Megalithic Tribal Culture in Kishtwar District, Jammu Region: A Preliminary Investigation

Megaliths are structures that are made up of huge stone and are presumed to have some superstitious, ritual and religious end meaning. They are found in the entire stretch of the country. The term Megalith is derived from a Greek word Megas which means huge or big and Lithos means stone. Thus, megaliths are different types of structures that are made up of large and roughly dressed slabs of stone. Some of them are made up of only a single stone while others have more than one. The construction of these structures reflects the belief system of those people who constructed them

Governmentality, Patriarchy and Feminist movements in the Capitalist State: A Foucauldian Analysis

We live in a world of change. Feminist discourse over the past few decades has uncovered significant new avenues and directions of analysis, using methods and ideas of thinkers that we normally would not have thought, to fit in the discourse before. The richness and variety of feminisms is impressive but at most times, overwhelming. Foucault has been one such thinker, whose ideas have been at the center of feminist arguments. Recent discussions on Foucault and his position vis-à-vis feminism have yielded two major camps of thinkers; a camp which sees Foucault and his theories as incongruent with feminist thought and the other, which perceives that the Foucauldian discourse is compatible with feminist theory. Such a plethora of varying responses to Foucault from the feminists might be due to the fact he was a transdisciplinary figure; engaged in a number of disciplines, interpreted and misinterpreted competently by countless schools and disciplines. The idea of "disciplinary power" is one of the most explored Foucauldian conceptions and recent developments have highlighted the application of the concept in feminist discourse as well

Research Notes : Covid-19 and the Long-term Environmental Health Implications for India

Corona virus popularly known as Covid-19 has taught several lessons to mankind. One of the important positive impacts of Covid-19 is considered to be the positive contribution to the environmental parameters like GHG, Air Pollution, and reduction in BOD in water courses particularly the much-polluted Ganga etc. Therefore, it is necessary to link the Covid-19 responses from economic activities and their impact on health and environment of people. The OECD has published a policy response to Covid-19 in May 2021 and projected its impact on the structure of the economy beyond 2025. It has conducted a study to project the impact on various sectors. The following Figure from the Report indicates that service sector particularly construction and accommodation will be different in the future compared to its pre-covid levels. What is important for environment and health of the people is that it is going to affect adversely more in India than in the OECD countries. Though India has done reasonably well in the propagation of vaccines as we have an advantage of two patents registered by Indian innovators, the death toll seems to be not reckoned with the spread of vaccines

Environmental and Non-Conventional Security Threat in South Asia: A Study

India is the seventh largest country in the world with an area of 32,87,2631 sq km. The country comprises plains, mountains and seas which give India a unique geographical entity in South Asia. Since the ancient times India has been a place of cultural and religious ethos having holistic approach with nature and environment. During colonization, natural resources and bio-diversity was destroyed largely to meet the needs of growing industrialization. India is an agrarian country and feeds 17% of the world population, majority of which depend on the natural resources to meet their needs and livelihood. India is also among the first ten industrial countries in the world and one of the fastest growing economies. Thus, India's environmental problems and vulnerabilities are shaped and caused by rapid growth of industrialization, urbanization, population, poverty, transportation etc. The environmental problems are challenges and threats that affect the wellbeing and survival of people often referred as non-traditional security threat. South Asia's prominent non-traditional security concerns are climate change, environmental degradation; water, energy and food securit

Relationship Between Gross Happiness Indices and Socioeconomic Diversity: A Case Study of Visakhapatnam District of Andhra Pradesh

