BRIBERY

           

Bribery is a form of corruption which involves acting in one’s favor by a gift of money or other inducement. We all have witnessed bribery many times in our lives. We have seen traffic police taking bribes from passengers, government officials taking bribes to do official works and in fact school asking for donations for admission purposes is also a form of bribery. But how many of us have actually raised our voice against it? Those who don't have enough money to give bribes are the ones who suffer the most. Let's take the example of college admissions, there are people who actually buy seats and because of that many deserving students lose their opportunity to get those seats. Bribery has become so common in our society that now it has become impossible to work without bribing.

On one side we teach our children to be always honest and on other side, we are indulged in bribing. Do we realize that by giving bribes, what are we teaching our children? We are in a way giving them a message that there is nothing wrong in being corrupted, if it works for you.

For our own selfish reasons, we are pushing our society in the hole of severe corruption. If we want to see our society as a truly developed nation then we have to get rid of this give and take of bribes.
But how do we put a stop to it? We can't even rely on government to bring an end to it because government officials themselves are very much involved in it. 
We as individuals need to work towards it, we need to stop taking and giving bribes.
Giving bribes is as much illegal as taking is, so put an end to it and be corrupt free.

                  Female foeticide in India

Female foeticide in India is the abortion of a female foetus outside of legal channels. It occurs in India for assumed cultural reasons that span centuries.

The frequency of female foeticide in India is assumed to be an estimation derived from its high birth sex ratio, that is the ratio of boys to girls at birth. The natural ratio is assumed to be between 103 and 107, and any number above it is considered as suggestive of female foeticide. According to the decennial Indian census, the sex ratio in the 0 to 6 age group in India has risen from 102.4 males per 100 females in 1961, to 104.2 in 1980, to 107.5 in 2001, to 108.9 in 2011.

The child sex ratio is within the normal natural range in all eastern and southern states of India, but significantly higher in certain western and particularly northwestern states such as Maharashtra,Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir (118, 120 and 116, as of 2011, respectively). The western states of Maharashtra and Rajasthan 2011 census found a child sex ratio of 113, Gujarat at 112 and Uttar Pradesh at 111.

The Indian census data suggests there is a positive correlation between abnormal sex ratio and better socio-economic status and literacy. This may be connected to the dowry system in India where dowry deaths occur when a girl is seen as a financial burden. Urban India has higher child sex ratio than rural India according to 1991, 2001 and 2011 Census data, implying higher prevalence of female foeticide in urban India. Similarly, child sex ratio greater than 115 boys per 100 girls is found in regions where the predominant majority is Hindu, Muslim, Sikh or Christian; furthermore "normal" child sex ratio of 104 to 106 boys per 100 girls are also found in regions where the predominant majority is Hindu, Muslim, Sikh or Christian. These data contradict any hypotheses that may suggest that sex selection is an archaic practice which takes place among uneducated, poor sections or particular religion of the Indian society.

There is an ongoing debate as to whether these high sex ratios are only caused by female foeticide or some of the higher ratio is explained by natural causes.The Indian government has passed Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act(PCPNDT) in 1994 to ban and punish prenatal sex screening and female foeticide. It is currently illegal in India to determine or disclose sex of the foetus to anyone. However, there are concerns that PCPNDT Act has been poorly enforced by authorities.

IS PUBLIC TRANSPORT SAFE?

With a lot of emphasis on using public transport as the mode of transport if one asks IS PUBLIC TRANSPORT SAFE? Following the news related to Indian public transport I would not even think twice before saying ‘NO’. Even after the Odd-Even rule applied in Delhi to encourage people to use public transport, it was expected that the connectivity and frequency of buses and metro would increase. But it was not up to the mark. Safety in public transport in India is a very important missing element.

Despite of authorities taking various measures to ensure transport safe and comfortable for women such as CCTV and GPS tracking service, not much has changed as they don’t function properly. It is important to understand the travel needs of men and women are very different. According to study conducted by Thomas Reuters Foundation in 2014, it has ranked Delhi 4^th position for most dangerous transport system for women. After the unfortunate rape incident in December 2011, Government of India setup Nirbhaya fund to make public transport safe, however, the fund is still being unutilised.

Some giant steps have to be taken to bring confidence in women so they could fearlessly travel in public transport. A robust framework that could not only provide technical solutions but also paves the way for systematic changes in future. 

CYBER CRIME

With the growing technology, internet is also growing at a fast pace. What is also growing is Cyber crime . Nearly 13,301 Cyber crime cases were registered in 2011. The statistics further stated Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra have seen the highest number of cyber crimes registered under the new IT Act in India. Surprisingly, these three states together contribute more than 70 per cent to India’s revenue from IT and IT related industries.

