Mandatory language in schools

Language is not just a means of communication, it embodies the culture and practices of a place and its people. It grows along with the practices of the people who speak it, evolves as their culture evolves. Language is an organic being which is very much dependent upon its speakers who are also its protectors.

The Karnataka government has recently made the teaching of Kannada language mandatory in schools. The government is also mulling over punishing those who do not follow this order by either imposing a fine of rupees two lakhs or withdrawing the recognition of such schools. This action of the government maybe a part of the vote bank politics but it is also an attempt to preserve a language from becoming endangered. At a time when majority of the spoken languages are at the verge of becoming endangered or extinct, any attempt to protect a language is not bad. The Constitution protects the linguistic minorities and gives them rights to protect their language. Any other attempt to protect and propagate a language should also be welcomed.

Every child alive

The birth of a child is a very special moment for his parent but the recent Unicef data suggest that 7000 newborn babies die every day. While the loss of a child is tormenting, the fact that majority die from preventable causes is even more disturbing. The data suggests that more than 80% of the newborn babies die due to complications during birth or prematurity or infections during birth. To tackle such instances, there is a need to have better hospital facilities, trained nurses and midwives, supply of medicines and awareness about the threats to the life of babies. The initial days of a baby's life are very crucial and the mothers should be provided with support both in the form of supplies and information to tackle the needs of the child and also to provide the child with the required medical attention. Allocating sufficient funds for medical facilities so that even women in remote areas can access proper medical help at the time of delivery and during the early days is an important step for the governments across the globe to tackle neonatal diseases and deaths.

Sexual abuse

Sexual abuse connotes a wide array of actions ranging from verbal to physical, from passing comments to harassment and rape. The year 2017 was quite active for many women came forward and spoke out about their abuser, the 'me too' movement online also helped to show how common and widespread the problem of sexual predation is. It also highlighted that the abuse transcends age, culture, nationality, religion or sex of the victim as well as that of the predator. It also made certain groups of men as well as enforcement agencies to come forward and stand with the victims and also to pledge support to them. Taking forward from where the last year had started it was but obvious that the world would try to protect its children and girls better but unfortunately the new year began with the horrific rape and murder of a 7 year old. We need to introspect into where we are wrong. It is not the victim who was calling for it. We have come beyond that. We know that victim blaming is the biggest reason why so many victims were silent till they got the anonymity of the internet, to speak out without being judged. Abuse happens everywhere. It is not the lack of rules because we have the laws to punish the perpetrator. What is lacking is the implementation along with the reporting of the crime. Sometimes the guilt on the part of the victim, the family honour, on the other times the coercion or the bribery on the part of the abuser is what it takes to stop a crime from being reported or the investigation agencies from completing the task. We need to speak up but most important, we need to teach our young children about the abuse. We need to teach them not only how to avoid a stranger but also how to stop the advances of a known one because the abuser might be sitting in one's own home. Being open with our children and building trust relationship is what is needed to prevent the abuse of children and teens. While dealing with the abuse of adults, we need to be more acceptable towards what a victim is saying. Combating sexual abuse is a collective duty of everyone. It cannot be done in single day, week or month but there is a definite need that the steps towards preventing it are continuing and not wavering.

Freedom of speech and whistleblowers

The whistleblowers play the role of finding out discrepancies in the functioning of public bodies and report them for the public good. From finding out about tax havens to frauds in democratic process to breach in data security, whistleblowers play the part of finding out the truth and placing it in public domain. Since, the whistleblowers are bringing out sensitive data in the public, they are given certain protections and immunities to ensure that they are able to perform their work without any fear.
The Unique Identification Authority of India filed a FIR against the reporter and the newspaper which was able to determine the loopholes in the data security. Such an act is injurious for the freedom of press and attacks anyone who is serving the public interest by finding out the loopholes in the system. Instead of working on its loopholes and fixing the breaches in its data security system, the authority has filed charges of impersonation, forgery, cheating, using forged documents and under the IT Act. Such an action is an attempt to intimidate anyone who tries to question the functioning of the authority and obstructs free, fair and independent journalism.

In anticipation

Wondering what the future holds

Hopes and wishes and prayers abound

For a  peek into the life yet to come

For where the events are going to turn

Some dreams hold the secret

Some prayers give the comfort

Wishing it becomes as beautiful as a dream

Floating lightly in a lively stream

A dream I dream and a dream you have

Of what the life is going to share

For every prayer has an answer

And every dream has a believer

For future is a page unturned

Waiting for its time to come

International day of disability

About 15% of the world's population or about 1 billion people suffer from some form of disability or another which might be minor or extensive. Disability may be physical or mental in nature. It might be congenital or acquired due to some disease or accident later in life. Children with disability are more likely to suffer abuse at schools and daycares leading them to dropout from there. Reports suggest that about 75% of children with disability in developing nations do not attend schools, minimizing their chances of finding livelihood later in life. Parents of children with disability have greater trouble finding a caretaker for their children and more troubled with their child's future. Since the child with disability needs greater support and understanding, the parents are more worried about their child's life after them. Having a child with special needs is a daunting task and on top of that they have to answer all sorts of questions about the disability from curious onlookers. People in developing nations have different perspective about disability and may not be that welcoming towards the child and his parents. People with disability need to be welcomed wherever they are. They may lack some abilities but the one that have an abundance of, is the ability to spread love. They don't need sympathy but they do need understanding. They may not be able to do everything but whatever they do, they do it with the best of their capabilities. All they need is love and acceptance and people around the world should be understanding and caring towards them.

My green patch

Gardening has been more than a hobby for me, it is a part of who I am. When I was a young girl of about 6 or 7, my granduncle taught me to 'create' new plants using plant cuttings and growth hormones, since then I really enjoyed propagating my favorite plant varieties. As I grew older, my garden became my home as I spent my entire day tending to my plants. Doing a project on environmental pollution and another on sustainable development made gardening my most cherished hobby as I collected rare plant varieties, propagated them and shared them with my friends and other gardening enthusiasts.
Today, we see a rise in air pollution causing all sorts of health problems as well as increasing childhood mortality and reduced life expectancy. Global warming and climate change are not fancy terms. Today it seems that gardening should be taught to all school children and the green cover be increased everywhere. Increasing vegetation is the most important means of combatting air pollution and improving the air quality. We need lots of green patches everywhere in this world.