Is the RSS chief serious about eradicating caste system?
Is the RSS chief serious about eradicating caste system?
Alka Dhupkar
TNN
May 1, 2025, 20:18 IST
The RSS chief's call for 'one temple, one well, one crematorium' for all Indians is just what the country needs in these fractious times. But is he and his organisation serious about it?
In a recent speech in Aligarh, the head of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh ( RSS ), Mohan Bhagwat , called on volunteers of the organisation to work towards ending deep-rooted social discrimination and to ensure social harmony.
He suggested that one way to achieve this was to have 'one temple, one well, one crematorium' for all Indians. The speech isn't available in the public domain, but source-based news reports suggested that Bhagwat was advocating for the end of caste system and caste-based discrimination.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Grief, grace, and gratitude – in a time of tragedy
In this week of absolute tragedy, it is a moment for us to stand in solidarity with Air India. I am writing this in Vienna, sitting on the tarmac of the airport, where our Air India flight from Newark to New Delhi has been diverted, along with several others because of Israel's overnight strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities. The aviation challenge — seven Air India flights have been diverted to Vienna alone — has been necessitated because the Iran airspace is closed and the Pakistan airspace has been closed since Operation Sindoor. The aircraft needs more fuel for this unforecastable geopolitical development and a new flight path to take us home. Captain Sunil Simon, crew members Suresh, Khushboo, among others are all well beyond their duty hours. But no one has shown a single sign of irritability or strain. That this has happened hours after the horrific crash of London-bound Air India 171, less than a minute after take-off, makes this stellar professionalism even more remarkable. Imagine, operating in the traumatic overhang of losing your colleagues and friends to an air crash. Consider what the last few hours have been like for the airline staff to have to remain stoic, even smiling, in the immediate aftermath of a massive personal tragedy. And now this latest strain on their emotions and mental strength. Yet, how many of us will take a moment to appreciate the airline. If anything, it's something of a lazy habit for many Indians to take potshots at the airline, even while choosing it when flying elderly parents abroad, because they know fully well that western airlines will never offer that personal touch. The same people would not even whisper a protest in the face of borderline racism on some airlines. Think about the crash and the sweeping armchair commentary that followed in sections of social media. One publicity-seeker went from studio to studio cribbing about how the air conditioning had not worked well on the Delhi-Ahmedabad leg of the plane that crashed, making an absolutely inaccurate link to the tragedy. And he was allowed to do so. Others did not hesitate to make generalisations about the airline or the pilot in command. I am no aviation expert but the alacrity with which some sought to blame pilot Captain Sumeet Sabharwal and his co-pilot Captain Clive Kunder, was ghoulish and frankly, tone deaf and callous. We put a timer on the CCTV footage of the crash to show how Captain Sabharwal had only 33 seconds in which to make an intervention. On the CCTV footage you can see the plane take off smoothly and by the clock, half a minute later, it descends, erupting into an orange ball of fire on impact. Those who really understand aviation and planes point out that when you do not even have a whole minute to respond, Captain Sabharwal did the only thing he could. He made a Mayday distress call to the air traffic controller. In other crashes, where an engine has failed, because the plane is already cruising, the pilot has been able to bring it down, let's say on water or a safe patch. Here, the pilot was not able to lift the plane to a higher altitude; he clearly seemed to lose power immediately after take-off and he literally had no options. Think for a moment of that man at the helm of a split-second response before his life and the lives of the passengers at the back, literally went up in smoke. Think of how a universe can be upended in 32 seconds. And at least then, some of us might be less cavalier and casual in our commentary. Aerospace engineering expert Aditya Paranjape, a professor at Monash University, told me that 'prima facie... there is no human error. That the plane was able to take off smoothly shows the configurations entered by the pilots were accurate.' He believes, like many other experts I spoke with, that both engines appear to have failed, however rare that may be. While there may be questions about maintenance, surely there should be many sharp questions for Boeing, the manufacturer of the 787 Dreamliner that went down in Ahmedabad. Especially if the investigation reveals that both engines did, in fact, collapse on take-off. This would be the time to go back to the appearance of the Boeing CEO before a US Senate Panel. He actually admitted to 'serious safety missteps'. This hearing took place after the door of an Alaskan Airlines 737-Max blew out. Isn't he the one playing with lives? Shouldn't some of our contempt and anger be directed at corporate behemoths like Boeing? Over the years, there have been management issues with Air India. When the airline was government-owned (across parties) it was not able to unshackle itself from a sarkari subculture. When the ill-conceived and unplanned merger of Indian Airlines and Air India took place under the UPA government, the airline took a hit. And now that the Tatas have given Air India a new beginning, its staff — pilots and crew — should not be shackled by capitalist corporate norms. Not when it comes to a profession that literally can be about life and death. On the plane just now — we are still on the ground a few hours later — a huge round of applause went up when the Captain announced that the crew had agreed to work well beyond their stipulated shifts and in what is meant to be their rest period (with official dispensation) to try and get us all home. As families across India mourn — a father who lost both his daughters, a husband who came home with his wife's ashes, a couple who posted a last selfie only to go down with the plane — the rest of us should show humility, and some gratitude and grace. Barkha Dutt is an award-winning journalist and author. The views expressed are personal.
