attached to their language.(iii)quickly learn the conqueror’s language.(c)Don’t go so fast, you will get to your school in plenty of time. You will get to your school.(i)very late.(ii)too early.(iii)early enough.(d)I never saw him look so tall.M. Hamel (i) had grown physically taller.(ii) seemed very confident.(iii) stood on the chair.Ans. (a) (ii) startling and unexpected.(b) (ii) are attached to their language.(c)(iii) early enough.(d)(ii) seemed very confident.

NOTICING FORM 1.Read this sentence:M. Hamel had said that he would question us on participles.In the sentence above, the verb form “had said” in the first part is used to indicate an “earlier past”. The whole story is narrated in the past. M. Hamel’s “saying” happened earlier than the events in this story. This form of the verb is called the past perfect.Pick out five sentences from the story with this form of the verb and say why this form has been used.Ans. (i)For the last two years all our bad news had come from there.Reason: The ‘coming’ of bad news happened earlier than the bulletin in the story.(ii)Hauser had brought an old primer.Reaeon : The event of ‘bringing’ happened earlier than Franz noticed it.(iii) That was what they had put up at the town-hall!Reason’. The ‘putting up’ of bulletin happened earlier. Now it is recalled.(iv)they had not gone to school more.Reason’. The action of ‘not going* happened much earlier.(v)the hopvine that he had planted himself twined about the windows to the roof.Reason’. The ‘planting’ of hopvine happened earlier than its twining about the windows.

WRITINGQ1. Write a notice for your school bulletin board. Your notice could be an announcement of a forthcoming event, or a requirement to be fulfilled, or a rule to be followed.Ans:

Q2. Write a paragraph of about 100 words arguing for or against having to study three languages at school.Ans: STUDYING THREE LANGUAGES AT SCHOOLIn most of the states in India, students have to study three languages at school. One of them is the mother tongue, the second is Hindi (the national language) and the third is English (the international or link language). In Hindi speaking region, a South or East Indian language—Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malyalam or Bangla, Oriya, Assamese etc is taught. The three language formula helps in national integration by acquainting young students about the social customs, rituals, culture and traditions of the various parts of the country. It also focuses on the principle of unity in diversity. The only drawback in this system is that it puts an excessive burden on the minds of the young learner. To alleviate their problem, the courses of study in the three languages may be structured suitably.

Q3. Have you ever changed your opinion about someone or something that you had earlier liked or disliked? Narrate what led you to change your mind.Ans: Facts are sometimes stronger than fiction. Many occurrences of life come as eye-openers. Such an experience occurred the previous day which led me to change my mind about our hostel warden Miss Angela Thomas. Overnight the terrible titan was transformed into a loving and affectionate elder sister full of milk of human kindness. Now when I remember how I disliked her and invented nicknames and pranks to tease her, I feel ashamed of myself. Yesterday, I had a terrible nightmare and I cried and wept. My room-mate failed to console me and reported the matter to the warden. God knows how long I remained unconscious! When I came to my senses I found my head in the lap of Miss Angela Thomas. Her eyes were red with tears and bps moving in prayer. She had really proved an angel for me and saved me.

THINGS TO DOQ1. Find out about the following (You may go to the internet, interview people, consult reference books or visit a library.)(a)Linguistic human rights(b)Constitutional guarantees for linguistic minorities in India.Ans: Extension Activity: To be done under the Teacher’s Guidance.

Q2. Given below is a survey form. Talk to at least five of your classmates and fill in the information you get in the form.Ans: Classroom Activity: Do it yourself.

MORE QUESTIONS SOLVED

SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONSQ1. Why do you think was little Franz afraid of being scolded?Ans: Franz was afraid of being scolded that day especially because M. Hamel, the teacher, had said that he would question them on participles. Franz frankly admits that he was totally ignorant about the topic. His exact words are: “I did not know the first word about them.” Secondly, he had started for school very late that morning.

Q2. “It was all much more tempting than the rule for participles.” What did Franz find ‘much more tempting’? How did he finally react?Ans: Franz found that it was a very warm and bright day. The birds were chirping at the edge of woods. The Prussian soldiers were drilling in the open field at the back of sawmill. He could gladly spend life out of doors. However, he had the strength to resist the temptation. Finally, he hurried off to school.

Q3. “What can be the matter now?” says Franz. Why, do you think, did he make this comment?Ans: There was a bulletin-board near the town-hall. When Franz passed by it, he noticed a crowd there. He did not stop to look at it. He wondered what could be the matter then. For the last two yeairs they had received all the bad news from the bulletin-board—the lost battle, conscription and the orders of the commanding officer.

