The Observer, Volume 22, Dailies 5

Demand for perfume di ps as demonet isat ion, GS T and Covid pandemic hi t the indust ry | P 4

Observer

Parents and experts want sex education to become part of the school curriculum | P 5

80 sugarcane farmers arrested as they demand to see Bommai

Say no minister has paid heed to their demands

By Siddhi Chauhan

Up to 80 sugarcane farmers were taken into custody on Friday when they threat ened to go to the chief minister’s office

The farmers asked the police to either take them to the chief min ister's office or present them be fore a judge

The Observer noticed the police guiding the farmers towards waiting buses The enthusiastic farmers chanted slogans as they entered the police vehicles

Kurubur Shanthakumar, pres ident of the Sugarcane Farmers’ Association, informed The Ob server: “Today is the 11th day of our protest, but no politician or government has done anything or paid attention to it ”

The farmers want the govern ment to increase the price of sug arcane from Rs 2,800 a tonne to

Differently abled need inclusivity

By Suryash Kumar

Rs 3,500 They wanted to visit the CM’s office to ask for an increase in the price of sugarcane

“The police are not willing to fulfill our demands We are being prevented from visiting the chief minister’s office as it would lead to our arrest We farmers are ready to do anything So we will

ask them to arrest us and produce us in front of a judge We are not allowed being to meet our own CM or any other minister. We re spect everyone's decisions, be it a judge or a lawyer, but still no one wants to listen to us

Why only arrest us? Arrest ministers too No one is listening

to us, what should we do?” Shan tha kumar said Surendra Shivanava, a farmer belonging to Haliyal, informed The Observer: “Approximately 80 to 100 farmers have been ar rested We don’t know where the police will take them Nobody here knows where the farmers are being taken The agitation will now rise in every taluk be cause farmers’ requirements are never fulfilled and we never get what we want ”

Gurubur Siddhesh, another farmer, said: “The main reason for us to protest here on the 11th day is toask the government to in crease the price for sugarcane MLAs If the price of sugarcane is increased, then it will be difficult for them to buy the produce ”

Ajay S , a police official, said: “It is their 11th day of protest They want the government to increase the price of sugarcane The police are here for preventive measures in case anything goes wrong. ”

Surekha, a police constable, said about 50 people were taken into custody as a preventive measure Police, reluctant to talk siddhi c@iijnm org

‘We don’t earn enough’: Domestic workers want aid, social security

By Hamsaveni N

from the government ”

Website: theweeklyobserver in

Epaper: https://issuu com/ theweeklyobserver

SC sets aside Kerala HC bail order in spying case

The Supreme Court Friday quashed the Kerala High Court order granting anticipatory bail to four people, including a for mer Director General of Police (DGP), in a case of alleged frame up of scientist Nambi Narayanan in the 1994 ISRO espionage matter

Deccan Herald

Four leopards spotted in Bengaluru areas

A high alert was sounded in Ken geri, , Kumbalgodu, Devanahalli and other areas of Bengaluru after the spotted four big cats in the areas The author ities have found the carcass of a deer killed by a leop ard in Kodipalya near Kanaka pura It is feared leopards are straying into residential areas from the Turahalli reserve forest DNA

Twitter suspends Kanye West’s account

Twitter boss Elon Musk on Friday confirmed the micro blogging site has suspended the account of rapper Kanye West, now known as Ye, for “incitement to violence” The rapper on Thurs day had tweeted a post featuring a swastika He later deleted the tweet Twitter late on Thursday also restricted one of his tweets Deccan Herald

You can use your face as boarding pass at 3 airports

Lack

of friendly infrastruc ture and a non inclusive ed ucation system have made the lives of differently abled people miserable

N.S. Senthil Kumar, CEO of the Association of People with Dis abilities (APD), informed The Ob server:

“We need to provide disabled peo ple with appropriate and cus tomized tools A person may have a perfect upper limb, so this per son will need a different wheel chair from someone who’s not able to move the upper limb Do nating 1,000 wheel chairs will not work for all, or isn’t a good idea

Domestic

workers are de manding recognition and a separate database to regis ter themselves to avail of basic benefits

At a protest in September, the Bengaluru Jilla Mane Ke lasagarara Sangha, along with CITU,raised various demands like pay scale, pension, health se curity and financial aid for their children’s education

Padma, a domestic worker, in formed The Observer: “I work in six houses and am paid around Rs 2,000 to Rs 3,000 per house on a monthly basis I am a single mother with two daughters, who are married I could not give them higher education because of financial problems I am the on ly person who earns in the house We maids want some aid

Padma Roa, another domestic worker, shared: “I start my work around 8 am and come back around 9 pm I take a short break in the evening I am work ing for almost 23 years We have no benefits, no security for health or anything It would really great if we are recognized and given some protection ”

Yashoda A.S., who has worked in homes for more than five years, said: “I do not spend my entire day at work because I have to focus on my child too The money I make after working in 3 4 houses is not sufficient for our living; we are somehow man aging We at least want some basic benefits like health and fi nancial ”

