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were being jailed and hanged during the nationalist movement. Jagari, as well as Jayanti Dalals Padarnan Tirath, written in the same year and set in the Quit India Movement, indicate the maturity of the Indian political novel. Political fiction, especially political novels, became popular in Soviet central Asia in the face of the strict censorship imposed on ethnic and nationalistic historical writing. Mamadali Mahmudovs Olmez Kayalar (1981), Ilyas Esenberlins Altin Orda (1982), and Alishir Ibadinovs Kuyas ham Alav (1980) all attempted to re-present the historical past of the central Asian regions, with particular emphasis on the invasion of the Russian armies and, in some cases, even resistance to Islam by the more authentic and older traditions of central Asia. While demonstrating an adept use of the novel form, the post-Stalinist writers demonstrate an interesting exploration of their past while addressing political concerns of the present. Postcolonial Literature The euphoria of independence tempered by the horror of the bloody partition of British India into the nations of India and Pakistan gave birth to a multilayered and complex literature. Salman Rushdies Midnight Children (1981), Kushwant Singhs Train to Pakistan (1956), and Saadat Hasan Mantos Toba Tek Singh (1955) reflect the ambiguity of political independence, expressing the identity crises of individuals in an unstable world. With the promise of independence delivered, the realities of nation-building along with its mundane challenges of corruption, inefficiency, and confusion began to be portrayed by writers and poets of post-independence India and Pakistan. Raag Darbari by Srilal Shukla (Hindi, 1968) is a novel that traverses the villages of north India, revealing the hilariously inadequate sociopolitical structures. The novel also demonstrates the use of Hinglish that soon became very popular with Indian writers. The last decades of the 20th century gave birth to more experimental and stylistically diverse and exciting literature in south Asia that was more self-conscious as a literary form rather than as a medium of social change. The works of writers such as Amitav Ghosh, Vikram Seth, Arundhati Roy, Shyam Selvadurai, and Sara Suleri, although often rooted in south Asian experiences, have received recognition at the global level.

The Post-Soviet Period Contemporary writing from central Asia has been in the shadows and, with the world watching the emergence of new nations from the collapsed Soviet Empire, the indigenous writers find themselves pressured either to retreat to an ancient historical period in search of an authentic narrative, or find the figure of Stalin looming large in their work. The works of popular writers Chingis Aitmatov, Andrey Volos, and Hamid Ismailov bear witness to this. Exiled No More: Post-National Literature The contemporary writing of both south and central Asia often comes from those who have been estranged from the region. What began as writing in exile or longing for home has now become unapologetic, non-nostalgic writing by authors and poets with hyphenated nationalities. These include Tahima Anam, Kamila Shamsie, and Yasmine Gooneratne.
Meera Ashar University of Cambridge See Also: Art; Gandhi, Mohandas; Modernity; Music; Nationalism; Popular Culture; Radio; Tagore, Rabindranath; Television; Theater and Film. Further Readings Das, Sisir Kumar. A History of Indian Literature, 1911 1956: Struggle for Freedom: Triumph and Tragedy. New Delhi, India: Sahitya Akademi, 2010. Jayasuriya, Wilfrid. Sri Lankas Modern English Literature: A Case Study in Literary Theory. New Delhi, India: Navrang, 1994. Mehrotra, Arvind Krishna. A Concise History of Indian Literature in English. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009. Paksoy, H. B. Lectures on Central Asia. Budapest, Hungary: Central European University Budapest, 2005.

1900 to Present

Madrassas
Madrassa has been derived from the Arabic word dars, which means a lesson. It is also written as madrasa, madrasah, and madarsah, the plural of which is madaris in Arabic and madrassas in English.

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Madrassas education remains the only choice for many poor and disadvantaged sections of the society in south Asia. In the absence of governmental support, madrassas in south Asia have largely been dependent on voluntary and philanthropic donations. This vulnerability has allegedly been capitalized by funding from Saudi Arabia. This Saudi Arabian model of Islamic education has radicalized young and impressionable minds. Pakistan and Afghanistan are classic examples of such an outcome. Military ruler Zia-Ul Haq, during his decade-long reign (197788), did everything he could to Islamize Pakistan in order to fight the Soviet Army in Afghanistan by invoking a jihad. Taking Saudi Arabia as a model, this process of Islamization led to the mushrooming of thousands of Salafist, particularly Wahhabi, madrassas during the 1980s. Wahhabism, a revival movement in Islam, named after Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, an ultra-fundamental Muslim theologian of the 18th century in Saudi Arabia, has been closely associated with puritanical Islam that also rejects any place for Sufis and saints in Islamic tradition. In contemporary history, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 and the September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States are two major events interjected by the Taliban rule (19962001) in Afghanistan, which brought extensive attention to this little-known institution of education, the madrassa, albeit in divergent ways. While the post-1979 burgeoning growth of madrassas had the support of the United States, the September 11 attacks led the United States to curtail, regulate, and monitor madrassas in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and elsewhere. Criticism and Research of the Madrassa Education The madrassa system has been seen as incompatible with modern civilization. It has been criticized as a male-dominated institution that feminists have labeled as the place that facilitates the already prevalent gender stereotype in Muslim societies and hence furthers womens subjugation. Furthermore, in the madrassa curriculums reliance on outdated syllabi, emphasis on rote learning and teaching of unverified scientific premises have been considered as responsible in producing very few graduates with the requisite skills that are needed for employment in a globalized marketplace. However, scholars remain divided on these issues.