The increasing use of internet for activities such as online banking has increased the vulnerabilities to a great extent. The maximum offenders come from 18-30 age group. Most of us use internet for almost everything, from shopping to sharing photos. By doing this we are vulnerable to crimes as our private information is used which could easily be leaked and used against us. There have been many cyber crimes ranging from hacking, theft, stalking, data diddling, spamming and email bombing.

The problem is that most cases remain unreported due to lack of awareness. Capacity of human mind is unfathomable. It is not possible to eliminate cyber crime from cyber space. However, it is quite possible to check them. An individual can do their best by simply being more cautious, knowledgeable and careful. Internet users need to watch suspicious emails, think twice before giving any personal information, use unique passwords, and run anti-virus and anti-spyware software. Do not open any email or run programs from unknown sources.

We all today are at the risk of cyber crime. As all things have their pros and cons so does internet. 

                     Rape cases

      

 Isn’t there any way to stop rapes? Why there is a constant rise in rape cases? We say that our society is developing but how is it developing when it is not even able to stop such crimes? What is the point of economic growth, all technological developments when it is not coming in use to stop rapes? Did you know that every 22 mins a woman gets raped and every single day 90 rape cases takes place? Also only 1 out of 10 cases are being registered with the police. According to the statistics one in 5 women and one in 71 men will be raped at some point in their lives. The ratio itself shows that how unsafe it is for a woman to survive in this Society. What makes men take such drastic step that they are ready to spoil a person's life, just to fulfill their sexual desires? Rapists are men of all ages and from all walks of life. In 2015 a 5 yr. old girl was gang raped near anand vihar, east Delhi.  What is happening to our society? Even a 5 year old girl is not safe in this society. Parents now have to even think twice before sending their children alone out to play. Girls often complain that their parents discriminate and don't give them as much freedom to travel alone as they deserve but the truth is they are also forced to do this in order to keep their daughters safe. But till when parents will protect their daughters? Some or the other day, they have to let them live independently. So how do we put on rapes?

Clearly, the enforcement of anti-rape bill 2013, is also not able to stop such cases. May be India should also adopt horrifying punishments for rapists like in Saudi Arabia where rapists are beheaded within days as their punishment for rape in public. Government need to install cameras in all the public places and should maintain it properly. But government alone can’t root it out, we as individuals also need to step-up against it.

If you ever witness any situation like rape, then don’t fear to intervene and step up for that person. 

      Stand up against domestic violence 

Imagine a life where you struggle everyday. Imagine the fear and pain of getting beaten up daily by your loved ones. Imagine getting bruises all over your body. Couldn’t even imagine yourself like that, right? Did it sounded quite sad and painful? Well it might be difficult for you to imagine but it is happening with lots of women every single day.  It is sad how cases regarding domestic violence is still very much prevalent in spite of domestic violence act 2005 act being enforced by Indian constitution for protection of women from domestic violence.  Most of the statistics shows that married women are the major victim of physical violence by their husbands. There are many reasons behind violence but the most common causes are drinking problem or bad temper issues of the husband. Husbands usually take out all their frustrations on their wives. But what is the fault of a woman? What is she getting beaten up for? And even if they are at fault, still any form of violence is not at all justifiable. There is a way of solving things and violence is definitely not one of them.  Every year hundreds of cases are being registered against it but there are also hundreds of cases which never even come into notice because women tend to consider it as their own family matter and keeps on tolerating. Women need to understand, when the situation goes out of control to such an extent that they are getting beaten up daily then it is no more their private matter and they need to involve the police. If women will not speak up then how would it be possible to eradicate this problem from its root. There is a need to spread more awareness about domestic violence and how it is destroying lives. If we have correct knowledge about such things in advance, then we tend to deal with them more smartly.

  Remember, you could always call police if you are being hurt or threatened to hurt.

        Pollution – a deadly virus  

  Pollution is like a deadly virus, ready to destroy everything! The level of pollution in our society has reached to its peak! What are we doing to our earth? We call it our mother land and is that how we treat with our mothers? With more and more technological advancements, we are compromising with our own healths.Seeing the level of pollution, it doesn't seems earth will last as long as it is supposed to be. Industrial revolution and globalisation seems to be a big a move towards development but if we see it from the other side, the amount it is contributing towards the pollution level is something unacceptable. Without even realizing we all are responsible for pollution levels. From usage of car to refrigerators just for our convenience, everything is adding up to the pollution levels. Air pollution, soil pollution and water pollution are the most dangerous form of pollution, having a huge adverse impact on our health. We are left with no fresh air, we don’t have safe water for drinking or a land which is pollution free to crop. If we continue like this, we would be left with nothing.