Passengers travelling from Delhi, Varanasi and Bengaluru will be able to use their face as a board ing pass from December 1 to enter these airports Travellers will have to mandatorily provide their Aadhaar details to avail of this service The technology,however, is not available at check in coun ters It is expected to be intro duced at a later stage, airport sources said The Hindu

Japan stun Spain 2 1; Germany knocked out

In one of the most dramatic evenings in World Cup history, Japan staged an incredible sec ond half comeback, beat the 2010 world champions Spain 2 1 Inthe process, they knocked out the 2014 world champions Germany, who have exited the World Cup in the group stage for the second time in a row same venue the Khalifa International Stadium The New Indian Express

Farmers wanted to visit the CM’s office to ask for an increase in the price of sugarcane | Courtesy: Ibrahim Khaleel Puttur

Domestic workers demand recog nition | Credit: Hamsaveni N

Resumed after 2 yrs, underpass work gridlocks Muthyala Nagar

Locals ask: When will Palike finish the work

By Janani Srinivas

Residents of the Muthyala Nagar area, located in northwestern part Ben galuru, are facing problems due to work on a railway underpass

The work, halted for two years, commenced three months ago Mahesh Babu, a factory worker, informed The Observer: “The work is now picking up its pace Otherwise, for two years, the work had completely come to a standstill Nobody travelled through the lane due to the ongo ing work, but it was just a few months back that the authorities started to notice. It is creating in convenience for the residents here. The authorities concerned with this should finish the work as soon as possible to avoid fur ther problems in future

Venkoba Rao, electrician,said: “I have been living in this area since my birth Issues related to the underpass work are nothing new It is just now that the BBMP and the railway body has woken up and started to pick up pace; otherwise, the lane was in a complete mess ”

Around the city

Sunday Soul Sante Christmas Edition Flea Market December 18 | 10AM 10PM Ecoworld, Bel landur, Bengaluru

Bangalore Literature Festival 2022 December 3 4 th 195/5 BTM

layout Ashoka Hotel Whitefield Music Festival 2022 Sat, 3 Dec, 11:30 am Sun, 4 Dec, 4:30 pm

Inner Cir Rd, Dodsworth Layout, Whitefield, Bengaluru, Kar nataka

Sunday Mornings Stand up Comedy at Cubbon Park 4th December to 1st Jan 2 pm

Weekend Carnival Sat, 3 Dec, 10 am Sun, 4 Dec, 9 pm Vista academy, JP Nagar

2022 Green Literature Festi val, 18 December (10:00 AM 6:00), Bangalore International Centre (New Building) 6 4th Main Road

ISRO Space Technology Workshop, 6 December 6, (9:00 AM 5:00 PM), ISRO Headquar ters, Antariksh Bhavan 5th Cross Road

Red Lilies, Water Birds, The Saree in Nine Stories, 12 No vember 6 December, Bangalore International Centre, 7, 4th Main Road, Domlur II Stage

Sarcasm has a unique property, if it doesn't have an intelligent audi ence, it will make you look like a stupid

EngiNerd (@mainbhiengineer)

Sampath Kumar said: “Earlier, the lane was utilized for vehicles, but ever since the railway under pass work started, it has become doubtful when it will get com pleted The authorities always promise that the work shall be completed soon, but what we want to know is when that ‘ soon ’ will arrive ”

S Jayashankar, a resident,

said: “It is only now that the South Western Railway and the BBMP have started to pay atten tion over this incomplete railway underpass work; otherwise, they would not have bothered Passing through this traffic is already a nightmare asit piles up regularly Sometimes, vehicles fall, thus in creasing the problem What is the point of the BBMP or government

bodies if they cannot do their work properly? It is good that now they have started to work on it, but the work should not have been left for a longer time Al ready, two buildings have been broken down We hope the work gets completed without further delay; otherwise there is no point in doing the work just when elec tions are round the corner ”

Nanjuntha Swamy, an engi neering student, said: “For two years, the work was stopped We residents faced major difficulty, especially during the rainy sea son Water used to get accumu lated within the underpass, causing constant waterlogging in the area Now the situation has normalized, but still we residents cannot tolerate this for a long time My family has faced difficul ties due to this work. I have ob served huge traffic jams ”

He added: “We even com plained about this to the BBMP several times , but they reached out late Although now they have started to work on the underpass, it is high time that the BBMP clearly needs to avoid giving promises to citizens and should show their words through their action for the betterment of the residents living here”

Read the complete story on www.theweeklyobserver.in

Potholes wreak heavy damage in city over tyres of motor vehicles

Repairing them is a recurring expenditure

By Ahona Roy

Let us embrace our diverse culture

The history and tradition of India have always been marked by di verse influences The architec ture and art of Muslims from the slave dynasty to the Mughals, and of our colonial oppressors be fore independence, are all a part of our culture today Rather than erasing the past and creating new histories that have a bias to wards a singule community, we need to embrace India’s culture in all its diversity

Diptarup Ghosh Dastidar

Autorickshaw drivers are affected by potholes

Potholes, a big problem in Ben galuru, affect autorickshaw driv ers the most Because of bad roads, we have to take long routes and charge passengers more People accuse us of charging too much fare But they should un derstand our plight

