THE OTHER SIDE

Population Boom

We all know about the Spain train crash which kills about 80 people on Wednesday through media reports,this incident ignited another thought in me about our country. This Spanish train was carrying only 247 people in its peak time i.e for the pilgrimage destination Santiago de Compostela which is a very rare situation for such pilgrimage in India.

During festive seasons for Chatt Puja in Bihar or for Kumbh Mela in Allahabad our train runs with out of capacity passengers which carry thousands sitting inside as well as outside on top of the trains.A train carrying only 247 passengers may appear a joke for us because we see much more people only in a single carriage of a train. This is not because we have very few trains,our railway system is one of the biggest in the world but the problem lies in the fact that we are second most populated country in the world.

Our population is increasing rapidly and soon we will overtake China to be the most populated country in the world. With ever increasing population all arrangements becomes short,our resources are burdened with over population. We are now short of land,water and other such basic necessities of life due to which we excessively use our natural resources disturbing our flora and fauna without giving a thought for the future. Ever increasing population is burden for the nation and hindrance in our development. This is the reason that we have so many people die out of hunger,youth is unemployed,literacy rate is below average,malnutrition and many other problems.

There is a need to create awareness about this problem among the masses,programmes run by government to control population boom should be implemented more strictly and to the villages of India. With population increases hands with hands increases demands and when demand crosses the thresh hold system collapses. The slogan of "we two our two" of eighties and nineties should now be changed to "we two our one".

Mid-day Meal

Midday Meal Scheme started in 1960's involves provision of free lunch in weekdays in government schools. This programme started from Tamil Nadu in 1960's soon spread to other states and after 2001 Supreme Court court verdict it became mandatory for state governments to provide free meals to all students. Apart from protecting students from hunger this scheme also helps in increasing school enrollment and attendance,it improved socialization among children belonging to different castes,reduced malnutrition and empowered women by providing them employment.

Right since the Midday meal scheme gets widespread acceptance in all parts of India,it's misuse also started. Many schools in order to take extra ration show more students in their attendance register than actually enrolled and than sold extra ration in open market, grain distribution system for midday meal is full of corruption. In many schools lower castes students are devoid of midday meals by members of upper castes, in many places grains used for food is stale which leads to food poisoning and many other such ailments,food is prepared in unhygienic conditions which again leads to many diseases. Many such incidents happened and were reported by local residents to concerned authorities but in vein.

Recently on 16th July 2013,20 children died and many are still in hospital due to food poisoning after eating midday meal in Bihar's Saran district. Why authorities came in action only after such incidents? There are schemes,there are laws but there is no authority to ensure proper functioning of such schemes and to implement the laws. Midday meal scheme which is an effort to reduce deaths caused by malnutrition is in it's self becoming deadly. Only harsher punishments to those responsible in it can make people associated with this more accountable.

Glance

He was on his bicycle,she was going in car with her parents she gave a casual glance,soon they became friends which grew into love. They are from different castes and in India castes give no chance for such glance. They both now rest in peace.

This post is written for the 55 Fictionist Contest, hosted by IndiBlosp

Encounter-Licensed Killing

Encounter-Licensed Killing.

An encounter is a euphemism used in South Asia,especially in India to describe extrajudicial killings in which police or armed forces shoot down suspected gangsters and terrorists in gun battles. It started from Mumbai in India with killing of gangster Manya Surve,in year 1982 after that Mumbai police killed many gangsters to remove crime from the city. It was also used by many other state police departments in a move to give on the spot justice.

Encounter killings are criticized by human right commissions as it devoid alleged criminal a chance for a fair trial in the court of law. But if we look this phenomenon in a different light we pat police for there work. There are thousands and lacks of cases pending in Indian courts waiting for justice,cases of these dangerous criminals only add burden on our judicial system. Those killed by police in encounters are gangsters and terrorists dangerous for society police killed them when they try to escape from police custody and res torts to gun battles. These gangsters and terrorists are those who don't show much sign of improvement if provides opportunity to do so and hence there killing is justified by police in such encounters.

But as I maintains that there is always an other side of the story,since encounter killings are started it's misuse has also been in the run. Many innocent youths are targeted by police force in various states on charges of terror links and killed by police in encounters without judicial hearing many of such killings were confirmed as fake by Indian authorities. When we can kept a terrorist like Ajmal Kasab and gave him a lawyer to fight his case than why these young boys and girls were killed without giving a chance?Why criminals escape so easily from police custody?From where they get guns while in jail?Why police don't try to arrest the criminals alive?Why our intelligence don't have any information of such terrorist activities?Why encounters always remain in doubt?There are many such questions answers of which we might never get. Police is for our safety and must not act as licensed killers or used by politicians for there political gain and to hide there wrong doing.