 Some of the shocking facts related to pollution are as followed: 1) More than 3 million kids under the age of 5 years die every year due to environmental factors like pollution. 2) More than 100 pesticides in any medium- air, water or soil can cause birth defects, gene mutation and cancer. 3) House owners use chemicals that are 10 times more toxic per acre, than the amount used by the farmers. 4) Approximately 3 billion people without proper shelter and healthcare cook and heat their homes using open fires and leaky stoves, thus contributing more towards pollution and global warming. 5). Chronic obstructive respiratory disease , that develop due to indoor air pollution is responsible for the death of more than 1 million people every year. 6) If you think that you don’t smoke and you will be spared by lung cancer, just remember that your lungs or heart may be similarly damaged simply from exposure to ozone and particulate matter 7) Places which are near to high traffic roads, seaports or rail yards are dangerous place to live or work as they contain more concentrated levels of air pollution.
Seeing the above facts, one thing is absolutely clear that there is an urgent need to take appropriate actions. Avoid using personal vehicles and use public transports and then see the major drop in the pollution level, Stop dumping wastes in water, start purchasing products that are Eco-friendly or made with biodegradable materials and try avoiding plastic, plant more and more trees and the list goes on but at-least start with little steps and make your environment pollution free.

A person alone can’t bring a change, we all need to join our hands together and move towards bringing a positive change in the environment. A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT IS IMPORTANT FOR A HEALTHY LIFE! 

CORRUPTION

CORRUPTION

By Parichita Basak 

Corruption is the highly infectious social disease which has spread its roots to the mind of the bad people. No one take birth to do such type of bad activities in the society however some bad conditions of their life forced them to do so. Gradually they become habitual for all of these bad activities. However, people suffering from any problem, disease, etc should keep patience and trust on themselves and never do anything bad in life. As, one negative step of anyone may harm the lives of many people. We are not a single entity on this earth, there are many like us, so we should think a little about others and live life happily and peacefully with positive thoughts.

Now-a-days, lots of benefits are given by the government of India to the poor people on the basis of various rules and regulations to bring social awareness among common people as well as equality in the society. However, poor people are not getting benefited of those advantages given by the government as many officers doing corruption secretly in between the channel before reaching to the poor people. They are doing corruption against law for just fulfilling their own pockets with money.

There are many causes of corruption in the society. Now-a-days political leaders are making interest oriented programmes and policies instead of nation oriented programmes and policies. They are just wishing to be famous politician for completing their own interests instead of citizen’s interests and requirement. There is increasing level of change in the value system in the human mind as well as decreasing ethical qualities of human being. The level of trust, faith and honesty is decreasing which gives rise to the corruption.

The number of common people with increased tolerance power towards corruption is increasing. There is a lack of strong public forum in the society in order to oppose the corruption, widespread illiteracy in rural areas, poor economic infrastructure, etc are the reasons of endemic corruption in the public life. Low salaries norms of the government employees force them towards channel of corruption. Complex laws and procedures of the government distract common people to get any type of help from government. During election time, corruption become at its highest peak. Politicians always take support of poor and illiterate people by dreaming them big in future during their governance however nothing happens after win.

Corruption has been spread like a disease all over the India as well as abroad. It has become one of the most speedily increasing social issues.  It is generally initiated and promoted by the opportunistic leaders. They never think about the nation’s benefits and do lots of damage to the nation through their corruption even for their small advantage. They sell their country properties in the wrong hands and spread wrong beliefs about India in the people’s mind living in other countries.

Corruption is everywhere in every department whether it hospitals, education, job, government offices, nothing is left of corruption. Everything has become a business and the source of earning money in wrong way. Educational institutions are also involved in the corruption and they give seat to those students only who have paid for, whether they are good students with good marks or not. Very weak students are given admission in the top colleges and universities only on the basis of money paid for wrong admission and the topper student with good marks and lack of money gets back in the life or take admission in any simple college.

OBESITY

People today have become used to a fast pace life. This lifestyle change is not only causing negative effects on their life but on their health, body and mind also, becoming a cause of many chronic and cardiovascular diseases. Among these the obesity is turning out to be a growing problem in the world’s population. Obesity was earlier considered a concern of rich countries only, but now they have become a concern in poor countries as well. India is not an exception to them and there are rising number of middle-class people that are obese.

