Page 108 - Social Issues
Economist Jean Dreze detained in Jharkhand briefly
Noted economist Jean Dreze was detained in Jharkhand's Garwah district on Thursday for allegedly holding a public meeting without permission, an official said. He was later released.
Facebook charged with housing discrimination by HUD
The federal government charged Facebookwith high-tech housing discrimination Thursday for allegedly allowing landlords and real estate brokers to systematically exclude groups such as non-Christians, immigrants and minorities from seeing ads for houses and apartments. The civil charges filed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development could cost the social network millions of dollars in penalties. But more than that, they strike at the heart of Facebook's business model its vaunted ability to deliver ads with surgical precision to certain groups of people and not others. "Facebook is discriminating against people based upon who they are and where they live," HUD Secretary Ben Carson said. "Using a computer to limit a person's housing choices can be just as discriminatory as slamming a door in someone's face." In a statement, Facebook expressed surprise over the charges, saying it has been working with HUD to address its concerns and has taken steps to prevent discrimination, ..
Twitter may tag rule-breaking Trump tweets
Twitter said Thursday it could start tagging tweets from newsworthy figures such as US President Donald Trump that break its rules, while stopping short of deleting them. The one-to-many messaging platform used extensively by Trump to fire off comments, some of them inflammatory, said it is exploring ways to add context to tweets considered to be of legitimate public interest but which violate its terms of service. "Twitter is exploring ways to provide more context around tweets that violate our rules, but are newsworthy and in the legitimate public interest," the company said in an emailed statement. A day earlier, Twitter's trust and safety chief Vijaya Gadde made similar remarks asked about abusive tweets, which may be from a public figure such as Trump. Gadde said during an on-stage interview at a Washington Post technology forum in San Francisco that Twitter was looking at ways to "put some context around it so people are aware that that content is actually a violation of our ...
Special initiative to make polls accessible to persons with disabilities in Assam
Assam Chief Election Officer (CEO) Mukesh Sahu launched the special 'Enajori' intitative here on Thursday to make the Lok Sabha elections accessible to Persons with Disability (PwD) voters. CEO Sahu launched the initiative through a video-conference in the presence of all Additional Deputy Commissioners, district officials of the Social Welfare Department, District Managers of Common Service Centres (CSCs) and officers of Systematic Voters' Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP). It is a joint initiative of CEO Assam and Social Welfare Department with an objective to make Lok Sabha Election 2019 accessible for PwD voters, the spirit of which finds an encouraging place in the Constitution of India under Article 326, a government release said. Section 11 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 states that Election Commission of India and State Election Commissions shall ensure that all polling stations are accessible to persons with disabilities and all materials ...
Kargil War veteran with prosthetic leg performs first 'successful Skydive'
Major DP Singh, a retired soldier of the Indian Army and a Kargil War veteran, performed a first-ever successful Skydive here on Thursday endorsing the "Spirit of Adventure" for all disabled soldiers who suffered physical or war injuries during peace or wartime.Widely known as "Indian Blade Runner", Major Singh was trained by the Indian Army for this. The training started on March 18 this year.Major DP Singh had lost one of his legs during Kargil War.Indian Army is observing 2018 as the 'Year of disabled soldiers in the line of duty' to celebrate the 'undying spirit of soldiering'.
7.53 lakh smart speakers shipped in India in 2018: IDC
About 7.53 lakh units of smart speakers were shipped in India in 2018 with Amazon accounting for 59 per cent market share, according to research firm IDC. IDC defines smart speakers as speakers embedded with a smart assistant directly in the speaker itself. As per the IDC report, Google - which launched its smart speakers (Google Home) in India in second quarter of 2018 - ranked second in the tally with 39 per cent share of the units shipped in 2018. Smart speakers were first introduced to the Indian market in the fourth quarter of 2017 when Amazon launched its Echo range of devices in the country, IDC said adding that since then, more than half a dozen companies have launched their devices in this category. "Though the smart speaker is a relatively young product in India, the integration of voice assistants such as Alexa and Google Assistant in smart devices is gaining immense popularity in the country," IDC India Associate Research Manager (Client Devices) Jaipal Singh said. The ...
