TODAY'S YOUTH CONCERN AREAS

TODAY’S YOUTH CONCERN AREAS!!

By Parichita Basak

Corruption is one of the biggest issue ,  and we, the YOUTH are concerned about it more than anything else. Recently, in Anna Hazare’s campaign most of the protestors were youth. We need to fight to kill this evil. No one is above the law and uniting citizens must be as “Indians first” instead of some communal or geographic factors. 

Good and bad co-exist in the society. Hence, youth in India must know how to achieve the things they want. There must be fairness and transparency in whatever one do and this surely will bring change in your surroundings and most importantly in YOU.

We often hear the saying “Teenage years are the best years of your life”. Is it really so? Just think about it again. Life of youths is like painful tug-of-war which contains mixed emotions, unanswered questions, incompatibility between generations, friends, teachers and yes their own parents. Youths struggle to find answers to life and hence, fighting every now and then.

We suffer from peer pressure, most common is which comes from friends. It can range from name-teasing to some extreme case, where a teen is forced to engage in some activities like smoking, drinking, take drugs just to look cool or be part of a so called cool gang. That is really sad and shameful.

Lets be honest, appearance is an important aspect of our life. Various reasons are to be accepted socially, to be part of a famous gang of friends. Youth are afraid of getting rejected or ignored by people who they think are superior to them, just because they are cool. Is that fair?

Guys, one should accept you for the way you are. You don’t need to change yourself to be part of someone’s life. And yes, world’s best friends are indeed your parents. Well, its true that sometimes there are incompatibilities between thoughts, but that’s normal guys. Don’t forget they bring you to this world, they understand you more than anyone else. Ask yourself again and you will get the answer!

THE FORGOTTEN POOR

THE FORGOTTEN POOR – Lets think about it!!

By Parichita Basak

The rich get wealthier and the poor get poorer, the gap has been extending.

India is facing one of the biggest evil in present scenario – POVERTY. Across the nation, population is increasing and yes, it seems like a never ending issue. High population in India is suffering due to this evil. And, we would not really find anything much done about it. In India, poverty is still pervasive.

According to a survey, statistics of  poverty  :

35% of households don’t have nearby water source.

50% of Indians don’t have proper shelter.

70% don’t have access to decent toilets.

85% of villages don’t have a secondary school.

Over 40% of these same villages don’t have proper roads connecting them.

Poverty differs greatly from state to state in India. So, in each state poverty line must be adapted and considering the pace of economic growth should be regularly updated as well. Well, manufacturing sector is finally growing, so massive unemployment can be reduced and hence, can tackle one of the major causes of poverty in India. But…that leaves the problem of rural poverty.

The example of India has shown many that if growth does give opportunities to some to get out of poverty, it is also true that it doesn’t prevent people from falling into poverty. Hence,   a strong action need to be taken against biggest social evil of all. We all need to work towards creating employment and providing enough for population, which does not even receive basic amenities.

Need of the hour are new policies to create young educated population and also for massive employment especially among rural areas.

DRUG ABUSE

India has witnessed a five time increase in drug hauls over the three years, from 2011 to 2013, according to data released by Parliament. The latest available data, from 2004, estimates that 10.7 million Indians are drug users according to a National Survey Report by UN Office on Drugs and Crime and the Indian Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. Mizoram, Punjab and Manipur are among the states where people are most vulnerable to drug abuse. Cannabis, heroin, and Indian-produced pharmaceutical drugs are the most frequently abused drugs in India. Cannabis products, often called charas, bhang or ganja are abused throughout the country because it has attained some amount of religious sanctity because of its association with some hindu deities.

Drug addiction can cause many health problems, some drugs can even change a person’s body and brain in ways that last long after the person has stopped taking drugs, maybe even permanently. Behavioural problems like paranoia, hallucinations, impulsiveness, loss of self-control. Other health problems like hormonal effects, cancer, HIV, etc.

But why is our youth attracted towards drugs? Many young teens get the wrong perception that using drugs will help them escape from their problems others reasons include to feel grown up, to relax, to take risk, rebel, and because they have the misconception that doing drugs is cool. Most people that use these illegal drugs are more likely of being involved in serious crimes like rape, murder and suicide.

For example the present situation in Punjab over drug abuse is in headlines. India’s one of the most prosperous state is in a serious drug addiction. It is estimated that four out of ten men are addicted to some or other drug and that up to 50% of them are farmers. Children as young as 12 year old are seen to be involved in the drug trade. Drugs are easily sold and available. The fact that there is steady supply of drugs from from across the border is one reason, other like unemployment and frustrated economic expectations. Punjab’s war on drugs has, in effect, turned into a war on its addicts.

