NOV-21-BOUDHIK YOJANA
Nov-07-2021 Samachar Sameeksha: Seven New Defence Companies
In a major reform initiative, the seven state-run defence companies were created after dissolving the over 200-year-old Ordnance Factory Board (OFB). The assets of the OFB including its 41 ordnance factories were transferred to the seven new firms.
The seven new Defence companies are: Munitions India Limited (MIL), Armoured Vehicles Nigam Limited (AVANI), Advanced Weapons and Equipment India Limited (AWE India), Troop Comforts Limited (TCL) (Troop Comfort Items), Yantra India Limited (YIL), India Optel Limited (IOL) and Gliders India Limited (GIL). These companies have commenced business from October 1, 2021.
Describing the decision to convert OFB into seven defence companies as historic, defence minister Rajnath Singh said the move reflects the government's resolve of achieving 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat'. "The objective of this restructuring is to transform ordnance factories into productive, and profitable assets; improve expertise in product range; increase competitiveness; improve quality; enhance cost-efficiency and ensure self-reliance in defence preparedness," he said.
The minister hoped that these new companies would not only play an important role in the defence manufacturing ecosystem but would also be engines of growth for the Indian economy.
Nov 14-2021 Boudhik: Acharya Dharampal and his Impact
Acharya Dharampal was born in 1922 in Muzaffarnagar. He was deeply influenced by Gandhiji and remained a devout Gandhian throughout his life. In the 1940s, he left his studies (BSc physics) halfway to join the Quit India Movement. He got involved in underground activities of the All-India Congress Committee (AICC) directorate. He worked with freedom fighters like Sucheta Kripalani, Girdhari Kripalani, Swami Anand and many more.
He was the co-founder of the Indian Cooperative Union (ICU). In November 1948, he left for Israel via Britain and while in Britain, he enrolled himself as an occasional student at the London School of Economics.
He married Phyllis Ellen, a British lady, and returned to India after visiting Israel. In the next few years, he travelled between India and England and was actively involved in various activities in association with Meerabehn and then with Jayaprakash Narayan.
For the next two decades, Dharampal spent a lot of time studying the British records and other archival sources in an attempt to understand India and to further what Gandhi understood as the core of Indian society.
Works
He was a philosopher but not an armchair one. Throughout his life he studied different civilizations and their rise and fall. It was but natural that he would study his own and gave a refreshing perspective to it.
In1962, he first published, Panchayat Raj as the Basis of Indian Polity: An Exploration into the Proceedings of the Constituent Assembly. It presented extracts from the Constituent Assembly debates on the place of Panchayat Raj in the constitutional polity of independent India.
This debate ultimately led to the mention of Panchayat Raj in the non-enforceable Directive Principles in the Part IV of the Constitution. Through this work one can see how in the making of the Constitution of India, the individual is at the centre as opposed to the villages that Gandhiji was envisaging.
A large number of thinkers were unhappy about this development. Many have argued that this goes against the Indian notion of polity.
Civil Disobedience and Indian Tradition (1971) is the second of Dharampal’s books based on the materials collected in the course of his extensive study in the British archives. It presents documents of an intense civil disobedience struggle that raged in Benaras and several cities of Bihar for nearly two years – between 1810 and1811 against the imposition of a new house tax by the British administration. Indians found the tax to be new and hitherto unheard imposition, which went against the understanding of house amongst Indians, and therefore obnoxious.
The book anchored the Civil Disobedience of Mahatma Gandhi in an older and vibrant tradition. In this work, Dharampal could not only show that civil disobedience has a long history in Indian traditions, but also that Gandhi had an insight about the Indians and their ways of responding to a situation.
Indian Science and Technology in the Eighteenth Century (1971) compiles several articles by early British officers, scholars and observers about the Indian sciences of astronomy, mathematics and the Indian technological practices in metallurgy, agriculture, architecture and medicine etc.
The book created a new appreciation of the sophistication and efficacy of Indian sciences and technologies before the coming of the British. This work clearly shows what the nature of scientific traditions in India was and how advanced they were. It questions today’s notions about Indian traditions.
Magnum Opus
The Beautiful Tree: Indigenous Indian Education in the Eighteenth Century (1983), his magnum opus, is again based on the materials collected from the British archives. It compiles documents of a survey of indigenous education ordered by Thomas Munro, Governor of Madras, in 1822.
