This article examines how people experiencing homelessness view their interactions with service providers. Drawing on a database of more than 500 transcribed interviews with people experiencing homelessness we find that descriptions of interactions with staff and providers were predominantly expressed in sharply negative terms, with experiences of objectification and infantilization being commonplace. In response to these experiences, nearly all were angry, and many simply opted out of the social service system in order to maintain a sense of dignity and self-respect. We argue that these responses should not simply be analysed as an individual psychological or cognitive response, but rather as a result of the power relations and social inequities in the provider-client relationship. This suggests that the perpetuation of homelessness is not internal to the homeless individual as many claim, but rather may be embedded in the service industry itself, which subjects both clients and providers to bureaucratic forms of authority and experiences of disrespect. These negative descriptions are juxtaposed with positive comments, which offer potential solutions from homeless individuals themselves. We conclude that qualitative research, in contrast to a reliance on statistics and best practice assessments, is an important tool in developing socially just policies and programs serving those in need.

Understanding mental health issues faced by young homeless persons is instrumental to the development of successful targeted interventions. No systematic review of recent published literature on psychopathology in this group has been completed.We conducted a systematic review of published research examining the prevalence of psychiatric problems among young homeless people. We examined the temporal relationship between homelessness and psychopathology. We collated 46 articles according to the PRISMA Statement.All studies that used a full psychiatric assessment consistently reported a prevalence of any psychiatric disorder from 48% to 98%. Although there was a lack of longitudinal studies of the temporal relationship between psychiatric disorders and homelessness, findings suggested a reciprocal link. Supporting young people at risk for homelessness could reduce homelessness incidence and improve mental health.

Negative perceptions of homelessness contribute to deficit models of practice, false notions of homogeneity, and marginalization. Wellbeing is a state of satisfaction with material, social, and human aspects of life and can be measured both objectively and subjectively. The study explored the meaning and experience of wellbeing in the everyday lives of 20 homeless participants through fieldwork and interviews. This study revealed that health contributed little to their overall perception of wellbeing. Keeping safe, being positive and feeling good, connecting with others, and the ability to participate in “normal” life were the key contributors of subjective wellbeing. The authors demonstrate that social exclusion experienced in homelessness has a negative effect on subjective wellbeing. Services that provide opportunities to experience social inclusion and develop community and cultural connections will improve the wellbeing of homeless persons.

People who are homeless are at risk of COVID-19.

Homeless services are often provided in congregate settings, which could facilitate the spread of infection. Because many people who are homeless are older adults or have underlying medical conditions, they may also be at higher risk for severe disease.

Health departments and healthcare facilities should be aware that people who are homeless are a particularly vulnerable group. If possible, identifying non-congregate settings where those at highest risk can stay may help protect them from COVID-19.

How people experiencing homelessness can protect themselves

Many of the recommendations to prevent COVID-19 may be difficult for a person experiencing homelessness to do. Although it may not be possible to avoid certain crowded locations (such as shelters), people who are homeless should:

• Try to avoid other crowded public settings.
• If using public transportation, follow the CDC guidance on how to protect yourself when using transportation, try to travel during less busy times, and clean your hands as soon as possible after their trip.

• If possible, use take-away options for food.
• Maintain a distance of 6 feet (about two arms’ length) from other people.
• Wash their hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds as often as possible, and cover their coughs and sneezes.

Donations of food and clothing to homeless service providers

Homeless service providers can accept donations of food and clothing during community spread of COVID-19, but general infection control precautions should be taken. Request that donors not donate if they are sick.

• Set up donation drop-off points to encourage social distancing between shelter workers and those donating.
• Launder donated clothing, sheets, towels, or other fabrics on high heat settings, and disinfect items that are nonporous, such as items made of plastic.
• Food donations should be shelf-stable, and shelter staff should take usual food-related infection prevention precautions.

Definition

M M Khan explains that “Human resource development concept is the across of increasing knowledge, capabilities and positive work attitudes of all people working at all levels in a business undertaking.”

Employees feel the need of knowledge, skills attitudes and values to perform the task efficiently. We call these competencies. Higher degree of competencies is required for higher degree and quality of job performance. Hence to achieve the goals in the changing situation, it is necessary to develop competencies continuously in an organisation.

In the present competitive situation to survive, grow and excel, the competent and motivated employees are essential. To maintain the growth level over a period of time, competencies of employees need to be sharpened or developed as organisation operates in the changing environment.

The organisations are interested to develop their business though products or services. They want to bring effectiveness in the organisation through cost reduction, delay reduction, better customer satisfaction, service promptness and better quality. Hence for these, the organisation needs to develop its human resource competencies to perform better.

