Stringers World

Diplomacy by Design-How the U.S. Flexed Its Global Clout Without Firing a Shot.

2025-05-13T08:14:00.000-07:00

In an era dominated by chest-thumping rhetoric and visible power plays, developments surrounding India and Pakistan's conflict have once again underscored the United States’ unmatched ability to project power— The U.S. didn’t issue threats, mobilize troops, or even hold high-profile summits. Instead, it orchestrated influence through timing, institutions, and individuals—subtly but decisively shaping the outcome of a potential crisis between India and Pakistan.
The backdrop: a familiar yet volatile standoff between the two nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan. The world braced for escalation; but as the situation teetered towards volatility, the U.S. Vice President JD Vance made a seemingly flippant remark, calling the conflict between both the nuclear-armed neighbors “none of our business.” To the untrained eye, it was a shrug. But to those who read between the lines, it was calibrated restraint— a move to lower the diplomatic temperature, creating space for behind-the-scenes maneuvering while publicly avoiding entanglement,
Almost concurrently, the International Monetary Fund, approved a $2.4 billion bailout for Pakistan. Ostensibly a move to support economic reform and climate resilience, the timing was conspicuous. This lifeline, dressed in the language of economic reform and climate resilience, came at a moment when Pakistan needed both financial stability and international legitimacy. It was a well-timed olive branch. Still, the IMF’s alignment with American influence is no secret. For regional watchers, the subtext was clear: the bailout was as much about stability as it was about solvency.
But the crescendo came from an unexpected corner, the pièce de résistance-U.S. President Donald Trump stepping into the fray to announce a ceasefire. Whether American diplomats brokered it behind closed doors remains speculative, but the optics were clear. Trump seized the spotlight, framing himself as a global statesman while projecting U.S. power in the role of mediator—not enforcer, and in doing so, the US once again appeared as the indispensable nation.
What looked like disparate events—a dismissive soundbite, a financial rescue, a dramatic headline-grabbing announcement—began to resemble a deliberate and tightly orchestrated symphony of diplomatic strategy.
The U.S. didn’t have to issue threats or deploy forces. Instead, it leveraged influence, institutions, and individual personas to steer outcomes. The genius lies in the indirectness. There were no warships, no ultimatums. Just institutional power, narrative framing, and plausible deniability.
It’s a potent reminder: how power operates in the modern age. In the modern age, real power often doesn’t wear a uniform. No boots on the ground. No saber-rattling. Its subtle, institutional, and often invisible. Just strategic restraint, soft leverage, and plausible deniability. It whispers through institutions, maneuvers via multilateral forum, and lets others take the credit. In diplomacy, silence isn’t weakness—it’s often the loudest form of strength.
P.S. : The writer offers a discretionary, interpretive analysis rather than a strictly objective report—blending factual events with strategic inference and narrative framing.

Gandhi Jayanti and Mockery of Justice

2020-10-02T08:22:00.009-07:00

Seeking justice in India is nothing more than a charade. It has become somewhat like an asymptote; in pursuit of justice being delivered, one cannot think of meeting the clear and much defined finite ends, transforming ones’ hopes into a blatant travesty of justice.   In the name of justice we have been witnessing frivolous judgments since ages.

No one killed Jessica Lal, No one ever killed the Black Buck, a homeless man was never crushed to death in a hit-and-run case by any Bollywood celebrity under his SUV, Babri Masjid was never demolished, the the heinous Hathras Gang Rape never occurred…………………………

To ones’ chagrin the aforesaid verdicts have been a poignant reminder of justice being denied.

Light is meaningful only in relation to darkness, and truth presupposes error. It is these mingled opposites which constitute our life, making it pungent and intoxicating. We only exist in terms of these conflicts, in the ambivalent zone playing different notes of life.

The ubiquitous figurine of the three monkeys (Mizaru, Kikazaru and Iwazaru) of Mahatma Gandhi depicting moral gestures to see no evil, to speak no evil and to hear no evil seems to have lost its roots in the present day. It’s one of the maladies of our age to profess a frenzied allegiance to truth in unimportant matters, to refuse consistently to face her where graver issues are at stake. Justice now is nestled in the hands of the bigots; hence on the cusp of justice there shall always be a spike in ambiguities, disparities and violation of the fair play.

I strongly condemn and deplore the irrational judgments being served to us in the name of justice.  The devastation caused is irreversible and cannot be compensated at any cost.

 Amidst the prevailing high tension-Happy Gandhi Jayanti.

Ahimsa Paramo Dharma (how far does it stands true)

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Fighting the gloomy days-A tough call to take

2020-04-18T10:59:00.003-07:00

In a letter dated April 16, 2020 to the Secretaries of various Ministries, the Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba had asked them to urge the employees of Government of India, as well as those in PSUs under various Ministries -- to make voluntary contribution to PM CARES Fund as a 'noble gesture'.

On April 17, Ministry Of Finance's Revenue Department issued a circular, asking employees to contribute voluntarily to the PM CARES Fund with an opt-out clause. "It has been decided to appeal (to) all officers and staff of Department of Revenue to contribute their one day's salary every month till March 2021..."

Amidst the lockdown being extended beyond a month, news of suicides by daily wagers who are unable to feed their families have started coming to fore. On contrary, the appeal of the Cabinet Secretary seems to go unheard by the Government employees who have shown their reluctance in accepting the voluntary contribution of their one day's salary. Has India lost its track of solidarity?