Nagaraj K

Traffic has become a living hell in Bengaluru

The biggest problem here in Ben galuru is traffic It's been two years for me to be residing in this place and it took me 30 minutes to reach a particular place Al though signals were present at every point, still traffic conditions create a nuisance for several peo ple like me living here

Anudip Kopol

Career pressure takes student’s life

Recently, a BTech Aeronautics student at IIT Madras died by suicide While most people would blame the college for the intense pressure he was under, one is bound to think of the absence of psychological help and the ab sence of empathy What use is the human race if the reward comes at the cost of a burnt out, depres sive existence? Perhaps things would have been different if peo ple had cared to talk

Aneesha Palit

Rape and molestation cases are on increase

Potholes

have become a major nuisance for drivers of motor vehicles, causing punctures and slicing the side walls of tyres The damage costs the vehicle owners big money

Vinod Kumar, a Titan Com pany salesman, said he has to get his motorbike tyres repaired thrice a week because of potholes Every time, repair costs Rs 100 “The potholes become even more of a problem during rainy season causing more damage to the tyres,” he said

Chandru Chandrashekhar, an autorickshaw driver, said old tyres have a greater risk of being damaged due to potholes. “Pot holes also increase the risk of fractures and cracks to the wheels of the vehicles, especially during rain One has to spend between Rs 700 and Rs 800 for repair ”

Sayyid Nadeem, owner of HKGN puncture repair shop on Mysuru Road, said he receives five to ten customers daily, out of whom half come with tyres dam aged by potholes

He charges Rs 100 to mend tubeless tyres and Rs 50 for tyres with tubes Riyaaz Pasha, a worker at KGN puncture repair shop, said half of the people who come to him have their tyres punctured or the sidewalls of the tyres sliced due to potholes He

charges Rs 100 to repair tyres of two wheelers

The Karnataka High Court has asked the National Highways Au thority of India with the inspec tion of pothole works in Bengaluru city ahona r@iijnm org

Despite multiple apps in multiple cities for women's safety, rape and molestation cases are in creasing I don't know how the police can help with this, but there is an urgent need for schools and colleges to start gen der sensitization

Surabhi Sarda

Let us not disregard nuclear energy

It is appalling to see the environ ment fraternity blatantly disre garding nuclear energy, which is by far the cleanest form of the en ergy and one of the main push backs against climate change.

Anas Ali

Electric wires in MG Rd must be taken care of

Many places in MG Raoad have electric wired dangling down which could be dangerous for the pedestrians who walk through the authorities must look into the matter as soon as possible

Arsha B S

The work, halted for two years, commenced three months ago causing water logging and traffic jams | Credit: Janani Srinivas

The Karnataka High Court has tasked the National Highways Authority of India with the inspection of pothole works | Credit: Ahona Roy

Roads in Peenya 2nd Stage are horrible

Nobody from BBMP comes to check, why have a civic body, say citizens

By Janani Srinivas

The apathy of civic bodies has left the roads of Peenya 2nd Stage in an awful state, citizens say

Manoj Kumar, an engineer, in formed The Observer: “Travelling through this route has always been a task If you visit the places that are close to the 2nd Stage, they are in a most terrible condi tion The BBMP needs to seri ously consider visiting Peenya and getting these roads fixed ”

Owing to the bad condition of the roads, heavy vehicles are af fected the most of all

URBAN MESS

Surendra Kumar, a trans porter, said: “With such shabby roads, it is impossible for people and heavy vehicles to move. “

He added: “These vehicles carry material that could be fragile. BBMP has not bothered to check the road ”

Kiran Kumar, a real estate pro prietor whose office is in the area, said: “The danger these roads possess is bringing fear to every one working in Peenya There should be no civic body in the city if they cannot do their work prop erly It is really sad to see the state of the road ”

For several years, people of Peenya have seen heavy vehicles meeting with accidents

Rijish P, a tea seller, said: “It

has been 1 2 years since the con dition of the road has been bad Nobody has visited Peenya and look at the state of the roads If you try visiting other places in the 2nd Stage, the road condition is even worse ”

Material loaded on heavy vehi cles traversing the road could fall down sometimes “Being around Peenya for 10

years, I have observed vehicles having difficulty, but nothing can be done People here have taken the issue to news channels, but no person from BBMP has come to look into the situation ”

Recently, this area was in the news over the death of a person whose bike skidded and fell at night It left everyone in shock Lokesh R, an autorickshaw

driver, said: “The MLA of the area only gives orders, but will not at tempt to do a survey of the area or take the situation into account Engineers from BBMP have been coming to the area to check on the roads, but nobody has bothered after that The authorities should know that the area, an industrial hub, needs proper roads since huge trucks carry dangerous ma

Digital marketing and advertisement influences consumers’ behaviour hugely

Advertisers rely on social media to spread info

By Siddhi Chauhan

Consumer behaviour is af fected hugely by digital marketing and advertising made by brands

Himani S, who likes to shop on line, informed The Observer: “For my clothes, I rely on online shop ping I prefer online shopping during the festive season and off season because almost every site has a huge sale Also, in case you don’t like the quality of the clothes you buy, there is a scope to return them.”