BJP in 'state of war' with everybody who works for poor: Rahul on Dreze detention
Congress president Rahul Gandhi Thursday expressed concern over noted economist Jean Dreze's detention in BJP-ruled Jharkhand, alleging the party was in a "state of war" with everybody who works for the poor and the downtrodden. Dreze and another person were Thursday taken into preventive custody for violating the model code of conduct by organising a meeting without permission in Jharkhand's Garhwa district, police said. Dreze, who was a member of the National Advisory Council headed by Sonia Gandhi during the erstwhile UPA government, and Vivek Gupta, an activist, were eventually released. "I am extremely concerned about Mr. Dreze's detention. The BJP is in a state of war with everybody who works for the poor & the downtrodden," Gandhi said in a Facebook post. Dreze is a specialist in Development Economics and had helped draft the food law.
US department charges Facebook with housing ad bias
The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) on Thursday charged Facebook with housing discrimination, saying the social media giant encouraged and caused housing discrimination through ad targeting.
SC to hear fresh plea on CBI probe in Muzaffarpur shelter home case after 2 weeks
The Supreme Court Thursday agreed to hear after two weeks a fresh plea alleging that CBI tried to "shield the real perpetrators" in the Muzaffarpur shelter home case by not conducting proper probe on "crucial leads" which are available on record. Several girls were allegedly raped and sexually abused at an NGO-run shelter home at Muzaffarpur in Bihar and the issue had come to light following a report by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS). The probe into the case was transferred to CBI and the agency has chargesheeted 21 people, including prime accused Brajesh Thakur. The fresh application was mentioned on Thursday for urgent hearing before a bench of Justices S A Bobde and S A Nazeer which said the matter would be heard after two weeks. The plea, filed through advocate Fauzia Shakil, has sought a direction to the CBI to carry out a thorough, proper and scientific probe into the case. "It is evident from the statement of victims that a large scale prostitution racket was ...
Detention of noted economist Jean Dreze shows how anti-people BJP is, says CPI(M)
Accusing the BJP of being anti-people, the CPI(M) on Thursday came down hard on the government over the arrest of noted economist Jean Dreze. Dreze and activist Vivek Gupta were taken into preventive custody for violating the model code of conduct by organising a meeting without permission in Jharkhand's Garhwa district and later released after an investigation, police earlier said. Jean Dreze was a member of the National Advisory Council headed by Sonia Gandhi during the erstwhile UPA regime. "CPIM strongly condemns the arrest of noted Economist Jean Dreze in Jharkhand for organizing a Right to Food meeting! Faced with severe criticism the Govt was forced to release him," the party tweeted. The Belgian-born development economist is known for his activism on the right to food and has co-authored 'Hunger and Public Action' with Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, which focussed on the problem of hunger in the modern world. Dreze is currently an honorary professor at the Delhi School of ...
BJP candidate jailed for attack on Sabarimala devotee
BJP's Kozhikode Lok Sabha candidate Prakash Babu was on Thursday sent to jail by a court in a case relating to attack on a woman devotee at Sabarimala in November last year.
Need for govt, masses to jointly overcome challenges: Venkaiah
: In spite of the remarkable progress achieved in various fields from space to agriculture, the country has many challenges, Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu Thursday said there was a need for the government and civil society to come together for addressing the challenges. The Vice-President said this while delivering a memorial lecture organised by Badrivishal Pannalal Pitti Trust here. He said every citizen must become an agent of change and contribute to the building of a more empathetic, caring and harmonious society. "Ours is a rich, ancient civilisation and from time immemorial we believed in the philosophy of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam,' he said. "At one time, India was called 'Vishwaguru' and we contributed upto 27 per cent of the world GDP. Following waves of foreign invasions and colonisation, we lost our pre-eminent position," he said. "Today, India is on the rise again. Worldover, the country is respected for its economic growth, democratic values and for ...
Vedanta sets up 500th 'Nand Ghar' in Jaipur
Diversified natural resources firm Vedanta Group Thursday announced the setting up of its 500th 'Nand Ghar' -- a community resource centre for underprivileged children and women. The Nand Ghar project focusses on issues relating to pre-primary education, healthcare, nutrition for children and economic empowerment for women in rural India and has been designed in partnership with the Ministry of Women and Child Development. Under this project, a flagship initiative of Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta Group, the company plans to set up 4,000 such centres across the country. It has earmarked an outlay of Rs 800 crore for setting up the said number of Nand Ghar across India. "500th Nand Ghar was inaugurated at Chaksu Block in Jaipur and with this the initiative has reached out to more than 17,000 children and 15,000 women..." Vedanta said in a statement. Anil Agarwal, Founder and Chairman, Vedanta Group, had earlier said Vedanta will build 4,000 'Nand Ghar' as part of its corporate social ...
