In a first, Rajasthan government mulls a department of peace and non-violence

JAIPUR: In what could be seen as a response to the BJP’s Gopalan department, Rajasthan government is mulling the formation of a new 'peace and non-violence' department, as a mark of respect to Mahatma Gandhi on his 150th birth anniversary year. The department would be the first of its kind in the country.
At a time when there is a rise in the number of incidents of cow vigilantism and rapes in Rajasthan including the recent one of a Dalit woman in Alwar that evoked national outrage, the formation of the department could be considered a political move by the government.
Chief secretary D B Gupta has called a meeting of various departments on June 10 at 4 pm to chalk out a roadmap for the formation of a new department named 'Peace and Non-Violence department'. It is believed that the department will function under the department of arts and culture.
“This is just a preliminary meeting. We have just received a suggestion from somebody on this. So, we are just examining the suggestion. It has to be discussed with a number of secretaries. The chief secretary will be taking a meeting and after that we will take a call,” said a senior secretary.
Another senior person in the government said the idea behind the department was to ensure better coordination with peace committees in the districts. “There is no department to coordinate with these committees and give directions. The new department will coordinate with these committees to ensure communal harmony and national integration at a time when the cases of mob lynchings are increasing. So, this department would be beneficial in curbing these incidents.”
Asked about Gopalan department, he said, “They can only ask for votes in the name of cow, but they do nothing for their welfare. They have done nothing for the department in the past five years.”
A senior official said, “The chief minister (Ashok Gehlot) made a reference to this during a function to mark the birth anniversary of social worker and Gandhian thinker S N Subba Rao, where he had also come. This is in reference to the chief minister's remark there. This is also the 150th year of Gandhiji’s birth anniversary. Since, he was an apostle of peace and non-violence, therefore it is related to that. So, the chief secretary must be trying to work out the details as to how to create the department."
Subba Rao is an Indian social worker who founded the National Youth Project. With Gandhi’s birthday on October 2, the department could be launched on the same day.
It was during that function Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot announced that the monthly pension for freedom fighters would be increased to Rs. 25,000 and the medical allowance to Rs.5,000 per month.
Read this report in Bengali