Religious Discords - Mazhab Nahi Sikhata Aapas Mein Bair Rakhna

2020-04-14T13:58:00.001-07:00

To begin with, I would love to borrow a quaint old saying of a divine, 'It is difficult to catch a black cat in a dark room, especially when it's not there'. This metaphor simply indicates that it is a hopeless pursuit to find a thing which isn't there where you are finding it. Few conditions should be met to enable someone to accomplish the task of searching. First of all, ‘the thing’ you are searching for must be available somewhere where you are searching for it, the second condition is one should completely open their eyes during the search operation; and the last condition that should be met is one should somehow remove the darkness of the room where one is searching. Only on these 3 conditions being met together one can accomplish their pursuit.
A religion is a set of beliefs that is passionately held by a group of people that is reflected in a world view and in expected beliefs and actions. Each religion also has a "moral code" which is a set of beliefs about how humans should act. Will not be picking up a detailed discussion over God and Human Spirit, but yes the major thing to discuss over is morality. "Morals" are the way a human behaves to other humans. Most religions make rules about human morals. The rules of how people should act to each other are different in different religions. Almost for every religion, following a "path" of goodness, truth and duty is very important, while not every religion teaches people to be kind to all other people. In many religions, it has been common for people to believe that they have to act kindly only to some people and not to others.

Whether we are Hindus or Muslims or any other by religion, by and large we are following the set of rules laid by our religion/community. In every religion we can easily come across people who are the religious preachers, then their hard core followers or disciples and then there are mute spectators as well. Though the ambivalence of thoughts and beliefs do exist in every religion, yet the disciples are never seen preaching the preachers, nor are any sort of reforms brought by the mute spectators. It is a universally acknowledged fact that the majority rules everywhere.
Martin Luther King Jr. said, ‘There comes a time when silence is betrayal. Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter’. Many of our irrational orthodox rituals and practices such as ‘Sati’ got abolished not by the elite religious preachers, not by the hard core disciples but by those who stood against these irrational practices as the reformers. The entire world has witnessed several revolts, reforms and campaigns from time to time. One of the latest reforms in today’s digital era is the #metoo against sexual harassment and sexual assault of women.

We all are prone to fault findings in others hence he who plays the donkey must not be surprised that he gets everyone on his back. To conclude I would like to borrow the wordings of Barak Obama to clear my stance, ‘Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek’. - Devendra Lingwal

Toot kar khamosh wahi hota hai jo beh kar dariya nahi hota ~ Devendra Lingwal

2016-07-08T23:50:00.001-07:00

Kaun kehta hai ki her gham ko bhulane ka zariya nahi hota,
Toot kar khamosh wahi hota hai jo beh kar dariya nahi hota.
Zindagi koyi jheel nahi jise ghamo k kinare baandh kar baithe rahein umr bhar,
Zindagi wo sagar bhi nahi jismein ghamon k daur k kinare na hon
jo apni hi mauj mein janib-e-manzil behta rehta hai, behta rehta hai
Zindagi to khushiyon aur ghamon ki nadiyon se bana ek dariya hai,
Kaun kehta hai ki zindagi ka dariya paar nahi hota,
Toot kar khamosh wahi hota hai jo beh kar dariya nahi hota. -- © Devendra Lingwal

Kal ki Raat

2015-07-16T08:05:00.001-07:00

Kal ki raat fir ek baar zindagi ki maut se mulaqat huyi,
Sehme-sehme kadmo se haule-haule aage badhti maut
apne ghoonghat k pat khol rahi thi.
Apne rukhsar se mayoosiyat ki laton ko hata,
wo bala ki khoobsoorati apne andar samet rahi thi.

Mujh se bhi haseen koyi aur mila hai kabhi?

Maut, kal tak tujh se bhi haseen thi meri zindagi.
Aur zindagi se haseen tha wo shakhs jo,
Kal ki raat mujhe tere aagosh mein chhod gaya.
Kal ki raat use paa kar koyi bahut khush tha,
Kal ki raat kisi par bahut bhari thi,
Kal ki raat fir ek baar zindagi maut se haari thi.
Kal ki hi raat mujhe saza-e-maut huyi thi.
© Devendra Lingwal

A Friend Request That Changed My World - By Devendra Lingwal

2015-05-24T18:40:00.002-07:00

Different people have portrayed the essence of love in a variety of related but distinct forms in different contexts. For some love is worship, for some it’s an unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another, while for some it’s a feeling of intimacy, commitment and passion.
‘Chatak’, the harbinger of the monsoons, for an entire season waits for the rains to quench its thirst, yet after the monsoons, begins another endless wait, a wait of the lovely rains to quench its thirst again.
The unrequited love for the Moon is unable to stop the ‘Chakor’ to wait endlessly for the full Moonlit night, under the calmness of which it beholds the beauty of its love again and again.
In whatsoever form the essence of love is conceptualized, it is much clear that from one or the other point, with its silent steps love dribbles its way deep into everyone’s heart, drenching it with its ineffable aroma of ecstatic feelings and satiating the desire of completeness. However, leaving behind bit of emptiness and incompleteness, for being desired more and more of it over and over again. -- © Devendra Lingwal --in-- A Friend Request That Changed My World.

2015-03-13T20:11:00.004-07:00

Everyone dreams of reading the world through word, only some are lucky enough to be driven by their desire - Devendra Lingwal

The Ordinary 'Me'

2010-12-05T01:11:00.000-08:00

I'm culpable of extraordinary naiveté, I suppose.

But it's a naiveté that I really don't want to abandon,

not even now or ever.

But if at all I am to be acknowledged and cherished for anything,

I would like it to be for encouraging the agonists,

for knowing a little bit about their extraordinary courage;

and for wanting that extraordinary courage to be recognized.

My achievements made me be treated as extraordinary,

and now when being treated as an extraordinary,

I lost my right to think and behave as ordinary.

Nobody sees the obvious; nobody observes the ordinary within me.

Miracles are being expected from me but ;

I even lost the right of expectations.

A War With 'Me'

2010-12-05T01:05:00.000-08:00

I was ever a warrior, so, one war more. The best one and the last too. The bugle of war which the humanity inside me was procrastinating since long has finally started blowing on my door. I would hate that death which gives up my victory before this war is fought. Won't die silently, will fight to the end. I know victory has a hundred fathers, but no-one wants to recognize defeat as his own and nor do I. My inferno mind has been dishonest with me, it too has to fight a war against my sentiments and my intellect. The avalanche of fear, fear of my defeat which once tried to engulf me has started acknowledging its defeat. Everywhere I see bliss, from which I alone am irrevocably excluded. I can't revoke this war anymore. Let this war begin. Let the evil inside me be defeated and peace prevail in my life, so that I may sleep and never wake up again to fight another war with myself.