Q4. Who was Wachter? What did he ask Franz and why? How did Franz react?Ans: Wachter was a blacksmith. He was reading the latest bulletin. He asked Franz not to go so fast to his school. He added that the little boy would get to his school in plenty of time. Wachter had read the latest bulletin about teaching of German. Franz thought that the blacksmith was making a fun of him. So, he ran to the school and reached there breathless.

Q5. What was the usual scene when Franz’s school began in the morning?Ans: Usually, when the school began, there was a great bustle. The noise could be heard out in the school. Students opened and closed their desks. They repeated the lessons together very loudly. They kept their hands over their ears to understand better. The teacher would go on rapping the table with his great iron ruler.

Q6. How had Franz hoped to get to his desk? What had he to do and why?Ans: Franz had hoped to get to his desk unseen during the commotion. But that day it was very quiet. So, Franz had to open the door and go in before everybody. He blushed as he was late. He was frightened that the teacher might rebuke him, but M. Hamel spoke kindly to him that day.

Q7. What three things in school surprised Franz most that day?Ans: First, M. Hamel, the teacher had put on his fine Sunday clothes—his beautiful green coat, frilled shirt and the little black silk cap, all embroidered. Second, the whole school seemed quite strange and solemn. Thirdly, the village people were sitting quietly like school children on the back benches that usually remained empty.

Q8. Why had the villagers come to school that day? How did they look?Ans: The villagers had come there to thank M. Hamel for his forty years of faithful service. They also wanted to show their respect to the country that was theirs no more. They were sorry that they had not gone to school more. They were sitting quietly and looked sad.

Q9. “What a thunderclap these words were to me!” Which were the words that shocked and surprised the narrator?Ans: M. Hamel, the teacher, told the children in a solemn and gentle tone that it was their last French lesson. Henceforth, only German would be taught in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine. The new master would come the next day. As that was their last French lesson, he wanted them to be very attentive. The teacher’s kind gesture and use of soft words shocked and surprised the narrator.

Q10. How did Franz react to the declaration: ‘This is your last French lesson’?Ans: The words appeared startling and unexpected like a thunderclap. He now understood why there was a crowd at the bulletin board, why the village people had come to school, why the teacher was dressed in his Sunday best and why there was sadness and silence in the school.

Q11. What tempted Franz to stay away from school? [Delhi 2014]Ans: Franz was not prepared Tor the test on participles. The Prussian soldiers were drilling in the open field at the back of sawmill. The birds were chirping at the edge of woods. These things tempted him. So he hurried off to school.

Q12. Who did M. Hamel blame for neglect of learning on the part of boys like Franz?Ans: He thought it typical with the people of Alsace. They would put off learning till tomorrow. Parents are not quite anxious to have their children learn. They put them to work on a farm or at the mills in order to have a little more money. The teacher got his flowers watered or gave them a holiday. He too neglected their lessons.

Q13. What did M. Hamel tell them about French language? What did he ask them to do and why?Ans:M. Hamel told them that French was the most beautiful language in the world. It was the clearest and the most logical language. He asked them to guard it among them and never _ forget it. He gave a reason also. When a people were enslaved, as long as they held fast to their language, they had the key to their prison.

Q14. Why were the elders of the village sitting in the classroom? [All India 2014]Ans: M. Hamel was taking the class of last French lesson. That is why elders of the village were sitting in the classroom to attend it. It was done not only to pay respect to M.Hamel but to pay respect to his own language.

Q15. How did Franz and other hoys enjoy their lesson in writing? Ans: That day M. Hamel had new copies for them. The words “France, Alsace, France, Alsace” were written on them in a beautiful round hand. The boys set to work quietly. The only sound was the scratching of the pens over the paper. Nobody paid any attention to the beetles who flew in.

Q16. How did M. Hamel feel and behave during the last lesson?Ans: M. Hamel was solemn and gentle. He sat motionless in his chair during the writing lesson. He gazed at one thing or the other. Perhaps he wanted to fix in his mind how everything looked in that little school room. Surely, it must have broken his heart to leave it all after forty years.

Q17. “He had the courage to hear every lesson to the very last.” What led Franz to make this remark?Ans: Franz noticed that M. Hamel was feeling sad on having to leave the place sifter 40 years and not being allowed to teach French any longer. Yet, he kept control on his emotions. He performed his duties faithfully. He heard every lesson to the last. The school was dismissed only at mid-day prayer time.

Q18. What happened when the lesson in history was over?Ans: After the lesson in history was over, the babies chanted their ba, be, bi, bo, bu. Old Hauser, who was sitting at the back of the room, had put on his spectacles. He was holding his primer in both hands. He was spelling the letters with the babies.

Q19. “Ah, how well I remember it, that last lesson!” says the narrator. Which scene does he remember more vividly than the others?Ans:The narrator remembers the scene of old Hauser spelling the letters from the primer with the babies. He too was crying. His voice trembled with emotion. It was so funny to hear him that all of them wanted to laugh and cry at the same time.