Faltu( Waste)

Faltu(Waste)

Nothing is faltu or waste in India,everything considered waste elsewhere hold it's value in this part of the world. In other words we can say that we know how to make waste useful. We are actually resourceful (Jugadu as called in desi language) thus utilise everything to it's full extent, take for example a school uniform,i elder brother or sister's uniform is preserved for the younger sibling if it's doesn't fit to the elder one.

There are many things like that old clothes are exchanged for utensils which are again used to make pillow covers,foot mattresses and many other things,even cow dung is used as fuel in our country. Those who consider us backward must see how we use waste products like old clothes,shoes,broken glass,plastic bottles,old newspapers,old wooden doors and windows,etc.productively.

This habit also have a drawback,it is true that less waste is generated in reusing,reducing and again using old things which put less burden on our natural resources and environment but this make us greedy and selfish also,we kept old clothes with us to be exchanged with utensils which can be given to someone who don't have clothes,instead of selling old school or college books back to the book seller at half rates we can give them to poor students who can't afford such books easily,people keep extra chapatis to sell them to dry chapati vendor instead of feeding a hungry person.

Our habit of liking waste products also make us to accept anything useless like our MP's and MLA's again and again,we keep refresh old issues don't let them die and thus misuse by politicians,we are still governed by old laws of eighteenth century repacked with some modifications,people with useless ideologies bring forth there views every time in new ways and we accept them. It is said that a good scrap dealer(kabadi in hindustani) can find usefulness of a waste thing,so keep an eye of a scrap dealer to judge waste things but an human heart to utilise them well.

Flash Flood In Uttarakhand

Flash floods in Uttrakhand which have killed hundreds,made homeless to thousands and made losses of lacks in that region again exposed our preparedness for natural disasters. Government sources said that it will take around three years for life to be back to normal there,thousands still are missing and search operations are still running.

This is not the first time that flash flood has hit Uttarakhand,it's a yearly phenomenon only difference this year is that it's too early and more intense. It also open our eyes to the threats posed in altering our natural landscapes by building excessive roads and houses by cutting mountains and trees. Even after having a National Disaster Management Authority( NDMA) we failed in early flood forecasting and our after disaster arrangement also lacked preparedness.To minimise the effects of such disasters there is a need for better weather equipments and expertise to deal with such situations. There should be proper alarm systems to alert people in such flood prone areas.

The other side of this issue is that several state governments have rushed to the rescue and aid to the affected area as pilgrims and tourists stranded hailed from all parts of the country,many state governments had announced financial aids to Uttarakhand along with the central government and also helping in rescue operations. May God help those who are stranded and missing. There is also a need for a planned development strategies according to the geographical area so that we may not interfere with stable natural conditions.

World Day Against Child Labour

We often see special google doodles on special occasions, social media was bombarded with greetings or messages related to that occasion by governmental or non governmental organisations and even by individuals,we also see TV debates,newspaper coverage for such special events and days,but yesterday there was none.No prime time debates,no newspaper adds,no social media coverage,no active blogosphere,none.

Actually, yesterday i.e on June 12, world observed since 2002 on ILO's ( International Labor Organisation) initiative " World Day Against Child Labor". But it is said or rather shameful that many of us don't know about it. This day was launched to focus attention on the global extent of child labor and the action and effort needed to eliminate it. Even after having laws against child labor and compulsory education for all we are unable to eradicate child labor from our society. The biggest reason behind this is unawareness about the issue and lack of political will.

Children unaware of there rights works as domestic helps in home or as bonded labors in factories,they beg on roads for which they also pay commissions to beggar's mafia many of us feel top of the world giving charity to such children but in reality we are promoting child labor in this way,politicians and governments are not much concerned about the issue because these children are not there vote bank. No money was invested by Ministry of women and child welfare to create awareness about this issue.

Lakhs and crores of children do labor at the age when they need to go to school only because we employ them in our homes and factories. It's time now for us to think and act against child labor, if we are unable in providing them food and shelter than we must not encourage it by giving alms to children begging on street,to drink tea at stalls where children are employed,to dissociate from our friends and relatives who employ children in there homes,to make such children aware of there right of education.

From government side,harsher punishments should be given to those who employ children,no child work of his/her own will they are forced by parents being so poor,hence government must ensure food and work for all,more schools should open up in villages and panchayat must ensure that each child of village will attend schools,more facilities should be there in schools to minimize the percentage of school dropouts. I hope next year we all remember this day and put our efforts in eliminating this evil from our society.

In Unison

We often see political parties fighting on various issues,whether it is Food Security Bill, Foreign Direct Investment(FDI),Lokpal Bill, Anti Rape Law,etc. There views are always differ from each other and it is next to impossible to have hundred percent support of a particular issue.

