Important Points

Salaried people, with an annual income of up to Rs 5 lakh from a single source, will not have to file income tax returns for the 2011-12 assessment year.

This will benefit about 85 lakh taxpayers, or about 20% of the total income tax assessees in the country. The Central Board of Direct Taxes chairman, Prakash Chandra, announced the launch of the scheme on Thursday, though it was announced in budget 2011-12 in February. This scheme, however, will not be applicable to those who have received salaries from more than one employer in a financial year by changing jobs.The scheme will also not cover those who have refund claims or have income from sources other than salary and savings account interests.Chandra said in such cases, the tax payer must report PAN and the entire income from interests to their employers, pay the tax as deduction at source and obtain a certificate of tax deduction in Form No 16.

· Central Board of Direct Taxes --chairman, Prakash Chandra

· PAN Card-- A PAN card is a valuable means of photo identification accepted by all government and non-government institutions in the country-- Presence in All parts of India

Four days after the mysterious death of Dr Sachan in an Uttar Pradesh jail, the police is no where close to cracking the case. The post mortem report suggested that he was murdered, but the Uttar Pradesh government has been insisting it was a suicide. What is even more confusing is the contradictory versions that the government and the police have been giving on the CMO's viscera.Its believed that a scam in NRHM funds is behind this alleged killing,

CMO – Chief Medical Officer

NRHM - National Rural Health Mission..Launched in 2005.In 18 states of India..

BANGALORE: the arrest of six members of the Karnataka Forum for Dignity (KFD) in connection with the kidnap and murder of two BBM students from Hunsur, the Bharatiya Janata Party demanded that the KDF should be banned immediately in the interest of country's security.

KFD-- Karnataka Forum for Dignity, also known as KFD, is a socio-cultural organization in Karnataka, India, working on issues related to minorities and backward communities in Karnataka, and was formed in the year 2001.

NAC clears drafts of Food Security, Communal Violence Bills

At the end of its first year, the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council (NAC) on Wednesday cleared the drafts of two landmark laws — one that promises food security to 90 per cent of rural households and 50 per cent of urban households, and the other that will ensure justice for minorities of all categories when they become victims of targeted, mass violence. The two drafts will now be sent to the government.

NAC -- The National Advisory Council (NAC) of India is an advisory body set up to monitor the implementation of the UPA government's manifesto, the Common Minimum Programme(CMP). It is a brainchild of Congress party president, Sonia Gandhi. It is also informally called as UPA's Planning Commission for social agenda. On 23 March 2006, Sonia gandhi had resigned from the post of chairmanship of the NAC after Office of profit controversy. On 29 March 2010, she was back as the chairperson of NAC. The NAC comprises distinguished professionals drawn from diverse fields of development activity who serve in their individual capacities. Through the NAC, the Government has access not only to their expertise and experience but also to a larger network of Research Organizations, NGOs and Social Action and Advocacy Groups.

Union Cabinet approved extension of the RSBY Scheme to all Registered Domestic Workers

Union Cabinet on 23 June 2011 approved extension of the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) to all the registered domestic workers. The scheme will likely cover approximately 47.50 lakh domestic workers in the country. The RSBY will provide for smart card based cashless health insurance cover of Rs.30000 per annum to BPL workers (a unit of five) in unorganised sector in any empanelled hospital anywhere in India. More than 2.34 crore smart cards were issued on 31 May 2011.

What is RSBY?

RSBY has been launched by Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India to provide health insurance coverage for Below Poverty Line (BPL) families. The objective of RSBY is to provide protection to BPL households from financial liabilities arising out of health shocks that involve hospitalization. Beneficiaries under RSBY are entitled to hospitalization coverage up to Rs. 30,000/- for most of the diseases that require hospitalization. Government has even fixed the package rates for the hospitals for a large number of interventions. Pre-existing conditions are covered from day one and there is no age limit. Coverage extends to five members of the family which includes the head of household, spouse and up to three dependents. Beneficiaries need to pay only Rs. 30/- as registration fee while Central and State Government pays the premium to the insurer selected by the State Government on the basis of a competitive bidding.

