The Observer
An IIJNM publication
Migrant workers staying in Bengaluru find it hard to survive in dismal living conditions | P 3
Vol. 21, Issue 26
Tuesday, April 19, 2022
Are forced to pay interest at 20% a month By Tina Freese
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Will CUET help? Karnataka students divided
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arnataka students hold mixed views on the Common University Entrance Test (CUET), made mandatory by the UGC for students to seek admission to undergraduate courses in 45 central universities, reports Chhavi Vohra. Some students say the move will be beneficial as they won’t have to face high cut-offs in order to seek admission. It’ll also act as a relief from mugging textbook information. Others say CBSE students will benefit more from the CUET and students from other boards, like ICSE and state boards, will be at a disadvantage comparitively. CUET, a computer-based test, will be conducted in the first week of July based on the NCERT syllabus for class 12. ►Full story on page 2
Most sex workers aren’t able to get loans from banks because they lack permanent address | Courtesy: Pexels to take loans from private individuals. “I had to pay my youngest child’s college fees. We always live with a financial crunch. We don’t have any savings. It was a matter of survival for us. I had to take loans from private sources even though the interest rate on it was very high.”
Ratna (name changed), 38, a mother of three, had a similar story to tell. “The lockdown was a shock to me. My children are very young; they cannot help me financially. I am the sole breadwinner of the family. To afford a one-time meal was becoming difficult for me. I borrowed money
from a man who lends to people like us. I am still paying off the installments of that loan.” Many sex workers couldn’t pay their house rents and other bills, forcing them to take loans. Chetna (name changed) was almost thrown out of her house as she couldn’t pay the rent. “I did not know what to do, so I opted for a loan of Rs 20,000 to make ends meet.” Interest rates are as high as 18-20 per cent a month. Laxmi informed The Observer she has to pay 18 per cent interest on the money she borrowed. “The interest rates are high, but there is no other way. We can’t avail of loans from banks. What choice do we have?” Most sex workers in Bengaluru aren’t able to get loans from banks because they lack of a permanent address and a permanent source of income. “Which bank will provide us loans? We don’t have any permanent income or residential address,” Laxmi shared. ►Continued on page 2
Heavy rain shows the red signal to construction of Yellow line
Residents and vendors facing difficulties
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News Briefs
Blasts near Kabul school injure kids Explosions near Abdul Rahim Shaheed High School and inside an education centre have injured many children. Many more casualties are feared, according to Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran and the city’s Emergency Hospital. Till now, no one has claimed the responsibility for the explosive attack.
Stock market crashes for 2nd day running
The stock market crashed for a second consecutive day on Tuesday. The BSE Sensex fell 703 points, whereas the NSE Nifty closed at 16,958. HDFC fell 3.55 per cent, HDFC Bank 2.73 per cent and Infosys 1.28 per cent. Reliance gained 4 per cent followed by ICICI Bank, SBI and Bajaj Finance.
Religious marches in UP need permission
Amidst the ongoing communal violence going on in various parts of the nation, UP CM Yogi Adityanath has ordered that no religious processions should be taken out without permission. Permission will be granted to only those religious processions which are traditional. The use of loudspeakers should not cause inconvenience to anyone
Semiconductor meet in B’luru on April 29
Semicon India 2022 will be inaugurated in Bengaluru by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 29. The theme of the event is ‘Design and Manufacture in India, for the World: Making India a Semiconductor Nation’.
Vaidyanathan is new CEO of P&G India
By Saumyangi Yadav
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he construction of the Yellow line of Namma Metro has slowed down again in the past few days due to heavy rain and waterlogging. Ravi S., who works as a welder on a contract basis for BMRCL, informed The Observer: “The construction had been going at a good pace for the past 4-5 months, but it has slowed down in the past few days due to rain.… I think here (near Bommanahalli), the construction work of metro will take two more years to be completed.”
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Congress party protests against BJP over PSI scam, accuses it of taking bribes from mutts | P 4
Sex workers find it difficult to repay high-interest loans
ex workers in Bengaluru are struggling to repay loans they took during the pandemic. High interest rates and few clients have made it difficult for them, they say. Every business was adversely affected when the Covid-19 pandemic hit the country in March 2020. Sex workers were the worst hit section of society. Laxmi (name changed), 60, who has been in the sex trade industry for more than three decades, says the lockdown days were the worst she has seen. “I have seen difficult days in my life. My husband abandoned me with four kids to feed, but I managed. (But) the lockdown months were the worst days of my life.” To make ends meet, they had
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The roads are littered with piles of cement, rubble and construction material | Credit: Saumyangi Yadav At the time of going to press, the BMRCL PRO had not responded to The Observer’s request for his reaction. The construction of the Yellow metro line began in the year
2016. Earlier, the Metro elevated corridor had a 2022-end deadline. However, it seems unlikely that the construction work will be completed by year end. ►Continued on page 2
Procter & Gamble, world’s largest consumer goods company has appointed LV Vaidyanathan as CEO of its India operations effective from July 1, 2022. He will succeed Madhusudan Gopalan, who will be the senior vice-president at the global level.
Gunfight in Kolkata injures two people
A rivalry over construction work in Bansdroni in Kolkata led to the injury of two people, the police said. Biswanath Singh alias Bachchu fired at Malay Dutta, a businessman in Brahmapur.