The details of the indigenous schools and institutions of higher learning sent by the collectors of 21 districts of the extensive Madras Presidency, offers a fascinating picture of the extent, inclusiveness and sophistication of the then prevailing system of education in India. It also includes extracts from the reports of W Adam (1835-38) and G W Leitner (1882) about indigenous education in Bengal and Punjab, respectively.
This work debunks a myth that India was in darkness and a large number of people in India were denied access to education. This work shows that the public education at the elementary as well as higher levels was widespread in all parts of India until the British started uprooting it and replacing it with their education system.
This work shows that Indian system of education covered all sections of society and all castes. What is considered the low and Scheduled Castes today had a significant share in the system, both as students and as teachers.
Bharatiya Chitta, Manas and Kala (1993) is considered one of the most significant work of Dharampal. In this small, but seminal work, he reflects on the peculiarities of the Indian consciousness, the Indian sense of time and on the essence of being an Indian. The book thus lays down the broader perspective from which his corpus needs to be read.
He was one of the very few great scholars who really took Mahatma Gandhi seriously. He was instrumental in setting up the Patriotic and People-Oriented Science and Technology (PPST) movement from Chennai which led to the exploration of Indian science and technology.
He delivered lectures and travelled extensively throughout India during the years 1982 to 2004. He was also actively involved in the 1975-77 anti-Emergency campaign, first from London and then from Patna. Some of the positions he took were uncomfortable to a lot of scholars, including his stance on Babri Masjid demolition as a new beginning in Indian politics.
Throughout his life he was a committed
Gandhian who built scholarship to reflect on what India is and how Indian
culture functions. He died in 2006 at Sevagram Ashram at the age of 84.
In his birth centenary year lets remember him by studying his works and really
understand the way Bharat works.
Nov 21-2021 Charcha: The Technique that Succeeds-Right Approach
Ø The concept of total national reorganization that Sangh has been striving to bring into reality implies the non-political nature of its work. After all a political party can represent a small fraction of people.
Ø Devoid of living faith in a single national entity and of supreme consciousness of national interest political parties have become breeding centers of disruptive forces and fissiparous tendencies
Ø The democratic institutions will only work when the people are firmly rooted in the consciousness of ‘nation above party’. In Western countries the political pulls are subservient to the higher call of national welfare
Ø Even during Two World Wars in spite of the immense suffering and misery the people in England had to undergo, no political party tried to make capital out of that situation for its own ends.
Ø So people ask why is there a need for a separate organization like RSS in our country for day to day training. But in England everyone is a born patriot. There is no need to mention that a particular person is a patriot.
Ø See the inspiring tradition of patriotism England has set up and there have hardly been any traitors over the past few centuries. Contrast it with a whole race of traitors from Dahir to Prithviraj and even British times.
Ø With such germs of national disintegration eating into the vitals of our nation it is useless to expect that mere copying of political and other institutions of other countries will solve our problems and bring national rejuvenation. Our malady is far deeper and requires a radical cure.
Ø It is to root out the basic malady that Sangh has evolved the method of day to day training, day to day inculcation of qualities such as sacrifice, discipline and national devotion that go to build a resurgent and unified national life.
Ø Therefore we say let us come together in Shakha daily and regularly. It is common experience that if a particular idea is repeated at a fixed hour regularly it goes deep into our being and becomes an inseparable part of our character. Hence the untiring stress on regularity and punctuality in Sangh.
Ø That is the nature of the mind. Habit is formed by the regular repetition of an idea in thought, speech and action. Here regularity counts much, irregularity destroys the formation of good character.
Ø Psychologists tell us three factors for imprinting samskars- constant meditation on the ideal that is to be formed into a samskara, secondly constant company of persons devoted to the same ideal, finally engaging the body in activities congenial to that ideal
Ø In consonance with ideal of national reorganization the process of daily samskars in spirit of Rashtra devo bhava is carried on in Shakha. Charged with that spirit the small things like games, wielding of lathi, singing, marching etc acquire the potency of instilling deep samskars for an organized and powerful national life.
Ø The bad habits and tendencies that have grown upon us for the past several centuries cannot be washed off in a single day. Therefore the daily imprinting of samskars is an urgent necessity.
Ø The person assembling at shakha learn to obey a single command. Discipline enters their blood. More important than the discipline of body is discipline of mind. They learn to direct their individual emotions and impulses towards the great national cause.