Varshu Vaswani, who loves to collect stationery, said: “I shop both online and offline, but many stores do not have varieties Re cently, when I was using Insta gram, I came across a small battery printer which was not only handy but also useful ”

Parash Sahu, who browses e commerce sites for electronic gadgets and grooming acces

sories, said: “Whenever I come across any advertisement from a recognised platform that has a heavy discount, I often end up buying many products Many times I regret buying a product as it is of no use to me ”

An article by iBrandStudio says that by creating brand aware

ness, a company makes the con sumer aware of its products and services Another motive is to re mind the consumer about recent offers we put down The most im28 portant one is to cater to the needs of the consumer

Riya Agarwal, a social media manager, said: “Social Media has

become a prominent platform for advertising Every brand has a social media page To stay con nected with the audience, we have to stay active on social media We divide the posts into categories, with one being promo tional Many times we come out with posts that are reminders of our sales or offers Reminder posts create an excitement in the minds of the consumers to pur chase the product

“To achieve a greater target we create a campaign For this, de cide our target audience and their needs, we try to figure out a prob lem that they face and then we offer a solution After that, we focus on the content, design and format of our ads. These types of ads run on both social media plat forms and on e commerce sites.”

Chaitanya Bajpai, a self em ployed graphic designer, said one should understand a client’s needs The preferences of the tar get audience should also be kept in mind while creating a post

“In order to catch the attention of a viewer, one should keep a check on some thing Read the complete story on www theweeklyobserver in

terial sometimes and we need to be careful while driving.”

Raghavan R, manager at the Peenya Industries Association, said: “We complained over road damage to BBMP and the local MLA, but how much can we push? They have assured they will look into the issue, but there is no guarantee when the roads would be repaired ”

Kamran K, a citizen activist, said: "Whether the BBMP will re pair the roads or not, it's some thing that we have to wait and see They promise to make Ben galuru damage free, but fail to do so BBMP needs to ensure quality work whenever they take up in frastructure

”

projects

B S Prahallad, chief engineer, road infrastructure, BBMP, said: “We are already taking action to asphalt the roads In two months, the rains are coming down, and soon enough the BBMP shall work on repairing the roads.”

BBMP officials have said that due to unprecedented rains, they have not been able to fix the roads, and are finding ways to fin ish the work on time

According to Section 168A (2): “Failure on the part of the desig nated authority or contractor to comply with the standards of road design, construction and mainte nance that result in death or dis ability shall be punishable with a fine which may extend to one lakh rupees ” janani s@iijnm org

Quote of the week

Simplicity requires a two step process First, we must invest time and energy to discover what stirs us as human beings, what makes our hearts sing, and what brings us joy Second, we must proceed to create the life that reflects we truly are This is the heart and soul of simplicity

Linda Breen

1 Name the organs that sharks has to sense electricity

2 Name the country where the Prado Museum located?

3 What are the four states of matter?

4 From which language does the word robot originates and what is its original meaning?

5 The world longitudinally di vided into how many time zones is?

6 Where can you locate the smallest bone in the human body?

7 When did the Berlin wall fall?

8 Who was the last monarch of Scotland?

9 Name the six major cate gories of the musical instru ments?

10 Who is the first woman cricketer to hit a double century in ODI?

People of Peenya have seen heavy vehicles meeting with accidents because of bad infrastructure Engineers from BBMP keep a check on the roads, but still the damage remains | Credit: Janani Srinivas

According to research by ResearchGate, advertising is connected with the psychological factors of the consumer | Credit: Yashaswini Sri

Attar sales take the online route, profits head south

Covid, bad civic infrastructure hit the biz badly

By Yukta Mudgal

lem is the increase in the online sales of attar ”

Store

sales of attar, which has a history of thousands of years, are seeing a decline in Bengaluru as people are shift ing to online transactions

Mohammed Ismail of AK Per fumes on Cottonpet Main Road, said: “The shock of lockdowns has still not gone Earlier, people had a craze to buy attar, but now it has gone because they are earn ing less Before Covid, I used to sell 50 ml of attar for Rs 400 now, I try to sell it for Rs 200, and peo ple still do not buy.

“The number of customers has decreased. Earlier 20 25 cus tomers a day were normal; now hardly five or six customers enter my shop for attar ”

Santosh Nayar, a visitor to AK Perfumes, enquired about attar but did not buy it “I use attar during worship My daughter loves attar and perfumes, but she does not buy from shops Instead, she orders online,” he informed The Observer

Ismail imports attar from Kan nauj, UP, and Assam

Venkatesh, a fragrance manu facturer, said: “Sales are meagre;

only during festivals are they good ” Sales declined because, earlier, Cottonpet road was dam aged, and then Covid happened

The price of chemicals and raw material has risen due to the Rus sia Ukraine war People who used to buy 10 litres of fragrance now buy 3 litres “We only earn a 15 per cent profit On Rs 600, we make only Rs 90 ”