Concept of HRD

Human resource development in the organisation context is a process by which the employees of an organisation are helped, in a continuous and planned way to:

1. Acquire or sharpen capabilities required to perform various functions associated with their present or expected future roles;
2. Develop their general capabilities as individuals and discover and exploit their own inner potentials for their own and/or organisational development purposes; and
3. Develop an organisational culture in which supervisor-subordinate relationships, teamwork and collaboration among sub-units are strong and contribute to the professional well being, motivation and pride of employees.

This definition of HRD is limited to the organisational context. In the context of a state or nation it would differ.

HRD is a process, not merely a set of mechanisms and techniques. The mechanisms and techniques such as performance appraisal, counselling, training, and organization development interventions are used to initiate, facilitate, and promote this process in a continuous way. Because the process has no limit, the mechanisms may need to be examined periodically to see whether they are promoting or hindering the process. Organisations can facilitate this process of development by planning for it, by allocating organisational resources for the purpose, and by exemplifying an HRD philosophy that values human beings and promotes their development.

The objectives of HRD are:

i. To prepare the employee to meet the present and changing future job requirements.

ii. To prevent employee obsolescence.

iii. To develop creative abilities and talents.

iv. To prepare employees for higher level jobs.

v. To impart new entrants with basic HRD skills and knowledge.

vi. To develop the potentialities of people for the next level job.

vii. To aid total quality management.

viii. To promote individual and collective morale, a sense of responsibility, co-operative attitudes and good relationships.

ix. To broaden the minds of senior managers by providing them with opportunities for an interchange of experiences within and outside.

x. To ensure smooth and efficient working of the organisation.

xi. To provide comprehensive framework for HRD.

xii. To enhance organisational capabilities.

Human resources development is important because it is an investment in one’s employees that will ultimately result in a stronger and more effective workforce. When an organization develops their employees, they are strengthening their assets and making these employees even more valuable.

Benefits of HRD

Human resource development now a days is considered as the key to higher productivity, better relations and greater profitability for any organisation. Appropriate HRD provides unlimited benefits to the concerned organisation. Some of the important benefits are being given here:

• HRD (Human Resource Development) makes people more competent. HRD develops new skill, knowledge and attitude of the people in the concern organisations.
• With appropriate HRD programme, people become more committed to their jobs. People are assessed on the basis of their performance by having a acceptable performance appraisal system.
• An environment of trust and respect can be created with the help of human resource development.
• Acceptability toward change can be created with the help of HRD. Employees found themselves better equipped with problem-solving capabilities.
• It improves the all round growth of the employees. HRD also improves team spirit in the organisation. They become more open in their behaviour. Thus, new values can be generated.
• It also helps to create the efficiency culture In the organisation. It leads to greater organisational effectiveness. Resources are properly utilised and goals are achieved in a better way.

Plagiarism is considered a form of intellectual theft and fraud. It involves using someone else’s words or ideas and passing them off as your own by not providing credit, either deliberately or accidentally. However, it can also involve reusing your own work from a previous course, and passing it off as new work.

Plagiarism can include:

• Copying and pasting from a source without enclosing the text in quotation marks and providing a citation.
• Summarizing or rewording someone else’s ideas without providing a citation.
• Reusing an assignment you submitted for a previous course.This is called self-plagiarism.
• Submitting an assignment completed by someone else.
• Collaborating on an assignment with a classmate or friend on an assignment meant to be completed individually.
• Writing a paper that strings together quote after quote or paraphrases, even if cited correctly. Your work must include your own original expression of ideas. To add originality to your assignment, include your own critical analysis, interpretation, and examples.
• Incorrect paraphrasing. When a paraphrase too closely resembles the original it is considered patchwriting. 

Plagiarism can be:

• Accidental -Accidental plagiarism happens when you are not sure when to cite, paraphrase or quote. This tutorial is meant to help you understand when you need to cite! 
• Blatant – This type of plagiarism happens when you purposefully use another person’s words and try to pass them off as your own.
• Self – Self plagiarism occurs when you reuse a paper you wrote in a previous semester for a different course. You must submit original, new work for each course! 

So, there are several basic factors to consider when evaluating a case of possible plagiarism:

1. Amount or quantity (full paper, a section of a paper, a page, a paragraph, a sentence, phrases)
2. Use of quotation marks for all copied text.
3. Appropriate placement of credit notices.
4. Improper paraphrasing.