India Gazette
4 hours ago
- India Gazette
Plane Crash: UK envoy Cameron meets PM Modi, says
New Delhi [India], June 13 (ANI): British High Commissioner to India, Lindy Cameron, held a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday and shared condolences over the plane crash near Ahmedabad Airport. She stated that UK and India are working together to establish facts and expressed readiness to support the families and friends of impacted British nationals. In a post on X, Cameron stated, 'I met with Prime Minister @narendramodi this morning. We shared condolences in the face of this tragic accident, and I offered my thanks for the work of tireless first responders here in Ahmedabad. The UK and India are working together to establish the facts. We stand ready to support the families and friends of affected British Nationals - please consult our Travel Advice for updates and contact us on the 24/7 consular helpline.' The Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick with 242 passengers crashed in Meghaninagar area shortly after it took off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. 241 people were killed in the crash. As per Air India, the passengers comprised 169 Indians, 53 British nationals, one Canadian and seven Portuguese nationals. Earlier in the day, PM Modi held a review meeting with the officials at the airport in Ahmedabad in the wake of the Air India plane crash incident. He also visited the Air India plane crash site in Ahmedabad and reviewed the ground situation. In a post on X, PM Modi wrote, 'Visited the crash site in Ahmedabad today. The scene of devastation is saddening. Met officials and teams are working tirelessly in the aftermath. Our thoughts remain with those who lost their loved ones in this unimaginable tragedy.' Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu, State Home Minister Harsh Sanghavi and other officials accompanied PM Modi during his visit. PM Modi also visited Ahmedabad Civil Hospital to meet with those injured in the mishap. (ANI)
Indian Express
5 hours ago
- Indian Express
India makes positive strides in populist demands of citizens, finds survey
India has made significant progress in some of the key aspects of populism by meeting with the expectations of the citizens, according to the 6th edition of Ipsos Populism Report. The report surveyed 31 countries tracking down how people around the world feel about populism issues. In 2025, 59% Indians agreed to the Broken Index of the Ipsos System, which is an agreement of five statements – the country's economy is rigged to advantage the rich and powerful, traditional parties and politicians do not care about people like me, to fix we need a strong leader to break the rules, country needs a strong leader to take the country back from the rich and powerful and experts in the country do not understand the lives of people like me. This statistic is far better and indicative of improvement compared to the 2023 and 2016 surveys where 73% and 65% Indians agreed, respectively. Surprisingly, with a decline of 14% compared to the figures of 2023, 59% Indians believe in 2025 that the country needs a strong leader who is willing to break the rules. Whereas, 60% Indians (with a decline of 11% from 2023), do believe that India needs a strong leader who can take the country back from the clutches of the rich and powerful. Similarly, for areas like experts in the country who do not understand the lives of people like me, 59% Indians agreed, again 14% less than that in 2023. Amit Adarkar, CEO, Ipsos India said, 'India has shown improvement in some of the key areas of populism, with expectations emerging less glaring as opposed to some of the previous years, when more number of citizens emphasized on the system being broken, and there being lack of meritocracy and level playing field and system was meant to favor the rich and powerful and the citizens being vehement in their demand of the country needing a strong leader at the helm. The incumbent leader has shown strong leadership traits, decision making and tough talking, with the expectation now receding on some of these key aspects, indicating improvement in areas which were strongly expressed by the citizens.' However, 53% Indians believe that the country today is in decline, i.e. one in every two Indians, and this statistic shows a sharp incline of 31% from 2016. This could be the result of people's dissatisfaction from society in general and the degrading value system across generations. The survey also draws attention to the prominence of different aspects of national identity amongst Indian citizens. As much as 73% of Indians believe that it's the duty of the citizens of a nation to defend their country when it is criticized. According to the survey data, around 70% of the citizens believe that the right to vote, to be able to voice their opinion, being born in your own country, treating people from different backgrounds with the same level of respect, and being a part of the religious majority are all parts of national identity. Indian citizens also voted in which sectors the government should increase its spendings. And, more than 70% of the citizens agreed that the major areas include job sector (to create more employment opportunities); education sector (schools, universities and job training); public safety (enforcement of law, fire and emergency services); defence and national security (military); healthcare (disease prevention, diagnosis, treatment and research); infrastructure (building roads and bridges, securing rail and air networks, and providing water, electricity and broadband connectivity). 64% of people agreed to focus on reducing poverty and social inequality. A majority of citizens believe that in times of job scarcity, employers should prioritize hiring locals over immigrants. In 2025, 62% of citizens support this view, although this sentiment has decreased by 15% since 2023. With the government implementing stricter policies to curb immigration, public concern over immigrants 'taking away' jobs has also declined. When it comes to the elite, public opinion is divided. About 52% of Indians see elites as a tightly knit group sharing similar perspectives on key issues, while 48% view them as a diverse set of individuals with varying interests. Additionally, 44% of citizens believe elites genuinely think their decisions are for the greater good, even if that may not be true. Meanwhile, 21%, roughly one in five, feel that elites make decisions primarily for their own benefit, disregarding the interests of ordinary people.
