Ø India’s Muslim population is growing slower than it had in the
previous decades, and its growth rate has slowed more sharply than that of the
Hindu population, new Census data show. The decadal Muslim rate of growth is
the lowest it has ever been in India’s history, as it is for all religions. The
Muslim population still grows at a faster rate than the Hindu population, but
the gap between the two growth rates is narrowing fast. India now has 966.3
million Hindus, who make up 79.8 per cent of its population, and 172.2 million
Muslims, who make up 14.23 per cent. Among the other minorities, Christians
make up 2.3 per cent of the population and Sikhs 2.16 per cent. The
Registrar-General and Census Commissioner released the data on Population by
Religious Communities of Census 2011 on Tuesday evening. The data on religion
comes after a significant delay. The 2001 Census data on religion was released
in 2004 and the 2011-round results were expected in 2014. However, the numbers
remained unreleased, even as a draft of the key data was selectively leaked.
The data comes in the backdrop of much fear-mongering over Muslims and their
population, and RSS thinkers were quick to term the new data as proof of the
end of Hindus, even while the numbers belie their claim. The distribution of
data is of the population by six major religious communities — Hindu, Muslim,
Christian, Sikh, Buddhist and Jain — and “Other religions and persuasions” and
“Religion not stated”. Muslim fertility rates in India are falling faster than
among Hindus, Pew Research’s Future of World Religions report showed recently,
and the Muslim community is expected to reach replacement levels of fertility
by 2050.
Ø A crackdown on the agitators at a mammoth rally by Gujarat’s
economically and politically powerful Patel community demanding reservation in
government jobs and education, on Tuesday triggered massive violence and unrest
in Gujarat with curfew imposed in Mehsana, Suray and other pockets. Hardik
Patel, 22, who is spearheading the agitation was detained before being released.
According to the police, reports of more than 50 buses being torched and around
a dozen incidents of group clashes have come in from across the state. Curfew
in Mehsana was imposed after mobs started pelting stones at minister Nitin
Patel's residence. Similarly, junior home minister Rajni Patel's residence was
also set on fire in his native village. Meanwhile, the government has decided
to stop Internet service for 24 hours to stop rumours being spread on social
media. Earlier, a crowd of over five lakh thronged the Gujarat University
ground for the rally, bringing the entire city to a standstill. “The lotus will
not bloom in 2017 if the demand [for quota] is not heeded,” Mr. Patel warned
the BJP government, which depends on support from the community.
Ø The GSLV-D6 satellite launcher powered by the indigenously
developed upper cryogenic stage will be flown on Thursday evening from
Sriharikota. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is using the vehicle
to send the 2,117-kg GSAT-6 communication satellite into space. On Monday,
teams across the action centres rehearsed the sequence of actions to be taken
for the launch, said ISRO Chairman A.S. Kiran Kumar. The 29-hour countdown for
the launch would begin on Wednesday at 11.52 a.m.
Ø Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed-led Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) and
Afghanistan-based dreaded Haqqani network are not banned in Pakistan, according
to an official list of 60 proscribed outfits.
Ø Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed-led Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) and
Afghanistan-based dreaded Haqqani network are not banned in Pakistan, according
to an official list of 60 proscribed outfits. However, the government
has put the JuD on the list of groups being closely watched by the officials,
which means that it can be banned if found guilty of promoting militancy.
The al-Qaeda-linked Haqqani network, blamed for several deadly attacks against
Western and Indian interests in Afghanistan including the 2008 bombing of the
Indian mission in Kabul, is also not on the list. Arranged in
alphabetical order, the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) is on number 39 while
Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) is on 29. The list also includes top militant groups
like al-Qaeda and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan. The Islamic State or Daesh, which
had made in-roads in the region, is also not included in the list.
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