Observer061017

The Observer An IIJnM publication

Vol 17, Issue 7

Transgender activist Jessica Lynn talks about the difficulties she faced before sex change | P 2

@theweeklyobserver On the Web: issuu.com/ theweeklyobserver/docs/ the_observer and theweeklyobserver.in

Unaware of a subway in Majestic, people jump over road dividers to cross the road. | P 2

Our roads better than Mumbai’s, says BBMP Chief engineer: No permanent remedy for city’s potholes

Expert: It’s wrong to think formative assessment is a test Barnana Hemoprava Sarkar barnana.h@iijnm.org

M

Arlene Mathew arlene.m@iijnm.org

P

otholes have bothered the residents of Bengaluru no end. The number of potholes is on the rise despite BBMP’s attempts to cover them up. According to a newspaper report, the BBMP has determined that the city has 15,935 potholes.

In an interview to The Observer, a BBMP chief engineer in charge of infrastructure said there is no long-standing solution to the problem of potholes other than maintaining them.

Asked about the rampant problem of potholes, the chief engineer, who didn’t want to be named, claimed that Bengaluru’s potholes are not as bad as those in other cities, like Mumbai.

“Bengaluru has a road network of around 14,000 km. When water stays on the roads for more than 50 days, it starts percolating and causes damage,” explained the chief engineer, who manages arterial and sub-arterial roads.

There are four main reasons, he said, for the problem: The number of vehicles exceeds the carrying capacity of roads; continuously digging roads destroys them; more than 50% of the potholes form because of water leakage;

Friday, October 6, 2017

The Observer

dAnger On rOAd: Motorcyclists are at maximum risk because of potholes | Courtesy: Sreeram V Krishnan and finally, the incessant rains.

“Leakage of water is one of the main reasons for pothole formation,” the chief engineer informed.

“The hot bituminous mix that we use to cover the potholes requires the area to be dry during application, and for a long time after.”

One of the worst-affected areas is near Kengeri on the Bengaluru-Mysuru highway. Because of the ongoing Metro work, roads are often congested and potholeriddled. As BMTC buses struggle over the potholes, people standing inside have to hold tight.

Continuous rain has made the situation worse because potholes get filled with water. Several mo-

torcyclists who underestimated the depth of water-filled potholes have met with accidents.

Sreeram V Krishnan, a business analyst at Genpact, Electronics City, said he encounters many potholes on his way from office to home. “It is the need of the hour to have good roads.

Poor roads cause traffic congestion and numerous accidents. I have seen recently built roads degrade soon after.”

Many residents of Bengaluru have formed groups on social medias- like Facebook to complain about potholes. These groups pinpoint many problems, but are the civic agencies paying any heed?

Trash lands at door of Vrishabhavathi bank dwellers As the skies opened up on Thursday, the woes of the 22 persons who live by the highly polluted Vrishabhavathi river off the Bengaluru-Mysuru road mounted. The water level rose so much that the five families had to scurry for cover elsewhere, their hovels under the danger of being submerged. The river carried to their doorstep garbage from other parts of Bengaluru. In its September 5 issue, The Observer had written about these people, who live amid filth and have cats, dogs and rats for company | Credit: Ayushi Singh

t

aya Menon, who has worked in the field of education for more than 30 years, tells The Observer what has gone wrong with formative assessment — tests conducted by teachers in the middle of the term to understand the student's position in class. Steps should be taken to provide children better help to improve their education, the founder director of The Teacher Foundation says. Excerpts from a phone interview: Q: Is the formative assessment test helping the student at all?

A: First, we need to correct the idea that a formative assessment equals a test, because it is not so.

It is done to inform the teacher how much the child has learnt.

The CBSE spoils the understanding of formative assessment by making it a test. “Formative” can be likened to a doctor using a thermometer to diagnose a child.

This information is for the teacher so he/she can take corrective measures to enhance the child’s development Q: The Teachers’ Association prepares question papers despite instructions by the Department of Public Instruction that respective subject teachers should prepare them.