Q20. How did M. Hamel behave as the last lesson came to an end?Ans: M. Hamel stood up in his chair. He looked very pale and tall. He wanted to say some parting words, but something choked him. Then he wrote “Vive La France!” on the blackboard with a piece of chalk. Then he stopped. He leaned his head against the wall. Without a word, he made a gesture to the students with his hand to permit them to go as the school was over.

LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONSQ1. Why was Franz scared that day 1 What did he see on his way to school and how did he get to his deskiAns: Franz was not good at learning. He would rather take the day off and waste time in searching birds’ eggs or going sliding on the Saar. Franz was scared that day because M. Hamel had said that he would question them on participles. Franz did not know anything about participles.He found that the day was warm and bright. The birds were chirping at the edge of the woods. The Prussian soldiers were drilling in the open fields. There was a crowd in front of the bulletin-board near the town-hall.Franz found the school room unusually quiet. So, he had no option but to open the door and go in before everybody. He blushed and was frightened of the teacher. M. Hamel spoke very kindly to him and asked him to go to his place quickly. Franz jumped over the bench and sat down at his desk.

Q2. What order had been received from Berlin that day? What effect did it have on the life at school?Ans: An order had been received from Berlin that only German would be taught in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine. This order had far-reaching effects on the life at school. M. Hamel, who had been teaching French at the village school for the last forty years would deliver his last lesson that day.It was in honour of the last lesson that M. Hamel, the teacher had put on his best clothes. Old men of the village were sitting quietly at the back of the classroom. They were sad as well as sorry for they had not gone to school more. They had come to thank the master for his forty years of faithful service and to show respect for the country that was theirs no more.The teacher addressed the students in a solemn and gentle tone. He asked them to be attentive and explained everything quite patiently. He appealed to them to preserve French among them. During slavery it would act as key to the prison. He felt so overwhelmed by emotion that he could not bid farewell properly.

Q3. What do you think is the theme of the story ‘The Last Lesson’? What is the reason behind its universal appeal?Ans:The theme of the story ‘The Last Lesson’ is linguistic chauvinism of the proud conquerorsand the pain that is inflicted on the people of a territory by them by taking away the right to study or speak their own language and thus make them aliens in their own land of birth. The story has a sub-theme also. It highlights the attitudes of the students and teachers to learning and teaching.Though the story is located in a particular village of Alsace district of France which had passed into Prussian hands, it has a universal appeal. It highlights the efforts of the victors to crush their victims—the vanquished people in all possible manner—materially, spiritually, mentally and emotionally. Taking away mother tongue from the people is the harshest punishment. The proper equation between student and teacher, his focused attention, helpful and encouraging attitude and kind treatment can encourage students to learn better.

Q4. Comment on the appropriateness of the title ‘The Last Lesson’.Ans: The story has an appropriate and suggestive title. It is the centre of attention throughout and the whole story revolves around it. The beginning of the story serves as preparation for it. The unusual quietness at school, presence of village elders and the teacher in his Sunday best dress—all point out to the unusual and unique occasion—the last lesson in French in a French village school in a district conquered by the Prussians. While delivering the last lesson, the teacher wants to transmit all his knowledge in one go. He explains everything with patience and the students as well as old villagers listen attentively.For the narrator it is an unforgettable experience. “Ah, how well I remember it, that last lesson,” says he. Old Hauser is crying and his voice trembled with emotion. As the teacher is unable to express His emotions because of choked throat, he ends the lesson by writing Wive La France’ on the blackboard. He makes a gesture with his hand to indicate that the school is dismissed and students can go home.

Q5. What impression do you form ofM. Hamel on the basis of your study of the story ‘The Last Lesson’?Ans: M. Hamel is an experienced teacher who has been teaching in that village school for forty years. He imparts primary education in all subjects. He is a hard task master and students like Franz, who are not good learners, are in great dread of being scolded by him.The latest order of the Prussian conquerors upsets him. He has to leave the place for ever and feels heart broken. He feels sad but exercises self-control. He has the courage to hear every lesson to the last.His performance during the last lesson is exemplary. He is kind even to a late comer like Franz. He uses a solemn and gentle tone while addressing the students. He has a logical mind and can analyse problems and deduce the reasons responsible for it. The problem for Alsace is that he (the district) puts off learning till tomorrow.He knows the emotional hold of a language over its users. He is a good communicator and explains everything patiently. Partings are painful and being human, M. Hamel too is no exception. He fails to say goodbye as his throat is choked. On the whole, he is a patriotic gentleman.