Deepak Kumar of Sri Beeresh wara Fragrance, Cottonpet Main Road, said his shop was five times bigger than his present one, but

Differently abled ask for inclusive education, infra

Continued from page 1

“We need to enable, equip and empower disbled people self help groups and community based or ganisations can empower people in a sustainable way Rehabilita tion and logistical facility should be provided ”

Transport infrastructure that accommodates differently abled people is a concept that is still alien to India The Rights of Per sons With Disabilities Act, 2016, says all places have to be accessi ble to the disabled by 2021, but it has not happened yet Rajalakshmi, Miss World Wheelchair, 2017, said: “If we have a person in the family who is disabled, we have empathy be cause the understanding is there We need to get them out of their houses to spread awareness so that they are seen People who are abled have a stereotyped thinking that differently abled people can’t do it, why are you troubling them?”

Shafeaque Punathil, an artist and sculptor, said: “Our education system has this weakness that they can’t provide the right envi ronment for nurturing and growth of differently abled chil dren We are witnessing a skewed development The government

has excluded differently abled people The differently abled need to be given more space in social and economic milieu They need to be more visible in public space ”

APD has established Shrad hanjali Integrated School to get the people out of the special school mindset Integrated and inclusive schools are the need for the hour

he could not afford to pay his shop rent because of sales drop

“People’s financial situation has worsened after demonetisation and GST imposition Now cus tomers ask for attar worth Rs 20 25 I don’t sell cheap attar The company in Bombay I order raw materials from mixes cheap ma terial; the attar we sell is not pure I am hardly able to make Rs 500 a day We take loans from local moneylenders who give us Rs 25,000, which we have to repay in 100 days Another prob

Irfan Shariff of IRS Perfume World in Mysuru, said attar is made by extracting oil from fruits and vegetables The oil is then distilled “Perfumes are luxury products and expensive After Covid, many people have lost their jobs Hence, they do not buy attar Business is slowly picking up The cost of raw material has increased by 5 6% ”

Asked how they maintain qual ity, he said: “We keep attar in umber bottles in shady places This way, attar can last five years But after six years, the quality of the attar starts declin ing It becomes thick ”

When quality degrades, attar is used in making agarbattis Hence, nothing gets wasted

Jabeer Mohammed, manager at IRS Perfume World, near Com mercial Street, said they are plan ning to move the business online and working on a new marketing strategy to increase the sales

Perfume is one product that should be sold only after a skin trial conducted to check whether the buyer is allergic to it This is one of the obstructions in selling perfumes online

Ajmal Perfumes on Dickenson Road, one of the most famous in ternational attar shops in Ben galuru, refused to share information yukta m@iijnm org

Injustice against maids is high

Continued from page 1

OTHER DEMANDS

Attabad Lake is a glorious and pristine body of water located in the middle of nowhere and sur rounded by the mountainous ter rain of the Hunza Valley region It is as still as an ancient tree and the blue of the water puts the sky to shame Its creation is wrapped in tragedy and loss as it is the re sult of a landslide that drowned an entire village by the name of Gojal Village However, although people feel sombre for this loss of life, the creation of this divine body of water inspires them with the utmost reverence and awe (Source : Culture Trip)

Le Palais Idéal is an 85 foot long, 33 foot high castle located south of Lyon made from rocks that a 19th century French postman picked up during his mail route over the course of 34 years He built the castle himself including the pillars, grottoes, and flying buttresses Today, the massive structure still stands and visitors still go see it today

“Special schools have separate curriculum, but that limits their opportunities so an integrated school is the way to go In the end, these students will come out of schools and function in the out side world Integrated schools have curriculum and therapy Child needs to be functionally in dependent Maximize their function,” Rajalakshmi added suryash k@iijnm org

Geeta

Menon, joint secretary of the National Alliance for Domestic Workers, said: “Domestic workers have been an invisible part of the economy, (but) we are still not considered a workforce Forget about other benefits, first we need recogni tion We need a database in which every worker should be regis tered We are protesting for the same for a very long time and as usual (have got) no response The Unorganised Welfare Board says they don’t have funds ”

Sathyanand, a human rights and labour expert, said: “Domes tic workers have a right to a minimum salary. But social injus tice (against them) is high We still see scenarios where people practise untouchability Maids are restricted from the kitchen or pooja room just because they come from lower castes ”

An official of the Karnataka State Unorganized Workers’ So cial Security Board said: “We don’t have funds Though we have a board, there are no benefits or schemes We just had one scheme: creating a database of

unorganised labourers Now the Centre is implementing the Prad han Mantri Surakshana Bima Yojana accident benefit scheme for unorganised labour. The gov ernment is also planning to give ESI facilities

“Over 83 per cent of India’s workforce is in the unorganized sector Domestic workers will also get all the benefits, (but) they have to wait a little more We have submitted a proposal for various benefits and are waiting for a response ” hamsaveni n@iijnm org

‘India

ready to take its place at global top table’

India is ready to take its place at the global top table as a country that is willing to bring solutions and contribute positively to the global agenda, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ruchira Kamboj has said India on Thursday assumed the monthly rotating presidency of the Security Council, the second time after August 2021 that India is presiding over the 15 member Council during its two year tenure as an elected UNSC mem ber PTI