A: This is what the government has to take measures against. It is their teachers; they should make sure the set is set by those who are assigned to do so, and not by the associations. And that is not something which you or I can change. The government knows and should do something about it.

Q: Aren’t glitches in the system hampering the student’s state of mind?

A: There are lots of glitches….

But children are resilient and have this amazing capacity to overcome all these. But that does not make it OK to do so. A child is forced to cope with all the mess that we create in schools and during examinations. It’s not fair, it’s not right and it’s certainly not

how we raise the youth of our country. We have to put the child’s interest fisrt. Often, decisions at schools are taken based on convenience rather than on what is required for children. We need to get out of this.

Q: If the system is hampering children, do you think they should be informed about it?

A: Even if we inform them, they are too young to make decisions.

By the time they are old enough, they are already out of school, and all those years in school go waste.

Who has to make those demands then? It is their parents and teachers. It is a huge responsibil-

Observer interview

Always keep the child’s interest at heart, says educator Maya Menon ity, particularly of teachers and departments of education, to make decisions with the child’s interest at heart. In a country like India where many children are underprivileged , the parents do not have the right means to take proper decisions.

Q: Are there alternative ways to help educate the child?

A: Of course. There are a lot of tested methods, including our current work in training and supporting teachers. We take in teachers who are already working in a school. Then we do a needs analysis, where we analyze what the school needs and how the teachers teach. Based on that, we work out a list of primary areas that need to be improved.

Then we train teachers in methods that help them impart education more efficiently.

CITY

2

The Observer Friday, October 6, 2017

Pedestrians jump over Story of the man divider, put lives in peril who became a woman at 45

Many are unaware that a subway exists at Majestic

Anjana Basumatary anjana.b@iijnm.org

J

Athul M athul.m@iijnm.org

E

very day, hundreds of people endanger their lives by jumping over a road divider in front of the Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna railway station. Many end up injuring themselves, according to people who work in the vicinity.

Most of them, particularly those new to Bengaluru, do not use the subway that connects the railway station to the Majestic bus station, from where BMTC and KSRTC buses leave.

Vijay Kumar, manager at Fair Deal Travels, a business establishment located near the railway station, informed The Observer that he sees people jumping over the iron divider every day. “Both pedestrians as well as motorists meet with accidents when the former try to cross over the railings in a hurry. Two or three such accidents happen every day.”

Rajesh, a roadside cloth vendor near the bus station, said: “Earlier, police had put up a board asking people to not jump over, but it disappeared. It was stolen.”

But many people just don’t pay

SAFER OPTION NOT USED: Many people who jump over the road divider are unaware of the subway that connects the railway station and the bus stand | Credit: Athul M heed to what police say.

Samiullah, head constable at the Cottonpet police station, said pedestrians never listen to warnings; they also don’t know there is a subway connecting the two transport hubs. “People rarely make use of the subway, which is open from 4am to 11pm.”

Muzammil, a fruit juice vendor near the Majestic bus station, said an extended fly over from the bus

depot might solve the problem.

“People who are new to the city, or are unaware of the subway, hop over the divider,” he added.

There is an issue that keeps women from using the subway: Concern over their safety.

“Women avoid the subway because they do not think it is safe enough. Even young girls are seen climbing over the divider,” said Damodar, an auto driver.

Sales of khadi nosedive, shopowners blame GST Kritika Agrawal Kritika.a@iijnm.org

P

rime Minister Narendra Modi may have asked people to support the growth of the khadi sector, but the ground reality seems different. This Gandhi Jayanti, sales of the fabric were down because of GST, according to shopkeepers.

Sales have been down this year after the implementation of GST, says Rajesh, manager of Khadi Bhandar on Old Airport Road.

There is 5% GST on khadi cloth and 12% on the purchase and sales above Rs 1,000.

“My sales have got down by 35%-40% after GST,” says Saurabh Goel, owner of Khadi Bhandar on Dispensary Road, Shivajinagar.