Hence, madrassa in Arabic means a place where one studies lessons, both religious and secular. Although the word madrassa technically refers to all places of learning from early education to higher education and research, there are specific Arabic terms that refer to pre-university and university education. In common parlance, the madrassa is equivalent to a high school education, dar al uuloom provides pre-university education, and the Jamia has a university status, providing education from undergraduate to higher-degree research such as Ph.D. and postdoctoral work. Since the establishment of al-Azhar University in the 10th century and the Madrasah Nizamiyah in the early 11th century, madrassa has been a place for more generic learning in natural science, medical science, Arabic language and literature, law, philosophy, and mathematics. However, madrassa outside the Arab world has come to be known as a center for learning in Islamic education that includes the study of the Koran, hadith (narratives of the prophet Mohammads life), Islamic law, and jurisprudence. Madrassas through Islamic education have played a very crucial role in the spread of Islam throughout the world. Madrassa System of Education For many years, a madrassa was a free, residential, and largely all-male center for learning. However, in recent decades, female madrassas have been established in most of the south Asian countries. Madrassa education is designed to train students in the basics of Islamic practice and pave the way for higher learning in a university. Madrassas also admit students who want to specialize in Islamic knowledge, especially in fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) to become a ulema (religious scholar) having the right to issue a fatwa (a legally nonbinding religious decree, or as some say, an opinion, issued for social and spiritual guidance) on questions pertaining to the daily lives and beliefs of Muslims. Madrassas play a crucial role in training future professionals in an Islamic society to transmit the sociocultural and religious traditions of Islam through the generations. Madrassas in South Asia In the 21st century, madrassas continue to be relevant not only because of their educational importance or as a seat for transmission of religious and spiritual values, but also for social justice and inclusion. Madrassa

1900 to Present

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Earlier research in madrassa education focused on the curriculum and teaching methods without much focus on how modern Western education has impacted it during the colonial era and later through the process of globalization. Since the September 11 attacks on the United States, the focus on madrassas has intensified. U.S. government studies, especially the 9/11 Commission Report, note that some madrassas in Pakistan have been key centers that teach radical Islam and act as incubators of violent extremism. Even though subsequent studies have found this assertion less universal, the linking of madrassas with jihadist terrorism remains central to discourses on Islam and the West, on counterterrorism, and on the emergence of moderate forces in Islam. Future Direction in Research on Madrassas Seen as irreconcilable with modernity, madrassas have rarely been studied in their Islamic context. The intensive policy attention that has criticized this system in the past decade has achieved little more than isolating the age-old educational system. The existing wide-scale diversity in teaching and learning practice in madrassas adhering to different sects and schools of thought needs to be investigated. In addition, research is required to find out how these differences intersect in the cases of male and female madrassas. Female madrassas have increased in the past two decades in south Asia, providing a potential site of contestation for the conservatives and the Islamic feminist scholars. Further research on madrassas must look at the impact of the failure of the state on the overall social, political, and economic system of madrassa and how the post-September 11 counterterrorism policy has targeted, marginalized, and isolated the ulemas and teachers in madrassas, making them more radical. Moreover, study of madrassas cannot be separated from the problems that a traditional religious belief system such as Islam is facing in the 21st century.
Kamala Kanta Dash Monash University See Also: Educational Reform; Islam, Shia; Islam, Sunni; Islam, Wahhabi; Soviet Union in Central Asia; Taliban and Al Qaeda; Terrorism.

Further Readings Hussain, Rizwan. Pakistan and the Emergence of Islamic Militancy in Afghanistan. Surrey, UK: Ashgate Publishing, 2005. Malik, Jamal, ed. Madrasas in South Asia: Teaching Terror? New York: Routledge, 2008. Noor, Farish A., Yoginder Sikand, and Martin van Bruinessen, eds. The Madrasa in Asia: Political Activism and Transnational Linkages. Amsterdam: ISIM-Amsterdam University Press, 2008. Riaz, Ali. Faithful Education: Madrassahs in South Asia. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2008. United States Government. 9/11 Commission Report. http://www.9-11commission.gov/report/911Report .pdf (Accessed March 2011). Winkelmann, Mareike Jule. From Behind the Curtain: A Study of a Girls Madrasa in India. Amsterdam: ISIM-Amsterdam University Press, 2005.

Maternal Mortality
Maternal mortality (MM) in Asia accounts for onethird of the worlds maternal deaths. With the exception of Sri Lanka, almost 99 percent of these deaths occur in south Asian countries. The problem of MM is avoidable, and is a key indicator of goals and functioning of health systems and development strategies of a given country. Its alarming rate in Asia and Africa, therefore, first resulted in renewed commitment to reproductive health (RH) as opposed to maternal and child health (MCH) in the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development. The focus was sharpened toward the end of the 20th century, when maternal mortality was included in the list of eight development goals in the Millennium Declaration (commonly referred to as the Millennium Development Goals, or MDGs) in 2000. The reduction in maternal mortality became the fifth of the eight MDGs. The target for MDG-5 is to reduce the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) by 75 percent from 1990 to 2015. MM is defined as the death of a woman while pregnant or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy, irrespective of the duration and site of the pregnancy, from any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management, but not from accidental

1900 to Present

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