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The Daily Janchetna

Year11, Issue:19, Friday, Nov.27,2020.

. Message of the Day .

Fulfillment of the basic needs of its members by the society is logical from legal, moral and emotional angles. There has been a legal provision (punishment) to compensate the losses occurred by an accident. Birth of a child is also an accident, intentional or unintentional. The child has no consent in his birth. He does not play any role in it. Instead, he is cursed with the life long struggle. Therefore, this is a moral duty of the society to compensate for his struggle in life. He should, at least, be provided with the minimum he needs to survive. Legally, too, we are bound to do the needful because we have been responsible for the accident; we brought him in our world. Besides, businesslike arguments, we have emotional aspect to consider. All these are our children. Only they will carry out with our races, their customs, and traditions. Why are we engaging them in the struggle for earning livelihood when all the other species in the universe has been living on the blessings of nature? Mankind has much more to do in the world. They ought to be exempted from earning to meet both ends meet.

.  History of Mankind-7 .

The deep-sea vent theory suggests that life may have begun at submarine hydrothermal vents spewing key hydrogen-rich molecules. Their rocky nooks could then have concentrated these molecules together and provided mineral catalysts for critical reactions. Even now, these vents, rich in chemical and thermal energy, sustain vibrant ecosystems.

The next idea is a chilling thought.

Ice might have covered the oceans 3 billion years ago, as the sun was about a third less luminous than it is now, scientists say. This layer of ice, possibly hundreds of feet thick, might have protected fragile organic compounds in the water below from ultraviolet light and destruction from cosmic impacts. The cold might have also helped these molecules to survive longer, allowing key reactions to happen

. Today’s History .

27th November

Important Events:

1888 — Ganesh Mavalankar, Speaker of Constituent Assembly and first Speaker of Lok Sabha, was born

1907 — Harivansh Rai Bachchan, Hindi poet, was born  

1952 — Bappi Lahiri, music director in Indian film industry, was born  

1986 — Suresh Raina, Indian cricketer, was born  

2011— Ustad Sultan Khan, sarangi player and vocalist, passed away

Vishwanath Pratap Singh

India’s seventh prime minister, Vishwanath Pratap Singh, who championed the cause of backward castes, was born in a landlord’s family on June 25, 1931, in Allahabad (now in Uttar Pradesh). He died on November 27, 2008, after suffering from multiple ailments for several years.

In 1936, he was adopted by Raja Bahadur Ram Gopal Singh of Manda; after Ram Gopal’s death, V.P. Singh effectively became the Raja Bahadur of Manda. He studied at Dehradun’s Colonel Brown Cambridge School. Politically inclined from a young age, he held senior posts in student unions at Varanasi and Allahabad. He studied law at Udai Pratap College in Varanasi, and physics at Pune’s Fergusson College. He considered becoming a nuclear scientist at one stage, but the pull of politics was stronger.

In 1969 he was elected to the Uttar Pradesh legislative assembly. There was no looking back after that. In 1971 he was elected to the Lok Sabha. In 1974, he became the deputy minister of commerce in the Indira Gandhi government. He served as minister of state for commerce between 1974 and 1976.

 With the Congress coming back to power in 1980, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi made Singh the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh. He offered to resign two years later after publically admitting that he could not fully solve the problem of banditry that was endemic to some regions of the state.

After Rajiv Gandhi became prime minister in 1984, V.P. Singh was made the union finance minister. V.P. Singh’s image was that of an honest man, and he took measures to tackle gold smuggling and crack down on tax evaders. “He was the man chosen by Rajiv Gandhi to start hacking away at the chains that had bound the Indian economy for several decades,” Mint wrote in a profile on V.P. Singh following his death. “He was the original reformer. Business houses will also remember the raids he ordered against tax offenders, which were not as unjustified as many believe.”

In a controversial move, he was shifted to the defence ministry. As defence minister, V.P. Singh took a hard look at shady deals in defence procurement, including the Bofors deal. Eventually, he was dismissed from the Cabinet, and he, in turn, resigned both from the Congress and the Lok Sabha.

Singh formed a new political outfit called the Jan Morcha and was re-elected to the Lok Sabha after winning the by-poll from Allahabad.

In October 1988, the Jan Morcha merged with other anti-Congress parties, the Janata Party, Lok Dal and Congress (S), to form the Janata Dal, with V.P. Singh as its president. The Janata Dal joined hands with regional players such as the DMK to form the National Front.

In the 1989 Lok Sabha elections the National Front, with electoral support from the BJP and Left parties, won a majority and formed the government, with the Left and the BJP providing outside support.

Singh became prime minister on December 2, 1989, and Devil Lal his deputy.

Though Singh did not complete even a year in office, it was a tumultuous time for India — Kashmir exploded in violence and the Mandal and Mandir movements caused immense social upheaval.  Meanwhile, even as regional parties grew more powerful in several parts of the country, the right-wing BJP consolidated its position.

V.P. Singh is perhaps best remembered for stirring the caste cauldron by implementing the recommendations of the Mandal Commission and reserving jobs for backward castes. There were violent demonstrations against the move, with many students setting themselves ablaze in protest. But at the same time he “irreversibly changed the course of Indian politics, bringing to the fore the power of backwards and Dalits in electoral politics”, as a news report put it after his death.

With the Ram Janmabhoomi movement gathering steam and L.K. Advani taking out a rath yatra in its support, Singh intervened by arresting the BJP leader before he could reach Ayodhya. The kar sevaks were not allowed to build a temple on the disputed site. Consequently, the BJP stopped giving outside support to the National Front, leading to the fall of the V.P. Singh government.