Family Values-are they still significant

2010-11-23T19:53:00.000-08:00

A culture is a mirror of society in which we get the glimpse of the language, way of life, social activities, and history; namely the culture is the thumbnail reflection of the society. Among various cultures of the world, Indian culture is marked by the highest degree of syncretism and cultural pluralism based on the family values.

Family values are pragmatic social beliefs that hold the joint and nuclear families to be the essential ethical and moral units of society. Family ethics are those that promote the family and its values as an institution. Although the phrase has become vague because of its shifting meanings, nowadays it is most often associated with social and religious conservatives.

Amidst all our social institutions, the family is perhaps the only one with which we all are familiar. As we follow our life’s path, our experiences within the family develops to some strong bonds. Within the family context even lies some paradoxes, however most of us hope for love and support within the family. Absence of family values in a family equates to a haven in a heartless world, i.e. the family can also be a place of violence and abuse.

In fact, a family is what you make it. It is made strong, not by number of heads counted at the dining table, but by the love, care and respect you show for the other family members, by the memories you share with each other, by the commitment of time to each other and by the hopes for the future you have as individuals and as a unit. Each family member has to understand that ‘Love’ is a continuum with no discernible starting point.

We Indians have managed to preserve our established traditions, while absorbing the new ones from invaders and immigrants, and spreading our cultural influence to other parts of the world. The American singer “Katy Perry”, who on October 23, 2010 tied the knot with comedian “Russell Brand” in India as per the Hindu tradition and the salutation ‘Namaste’ of the US President “Barack Obama” to all the Indians during his recent three days official visit to India in November 2010 exemplifies the impact of Indian culture around the world.

Although nuclear and matriarchal families too are becoming common in urban areas, traditional Indian family values are still highly respected, and multi-generational patriarchal joint families have been the norm since ages. Myriads of Indians have their marriages arranged by their parents and other respected family members, though with the consent of the bride and the groom.

Every family has a story that narrates itself, that it passes on to the children and grandchildren. The story grows over the years, mutates, some parts are strictly focused on, others gets dropped, and there is often debate about what really transpired and whether it was good or bad for the family. But even with these different sides of the same story, there is still a belief that this is the story of our family. And in the absence of other narratives, it becomes the insignia that the family hangs its identity around.

On one side the elders are strictly pondering over the issue of diminishing family values among their clans, blaming the modernisation and urbanization as the root cause; whereas the progenies of those elders too are bewildered over the same issue. Finding suffocated amidst the orthodox family values, they want to establish a different independent world for themselves; but are also willing to not to hurt their elders, hence agree to keep alive the family values within the restraints of social and religious assimilation.

Thus in modern times the family gets drifted on to the high sea of bewilderment. In this voyage the question that runs through every mind is, ‘had the winds always blown so strongly as now? Had the currents always been so powerful making the family and independent values so fragile to navigate a separate course?

As long as the spell of love, care, respect, responsibilities and proportional flexibility lasts, the families will tend to have a strong spiritual base that facilitates everyone to work together in times of stress.

Do parents play an important role in the education of their child?

2010-07-24T20:33:00.000-07:00

Parents' involvement in their child's education is a key factor in the child's scholastic success. It helps eliminate the cultural barrier that separates home from school.

The importance of involving parents in child's education can be justified on several counts. First, parents have been rightly recognized as their children's first teachers and role models. Experts suggest that parents' attitudes and practices toward diversity influences and shapes children's attitudes toward people who are different from themselves.

Parents themselves are important teachers. Parents’ willingness to take the risks of displaying their own ignorance, when they don't know something, working patiently to solve problems they face are some amongst the important part of teaching children. Playing with children and talking to them, even for a short period of time, is an important part of their learning. Trying new things is part of learning to teach. What a person knows is less important than what they do to find out new things.

When parents and children explore learning together, the experience of cooperation, family support, and excitement outweighs the problems of being tired, not having enough time and embarrassment. Education includes more than just being in the classroom. The information society requires more than basic education. It rewards creativity, the ability to work together, the ability to put information together in new ways, curiosity, questioning, and asking difficult questions.

Students’ participation in extracurricular activities like sports, school clubs, music, theatre is part of this development process and should receive as much support from parents as classroom work. Education often begins even before school i.e. at home. The demands of future work will place more emphasis on personal interaction and building close and collaborative interpersonal relationships which is almost a difficult task to achieve until and unless the same sort of environment is created at home.

Parents usually prefer to discuss only the career oriented issues with the child and rest of his cravings are considered as taboo. The child is always raised with pressures to excel in life. When children are young, parents marvel at their every little accomplishment but later the primal ambition left with the pushy parents is just to see their child topping the class. The grim epithet to the tormented lives of the children is the word ‘failure’. Sometimes the children express an inability to cope with the pressure to excel, frittering the dreams of their parents.

Examination fear, sibling rivalry, issues at school, warring parents, fear of punishment, distressed parents, divorce of parents are some of the prominent reasons roosting among the children which are making them vulnerable towards depression or a new world (without parents).

The escalating aspirations where the youth believes in achieving anything and the need of instant gratification makes the youth bully in nature. In such cases the refusals by the parents to accept the browbeating attitude of the child drives him away from them towards the world of destruction.

To safeguard the future of their child and to bridge the gap the parents have to bring a cluster of changes in their own behaviour and personalities. The parents should ensure that the state of anguish being brought in the lives of their children by the inchoate emotional forces running rampant in the adolescent mind of the child should not go unheeded in any case or on the pretext of being a subject of taboo. Parents should also ensure that they are least absorbed in their own lives and career and try to spend the maximum time with their child.