Ponting in hospital after heart scare

Former Australia skipper Ricky Ponting was rushed to a hospital on Friday after suffering a heart problem while commentating during Australia's first Test against the West Indies at the Perth Stadium According to the reports, the 47 year old told his colleagues that he was feeling un well. Reuters

Temperature 27° Max UV Index 1 LOW Wind E 13 km/h

Humidity 52%

Visibility 16 km

Increase in price of raw materials, GST and Covid lockdown led to de cline in attar sales Shop owners say before Covid, around 20 customers used to come which has reduced to five | Credit: Yukta Mudgal

Transport infra needs to improve for disabled | Credit : Suryash K

Parents & exper ts stress on having sex edu in school

Govt plan to add MCQs leaves teachers, students divided

Is passing exams sole purpose of edu: Principal

By Sneha T S

TheKarnataka government is planning to include 15 20 multiple choice questions for the 2023 PU examinations to increase the pass percentage But teachers and students stand di vided over the proposal

According to an article pub lished by the Deccan Herald, the government aims to improve the PU pass percentage to compete with CBSE and increase enrol ment in higher education This was discussed at a review meet ing of officials of the Department of PU Education in the presence of minister B.C. Nagesh.

never helped us to score better That is not the case with descrip tive questions. In the MCQ pat tern, if a majority of your answers are incorrect, then you end up scoring nothing If we write, we will get some marks ”

Jayashree Gowda, another PU student, said: “I am a bit con fused It can help us in getting marks which is good While en rolling in colleges or universities grades does matter, a sudden change in the paper style will af fect us We will have to plan bet ter so we can score better marks ”

By Yashaswini Sri

of sex education in schools worries parents and experts However, conserva tives have a different view

Lack

A Bhavani, a parent of an 8th standard girl voiced out the im portance of sex education in schools, “Sex education has be come very important these days Being a parent of a girl child, my husband and I are constantly worried about her safety Schools should teach their students the good and bad touches Incidents of molestations and assaults are growing rapidly in our society. We should teach the basics, both par ents and schools ”

S R Sita, a parent of two chil dren said, “While we think that this generation knows everything and there’s no need to teach them about sex, I think it is important to teach our children the por trayal of sex in a right way and make them understand the conse quences if they make a mistake If they know what it is and why should they do it, they wouldn’t do anything to harm anyone ”

H M Bharathi, a te acher work ing in a Government School, in a Railway colony said, “We want to teach our children about sex and educate about them But we have no space to incorporate it Unless they issue notices to schools that sex education should be compul sory, we cannot do anything about it We are helpless ”

Pooja Krishna, an education ex pert shared her views of this with The Observer, “Children and teenagers are very curious They watch different visuals and want to try and feel certain things If we try and teach them the basics of sex education, it’ll help them to understand the world Incorpo rating this into the education cur riculum will be a great solution

B Basavaraj, a member of

Vishva Hindu Parishad talked with The Observer about their views, “We are completely against sex education being introduced into the curriculum We believe this will lead to more cases of as saults and molestations against women Sex education would pro voke young minds to have desires that are unhealthy and sinful

Ranbir Singh, Joint Secretary and Regional Officer of the Cen tral Board of Secondary Educa tion (CBSE) said, “CBSE has certain provisions that will cater to human behaviour and nurture the students Sex education is not added, but we cover a few ele ments from it There are very fun damentals that are taught in biology classes and we ask the teacher to sensitize the topic be fore teaching it ”

Dr Dolly Florence, a sociologist from Lady Irwin College, Delhi said, “There has to be a lot of awareness created among stu dents from a tender age Every school should have a mentoring committee and counsel the stu dents about sex education and talk to them Normalizing sex ed ucation will make students more comfortable around their teach ers Also, parents should be con sulted about how they want their children to be counselled about sex education This can help the students to open up to their par ents and mentors ”

According to the report from NDTV, Condoms, contraceptives and a knife were among some of the things found during a recent search of students' bags by a group of schools in Bengaluru, leaving authorities stumped and parents and teachers got worried The school authorities feel sex ed ucation as a subject in the cur riculum is urgently needed for the students to create awareness among them yashaswini s@iijnm org

Prakash S, principal of Saint Philomena’s PU College, in formed The Observer: “I reject that decision Why are they even conducting public exams? Is pass ing examinations the sole purpose of education? I do not think that this is going to make any differ ence in the pass percentage, the students who have not studied or prepared properly are anyway not

going to perform well I am in complete support of descriptive questions One has to study in depth to write descriptive an swers If such steps are taken, students will not understand the importance of exams Instead of taking such decisions, the govern ment should think of conducting exams at the primary level so that students value exams ”

Soujanya M, a PU student, said: “If we write long answers, at least we will get a few marks

Multiple choice questions can be confusing You may get confused while choosing the correct an swer We have objective ques tions Objective questions have

Student A Deepali said: “It all depends on the subjects In the case of subjects like mathematics or physics, if we do not know the answer, we will get marks for ap plying the concept and formulas, but if we choose the incorrect op tion, our one mark is gone ”