The process of Industrialization, Urbanization, and migration have led to loosening of the traditional methods of social control rendering an individual vulnerable to the stresses and strains of modern life. The fast changing social milieu, among other factors is mainly contributing to the proliferation of drug abuse.

In conclusion, although the problems of drugs may seem impossible to eliminate, there are concrete steps that can be taken to weaken the hold of drugs in society. Education is the first way , people need to be aware of the effects so that they can avoid this problem. A second approach is to increase police manpower and create effective laws to stop dealers. The danger from drugs is too great to ignore for us and our children.           

OVER-POPULATION

Population in the world is currently (2016) growing at a rate of around 1.13% per year. The current average population change is estimated at around 80 million per year. The world population will continue to grow in the 21^st century, but at a slower rate compared to the recent past. World population has doubled in 40 years from 1959 (3 million) to 1999 (6 million). It is estimated that it will take a further 39 years to increase by another 50%, to become 9 million by 2038. The top 5 most populated countries being China, India, USA, Indonesia followed by Brazil.

Over-population is a situation in which the number of people exceed the amount of resources that are present to fulfil their requirement. Today rapid increase of population is a major problem, if continued at the current rate the earth would not be able to sustain because of the shortage of resources ( eg water). The world is experiencing a dramatic population increase, which is causing problems in not just developing and under-developed countries but also in industrialized and developed countries.

      Causes like decline in the death rate, better medical facilities, technological advancement in technology, immigration, lack of family planning, poverty and lack of education are some of the reasons for over-population. India is a classic example for over-population. According to the Indian census, carried out in 2011, the population of India was exactly 1,210,193,422 India has crossed the 1-billion mark, which means one out of six people on this planet live in India. This is the second most populous country of the world after China and the various studies have projected that India will be world’s number-1 populous country, surpassing China, by 2025. Inspite of the fact that population policies, family planning and welfare programmes taken by the Government of India has led to a decrease in the fertility rate, yet the actual stabilisation of the population can take place only by 2050. With the population growth rate at 1.2% , India is predicted to have more than 1.53 billion people by the end of 2030. Uttar Prasdesh being the most populous state in India, almost equal to the population of Brazil.

There is an immediate need to cure this problem as it is increasing at a fast pace. Solutions ranging from government policies, sex education, increasing awareness about birth controls and its effect, not allowing early marriage or child marriage, tax benefits or concessions for those who have single children, etc.

          In conclusion I believe that it is high time that we should concentrate on the problem of over-population as not only because of the shortage of resources but also as it causes environmental problems which is essential for survival and I hope we can slove it.

“We must alert and organise the world’s people to pressure world leaders to take specific steps to solve two root causes of environmental crises- exploding population growth and wasteful consumption of irreplaceable resources. Overconsumption and overpopulation underlie every environmental problem we face today”

                       -Captain Jacques- Yves Cousteau

                                                                                                                        BY ADITI SEMWAL

RESERVATION IN INDIA

Reservation is defined by the Constitution of India as the process of facilitating a person in education, scholarship, jobs, and in promotion who has category certificates. Reservation is governed by constitutional laws, statutory laws, local rules and regulations. Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes are the primary beneficiaries of the reservation policies under the Constitution.

Reservation is very important for the above primary beneficiaries because of Past and Present painful experiences that they have suffered. The reserved class & poor people were not allowed to enter into the temple, they were not provided basic education by the teachers, they were not allowed to drink water due to untouchability and  right to enjoying life were snatched by the upper class people. Well, situations today is better than the past but still in many small places, people still discriminate on the basis of casteism. Today, people are fighting for reservation, or fighting against reservation as we can see in Gujarat, the PAAS (Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti) are fighting for reservation to register themselves in OBC category, the jaats in Haryana went on a strike as they harmed several people and raped women, girls which they violated people's right to life and liberty and through that they claimed reservation in Haryana which is against the law.

Only those people are entitled to reservation who are financially very weak, those who are orphaned, those who are handicapped. Reservation must be there on the basis of casteism because if it is removed, then general people will still treat them badly then they used to do in the past. Reservation is a source through which people can be united, no one can discriminate anyone on the basis of religion, caste, sex, creed, etc. As Indian constitution says, India is a secular and socialist country, it must be implemented.   