On seeing their child scoring low or being flunked most of the parents are seen doing comparisons between their child and the other intelligent classmates of the child who scored the highest, such affronting creates despair in the child. Instead of doing comparisons, sermonising the child to compete in today’s rat race and creating polarities, the parents should keep patience to hear and understand the child, entice the child for study and match the child with peer. They should try to ferret out the calibre of their child and help the child hone it up.

Some children do not want to grow up as they assume that adults have no fun in their life. They perceive all the adults in their life as stressed and permanently tired. Here too the parents should tend to talk to the child about what they enjoy by growing older, also to tell them that education is the best provision for the journey to the old age. Caring relationship has proved to be the most powerful disciplinary and learning tool for children. Parents have the most important and enduring relationship with their children. Children learn more from the home environment than any other thing.

Parents are the truest friend a child has, when trials heavy and sudden falls upon the child; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with the child during sunshine deserts him; when trouble thickens around him, still will parents cling to their child, and endeavour by their kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to the hearts of their child.

Being pragmatic the parents should establish a few family rules and should stick to them. If children learn to obey at home, it will be easier for them at school. Punishment for not following the rules should be non-physical. The follow ups of these little but primal elements in life by the parents and the teachers will not let the child get bogged down by anxiety, phobias, academic and socialization plights and can restore a happy life to thousands of children. These factors corroborate the statement that 'the parents definitely have a role in proper education of their child.’

Path to Information - RTI Act

2009-10-25T10:20:00.000-07:00

With the celebrating reverberations of the 4th anniversary of the Right to Information Act being heard across the country there’s much more to hype on. The RTI Act which came into effect on 12th October, 2005 allowing every citizen to question the government, politicians and government officials was deemed to be one of the most effective instruments in our democracy. For setting out the practical regime of right to information for citizens so as to secure access to information under the control of public authorities and also in order to promote transparency and accountability in the working of every public authority the Central and State Information Commissions were constituted.
Under the RTI Act the responsibility of a public authority and its public information officers (PlO) is not confined to furnish the information asked for; but they also have to provide necessary help to the information seeker wherever necessary. While providing information or rendering help to a person, it is important to be courteous to the information seeker and to respect his dignity. This way RTI was meant to sweep the cobwebs of corruption away from India’s opaque governance bringing transparency and accountability.
But under the so called pompous Indian officialdom’s ability to camouflage things within itself it would not be a news of great surprise that as per a study of National Right to Information Awards Secretariat a person has only a 39 percent chance of getting information sought under the highly glorified Right to Information Act (RTI). Various reasons tantamount to fabrication are often cited for not revealing the information by those who feel that their reputation could be sullied by the RTI Act.
As the Public Information Officer (PIO) and the First Appellate Authority are from the same public authority and there isn’t much difference in the echelon of the designations therefore the chances of getting the information in a prevaricated manner can’t be ruled out.
The much hyped RTI Act has no doubt some flaws within. The maximum time limit of 30 days each given to the Public Information Officer (PIO) and the First Appellate Authority leaves the information seeker with Hobson’s choice of waiting for the reply till the stipulated period expires. The concerned officers who are bound to provide the information under the RTI Act but do not do same or who reply in a prevaricated manner are rarely penalised as per the Act.
Another reason which hampers the RTI Act to unleash its effect is that around 60% of the Public Information Officers have had no training in RTI and also there is lack of awareness of RTI Act among the public.
The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Government of India (GoI) has launched an 'Online Certificate Course on RTI' for various stakeholders on, both, the demand and supply sides of the RTI implementation regime. This Online Certificate Course on RTI is launched in association with the Centre for Good Governance, Hyderabad. This Online Certificate Course is aimed at Public Information Officers (PIOs), Assistant Public Information Officers (APIOs), Appellate Authorities, Officials assisting the above designated officers or other public officials, Citizens, Representative of Civil Society Organisations (including Media Organisations), any other person(s) who could be a direct / indirect stakeholder. The objectives of this course are to reach out to those who have not had an opportunity to participate in any training / sensitisation initiatives on RTI Act 2005, bringing greater clarity on RTI among designated implementing officials (i.e. APIOs / PIOs / FAOs), ensuring appreciation for RTI Act 2005 and its mandate among the officials designated under it and also among the citizens, facilitating timely delivery of information by PIO and having better informed citizens, civil society and other stakeholders.
The proposed outcome of this course are a sound knowledge of the provisions of the RTI Act 2005 among the people taking this course, good understanding of the roles and responsibilities of organisations / persons concerned with implementing the law and with enforcing the rights under this law, proper appreciation of rights / obligations – as applicable – for effective use of this right, reliable guidance on following the right process / procedure to implement the provisions of this Act and to benefit from this Act, good understanding of remedies available when an implementing organisation fails to comply with this Act, testing the understanding of 'Information Providers' and 'Information Seekers' using this tool for implementing this Act or exercising their right under it. A certificate for learners of this course on its successful completion is also awarded as an incentive.
The initiative taken by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Government of India (GoI) to create awareness of RTI Act among the nationals of India is being seen as a step of mutation to immaculate corruption.
The government must realise that eventually it will have no other option than to bring transparency in its system.

Labour Day

2009-05-02T09:38:00.000-07:00

Most countries across the world celebrated Labour Day on May 1, also known as May Day and International Workers' Day. Where on one side the Labour Day is being predominantly celebrated across the world the other side many of us are still ignorant of the significance of this day. The day originates with the labor movements in early 19th century, when work hours were not fixed. On this day several labor unions went on strikes, demanding a standard work day of eight hours in a day. After a long struggle, eight hours in a day became a norm in many countries across the globe. Since then 1st May is celebrated as Labor Day.