Follow these four steps to ensure your paper is free from plagiarism:

1. Keep track of the sources you consult in your research.
2. Paraphrase or quote from your sources (and add your own ideas).
3. Credit the original author in an in-text citation and reference list.
4. Use a plagiarism checker before you submit.

Examples of plagiarism

• A writer decides that he wants to create an Internet website to generate ad revenue. Instead of writing his own articles, he visits twenty other websites that have articles on the topic in which he is interested. He copies each of the articles, changes the titles and the authors’ names to his name and posts the articles on his own website.
• An academic is expected to publish papers but he doesn’t have time to research because of family obligations. He looks through old professional journals in another country and he copies a 10-year-old article from someone else in the field. He submits the article as his own and hopes that no one finds the article from which he copied.
• A student is expected to write a book report about a book that his teacher has assigned. The student doesn’t want to read the book and is bored with the subject. He visits websites that provide reviews and book reports and he copies from each of the different book reports to create one report of his own.

The term educational technology refers to the use of technology in educational settings, whether it be elementary and secondary schools, colleges and universities, corporate training sites, or independent study at home.

Educational technology has both general and specialized meanings. To the lay public and to a majority of educators, the term refers to the instructional use of computers, television, and other kinds of electronic hardware and software. Specialists in educational technology, in particular college and university faculty who conduct research and teach courses on educational technology, prefer the term instructional technology because it draws attention to the instructional use of educational technology. This term represents both a process and the particular devices that teachers employ in their classrooms. According to the Association for Educational Communications and Technology, one of the principal professional associations representing educational technologists, “Instructional Technology is a complex, integrated process involving people, procedures, ideas, devices, and organization for analyzing problems, and devising, implementing evaluating, and managing solutions to these problems, in situations in which learning is purposive and controlled.”(p. 4). Educational technologists often employ the term instructional media to represent all of the devices that teachers and learners use to support learning. However, for many educators the terms educational technology, instructional media, and instructional technology are used interchangeably, and they are used so here. In addition, the principal focus will be upon the most modern computational and communication devices used in schools today.

History of Educational Technology

The history of educational technology is marked by the increasing complexity and sophistication of devices, exaggerated claims of effectiveness by technology advocates, sporadic implementation by classroom teachers, and little evidence that the technology employed has made a difference in student learning. Although technology proponents have from time to time claimed that technology will replace teachers, this has not occurred. The typical view among educators is that technology can be used effectively to supplement instruction by providing instructional variety, by helping to make abstract concepts concrete, and by stimulating interest among students.

The terms visual education and visual instruction were used originally because many of the media available to teachers, such as three-dimensional objects, photographs, and silent films, depended upon sight. Later, when sound was added to film and audio recordings became popular, the terms audiovisual education, audiovisual instruction, and audiovisual devices were used to represent the variety of media employed to supplement instruction. These were the principal terms used to describe educational technology until about 1970.

The first administrative organizations in schools to manage instructional media were school museums. The first school museum was established in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1905. Its purpose was to collect and loan portable museum exhibits, films, photographs, charts, stereographic slides, and other materials to teachers for use in their classrooms. District-wide media centers, common in school systems today, are descendants of school museums.

By the first decade of the twentieth century, silent films were being produced for instructional use. In 1910 George Kleine published the Catalogue of Educational Motion Pictures, which listed more than 1,000 titles of films that could be rented by schools. In 1913 Thomas A. Edison asserted, “Books will soon be obsolete in schools …. Our school system will be completely changed in the next ten years” (Saettler 1968, p. 98). In 1917 the Chicago public schools established a visual education department to take responsibility for the ordering and management of films, and by 1931, thirty-one state departments of education had created administrative units to take charge of films and related media. Despite these efforts, films never reached the level of influence in schools that Edison had predicted. From evidence of film use, it appears that teachers used films only sparingly. Some of the reasons cited for infrequent use were teachers’ lack of skill in using equipment and film; the cost of films, equipment, and upkeep; inaccessibility of equipment when it was needed; and the time involved in finding the right film for each class.

Technology is a powerful tool that can support and transform education in many ways, from making it easier for teachers to create instructional materials to enabling new ways for people to learn and work together. With the worldwide reach of the Internet and the ubiquity of smart devices that can connect to it, a new age of anytime anywhere education is dawning. It will be up to instructional designers and educational technologies to make the most of the opportunities provided by technology to change education so that effective and efficient education is available to everyone everywhere.

The word health refers to a state of complete emotional and physical well- being .health care exists to help people maintain this optimal state and health .

A resource for everyday life ,not the objective of living.health is a positive concept emphasizing social and personal resources ,as well as physical capabilities.

