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from Photographers Blog:
Exorcism at the ghost fair
Malajapur, India
By Danish Siddiqui
Malajpur is a small but not ordinary village in central India. In fact it is probably the only village in India which has been hosting a ghost fair for the past several years. People from across the country come to this fair to get rid of ‘evil spirits’ that they claim to be possessed by.
As night falls on Paush Purnima (full moon night) the 'possessed' are taken to the local shrine to be exorcised. People who bring their relatives here feel the latter's bodies have been 'taken over by ghosts of the dead' and that exorcism is the only release for them. Interestingly, most of those who come here to be exorcised are women. When I asked the priest the reason he said, “They are emotionally weak and hence easy target for spirits."
On the first day when I went to the temple, it looked to me like any other temple complex. But suddenly from the middle of the crowd I heard a woman scream as she started running around the temple courtyard. According to priests the ghost inside people becomes weak the more they run around the courtyard in an anti-clockwise direction. For those who don't run voluntarily (which is the case often) relatives or priests make them do so by pushing or kicking.
After a few rounds the possessed person is confronted by the priest on a sacred platform and if the answers are not satisfactory (questions include the name of the ghost and why he/she is hounding the person) the running continues.
from Global Investing:
Indian markets and the promise of reform
What a difference a few months have made for Indian markets.
The rupee is 8 percent up from last summer's record lows. Foreigners have ploughed $17 billion into Indian stocks and bonds since Sept 2012 and foreign ownership of Indian shares is at a record high 22.7 percent, Morgan Stanley reckons. And all it has taken to change the mood has been the announcement of a few reforms (allowing foreign direct investment into retail, some fuel and rail price hikes and raising FDI limits in some sectors). A controversial double taxation law has been pushed back. The government has sold some stakes in state-run companies (it offloaded 10 percent of Oil India last week, netting $585 million). If the measures continue, the central bank may cut interest rates further.
Above all, there have been promises-a-plenty on fiscal consolidation.
The promises are not new. Only this time, investors appear to believe Finance Minister P. Chidambaram.
from India Insight:
Understanding the repo rate, cash reserve ratio and the Reserve Bank of India
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday cut the repo rate as well as the cash reserve ratio (CRR) by 25 basis points, or 0.25 percent. Here's a quick explanation of what that means. It will be obvious to some readers, but many people haven't studied economics and are unfamiliar with the terms.
The repo rate, which now stands at 7.75 percent, is the rate at which the central bank lends money to Indian banks. As the repo rate goes down, it gets cheaper for banks to borrow money. That makes it easier for people to borrow money at cheaper rates too. As more people borrow money, which ought to be the result of action like this, they'll spend more money. That's good for the Indian economy.
from Breakingviews:
Rate cuts won’t revive India’s stalled growth
(The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own)
By Andy Mukherjee
India’s latest interest rate cut won’t revive growth. The central bank’s quarter-percentage point reduction in the policy rate, to 7.75 percent, is just as futile as the last one almost a year ago. GDP will pick up when New Delhi curbs its own profligacy and improves the investment climate. The February budget may be the current government’s last chance to do both.
from India Insight:
“Homelands” exhibit in Delhi examines identity through art
Indians give high importance to the concept of identity and kinship, especially in a land that is home to hundreds upon hundreds of different languages and ethnic groups. Indian curator Latika Gupta explores this theme in “Homelands”, an exhibition of works by 28 leading contemporary British artists, all wrestling with the idea of what "home" means in the 21st century.
The artists whose works are displayed include four Turner Prize winners, Jeremy Deller, Richard Long, Grayson Perry and Gillian Wearing. Work by World Press Photo (2007) winner Tim Hetherington, who was killed in Libya, also is on display.
from Global Investing:
Emerging Policy-Doves reign
Rate cuts are still coming thick and fast in emerging markets -- in some cases because of falling inflation and in others to deter the gush of speculative international capital.
Arguably the biggest event in emerging markets is tomorrow's Reserve Bank of India (RBI) meeting which is expected to yield an interest rate cut for the first time in nine months.
from India Insight:
Military personnel who rape in India’s conflict zones should be prosecuted: committee
The Justice Verma Committee, set up to review India’s legislation following the brutal gang rape of a student in Delhi last month, released its recommendations on how to make the country safer for women last week.
Among the issues which the panel addressed was a “neglected area” concerning sexual violence against women in areas of conflict.
from India Insight:
Padma awards 2013: stellar achievements, foggy decisions
Six months after the death of ‘India’s first superstar’, the central government honoured Rajesh Khanna with one of India’s highest civilian awards on the eve of the country’s 64th Republic Day. Reports last month said the Bollywood actor might have been up for the Padma Vibhushan, India's second-highest civilian award, but "Kaka" will get a Padma Bhushan, the third highest.
India awards the Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri for distinguished service in fields such as art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering.
from India Insight:
Short skirts, bad stars and chow mein: why India’s women get raped
If you thought the Delhi gang rape would cause a serious debate on women’s rights in India, you'd be half right. Let's look at the other half: last December's brutal incident seems to have put a spell on India’s politicians, holy men and otherwise educated people.
From suggesting that the rape victim should have called her rapists “brother” to blaming her stars, plenty of reasons cited for the crime lay the blame on the women whom men brutalise, or portray women in ways that reveal our skewed attitude toward women and their place in our society. When given an opportunity to figure out ways to improve the education and behaviour of men, and thus try to reduce the number of rapes that occur in India, many people revert to the more traditional method: limit the rights of women.
from Photographers Blog:
Not child’s play
Baran, India
By Danish Siddiqui
When I first took pictures of this child couple in a small village in the desert state of Rajasthan in 2010, I had no idea that I would come back to this village again. But life had something else in store and I have been visiting them every year since, documenting the changes in their relationship and their surroundings.
When I went to their house last week I was greeted by the loud wailing of a baby. It was their four-month-old son Alok, which means enlightenment in Hindi. Last year when I visited them, I learned that Krishna, the child bride, was seven months pregnant. I wasn’t surprised at all but out of curiosity I asked Gopal, her husband, why he was in such a hurry to expand the family. He shrugged his shoulders and said, “Nothing else to do, no work, life is so boring.” I was a bit taken aback.