CHILD LABOR- A HIDEOUS CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY
                       

A fully developed society is something we all aim for and for most of us technology advancement, employment generation, etc. are the means to achieve this goal. But can a society be ever developed fully with having such hideous crimes like child labor being practiced? Child labor is a form of violence which forces children to engage in economic activities which as a result deprives them from an adequate form of lifestyle. In spite of initiatives such as  the Child Labour Act,( 1986),the Factories Act (1948),the Mines Act( 1952) undertaken by Indian government against child labour, it is evident that the number of children working below 14 years is still quite high. Their childhood is being snatched away from them and are made to work in order to help their families when children of their age are enjoying their lives. There are many cases of physical abuse at work and especially girl child are made the targets. The level of stress and burden these kids are facing is unmatchable.

(The above image shows the statistics of child labor in 5 major states of India)

Have we ever thought what forces these kids to start working at such a small age? Or why in spite of school facilities, they are not attending school? Poverty is the answer to these questions. The need for money is forcing these kids to give up their childhood. And how would they get time for school when they are busy earning money to feed their stomachs? How would they enjoys their lives when their whole family is probably in debt? There is an urgent need to find appropriate solutions to tackle such issue. There is nothing in the world that could ever possibly justify child labor. All we have to do is find a perfect solution and it is not only government’s duty to tackle this issue but as the citizens of this country we also have some moral responsibility towards these children. From a child working as a salesman at a shop to a child working as a domestic maid, we all witness various cases of child labor in our day to day lives but how many of us actually raise our voice against it? Is it that hard?
A change is only possible when we all move a step forward towards implementing it. If we don’t raise our voices today then we all would be responsible for the consequences tomorrow. FIGHT FOR THEM, FIGHT FOR THE SOCIETY!

- Anshika agarwal

Violence in the name of ‘RELIGION’

“The essence of all religions speak of peace, compassion, justice and the interconnection of all life.”

-Ann Emerson

India is a country which manifests diverse cultures and supposed to be religiously tolerant. India is a secular nation as stated in the Constitution. In the literary context secular means “not connected with religious matters or not subject or bound by religious rule.” This meaning seems to be true only hypothetically. The actual scene is quiet contradicting. Religion has paved way for violence amongst fellow humans who belong to the same locality or city or state or country. Religion is dominating human existence right from the time when man fell prey to it.

In ancient India, it is known that various cultural and religious discrimination was prevalent. But it seems to be more prominent and wrong when it happens in the present day’s modern and technology-oriented world. Many lives were lost and still being taken all in the name of religion. Various spine chilling events have taken place in the recent past which requires attention from the government and people. The communal riots in Gujarat in 1969, considered to be the most deadly communal riots post independence claimed 660 innocent lives. In 1984, anti-Sikh riots claimed thousands of lives and displacement of many Sikhs from their homes. Likewise various anti-Muslim, anti-Hindu and anti-Christian riots have taken place which have created shock waves all across the country. Statistics show that during 2005-2009, an average of 130 people died every year from communal riots, and over 2200 were injured. In a more recent study in 2013, shows that over 107 people are killed in communal riots of which 66 were Muslims and 41 were Hindus. The world's average annual death rate from intentional violence, in recent years, has been 7.9 per 100,000 people.

Our constitution is so designed that we are a religiously tolerant nation i.e., secular. Freedom of religion is a fundamental right as guaranteed by Article 15 and Article 25 of the Constitution of India. Blasphemy and heresy are not recognized. Yet why does religious violence and discrimination still exist? What are we doing to protect our fellow brothers and sisters from being killed? This is still a debatable question. My opinion is always the same. The attitude of people should change towards caste and religion. Religion is only a way to lead a peaceful and disciplined life. No religion teaches us to kill other humans to show their domination. As rightly said by Ann Emerson the essence all religions is peace, compassion and justice. Whether Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Parse or any religion, everyone preach about togetherness. We should respect the beliefs of other religion and learn from them. It does not show low of ourselves by doing so. Stringent laws and people’s attitude are the only two governing factors that will help bring about change. We should always remember that we all belong to the same race called ‘Humanity’.

- Maheshwari M

Visit to Slums in Dadri :A lost world of little hearts yet to be discovered!!