TYPES

There are two types of health . Mental health. Physical health.

Mental health it is harder to define mental health than physical health because many psychoLogical diagnoses depend on an individuals perception of there experience .with improvements in testing, however, doctors are now able to identify some physical signs of some types of mental illness in CT scans and genetic scans .

Good mental health is not only categorized by the absence of depression or any other disorder .it also depends on a person ability to:

Enjoy life feel safe and secure.etc

Physical health a person who has good physical health is likely to have bodily functions and processes working at there peak.this is not only due not only to an absence of disease. Regular exercise,balanced nutrition ,and adequate rest all contribute to good health .people receive medical treatment to maintain the balance ,when neccessary .

Looking after physical health and well-being also involved reducing the risk of an injury or health issues ,such as:

minimizing hazards in the workplace

avoiding the use of tabbacco and alchohol.

health is a state of complete mental and physical and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease and infinity. Health is a quality of life,involving social ,emotional ,mental spiritual and biological fitness on the part of the individual ,which results from adaptation to the environment.

Image courtesy : https://www.newsclick.in/sacred-cows-disposable-humans

Using physical force in the name of “cow protection” without any legal authority by a self-appointed group of people is what we call cow vigilantism . In our country ‘India’ we have often seen innocent people getting attacked and killed by the so called “cow protectors”, but did we ever do anything against it?. All this increased in folds from the year 2014 when the BJP government gained power. The extremist groups have mostly targeted the Muslims and the Dalits. The highest number of cases were recorded in the state of Uttar Pradesh.The minorities of this country were mostly targeted. There is a complete collapse of the constitutional values and ethics in this country. 

At least 44 people – including 36 Muslims were killed in a span of three years. Several  politicians have openly justified these attacks. Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Rights Watch had also once said that although calls for protecting cows started as a way to attract Hindu votes, it  transformed into a free pass for mobs to violently attack and kill the minorities. Indian government should stop protecting the culprits.  Hindus consider cows to be  their sacred animal and a lot of states in India have banned cow slaughtering. In recent years, we can clearly notice that BJP-ruled states have enforced stricter laws for protecting cows which have harmed the minorities of our nation. In the year 2019, National commission for cow protection came into existence. These policies have not only encouraged the violent attacks on innocent people but have also disrupted the cattle trade in our country. These violent mobs have often targeted the Muslims, Dalits ( before known as the “untouchables”) and Adivasi communities. Did you as a fellow Indian ever realise, what am I doing to stop the wrong doings in my own country? Why are we not affected by any of these incidences ? Why have we become so neutral to the sufferings of our fellow countrymen? 

Some incidences :

• On May 30th 2015, a 60 year old man was beaten to death by a violent mob group. Apparently the man ran a meat shop and he was beaten to death with sticks and iron rods in Rajasthan.
• A Muslim man Mohammad Ikhlaq was beaten to death by a mob of villagers who attacked his home with stones and bricks, his son was also seriously injured. The villagers suspected that he stole and slaughtered a cow calf. This incident took place on 28th of September 2015 in the state of Uttar Pradesh. 
• A cow vigilante group opened fire at 40 migrant workers, out of which one succumbed to his injuries, in Bhanukeri village in the state of Haryana.
• In Lakshmanpur village which is the state of Uttar Pradesh, a 70 year old man Kailash Nath Shukla who was taking his cattles for treatment in another village, was attacked by a mob, who stopped him on his way and threw him in a gutter.

The Indian government must stop and punish the violence taking place in the name of “cow protection” in our country. Although the Supreme court has introduced various measures to stop lynching in the name of cow protection,there is lack of seriousness amoung common public. Indian is party to various treaties related to human rights, so the Indian government is obligated to provide equal protection under law and prohibit any violence on innocent people in the name of caste, religion,gender and race. We must stand up for our fellow brothers and sisters who are victims of this violence, we must remember that we are not demanding for something impossible, we are demanding for a right we deserve and a right promised to us,that is equality.

References:- 

India: Vigilante ‘Cow Protection’ groups attack minorities,

https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/02/18/india-vigilante-cow-protection-groups-attack-minorities

The COVID-19 pandemic has, without a doubt, altered the way we go about our lives. Companies too are trying to figure out ways to be in sync with the ‘new normal’. E-commerce brands can view the current scenario as an opportunity, provided they are able to focus on few and important marketing mantras, that will help them survive through the crisis and thrive in the future. Here are some simple marketing mantras that can be followed.