Ø The discipline nurtured in Sangh is spontaneous self restraint of a cultured people. It is this spirit of spontaneous and willing self-restraint and self-sacrifice that marks out a person in Shakha. He is called Swayamsevak
Ø A Swayamsevak is not a mere volunteer but is a missionary with a national vision. Intensely aware that he is to work out the great plan of organizing a nation torn asunder for the past thousand years.
Ø He learns to harmonise and direct his natural impulses, emotions and tendencies so as to become an effective instrument for the task of national reconstruction
Reference: 1) Bunch of Thoughts: The Technique that Succeeds
Nov-28-2021 Katha: Maharana Ranjit Singh
Early Life
Ranjit Singh was born on 13 November 1780 in Sukerchakia clan. His great great grandfather was Budh Singh who was initiated into Sikhism by Guru Gobind Singh. His father Maha Singh was a daring and ambitious ruler who captured areas around Gujranwala (currently Pakistan). Punjab at that time was divided into “misl”. Maha Singh’s daring raised the importance of Sukerchakia misl. He defeated Kanhaya misl in one of the conflicts and the daughter of the ruler was betrothed to his only son Ranjit Singh.
Becoming Ruler
His father passed away when he was 12 years old leaving him in charge of one of the district of Punjab. He got married to princess of Nakkai misl and befriended Ahluwalia misl. This made 3 strong misl of Punjab related or friendly to him increasing his strength.
Punjab has always been the gateway to invaders and situation in 1790s was similar. Afghan rulers i.e grandsons of Abdali looked at Punjab as a part of their kingdom. Shah Zaman i.e grandson of Abdali attacked Punjab in 1796 and looking at his formidable army, all the misl rulers started evacuating their areas. However Ranjit Singh persuaded them to offer a fight for the people whom they had collected taxes in name of protection. This tilted the balance and all Sikh rulers decided to form an alliance under his leadership and fought against Shah Zaman.
Shah Zaman had to return to Afghanistan due to his brother trying to usurp his throne. Meanwhile his generals in Punjab were defeated or killed during this time. Shah again returned to Punjab and had to struggle against Sikh army under Ranjit Singh’s leadership. His army was defeated near Amritsar and Shah’s dreams of capturing Delhi and establishing an empire in Bharat were shattered.
Consolidation
Shah Zaman had to retreat to Afghanistan but Ranjit Singh kept up hot pursuit of Afghans till Attock. He became popular among people for striking the Afghans and even British noticed him as a ‘rising star’. He did not lose time but took back Gujranwala and finally laid siege and captured Lahore fort. He was only eighteen years old when he conquered the formidable Lahore fort. This even led to Shah Zaman offering peace proposals to Maharana Ranjit Singh.
It also led to other misl leaders becoming envious of Ranjit Singh and forming a military alliance. They attacked his forces but were defeated by him. It led to further strengthening of Ranjit Singh’s position. Even British noticed him as a power center in Punjab and deputed an able resident for negotiations with him.
Title of Maharaja
He also realized that his coronation will give the people their own king which they did not have for centuries. It will also be a check for the powers which were casting covetous glances on Punjab. It will also act as a nucleus for uniting the disparate people of Punjab. Hence on Baisakhi day in 1801, he was coronated by putting a saffron paste on his forehead and gun salute was offered for him. He named his government as Sarkar Khalsaji and his durbar was called Durbar Khalsaji. His coins did not bear his name but that of Guru Nanak and were called Nanaki Shahi coins.
Modernization of Army
From the deserters of British Army, he noticed the way of drills and different military formations which were formed in small time. He understood the basic discipline which was the backbone of British war machine. He hired the deserters to train his army and also planned for artillery. He took personal interest in new recruits and spent 3-4 hours daily in supervising their drill and gunnery. It was on the backing of such a war machine that he was able to defeat enemies surrounding his kingdom.
Expansion of Frontiers
He consolidated Punjab by taking over cities like Amritsar, Jalandhar, Multan in quick succession and punishing kings who blocked his ways. It also alarmed the Afghans and led to conflicts. Taking advantage of power struggle in Afghan kingdoms he occupied Jammu and some parts of Kashmir and even extended till Attock. Within a few years Kashmir and Ladakh was liberated and frontiers were extended till Peshawar and Jamrud. Afghan nuisance was completely eliminated from Punjab and north-west border was secure after suffering invasions of 1000 years.
He passed away on 27 June 1839, exactly 40 years after he entered Lahore as a conqueror.
Reference: 1) A History of the Sikhs by Khushwant Singh
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