Singh could never make an effective comeback to the centrestage of Indian politics. He also faced long and debilitating battles on the health front, and had to fight cancer and kidney ailments. “What I had planned has gone awry. What do you do? I think acceptance is best. I know the kidney has failed. There’s nothing to do, nothing I can do or anyone can do,” he told India Today magazine in a poignant interview in 1997, while undergoing treatment in London. “So accept it. You compromise like I have to do. You prepare yourself. If you can’t extend the days of your life, then enhance its quality. At this stage, why should I miss life? I’ve lived it all…

There are very few years and whatever years I have, why should I lose them wandering about?”

The ‘Raja of Manda’ died at Delhi’s Apollo Hospital on November 27, 2008. Writing in The Guardian, Mark Tully described V.P. Singh as “an unusual Indian politician, renowned for his obsession with honesty and his willingness to sacrifice office”. Tully added, “He was shy, with a slightly nervous laugh, but to those who knew him he fully justified his public image of honesty, being open to discussion of any aspect of his career and willing to accept criticism.”

. Current .

Contribution by the Second Nanak

Guru Angad Dev-2

Another contribution of Guru Angad Dev is preservation of Gurbani in its original form. Guru Nanak Dev used to record his compositions in a note book. He did collect compositions of many Bhagats during his tours (known as Udasis) and recorded them in the said note book.

When the command of Gurmat was bestowed to Guru Angad Dev, Guru Nanak handed over that note book to the Second Nanak. Guru Angad Dev not only preserved the compositions in their original form, he recorded his own compositions in the note book. His compositions are small in number but are explanatory in nature. He has explained many concepts of the Gurmat.

For example, Guru Nanak in Rag Assa appreciates Guru by pronouncing that a hundred times a day, I am a sacrifice unto my Guru, who without making any delay, make angels out of men. (G.G.S.-Page 462).

Guru Angad Dev, on the other hand, appreciated Guru by pronouncing that if hundred moons arise and a thousand suns appear, even with such light, there would be pitch darkness without the Guru.(G.G.S.-Page 463)

Guru Angad Dev managed to preserve Sikh History also. He met Guru Nanak in his old age in 1532 A.D. Thus he was not aware of his early life. He made many attempts to recollect life of Guru Nanak. Childhood events were collected from Talwandi. Some events were narrated by Bhai Lal, uncle of Guru Nanak. Some were told by others.

Guru Angad Dev also got the events related to Guru Nanak, narrated by the visitors recorded. Thus a tradition of writing Janam Sakhis was emerged and Sikh History was preserved. The largest part of the Sikh History has come from Janam Sakhis itself.

According to general opinion among Sikhs, Guru Angad Dev invented Gurmukhi Script to preserve Punjabi literature. Punjabi had no specific script at that time. Muslims used Persian and Hindus used Sharda or Takari to write Punjabi. All these scripts are not suitable for Punjabi. Therefore, Guru Angad Dev invented a script suitable for writing Punjabi. Now, that script is known as Gurmukhi.

Linguistists don’t subscribe to this view. According to them, scripts are developed, not invented. Gurmukhi is no exception. This was in use at the time of Guru Nanak Dev also and he composed Patti by using this script.

But Sikh scholars insist that Gurmukhi script was invented and used by Guru Angad Dev. They present some old scriptures as proof in favor of their conception. Saroop Dass Bhalla wrote in 1776 AD that Guru Angad Dev invented Gurmukhi script  after getting instructions from Guru Nanak and he published a book in this script.

Giani Gian Singh wrote: In Bikrami Samvat 1598, Guru Angad Dev invented Gurmukhi script and asked Bhai Paira Mokha to write life history of Guru Nanak as told by Bhai Bala. This was named Janam Sakhi and published in Bikrami Samvat 1600.

Some modern historians also subscribe to the view that Guru Angad Dev invented Gurmukhi script but a general analysis reveals that Gurmukhi script was in use at the time of Guru Nanak Dev. Guru Angad Dev remained in his service for seven years coping and editing his compositions. After his demise, Guru Angad made serious efforts to develop the script. He insisted that Gurbani be written in Gurmukhi only. That was the biggest boost to the script.

Conclusion of the discussion is that the contribution of Guru Angad Dev is multiple and distinct.

. Informative .

World English Dictionary

culture  (ˈkʌltʃə)
.....n
1.	the total of the inherited ideas, beliefs, values, and knowledge, which constitute the shared bases of social action
2.	the total range of activities and ideas of a group of people with shared traditions, which are transmitted and reinforced by members of the group: the Mayan culture
3.	a particular civilization at a particular period
4.	the artistic and social pursuits, expression, and tastes valued by a society or class, as in the arts, manners, dress, etc
5.	the enlightenment or refinement resulting from these pursuits
6.	the attitudes, feelings, values, and behaviour that characterize and inform society as a whole or any social group within it: yob culture
7.	the cultivation of plants, esp by scientific methods designed to improve stock or to produce new ones
8.	stockbreeding  the rearing and breeding of animals, esp with a view to improving the strain
9.	the act or practice of tilling or cultivating the soil
10.	biology
	a. See also culture medium the experimental growth of microorganisms, such as bacteria and fungi, in a nutrient substance (culture medium), usually under controlled conditions
	b. a group of microorganisms grown in this way
— vb
11.	to cultivate (plants or animals)
12.	to grow (microorganisms) in a culture medium
[C15: from Old French, from Latin cultūra  a cultivating, from colere  to till; see cult ]