Epidemics know no borders. They know no race, no language or religion. The WHO has declared the H1N1 (Swine flu) as the first global pandemic in 41 years. As of 17:00 GMT, 15 June 2009, 76 countries have officially reported 35, 928 cases of influenza A(H1N1) infection, including 163 deaths.

In 2 weeks, India has moved from cautious to infected. The numbers continue to grow on a daily basis. For a disease that is highly contagious and with symptoms that could be easily mistaken for common ailments, the danger is omnipresent for a nation like ours – rich in people, average in medicare and poor in awareness.

Thankfully, India has finally raised a travel advisory yesterday. They have also requested for infected nations to screen air passengers at the source rather than just at the destination. The media is trying to bring in awareness to the masses and doctors and hospitals immediately refering suspect cases to the Govt. medicare centers.

Despite all this, a suspect escaped from a hospital quarantine a couple of days back. Officials were seen desperately trying to track down fellow passengers from flights that brougnt in confirmed cases to the country. Govt. centers are trying to arrange for adequate stocks of Tamiflu and Relenza. All this as research is now showing that H1N1 can further mutate to resist these drugs and yet hoping for a vaccine in then next 3 months.

As science tries to find a solution, and research better ways to counter the threat, we must acknowledge that no one  is beyond this danger. Thankfully H1N1 is still treatable and many nations are already prepared to (hopefully) contain it.

Prevention is better than cure. If you are interested to know more about H1N1, visit the WHO pages for:
- All about H1N1 and latest updates
- What each of us need to know about reducing risk of infection
- How we can help our our communities fight this dread

Spread the word! Awareness is the need of the day.

Image Courtesty: WHO

Popularity: 39%

Foeticide, the word makes me cringe with so many strong emotions. And every time it’s talked about feels like I’m helpless. It’s really true that the man to woman ration in India has fallen over the last 20 years and continues to do so. I wish this was a lie, a lie that never existed.

I struggle to find answers for questions like why is the girl child still a 2^nd rated citizen here? There cannot be a woman who has at some point, for a few seconds maybe, wished she was a man.

If it is true that woman has been able to break barriers, she did it without invoking love for self. Her existence is still needed but existence which circles around the needs of the world where she has very little place.

The liberated woman today too kills her girl child. She is still told to bear sons. She is still told that she has not been of much good if she is not the mother of someone who takes the family name forward. Technology now helps kill a teeny little heart which still runs blood inside and outside it. Do you think the smaller the embryo is lesser you will feel sorry killing her?

What else does a woman need to do to get the status that a man still enjoys? It’s strange how India as a country has given some of the best brains to the world yet has managed to evolve such sinister customs. As if Sati wasn’t enough, which is still actively practiced in many places across the country, female foeticide is the new rape of the day.

As we have been moving towards liberalization and have been de chaining a woman from the so called customs we have missed the basic counseling and similar activities for male and others in the family to help them cope with this emergence. As a result of the dearth of this very important awareness education more women have been consumed by hateful acts by fellow humans, the number of males has gone up.

Practice of dowry system is still flourishing. It’s strange that families that kill the fetus are in fact loving parents or relatives of existing female offsprings.

Here are my 2 cents on eradicating this sin from this pious land;

1. Ban sex determination. It needs to be an absolute NO NO.
2. Free education to girls till post graduation.
3. Do not marry girls into households having only male child or having majority male child. Chances are they might have sinned on what we have been discussing. With this some innocents will suffer but it’s a start atleast to ensure people realise having girls is just as important as having boys.
4. Extra benefits for homes having only girl children. Like Tax benefits or daily commodities for cheaper prices as compared to homes having male child or only male child.
5. Finally, time men stand up to their parents who advice them against having girl child. Tell them to take a hike. Warn them you will not take care of them when they need you.

I know some of what I said may sound harsh. But if you do not take these harsh and strong steps now we would have succumbed to this evil and many more thriving on women. Sati, dowry system, girl child murder, female fetus murder … just how many more rapes do you think this sex can take.

