Deal The Untouchables...

Deal The Untouchables..

By: Sangita Bhatt

The topic itself looks archaic, how many years back does it take me; yet it still needs mention even in the present century.  We do know that we have tried to tackle the issue of bringing forward the backward communities by enforcing some Aarakshan for them.  But our understanding of the backward(ECONOMICALLY) communities and the SOCIALLY backward communities is not very clear. If even one wheel of my car is problematic my car does not run smooth.  This is the dark side of every community, in the world, and not subject to any particular country.

The socially backward communities abound. It encompasses, the young and the old; the poor and also the rich, the disabled and the handicapped, especially the weak and the suffering.  A number of efforts are also being made to involve these into different social groups and activities. Yet, more needs to be done. If profiteering  is to be made secondary in some cases, a lot can be achieved. This normally does not happen, except for a few cases. Legal enforcement will be required to put such a system in practice. If, some like minded people put their minds to it, some of these can benefit a lot in the coming future.

The socially backward men and women.  Some are castrated by their own friends and family. Some are just born at a disadvantage. Not to mention those who are just considered “bastard” kids. Some have become victims of THE TECH PORN. This category, unfortunately is not minimal enough to be ignored. This is a new form of victimization, and a social handicap. It touches any age or sex. Recently I saw a couple of cases, where it took a while for such victims to get justice and a place in the society.  Such people do not get proper medical help, in time and things turn from bad to worse. What can help in such cases is prompt medical attention. This group should have a medical program, in which, they have to give their blood samples, every month(mandatory) for any antibodies or sickness that the person can contract or develop in the near future.  Also they have to keep an official record of the persons /partners they see periodically over a month, with their contact information. This would help to safeguard their own wellbeing and that of their partners or fellows, irrespective of the money involved. Starting and maintaining official records in such cases is itself going to be a challenge, which has to be kept in all events. This not only prevents spread of unwanted diseases and health hazards, it gives the person a sense of being, an identity that counts, and is safeguarded and accounted for. Probably a first towards socially empowering them.  These measures can also reduce crime to a certain extent, and may also help identify some sick minds that contaminate humanity.

The Tech Know Way

By: Sangita Bhatt

My son came up with a demand the other day, which most parents will identify with.. He wanted a cell phone. The one he can play games on. The amount of time the present day young generation spends on the wireless gadgets texting, gaming or web browsing…. and so on, is wonderfully amazing. The use of technology (wireless) was unimaginable just a decade or two back. The technology has entered the actual consumer market at a rapid rate, and its acceptance in day to day life is nothing short of a miracle. The nexus of computers/laptops, mobile technology, broadband and wireless web browsing; and communicating has taken us to a whole new level of doing our day to day activities or business. I can be anywhere and yet be able to phone, receive messages, send messages, text, get published, get the latest news and play my games or listen to my music.  This is almost like some dream…. (although you pay a price for this one).

To make this dream, a day to day reality, the present day government is thinking out a plan, to encourage broadband services to be provided t the remotest places. Have plans to cover most of the habitable areas of the country. Also learn't of the “dig once” policy on this one for new constructions. So we have one more utility added to our regular lives…..The Broadband! Most places in future will be computer-internet /and Wi-Fi ready.  This is NEWS. Did not have so many, 20 years back. What have not been aptly emphasized along with the use of these new proposed policies are the broadband regulations.  There are no proper cyber laws in force. The word "regulations" is not a favorable one to talk of at this point, but is necessary. (I would not be able to enjoy a lot of free stuff that is easily accessible to me).Some freedom will be curtailed, that is for sure, but will help; us do daily business and work without the risk of losing our PRIVACY.

With the human world shrinking due to the broadband and wireless, I am concerned about who might get curious to know who, and result in entering without knocking into my domain…..virus or no; faulty downloads perhaps. The end result is; I might lose all my effort to someone completely unknown. My loose might profits, might give out some valuable information, might risk my personal identity (which some people might be familiar with).  So if I have the same broadband service as my next door neighbor; and perhaps the last house on the same street, how safe am I? Is the question for all to think and decide. Many incidents of cyber bullying, are not unknown to teenagers and parents. Of the many groups of consumers…. The high school and college going young students, are at major risk of these services; as they rely on texting, e-mailing, applying online, web browsing and the lot… without much experience of the real world. DID I FORGET THE WEB CAM? NOW HOW COULD I !!!

As long as the broadband internet services are used, people will find ways to get around it, information will get hacked into, u might still get viruses, u might lose all your personal info.  With more and more usage of these services… the question comes back to do we need a solution for the problems we know will occur, now and then. Passwords do help, but not, when they are compromised.  Most of the sites have their terms and conditions given in small print, which at that time do not make much sense. Some don’t have a contact phone number. Some pages are just ERRORS. Some just have an automated answering service, no live help. What can u do? They are not even in your state. Which body will govern this mess, and put some sense into it. I, for one, love to file a complaint, but who should be addressed?

A special wing of course! All info-super highway cops. Each website perhaps gets a standard to follow. They should mention the respected bureau office where they can notify their problem, in the event of no action. One major INTRODUCTION…. COURTESY OF THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT….. INTERNET SHOPPING CARDS.  Which will enable you to shop online, but will not give away your info to the website you use. Could be issued by your bank, or the store u buy from, kind of a secured card. You could cover it with certain amount of insurance, which credit cards use, in case of theft or loss.

As far as video conferencing or using a webcam is concerned, the matter is of an audio-visual nature. There is a lot of interaction; more than one person is involved. Only the nature of usage and the outcome can decide the course of action for this kind of use. One thing can though be done; the telecasting webcams should mention their number, registered with the respective site; e.g: YOUTUBE.

Another major problem resulting from using the computers and the internet (my personal experience), is, there is no time restriction, to how long a person can work or use it. This leads to sleep deprivation, overtime working hours, and person idling into other sites.  So far we have been exposed to air and noise pollution, through the use of autos and so on. But in future we will get exposed to the vibrations in the immediate atmosphere caused by the relay towers, antennas, routers at home or offices. So there should be some idle or inactive period to be kept where no computer work will be allowed.

These are some suggestions which I could think up of. The experts in the industry could definitely get sown with the present government and help it formulate some form of a regulatory body ‘ so that we can all safely enjoy the benefits of the broadband  services and use our internet utility bills to confirm our addresses.