MINORITIES: CHRISTIANS-2012 - Indian Social Institute

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about Rs 3.48 crore, in 2009-10 Rs 3.73 crore, in 2010-11 4.63 crore and in the year 2011-12, Rs 5.76 crore had been earmarked, he revealed. Under National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation’s direct loan schemes, a sum of Rs 10 crore has been allotted to the state, of which Rs one crore has been allotted to the district, he said. (Deccan Herald 25/6/12) Church attacked in Mangalore (7) Mangalore: A group of unidentified people pelted stones at a church here damaging some articles including the altar, police said today. The culprits entered the premises of the Holy Hill Church in the wee hours of yesterday and damaged the altar, flower plots and other belongings, police said. Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh along with other police officials inspected the spot. A case has been registered. Condemning the attack, Deputy Speaker of Karnataka Assembly Yogish Bhat said police had been asked to trace the cuplrits and initiate strict action against them. "I cannot tolerate attacks and defiling of places of worship including churches in my constituency," he said. Senior Congress leader Janardhan Poojary accused the Sangh Parivar behind the attack on the church. It was deliberate and preplanned, aimed at vitiating communal harmony in the region. He urged the police to launch proper investigation immediately. (DNA 26/6/12) Christians demand 'benefits of affirmative action', protest on Aug 1 (7) MANGALORE: Demanding deletion of Para 3 of Constitution (Scheduled Caste) Order 1950 which renders Christians and Muslims ineligible for enjoying the benefits of affirmative action, Christians will hold a protest at New Delhi on August 1. A protest march to Parliament and sit-in will be held at the Ramlila grounds, New Delhi, to protest the six decades of discrimination against Schedule Caste and Schedule Tribe Christians by the government. The protest is being organized by the National Council of Dalit Christians (NCDC) along with the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India and the National Council of Churches. Another significant demand is the implementation of recommendations contained in the Ranganath Misra Commission report. The National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities, headed by former Supreme Court Chief Justice Ranganath Misra, had asserted the de-linking of Scheduled Caste status from religion. The first United Progressive Alliance government had committed in their manifesto to resolve the issue but conveniently ignored'' it during their tenure. The second UPA government has also forgotten and neglected us, says Franklin Caesar, national coordinator of NCDC. According to the National Council of Dalit Christians, discussions have been held with lawmakers and political parties to raise the issue strongly in Parliament. (Times of India 10/7/12) Welfare schemes for Christian converts (7) KOTTAYAM, July 13, <strong>2012</strong>: The Kerala State Development Corporation for Christian Converts from Scheduled Castes and the Recommended Communities Limited will soon launch a microfinance scheme for the benefit of the communities concerned. Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, Corporation chairman Shince Peter said the proposed scheme will be implemented by both Central and State Governments. Various products that will be manufactured as part of the scheme will be put up for sale through margin-free shops that will be established for the purpose. These establishments would also serve to create employment opportunities for many women belonging to the communities, he said. Mr. Peter also elaborated on the other projects that will be implemented soon. “As many as 100 youth will be provided autorickshaws during the Onam festival as part of the self-employment scheme of the corporation. A self-entrepreneurship scheme will also be introduced with the support of non-governmental organisations. The corporation will also provide government and semi-government employees, belonging to the target communities, loans up to Rs.2 lakh. A core-banking system will also be implemented in order to facilitate repayment of loans in rural areas. In addition, as many as 50 high-ranking students will be provided free entrance coaching from the next academic year.” The corporation has also decided to felicitate students belonging to the communities who have performed well at the SSLC and Plus Two examinations. A.P. Anil Kumar, Minister for Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes, will give away awards to the students at a function that will be held here on Friday. Home Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan will launch the redesigned structure of loans of the corporation. (The Hindu 13/7/12) Christians demand pilgrimage subsidy like Haj, Amarnath Yatra (7) MANGALORE: Months after Tamil Nadu Government announced financial assistance for Christians wanting to visit the holy land of Jerusalem, Ludhiana-based Christian United Federation (CUF) have sought subsidy for the pilgrimage on the pattern of Haj for Muslims, Amarnath Yatra for Hindus and Shri Nankana Sahib Yatra for Sikhs. CUF president Albert Dua said they would request the Centre and State governments to provide pilgrimage facilities to Christians to travel to places of religious significance.