A place far away from the city chaos filled with the joy and aroma of its own thrives me to pen drown the memorable experience of the visit to this place.This is a place quite different from the other city
dwelled slums.At first sight it looked quite untidy with garbage all around their surroundings and had all signs that an Indian slum is thought to possess.Walking through the streets of the slums and looking around the place caught my sight to a small school where few children with slates in their hands were eagerly waiting for the teacher to come.Their interest to learn was clearly visible in their eyes which had some magical spark,after waiting for a while the teacher came with books in her hand and started the days class .Moving further ahead I entered into an old market which had almost all the goods ranging from vegetables to household necessities,this market was quite different from the ones which in a way that it had all types of stores merged in a small yard of space this was an example of an effective way of utilisation of the space,a cute example of 'juggad ' Indians are famous for.Life at these slums is very different and difficult from the modernised cities which have every facility to ease the living of a common man but the ease of living degrades as we move downwards to the less improvised slums of dadri where lifestyle of living has not improved much.The main reason  of low rate of improvement of this place,on talking to people of these slums turned out to be the growing number of illiterate people and less educational opportunities.Education was the major concern raised by many people due to lack of resources as they find themselves trapped in the vicious cycle of the society and a problem that the Indian society faces i.e rich gets even richer and the poor gets even poorer.
After the visit to this lost world of little hearts filled with many desires yet to be fulfilled opened my eyes to this crude reality that the majority of the slums in India are in one or other way trapped in the vicious cycle of greedy people who make them vulnerable  and make their existence under serious threat.We as the responsible citizens of the society have to initiate a process of growth among these people and make them aware of the various policies that our  government has initiated for their improvement and help them to fruitfully use them to get out from this vicious cycle of greedy and rancour people who coexist in this diverse Indian society.

Transformative Learning:Perceiving Education the Right way!!

"Transformative Learning" sounds quite absurd and ridiculous at first sight but these two words contain in them the magic of change,these revolutionary set of alphabets can change the way we perceive things.Many define 'Transformative Learning' as the expansion of consciousness through the transformation of  basic world view and specific capacities of the self .This in-depth definition though sounds spine-chilling and horrifying contains in it the true meaning of education and answers the question of  the need for education.In an elegantly simple way we can redefine it as the idea of people changing the way they interpret their experiences and their interactions with the world.when someone undergoes such a change he has in essence "transformed" his view of himself or of the world or of how he interacts with others and his environment.This is exactly what every educational system should aspire to accomplish in their student's lives and in their learning.Through this process the student undergoes an affirmative transformation which opens the doors in building a successful individual ready to face the difficulties and the challenges the society faces.

In order to foster transformative learning the educator plays an important role in assisting learners to become aware and critical of assumptions This includes their own assumptions that lead to their interpretations ,beliefs, habits of mind ,or points of view ,as well as the assumptions of others. Educators must provide learners practice in recognizing the frames of reference. By doing so ,educators encourage practice in redefining problems from different perspectives. The main goal of the educators should be to create a community of learners who are "united in a shared experience of trying to make meaning of their life experience".

Nowadays, education has turned into a rat race where everyone steps in to win the race without the prior knowledge of knowing what their interests are,what they really want to see them as in the future.But this current educational system has tied them up to just getting good grades,cgpas etc which is quite a matter of deep concern as the future of the world as a whole is the current generation and their ideologies need to be directed in the right way for a directed and a cheerful society to live in.Education system has to realise the need for change in their functioning and has to set up a
system which would promote transformative learning and not rote memorizing and mugging up things for exams.The whole idea of education needs to change and become focused on bringing up "transformed" individuals who would surely contribute to the society in making it a beautiful place to live in.

The idea of promoting transformative education should be taken by each individual from now and become a medium to make others realise how important it is for an individual to grow in true sense transform into a valuable citizen for the society and realise that they are humans not factory made machines!!

Population Growth

Population Growth

The world today faces many problems despite the fact that it has taken long strides in science, technology and knowledge. One such problem is over population especially in developing countries. The population is growing so fast, that it grows in geometric progression whereas economic goods grow only in Arithmetic progression that demographers say there will not be literally any standing space on earth for her teeming millions. Let us find out the causes for such a growth, the problem or problems such a growth causes and the possible remedies.

The fast growth in population can be attributed to good health, lowering of mortality rate, combating famine when and where it occurs. With the knowledge of science many killer diseases have been literally conquered. For instance, smallpox which used to take a heavy toll of lives has been eradicated from almost all countries, so too has cholera, plague and so on. Even Tuberculosis is kept under control. The wave of flu which accounted for millions of death in 1919 was nothing but a common cold. Infant mortality has been reduced considerably by taking pre-natal and post-natal care. Child mortality is kept under check by protecting the child against Tetanus and Polio. Thus while the number of deaths is reduced, there is no control on birth as a result the population is increasing at a runaway speed.

Again periodic famine in certain countries used to take away the lives of thousands of people. Now with the better management of the world's food, in the matter of production, storage and distribution, no part of the world needs suffer from famine. Add to this the better methods of producing more food that are being adopted. By using better manures and fertilizers, high yielding seeds, by pest control and water management there has been a revolution in food production. These are some positive conditions which contribute to the growth of population.