About Domestic Workers

Domestic work forms one of the largest sectors of female employment in the urban areas. Domestic workers are unorganized and the sector remains unregulated and unprotected by labour laws. These workers come from vulnerable communities and backward areas. Most of these are poor, vulnerable, illiterate, unskilled and do not understand the urban labour market.

Finally, India card Rupay to replace Visa, MasterCard

After almost two years of planning, the National Payments Corporation has at last finalised the proposed unique India Card which once commercially launched would be an domestic alternative to the global real-time payment processing firms like Visa and MasterCard.

"We have finalised name of the proposed card as Rupay at our board meeting here today. We have also finalised the logo for the same," a senior official of the RBI-set up National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), told PTI this evening. The official sought not to be named.

NPCI –National Payments Corporation of India

NPCI is a non-for-profit company set up in 2009 as an umbrella institution at the behest of the RBI for managing all the retail payment systems in the country.

It has 10 shareholders — State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Canara Bank, Bank of Baroda, Union Bank of India, Bank of India, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Citibank and HSBC

Chairman—Narayan Murthy

Orissa halts land takeover for $12 bln POSCO plant

Local protests have forced Orissa to halt acquiring land for a proposed $12 billion steel plant to be built by South Korea's POSCO, further delaying the biggest foreign direct investment in Asia's third largest economy.

POSCO – third largest steel industry in the world.

Anti-POSCO movement leader Abhaya Sahoo

The Varkari Movement

Varkari is a school of Bhakti based on Bhagavata Dharma, the main deity worshipped being Vithoba or Vitthal.

A famous abhang of Jnaneshwar needs to be quoted in this context. "Kanada Vitthalu Karnataku / yene maza lavayila vedhu" meaning "Kannada Lord Vitthala of Karnataka is drawing me towards him". Literally millions of people are drawn by the idol of Vitthala whose abode is in Pandharpur (in Southern Maharashtra) since centuries. The custom of Varkari has grown around Pandharpur.

Varkari Movement (in a nutshell)

• Varkari is a religious movement (sampraday) within the bhakti spiritual tradition of Hinduism. It is geographically associated with the Indian states of Maharashtra and northernKarnataka.
• In the Marathi language of Maharashtra, vari means 'pilgrimage' and a pilgrim is called a varkari. Every year, Varkari walk hundreds of miles to the holy town of Pandharpur, gathering there on ekadashi (the 11th day) of the Hindu lunar calendar month of Aashaadha (which falls sometime in July). Another pilgrimage is celebrated on the ekadashi of the month of Kartik (which falls sometime in November).
• Varkaris worship Vithoba (also known as Vitthal), the presiding deity of Pandharpur. Vithoba is a form of Krishna, an avatar (incarnation) of Vishnu. Because of this association with Vishnu, Varkari is a branch of Vaishnavism.
• The teachers responsible for establishing and supporting the movement through its history include Dnyaneshwar, Namdev, Tukaram, Chokhamela

The term Varkari is made up to two words -- "Vari" means moving or going on pilgrimage, and "Kari" means one who undertakes it.

Features of a Varkari (Principles on which he lives)

· A Varkari is a strict vegetarian

· wears a mala or rosary of Tulasi beads, round his neck.

· Though a devotee of Vitthal, a Varkari is no recluse. He will have his family and vocation.

· But he will follow all the rules of a pious life, visit Pandharpur every year, preferably in the month of Ashadh (rainy season) with his family and friends.

· Varkaris usually move in groups, irrespective of caste and creed, performing bhajans and singing songs of saints, associated with Vitthal and Pandhari (short form of Pandharpur).

· "Pundalika Varada Panduranga Hari Vitthal!" is the ecstatic exclamation in between songs.