But the lament thing is that the Labor laws failed to bring one of the preponderant sections of the labour community from the morass of exploitation to the state of euphoria. This section which is tagged as “Child Labour” is still the preference amongst the labour class.
Child labor is a punishable crime in India and many other countries. Indian Govt. has imposed complete ban on child labor. Article 24 of the Indian Constitution clearly states that “No Child below the age of 14 shall be employed to work in any factory or mines or employed in any hazardous employment. Recently domestic work and hospitality industries are also covered in this Act.

But still there are myriads of children who are working on roadside food stalls, factories, cleaning shops/garage, hospitals, hotels, restaurants, dhabas and as domestic work. Despite a complete ban by the Indian government on the working of children below 14 years of age as domestic servants, the abysmal thing is that still this practice is not being brought to an end.
One of the basic reasons is; such children belong to the families who are facing penury hence they prove to be worthy in generating extra income for their families. They are the first choice of the employer as it’s quite easy to exploit them. These children don’t demand high wages and are ready to perpetually work for long hours and that too without protesting as compared to a skilled worker. Moreover they don’t switch over to other jobs easily. According to a study, about 200,000 child workers are estimated to be working as domestic servants and other activities. It’s not only shocking news but it also represents an abysmal picture of the improper functioning of the Government bodies related to social welfare.

Government has launched several programmes to eradicate Child labor but these programmes render little help. The Child labor (Prohibition & Regulation) ACT 1986 is one such a step in this direction. But these laws are being enforced only on papers and have no impact in the real life; the situation is totally different at ground levels. There are many flaws in these Acts and due to these flaws the employers find a way to escape from the grasp of law. There is provision in Act that, “No child below the age of 14 shall be employed to work.” But what if they are working willingly?

When asked from the domestic employers, the employers repudiate the statement of employing a child for domestic help. They are very well aware of the fact that engaging child labor is a cognizable offense hence hesitates in accepting the fact. They add that when these children are working willingly what can they do? They haven’t forced these children to work.
But on contrary in some cases the parents force their children to work. These children are bereft for their basic right of education by their parents.

Myriads of children spend their midday sweat, their midnight oil; they tire the night in thoughts, their day in toil. What do these children want from us? They want more schoolhouses and less jails; more books and less arsenals; more learning and less vice; more leisure and less greed; more justice and less revenge; in fact, more of the opportunities to cultivate their better natures.

The problem of child labor is broadening equally in all parts of our country. It’s not limited up to urban areas; rural areas are also beneath its hold. The most exploitative form of child labor includes child prostitution. The situation of girl child laborer is far worse in such cases. The agents of these children allure the parents to send their child with them for the sake of money. And after that these children are thrust into Prostitution work. It’s in fact the most shameful act that these unfortunate children have been treated as commodities.
Begging is yet another dark face of child labor. Agent’s picks children form slum areas and force them to work as beggars.

So what is the significance of Labor Day to these deprived child workers? Nothing is the most appropriate answer to this. Government must establish a National Trust to help these poor children financially, as poverty is the root cause of child labor. We also have to cut down the role of illiteracy. Education reduces the chance of being prone to exploitation. Govt. must have to take stern actions against those who rupture these Acts. Govt. is trying to remove child labor on its part. But the help of every individual is awaited. Every citizen must have to work with Government in this direction. Only by entrusting responsibilities to Government doesn’t solve the matter. We too have to understand our onus.

No one can abolish this evil in overnight, single handed. Only the joint efforts by Government and individuals can eradicate this evil, not only from our nation but also from the world.
From each point of view, child labor is not at all justified. It is said that Children are the backbone and the future of nation. If given an opportunity, these child labors too can outshine as Doctors, Engineers and Architects and can serve the nation in a better way. Only our joint & constant effort can eliminate Child labor.

Guns of India

2008-12-20T06:29:00.000-08:00

We all have a pragmatic vision to seek and see justice done. Many a times individuals take the need to chastise those who have committed crimes into their own hands. The societies that practice vigilante justice do so because there is no central system to deliver justice for them, or if there is, it is corrupt and worthless.
We believe that punishment should be proportional to a crime. Prima facie, police organization who is believed to be the watch dog shakes it’s legs only after the occurrence of the crime. Stringent security measures are followed only on the visits of VIPs and that too for their protection or after the occurrence of an incident which poses threat to the national security. The police organization has breached the public trust because of which people are leading a tensed life with despair of a crime free environment; hence despite of a large police organization that is deployed to prevent the occurrence of crime, more and more people are applying for the license for a legal weapon under arms act for self-defense and the reasons are legitimate enough to be worked on.
On the other hand we can’t refute the occurrence of incidents related to the flouting of arms act where procuring and misusing of licensed weapons is a matter of pride for the people who are affluent or bully by nature. Reports of 'accidental' shooting of revelers by licensed weapons at weddings are amongst the most common ones.

Assassinating the assassin

2008-11-19T19:24:00.000-08:00

I am writing nothing new, many of the eminent writers have written and are going to write on the life of the criminals, the aftermaths of crime and the list of the topics are ever ending, many of the readers have culled out such writings in order to win fabulous prizes in various competitions.

A thing may be that I should write on "Living with the assassin". Despite knowing that the husband is an assassin, how is the wife able to cope a normal life and prove to be a homemaker. How are the children of the assassins treated in the world and many such questions now and then striking in our mind?
Are the assassins who show remorse for what they did, treated as normal humans after their retributive sentence by the laws are over?

Like in the case of Nalini Murugan (the “accused no. 1” in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case); in between serving a prison term and fighting a legal battle for an entry permit into India for her daughter, Megara (15), Nalini, a graduate before she was convicted as the ‘back-up human bomb in the event of Dhanu failing in her mission‘, has been pursuing her MCA studies at the special camp for women in the Vellore prison.

Nalini and her husband (Sriharan alias Murugan), are pursuing their Master’s in Computer Applications from the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU). The counselor rated Murugan, as the “most brilliant” student. “Murugan has got very high scores so far. I have not seen such high scores even in the case of students outside,” said Srinivasan the IGNOU Consellor, running his eyes through the marks sheet available on the IGNOU website.

