What are we waiting for? Are we still looking for a more opportune time to start fighting for our constitutional and civil rights? Today we are facing a crisis situation, when handful of goons can make a mockery of the security system of a nation of a billion. To celebrate the birthday of a CM, an engineer is murdered ruthlessly. Just after the sacrifice of a senior policeman in Mumbai, dirty politicians ask questions to taint his martyr image. This list keeps on growing everyday.
This may sound cliché but if we are oblivious of the pain around us, we are next in the queue. Even a 5th grader will understand the dire circumstances our nation is facing. The threat comes from external as well as internal terrorists.
We are Indians and I have no doubts that we are the most tolerant nation in human civilization. The worst thing is we always wake up after a lot of harm is done. We are good at setting examples of extra-ordinary tolerance. Up till a level, tolerance shows your strength and will power. After crossing that level, it becomes stupidity and cowardice. But has this thing done any good to the nation? Indo-Pak feud, weak internal security system, poor education and health facilities, corruption in the entire system are all results of such tolerance levels.
The solution to these problems can be summed up in one line “Zero Tolerance against evils happening around us”. Zero Tolerance doesn't mean that we will start using force or violating the law of the land to punish the evil. It simply means to be more responsible and to protest the evil. The evil can be corruption, red-tapism, terrorism, child abuse and so on. The type of protest depends upon the seriousness of crime.
Zero Tolerance Policy: As a citizen of India let us frame our own policy. This policy can go against the policy makers of the nation. I will be glad if others can add to this list below which is compiled after listening to various people who treat their nation as their home and are gnashing their teeth after their home is attacked again and again by insiders as well as outsiders.
Let us explore the option of filing a PIL/ a RTI requisition on the way the Taxes are spent by our Government. [This is the easiest and inexpensive way to bring accountability and to find answers to our questions like why was the police ill-equipped. Was it because the money (the taxes we pay) was not spent on sophisticated weapons and protective gears and was rather spent on luxury cars for high officials?]
No matter how much clichéd it may sound but let's caste our Votes and show that incompetency, lethargy and negligent behavior would not be tolerated and if the politicians want to be in power they must perform.
Let's co-operate in security checks whenever and wherever rather I would say lets promote it. Insist on a thorough check of yourself and people around you whenever you are in a mall or any public place.
Let's make sure that if we doubt a person for any reason of being anti- national, anti- social we make an issue out of it and report it if required! No matter how futile it may turn out to be!
Whenever tenancy or Leave and License Agreements are entered into, we shall make sure of the credentials and ask for all the important documents like copies of Passport, PAN card and a letter from college or office where the prospective tenant or licensee is studying / working.
We shall pay our taxes honestly and ask for a detailed expenditure account from the politicians about the way the money (this is our money!) has been spent? No matter how far fetched this may sound but it is our hard earned blood soaked money and we must know where, why and on what it is being spent? After all we can not afford our money to be spent on CRV's for incompetent ministers who do not perform!
We shall not break our own laws and feel happy about it!! We must learn to respect our own laws.
We shall raise our voice write in the papers and blogs on a continuous basis against issues that need to be addressed.
We shall never give in and say - "Yahaan ka kuchh nahi ho sakta", "The city has gone to dogs" etc.
Not to forget the role of Indian media in handling sensitive issues like this! Who would have imagined that the live shots of the rescue event would hamper the latter? But it might not be wrong that the media needs to be more mature about such issues. There is a lot to learned from the International Media which handled events like 9/11 attack in a better manner.
All the above points would not guarantee anything but our own safety, our own well-being, in our own country. It's high time we learn to respect ourselves before we talk about respecting others, and "ourselves" means not just "You and Me" but our own country and its people!
By Anubhav Jain and Vineet Patawari
This may sound cliché but if we are oblivious of the pain around us, we are next in the queue. Even a 5th grader will understand the dire circumstances our nation is facing. The threat comes from external as well as internal terrorists.
We are Indians and I have no doubts that we are the most tolerant nation in human civilization. The worst thing is we always wake up after a lot of harm is done. We are good at setting examples of extra-ordinary tolerance. Up till a level, tolerance shows your strength and will power. After crossing that level, it becomes stupidity and cowardice. But has this thing done any good to the nation? Indo-Pak feud, weak internal security system, poor education and health facilities, corruption in the entire system are all results of such tolerance levels.
The solution to these problems can be summed up in one line “Zero Tolerance against evils happening around us”. Zero Tolerance doesn't mean that we will start using force or violating the law of the land to punish the evil. It simply means to be more responsible and to protest the evil. The evil can be corruption, red-tapism, terrorism, child abuse and so on. The type of protest depends upon the seriousness of crime.
Zero Tolerance Policy: As a citizen of India let us frame our own policy. This policy can go against the policy makers of the nation. I will be glad if others can add to this list below which is compiled after listening to various people who treat their nation as their home and are gnashing their teeth after their home is attacked again and again by insiders as well as outsiders.
Let us explore the option of filing a PIL/ a RTI requisition on the way the Taxes are spent by our Government. [This is the easiest and inexpensive way to bring accountability and to find answers to our questions like why was the police ill-equipped. Was it because the money (the taxes we pay) was not spent on sophisticated weapons and protective gears and was rather spent on luxury cars for high officials?]
No matter how much clichéd it may sound but let's caste our Votes and show that incompetency, lethargy and negligent behavior would not be tolerated and if the politicians want to be in power they must perform.
Let's co-operate in security checks whenever and wherever rather I would say lets promote it. Insist on a thorough check of yourself and people around you whenever you are in a mall or any public place.
Let's make sure that if we doubt a person for any reason of being anti- national, anti- social we make an issue out of it and report it if required! No matter how futile it may turn out to be!
Whenever tenancy or Leave and License Agreements are entered into, we shall make sure of the credentials and ask for all the important documents like copies of Passport, PAN card and a letter from college or office where the prospective tenant or licensee is studying / working.
We shall pay our taxes honestly and ask for a detailed expenditure account from the politicians about the way the money (this is our money!) has been spent? No matter how far fetched this may sound but it is our hard earned blood soaked money and we must know where, why and on what it is being spent? After all we can not afford our money to be spent on CRV's for incompetent ministers who do not perform!
We shall not break our own laws and feel happy about it!! We must learn to respect our own laws.
We shall raise our voice write in the papers and blogs on a continuous basis against issues that need to be addressed.
We shall never give in and say - "Yahaan ka kuchh nahi ho sakta", "The city has gone to dogs" etc.
Not to forget the role of Indian media in handling sensitive issues like this! Who would have imagined that the live shots of the rescue event would hamper the latter? But it might not be wrong that the media needs to be more mature about such issues. There is a lot to learned from the International Media which handled events like 9/11 attack in a better manner.
All the above points would not guarantee anything but our own safety, our own well-being, in our own country. It's high time we learn to respect ourselves before we talk about respecting others, and "ourselves" means not just "You and Me" but our own country and its people!
By Anubhav Jain and Vineet Patawari
Posts
Halla Bol...a small yet commendable step towards the awakening of the nation, of the youth.. let us all do something for our nation,how so ever small our effort be,it will be helpful. so let us come forward n do something..
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