VALUE-BASED QUESTIONSQ1. War causes destruction and spreads hatred. People feel insecure. Discuss the disadvan¬tages of war keeping in mind Franco-Prussian war (1870-71).Ans: War is a great threat to mankind. Fear, anxiety, tension and hatred are some of the offsprings of war. No individual is in favour of this brutal act. Innocent people lose their life because of the vested interests of some of the corrupt politicians. Moreover, war is not the solution to any problem. It only increases the hiatus between two nations. The desire to overpower the other disseminates hatred and the feelings of enmity. The aftermaths of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are evident before us. It should also be remembered that each nation is trying its level best to become a nuclear power. A nuclear bomb has the power to devastate nations. Thousands of people will lose their lives. There will not be any survivor. If someone is left alive, he/she will be crippled. There is no doubt that war has put the human existence at stake. We have heard seers say that one should shed one’s ego. The nations should also feel equally important. No nation is self-sufficient. Peace enhances creativity and productivity. The concept of a global village should be followed by all countries. Thus, war does not benefit any individual. It must not be encouraged.

Q2. It is often said that each language is unique in itself. No language is superior or inferior. People need to understand that a language is one of the means of communication. Discuss this statement in the light of the following lines:“My children, this is the last lesson I shall give you. The order has come from Berlin to teach only German in schools of Alsace and Lorraine. The new master comes tomorrow. This is your last French lesson…”Ans: Language is always considered a medium of communication. Man is a gregarious animal. He has to interact with the fellow human beings. Therefore, a set of complex symbols is designed to serve this purpose. We must ruminate over the past before discussing the status of a language. There are innumerable man made problems. At the dawn of civilisation there was no discrimination on the basis of caste, colour, creed, language and nationality. But in this century these problems exist. Nature does not segregate nations. Scientific advancement, material prosperity, lofty aspirations, materialistic attitude, a desire to rule the world and vested interests are some of the causes of human sufferings. The concepts of all languages are similar. They have nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions and conjunctions. As no religion is insignificant in the same way no language is inferior. The characteristics and nature of all languages are similar. The only difference is in symbols and pronunciation. The purpose and objective of all languages are synonymous. There is a dire need to understand that there should be only one religion i.e. humanity and there should be only one language i.e. the language of love. A language must not become the cause of rift among masses. It should bring people together instead of spreading hatred. One should not despise others because of their language. It is against human dignity and grace.

Q3. The people of Alsace and Lorraine were forced to study German. They were not allowed to study French. It implies that students of the area were taught only one language. They did not follow the concept of three languages at school. Write an article on the topic Advantages of Three Language System at school.Ans: Advantages of Three Language SystemIndia is a democratic stater. It is replete with people who have diverse backgrounds, and culture. Their customs and traditions vary. Their languages are also different. The language of a South Indian is entirely different from that of the North Indians. People have their regional languages and dialects too. In such circumstances it becomes a herculean task to decide which language should be taught at schools. So, India opted for three language system at schools. It is a boon to the residents of a particular area. They do not feel that their language is insignificant and ignored. They are given ample opportunities to opt for the languages they intend to speak or learn. Pupils get fundamental knowledge of three languages and can appreciate the literature of all these three languages. Such students never face failure due to language barriers. They bring laurels to their parents and nations as well. They explore new avenues and horizons with an astonishing ease. Three language system must be adopted by all nations so as to acquaint the children with various language patterns. The people of Alsace and Lorraine could be taught both languages i.e. German and French. Linguistic discrimination mars the future of humanity.

Q4. Nature has the knack to fascinate even the cynics. Its beauty and spontaneous music galvanise the beings. Write an article expressing the astounding beauty of nature in the light of the following lines:“It was so warm, so bright! The birds were chirping at the edge of the woods… It was all much more tempting than the rule for participles…”Ans. Our touch with nature makes the whole world kin. Matthew Arnold has rightly said that:

“Nature, with equal mind,sees all her sons at play,sees man control the wind,the wind sweep man away.”

Nature’s working is mysterious. It is an astonishingly fabricated universe. Man has, undoubtedly, progressed a lot. Scientific advancement has explored the portals of every field. The hidden realities have been exposed. But science has not unearthed the mysterious traits of nature. It is also an acceptable fact that nature gives happiness to weary minds. It soothes and consoles the troubled souls. It banishes anxiety, tension, worry, fear and dejection. Its law is to please every beholder. The aesthetic pleasure we derive from Nature is incredible and cannot be expressed in words. Keats has rightly averred that ‘A thing of beauty is a joy forever!’ Lord Byron has said:

“There is a pleasure in the pathless wood,there is a rapture on the lonely shore,there is a society where none intrudes, ‘By the deep sea, and music in its roar:I love not man the less but nature more.”

Nature is our mother. It must be obeyed. It gives us moral lessons. All the seers and intellectuals have understood the significance of nature. “Nature goes on her own way, and all that to us seems an exception is really according to order.” It fascinates those who are indifferent to life. The boring scientific explorations and linguistic principles make our life insignificant. We are becoming devoid of emotions. But nature evokes sentiments and help us to become sensitive.