Manjunatha R V , principal of Seshadripuram PU College, wel comed the proposal

Karnataka has 2,084 PU col leges The PU pass percentage in the academic year 2020 was 61 88, while CBSE‘s was 88 78

All PU students were mass pro moted in the academic year 2021 in view of the coronavirus pan demic ”

Read the complete story on: theweeklyobserver in

Karnataka govt will give funds to schools in border areas

Critics say it is a political gambit as polls approach

By Yukta Mudgal

TheKarnataka government plans to allocate funds to schools in the Karnataka Maharashtra border areas, and in neighboring states, to promote the state’s cultural identity

Addressing a press conference on completing two years as chair man of the Karnataka Border Area Development Authority, C Somasekhar said: “We will build Kannada schools on Karnataka’s borders to promote Karnataka’s culture We have 63 taluks in bor ders, with 958 villages We are al locating funds and water facilities promoting cultural awareness We are planning on having dance, symposiums, bilingual debates and poets meet.”

He raised the slogan “Rashtra bhakti, Nada Preeti”, which means devotion to the nation and love for the state

“In Kasaragod, Kerala, we are allocating funds for promoting Kannada culture People living there should not feel isolated and stay connected to our culture ”

Asked if the promotion of cul ture can resolve the border issues between Karnataka and Maha rashtra, he said cultural blending

resolves all the differences But critics think differently Lavanya Ballal, Congress spokesperson and social media co ordinator, said: “When you are in Kerala, all the work is done in Malayalam Because they speak that language The government is

member of Prabhat Chitra Man dal, said: “Maharashtra wanted the demarcation of the border on a linguistic basis, but it did not happen The Karnataka govern ment has been imposing Kan nada on people living near borders A Marathi family will not send their children to Kan nada schools; they will send them to Marathi schools Politicians from both sides do not want to re solve the issues on the border be cause they have a vote bank from different sections ”

not building new schools in Kasaragod, but only funding them Border issues come up when there are elections The matter of language is sensitive, and only the people on the border should decide which part they be long to Now that both Maharash tra and Karnataka have BJP (governments), so they should re solve the border issue peacefully ” Santosh Pathare, a Marathi

Channappa Horti, a Kannada speaker and social worker who is familiar with the issue, said: “For the past seven years, the Maha rashtra government has not given any money to any school, be it Kannada or Marathi There are a lot of Kannada school buildings in Maharashtra, but most do not have compounds and drinking water Karnataka government al locates funds to schools across borders Both Maharashtra and Karnataka governments ignore issues related to agriculture and bad roads due to which villages on the border are the most back ward areas in Karnataka ”

According to a Deccan Herald report, the Supreme Court was supposed to take up the Kar nataka Maharashtra border mat ter on Wednesday but could not do so as a Bench headed by Jus tice K M Joseph was busy resolv ing other matters yukta m@iijnm org

Schools can act as a great platform for students to learn about sex ed ucation It is important to teach our children the portrayal of sex in a right way | Credit: Yashaswini Sri

For decades, Karnataka and Ma harashtra have had tensions over the border | Credit: Yukta Mudgal

Students think writing exams is better than MCQs for better scores

| Credit: Sneha TS

Livelihoods affected as interest in folk arts dips

People prefer to wear light things

By Shruti Banerjee

Thelivelihood of Indian folk artists is getting affected as more and more people are losing interest in folk art forms

Young people, unaware of folk art forms, are not very inclined to wards paintings

The Observer spoke to various folk artists at the Art n crafts Mela at Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath

Ashok Kumar Das of Mad hubani said: “The value of folk art is understood by a handful of peo ple who know about it Those who don’t know (the art form) cannot appreciate it ”

Madhubani paintings are made without brush or paint. Das said the artists use traditional nib pens and natural products like vegetable colours and flowers to create these paintings

Completing a painting takes a lot of time

“I have been working as a Mad hubani artist for 25 years It’s my family tradition,” Das said Heand his wife might be the last generation in his family to prac tise the art form as his son is not interested in it

Asked whether the government has introduced any schemes to support artists like him, he replied that the only help he got was that he didn’t have to pay to set up his stall

Rakesh, a glass bangles seller from UP, said nowadays most people prefer plastic bangles to

glass ones as glass is more expen sive This is a major reason for glass bangles losing their popu larity in the market

“A plastic bangle costs only Rs 10, but it’s Rs 150 for a glass ban gle It takes 25 30 workers and two to three hours to make a hun dred glass bangles,” he shared The process is tiring and time consuming as they have to sit in front of fire to melt glass They didn’t receive any aid from the government No one respects tra ditional art forms these days

Akhila, a saleswoman at a shop selling Kashmiri saris and shawls, said that the demand for pashmina has gone down

Another seller, Umar from Sri nagar, said the demand for saris and shawls is falling due to peo ple being unaware that these items are art forms “Powerloom saris are light so they have more demand than handloom saris, which are heavy and require more maintenance.”