· Fasting on ekadashi (Twice in a month),

· brahmacharya (self-restraint) during student life,

Importance of Ashadi Ekadashi

Ashadhi Ekadashi is a day of great celebration and jubilation at Pandharpur, when the Varkaris - devotees of Vitthala who gather from all over Maharashtra, walking all the way from their homes to Pandharpur - have the holy darshan of their beloved deity. The Skanda and Padma Puranas refer to places known as Panduranga-kshetra and Pundarikakshetra or Paundarika-kshetra. The Padma Purana also mentions Dindiravana, Lohadanda-kshetra, Lakshmi-tirtha, and Mallikarjuna-vana, names that are associated with Pandharpur.

Notable Marathi Saints

The writings of Sant Dnyaneshwar, Tukaram & others helped common man to inculcate these qualities in him. The Saints Of the Varkari tradition made realising "Almighty" in very simple words. Each Of them wrote separate small booklets of verse in plain words.All called it the HARIPATH. Each saint in his own rustic but sweet style has tried to express the result of fusing the chanting Lord's name; as in Lord Vishnu and mentally feeling oneness with HIM. Such a state of mind surpasses all desires and negative thoughts. It resulted in people coming together unitedly

Dnyaneshwar

· he lived from 1275 to 1296
· Saint Jnaneshvara has tremendously influenced culture, literature and language of Maharashtra.
· The sacrificial lives of Jnaneshvara and his brothers and sisters were a revealing experience for the common people. At that time, the facilities of information media were not at all available. But the impact of the saints' ideal lives and their expressions was surprisingly large and tremendous on the minds of the common people. While translating the store of knowledge in Sanskrit into Marathi and making it easily accessible to the common people, Jnaneshvara chose Bhagavadgeeta and wrote his commentary on it.
· He was a 13th century Maharashtrian Hindu saint (Sant - a title by which he is often referred), poet, philosopher and yogi of the Nath tradition
· Jnaneshvara underwent many sufferings because of the high-caste people. In fact, any individual or a group of people did not inflict sufferings on an individual. The Brahmins of that period accepted Jnaneshvara's greatness; but they were at the mercy of the traditions and rituals of their religion.
· whose works Bhavartha deepika teeka (a commentary on Bhagavad Gita, popularly known as "Dnyaneshwari/Jnaneshwari"), and
· Amrutanubhav are considered to be milestones in Marathi literature.
· he took voluntary samadhi at the young age of barely 22
· Jnaneshvara endowed Marathi language which had been a folk-language till that day with great literary qualities.
· In a big assembly of Sanskrit Pundits in Varanasi Gyandev was elected as the President.
· Dnyaneshwar wrote the Pasayadan which is a prayer for the general well being of the people. Pasaydan is included at the end of the Dynaneshwari

Jnaneshvari has deeply influenced the people of Maharashtra. But so far there has not been a detailed analytical study and evaluation of its influence. Jnaneshvari is rich in many figures of speech such as simile, metaphor,drstanta. Its influence on Marathi language is still to be seen. Jnaneshvari made Marathi speaking world confident of the strength of the language. Jnaneshvari has shown how ably he expressed the complex meaning in the most subtle ways. If a Sanskrit scholar does not write a commentary on Prasthanatravi, he is not considered a scholar. So also a Marathi scholar cannot be a scholar in the true sense of the term if he has not expressed his views and reflections on Jnaneshvari. We are confronting tremendous forces of Western culture. Still our life-values arc shaped and directed by Jnaneshvari.

Impact on the Modern Marathi Literature

· Tilak's Geeta-rahasya tried to coordinate action, devotion and knowledge. It is difficult to find as to how much impact of Jnaneshvari was there on the mind of Lokamanya Tilak.

· Both Mardhekar, the pioneer of new poetry and Vinda Karandikar were inspired by Saints' literature. This is evident not only from their use of ovi and abhanga but from their vocabulary also.

· Karandikar has rendered Jnaneshvara's Amritanubhava into modern Marathi language.