Shantanu Garg, who owns 10 Khadi Bhandars in Bengaluru, told The Observer: “There is not much effect of 12% GST on sales as most of the products are priced under Rs 1,000. But suppliers have incurred some losses due to it.” On the other hand, ” expensive products like quilts and leather products that attract 28% GST have faced losses”.

ThEy DON’T MATCh: Low sales belie official claims that sales of khadi have gone up | Credit: Kritika Agrawal In his September 24 Mann Ki Baat address to the nation, Modi had said: “Khadi is not a fabric but an idea, a principle. I have noticed that these days interest in khadi has increased…. Sale of khadi has increased, and as a result of this, the poor man’s household has directly got connected to employment. Discount is offered on khadi from 2nd October and people get quite a good rebate. I once again urge that we should try and take forward the khadi movement.”

Dsimappa, manager of Khadi

Bhandar in Banashankari, said: “Sales have been affected as compared to last year; they have gone down to Rs 1 lakh from Rs 5 lakh.”

But due to Dasara and Gandhi Jayanti, sales have picked up.

At its meeting on September 9, the GST Council decided to exempt khadi fabric sold through Khadi and Village Industries Commission from the 5% GST. But the decision doesn not appear to have brought relief to small businesspersons who sell khadi and garments made from it.

essica Lynn, 52, an international speaker and lawyer, came to India to educate people about the transgender community.

A transgender woman, shares her experiences with The Observer on how she dealt with depression till the time of her transition, and how she fought for her rights as a transgender woman. Excerpts from an interview: Q: You have been giving talks in various institutes in Bengaluru. What do you think stops people from talking about their sexuality? What was going on in your mind when you were young?

A: Transgenders don’t like to talk about their sexuality even if they can because they are scared.

When I was five years old, I felt I was the only person born like that and my parents would probably kick me out of the house if I told them. I was terrified thinking I would have to beg for money. So why would I go and tell my mom and dad? The older generation does not seem to care about the transgender community; they will probably ask to get out of the house. Young people… need to educate others. It will take time, but we need to keep educating.

Q: What did you go through when you wanted to come out?

A: I knew that I wanted to be a girl when I was five. To distract myself from all those thoughts, I involved myself in different activities: Drawing, collecting stamps and watching TV….I started drinking when I was 13.

Coming out gets harder when a transgender grows older. I told my girlfriend when I was 17. But later she was killed. Then I started taking drugs and alcohol.

I informed my parents when I was 44 because I couldn’t live as a man anymore. I was suicidal; deprived of sleep for five days; and would walk like zombie. I used to take anti- anxiety pills prescribed by a doctor in California. One day, I called a friend and told that I am going to take pills and in turn, he informed my two brothers. One of them called police. They rushed me to hospital, where I almost

died. Later I was admitted to a psychiatric hospital where I was treated for 10 days. There I was told by a doctor that I could’t survive as a man anymore…. At the age of 45, I had a sex-reassignment surgery.

Q: It has been proven that during depression, keeping emotions within can devastate a person both physically and psychologically. What health issues did you face during that phase of your life?

A: If a person has stress, he gets ulcers. I have been suffering from ulcers all my life… and would pass blood in the stools. I used to

Observer interview

Jessica Lynn,transgender activist bleed constantly...,and would cry all day as my lower abdomen pained every time.

Q: Your website says that when you were young, your parents knew about your sexuality; but the psychologist they had consulted asked them to raise you as a boy.

Why did he ask your parents to raise you as a boy?

A: The psychologist, John Money, worked in John Hopkins University in 1970. He is considered an evil in the transgender community... He believed that if a boy child was raised as a girl, they would be happy.

During a medical experiment on twin baby boys, he accidentally cut off one of the baby’s penis and asked his parents to raise him as a girl. No one questioned his concept as he worked at a reputed University and was a proponent of the theory of “gender neutrality”. He asked my parents to raise me as a boy.

Observer Team Editor- Ayushi Singh News Editor- Arlene Mathew Copy Editor- Rachel Dammala Page Layout- Athul M, Kritika Agrawal Web Design- Debanjali Kabiraj, Barnana Hemoprava Sarkar Photo Editor- Anjana Basumatary