Some mechanism must be devised so that poor Christians are able to undertake the pilgrimage at least to Jerusalem, the birthplace of Jesus Christ, he said. Another activist, Augustine John, said they were seeking permission from the government to collect money for the poor Christians and arrange their pilgrimage to the Holy Land. "We want to get our brothers freed from the clutches of the expensive travel agents," Augustine said. It may be recalled that Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa in December last announced government financial assistance to Christians for the Holy Land pilgrimage. The scheme will be applicable to all sections of the Christian community. Initially, this assistance will be given to 500 Christians this year,'' she had said. (Times of India 17/7/12) Church that spun congregations (7) Kochi: The Synod Church of Udayamperoor, a whitewashed old-fashioned church on Vaikom Road on the outskirts of Kochi, may not look like a treasure-trove of history. This church is one of the oldest religious structures in the entire state, with a splendid history of hosting the Synod of Diamper, between June 20 and 26 in 1599, which eventually led to the division of Syrian Church and formation of different Christian congregations in Kerala. The Udayamperoor Church, termed by the Portuguese as the Church of Diamper, was built in AD 510, according to scripts. It was the official church of Christian Kings of Villarvattom dynasty. Studies done by Fr Joseph Puduva in 1929 say three Metropolitans and two kings were buried inside this church. The Synod of Diamper was convened by the Portuguese Governor and Archbishop of Goa, Dom Alexis de Menezes, to formally unite the ancient Christian Church of the Malabar Coast with the Roman Catholic Church. Diamper is the Portuguese version of the name of the place Udayamperoor. In the synod, Archdeacon George was forced to comply with the wishes of Archbishop of Goa. This separated Thomas Christians from the Chaldean Patriarch and brought them directly under the Latin Archbishopric of Goa. The Archbishopric of Angamaly was downgraded to a Bishopric under Goa in 1600. Portuguese Padroado rule was thus imposed and the Bishops for Saint Thomas Christians were appointed by Portuguese Padroado. The Church has been conserved as a historical museum. (Asian Age 22/7/12) Unite to fight for quota for Dalit Christians: David Simeon (7) BANGALORE: The Union government has failed to ensure social justice for Dalit Christians by not extending reservation as recommended by the Ranganath Mishra committee, the former Deputy Chairman of the Legislative Council David Simeon said here on Sunday. He was speaking at a seminar on “Challenges before the Christian Community”, organised by the Christian Youth Organisation. If the Union government fails to implement this within the completion of its term, Christians should organise protests to fight for their rights, he added. He emphasised unity among Christians. “Unless the entire community unites and speaks up about these issues, there is no hope for setting things right,” he said. “Ensuring reservation at par with Scheduled Castes for Dalit Christians is the responsibility of the United Progressive Alliance government at the Centre. And if it does not take its job seriously, it is the duty of the entire Christian community to speak up against it,” he said. Another speaker, Dinesh Amin Matoo, said that compared to other minorities, Christians are perceived as well-off and affluent, but there are inequalities with large sections among them still backward and economically-weak. “The leaders of the Christian community need to focus on these sections,” he said. He pointed out that even during the attacks on churches in the State, it was the less-empowered and backward sections among Christians that spoke up against the injustice. He spoke about the increasing commercialisation of what once started as Christian missionary enterprises in the education and health sector. Manoj Chandraprasad of Church of South India spoke. More than 200 people from different places, including Mariyannapalya, Naganahalli, Mestripalya, Basavanapura and Chikkammanahalli, participated. (The Hindu 23/7/12) Christian nurses ‘poisoned’: Community demands probe (7) Islamabad: Pakistan’s minority Christian community’s leaders have demanded an impartial inquiry into the alleged poisoning of nine nurses at a government-run hospital. The nine Christian trainee nurses at the Civil Hospital in Karachi fell ill Sunday after reportedly drinking poisoned tea prepared at their hostel. They were claimed to have been deliberately poisoned because of their faith. According to one of the affected nurses, a colleague had made the tea after 10pm and they fell ill immediately after drinking it. Parliamentarian Saleem Khokhar told The Express Tribune that the government should launch a probe. Rumours initially suggested that the poisoning occurred as the nurses were drinking tea while their Muslim colleagues were fasting during the Islamic holy month of Ramzan. Khokhar ruled this out, saying the incident took place late at night when everyone had broken their fast.Pakistan’s defence establishment has demanded that the government immediately close all illegal <strong>Indian</strong> TV channels to check “India’s hostile agenda against Pakistan”, according to a media report on Wednesday. The defence
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MINORITIES: CHRISTIANS-2012 - Indian Social Institute

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