Q5. Teachers can act as trailblazers in the lives of pupils. They can affect eternity. But the advancement of technology has changed the role of a teacher. Write an article on the para¬digm shift in educational technology and the role of teachers.Ans: Technology and TeachersIt goes without saying that teachers shape the destiny of children. They mould them according to their inbred potential and considerable talent. Dronacharya taught his pupils together. But he could not make everyone so skilled in using the bow and arrow as Aijuna. He identified his latent talent and tapped the same potential. In modem education system teachers don’t have much time to study the child. Children stay in the school campus for six hours a day and study various subjects from teachers. At times it happens that the subject teachers do not remember the names of students. They use PITs, projectors and computers to make their lectures interesting. They lack any kind of emotional attachment with the pupils. It has happened because of the innovative educational tools and aids. Teachers are given softwares to teach students. The teaching community has made students information seekers. The role of a teacher has undergone a sea change. A teacher has become a facilitator. He has no right to scold and punish the child. The dictum ‘spare the rod, spoil the child’ has become obsolete and outdated. A teacher has to understand the psychology of a child in a period of thirty minutes. The role of a teacher is a mystery in today’s era.

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However, the Bahujan Samaj Party chief's tweet came hours after a Ghaziabad-based journalist, who was shot in the head by some assailants, succumbed to injuries early Wednesday. पूरे यूपी में हत्या व महिला असुरक्षा सहित जिस तरह से हर प्रकार के गंभीर अपराधों की बाढ़ लगातार जारी है उससे स्पष्ट है कि यूपी में कानून का नहीं बल्कि जंगलराज चल रहा है अर्थात् यूपी में कोरोना वायरस से ज्यादा अपराधियों का क्राइम वायरस हावी है। जनता त्रस्त है। सरकार इस ओर ध्यान दे। — Mayawati (@Mayawati) July 22, 2020 11:04 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak in Jharkhand LATEST Updates Mother, five sons die of coronavirus in Jharkhand According to media reports, six members of a family have died due to COVID-19 in Katras in Jharkhand's Dhanbad district. The deceased include an 88-year-old woman and her five sons who died between 4 to 20 July. Now, the lady is survived by her only son who stays in Delhi. The 88-year old lady, had come to Dhanbad to attend the marriage of her grand-son on June 27. She was admitted to a private hospital in Bokaro after she fell ill and died after her condition deteriorated further on 4 July, reports New Indian Express. She tested positive after her sons performed the last rites following all customs and traditions. Soon, all the five brothers (falling in the age group of 60-70 years), who had taken part in her last rites, too succumbed to the deadly virus one after another. 10:58 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak in India LATEST Updates India tests over 3.4 lakh samples yesterday India tested 3,43,243 samples on Tuesday, says the Indian Council of Medical Research. The total number of samples tested up to 21 July is 1,47,24, 546. 10:41 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak in India LATEST Updates India's COVID-19 recovery rate now at 63.1% India’s COVID-19 recovery rate now stands at 63.1 percent. The reported active COVID-19 cases in India now stand at 4,11,133 with as many as 7,53,049 COVID-19 patients have been cured and discharged so far. 10:21 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak in India LATEST Updates Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu remain worst-hit With 3,27,031 confirmed cases of COVID-19 so far, Maharashtra remains the worst-affected state in the country, followed by Tamil Nadu (1,80,643) and Delhi (1,25,096). 10:17 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak in Maharashtra LATEST Updates Mumbai COVID-19 situation 'in control': BMC official The COVID-19 situation "is in control" in Mumbai with the number of positive cases daily being reported below 1,500, a senior official of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has said. Everyday, 6,000 to 7,000 tests are being done and most of the citizens are following the safety protocols, additional municipal commissioner Suresh Kakani told PTI. The city has been daily reporting less than 1,500 COVID-19 cases since the last many days. 10:09 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak in Goa LATEST Updates New academic session in Goa likely from September The Goa education department is expecting to start the new academic session from September this year, state education director Santosh Amonkar has said. The annual academic session in Goa begins in the first week of June, but it has been delayed this year due to the outbreak of COVID-19. The state education department was earlier hoping to start the 2020-21 academic year by 15 August. 09:49 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak in India LATEST Updates India reports over 37,000 new cases, takes total to 11.9 lakh cases India registers 37,724 new cases, taking its total count to 11,92,915. The toll increases by 648 to 28,732. The total COVID19 positive cases stand at 11,92,915 including 4,11,133 active cases, 7,53,050 cured/discharged/migrated and 28,732 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. 