Despite accepting Murugan's and his wife Nalini's excellent intellect and the fact that they both are now MCA, will the world respect them as computer engineers or will the credence of the world still treat them as social stigmas?

We all have a pragmatic vision to seek and see justice done. Throughout history and in many places around the world today, individuals take the need to chastise those who have committed crimes into their own hands. The societies that practice vigilante justice do so because there is no central system to deliver justice for them, or if there is, it is corrupt and worthless. In our society we believe all criminals should have the right to a fair trial before paying for their crimes. We also believe that punishment should be proportional to a crime. For these reasons we collectively entrust the responsibility of sentencing and retribution to our government institutions.

Our society has enabled our government to carry out the task of administering retribution on behalf of its citizens. Why then has the principle of retribution fallen by the wayside in determining appropriate sentences? Sentencing for the sake of retribution has lost all clout, brushed aside as a primitive instinct. In reality, this innate desire to see criminals pay a price for their crimes is central to our humanity. It is a justifiable objective in sentencing. Is it being delivered? A quick glance at our present system tells us it is not.

Specific deterrence is the idea that a sentence will keep the offender in question from re-offending. General deterrence is the idea that tough sentencing will dissuade future law-breakers.

The first and foremost step in retribution system is to rehabilitate the criminals in the society in order to reduce the recidivism present in them to zero.

We mostly hear about the huge number of rehabilitation programs but seldom do we hear about the results these programs produce.
Sympathizing with a criminal in the prison visiting room is like sympathizing with the deadliest beast caged inside its bars at the Zoo. Its safe enough there, but you don’t want to meet either of them in their natural habitat. Molestation in childhood, poverty and discrimination- something twisted in their brains. What kept them from being a normal human being? For them criminality then becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

But the decision to change, to do the right thing, ultimately comes from within. A soldier bonded to his peer group would fight valiantly on their behalf when he might have given up if he was alone on the battlefield.

You can reason with a criminal, particularly a professional criminal, who is the ultimate pragmatist. The implicit statement when a criminal is taken at gunpoint is, ‘cease your assaulting behavior or die.’

This does not work for the religiously as opposed to politically motivated terrorist. The religious fanatic who practices terrorism cannot be reasoned with, because there is nothing you can threaten him with, and no alternative you can offer him that is more palatable than his genuine belief that if he dies fighting you, he will be greatly rewarded in afterlife. Only swift and extreme force can stop him.

Plainly we do know what the problem is; the offender's anti-social behavior but we have only the faintest idea of how to correct the problem. The current rehabilitative efforts had no appreciable effect on recidivism.

All the criminals need an identity shift when released again in the society. After conducting further research, studies in several prisons have indicated that recidivism rates have declined where inmates have received an appropriate education helping their social skills, artistic development. This same study provided a critical analysis that showed that; a program’s success or failure is hampered by values and attitudes of those in the authority position, over crowded prison population conditions and inadequate funding for teaching personnel, supplies and materials

As per these studies it is highly apparent that given the right attitude by personnel and a dedicated effort by those in authority, along with points made in this previous study, educational rehabilitation effects on criminal recidivism shows a positive correlations in terms of reduction.

The rehabilitation program should help connect people released from prison and jail to mental health and substance abuse treatment, expand job training and placement services and facilitate transitional housing and case management services.

In conclusion, educational rehabilitation, substance abuse treatment programs and the family all must unite in the previously incarcerated person's life to assist him or her in getting back on or starting the right path. That path is a crime free, employed, and engaged citizen, father and/or leader in the family and community.

Now, I am not saying that all criminals, given the right opportunities and support, will become industrious members of society. But effective rehabilitation programs are surely going to act as a sight for sore eyes for the despairs of all the delinquents.

Impossible is a word only to be found in the dictionary of fools

2008-10-22T10:40:00.000-07:00

Amongst the famous maxims of the French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte is, “Impossible is a word only to be found in the dictionary of fools.” By coining this maxim he wanted to convey that if a person has a strong determination then nothing is impossible for him.
The world is divided into two classes: those who believe the incredible, and those who do the improbable. The former is often addressed as an imbecile and the latter who apply themselves wholly and indefatigably to their ambitions are omnipotent and are awarded the epithet of “innovators”.
“Where there is a will there is a way,” is an old and true saying and even if there isn‘t a way either I‘ll find it or make one should be the theme of our will .
The fools keep on talking about impossible because they fear to face the failure. To face success one needs a heart to face the failures. For once the failure is tasted; the fear of facing it goes off. We get the strength to take the risks more easily. We’ll not want to snuggle in our comfort zone anymore-we will be ready to fly. And success is about flying, not snuggling.
Electricity and light bulb were impossibilities. Humans safe passage through the sky was unfeasible. But Thomas Edison, the Wright Brothers went and did it anyway. Things are impossible only because we perceive them to be impossible. The world makes a way for a man who knows where he is going.
Now it’s our turn to begin our own dynasty-one that brings us greater fulfillment while simultaneously providing immense value to the world around us.

Injustice with the Name for Fame

2008-10-04T11:14:00.001-07:00

The renaming of a place is predominantly done to commemorate noteworthy persons or incidents associated with the place and to perpetuate the memories of that person or incident. But renaming a place doesn’t mean that its development process gets elevated too. This sounds alike the palimpsests, the root problems of the predecessor remains the same, neither does the impediments vanish dramatically. A moot question arise that if in a place myriads of people have been the exemplifiers then what to do? How many times will the place be renamed? In the vast Diasporas what do the honourable Ministers want to prove by renaming the places, do they want to prove themselves as exemplifiers of being iconoclasts or just to mesmerize the public? The renaming of the places is just a trivial issue, instead of basking over such trivial issues; the honourable Ministers should focus on the ways to surmount the impediments of the cities/towns development process. They should look into the tangible issues of the general public. There are myriads of tangible issues which impedes the development of the city/town and finally a nation. Removal of slum areas to foster urbanization, refurbishment of the dilapidated roads etc. are few of such issues which need immediate attention. For doing so if needed a call for a strategic multifaceted plan addressing a holistic approach to improve the quality of life may be made. The Ministers should be eager to elevate a city entrenched in seemingly impossible challenges, and if needed the Ministers should even breach the typical governmental patterns to reach beyond usual solutions and have a demonstrable and tangible impact on improving people‘s quality of life.