Tripura second in country in child marriage, says report
Tripura occupies the second position in India in terms of child marriages among girls between 15-19 years of age, an international study has found. Over 80 percent of total child marriages in the state take place in rural areas of three districts, said the report. "Tripura occupies the second position with respect to highest prevalence of child marriage among girls aged 15-19 years at 21.6 per cent which is significantly higher than the national average of 11.9 per cent," said Young Lives - an international study on childhood poverty, quoting data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS). The study is a collaborative research project coordinated by a team based at the University of Oxford. Young Lives India Coordinator Suntala Khan said the study found four districts of Tripura in the list of top 100 districts of the country which have the highest prevalence of child marriages. Khan addressed a workshop on "Development of multi-spectral action plan to child marriage .
European rights watchdog sets legal 'first' with sexism definition
The Council of Europe rights group said Thursday that it had formulated the first internationally agreed definition of sexism, in a bid to help governments put an end to discrimination and violence against women. In recommendations to its 47 member states, the council made a specific link between prejudice and violence against women, and urged governments to criminalise "sexist hate speech". The call for more intense actions comes in the wake of the #MeToo movement against sexist assault which emerged in the wake of the slew of allegations against Hollywood titan Harvey Weinstein in 2017. "Acts of 'everyday' sexism are part of a continuum of violence creating a climate of intimidation, fear, discrimination, exclusion and insecurity which limits opportunities and freedom," the council said. It called on government leaders and other public figures to promptly denounce discriminatory speech or acts in order to combat longstanding gender stereotypes. The text defines sexism as acts, ...
CPI(M) manifesto proposes curbing of mass surveillance, statutory minimum wage of Rs 18,000
The CPI(M) Thursday proposed curbing of mass surveillance, statutory minimum wage of not less than Rs 18,000 per month and checking monopolies over telecom and internet service platforms in its manifesto for the coming Lok Sabha elections. This is the first time when the Left party has mentioned digital rights of citizens in its manifesto. The CPI(M) said it would recognise digital infrastructure as public infrastructure and stop mass surveillance by state agencies under section 69 of the IT Act. "There should be clear provisions and judicial supervision of any surveillance that violates citizens privacy. Enact data privacy laws that protect the people against appropriation/misuse of users private data for commercial use," said CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury while releasing the manifesto along with Polit Bureau members Brinda Karat, Prakash Karat and Nilotpal Basu. He said the party would curb monopoly of some telecom majors. The manifesto also proposed the scrapping of the .
Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind hands over 85 houses to Muzaffarnagar riots victims
The Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind (JUEH) Thursday handed over 85 newly constructed houses to the people who were displaced during the 2013 riots at Bagowalivillage in Muzaffarnagar district. Addressing a function, JUEH national president Arshad Madani said the organisation has built a 'Jamiat colony' and handed over the houses to the people who were displaced during the riots in Muzaffarnagar. More than 60 people were killed and over 40,000 displaced during the Muzaffarnagar riots.
CST bridge collapse case: Auditor Neeraj Desai sent to judicial custody till April 10
A magistrate's court on Thursday sent Neeraj Desai, the auditor of the CSMT Bridge which collapsed on March 14, to judicial custody till April 10.On March 19, Esplanade Court had sent Desai to police custody till March 25.Six people were killed and over 30 injured after a portion of the overbridge near the crowded Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus railway station collapsed on the evening of March 14.
1 in 4 Indian voters doubt EVM's authenticity: Survey
About 25 per cent of young Indian voters are doubtful of the authenticity of the electronic voting machine (EVM), according to a new survey by news app Inshorts.
Rise in farmers' suicide due to Cong's wrong policies: Patel
Chairman of the Maharashtra Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP), Pasha Patel, Thursday blamed the "faulty" policies of the erstwhile Congress-led government in the state for the rise in suicide of farmers over the last five years. Patel, once a close aide of late BJP leader Gopinath Munde, had been appointed as the chief of the CACP in July 2017. "Earlier, the agriculture export from India used to be some 30 million USD. But after the BJP government came to power in 2014, it has gone up to 100 million USD," he told reporters here. Replying to a query over the rise in farmers' suicide in Maharashtra, he said, "Farmers' suicides have increased in the last five years due to the faulty policies of the Congress...But the condition of farmers will improve from now on." Patel added that the food habits of Indians have been changed for commercial interests. "For instance, the use of palm oil in our kitchen has increased, mainly due to the commercial interests ...