The first World Happiness Report was published in 2012 and also the United Nations General Assembly declared 20th March as the 'International Day of Happiness'. As per the World Happiness Report (2021), India is observed to be placed at 139th place out of 149 countries and Finland securing the first place is noticed to be the happiest country. Moreover, Indian rank has been observed to slip down continuously from 111 in 2013 to 133 in 2018, 140 in 2019 and 144 in 2020.It is pertinent to note that our neighbour countries are well ahead in the happiness rankings compared to India, where in China stood at 82rd rank, Nepal at 85th, Bangladesh at 99th and Pakistan at 103rd and Sri Lanka at 126th rank. For the first time the Happiness Report of India (Rajesh K Pillania, 2020)was published during the September 2020 and according to it among the big states Punjab, Gujarat and Telangana are at the top three whereas Odisha, Uttarakhand and Chhattisgarh are at the bottom three. Among the South Indian states, Puducherry, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh are the top three in happiness rankings. However, Andhra Pradesh raked as 5th state among the big states

Ethnic Diversity and Nationahood in Pakistan : A Study

The history of Pakistan as a nation indicates that it was formed on the singular ideology of 'Islam as a state religion. However, the 'Two-Nation' theory, on which Pakistan demanded a separate statehood, proved futile after the 1971 bifurcation of the 'Islamic state' into two independent states. It appears that other factors other than religion have played an important role in the formation of Pakistan as a nation.So, instead of looking at Pakistan through the prism of religion alone, the rise of ethnic movements of various groups' calls for a different approach. Since its inception, Pakistan has witnessed numerous turbulent events, many of which were driven by ethnic conflicts. The parting of the eastern wing of Pakistan in 1971, the upsurge in the interior of Sindh, repeated resistance movements in Balochistan, the unsettled grievances of Pashtuns, and the highly discontented Muhajirs, underline the explosive nature of Pakistan's ethnic problems and the failure on the part of the state to come in terms with the ethnic diversity of the country. As the understanding of any problem precedes the solutions, it becomes crucial to have a deep analysis of the ethnic problems of Pakistan. The sustenance of the multi-ethnic culture weaving it with the concept of the nation-state is vital for its survival

Interrelationship between Rainfall Index and Leading Stock Market Index: An Empirical Study

The Indian Nifty is one of the major financial indicators showing daily economic changes in the share market. The Nifty is affected by many factors, including rainfall. Rainfall variability is one of the systemic risks for the Indian economy. India is the only country that experiences all of the world's weather variations, and rainfall has a significant impact on the economy. India is still a developing country and it depends on the monsoon for economic development. The equity market is one of the leading economic indicators and it should be influenced by the monsoon in India. The Efficient Market Hypothesis is one of the modern investment theories, and it states that prices of stocks quickly adjust to all the available information. Rainfall is one of the weather factors that show revenue direction for the rainfall dependent industries. Normal rainfall increases farmers' purchasing power and improves trade balances by increasing exports and decreasing imports. The deficit rainfall results in higher prices of goods and it leads to higher inflation. Higher inflation adversely affects the economic development of a country. According to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), total quantum rainfall of less than 90% of the Long Period Average (LPA) indicates drought; 90% to 96% of the LPA indicates normal rainfall; 104% to 110% of the LPA indicates above normal rainfall; and more than 110% of the LPA indicates excess rainfall

Understanding Environmentalism as Politics in India

The concept of environmentalism reflects worry over the degradation of the natural world as a result of economic progress. The concept of environmentalism arose from concerns about the deterioration of human existence, a crisis in the human species' survival economy, and the potential dangers of the organic and inorganic environment. Environmentalists in the West have their roots in ecological or green movements, as well as the revolution against industrialism. The main principle of ecology was introduced by Thomas Robert Malthus, who proposed that population expands in a geometrical proportion while food supply grows in an arithmetic proportion (Ramaswamy, 2004, 428). Environmentalism is commonly connected with the birth of the green or ecological movement in the late twentieth century (Heywood, 2007, 64); nevertheless, its roots can be found in the nineteenth-century uprising against industrialism. Environmentalism emerges from social movements, which aim to influence the political process in order to save natural resources and the entire ecosystem. Because the philosophy stresses human needs and their satisfaction, environmentalism supports 'shallow ecology.' Environmentalists are concerned with the long-term viability and conservation of natural resources for human needs