09:02 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak in Delhi LATEST Updates Delhi airport announces 7-day paid institutional quarantine for international passengers In view of the ongoing COVID-19 scenario, all passengers arriving by international flights at the Delhi Airport will have to undergo seven days of institutional quarantine at their own cost, followed by one-week of home quarantine, reports ANI. As per the latest guidelines issued by the airport authority, all international passengers will have to sign an undertaking that they accept this obligation (of seven days paid institutional quarantine), which will be retained by the overseas mission/embassy before the booking is confirmed. Read full report here 08:04 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak in Kerala LATEST Updates Kerala CM accuses Opposition of trying to sabotage govt's mitigation methods Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan accuses Opposition parties of trying to sabotage the government’s mitigation methods, reports PTI. “They called for protest violating COVID-19 protocol,” he said. “The damage it causes will not only affect them but the whole state. They have always taken a negative approach and said there was no need for following the instructions given by the state and the health workers.” 07:59 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak LATEST Updates Global COVID-19 cases now at 1.48 crore, toll at 6.1 lakh The total confirmed cases of COVID-19 across the world stand at 1.48 crore, according to the Reuters tracker. This figure includes COVID-19 patients who have recovered and the overall global death toll which stands at 6.1 lakh. With over 38.5 lakh reported cases till date, the United States is the worst-affected country in the world. The US is followed by Brazil, India, Russia and South Africa. 07:51 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak in Brazil LATEST Updates New coronavirus vaccine trials start in Brazil Brazilian health authorities on Tuesday were starting a three-month test of a coronavirus vaccine produced by Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac one of a handful around the world that are entering late-stage testing to prove effectiveness, reports AP. Dimas Covas, president of the Butantan Institute coordinating the study, said at a press conference that if the vaccine proves safe and effective, Brazil would receive 120 million doses from China at the beginning of next year, which will allow 30 million Brazilians to be vaccinated. 07:43 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak in Assam LATEST Updates Assam reports highest single-day spike in cases with over 1,600 new infections Assam recorded the highest single-day spike of 1,680 COVID-19 cases on Tuesday as the state crossed the 26,000 mark, Minister for Health and Family Welfare Himanta Biswa Sarma said. The state also saw six more deaths due to the infection, he said. The total number of coronavirus cases in the state reached 26,772, while the death toll increased to 64. 07:39 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak in Bihar LATEST Updates Bihar BJP MLC Sunil Kumar Singh, 66, dies of COVID-19 Bihar BJP MLC Sunil Kumar Singh died of the coronavirus at AIIMS on Tuesday, an official said. Singh was 66. He is survived by two sons, a daughter, and wife. He is the first lawmaker in the state to die of COVID-19. Singh, who was BJP MLC from local self area constituency from Darbhanga, was undergoing treatment at the hospital since July 13 after he tested positive for COVID-19, reports PTI. 07:36 (IST) Coronavirus Outbreak in US LATEST Updates US leading the world in COVID-19 testing, India second: Trump The United States is leading the world in terms of COVID-19 testing and India is at second position, President Donald Trump said while giving an update on his administration's response to the coronavirus pandemic. So far more than 140,000 Americans have died due to coronavirus and 3.8 million have tested positive. While the US economy is slowly coming back to normal, the pandemic is now spreading in the Sun Belt of the country. Coronavirus LATEST Updates: Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday said a complete lockdown could be imposed in the state again as over 1,000 new cases of coronavirus were reported for the first time on Wednesday. "We had previously implemented a complete lockdown in the state. We are aware of such viewpoints (complete lockdown).Although it has not been decided yet, I think we will have to consider it," he said. The Manipur government will impose a "complete" lockdown in the state for 14 days, starting from 2 pm on Thursday, ANI reported. Himachal Pradesh chief minister Jai Ram Thakur on Wednesday said he was going into self-quarantine after a deputy secretary in his office tested positive for coronavirus on Wednesday, PTI reported. The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Wednesday imposed a six-day lockdown across the Kashmir Valley, "except for Bandipore district, to stem the spread of COVID-19", The Indian Express reported. "The lockdown, which comes into effect on Wednesday evening, will be reviewed after six days, they said. There were 502 fresh cases in the Valley on Wednesday. The number of cases in Jammu and Kashmir has risen to 15,258, according to Union Health Ministry figures," the report said. The Delhi government has decided to conduct sero-surveillance every month, said Satyendar Jain on Wednesday, adding it will be done from first day of the month till 5th of every month. "Preparations on to start the exercise from next month. The survey conducted by NCDC and Delhi government revealed 23.48 percent COVID-19 infection," said Jain. At least 205 people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Pune district in single day. The COVID-19 toll has climbed to 1,442. India registers 