Still the world may be saved from population explosion. May be there are more Green Revolution miracles up the sleeves. May be birth control miracles in the next ten years may save us. Right now the whole world seems bored with Family Planning. Can the world afford the luxury of such boredom?

- By

Pashmina Lakhanpal

Corruption

Corruption

There is no doubt that corruption is one of the biggest obstacles to the country's growth since independence. Corruption , over the last 60 odd years has deeply entrenched itself in every segment of Indian society.Earlier corruption was more synonymous with Government departments and officials.But today even their private sector has joined the race .

Dictionary definitions for corruption range from "lack of integrity or honesty" to "use of a position of trust for dishonest gain".For the Indian common man,corruption for decades was symbolized by the 'babu' of a government office.For any kind of work that needed to be got done from him, he had to be bribed.It did not matter whether the job was perfectly legal and part of his duty, or whether it was an illegal action that that required him to flout the laws.

The 'Babu' then went on to amass a large amount of wealth and lead a luxurious lifestyle.This model of corruption was seen in every sphere of activity, right from the sanctioning of loans to giving licenses, even for the booking of railway tickets. This was the story of the past.

Arrive 21st century. In the new age of globalization, where India has become an aspiring superpower with the second fastest growing economy in the world,Indian companies are raking in millions.Indian firms have globalized their operations and expanded their businesses to unprecedented levels. Sadly , this has led to a more devastating  form of corruption called 'corporate corruption'.While the old corrupt babu of the olden days dealt with thousands of lakhs of rupees, these high-flying modern corporates eat away millions.The most shocking case of recent times was that of the scam in the IT major Satyam. The corporates breed in many ways like tampering with their account books, evading taxes, showing inflated profit margins, bribing government officials to obtain permits and licenses  and manipulating the share market.Further by bribing  government officials for each of their needs the have also taken government level corruption to new level.The Cancer has now spread from the ministers to the bureaucrats ,the armed forces and even the judiciary. The latest corruption case like the 2G telecom scam, the commonwealth games scam and the housing society scams would put even the most backward militarist African nations to shame.

If all this money is put to use for developments purposes, we could easily feed our poor, treat our sick children build houses, roads and what not?

Some promising steps to root out corruption have come from successive governments recently.The CBI, Enforcement directorate, and vigilance department have been given extra powers to tackle this menace. Government departments have put in place processes to ensure transparency in their work. Officials are much more fearful than before about getting caught for corruption.The Media's role in highlighting corruption needs to be praised. A number of Investigative journalists through thier sting operations and reports have nailed down quite a few high profile individuals indulging in corruption.They have helped in instilling the fear factor among everyone.But still a lot more needs to  be done, especially to nab the officials at the higher levels and the corporate scamsters.

Each one of us can help in rooting out corruption by simply refusing to pay bribes to anyone, no matter how urgent our need is.With earnest efforts from the government  along with public cooperation , we can hope to drive out corruption from our country one day and ensure a better future for the coming generations.

- By

Pashmina Lakhanpal

Poverty

Poverty

Poverty is one of the major problems in India. It is the root cause of many socio-economic problems including population explosion, unemployment, and child labor and rising graph of crimes. Poverty alleviation should be the main target of the nation so as to make it a prosperous and developed country. Thus, poverty elimination is a matter of fundamental importance.

Poverty implies a condition in which a person finds him unable to maintain a living standard adequate for his physical and mental efficiency. He even fails to meet his basic requirements. Poverty is in fact a relative concept. It is very difficult to draw a demarcation line between affluence and poverty. According to Adam Smith, “Man is rich or poor according to the degree in which he can afford to enjoy the necessaries, the conveniences and the amusements of human life.”

Rather than getting drowned into swirling oceans of data we need to look into the factors which lead to poverty. Since India is predominantly an agricultural country, it is the largest source of employment. More than three-fourths of their populations depend on agriculture for their livelihood. Agriculture here is dependent on monsoon. Sometimes due to uncertainty and irregularity of monsoon, agriculture collapses. Food grains production declines. Often there is drought. All these adversely affect the income generation prospect. These combine to result in poverty. People do not have other means of livelihood; they are left with no other option except to starve.

Illiteracy constitutes a major cause of poverty. It is really very distressing that after more than 60 years of independence, about one-fourth of our population do not know how to read and write. Illiteracy is one of the constraints which deprive one from opportunities to seek other forms of livelihood. It in fact forces people to stick to ancestral jobs and prevents them from having job flexibility. Besides, caste system also puts constraints in the access to lucrative jobs to a vast majority of the people. Though constitutionally such institutions have been dismantled, their presence can still be seen in rural areas.

