Misuse of social media

This refers to ‘Social responsibility’ (May 2). Social media like WhatsApp and Facebook should be used for dissemination of quality news and messages but sadly it is being misused by vested interests to suit their own scheme of things. Social media is a boon if it is used for good purpose but a bane if it is misused for dissemination of fake news.

The honchos of social media have to find a foolproof device to filter the hate messages/campaign aimed to hurt someone or create social tension among the people; throwing up their arms in despair serves no useful purpose.

Bengaluru

Electricity improves the quality of life, work, and just about everything else. It also powers the information superhighway which allows even remote villages to be mainstreamed; it is what economists call a force multiplier. A village is officially classified as electrified if at least 10 per cent of its dwellings have an electric connection. This means that even with a ‘fully electrified’ countryside, millions of villagers could go without power.

The fact that all of India’s nearly 600,000 villages are electrified is an achievement worth celebrating. However, celebrating over just a piece of statistics like the last inhabited village of India getting electrified is celebrating a bit too early, not unlike the BJP’s misfired 2004 general elections slogan of “India Shining”. After all, don’t Indian citizens find it a bit weird that all inhabited villages in the country have been electrified when a simpler and more basic need of potable drinking water in every village is still a far cry?

Secunderabad On August 15, 2015, while addressing the nation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised to provide electricity to all villages within next 1,000 days and he has achieved this milestone well ahead of that deadline. Though we need to be celebrating this day, we should not rest till the day all households get power in their house. Because technical definition of electrification is even if 10 per cent of households and public places have the access to power in a village it is considered electrified. So the government should aim to take this power to every household. Now coming to two critical aspects of this. One is reduction in power theft and the other is improving the financial and operational conditions of discoms. Even if the government is able to take power to each and every household in the country, if power theft is not addressed and power distribution companies do not become viable, not much will change at the ground.

Noida

The heart-wrenching incident in Kasauli, Himachal Pradesh, where a lady officer on duty, implementing the Supreme Court orders was shot down mercilessly, must open the eyes of the lawmakers and the police establishment across India about how their negligence in providing smart, well trained, and elementary security to officers on sensitive duties can result in unpardonable Kasauli-type irreparable tragedies.

The Supreme Court is right in taking suo motu cognisance of the distressing Kasauli event, expediting the process of bringing to book the culprit who committed this dastardly act.

Belagavi

The stand-off between the US and China is all about which nation will achieve technological ascendancy and who will reach this goal first. China is looking to spread its wealth and influence in Europe too are taking steps to protect their competitive edge and meet this challenge. The impression that China can only imitate and not innovate is not correct any longer. Progressive nations realise that science and technology is the key to progress and are investing heavily in this field. We in India are basking and celebrating our past glories and achievements. China’s past is equally glorious but we do not read about its leaders commenting on its ancient achievements .This may be because many of them are scientists and engineers occupying several of China’s highest political offices.

Michigan, US

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