Rich people statistics show that the country is on the urge of becoming a nation with more than half of its population being obese or suffering from weight related illness or disease. Processed food attracts a large amount of people today, who have started relying on them. They contain huge percentage of Trans fat, sugers and other unhealthy and artificial ingredients. This fat builds up in the body and as people in this era have no time to exercise in their busy schedule it gets stored. A few years ago operations are surgeries were not needed because people were active. These day’s plastic surgeons and doctors are in high demand to perform surgeries to make people look slimmer and prevent diseases.

Fitness is one important aspect of living, keeps mind and soul healthy. Eating less is not a solution, which many people think is a way to get fit. We should eat a proper diet but also burn it, which requires a person to workout at least 30 minutes a day. Pick any sports activity or simply running would also help. Even stress sometimes is related to obesity. So eat healthy and stay fit.

ROLE OF NGO'S IN INDIA

A Non-Governmental organisation is a legally constituted organization which is operated by legal persons who act independently from any government. NGOs have volunteers and employees working towards ideological, rather than financial ends. NGOs work for a variety of causes that aims to bring about change in the life of people for a greater cause. Different NGO work for different causes in different ways. NGOs work for increasing literacy and helping poor people to increase their quality of life, and helping the people who are attacked by environmental hazards, guiding people about their rights and for many other good causes. In India number of national NGOs is around 3.3 million. After the independence Mahatma Gandhi made a plea for transforming the INC to Lok Sevak Sangh. But this plea was not accepted. Later Gandhi followers started voluntary agencies to work on social issues. Thereby NGOs were started in India.
The no. of NGOs increased in the time of 1960s as people felt that the government projects are inadequate to deal with the development of deprived sections of India. In 1980 in 6th 5 year plan (1980-85), the government identified new areas in which NGOs as new actors would participate in development. Optimal utilization and development of renewable source of energy, health for all programs. Water management and soil conservation, social welfare programs for weaker sections, Implementation of minimum needs program, education and environmental protection.
The involvement of NGOs in social challenges has a great effect on developing countries. The more financial support and the more no. of volunteers will greatly help in achieving the millenium development goals.

HOW INDIA TREATS ITS NGO

In case of giving a dog a bad name and hanging him, the IB has submitted a report damning foreign funded NGOs for stalling development and giving to western powers undue leverage over India. Notwithstanding that it is a confidential document, it has been widely reported in the press, though no official confirmation of its receipt has been made.
The report suggest that the activities of some not for profits account for a 2 to 3 per cent loss in the GDP. How the loss has been calculated is uncertain. Nor can we tell how this compares with, say, the losses incurred through environmental degradation, rampant corruption, crony capitalism or money stashed abroad. That aside, the report exploits a longstanding suspicion of NGOs and civil society organisations, a legacy of PMO India Indira Gandhi’s emergency and her favourite defence for her failings, the covert “foreign hand”.
True democrats celebrate the involvement of citizens, deepen it at every level and make consultation a habit. Bureaucrats, law-makers and institutions alike should be working hard to include and protect civil society and NGOs rather than trying to bully and the ability to openly organise while submitting to the regulatory regime imposed on them. As it seeks its rightful role in international affairs, India, as one of the leading democracies of the world will be judged, in part, by the way it treats its civil society.

HUMAN TRAFFICKING IN INDIA
Human Trafficking is one of the worst crimes done by the human society. Just for the sake of money, they sell off the humans just as a piece of commodity. Human trafficking is best described under article 3(a) of UNICEF Understanding child trafficking which states that “…the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, or fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs”.
Although illegal under indian law, remains a significant problem. People are frequently illegally trafficked through india for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation and forced/bonded labour. Although no reliable study of forced and bonded labour has been completed, NGO's estimate this problem affects 20-65 million Indians. Women and girls are trafficked within the country for the purposes of commercial exploitation and forced marriage especially in those areas where the sex ratio is highly skewed in favour of men. A significant portion of children subjected to forced labour as factory workers, and have been used as armed combatants by some terrorists and insurgent groups.
Some states provide services to victims of bonded labour, but NGO like sparsh, lions internationals, etc provide the majority of protection services to these victims. The central government does not provide protection services to indian victims trafficked abroad for forced labour or commercial sexual exploitation. We're thankful to such institution who are providing such services.

