Oh Goddess

On my way to office, I was listening to a radio channel. The anchor mentioned one village near Jaisalmer (Indo-Pak border) where only one girl was married in the last 110 years. Surprised or shocked? Yes, this village does not have girls for nearly a century now. I did not know how to react -- to be amazed, shocked or just forget about the entire issue.
Now I don't think I need to mention where all the girls of that village have gone, female feoticide - of course. The term by now is quite common in this country, but surprisingly nothing much is been done about it. Ironically this country calls itself Bharat Mata and prays Goddesses like Durga, Kali, Saraswati, Laxmi, Shitla, Vaishno Devi and so many. Ironically this country also witnesses maximum female feoticides.
Now why do people kill girls in womb and why do mothers accept to be the part of the heinous crime? Perhaps it is the easiest way to evade problems like dowry system which has prevailed for more than 2-3 centuries. There are laws to curb the menace but most cases go unreported and are considered part of the marital ritual and no body does anything about it. Dowry is not just prevalent in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Gurjarat, but is also witnessed in southern parts of the country as well. Indian society is still male dominated and 'most' parents' joy is doubled if they are blessed with a son rather a daughter. When will we understand that dowry cannot ensure the happiness of daughters? They need to be self-reliant and educated so that they collectively fight the menance and are not considered to be a problem themselves. A lot has been and could be written on problems related to dowry.
I know some of my relatives who celebrated the birth of their sons in a big way, it looked as if it was the biggest achievement to father a kid, but after knowing that a few of would-be mothers underwent pre-natal check ups and aborted suspected girl child, I felt so disgusted that I stopped visiting them and ensured there is no communication with these people ever. Had I known their devious plans, then they would have faced my wrath much earlier.

A few days ago I read a message in front of a government hospital: "Punishment for female feoticide is Rs.50,000 to Rs.1,00,000 if caught". I was surprised by the last two words; I have never understood why nothing is been done to change the mindset. The two points agenda came to my mind which I feel our parliamentarians should consider:-
1. Make it compulsory under a law to have all marriages without any dowry. If parents are willing to gift the bride, then it should be channelled through a court where it is essential to declare the source of income. This will deter exchange of black money and also the beneficiary party can be brought to books if they are demanding. In addition, this will also ensure that all marriages are registered.
2. The other steps which government is taking are welcome moves but needs to be aggressively pursued. The scheme like free education to all girl child till 12th standard should be compulsory including other partial expenses like books and school uniforms. These strategies will motivate parents, instilling confidence in them to send their daughters to get empowered.

Female feoticide is not only a rural phenomenon, most affluent parts of the country like Delhi, Punjab witnesses its maximum crime. An uneducated person may still have an excuse of being prejudiced but what about a literate individual like you and me? How does one explain then? Is it greed to encash a son's education and upbriging by demanding an astronomical dowry?
There is also an urgent need to punish doctors who carry out pre-natal tests and particpate in this crime. Women reservation bill is a step towards women empowerment and I strongly feel we see more women parliamentarians soon. Women leaders are looked up by many in the fairer sex as their ideals -- boosting confidence and zeal to make a mark of their own. We need many more names to go along with Sarojini Naidu, Indira Gandhi, Kalpana Chawla and Mother Teresa. We ceratinly do.
Female feoticide has plagued the coutnry. It's a disease that we have lived with for a bit too long. It's more deadly than any swine flu or SARS as it rules our mind but we have to eradicate it - wipe it off the Indian face with venegence and not let the devil rule any more. Let the country awake and welcome the real Goddess, not the idol but one which takes birth in a womb and awaits to see the light of the day!

माया की माया ...

