This dissertation examines how Sikh women who survived the anti-Sikh massacre in 1984 in Delhi, India, cope with the long-term legacies of violence and trauma amid the backdrop of the urban space of the city. After the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards, approximately thirty-five hundred Sikh men were killed in October and November 1984. Many of the survivors, Sikh widows and their families, were relocated shortly after to the “Widow Colony,” a designated slum also known as Tilak Vihar, within the boundary of Tilak Nagar in West Delhi, as a means of rehabilitation and compensation. The work arises from fieldwork carried out between December 2012 and March 2014. I begin by discussing in depth the space of the Widow Colony and its relation to the rest of the city of Delhi. I then analyze the events of the 1984 massacre through the narratives of Sikh widows and how they remember their experiences of violence. I discuss how violence can have long-term ramifications for everyday life in arenas such as kinship networks, economic stability, health and wellness, and social life. These experiences are further amplified by gender, caste, and class. I also examine the impact of the stigma of widowhood in this community. This research seeks to interrogate how memories of violence inform, and are constituted by, embodied, affective practices carried out in a gendered space produced by the state. I argue that Sikh widows cope with long-term trauma by creating new forms of sociality and memory through their everyday lives and religious practices in the Widow Colony. The memory of the 1984 violence figures heavily among the Sikh diaspora. Thus, I also explore the relationship between the Widow Colony and Sikhs in the transnational arena. / Arts, Faculty of / Anthropology, Department of / Graduate

This study explores regionally based perspectives on the broader nation-wide phenomena of the politicisation of Hinduism (Hindutva) in historical and contemporary times (van der Veer 1987; Basu et al 1993; Pandey 1993; Jaffrelot 1996). However, in contrast to these works, my focus is on the extent to which an annual religious festival, the Ganapati utsava, has been effected by the wider socio-political terrain in the cities of Mumbai and Pune, Maharashtra. The Ganapati utsava is a discursive arena for mutually reliant activities of a devotional, artistic, entertaining, and socio-political nature. The intertwining of the various constituent elements sustain and accentuate each other in the performative milieux of the festival, yet also lie outside of totalising political schemas. I note that the festival has become a site for the hegemonic strategies of several political parties, and sponsored media competitions who all vie for supremacy in the festive context. As a result, the festival represents an uneven field of consent and contestation (Laclau and Mouflfe 1985). The history, and contemporary praxis of the festival necessitates a consideration of the movement of nationalism(s) for which the festival played a significant part, particularly under the auspices of Bal Gangadhar Tilak since the 1890s. I propose that the efficacy of nationalism as a hegemonic strategy relies as much on public performative events, as on constitutional politics and social structures (eg. Gellner 1983), or on the print media, such as newspapers and novels (eg. Anderson 1983). By integrating Habermas' views on the 'public sphere' (Habermas 1991) and perspectives on public rituals or 'public arenas' (Freitag 1989), the study notes the interactive potency of both collective gatherings and media forms as sites for variant nationalist strategies. Mandap (shrine) tableaux, in particular, are considered as performative loci for socio-political variables, particularly in their audio-taped narratives and visualisation of versions of the nation.