Kala Pani- The polluted water bodies

2008-07-19T12:02:00.000-07:00

Often the turquoise looking rivers, rivulets and canals are bearing the brunt of the discharged industrial effluents which are being released into these water streams, indiscriminate throwing of household, clinical, pathological and commercial wastes, and discharge of fuel and human excreta making them squalid. In fact, the water bodies have become a dumping ground of all kinds of solid, liquid and chemical wastes.

As per a Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) action plan the factories cannot dump effluents in the rivers and rivulets but have to send it to a common effluent treatment plant (CETP). But hundreds of industrial units do not treat their wastes as per the inlet parameters of the CETP, and are releasing untreated effluents into the rivers and rivulets. And what say about those areas which are not having any such common effluent treatment plants or about those areas where the effluents and the other hazardous wastes not find any river, rivulet and thus remain accumulated posing serious threats to the life of many residents of that area.

There are myriads of stories like these that go unheard. Invariably, those worst hit by industrial pollution are either rural folk who are unaware of its effects or workers who earn their living from the polluting factories. But more than the polluting industrial units, the blame goes to regulatory agencies — state pollution control boards (SPCBs) and state industrial development corporations — that were created to control and monitor industrialization. Instead, these agencies have been reduced to mere rubber stamps to promote industrialization at a frenzied pace. The industrial system has been reduced to a state wherein it makes better business sense for industrialists to carelessly dump hazardous waste rather than set up mechanisms to deal with it.

Although people are gradually realizing that pollution is leading their lives to predicament, they are not reacting the way they should, considering that their very lives are at stake. The spirit of public good that saw numerous people going to court against polluting industry has been snuffed out after implementing agencies failed to enact the orders of the courts.

Aren’t we behaving like egocentrics, for our self interest we are releasing the poisonous effluents into the natural water bodies and when we realize that these polluted water bodies are posing great threats to our lives, we plan to clean them. Why it’s only the NGOs taking the initiative to clean these polluted water bodies, why not our government and why not each and every individual? When the rules are stringent then why the implementing agencies are being lackadaisical in it’s implementation? Why does the government needs to face the strong revolt by the people to shake their legs?

If each and everyone of us are able to understand our responsibilities then the day is not far when we won’t have to face the industrial turmoil.

Growing Pains of the Youth

2008-06-21T07:45:00.000-07:00

Growing up has never been easy especially now in the new millennium amidst unprecedented prosperity, it has become more striving than ever. The cravings to know each and every fact of the existing world around him drives the inquisitive child to a stage of instability. During this stage the child cries for attention, help and love from the parents. This stage if ignored can prove to be lethal for the child.
Parents usually prefer to discuss only the career oriented issues with the child and rest of his cravings are considered as taboo. The child is always raised with pressures to excel in life. When children are young, parents marvel at their every little accomplishment but later the primal ambition left with the pushy parents is just to see their child topping the class. The grim epithet to the tormented lives of the children is the word ‘failure’. Sometimes the children express an inability to cope with the pressure to excel, frittering the dreams of their parents.
Examination fear, sibling rivalry, issues at school, warring parents, fear of punishment, distressed parents, divorce of parents are some of the prominent reasons roosting among the children which are making them vulnerable towards depression or a new world (without parents).
Recent studies show that children who have been given too much too soon grow up to be adults who have difficulty coping with life’s disappointments. They have a distorted sense of entitlement that hampers the way of success both in the workplace and in relationships. The escalating aspirations where the youth believes in achieving anything and the need of instant gratification makes the youth bully in nature. In such cases the refusals by the parents to accept the browbeating attitude of the child drives him away from them towards the world of destruction.
To safeguard the future of their child and to bridge the gap the parents have to bring a cluster of changes in their own behavior and personalities. The parents should ensure that the state of anguish being brought in the lives of their children by the inchoate emotional forces running rampant in the adolescent mind of the child should not go unheeded in any case or on the pretext of being a subject of taboo. Parents should also ensure that they are least absorbed in their own lives and career and try to spend the maximum time with their child. Being pragmatic the parents should establish a few family rules and should stick to them. If children learn to obey at home, it will be easier for them at school. Punishment for not following the rules should be non-physical. The follow ups of these little but primal elements in life by the parents and the teachers will not let the child get bogged down by anxiety, phobias, academic and socialization plights and can restore a happy life to thousands of youngsters. That can really be termed as a gratifying prospect indeed.

Potential threat to fossil fuels heads for price hikes

2008-06-14T10:56:00.000-07:00

It is a universally approved fact that petrol is the backbone of a nation. The witnessing of relentless hikes in prices of petroleum products has been a global issue since years. Demands to lower or to freeze the prices are always on high and mighty. The oil market is vulnerable to crises; as a result speculators are driving up the price. People usually accuse the government for being least interested on pondering over the matter, but what thing is not being realized by everyone is that it’s not the government who can bring drastic fall in the prices but it’s the people themselves who can do so. It is believed that high supply with low demands results to lowering of prices and vice versa. When the consumption of the petroleum products will decrease proportionally the price of the petroleum products will decrease too. I believe that people will surely be demurring on my statement.
I too believe that’s it’s not the adequate and significant solution for a long run as sooner or later the demands are going to touch the sky and the fossil fuels are going to vanish. The scarcity of the fossil fuels will further worsen the financial burden on the people. The need of the hour is to head for the exploitation of the alternative sources of energies. The alternative energy solutions include all prime movers that can use a renewable natural resource to produce energy. This may be wind, thermal energy from the earth, and wave action in the shores and solar energy from the sun.
Use of bio-fuels such as bio-ethanol is believed to be one of the prime and best solutions for converting the scarcity of fuel on earth to its adequacy. Bio-fuels such as bio-ethanol can be produced from virtually any organic material which means that it is a secure form of energy and in the long run will be relatively cheap, further it reduces emissions of greenhouse gases, of carcinogens such as benzene and of other harmful emissions such as particulates. It is also biodegradable in water and soil. In a concise statement in addition to the solutions to the other issues it’ll also reduce the air and water pollution and hence will reduce the global warming.