CHILD MARRIAGE

Child Marriage is described as a criminal act under Indian Penal Code 1860. This type of marriage mostly took place in the 18th-19th century. It is still practiced in small parts i.e. small towns, villages, etc. where children are forced to do so. Several initiatives were  taken by legends such as Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, etc. We're very much thankful to them as we can live our childhood happily and future generations too will be proud of it.

Child Marriage snatches away the opportunity from a child to grow as a person. Their childhood memories are also snatched away by their parents and relatives. With such introduction, I would like to present you a case which is from Kerala. An orphan girl was very much interested in her studies and wanted to be a doctor. she worked really hard to achieve that thing. But the orphan managers engaged her with an arab businessman and the 17-year old girl's career was destroyed. She was subjected to violence, an attempt to acid attacks, etc. She was treated worse than animal like anything and she got divorced from her husband. the orphans officials also didnt accept her after her divorce as they say that she is married woman. The case is still going on in the Kerala high court.

The society should think upon such topics. It should be kept in mind that ignorance of law is not excusable. Time has changed, people have changed. Jai hind !

CASTEISM AND HONOR KILLINGS

There are 4 types of castes in India, where people believe that to marry within the same caste is better than to marry a lower caste person. In many parts of the northern India like Haryana, U.P. , Jharkhand, Some parts of Rajasthan. The Hindu scholars, they say that whatever is written in the ancient Hindu texts, should be followed by the persons. A person should marry within his own castes, otherwise the future generations will be the spoilt ones. People in the 21st century era still believe in this thing, though some people nowadays get mixed together to know about their backgrounds.
There was a case in the Delhi where a Brahmin girl and a Kayastha boy loved each other. the boy proposed him but she refused as her family was very conservative. But, however, they got engaged within a month secretly. Her father started finding groom for her daughter within his own caste, but he came to know about this. Her father tortured to her for several days, she was now in a depression state and could not do anything about it. Instead of fighting against injustice, she committed suicide.
People should keep one thing in mind. Time has changed, We're changing. World is quite different now as compared to 7th century. The Indian constitution permits the inter-caste marriages. Old religious texts are not our laws now. Constitution of India is our right and we shall follow that only. Jai hind !

FEMALE FOETICIDE

 FEMALE FOETICIDE

By Parichita Basak

Female foeticide is the removal of healthy female foetus after 18 weeks of gestation from the mother uterus just because the child is female. Parents and society consider a girl child burden over them and understand that girls are consumers whereas boys are producers. There are lots of myths in the Indian society about girls from the ancient time that girls always take and boys always give. This wrong practice of female foeticide is coming from years because of many reasons. However, can be removed by regular practice of following points:

• There should be strong ethical code for the doctors.
• Everyone should be in the favor of removal of sex discrimination and away from the traditional teachings against girls in the society.
• Women should be empowered to deal with discriminatory practices in the society like dowry system, etc.
• There should be immediate complaint registration system for all women.
• Female foeticide awareness program should be run to aware common public.
• Assessment of the status of women (regarding female mortality, sex ratio, literacy and economic participation) should be done on regular interval of time.

Since the ancient time, women in the Indian society are considered as a curse for their family and society. Due to these reasons, female foeticide has been in practice for many years in the India from the time of technological advancement. Few years ago, almost all the couple was used of the sex determination tests to know the sex of the infant before birth. And abortion was sure in case of girl baby.

Development of ultrasound technique was the origin of sex determination tests in the early 1990’s. People in the Indian society are used to of giving birth to the child continuously until they get boy baby by killing all the girl baby earlier to the boy. In order to control the population and stop female foeticide, Government of India made various rules and regulations against female foeticide and trend of abortions after sex determination tests. Killing of a baby girl through abortion has been an offence all through the country. Doctors found performing sex determination tests and abortions especially for killing girl baby would be guilty and lose their license. Awareness about the importance of girl child in the society is major weapon to get relief from the female foeticide.

Female foeticide have been in practice for centuries especially for the families who prefer only male child. Various religious, social, financial and emotional reasons are also there. Time has been changed now to a great extent however, various reasons and beliefs are continuing in some families. Some key reasons of female foeticide are:

• Generally parents avoid girl baby because they have to pay a big amount (more than their strength) as a dowry at daughter’s marriage.
• There is a believe that girls are always consumer and boys are producer. Parents understand that son earn money for them whole life and care their parents however girls will get married a day and go away.
• There is a myth that son will carry name of family in future whereas girl have to carry husband’s family.
• Parents and grandparents understand their honor while having boy baby in the family whereas shame having daughter.
• There is a pressure on new bride of the family to give birth to a male child thus she is forced to go for sex determination and abortion if girl baby.
• Illiteracy, insecurity and poverty of people in society are main reasons of girl baby burden.
• Technological advancement in the science and utilities has made this very easy for parents.