Know your ability – Strategy

An alternate word for business strategy is Focus. Focus is about knowing oneself, in this case it’s about knowing the ability of your business or brand that makes it attractive to consumers while also being profitable. Defining the areas of focus for a business is not easy. There are opportunities in many areas, and it requires a deep understanding of consumer needs and an honest assessment of the brand’s ability to meet those needs to arrive at the areas of focus. It also means knowing what the business cannot do and the areas where it cannot win. In the current situation, it becomes even more imperative for brands or businesses to understand the area where they should play in and rationalize their portfolios accordingly. That will help in ensuring focus of the organisation towards the most important priorities that the business can deliver.

What do you offer? – Brand Building

Building a strong brand is of critical importance to any business, and it’s no different in the current situation. Many companies tend to only invest in performance driven marketing and short-term measures like discounts and high levels of activity where an immediate impact is perceived. While these are needed, it’s vital to continue building on the brand proposition to ensure the long-term health of the brand. A brand proposition is simply the benefits, functional and emotional, that a brand provides consumers. Identifying these benefits based on observations and insights from consumers and communicating them in an interesting way is critical to form strong and meaningful connections with consumers. Brands that will continue to focus on this in the current situation will also come out of it stronger.

Stretch while being rooted – Innovation

The common saying that modern problems require modern solutions is true. Consumers are constantly on the lookout for new products and services that are enhanced and cater better to their requirements. The pandemic has presented an opportunity as consumers’ requirements are evolving, and brands can dedicate their resources to come up with creative solutions that serve these requirements, while still being rooted to the brand proposition mentioned above. For example, an e-commerce firm in the furniture space can launch home-office solutions, a consulting firm can offer remote-expert consultations online etc.

While these steps might seem to pose a challenge of choosing a medium to reach consumers, it is, in fact, quite simple. Gone are the days when television was the only way to let the consumers know about your product/service. With technology and digitisation, brands are now taking to social media where consumers spend most of their time. E-commerce shopping has significantly increased since the onset of the pandemic and adapting these mantras will give further boost to the boom.

Recently, Nepal has banned all the TV news channels of India except the Doordarshan stating that it will not allow any foreign TV channels that assassin the character of its leaders.We have seen how the kalapani dispute has soften the relation between the two neighbor countries in the diplomatic level. India enjoys the civilizational and cultural relation with Nepal from many years. Any Bilateral relation set on the foundation of soft power treats both the partners as equal irrespective of their size and the influence. India has given soft power higher priority , so setting up strong trade and economic relations.

Over the last 30 year’s India’s soft power influence in Nepal has come under threat due to internal political instability and by the external players such as Pakistan and China.India’s relation is primarily built on three main pillars – Religious connect built by Hinduism and Buddhism , Link of Madhesi – Terai belt with UP and Bihar , Influence of Bollywood and Indian Television. But over the past 30 years there has been rising Anti-India sentiments .Nepal has always alleged that India has excessively interfered in the internal affairs right from the days of Nepal Monarchy.In civil war ,India was accused of taking Maoists sides and interfered in the transition of democracy through taking a political side at the time of Constitution framing.There has always been few political elements who have opposed in the India’s involvement in Nepal and these sentiments have been exploited by external players such as Pakistan and China leading to the significant surge in anti India sentiments.This sentiments has led to the decrease in soft power influence in Nepal take for Example Lumbini project which India was looking to develop was handed over to the chinese .

Since Buddhism has share a strong cultural connection between South Asia, Southeast Asia and East Asia , Indian diplomacy has always tried to exploit this connection by developing all the buddhism sites under the Buddhist circuit project but the project was taken over by china .China’s interest in Nepal can be explained to counter Indian influence in Nepal and also to monitor the Tibetian refugees who are present in large number in Nepal. Over the last few years China has bought massive investment in construction of Nepal’s -Road, Rail, Hydro power plant, Internet and Telecom sector. Apart from these hard investments, China is also looking for soft power influence by promoting the Mandarian language in Nepali schools. So overall a combination of Indian mistakes, Political instability and External players have contributed to the decline in soft power influence of India in Nepal.

India is an ancient civilization governed by customs and traditions. Sometimes, it is called the museum of various religions, castes, cultures and ethnic groups. If we go down the ancient period we find that India was governed only geographically and not politically. Religion played an important role in the political life of the nation and it also acted as a guide for the ruler and the ruled. Hence the law enacted at that time formed part and parcel of the religion. However, with the advent of the British rule, our nation entered the phase of modern history. The British brought new thoughts like, western education, idea of secularism, a constitution containing the rules and regulations for the people and the government, political institutions like parliament and the political thoughts like Democracy; Supremacy of the Constitution, Liberty, Equality, Justice Rule of law, etc. They formulated Indian Penal Code, i.e., codifying criminal laws in 1860. Thus, it was the first attempt to cover all the citizens of India under one law. But the civil sphere of life of all the people was left untouched. As a result of these developments a wave of nationalism arose in the minds of the people of India and with the enactment of various legislation like Government of India Act, 1935, India for the first time became a nation politically. With freedom in 1947 and enactment of the Constitution in 1950, India was born as a nation and the Constitution, the supreme law, occupied a supreme position in the political life of this nation.