She will love you the most

She will learn from you the most

Just let her live for she is the girl child who is asking you to want her the most.

Popularity: 14%

“Yet again the communal clashes in the city has left the streets  burning with the flames of hatred killing thousands of people all over “.

This is Naina Sahay reporting live from Mumbai, Kal Tak. 

Naina was a young, flamboyant journalist who had earned herself a lot of accolades for her brave reporting and blunt comments that supported the truth. Her parents passed away when she was barely the age of 12 in an accident leaving behind a lot of responsibilities and a younger brother to take care of.

As she grew up she started working at a very young age in order to give her brother the best of life she could. She gave him love of a mother, father as well as sister. And in the process earned a living through whatever jobs she could lay her hands on. Naina got introduced to the field of journalism through a friend and since then there was no looking back. 

Naina just kept on climbing the success ladder to earn herself a life she truly deserved. From scratch, today she owns a good house, car and everything. But what Naina truly cared for was Armaan, her younger brother. She could never live without him. A slight fever and the girl who could report under waist deep water during Mumbai floods would go paranoid.

A small wound on Armaan would make her go berserk  and a drop of tear from Armaan’s eyes would just make Naina depressed. Probably that’s the reason why Naina was unmarried because she could not live without her brother and would want to give him her undivided attention.

But then one incident shattered her life.

In the year 1993 communal riots broke out in Mumbai .People were behind each other’s lives. Dead bodies were lying on the roads. Injured unattended and bloody and gory sight’s everywhere. People were scared to get out of their houses yet Naina risked her life to deliver news to people.  So many times the bullets must have just missed her but even through such tensed situation she would remain calm and help the injured on the streets. While doing her duty her finger constantly clicked Armaan’s number at the interval of every half an hour to ensure his safety.  

Suddenly one day Naina heard a cry of help. On drawing closer to the sound she realized there was a man badly injured and was probably taking his last breadth. The man in a hushed voice called Naina closer. Naina hesitantly went closer. The man revealed a sensational news that would rock the nation and he also had photo evidence to back his story. Naina was shocked at the evidence. Before Naina could ask him any questions the man closed his eyes forever.

The man said that the current Chief Minister was involved in the clashes of Hindu and Muslim communities and he had started communal rights in order to degrade his political rivalry. Naina had a very important evidence and also the power to stop the future bombings that were planned to kill the leader of the opposition party which would leave the entire city burning and spoil the situation even more.

Naina hurried to her house and kept the photograph with Armaan. She went to her Head Office to make arrangement for her breaking news. But what Naina wasn’t aware of was the man who followed her to her house.

While Naina was in the office preparing for the prime event the man entered her house. Armaan heard the noise and went in the front room. The man attacked Armaan, Armaan resisted and tried to fight back but the man just removed a gun and shot down six bullets into Armaan. Armaan’s knees gave away, he fell down and instantly his life was snatched by the cruelty of the world. The man ransacked the entire house and found the photograph and ran away with it.

Naina with her boss returned to her house. Her feet trembled, beads of sweat trickled down her forehead, she collapsed the darkness was’nt only for the moment but for the rest of her life.  Seeing the pool of blood which Armaan was in, disturbed the mental state of Naina.

The news was’nt deliverd but the death of Armaan resulted in the suicide of the courageous self of what Naina used to be. Yet again the politics of our country silenced the truth. She lost her mental balance, she lost her voice and what was left was a silent suicide which was never recorded..

Statistics have shown thousands of people suicide due to different reasons but have we ever thought of the loss of individuality that people suffer at the hands of our ignorance…It is high time we follow the philosophy of LIVE AND LET LIVE… It is high time we understand that we are not divided on the basis of religion, caste, creed or sex but we all belong to a much higher sect that is Humanity.

We all have 2 eyes 2 hands 1 nose 2 feet, so why the heck are we fighting for our so called differences. Let’s all join in this human chain of understanding and love so that we make India, a better place to live in.

Popularity: 31%