Daughters are given less respect and priority than sons in Indian society from the ancient time. They did not have same access like boys in the areas of education, healthcare, nutrition, play, etc. In order to combat with sex-selective abortions, there should be high level awareness among common public. Satyamev Jayate, a most famous programme run by the Aamir Khan on TV has done great to raise awareness among common public through its first episode of “Daughters Are Precious”. Cultural interventions regarding this issue are need to be addressed through awareness programmes. Recent awareness programmes like Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, or Save girls campaign, etc have been made regarding girl’s rights.

As we all know that female foeticide is a crime and social disaster for the future of women. We should notice the reasons for female foeticide in the Indian society and try to solve one by one on regular basis. Female infanticide or female feticide is mainly because of the sex determination. There should be legal stoppage to get control over it. All the laws should be strictly followed by the every citizens of India. And one should be surely punished if found guilty for this cruel practice. Permanent termination of license should be done if found practicing this. Marketing of medical equipments especially for illegal sex determination and abortion should be stopped. Parents should be penalized who want to kill their girl baby. Campaigns and seminars should be regularly organized to aware young couples. Women should be empowered so that they can be more attentive to their rights.

INTOLERANCE

INTOLERANCE

By Parichita Basak

Intolerance is the unwillingness of accepting beliefs, behavior or practices of someone different person related to other cast, religion or custom. It may give rise to the high level hate, crimes and discrimination in the society. It gives rise the property of refusal in the mind and heart of any person to refuse, disallow or deny something (action or practice) happening against his/her will or practice. It does not allow people to live with equality, indiscrimination, freedom, or other social rights. Intolerance in the society generally arises due to the cast, culture, gender, religion or any unbearable practice. On the other hand, tolerance is the quality which appreciates equality in the society even after the existence of diversity. It appreciates people for the ability to live as well as let others live whether the person belongs to any religion, cast or custom.

Intolerance disallow a person to go together, follow or bear the practices or opinions by the people of different religion, cast, or nationality from one’s own. 

"Tolerance is not just agreeing with one another or remaining indifferent in the face of injustice, but rather showing respect for the essential humanity in every person.” 

Tolerance is considered as the good quality of a man and it is most necessary to make a society. However, intolerance leads a person, people or society to the worst disaster. If we have a look in the history and mythology, we will see variety of horrible acts of intolerance. People develop the feeling of jealous and then intolerance just because of simple things like someone cannot bear the importance of his/her close one’s in the eye of most effective person. One of the historical intolerance acts is Aurangzeb killed many Hindu people under feet of elephants as he developed intolerance to the Hinduism, etc. Some people quarrel to each other as they cannot tolerate each other’s behaviors, beliefs and practices. Intolerant people become unable to take right decision to someone just because of intolerance to hear the views of someone different.

Intolerance is a bad quality which leads a person, society or country towards disaster. On the other hand, people with tolerance can live in the society with equality even after being different in cast, religion, opinion, and practice. Tolerance is a power which makes people able to do justice by hearing and accessing the different views of others. Democratic countries have tolerance as an indispensable quality. Being a tolerant person helps in tolerating any bitter condition in the surrounding areas. Habit of tolerance is the individual culture of every citizen in India. Tolerance is an essential quality of painless life. India is a democratic and developing country where people develop habit of tolerance from their childhood under the guidance of elders so it is rare to see intolerance in India.

We cannot say that there is intolerance in India as this country is the best suited example of an idiom called “Unity in Diversity”. It is the fast growing country because of its unique quality of having unity in diversity. It is the country where people of different cast, creed, religion, custom, culture, tradition and practice are living together for years without any difference. They celebrate their fairs and festivals with great enthusiasm and without any interference of people of different group. They have proper understanding and respect to each other’s beliefs, custom and practices. Citizens of India have the quality of tolerance which provides them ability to live and let others live.

A statement of a Bollywood actor, Amir Khan, about the growing climate of intolerance in India was very surprising to everyone as he has made such a serious comment over an unfortunate incident. India is a country where no one can blame that people here are developing intolerance as everyone has proper understanding to each other’s religion and practice.

Intolerance (especially religious intolerance) separates people living in the society and it acts as divider of the nations. It creates the condition of disrespect, enmity and war in the society between people of different cast, religion, opinions and practices. It puts neighbor against neighbor by creating disbeliefs to each other.