Furthermore, there has been increase in unemployment adding to the woes of poverty. Growing population isa great contributor to poverty. The average size of Indian family is relatively bigger, consisting of 4.2 members. All these factors make a vicious cycle of poverty and aggravate the problems related to poverty.

Poverty is a great pollutant. It is marked by an apathy that erodes self-esteem and any willingness to live life to the fullest. It is also an important factor in the creation of paradoxical situation, the lack of purchasing power amidst plentiful availability of food causing starvation deaths. Poverty makes education, balanced diet, health care facilities, etc. inaccessible. Obviously, all these deprivations immensely affect the personality development of a person, thus creating wide gaps between haves and have-nots.

As a consequence of attempts made by government, poverty showed a sharp decline in 1980s. This decline in poverty, to some extent, is also attributed to agriculture development of 1970s and 1980s resulting from the Green Revolutions. However, much more needs to be done, for India is the home to the largest poor population in the world. Basic necessities of life such as drinking water, health care facilities, etc. are still inaccessible to majority of population.

In this regard community participation and awareness campaign can make a difference. The media and the NGOs, besides other institutions have crucial role to play. The machinery involved in poverty alleviation need to be accountable, sensitized and sincere. New laws have to be evolved to ensure more accountability. The lack of transparency and accountability has hampered our economic development at all levels. A system of incentives and disincentives can also be of great importance. Thus, the situation is bound to change and society will be free from deprivation.

- By

Pashmina Lakhanpal

Illiteracy

Illiteracy

More than six decades have passed since India achieved independence from the British.Still India remains a backward country because more than forty percent of India's population is illiterate.Illiteracy is today one of the main problems facing the country and remain a major obstacle to national growth and development.

Though there has been a considerable increase in the number of schools and colleges,it has not kept pace with the rapid increase in population.As a result, large numbers of our children are denied education and hence remain illiterate. Another major reason for the wide-spread illiteracy in our country is the unaffordability of education , especially in the private schools.

The reasons for illiteracy are mainly financial.Since a vast section of the population lives below below the poverty line or just marginally above it,they cannot afford to send their children to private schools.In the backward interiors of the country , the number of government -run schools is very less, thus leaving a big gap between demand and supply resulting in widespread illiteracy..In addition , the poor need more helping hands at work, and so put they children to work at any early age.

The ill-effects of illiteracy are manifold. A nation whose large number of population are uneducated can never aspire to become developed and prosperous. It is only through education that people acquire knowledge and skills.Only when the population becomes skilled and employable , the industries can grow and create more jobs.
A country like the United states of America , owes its super power status and prosperity to its excellent education system.Quality education empowers the masses and inspires them to achieve bigger things.

It is not that the government  has been sleeping over the issue. Successive governments have introduced many schemes to improve the condition of literacy in India.In 1978,a nationwide adult-education programme was introduced to encourage adults to get themselves educated. . 'Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan'  and 'Midday meal programme  in schools have been other measures adopted by the governmants to bring girls and kids from poor families to school.These measures have started showing results , of late and the literacy rate of India has slowly started to climb.

But a lot more needs to be done, and the government, NGO's and people must put in combined efforts to make more and more people literate.Our aim should be to achieve 100% literacy by 2030, so that we do not remain left behind in the march to progress.

-By

Pashmina Lakhanpal

NIGHT SHIFT JOBS – A DEATH TRAP FOR WOMEN?

Long working hours, sleepless nights, reduced appetite and stress. These are the characteristics of every BPO (Business process outsourcing) and call centers which mostly work during the night. Sexual assaults, molestation, rapes and murders have added extra shine to these jobs. There is an increase in the number of night shift jobs being taken up especially by women. The mindset of women has changed over the years and they are starting to believe that they can do anything that a man does. But changeover is not that easily acceptable. There are certain spoil agents in our society that tend to cripple such positive thoughts of women. The crimes that are accompanying the night shift jobs is truly horrifying.

Everyone has come across the blood-chilling rape and murder of a BPO employee Prathibha on December 13^th, 2005 after leaving home from night shift by the cab driver. Why was she killed? The driver apparently was starving for sexual activity after his wife became pregnant. This is the ridiculous reason that the driver gave. This case awakened the entire country regarding the safety of women during the night shift. The argument was that women should not be allowed to work during the night as the surrounding is not secure. Well my question is, why shouldn’t we work during the night hours? Was it Prathibha’s mistake that she was brutally raped and killed? Every man should be first be taught to respect their opposite sex. Women should be treated as equals. But in the current mentality of our society it is difficult and challenging to achieve such equality. The government and many non-governmental organizations are striving towards this cause.

