The Observer An IIJNM publication
Vol. 21, Issue 10
Tourists are troubled as ASI has allowed only electronic tickets at Tipu Sultan’s palace | P 2
Tuesday, November 9, 2021
https://facebook.com/ iijnmbangalore https://twitter.com/ observer_weekly Epaper: https://issuu.com/ theweeklyobserver/docs Website: http://www. theweeklyobserver.in
People self-diagnose amid the pandemic with an easy access to the Internet | P 2
Bengaluru has Not all people who have menstrual cycles were females at birth a dubious The queer feel distinction: High excluded, wary dowry deaths of visiting docs T By Shristi Achar A
Parents who can’t pay cash give other valuables By Tina Freese
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engaluru is among the top metropolitan cities to have a high rate of dowry deaths, according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). According to the National Crime Records Bureau’s latest report of the year 2020, the rate for dowry deaths in Bengaluru is 0.7. It is 2.2 for Kanpur, 1.8 for Jaipur, 1.4 for Delhi; and 0.1 for Kolkata. A crime rate is calculated by dividing the number of the cases that are reported by the city’s total population. The result is then multiplied by one lakh. Demanding and giving dowry is common all over India. In many cases, women are subjected to physical and domestic abuse. Saumya Dixit, 28, who was married when she was 19, shared: “They (the in-laws) asked for a refrigerator, double bed, and money of course. My parents gave everything, but after marriage, they used to taunt me saying ‘she didn’t get anything as dowry’.” She suffered a miscarriage due to violence by her husband.. She has divorced her husband now. Chandrakala, a tea vendor in Bengaluru, informed The Ob-
server: “During my daughter’s wedding, they asked for cash. We could not do that, so we gave gold jewellery instead. Even after the marriage, they kept asking for money.We didn’t have it, so we could not give it.” Her daughter was a victim of domestic abuse. Divaynshi Jain, 21, whose sister got married recently, said: “The groom’s family demanded Rs 11 lakh in cash along with jewellery and furniture. We had to also bear the cost of the wediing functions and everything else. We spent about Rs 30 lakh in all. My sister didn’t have a say in the matter, not even my mother. It’s an age-old tradition that is patriarchal and unnecessary. It felt like we were selling something.” Yogita Bhayana, an activist for women’s issues, said: “Bengaluru is a cosmopolitan city; but, unfortunately, dowry deaths are still happening. Somewhere it shows the reality of our country. Bengaluru, a modern city, has so many cases of dowry deaths because it’s not just about the mindset but also a cultural thing. This system is a part of their culture and it becomes a matter of pride when a bride comes to her inlaws’ house with a huge dowry.” People accused of taking dowry usually get away easily. Bhayana added. “It is very difficult for the parents or family members to keep fighting for justice.” ►Continued on page 3
here is little to no conversation that happens around menstruation that involves queer people in India, say people across the gender spectrum. Menstruation is the biological process when people with uteruses bleed every month. Traditionally, the process has been associated only with cis-gendered women (those whose gender identity is the same as the sex assigned at birth). The National Family Health Survey 5 has statistics about the percentage of women surveyed who use hygienic menstrual products. However, the classification there is only that of women; it does not involve ‘‘menstruating people’. The notion that only women menstruate is widespread not
Tiffin services are returning to normal biz
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iffin services in Bengaluru are slowly reviving, reports Simran Sharma. With IT companies and colleges reopening in the city, more and more people are using tiffin services. Bachelors and students are their main customers of it. Even though restaurants have reopened in the city , some people prefer home-cooked meals from these tiffin services.Some tiffin services say that they have retained their original customer base after the lockdown Some tiffin services are, however, still struggling to revive. Most tiffin businesses incurred losses during the pandemic as the city was completely shut down. But some tiffin services did see a rise in their business during the lockdown.Many people suffering from Covid could not cook themselves and opted for tiffins. ►Details on page 3
Menstruation is not exclusive to women | Credit: Shristi Achar A only among policymakers and the government, but among the general public as well. The Rotary Club of Seshadripuram, Bengaluru, had initiated Project Sthree, a menstruation awareness campaign. “We weren’t aware of the fact that there are menstruators apart from women. Additionally, our programme earlier included only adolescent girls. Only now have we begun to include adult women. Likewise, we haven’t found that people in general also are aware about it,” said Lavanya E, president of the club. But a campaign
about menstruation awareness, one that is inclusive of queer people is being planned out. Sreya Mallick, a transman from Bengaluru, informed The Observer: “It was initially tough for me to accept going through the menstruation process. When you are struggling to find comfort in your own body, it becomes a hurdle to accept bleeding every month. You will tend to hide as much as possible. I still remember I once struggled to ask for a sanitary napkin from a friend as I couldn’t accept the fact that I was bleeding like other ‘females’.” Sanjana S, a copywriter from Thane, said the hetero-normative environment (a concept that heterosexuality is the preferred or normal mode of sexual orientation) around her doesn’t help. “Growing up, I didn’t relate with the typical period symptoms people around me had. I still played sports, because I thought it was normal. That was until my mother told girls shouldn’t. But I wasn’t willing to be called a girl.” ►Continued on page 3
News briefs IMD issues red alert in Tamil Nadu The India Meteorological Department has sounded a red alert in Tamil Nadu for the next three days till Thursday. In a bulletin it issued at noon on Tuesday, IMD predicted “light to moderate rainfall at most places with heavy to very heavy rainfall and extremely heavy falls at isolated places” in the state.
2 drug cos announce new pills to treat Covid-19
US pharma giants Merck and Pfizer have announced encouraging results for oral drugs Molnupiravir and Paxlovid that can be used to treat Covid-19 and prevent hospitalization. This is being considered as a major step forward in the fight against Covid.
Pandemic led to rise in demand for cash: Govt
Uncertainties on account of the Covid-19 pandemic have increased the demand for currency notes not only in India but across the globe, official sources said on
Tuesday, dismissing the criticism that demonetization failed to reduce cash in the economy.
After Pak, China decides to give Delhi talks a miss
After Pakistan’s refusal last week, China has cited “scheduling issues” to convey that it will not participate in the Delhi Regional Security Dialogue on Afghanistan on November 10. While the two neighbours have chosen to stay away, the other key countries in the region — Russia, Iran,Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan — are expected to participate.
Gehlot wants excise duty on fuel cut further
Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot on Tuesday urged PM Modi to further reduce excise duty on motor fuels to provide relief to the people. In a letter to him, Gehlot also requested that a directive be issued to oil companies to stop increases in fuel prices so that people get the benefit of reduced excise duty.