But this miracle happened on June 3,2013 after Central Information Commission(CIC) ruled that the six national political parties namely Congress,Bhartiya Janata Party,CPI,CPI(M), Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party "have been substantially financed" by the government and thus RTI will be applicable to them. As soon as this news spread all political parties dismissed the stand in one voice. They said that they all ready gave there audit report, there details of expenditure etc. to Election Commission and one who requires such information should contact to election commission for that. They said that there rivals might misuse it and it would create confusion among the voters.

RTI experts are advocating it as it will make the system more transparent, people can ask these parties what leads them to a particular decision,why there party is for or against a particular bill in the parliament, etc. It will be more clear in further days what stand does political party takes in this issue but for now we can see that they stand together at times when something falls upon them. They speak in unison against those who abuse parliamentarian, they say Ayes with hundred percent majority during there salary hike. It is time for us to unite for all those who are working against our country.

The good side of this issue is that we now know that they can come together for a cause and may do same for issues concerning common people. Hope that they will come together for corruption free,hunger free,hatred free India. Ameen.

Untold Love

Rajan was thinking of the days he shared with Roshni while sitting beside his window. Since childhood they were neighbors and thus very good friends,when at the age of sixteen Rajan lost both his parents in a road accident she was one to console him as she experienced the same feeling being brought up by her elder brother after she lost her parents in her childhood. They always stood for each other in time of grief and happiness,it is on her encouragement and support that he completed his studies and worked now in a private company as a manager.

He always enjoyed her company and started liking her,he don't know exactly when this liking converted into love,he never disclosed his emotions for her and wanted that she understood them by herself. But neither she nor he spoke those words and now it's too late as her brother has fixed her marriage to someone with her consent. He was relaxing and thinking about his untold love when Roshni's brother Arun knock at his door,"Rajan may I come in.", " You!yes please come in bro."

Arun told Rajan that he required money for Roshni's marriage arrangements," Rajan you are our own family and you can understand my situation,please arrange for some money, I will return it to you with interest with in a month." Rajan was saving money for years for his marriage someday with Roshni. He gave that money to Arun for a condition that he did not want it back as being the best friend of Roshni,it was his duty also that her wedding was completed without any difficulties.

It might be possible that Roshni would have accepted his proposal if he had asked her for marriage,it was also possible that she already knew of his love for her but she faced same problem as faced by Rajan. They both didn't want to lose their best friend or his love was not strong enough to be acknowledged by her. In few years Rajan also got married after pressure from some relatives and Roshni. Rajan and Roshni are still good freinds and that love story remained untold forever. It is also possible that there is another side of that story.

This story is complete in itself but if someone wish for a different end to that than wait for its,
concluding parts in future posts.....

The Big Fat Indian Wedding

The Big Fat Indian Wedding.

We in India are fortunate enough to have so many seasons to see due to our position in the world map. Summer,winter,monsoon,spring,etc. You name it and we have it but there is one more season of which we experience many forms and that season is wedding season.

In India wedding is like a destination for each individual to reach at a particular age,one started dreaming about his or her wedding since childhood,beautiful dresses,lavish arrangements,most suitable partner and so on. There are so much expectation in marriages that one spend huge amount of money in food,clothing and other arrangements.Due to huge differences in economic conditions we have so many type of marriage arrangements which one can afford according to budget.

Street marriages where tents were put in streets,food is limited and many times get finished before eating by everybody present there, parks or community center marriages,here marriages started getting bigger with more food items and for all ,bigger arrangements,bride and grooms costumes were better and so on,some may have music arrangements,DJ's ,orchestra according to the budget than we have farm house weddings which are based on themes having proper rehearsals for different ceremonies,dishes of different regions,designer outfits,etc. Last but not the least are palace weddings in old royal palaces which are used now as hotels and resorts where filmstars performs,food is in abundance,high profile people were invited,preparations began before months,dances choreographed,costumes precisely made,etc

Lots of money is wasted in wedding arrangements,food goes in drains in a country where so many people sleep hungry,electricity is overused,a small ceremony can also tie the threads of relation but performed otherwise,those who don't have that much money borrow from others out of social pressure,dowry is given in the name of gifts,poor people often think there daughters as burden only because of this reason.

There are so many negative expects of such Big Fat Indian Wedding but there is also an other side of it. It provide work and business to thousands and lacks of people directly or indirectly,people plan there business according to marriage season,tailors,carpenters,masons,vegetable vendors,cloth manufacturers,marriage bureaus,painters,electrician,farmers,etc all takes there share from weddings, a good wedding season is a good business season more the demand more is the supply and more will be the profit. So enjoy this season every year.

Be The Change

"Be the change you want to see" - Mahatma Gandhi

Today we all raise our voices for crime against women. As soon as a rape news flashed on news televisions people are out on streets to protest against the police and government,demands harsher punishments for the rapist and so on. It all ends in few days and life goes on like this.