37,724 new cases, taking its total count to 11,92,915. The toll increases by 648 to 28,732. Bihar BJP MLC Sunil Kumar Singh died of the coronavirus at AIIMS on Tuesday, an official said. Singh was 66. He is survived by two sons, a daughter, and wife. He is the first lawmaker in the state to die of COVID-19. India recorded 37,148 COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, pushing its tally to 11,55,191 , while the total number of recoveries increased to 7,24,577, according to the Union health ministry's data issued at 8 am on Tuesday. The toll due to the disease rose to 28,084 with 587 fatalities reported in a day, the data showed. Of the total cases, based on the health ministry's figures, Maharashtra, the worst-affected state by the pandemic, alone accounts for nearly 27.5 percent, followed by Tamil Nadu (15 percent) and Delhi (10.7 percent) cases. These three states together account for more than half of India's total case load. On Tuesday, Maharashtra's COVID-19 tally rose to 3,27,031 with the addition of 8,369 new cases, while 246 more patients succumbed, taking the fatality count in the state to 12,276, health department said. Whereas in Tamil Nadu, 4,965 people tested positive on Friday, taking the infection count past the 1.80 lakh. Tamil Nadu on crossed 20 lakh in samples screened so far. The state recorded 75 fresh COVID-19 deaths, including that of a 56-day old boy, during the day, taking the toll to 2,626, a health department bulletin said. The state has 51,344 active cases out of the total 1,80,643. Delhi recorded 1,349 fresh COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, taking the caseload in the city to over 1.25 lakh, while the death toll mounted to 3,690 after 27 fatalities were recorded, authorities said. The number of active cases stood at 15,288, marginally up from 15,166 on Monday. Amid the rising cases, the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) on Tuesday decided to cancel this year's pilgrimage to the 3,880-metre-high cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas. India's COVID-19 fatality rate, however, has dropped significantly to 2.43 percent from 3.36 percent on 17 June, the Centre said on Tuesday, asserting the country has handled the pandemic "relatively well". There are 4,02,529 active cases of the coronavirus infection currently in the country, while 7,24,577 people have recovered till now. Thus, 62.72 per cent people have recovered so far, the ministry said. In the meantime, the National Green Tribunal Tuesday said that segregation of COVID-19 waste from others is a must to avoid further contamination adversely affecting public health. Nearly a quarter Delhiites affected with COVID-19, finds sero survey Amid the rising cases, the results of a sero-prevalence survey in Delhi showed that 23.48 percent people in the National Capital had developed antibodies for COVID-19 with experts stating that the National Capital is still far from herd immunity against the coronavirus. The survey results also show that remaining 77 percent are still vulnerable and the containment measures need to continue with the same rigour, National Centre for Disease Control director Dr Sujeet Kumar Singh, told a press briefing. Delhi has a population of nearly 2 crore. Eight out of Delhi's 11 districts have more than 20 percent of sero prevalence, Singh said. A senior Delhi government official said the government will consult with public health experts and epidemiologists to determine if the future course of Delhi's strategy against COVID-19 should change in light of these survey results or not. The sero survey was conducted from 27 June to 10 July, during which a total of 21,387 samples were tested by the NCDC in collaboration with the Delhi government. Cases from states Meanwhile, coronavirus cases in Gujarat crossed the 50,000 on Tuesday with a highest one-day spike of 1,026, around 300 of them from Surat district, the health department said. The coronavirus death toll rose to 1,229 in Uttar Pradesh after the state reported 37 fatalities, a statement issued by the state government said on Tuesday. With as many as 2,128 fresh COVID-19 cases, the state's infection tally reached 53,288. Kerala on Tuesday reported 720 fresh cases of COVID-19, taking the number of infected people in the state to 13,994, while 1,62,444 people are under observation in the state. Of the new cases, 528 were infected from their contacts, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said. The state of Madhya Pradesh recorded 785 new COVID-19 caseson Tuesday, taking the state-wide infection count to 24,095, while 18 more patients succumbed to the disease, health department officials said. With 18 more people succumbing to the viral infection on Tuesday, the death toll went up to 756, they said. Of them, four fatalities each were reported from Bhopal and Indore, while one each patient died in Morena, Jabalpur, Sagar, Ratlam, Dhar, Barwani, Datia, Hoshangabad, Jhabua and Guna, the officials said. Among the new cases, the highest 149 cases were reported from Bhopal, followed by 72 in Raisen, 70 in Indore, 62 in Morena and 49 in Gwalior, they said. Jammu and Kashmir saw 608 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, raising the tally in the Union Territory to 15,258 as nine fresh fatalities pushed the death toll to 263, officials said. "Nine persons, who were COVID-19 positive, have died over the past 24 hours in Jammu and Kashmir," they said, adding all the nine deaths took place in the Kashmir Valley. In Goa, COVID-19 cases crossed the 4,000 with the state now having 4,027 positive cases as on Tuesday with 174 new detections, the state Health department said. The COVID-19 