Rohit Gupta from Babru, Ra jasthan, said only people who ap preciate original material buy such saris Kota saris are chemi cal free and comfortable, but most usually prefer synthetic sarees

Mahesh, a weaver from Bha galpur who deals in Madhubani saris, said he has had good de mand but sometimes the demand of saris fluctuate

Julie from Mauritius said the fair is well organized but the art works and handicrafts on display are very expensive

The fair, which began on De cember 2, will continue for 10 days and sellers hope to see in crease in sales shruti b@iijnm org

Citizens worried over the illegal collection of data by Chilume

Await report on investigation, says poll office

By Priya Pathak

Thecase of voter ID theft has made citizens of Ben galuru wonder about their right to vote and the privacy of data

According to a report in The New Indian Express, an NGO named Chilume Education Cul tural and Rural Development In stitute collected data of voters that included their gender, Aad haar card numbers, phone num bers, caste, age and personal details, allegedly at the behest of politicians in the city

The opposition Congress has accused the BJP government of illegally collecting the data to help the ruling party win upcom ing assembly elections.

Sunita, a resident of Baiyap panahalli, said: “It is unfortu nate If the personal details of citizens are not protected, what should be our expectations from the government?”

When The Observer reached out to some residents of Mahade vapura, they were wary of talking about the scam

Vinayak, a resident of Domlur, said: “If someone hears this kind of news, at first they will feel that the people in power are not work ing efficiently ” Investigation of the matter will reveal what plan ning went behind it

Punit, an engineering student , said: “These people usually target each other for elections It is

difficult to believe in any govern ment; central or state ”

Surya, a resident of Mysuru Road, said: “This is a usual prob lem with political parties and elections in our country They try to get fake votes to win elections ”

A staffer at the office of Kar nataka’s chief electoral officer said: “We do not want to comment on the matter as it is a very sen sitive issue and we are still work ing on it People should wait for the official outcome of the inves tigation and see it for themselves, how everything turn out ”

Vishal Pandey, a political ex

We want our rights back, will fight for justice: Dalits

‘Authorities are silent when atrocities happen’

By Vindhya Pabolu

abused and treated like this Soci ety&mindset and patriarchy should be changed The govern ment can do a lot if they want to, but they don’t ”

pert, shared: “Such incidents can lead to serious trust issues among people People will be apprehen sive in the future if anyone comes to ask for information Because of this, citizens may not trust offi cial government agents when they come to collect data That is a problem we need to think ”

“Scams related to bank details, online transactions and RTO de tails have already created a fear in the minds of people If a theft which connects to their funda mental duty happens, it will be a nightmare,'' he added priya p@iijnm org

Quiz answers

Dalits

across Karnataka are still fighting for the funda mental rights offered by the Constitution They are demanding justice and asking governments to take action against people who at tack dalits

Addressing a press conference, Dalitha Sangatanegala Swabhi mana Okkuta (DSSO) state con vener Govindarajan M said: “It has been 75 years since we got inde pendence, but dalits and minori ties still face the same fate. Women are molested, abused and seen as untouchables in many areas of Karnataka by upper caste people They are not allowed to have their basic rights such aseducation, par ticularly in villages After the Modi government (took office), the cases have become worse We want our rights back, want to be respected and want our children to go to school without fear We will fight

for it until we get justice ”

News reports said on November 19, upper case people “purified” a water tank in Heggothara village of Chamarajanagar district after a dalit woman drank water from it A villager named Mahadevappa tried to stop her saying it was a “Brahmin’s Lane” and she is not

supposed to drink from the tank Mamata Yajman, an advocate, informed The Observer: “The Con stitution has given everything like basic rights, but authorities are not practising these The authorities are not seen implementing any thing This is not the first time where a dalit person has been

Khalid A, a professor at Azim Premji University, said: “It’s a very complicated issue that has been continuing over the years The gov ernment is doing something to help them, but what can they do if the people’s mindset doesn’t change Enacting a law and people changing their thought process is a completely different thing A lot of hierarchy has been seen

People don’t want to be treated equally Banking laws and the Constitution don’t work otherwise There are a lot of gaps between law and justice….

Humanity should come first People have to change their mind set People have to change their thought process if they want the nation to change ”

On December 6, the DSS will hold a conference at Central Col lege where experts talk about the struggles of dalits and minorities

Article 17 of the Constitution makes untouchability a punish able offence vindhya p@iijnm org

The Observer

Produced by the Print students of the Indian Institute of Journal ism & New Media at Nityananda Nagar, Kumbalgodu, Kengeri hobli, Bengaluru 560074

Editor: Janani Srinivas News Editor: Priya Pathak Copy editors: Arsha B S , Hamsaveni N , Ahona Roy

Photo editor: Yashawini Sri Reporters: Suryash Kumar, Sid dhi Chauhan, Shruthi Baner jee,Sneha T S , Yukta Mudgal,Vindhya Pabolu Other IIJNM publications

l The Beat magazine l CityCast l The SoftCopy

The opposition Congress has accused the BJP of illegally collecting the data to help the party win upcoming elections |Credit: Siddhi C.

Article 17 of the Indian Constitution makes untouchability a punishable offence | Credit: Vindhya Pabolu