Currently there a lot of amendments being brought about in the labor law. Among the various amendments to labor law proposed by the Narendra Modi Government is one on allowing women to work on shifts between 7 pm and 6 am, “with adequate safeguards for safety and provision of transportation till the doorstep of their residence.” But the problem lies with poor compliance. Laws are just made but not followed properly. It is still debatable whether it is the negligence of the law makers or whether it is really that difficult to follow. There is no stringency in these laws. Many laws in various states are still denying women from working in the night shift.

We are brought up in a society where women are meant to be suppressed at home and away from the so called unfair world. We are considered to be naïve and delicate. Lately there is a full stop being put to such an attitude. Women are moving out of their restricted boundaries and making a change for themselves, well a positive change. No matter how much we are suppressed women are growing stronger and stronger every day. A recent article which I happen to come across in The Hindu said that women are starting to feel secure in night shift jobs. Women are very much needed to bring about an economic stability in every country. We should not be considered only as a sex material, we can work and achieve equally as men. All that should be done is initiate a change in the attitude of the society. We women should be the change we want to be.

- Maheshwari M

Domestic Violence

Domestic Violence

Domestic violence can happen to anybody. Though it is often practiced against women, the problem is not gender specific. Domestic violence is defined as the “Willful intimidation, physical assault, battery, sexual assault, and/or other abusive behavior as part of a systematic pattern of power and control perpetrated by one intimate partner against another.” Domestic violence is not limited to physical violence but also involves instances of sexual assault and psychological abuse. It is experienced by people of almost ever colour, creed and religion. Domestic violence is often accompanied by dominating and controlling behavior on part of the abuser. The victim is often perceived as passive and weak and thus the abuser tries to intimidate the former.

It is not always easy to understand the nature of any relationship at an early stage and whether a person is abusive or not. Abusing tendencies of a person can develop over time due to a variety of reasons. Domestic violence often starts when a partner feels the need to dominate and control the other. The abusers always have a superiority complex feeding upon their sexist, racist or discriminatory attitudes. Domestic violence may initiate because a partner has low self esteem or confidence and turns to violent means to exert control. In traditional patriarchal societies, men believe that women are not to be treated as equals and see no harm in subjecting them to violence in order to remind them of their place and limits in the household. Often alcohol and drug abuse are claimed to be initiators of violence, however, studies have shown that people might be intensely abusive under their influence but these chemical substances are not likely to trigger domestic violence instances. Children who grow up witnessing domestic abuse start believing that violence is the only way to resolve a conflict. These young kids often mimic their parents in later stages of life.

Even though one cannot identify when a person might turn violence and start abusing, still there are a number of tendencies that often appear prior to an abusive behavior. When a partner starts showing signs of jealousy or displaced anger, it certainly means things are not in proper line. Before the actual act of violence, the victim may be accused of cheating, or stealing money. At times the abuser starts keeping account of every penny spent in the house and also refuses to give the money to the victim to pay their expenses. Often the abuser becomes so agitated that he/she starts keeping track of every movement of the victim by using devices such as GPS at times without the victim’s knowledge. When the abuser reaches his/her peak, she/he may force sex onto his/her partner, refuse to use protection during sex and even pressurizing for things that the victim may not be comfortable with.

The issue of domestic violence has been several times taken up in the Human Rights Council at the United Nations. Even though the agenda and resolutions passed at these conferences are not legally binding, they set international standards and norms. One of the most important resolutions on domestic violence is the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women (DEVAW). DEVAW recognizes violence against women as “an obstacle to the achievement of equality” and a “manifestation of historically unequal power relations between men and women,” as well as a violation of fundamental freedoms including the prohibition against torture. The issue of domestic violence was also addressed in the Resolution 58/147 where it was recognized that domestic violence affected many areas of the victim’s life and also lead to economic deprivation and isolation in severe cases. Despite these initiatives, domestic violence is on a rise. Every minute a woman is abused at home. For any initiative to bear fruit we have to change. The society needs to wake up to the injustices happening to their next door neighbor and stop them. If we simply ignore the instances of domestic violence we come across, we are equally guilty of the crime. If we make an effort, the world will be a better place.

Nikita Tandon 

SOCIAL MEDIA– A BOON OR BANE?

“Social media has infected the world with a sickening virus called vanity”.