tally in Manipur crossed the 2,000-mark, with the detection of 90 new cases on Tuesday, a Health department bulletin said. The coronavirus death toll in Himachal Pradesh increased to 11 after a 75-year-old woman died in Mandi on Tuesday as 33 fresh cases surfaced, taking the state's infection tally to 1,665. Chhattisgarh's COVID-19 count rose to 5,731 on Tuesday with the addition of 133 COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, while the death toll climbed to 29, as the sample of an elderly woman who died earlier tested positive, a health official said. Mumbai, neighbouring districts report 2,627 new cases; 107 die Mumbai's COVID-19 tally rose to 1,03,262 on Tuesday with the addition of 995 new cases, while the toll increased to 5,814 after 62 more patients succumbed to the infection, the city civic body said. In enighbouring Thane district, an addition of 1,323 cases took COVID-19 count to 70,513, while the toll swelled by 40 during the day to touch 1,967, an official said. Kalyan led the list of new cases with 268 people testing positive, followed by 254 in Navi Mumbai, he said. "Thane and Kalyan now have over 16,000 cases each while Navi Mumbai is fast approaching the 12,000 mark. Of the 70,513 cases, 33.28 percent is active," he added. Among those who died was a 52-year-old constable from Hill Line police station under Thane commissionerate, he said. Neighbouring Palghar added 309 cases during the day to take its count to 12,382 while five deaths increased the toll to 223. India doing relatively well, says Centre Amid the rising cases, Rajesh Bhushan, officer on special duty in the Union health ministry, told a press conference in Delhi, that 30 states and Union Territories have COVID-19 positivity rate lower than that of the national average which stands at 8.07 percent. According to PTI, stating that some states are doing more than 140 tests per million, Bhushan, said that the number of tests per million have to be brought down to a level of 140 tests per day per million, so that the "rate of positivity reduces and comes down to 10 percent first and then continue the testing process so that the rate of positivity further reduces to 5 percent or lower". The health ministry official also said that the COVID-19 deaths per million population in India stand at 20.4 per million which is amongst lowest in the world, Bhushan said. "There are several countries where the deaths per million is 21 times or 33 times higher than in India. The global average stands at 77 deaths per million population," he said. "So far, the nation has managed COVID-19 relatively well," Bhushan said. He also shared a chart showing that the COVID-19 case fatality rate has declined from 3.36 percent on 17 June to 2.43 percent now. Punjab's first plasma bank opens at Patiala Punjab on Tuesday got its first plasma bank at Patiala's Rajindra Hospital where those who have recovered from the novel coronavirus can donate their blood plasma to help treat COVID-19 patients. State's Medical Education and Research Minister OP Soni inaugurated the facility through video conference and said it will play a vital role in the fight against the pandemic. Multiple trials of plasma therapy have been successfully conducted in the state that paved the way for the establishment of the plasma bank, he said. Karnataka won't extend lockdown, to regulate supply of Remdesivir Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa also said that it will not be extending lockdown in Benglauru and other areas of the state, saying that "lockdown" is not the solution to control COVID-19 and stressed on social distancing and wearing of masks. "We had been successful at the beginning in controlling the COVID, but in recent days especially in Bengaluru the COVID cases have increased.....I want to tell the people of the state that for the control of the virus, lockdown was not the solution. The solution is wearing masks and maintaining social distancing," Yediyurappa said. In the meanwhile, amid reports of black marketing and haording of Remdesivir, a drug used in the treatment of coronavirus infected patients, Karnataka's COVID-19 task force on Tuesday decided that the state government will regulate its supply to private hospitals. "Remdesivir which is currently available in the government hospitals will be supplied to private hospitals through the government. This will help curb black marketing of this drug," Medical Education Minister K Sudhakar's office said in a release. The government has also fixed the rate for COVID-19 tests in private labs at Rs 2,000 for government referred cases and 3,000 for self-reporting cases. Meanwhile, the West Bengal govt said Tuesday that there will be a complete lockdown in the state on 23, 25 and 29 July to fight the spread of COVID-19. US accuses Chinese hackers in targeting of COVID-19 research Days after authorities in the US, Canada and the United Kingdom accused a hacking group with links to Russian intelligence with trying to target research on the disease, the US Justice Department on Tuesday accused two Chinese hackers of stealing hundreds of millions of dollars of trade secrets from companies across the world and more recently targeting firms developing a vaccine for the coronavirus. The indictment, says the hackers in recent months had researched vulnerabilities in the computer networks of companies publicly known for their work in developing vaccines and treatments, AP reported. However, there was no immediate indication that the hackers had successfully obtained any COVID-19 research, despite efforts to snoop on the companies. With inputs from agencies

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