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Economist explores human stories behind development_我的网站

一 |     New Delhi, Oct 10 (UNI) A delegation of Congress leaders on Monday told the Election Commission that no violation of the Representation of the People Act was done during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, and the NCPCR complaint of children being used for electioneering is baseless.

A delegation of Congress leaders including general secretary Jairam Ramesh, spokesperson Supriya Shrinate and senior leader Salman Khurshid met Election Commission officials to reply to a notice by the poll watchdog over a complaint by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR).

The Congress leaders also filed a complaint against BJP functionaries alleging they were using children in a "malafide" and "perverse" way.

"We met the election commission on a lot of frivolous complaint filed by the NCPCR which is meant to protect children's rights. Instead they are electioneering, and making all sorts of bogus allegations," Shrinate said.

"We have filed a counter complaint against BJP and it's functionaries on how they are using children in a malafide way and a rather perverse order," she said.

Ramesh said the ECI was informed that no violation of the Representation of People's Act or any Model Code of Conduct was done.

"We told the ECI that in the Bharat Jodo Yatra,

neither the representation of people's act has been violated, nor any model code of conduct has been violated. So we fail to understand why did the ECI send us a notice. We gave a detailed document how the NCPCR has filed childish complaint that children are being used," said Ramesh.

"Rahul Gandhi ji went for prize distribution in a painting competition for 15 minutes, and it is being said children are being used for election," he said.

The Congress leader said the NCPCR, a body created during the UPA regime for ensuring protection of rights of Children, is now being headed by "BJP, RSS functionaries ".

"Thousands of people are coming everyday, children are coming with their parents, their families, everyone wants to click a selfie with Rahul ji. There is nothing illegal about that," he said.

"There is no election campaign happening. Rahul Gandhi ji is not telling children to vote for Congress... NCPCR was formed during UPA regine for ensuring child rights. Now for the first time it is being headed by workers of BJP, RSS," he said.

Khurshid said they told the ECI that other agencies should not give their work to the poll panel, and it is not good for the functioning of the commission. He also said that ECI is meant to watch over elections and there is no context of any poll in this case.

The NCPCR headed by Priyank Kanoongo had asked the ECI to carry out an inquiry and initiate necessary action against the Congress and Rahul Gandhi for allowing children to take part in its Bharat Jodo Yatra.

UNI AO SHK2157。    

    Zhou Jiang speaks at an event. Photo: Courtesy of Zhou Jiang
Zhou Jiang, a researcher at the Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences, has a favorite book:  White Deer Tableland or Bai Lu Yuan by renowned writer Chen Zhongshi.
As vice president of the Regional Science Association of China (RSAC), Zhou told the Global Times that a lifetime of reading has profoundly shaped the way he sees and understands the world. It ultimately led him to a career in research and academia, where he teaches and pursues scholarly work.
Since earning his PhD in economics in 2000, he has devoted himself to the study of regional science and economics, a field that demands a constant crossing of disciplinary boundaries, drawing on the fields of geography, sociology, history, and ecology among others.
"Reading has kept alive my sense of curiosity and taught me to ask questions with patience and persistence: Where do disparities in regional development come from? How do policies affect different groups in society? And how can a region pursue both efficiency and equity so that development is not merely effective, but also imbued with a greater sense of humanity and warmth?" Zhou noted. 
Founded in 1991, RSAC is a national academic society dedicated to advancing domestic and international academic exchange and cooperation, providing consulting services on spatial planning, urbanization, and regional development, and offering intellectual support for China's modernization drive.
The 57-year-old researcher noted that reading has empowered him in two distinct ways.
"The first is discernment. When confronted with a complex issue, I try not to settle for a simple conclusion. Instead, I make an effort to understand its broader context, how it has unfolded, and the perspectives of the different people involved," he said. 
"The second is a sense of inner steadiness. Setbacks are an inevitable part of both life and work. Good books remind us that hardship is never ours alone to bear; countless people before us have faced circumstances more difficult than our own, made difficult choices, and found the strength to carry on. Reading cannot solve every problem for us, but it can help us remain calm when challenges arise, giving us the clarity and resilience that allow us not to panic or give up too easily," he said. 
Historical depth

Each time Zhou returns to the White Deer Tableland, he finds something different in its pages. 
"When I first read it as a young person, I was drawn primarily to the characters and the twists and turns of their lives. Later, as I began researching regional economics, I found myself paying closer attention to the changes in the land, the countryside, families and social order presented in the story. Now, approaching 60, I have come to appreciate more deeply the choices the characters make, the constraints they face, and the quiet perseverance they show amid the sweeping currents of their times," he said. 
White Deer Tableland uses Bai Lu village in Northwest China's Shaanxi Province as a microcosm, tracing the feuds and intertwined fortunes of three generations of the Bai (literally meaning white) and Lu families. Through their stories, it captures more than half a century of sweeping historical change, from the final years of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) to the 1970s and 1980s. The novel won the Mao Dun Literature Prize, one of China's top literature awards, in 1997.
Zhou prefers literary works with historical depth and a keen eye for social change. 
Regional economics may appear to be concerned with the spatial distribution of industries, population and resources, but at its heart, it is about how people live on a particular piece of land, and why some places flourish while others decline, he noted. 
In this sense, literature and history are more than pastimes beyond professional research. They often help him understand the historical context, cultural traditions and social mentality that lie behind economic data, he said. 
When reading novels, Zhou said that he often pays close attention to the relationship between people and the places they inhabit: How the land shapes the local character, how transportation transforms a region, and how shifts in industry reshape families and villages. Such details may not offer a direct conclusion, but they broaden a researcher's perspective. They also serve as a reminder that research should look beyond growth rates and statistical indicators to consider the sense of fulfillment experienced by ordinary people and the dignity of human beings.
Understanding ourselves
Once, while tidying his study, he came across a book filled with notes he had scribbled in his early years. Among them was a question that particularly caught his attention: "In the face of sweeping changes in the times and profound social transformation, what can a person truly determine for himself?"
Looking at those words he had written in his youth was like coming face to face with the person he had been decades ago.
Reading is not simply the act of understanding a book; it is also a record of a person's own growth, he said. The same book can reveal something entirely different when read at different stages of life. 
When we are young, we turn to books in search of answers; but when we become seasoned, we read more to understand life, to understand others, and ultimately, to better understand ourselves, Zhou said. 
In this era of fragmented information, AI can help people access information quickly, organize materials, and gain a basic understanding of unfamiliar fields. Yet deep reading, Zhou said, allows people to see how a conclusion is reached — what evidence supports it, where its boundaries lie, and what alternative interpretations it may invite.
What truly shapes a person, after all, is not how much information they have browsed, but the words that have made them pause and reflect - and the words that have remained with them for many years, he added. 
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