The situation of intolerance may occur because of economically depressed and politically charged situation among the people of different groups. In such situation, people find hard to tolerate those different from themselves. It harms everyone badly and most importantly the nation. The country where intolerance exists may be the home of discrimination, repression, dehumanization, and violence.

WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

Women Empowerment in India

By Parichita Basak

“You can tell the condition of a nation by looking at the status of its women”
– Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru

Need for empowerment arose due to centuries of domination and discrimination done by men over women; women are the suppressed lot. They are the target of varied types of violence and discriminatory practices done by men all over the world. India is no different.

India is a complex country. We have, through centuries, developed various types of customs, traditions and practices. These customs and traditions, good as well as bad, have become a part of our society’s collective consciousness. We worship female goddesses; we also give great importance to our mothers, daughters, sisters, wives and other female relatives or friends. But at the same time, Indians are also famous for treating their women badly both inside and outside their homes.

Indian society consists of people belonging to almost all kinds of religious beliefs. In every religion women are given a special place and every religion teaches us to treat women with respect and dignity. But somehow the society has so developed that various types of ill practices, both physical and mental, against women have become a norm since ages. For instance, sati pratha, practice of dowry, parda pratha, female infanticide, wife burning, sexual violence, sexual harassment at work place, domestic violence and other varied kinds of discriminatory practices; all such acts consists of physical as well as mental element.

The reasons for such behaviour against women are many but the most important one are the male superiority complex and patriarchal system of society. Though to eliminate these ill practices and discrimination against women various constitutional and legal rights are there but in reality there are a lot to be done. Several self-help groups and NGOs are working in this direction; also women themselves are breaking the societal barriers and achieving great heights in all dimensions: political, social and economic. But society as a whole has still not accepted women as being equal to men and crimes or abuses against women are still on the rise. For that to change, the society’s age-old deep-rooted mind set needs to be changed through social conditioning and sensitization programmes.

Therefore, the concept of women empowerment not only focuses on giving women strength and skills to rise above from their miserable situation but at the same time it also stresses on the need to educate men regarding women issues and inculcating a sense of respect and duty towards women as equals. In the present write-up we will try to describe and understand the concept of Women Empowerment in India in all its dimensions.

STARVATION

STARVATION

By Parichita Basak

Starvation is a condition characterized by a deficiency in calorie energy intake and is a graver form of malnutrition which ultimately leads to death if not taken care about.

Starvation can take place in a country due to many reasons like war, famine, the disparities between the rich and the poor and so on.  According to World Health Organization, the top ten causes of death through disease include the deficiencies of iron, vitamin A and zinc.

A major hindrance in fighting starvation in India is the lack of proper implementation of government schemes which are directed towards providing food for one and all.

In the context of India, it becomes needless to say that the food distribution system is flawed. The Supreme Court has issued orders over the past decades directing the government to take measures like mid-day meal schemes and the provision of health care schemes for pregnant and lactating women.  

Starvation deaths are beyond food. They are also a result of failure of government institutions that are meant to help the needy and the poor. Illiteracy also puts these people at a higher risk when the food supply dries up due to the lack of knowledge. Also, the medical treatments are subpar in their approach which again impedes the deaths caused by starvation. Government hospitals are located far-off and private hospitals are expensive.

Thus, the need of the hour is to implement existing as well as future schemes of the Government with a mission to eradicate the hunger of the people and to make the phenomenon of starvation deaths a thing of the past. And for that purpose, apart from administrative authorities, NGOs and people in general will have to make effort with compassion and with the spirit of brotherhood.

UNTOUCHABILITY

UNTOUCHABILITY

By Parichita Basak

Untouchablity in simple terms can be understood as a practice whereby a particular class or caste of persons are discriminated with on the ground of their being born in that particular caste or on the ground of their being members of those social groups involved in menial jobs. The discrimination can be in the form of physical or social boycott from the society. For instance: the members of so-called higher castes such as Brahmin, Kshatriyas etc would not dine or sit with a person of Bhangi class.

It was believed that people of higher castes could become impure even if a shadow of an untouchable person touches him and to re-gain his purity he had to take a dip into holy waters of the Ganga.

However, historically persons born in lowest castes and classes of persons doing menial jobs, criminals, persons suffering from contagious diseases and tribals living outside the so-called civilized world were considered as untouchables. Their exclusion from the mainstream society was based on the belief that they are impure and harmful and it was necessary to ostracized them for the overall benefit of the society.

Untouchability was also practiced as a form of punishment to the law-breakers and criminals; they were socially boycotted for their misdeeds.

