NEWSLETTER August 2021 LOKAYAT - forum for a new world! |
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| August 2021 was another amazing month which marked the 75th anniversary of our independence. We conducted several public programs & street campaigns following Covid protocol. This month also recorded iconic protests by Anganwadi Karmachari Sabha & People affected by Pune's Ring Road Project. We also continued to campaign against Caste, Racist Beauty, Rising Fuel & Gas Prices. We also had special guest, Nana Patole, current chief of Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committe at Lokayat to discuss about broader front against fascism. Here is brief summary of activities in last month! | Dialogue for a United Front Against Fascism | 20th August: Meeting with Nana Patole | Despite the electoral setbacks to the BJP in four states this year, the fascist machinery to subvert democracy remains entrenched at the grassroots. It is our firm stand that we need to hold a frank dialog with all democratic anti-fascist forces towards a common program to defend our Constitution and to strengthen democratic values at the grassroots. Retd. Mumbai High Court Justice Kolse Patil emphasized on uniting all anti-fascist forces of the country during this meeting. We hosted Nana Patole, current chief of the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee, at the Lokayat office on 20th August and held a brief discussion. |  |
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| Public Programs | 15th August: Independence Day Programs | Midnight Flag Hoisting | Pune’s workers have kept up the 75 year old tradition of hoisting the Tricolour as midnight strikes on 15 August. Our cultural team participated in the midnight flag hoisting ceremonies organised by Rashtra Seva Dal at Hadapsar and by Angamehnati Kashtakari Samiti (Manual Labourers Federation) at the Budhwar Peth workers’ depot. In the latter, the Brass-Band workers’ union performed a brilliant set of freedom songs on their instruments. Both ceremonies were well attended and quite a few citizens out for a midnight walk, stopped in curiousity for a few minutes. It’s a beautiful tradition and we really enjoyed the programs. |  | | Celebration by Lokayat Nagri Samiti | The various vasti teams of the samiti celebrated Independence Day in their own ways, in addition to flag-hoisting. In Lohia Nagar, a small exhibition on unsung, lesser known freedom fighters was organised. In Wadarwadi, residents and activists organised interactive art exhibits on various topics – from scientific attitude to secularism, which dozens of people visited throughout the morning. |  | | Celebration by Sakhi Saheli Mahila Mandal | This is a forum of local women of the Tadiwala road area in Pune. Every weekend women gather to discuss various problems, run self-help groups and the mandal also provides legal counselling – which activists of our forum Lawyers for Equality conduct. This independence day, Abhivyakti and the women of the mandal held a unique flag hoisting celebration. They put up a few interactive exhibits, which raised consciousness about patriarchy, gender roles and cultural diversity – through games. More than 100 women participated in the exhibition and also planned the activities for the next month. |
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| | | Film Festival: Footprints of the Freedom Struggle | We began the celebration of the 75th year of independence with a short film festival – Footprints of the Freedom movement. Following COVID restrictions, with an audience of 40, we screened various films about the values of the freedom struggle which inspired the Constitution, the role of women in the revolutionary movements, the confluence of Gandhi-Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh’s points of view as well as the contemporary freedom struggle being waged by farmers. |  | | Redefining Rakshabandhan | 19-20th August: Kashtakaryanche Rakshabandhan | Like every year, this year too we celebrated Rakshabandhan showing solidarity with with workers in three independent programs. Two of these programs with the Household workers PMC's cleaning staff in Pune's Lohia Nagar vasti. The third program was with all staff members including cleaning workers, nurses & doctors at the District Hospital, Aundh. Each of these three events was attended by about 50 people. This way of redefining Rakshabandhan's culture & giving it a more meaningful way of celebration appealed everyone. Many workers felt emotional about the gratitude they saw in the event. Do watch their videos in YouTube section. |