The problem lies not in minds of few individuals but in thoughts and behaviour of the whole society and as the charity begins at home so is the brutality. Right in our homes position of girl child is miserable,a sister must care for her brother's needs while a brother is free to treat her as his servant,it's a daughter's duty to ask for water to father when he returns home while son plays video games. Still marriages are arranged without daughter's consent,parents think it as below there dignity to run there homes with girl's salary. These thoughts which are prevalent in society project women as soft and venerable characters to be victimised in each and every step of life.

A girl herself started thinking that she is weak and must need someone to protect her,to feed her,to take care of her and when she is married with such mind set she suffers each treatment given to her as her destiny,she further inculcates this ideology in her children where a boy started thinking himself as boss and a girl as a slave. Such women are also prone to physical violence as they don't even realize that what is happening to them is wrong,neighbors, passerby don't intervene not because they think it's a personal matter but because they too are occupied by this ideology related to status of women. Initiatives like BELBAJAO thus becomes useless in our patriarchal society.

We must become the change we want to see,there is a need to bring a change in thoughts of girls and women. A man must encourage the women to fight for her rights. There should be a Krantiveer like Nana Patekar who encourage a woman in movie so much that she herself hit those who try to do injustice to her.It may sounds filmy but women must feel the power in herself and the effect it can create in society and on those who think her as a toy. A real man is not one who project himself as powerful but one who support and encourage women to be powerful.

Bangles should be a sign of power and not of cowardliness. When boys will treat there sisters well,respect there mothers equally than they will be the man who respect a woman as a equal human being as himself and not as an object to be treated in any way he likes.

Entry for"

"Ring The Bell for IndiChange" by Indiblogger.in

Caged Parrot Of India (CPI)

" CBI a caged parrot speaking in master's voice". This statement by Supreme Court during coalgate hearing was enough to prove the credibility of CBI the main central investigating unit of Indian Government. CBI is reduced to a mere weapon of mass destruction of evidences and a way to hide crucial information and investigations from the masses.

The governments in center use this agency so as to bury allegations over them. There used to be a parrot in arabian nights and Hatimtai's story in which someone puts his on life in it than that person is only killed after killing of that parrot. Central Bureau of Investigation(CBI) is also used for that purpose. Government has placed its life in CBI and thus secure itself.

This parrot only speaks against the present governments when these government becomes past i.e when it's master changes. It is an open secret now that this agency is definitely not free which concludes to that the investigations under it are also not free

There is a need for an investigation agency which will work independently and don't act as a puppet under central government,so that scams will be probed and culprits will be punished.

Bollywood@100

Apart from print and television media one thing which contributes most in framing public opinion is Cinema. A medium which is immensely popular among the masses and means a lot to them. Hindi Cinema or Bollywood as it is popularly called is part of each one of us and it has completed its hundred years.

Since first film Raja Harishchandra made by DadaSahab Phalke it has never look back and today it is the most successful film industry in the world. Early films were silent and mostly based on mythological themes as it was considered taboo to watch films or to work in them and for women it was strictly banned which was also the reason that initial films cast male actors in female roles.

Films are always a face of changing society,it is a mirror which shows what exists in our country and the world.As female progresses soon they also started working in Indian films,after independence films started taking subjects of social importance,films like Do Beega Zameen, Mother India,etc projected plights of farmers,Shree 420 was based on theme of black marketing. There were films like Pyasa,Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai,Boot Polish,Jagriti,Biraj Bahu,Kagaz Ke Phool,Awara,Dhool Ka Phool,etc. which highlighted various social,political issues. As Indian society progresses so is the cinema angry young energetic Vijay,Ravi of 70's took place of Raju,Birju of 50's and 60's.They are characteristics of the unrest of that time due to corruption,black marketing,unemployment,etc. Later in 90's there place was taken by Raj,Rahul,Prem,etc which concerns only about there love life and how to get there love. They are modern,carefree and knows what they want. Heroines also changes in this pattern,early female characters were home bound,in 70's they are modern,working women. 90's shows the female characters as one which has its choice of its own and now the modern women is bold,fearless and sometimes more powerful than its male counterpart.

In these 100 years films have become an integral part of our life,one forgets all his problems,tensions and worries as soon as one enters in a cinema hall. It keep alive the flame of hope that everything will be soon all right, it gives dreams,shares sorrows,fought for our rights,show us the right path,make us aware of problems in other parts of our country and world,put forth social problems, finds solutions and so on.

Today worlds watches Indian films. Our male and female actors are known world over,in most parts of the world India is synonyms with Bollywood. Some might say that it maligns our culture,tradition,social values,etc but in reality it shows what is all ready happening in our homes,communities and society. It make us aware of things and alert against the evils in society.

Note: If anybody feels like commenting for the post please also mention the name of your favorite hindi film. Thank you.