Based on the ideals like Equality, Rule of law, Justice, Liberty, etc., our Constitution made enough provisions to uphold these ideals. It is the duty of the government to enact legislation based on these principles. By keeping this in mind criminal law is made applicable to all citizens of India irrespective of race, religion, caste or sex. But considering the vast diversities in India and the ambiguous condition prevailing at the time of Independence and the communal tension rife in our country, no Uniform Civil Code for all the citizens was made.

Uniform Civil Code

Article 44, makes it an obligation on the State to promote a uniform civil code to all citizens throughout the territory of India. Uniform civil code is a set of law proposal which will replace all the laws—personal laws governing institutions like marriage, divorce, inheritance of property, etc., based on religious faith.

M.C. Chagla former Chief Justice of Bombay High Court observed that, “Article 44 is a mandatory provision binding on the government. The Constitution was enacted for the whole country, it is binding on the whole country and every section and community must accept its provisions and directives.”

The Supreme Court suggested in favour of Uniform Civil Code through many judicial precedence. Some of them are:

Mohammad Ahmed Khan v. Shah Bano Begum mainly known as Shah Bano Case. In this case in 1985, Shah Bano moved to Supreme Court for seeking maintenance under section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure when her husband divorced her after 40 years of marriage by giving triple talaq and denied her regular maintenance. The Supreme Court gave verdict in favour of Shah Bano by applying section 125 of Indian Criminal Code and it is applied to all citizens irrespective of religion. Then Chief Justice, Y.V Chandrachud, observed that a Common Civil Code would help the cause of national integration by removing disparate loyalties to law. And so, the court directed Parliament to frame a UCC.

The second instance in which the Supreme Court again directed the government under Article 44 was Sarla Mudgal case. In this case Sarla Mudgal v Union of India, the question was whether a Hindu husband, married under the Hindu law, by embracing Islam can solemnize second marriage. The Supreme Court held that adopting Islam for a second marriage is an abuse of Personal laws. Further said that Hindu marriage can be dissolved under Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 i.e. mere by converting itself in to Islam and marry again does not dissolve the marriage under Hindu Marriage Law and thus will be an offence under Section 494[5] of the Indian Penal Code.

In John Vallamattom v. Union of India, the Priest from Kerala, John Vallamatton filed a writ petition in the year 1997 stating that Section 118 of the Indian Succession Act was discriminatory against the Christians as it imposes unreasonable restrictions on their donation of property for religious or charitable purpose by will. The bench comprising of Chief Justice of India V.V Khare, Justice S.B Sinha and Justice A.R. Lakshamanan struck down the Section declaring it to be unconstitutional. Further Khare stated that;

“Article 44 provides that the State shall endeavour to secure for all citizens a Uniform Civil Code throughout the territory of India. It is a matter of great regrets that Article 44 of the Constitution has not been given effect to. Parliament is still to step in for framing a common civil code in the country. A Common Civil Code will help the cause of national integration by removing the contradictions based on ideologies”.

Need for a Uniform Civil Code

The need for a uniform civil code is promoted on the following reasons mentioned below:

•  Firstly, India being a secular republic needs to progressive and must have a common law for all citizens. To have different rules based on religion is against the principle of equality. In fact, the fundamental rights have sought to reform many religious practices that were found to against the progress of the nation.
• Secondly, a uniform civil code helps to check the caste and religion-based politics. India has shown remarkable progress in the economic front but the social progress is hampered by the anachronistic religion-based traditions and personal laws. In the social-cultural respect, Indian society remains at a midpoint—neither a modern nor a traditional society.
• Thirdly, the existence of the personal laws keeps the nation divided in many respects and retards the nation-building activity.
• Fourthly, the promotion of gender justice demands a uniform civil code. Indian society is primarily a patriarchal society ridden by age-old traditions that promotes unfair unequal treatment of women. The constitution declares the resolve of the people to guarantee equal rights to women, which accelerates the need for a uniform civil code.
• Fifthly, the existence of various personal laws has been a loophole which is effectively exploited by the dominant and elite social class. For instance, the alternate judicial systems in rural India and the practices like honour killings are supported by the absence of the uniform civil code.
• Sixth, vote bank politics can be reduced by a uniform civil code. When all religions are brought under a single set of laws, the opportunity to offer benefits to certain religious denominations, especially the minorities, for garnering their vote will be reduced.