· Dilip Chitre who translated important abhangas of Tukaram has recently translated Amritanabhava into English. We find new poets in Marathi are much inclined to the study of Jnaneshvara and Tukaram.

· Out of three works on the life of Jnaneshvara, the novel Mogara Fulala by G. N. Dandekar is the masterpiece.

· There are some dramas and films also available in Marathi. The life of the people of Maharashtra is not falling victim to the extremities of individualism, hedonism and materialism. This was only because Jnaneshvara impressed the importance of a particular way of life on their mind.

Family of Dnyaneshwar

Nivrutti Nath: Elder brother of Dnyaneshwar, Nivrutti Nath was an authority in nath sect. Dnyaneshwar accepted his elder brother as his guru.

After Dnyaneshwar, Nivrutti Nath travelled with his sister on a pilgrimage along Tapi river where they were caught in a thunderstorm and Mukta lost in it without a trace.

Nivrutti nath took to salvation (Samadhi) at Triambakeshwar.

· Sopan Deo: Younger brother Sopan Deo attained ‘samadhi' at Saswad near Pune.

· Mukta bai: The youngest of the siblings, Mukta Bai (or Muktai / Muktabai) was known for her simple and straight expression of thoughts.

Tukaram

Tukaram or Tukoba, constantly sang the praises of lord Vitthala, or Krishna. It was the constant singing about God which led Tukaram to compose his abhangs. It is these abhangs for which Tuka is most famous. The abhangs are unique in the world of literature. They are often called poems, but they don't have the artful imagery associated with poems. The abhangs express Tuka's feelings (whether elation or frustration) and philosophical outlook. During his 41 years, Tuka composed over 5,000 abhangs. Many of them speak of events in his life, which make them somewhat autobiographical. Yet, they are focused on God and not Tukaram.

He faced varieties of difficulties with astonishing patience. He refused diamonds and opals offered by Shivaji Maharaj himself. His devotional songs are an invaluable contribution to Marathi spiritual literature.

Sant Eknath

About

In Eknath's philosophy, one finds the doctrines of Vedanta and the tenets of Sufism. People from all creeds thronged to listen to his recitation of the Bhagavata and singing of keertan-s. He abhorred caste barriers. His followers belonged to different castes and callings. Once he was offered the food prepared for sraddha (and therefore meant only for the Brahmins) to sweepers. On another occasion, he gave Ganga-jal (holy water from Ganga) to a dying donkey! Such acts, though prompted by compassion, angered the orthodox Brahmins who caused endless trouble to him and his family. However, Eknath remained composed and serene and bore their animus without any trace of rancour or malice against them.

Literature Works

Eknath's major work is his Eknathi Bhagavata, a Marathi commentary on the 11th Skanda of the Bhagavata Purana which contains the Uddhava Gita. It is said that it took him three years to complete it.
His other works include Rukmini Swayamvara, Bhavartha Ramayanaand numerous abhang-s. His short poems, known as Bharudas, were remarkable literary creations, in that one can read into them both secular as well as spiritual meanings.

Saint Eknath in his Eknathi Bhagavata says:

Kaya vacha mane jive sarvasve udara; Bapa rakhumadevi-vara vitthalacha varikara.
The Varikara, whose father is Vitthala—the husband of Rakhumadevi—is generous with all of his body, speech, mind, and life.

Relation between Eknath and Jnaneshwar

Eknath should be remembered for another notable, and noble, deed. Jnaneswar, the author of Jnaneswari, had attained samadhi in 1296. During the nearly 250 years that separated Jnaneswar and Eknath, several interpolations had crept into Jnaneswari, and distorted and corrupted versions were in circulation in Eknath's time. Eknath worked very hard to collect the manuscripts of the original rendition wherever they were available, and produced a critically edited version. In fact, but for Eknath's devoted and untiring efforts, Jnaneswari in its original form would have been lost to posterity

Saint Namdeo who was contemporaneous with Saint Jnaneshwar says:

Ale ale re hariche dingara Vira varikar pandhariche; Bhakti premabhava bharale jyanchya angi Nachati harirangi nenati laju.
Here come the children of Hari, the brave Varikaras of Pandharpur, whose being is full of devotion and love. Coloured by Hari, they dance without reserve.