<p>The Bhagavadgītā, the most popular religious text of Hinduism, has become the social and political gospel of India in the Twentieth Century. What is attempted in this study is an examination of the Hindu religious consciousness as reflected in the various recent interpretations of this religious text. In this, we have examined the writings of Twentieth Century national and religious leaders of India and their reinterpretations of the age-old Hindu concepts of dharma, karma and mukti. The main line pursued is to discern the attempt by the moderns to integrate dharma and mukti and to render the message of the Gītā relevant to the problems of contemporary India. We examine this attempt by these national leaders against the background of recent ideologies such as nationalism, socialism and secularism that have made deep inroads into the sub-continent. The "counter-ideologies" (à la Harry M. Johnson) that sprang up from the new interpretations of the Gītā by national leaders such as B.G. Tilak, M.K. Gandhi, Sri Aurobindo and others are examined in depth. The modern commentators also attempt to relate the teachings of the Gītā to the needs of a modern secular society, and in particular to the problems of religious pluralism which confront modern India. These commentators however, did not limit the relevance of this text to India, but have been eager to point out its relevance for a wider humanity.</p> <p>This study aims to be both descriptive and critical. I have sought to describe what modern Indian thinkers selected as essential to the tradition and have also sought to understand their determination to come to terms with not only spiritual but also national and social issues. It is clear that they understood that reconstruction work in India could not be envisaged without giving it a basis in religious tradition which in their mind was most succinctly represented by the Bhagavadgītā. The writer after critical study, has come to the conclusion that these commmentaries taken together have successfully pointed out the significance of the Bhagavadgītā as a text that can accommodate varieties, and as a text which, without losing the clarity and rigour of its central spiritual perception, can provide legitimation, for the social and political forces that underlie a secular state.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Spore forming organisms are a health threat to humans and other animals in part due to a remarkable resistance to UV irradiation. This resistance results from two events: first, the formation of a unique thymine dimer, 5-thyminyl-5,6-dihydrothymine (spore photoproduct, or SP) upon UV irradiation; and more importantly, the rapid and specific repair of this DNA photoproduct to two thymines by spore photoproduct lyase (SP lyase). Understanding the molecular basis of this radical-mediated DNA repair will ultimately allow for a better understanding of how to address the health risks caused by spore forming bacteria. SP lyase requires S-adenosyl-L-methionine and a [4Fe-4S]&Acirc;&sup1;+/&Acirc;&sup2;+ cluster to perform its catalysis. Presented in this work is a characterization of Clostridium acetobutylicm SP lyase and its ability to repair stereochemically defined dinucleoside and dinucleotide synthetic substrates. Careful synthesis and characterization followed by assays monitored by HPLC indicate SP lyase repairs only the 5R isomer of SP with an activity of 0.4 nmol/min/mg (dinucleoside substrate) and 7.1 nmol/min/mg (dinucleotide substrate). These results support the longstanding theory of SP formation by dimerization of adjacent thymines in double-helical DNA. Kinetic and mechanistic studies were pursued to further elucidate the mechanism of SP repair. Upon pre-reducing SP lyase, the specific activity increased nearly 4-fold to 1.29 &Icirc;&frac14;mol/min/mg. Mechanistic studies utilizing [C-6-&Acirc;&sup3;H] SP DNA as the substrate revealed a primary tritium kinetic isotope effect of 16.1, indicating a rate determining step during the repair reaction. These results suggest nonstereospecific SP formation regarding the C-6 position and subsequent stereospecific abstraction of the C-6 H atom by SP lyase. Mossbauer and Fe/S K-edge X-ray absorption studies of anaerobically prepared SP lyase aided in further characterization of the [4Fe-4S] cluster and its interaction with SAM. The Fe K-edge EXAFS provide evidence for a slight cluster distortion upon interacting with SAM as a new spectral feature indicative of longer Fe-Fe distances is observed. The Fe K-edge XANES provide further support that SAM is not undergoing reductive cleavage in the presence of reduced SP lyase. Our XAS studies may provide new insights into the mechanism by which radical SAM enzymes initiate their diverse catalysis. 'Co-authored by Tilak Chandra, Egidijus Zilinskas, Eric M. Shepard, William E. Broderick, Joan B. Broderick, Shourjo Ghose, Jeffrey M. Buis, David J. Gardenghi, BoiHanh Huynh, and Robert K. Szilagyi.'

This study investigated the financial sustainability of electricity Mini-grids in Uganda. The challenges of sustainability of Mini-grids were recognised by Tenenbaum Bernard, Greacen Chris, Siyambalapitiya Tilak (2014) as well as Payen, Bordeleau and Young (2016), with a focus on developing countries, particularly in Asia. There is, however, no literature that was found on similar challenges in Uganda. The specific objectives of this study were to examine the profitability, liquidity, efficiency and operational sustainability of Mini-grids in Uganda. The study focused on four Mini-grids as case studies: Ferdsult Engineering Services Limited (FESL), Bundibugyo Energy Cooperative Society (BECS), Kilembe Investments Limited (KIL) and West Nile Rural Electrification Company (WENRECO). The research objective was addressed by analysing audited financial reports for the respective Mini-grids from 2010 to 2015 and other operational information published by the electricity regulator. The study established that Mini-grids in Uganda were not financially sustainable despite having steady growth in sales revenue and customer numbers. The main factors that affected the sustainability of Mini-grids include a higher growth rate in operational and maintenance costs compared to the sales revenue. In addition, operational efficiency challenges were observed, including energy losses, imprudent financial management practices and poor liquidity. These shortfalls consequently showed that the Mini-grids are not financially sustainable. Despite the fact that Mini-grids are not financially sustainable in Uganda, their benefits go beyond electricity provision. The other benefits of Mini-grids are socio-economic in nature, including support for health services and enhancement of economic activities and the livelihoods of the poor. The socio-economic benefits from access to electricity in these rural areas may far outweigh the financial limitations observed. It is therefore important that Mini-grids continue to get the necessary support until such a time as they become sustainable. It is recommended that the Government of Uganda should provide financial and operational support through subsidies or other support systems to ensure continuity of the Mini-grids and, ultimately, their financial sustainability in the medium term in order to enhance access to electricity and the knock- on benefits that come with this access. In this regard, governance and technical skills enhancement remain key in order for these -grids to move forward. Further research should establish the optimal size and internal operational parameters that will ensure the sustainability of the Mini-grids, the amount of government subsidy required and the time it would prudently take to attain sustainability.