On the above grounds, there have been demands to make uniform civil code and implement in the past. At present, Goa is the only State in India to have a common civil code, also known as the Goa Family Law. The demand had always resulted in heated arguments for and against having the code. This had been a most debated provision even in the constituent assembly. However, the founding fathers have deliberately provided it as an unenforceable directive.

Uniform Civil Code: Why an Unenforceable Directive?

Uniform civil code aims at securing ‘harmony through uniformity’ is an undeniable truth. But making it a compulsory provision would result in a sort of regimentation of the civil code which will result in ‘discontent or dissatisfaction’.

Similarly, the Supreme Court has also ruled that although uniform civil code for all persons may be desirable, its enactment in one go may be counterproductive to the unity and integrity of the nation. Progressive changes must be brought gradually because social change is a slow process. The legislature must make or amend the existing law where there is an acute necessity.

To make all laws to be uniformly applicable to all people in one go would be inexpedient and incorrect.

India being a pluralist society, people have different faiths and the tenets propounded by their religious faiths are multifarious. It is indeed a challenge to achieve unity among the people professing different religious faiths, born in different castes, creeds or sub-sections in the society, speaking different languages and dialects in different regions and provided a secular constitution. Supreme Court, in Pannalal Bansilal versus state of Andhra Pradesh, observed that,

“The directive principles of the constitution themselves visualize diversity and attempt to foster uniformity among people of different faiths.”

The orthodox section among the minorities such as Muslims feels that the Uniform civil code will adversely affect their identity. The issue has been sensationalized by the media which brought the debate from the need for uniform civil code to the divinity of personal law. Consequently, the demand for Uniform Civil Code is regarded as identity politics and viewed negatively.

This section comes under Part II of Chapter V of documentary evidence, here how execution of proof is done is to be shown. If a document is required by law to be attested, it shall not be used as evidence until one attesting witness at least has been called for the purpose of proving its execution, if there be an attesting witness alive, and subject to the process of the Court and capable of giving evidence: Provided that it shall not be necessary to call an attesting witness in proof of the execution of any document, not being a Will, which has been registered in accordance with the provisions of the Indian Registration Act, 1908 (16 of 1908), unless its execution by the person by whom it purports to have been executed is specifically denied[1].

Now in section 73 of Indian Evidence Act it is stated –

Comparison of signature, writing or seal with others admitted or proved.

 In order to ascertain whether a signature, writing or seal is that of the person by whom it purports to have been written or made, any signature, writing, or seal admitted or proved to the satisfaction of the Court to have been written or made by that person may be compared with the one which is to be proved, although that signature, writing, or seal has not been produced or proved for any other purpose. The Court may direct any person present in Court to write any words or figures for the purpose of enabling the Court to compare the words or figures so written with any words or figures alleged to have been written by such person

73A. Proof as to verification of digital signature:

In order to ascertain whether a digital signature is that of the person by whom it purports to have been affixed, the Court may direct—

(a) That person or the Controller or the Certifying Authority to produce the Digital Signature Certificate;

(b) Any other person to apply the public key listed in the Digital Signature Certificate and verify the digital signature purported to have been affixed by that person.

For the purposes of this section, “Controller” means the Controller appointed under sub-section (1) of Section 17 of the Information Technology Act, 2000.

Comments:

Whenever there is doubt of signature, seal or writing before the court this section 73 of Indian Evidence Act will be applicable. According to this this, court can match or compare the disputed signature, seal or writing with undisputed signature, seal or writing which have been submitted to the satisfaction of court. In this it provides for a straight method of comparison of disputed writing, signature or finger impression, in deciding unresolved matter whether a particular signature, writing or seal of a particular person by whom it purports to have been written or made, the court can compare the same with other signatures, seal or writing which have been already submitted or proved to be the same ( i.e. writing or signature or seal) of that person. “It is necessary that the writing to be used as a standard should be properly proved to the satisfaction of the judge to be the handwriting of the person concerned”. In this situation the rule of prudence is that the comparison of signature by courts as a mode of ascertaining the truth should be used with great care and caution.