Namdeo was known to all the saints of his time. He was present at the time of the Samadhi of Dnyaneshwar, Changdeo, Nivritti-nath etc. In the Namdeo Gatha there are as many as 225 Abhangas giving a detailed description of the occassion of the Samadhi taken by all these saints of his time. These abhangas give a graphic description of the occassion and they are full of "Bhakti" "Prem" and "Karuna" Rasa. The skill of Namdeo as a poet is seen very well from these Abhangas.

Story of Changdev and Jnandev meet

Jnanadev met Chang Dev. Chang Dev was a famous saint who had managed to defy death by his Yogic powers for a thousand and four hundred years. He used to live at Vateshwar. He was very proud of his attainments in Yoga. He had Bhuta Siddhi or complete control over all living beings. He used to travel on a tiger with a serpent as whip. Chang Dev had a curiosity to see Jnanadev. He started with a large number of disciples, riding on a tiger with a serpent as whip. Jnanadev and his brothers saw Chang Dev coming in all pomp. Jnanadev asked the wall on which he was seated to move forward to welcome Chang Dev.
Chang Dev witnessed this great miracle performed by Jnanadev. He was humiliated. He quietly got down from the tiger, made prostrations to Jnanadev and accepted him as his Guru.
Mukta, a mere girl of fourteen, gave instructions to Chang Dev, an old man of a thousand and four hundred years. She said, "O Chang Dev! Listen. If you want to attain salvation, the first step is sincere devotion. Devotion will bring Vairagya. Vairagya will lead to Jnana. Therefore your aim should be Jnana and your first foot must be on devotion".

Story of Pundalik

Mythological sources state that saint Pundalik was the progenitor of Varkari tradition. Young Pundalik was a great devotee of Vitthal. Touched by his selfless and innocent devotion, Lord Vitthal, decided to give darshan (appearance), himself to Pundalika and visited him. But Pundalik who was busy serving his old parents, was not amazed. He threw a brick lying nearby and requested the Lord to stand on it and wait till he was free! A very popular abhang states that Pundalik, totally absorbed in serving his parents, forgot about the visiting Lord and he had to stand on the brick for twenty-eight seasons! ("Yuge zali atthavis, ajuni na mhanshi, bais!" -- Saint Tukaram's abhang says "28 tiresome yugas have I have been standing and you have not asked me to sit yet!")
The supreme shrine of Vitthala is shown as standing on the brick as waiting with his both hands clasping the waist. The Pandurangashtakam by Adi Shankaracharya explains the reason (of Vithoba's posture)

Saints	Samadhi
Sant Eknath	Eknath embraced jal-samadhi in Lakshmi Teertha in the river Godavari on the Krishna Shashti day (sixth day of the dark fortnight) of Phalguna month in the year 1598 AD.
Sopan Deo	Younger brothet Sopan Deo attained ‘samadhi' at Saswad near Pune.
Nivrutti nath	Nivrutti nath took to salvation (Samadhi) at Triambakeshwar.
Sant Dnyaneshwar	Sanjeevan Samadhi at Alandi
Sant Tukaram	Dehu
Ramdas Swami	Sajjangad
Sant Namdev	Pandharpur

Very soon Pandharpur became the center of Bhakti movement in Maharashtra, with several saint-poets who belonged to different castes, hailing Vitthala,

Changadeva was a moving yogi,

Visoba was a Shaiva,

Gora Kumbar was a potter.

Savata was a gardener,

Narahari, a goldsmith,

Sena, a barber,

Joga an oilman,

Chokhamela a Harijan (scavenger)

Jana, a maid servant, and

Kanhopatra, a dancing girl.

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Current Affairs (19 -25 June 2011)

Orissa halts land takeover for $12 bln POSCO plant

The Varkari Movement