Anybody can purchase doctoral degree for thousand bucks: Regrets Prof S.G. Siddaramaiah
Bengaluru, October 14: Kannada Development Authority chairman Prof S.G. Siddaramaiah said that anybody could get doctorate degree for a thousand rupees from a foreign university.
Speaking at the Ninth Kannada Sahitya Samskritika Samavesha organised by the Buddha Basava Gandhi Cultural Trust at Kannada Sahitya Parishad here on Sunday, he said that instead of getting a doctoral degree through payment, it was better to get it by working on a literary work. Those who involve in literary activities as multi-lingual personality would promote Kannada. Such writers would contribute for the exchange of literature and culture as they have knowledge of literature of other languages and writer Varada Srinivas was one among such writers, he said.
The competitive exams should be conducted in regional languages. As the Central government was conducting various competitive exams only in Hindi and English, the pluralism of regional languages does not have place in the federal system and it was anti-Constitutional. Poetess Varada Srinivas has raised voice against atrocity on women, dominance of male-dominated society and female equality in her poems, he opined.
Both are equal
Convention president and writer Varada Srinivas welcomed the Supreme Court decision of abolishing the IPC Section 486 which allowed man to have ownership over woman and removing the restriction on women to enter Sabarimala temple. The Supreme Court had upheld the Constitutional morality, according to which, husband was no longer a boss or owner and woman was no longer a slave. Both man and woman were equal in all aspects including sex and they were basic values. Unfortunately, the Supreme Court verdict, in a way, has given licence to husband to have illicit affair. Normally, the chances of wife having illicit affair were less. Many people opined that this verdict was like a licence given to have adultery. The verdict would create enmity between men and women individually. This would create an embarrassing situation in a society which has traditional mindset, she said.
Rapes, sexual harassment, use of contraceptive pills, removing uterus and other issues have already pushed women to ditch. Why should she be punished for the mistakes of others? She was not happy with the verdict given by the Supreme Court. No woman would think of having illicit affair if her husband had such relationship. It would be a rare case as some modern women could think of having such relationship, she said.
Sahitya Koota President Nanjappa Kalegowda, Buddha Basava Gandhi Cultural Trust President S. Ramalingeswara, K.V. Nagaraja Murthy of District Sharana Sahitya Parishat and others were present.
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Assam's Byrnihat tops global pollution list; Delhi most polluted capital: Report
New Delhi (PTI): Thirteen of the world's top 20 most polluted cities are in India, with Byrnihat in Assam topping the list, according to a new report published on Tuesday.
The World Air Quality Report 2024 by Swiss air quality technology company IQAir said Delhi remains the most polluted capital city globally, while India ranked as the world's fifth most polluted country in 2024, down from third in 2023.
The report said India saw a 7 percent decline in PM2.5 concentrations in 2024, averaging 50.6 micrograms per cubic metre, compared to 54.4 micrograms per cubic metre in 2023. Yet, 13 of the world's 20 most polluted cities are in India.
Air pollution in Delhi worsened, with the annual average PM2.5 concentration rising from 102.4 micrograms per cubic metre in 2023 to 108.3 micrograms per cubic metre in 2024.
The Indian cities in the world's top 20 most polluted cities are Byrnihat, Delhi, Punjab's Mullanpur, Faridabad, Loni, Gurugram, Ganganagar, Greater Noida, Bhiwadi, Muzaffarnagar, Hanumangarh and Noida.
Overall, 35 percent of the Indian cities reported annual PM2.5 levels exceeding 10 times the WHO limit of 5 micrograms per cubic metre, the report said.
The high level of pollution in Byrnihat, a town on the border of Assam and Meghalaya, is due to emissions from local factories, including distilleries, iron and steel plants.
Delhi grapples with high air pollution year-round and the problem worsens in winter when unfavourable meteorological conditions, combined with vehicular emissions, paddy-straw burning, firecrackers and other local pollution sources, make the air quality hazardous.
Air pollution remains a serious health risk in India, reducing life expectancy by an estimated 5.2 years.
According to a Lancet Planetary Health study published last year, about 1.5 million deaths in India every year from 2009 to 2019 were potentially linked to long-term exposure to PM2.5 pollution.
PM2.5 refers to tiny air pollution particles smaller than 2.5 microns, which can enter the lungs and bloodstream, leading to breathing problems, heart disease and even cancer. Sources include vehicle exhaust, industrial emissions and the burning of wood or crop waste.
Former WHO chief scientist and health ministry advisor Soumya Swaminathan said India has made progress in air quality data collection but lacks sufficient action.
"We have the data; now we need action. Some solutions are easy like replacing biomass with LPG. India already has a scheme for this, but we must further subsidise additional cylinders. The first cylinder is free, but the poorest families, especially women, should receive higher subsidies. This will improve their health and reduce outdoor air pollution," she told PTI in an interview.
In cities, expanding public transport and imposing fines on certain cars could help. "A mix of incentives and penalties is necessary," she said.
"Finally, strict enforcement of emission laws is crucial. Industries and construction sites must comply with regulations and install equipment to cut emissions instead of taking shortcuts," the former director general of the Indian Council of Medical Research added.
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