This section contains two parts. The first one provides with the comparison of writing, signature, figure etc. purporting to have been written or made by a person with other admitted or proved signature, writing, figure etc. by the court to have been written signed or made by the same person. Second part here empowers the court to order the person to appear before it and to give his specimen signature or writing for the purpose of evaluating the disputed signature, writing, figure etc. and to see that it matches or not.

Here according to Supreme court it is clear that such comparison made by a handwriting expert or by one with the handwriting of the person concerned or by the courts direction. Here the court should not be in hurry it should slowdown in making comparison itself. It should take the proper aid of any writing expert. As both plaintiff defendant has not taken steps to secure the opinion of handwriting expert as such the court has the discretionary power to compare disputed signature with the undisputed signature.

It is equally important to take note of the sentence “for the purpose of enabling the court to compare” found in the second part of Section 73. In this regard the Supreme Court held that the language of Section 73 does not permit a court to give a direction to the accused to give specimen writings for anticipated necessity for comparison in a proceeding which may later be instituted in the court. Section 73 cannot be made use of for collecting specimen writing during investigation and recourse to it can be had only when the court before which the enquiry or trial of proceeding is pending requires the writings for the purpose of enabling it for comparison.

In case of determination of finger impression the court is required to make a thorough study, if necessary with the assistance of counsel, to ascertain the characteristic, similarities and dissimilarities of such finger impression. The court should avoid reaching conclusions based on a mere casual or routing glance or perusal. There are methods of proving writing such as, with the help of expert who can prove handwriting and signature under section 45 of the Evidence Act, With the help of other person who is acquainted with the handwriting of the person alleged to have signed or written the document and by calling and examining the writer himself and his admission.

In 73A again to proof the digital signature the court will tell certifying authority to produce its digital signature certificate in court or else, apply by other method and then compare it accordingly. Here is digital signature certificate comes under IT Act.

[1] Section 73A of Indian Evidence Act

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2002 (NCLB) was a U.S. Act of Congress that reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act; it included Title I provisions applying to disadvantaged students. It supported standards-based education reform based on the premise that setting high standards and establishing measurable goals could improve individual outcomes in education. The Act required states to develop assessments in basic skills. To receive federal school funding, states had to give these assessments to all students at select grade levels.

Legislative history

It was coauthored by Representatives JohnBoehner (R-OH), George Miller (D-CA), and Senators Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and Judd Gregg (R-NH). The United States House of Representatives passed the bill on December 13, 2001 (voting 381–41), and the United States Senate passed it on December 18, 2001 (voting 87–10). President Bush signed it into law on January 8, 2002.

Replacement

On April 30, 2015, a bill was introduced to Congress to replace the No Child Left Behind Act, the Every Student Succeeds Act, which was passed by the House on December 2 and the Senate on December 9, before being signed into law by President Obama on December 10, 2015. This bill affords states more flexibility in regards to setting their own respective standards for measuring school as well as student performance.

The major focus of No Child Left Behind is to close student achievement gaps by providing all children with a fair, equal, and significant opportunity to obtain a high-quality education. The U.S. Department of Education emphasizes four pillars within the bill:

• Accountability: to ensure those students who are disadvantaged, achieve academic proficiency.
• Flexibility: Allows school districts flexibility in how they use federal education funds to improve student achievement.
• Research-based education: Emphasizes educational programs and practices that have been proven effective through scientific research.
• Parent options: Increases the choices available to the parents of students attending Title I schools.

Pros and Cons of NCLB for Students With Learning and Thinking Differences

On the positive side, NCLB led to inclusion. Before NCLB, many schools didn’t measure the progress of students with learning and thinking differences. These students were often shut out of the general education curriculum and left out of state tests.

NCLB also set the expectation that struggling students learn alongside their peers. By making schools report their results by subgroup, NCLB shined a light on students receiving special education services. Schools were pushed to give struggling students more attention, support and help.

And they did. The graduation rate for students with specific learning disabilities increased from 57 percent in 2002 to 68 percent in 2011.

On the negative side, some say that NCLB focused too much on standardized testing. Some schools end up “teaching to the test”—focusing only on what students were tested on. This left little time for anything else the kids may have needed or wanted to learn.

Certain penalties, such as requiring school improvement plans, were reasonable, critics said. Others could be very harsh, such as firing school staff or closing a school that’s struggling. Critics linked several cheating scandals to NCLB, citing the pressure on teachers and educators to perform.

Some argued that NCLB’s standards-based accountability was inconsistent with special education, which focuses on meeting a child’s individual needs.

Despite the controversy, most people supported parts of NCLB—especially requirements for highly qualified teachers, research-based instruction and basic reporting on school results.

#nochildleftbehind #EDUperk #thinkingdifferent