Untouchables are also known as depressed classes, harijans etc; but today they are more frequently referred to as ‘Dalits’. In modern times, ‘Dalit’ refers to one’s caste rather than class; it applies to members of those so-called menial castes which are born with the stigma of “untouchability” because of the extreme impurity and pollution connected with their traditional occupations. They are considered impure and polluting and are therefore physically and socially excluded and isolated from the rest of society.

Today members of Schedule Castes and Schedule Tribes (SC/ST) are considered as ‘Dalits’ and they are subjected to various forms of discrimination in the society. Especially, Schedule Castes such as Chamars, Passi, Bhangis and Doms etc are known as ‘Dalits’; these people are generally associated with menial jobs such as tanning, skinning of hides, works on leather goods, sweeping, scavenging etc.

There are various forms of discriminations being practiced against Dalits in India, these are:

• Prohibited from eating with other caste members,
• Prohibited from marrying with other caste members,
• Prohibited from entering into village temples,
• Prohibited from wearing sandals or holding umbrellas in front of dominant caste members,
• Prohibited from using common village pat,
• Separate burial grounds,
• No access to village’s common/public properties and resources (wells, ponds, temples, etc.),
• Segregation (separate seating area) of Dalit children in schools,
• Bonded Labor,
• Face social boycotts by dominant castes for refusing to perform their “duties”

India got Independence on 15^th of August, 1947 after long and painful struggle of more than one hundred years. The struggle was not only against the foreign rule of British but it was also against the social evils such as untouchability prevailing from centuries. After Independence when great leaders of freedom struggle agreed to make our own Constitution, it was decided that there must be provisions under the Constitution regarding the abolition of social evils and upliftment of down-trodden castes and social groups etc.

JUVENILE DELIQUENCY

JUVENILE DELIQUENCY

By Parichita Basak

Children are considered to be gifts from God and are greatest personal as well as national assets. We as individuals, parents, guardians and society as a whole have a duty that children should be allowed and provided opportunity to grow up in a healthy socio-cultural environment so that they could become responsible citizens, physically fit, mentally alert and morally healthy. It is the duty of the State to provide equal opportunities for development to all children during the period of their growth which would reduce inequality and ensure social justice. Children are expected to be obedient, respectful and have virtues and good quality in them. However, due to various reasons certain percentage of children do not follow settled social and legal dictum. Such children are most often than not get involved in criminal behaviour which is known as juvenile delinquency or juvenile crime.

Crime by juveniles is a harsh reality in India. In recent times juveniles were found to be involved in most heinous of the crimes such as murder and gang rape. It’s a disturbing trend and society as a whole is anguished by such criminal acts by children. 

Juvenile means a person who is very young, teenager, adolescent or underage. In other words, juvenile means children who have not yet reached the age of adults in the sense that they are still childish or immature. Sometimes the term “child” is also interchangeably used for the term “juvenile”.

Legally speaking, a juvenile can be defined as a child who has not attained a certain age at which he can be held liable for his criminal acts like an adult person under the law of the country. Juvenile is a child who is alleged to have committed certain acts or omissions which are in violation of any law and are declared to be an offence. In terms of law, a juvenile is a person who has not attained the age of eighteen years. It has a legal significance. 

Petty crimes in general and heinous crimes in particular are being committed regularly in India by children. Crimes such as theft, burglary, snatching which are not so serious in nature or crimes such as robbery, dacoity, murder and rape etc which are relatively serious are on the rise in whole of the country. And the unfortunate thing is that all types of these crimes are also being committed by children below the age of 18 years. Among juveniles also there is a specific trend that juveniles between the age of 16 to 18 years are found to be more involved in heinous criminal acts.

The recent inhuman gang rape of a young girl on December 16, 2013, shocked the collective conscience of the nation. The brutality with which the heinous crime was committed was most shocking; it was later found out that among five accused, one was minor and he was the most barbaric one.

No one is a born criminal. Circumstances make him so. Socio-cultural environment, both inside and outside of home, plays significant role in shaping one’s life and overall personality.

Some of the most common causes which are associated with juvenile crimes are: Poverty; Drug Abuse; Anti-social Peer Group; Easy availability of firearms; Abusive parents; Single-parent child; Nuclear Family; Family Violence; Child sexual abuse and Role of Media.

However, as far as India is concerned, it is Poverty and the effect of media, especially the social-media which make juveniles more inclined towards criminal activities.

Poverty is one of the biggest causes which force a child to get involved in criminal acts. Also, role played by social media today which is having a more negative than positive imprints on young minds.