कई दिनों से एक ख़बर मीडिया में सुर्खियों में रहती है, फिर कहीं न कहीं दब कर रह जाती है, आज सुबह अखबार के पन्ने पलटते हुए मैंने असमान की तरफ़ देखा। बादलों की पतली लकीर सूरज की तेज़ किरणों को छुपाने की कोशिश कर रही थी। मैंने न जाने क्यों पर, ऊपर वाले से मन ही मन थोडी बारिश की प्रार्थना कर बैठा। शायद मैं उस धुप को बर्दाश्त नहीं कर पा रहा था, पर उन किसानो का क्या जो रोज़ इस आस में सोते हैं की कल बारिश होगी तोह कहती की गाड़ी आगे बढेगी। झूठा दिलासा ही है पर फिर भी वोह अपने आप को दिलासा देता जरूर है। आसमान से बारिश ना हो तोह क्या ? शायद इस साल भूखा रहना पड़े, किसी की बिटिया का ब्याह न होगा, किसी पर कर्जे का भार और बढ़ जाएगा, वोह छोटी खुशियाँ जो एक किअसं अपने परिवार के लिए देखता है, वोह उनसे वंचित रह जाएगा, पर इसकी पड़ी किसको है। कृषि प्रधान देश होने पर भी हमारी निर्भरता बारिश पर इतनी ज्यादा है, वोह हम सब जानते हैं, तब तोह खेती होगी ही राम भरोसे। एक तरफ़ तो यह पहलु है और दूसरा पहलु है, मायावती और उनकी माया। प्रदेश सूखे की मार झेल रहा है और माया जी को अपनी मूर्ती बनवाने से फुर्सत नहीं। किसान रोता है तोह रोये, मैं तोह अपने आपको अमर करके इस दुनिया से रुखसत होउंगी। भाई चुना है तोह भुगतो, मुलायम ने भी तोह ऐश की थी, अब मेरी और मेरे हान्थियों की बारी है। ज्यादा हो हल्ला हो तो सीधे केन्द्र की सरकार पर निशाना साधो, केन्द्र अपना पल्ला झड़ने के लिए कुछ करोड़ रुपये दे देता है और फिर वोह पैसे किसे उद्धार में जाते है वोह या तो माया को मालूम है या उसके अय्यियारों को। केन्द्र कुएक अनोखी परियोजना ले कर आ जाता है, सस्ते अनाज, चावल सिर्फ़ ३ रुपये किलो। मीडिया शांत, किसान कुछ बोले तोह सरकार का जवाब होता है चावल सस्ते कर दिए हैं आप लोग सूखे से निपट सकते हो अब। भाई कमाल है, कोई इनसे यह पूछे क्या साल भर केवल चावल खाते हो नेताजी। और यह सस्ते अनाज बाँट कर आप कोई उद्धार नहीं कर रहे हो, बल्कि आप एक इज्ज़तदार किसान को, जोह देश का पेट भरता है, एक भिखारी बना रहे हो, उसे सस्ते की आदत मत डालो, उसे अच्छी आदत डालो, उसे मेहनत करने से मत रोको, उसे उन्नति की राह दिखाओ। कृषि प्रधान इस देश में सिंचाई की सुद्रिड वेवस्था करो, की कुछ दिन बारिश ना हो तोह वोह भिखारी बनने पर मजबूर न हो।

Animal Insticnt

Today I got distrubed with the television images shown on some of the news channels. They were showing bunch of Uttar Pradesh police personels including a Sub Inspector and Inspector beating a small girl of 8 years for a crime of stealing Rs.280. The footage looked horrandous, they were pulling her up and down by hair. The issue which was bothering was not that I have never seen the police thullas beating some one, but beating a small girl of 8 years like a dog in broad day light and people were observing like mute spectators. Forget about the amount stolen and the crime for which they were punshing her, the big question is are we so senseless in judging who is the real criminal. It clearly shows the frustration of these policemen who don't even understand the human society forget about protecting them. The criminal and crime graph is going up every day in UP, they do not dare touch the hard core criminals and justifying there duty by these animal behaviour or I can say even animals don't harm sibblings. In an advertisement published today there was this page full of promises made by our Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and UPA Chairperson Ms. Sonia Gandhi of better childhood by providing better amenities to the children below 14 yrs. They should be happy to see the ad in the morning paper, but how do they react to the incident shown in the TV footage. I felt like slapping those bastard police men and the SP who was accusing the girl of comitting a crime.