The fate of the Pakistani pacer Md. Asif put in limbo

2008-06-09T08:31:00.000-07:00

The fate of the detained Pakistani pacer Mohammad Asif's has been put in limbo as the Dubai court, before which he appeared, adjourned soon after hearing recommendations of the prosecutors.Asif was going to Lahore from Mumbai on June 1 after playing in the Indian Premium League for the Delhi Daredevils when he was caught red handed with contraband drugs at the Dubai airport on his arrival. He just appeared before the court on Sunday along with his lawyers for bail.

The court has further forwarded the case to the supreme authority Attorney General of Dubai whose decision is believed to be the final one. The Attorney-General is empowered to sign administrative deportation orders, which could prevent the case from being referred to the Dubai courts.The chief prosecutor cross-examined the witnesses who were instrumental in combing out the banned substance from the bowler. The court case will resume tomorrow," Akram said, trusting that finally the justice will churn out in Asif's favour on Monday.

The probability of Asif's bail has not zeroed but this drug scandal may compel the Pakistan Cricket Board to stringently review its anti-doping regulations to include punishment for the use of recreational drugs.

With the immense pressure on PCB and the image of Pakistan cricket taking an abysmal shape, it is being conceived that if Asif is released, then also the board will penalise him to a maximum ban of five Tests or 10 one-day internationals and even a fine under its code of conduct which is befitted for disgracing the game's repute.

News alert for smokers

2008-06-09T08:29:00.000-07:00

The recent research study by Dr. Wael Al-Delaimy has made a splash in the life of smokers. The various research studies conducted on smokers and non-smokers has excavated a well established fact that smoking potentially poses great threats towards heart diseases to not only the active smokers but also to the passive smokers, but hitherto the means of testing smokers' nicotine levels are having somewhat ambivalent appearance in general. Researchers seem to have found a much more accurate means of obtaining a smoker's history than the prevailing ones of asking a smoker or testing nicotine breakdown products in saliva or urine. A U.S. study in Nurses' Health suggests that measuring nicotine content in toenail clippings can assist in prediction of women's risk of heart disease.

According to the laureate 'Dr. Wael Al-Delaimy', of the University of California in San Diego the current methods of measuring nicotine content only reflects usage or exposure within recent days. Toenails may offer a more long term estimate of a person's level of exposure to tobacco due to their slow growth. Toenail clippings would also weigh in exposure to passive smoking and smoking habits such as how much smoke a person inhales with each puff. It is conceived from the research work of Dr. Wael that it will prove to be a beckon beyond the compass of bias diagnostic means being currently adopted . But still the moot question is that isn't it best to quit smoking than to falsify the conjectures of the researchers?

Image of Harvard University under cloud

2008-06-09T08:07:00.000-07:00

The worldly famous Harvard University is recently in the limelight of an academic and political scandal after three prominent members of its psychiatry department have been impeached of breaking conflict-of-interest rules by camouflaging the millions of dollars procured by them as consulting fees from drugs manufacturers.

The cumulating of the extravagant wealth with these prominent members of Harvard University has proved that the stratospheric salary of these industrious and prominent doctors has failed to satiate them to earn more. An investigation by Senator Charles E Grassley excavated firm evidences against Dr. Joseph Biederman, who is well known around the world for his work in researching antipsychotic medicines for children and two of his colleagues i.e. Dr Timothy E Wilens and Dr Thomas Spencer. All three of them have been impeached with the charges of failing to report to the University about much of their earnings of $1.6 million and $ 1 million respectively that they had earned in consulting payments from drug companies.

In a questionnaire Dr. Biederman safeguarding himself said that he took conflict of interest policies very seriously; he also added that "My interests are solely in the advancement of medical treatment through rigorous and objective study." Dr Wilens and Dr Spencer too said they thought they had complied with the rules.

It is also stated that the relationship between the Harvard academics and the drug companies has been highly controversial because their research has advocated the use of previously unapproved psychiatric medicines in children.

From the ongoing investigations it is anticipated that more names and the unexplained facts will come in light and the same would be revealed to the public.

Indo-Pak Trades : The Trading for Peace

2008-06-07T11:20:00.000-07:00

The Indo-Pak relation has been elevated as a controversial issue since decades. The tranquilization of the blazing guns from either side of LoC in Kashmir for some time through the bilateral talks of the governments of the duo countries has again kindled a ray of hope amidst those traders trading in the border areas here who are optimistic that their rosy days will come back soon after the opening of the border posts again; thereby giving a tremendous boost to the economy of not only the border region, but to both the countries on the whole. The demand for inter-border free trade practice is fair to middling. Though on one end the demands for opening up of the border posts for land trade routes are of vital and substantive nature as it will definitely prove to be a pivot of peace and tranquility towards the deteriorating brotherly relations of these nations and will also meliorate the hardships of the border residents to a great extent, but on the other end it is going to jeopardize the national security caused by the infiltrators who are surreptitiously trying to invade our country and disturb it‘s internal peace.
For bringing the relations between the duo countries to an even keel both of them have to seep the theme of philanthropy to their grass root levels. It’s not always the US who is to be believed the pioneer in resolving peace issues amongst the duo but it’s the mindsets of the governments which can emancipate the free flow of the nationals for better trade and human relations.