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| | Todu Jatichya Bedya (Let's Break the Shackles of Caste) | Campaign: Let’s Break the Shackles of Caste | This is our special and continuous campaign to initiate a dialogue in society about systemic casteism and to organise our youth to struggle against it. To this end, we conduct regular street campaigns where we openly discuss about casteism in educational institutions and in our society in general. This month, we organised three such campaigns in various parts of the city. |  | | Story Readng: Annabhau Sathe Jayanti | On the occasion of Annabhau Sathe Jayanti (1st August), we organized a reading & discussion on one of Annabhau's important short stories Sapala (a trap) which comments on the role of land ownership in the caste system. This enriching session was attended by handful of people. | Campaigns | 1st August: Friendship Beyond Borders | Every year we celebrate friendship day by emphasizing the need to build friendships beyond the lines constructed by society- class, caste, gender, age and region – with a cultural program. This year, although we could not organise a program, we held a campaign with placards on a popular jogging track and got a good response from the people. |
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|  | | Campaign: Against Fuel Price Hike | As prices of petrol, diesel and gas continue to rise – another Rs 25 hike in LPG cylinders this month – and the way Modi government continues its fire-sale of national assets (monetization scheme), we continue to hold street campaigns against these anti-people policies exposing the real pro-corporate, fascist agenda behind them. We also organized a detailed discussion on government's motenization policy for people who came in touch with us during these campaigns. |  | Programs organized by Abhivyakti | 1st August: Abhivyakti Monthly Meeting
Women & Superstitions |
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| The monthly meeting of Abhivyakti was held on 1st August. The topic of discussion was the various superstitions prevalent in society and their connection to the casteist and patriarchal structure of society. This time the meeting, usually restricted to women, was open to all and drew a very good response both in person and online. |
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| | | Campaign: Black Is Beautiful | Abhivyakti conducted two street campaigns on the topic of “Black is Beautiful”. In this campaign we had conversation with people on how our standards of beauty have been constructed by an exploitative system. This campaign had a very good response and once again we observed that people are very interested in discussing this issue. |
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| | Lokayat Nagri Samiti Activities | Organising citizens for an effective ration system: Under the aegis of Lokayat Nagri Samiti, we have initiated a two-pronged campaign in various vastis of Pune. First, at the local level, we help vasti residents and workers from the unorganised sector unions to collect complaints regarding inadequate rations from their areas, and to organise the locals to follow up with local administration to redress these complaints. For this we do door to door campaigns in vastis collecting complaints. Local youth are involved and encouraged to check their neighbours’ ration entitlements using the online portal of the state government. Secondly, to emphasize that the root cause of inadequate rations is central government's neo-liberal, World Bank-IMF driven policy which aims at slowly wind-up the entire PDS system, we also make people conscious about building public opinion and pressure to save the PDS and strengthen it further. To this end we conduct workshops on the history of PDS, Food Security Act and why it is being dismantled. We also talk about states like Tamil Nadu & Chattisgarh, where people have fought to keep their PDS is a good shape. This month there were four campaigns and three workshops in Vastis. |  |
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| Collaboration with Rickshaw Panchayat | In these hard times, while the auto-rickshaw business has not yet recovered from the lockdown, many private finance companies are constantly harassing drivers for loan recovery by sending street thugs to confiscate their rickshaws. The Panchayat held meetings with local Police inspectors and finance company representatives. A strict notice was given to the latter against forcible acquisition without due process and dialog. Our activists, along with auto-drivers, held numerous stand meetings to make the drivers aware of these notices and the organised protocols to be followed for resisting the company thugs. |
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| Collaboration with Anganwadi Karmachari Sabha | 25th August: Mobile Wapsi Andolan | Anganwadi workers of Pune city protested by returning the faulty phones with malfunctioning apps supplied by the administration, on account of which they are unable to work properly. Our activists participated in this protest. |  | Other Programs | 27th August: Solidarity with
People affected by Pune Ring Road Project | In solidarity with the people of rural Pune who are protesting land acquisition for the ring-road scheme – we were part of the protest led by Dr Baba Adhav. |  | | Social media activities | We continue to regularly make progressive content on social media. This month as well we targeted issues of petrol, diesel & gas price hike, National Monetization Pipeline, Gender & Economic crisis etc. | Volunteer for poster making activity if you are interested.
Contact us if you want to host our program on your channel. Contact: Shubham: 99673 75492 | | New On YouTube |
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