-Kellie Elmore

Gone are the days when a postal letter or telegram from close relatives and friends would make a person ecstatic. Gone are the days when during important occasions and festivals there would be a get together and quality time spent with family. Now all this has become history. Social media has reduced the essence of family culture. Just one message in Watsapp or Facebook has become enough to convey important messages irrespective of whether the person gets the message or not.

Gone are the days when we used to be dependent on the television and newspaper to gain knowledge and get updated about the outside world. Now we get timely updates in our mobile phones from the various android or windows or IOS applications. Gone are the days when we students used to be dependent on text books for preparing for exams. Most of us now get photocopies of notes in Watsapp or we can just download the text book from Google. It is easily accessible and cost effective. We students are neither dependent on teachers to clarify our doubts. We can just get the relevant information using various search engines.  Gone are the days when VCR’s (videocassette reader) and gramophones were the only source for watching a movie or listening to music. Well I don’t even buy CD’s now, as there is Torrentz to download movies, serials, games, songs, story books, text books and what not. Gone are the days when we used to get lost finding places we have never been to. Google Maps is the solution for this now. It even says where you have to take a right or left turn, which buses go to that particular destination and cautions us when we are going in the wrong direction. Gone are the days when parents sent their children outdoors to make friends and play with their peers. Well now friends are made easily on Facebook and Twitter. In fact now you can even judge a person by his Facebook profile or the number of likes he/she gets for his profile picture or the number of friends she/he has. As far as games are concerned we have temple run, candy crush saga, angry birds and many more. Now even these games are outdated, as there are new games invented every day. Right from a two-year-old to a sixty- year-old play these games.

I can go on and on about how social media has had an influence on our life style. As the saying goes “There are two sides to every coin”. Social media has its own positives and negatives. It depends on the individual whether to extract the positive resources from the Internet or become its victim. Lately there is a rise in Cyber Crimes. Social media has become a platform for harassment, financial theft, drug trafficking, racism and obscene or offensive comments. Mostly women are falling as prey to these crimes. At present, the number of cyber crimes in India is nearly around 149,254 and is likely to cross the 300,000 by 2015 growing at compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of about 107 percent. According to the study, every month sees 12,456 cases registered in India.  Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra have occupied the top three positions when it comes to cyber crimes registered under the new IT Act in India. Since we are trending towards a society where Internet is believed more than humans, we have to protect ourselves from its hazards. We have to keep our family culture alive rather than being too dependent on technology. We have to adapt ourselves to the ever changing technology but not loose our morale for it. Well, Welcome to the ‘Social Media Age’.

- Maheshwari M

Female Foeticide

Female Foeticide

By:

Sushmita Paul

Female foeticide is aborting the female baby in the mother’s womb. Killing the Unborn in mother’s womb sounds itself so brutal then why the problems of sex selective abortions are carelessly being performed so frequently? The abiding truth of performing such brutal acts transcends throughout the country. India is already facing the critical issue of declining female population which in reality is a big reason of social tensions in the country which are spreading furiously like forest fire. Our Constitution provides the Right to Equality under Article 14 and Right to life with dignity under Article 21 and Sex – detection tests violate both these rights. The misbalanced sex ratio of India has reached its black days making it less than 800:1000 in few states of India. Surprisingly, firstly the practice is more recorded from urban area rather than rural area and secondly more common in literate section of society rather than illiterate and thus the most affected states are progressive states like Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Gujarat. Why the life of females is being taken so casually when they are the actual soul of the society? Female child is the root of society; they only further become responsible for being the daughter, wife, mother then alls favourite grandmother. But the patriarchal society of india still needs many brain washes to understand the importance of the root of society. This in turn becomes the reason of many social crimes against women. Why in country like india which became first to recognize man and woman equally under universal adult franchise such bloodiest form of cruelty can’t be stopped? Technologies of Modern science are becoming convict of this crime. With the determination of erasing the discrimination against female sex and for protecting the status and dignity of women government has passed the Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques in 1994 to avoid the miss use of technologies. Practicing such acts is punishable under IPC 312-316 depending upon the nature of crime. The penalties range from seven years to life imprisonment for

fourteen years and fine. One needs to start the changes from individual’s level.  Human Development Survey Report has placed India at 124^th position among 173

countries. Actually eradicating the gender discrimination should be the prior agenda of development programmes. Although the process of removing the myths related to sons and daughters will take long time but we need to initiate it as early as possible for better future of india. At the end, all of us know the universal truth that every individual is born from his/her mother, the most respectable idol of life who is actually a female.