Guiding Light
Need for a Paradigm Shift
A recent survey done by a news channel has stamped the long-known fact that Indian capital as well as its surrounding areas are unsafe for women to live in. In a city which provides greater access to police services, special security services for women, greatest media coverage and help through many Ngo’s, the high crime rate reveals a dangerous scenario. If this is the scene in the indian capital, the scene in the other parts of the country could be even more glaring. So why has this immense organizational support been unable to control the crime rate in the capital and its surrounding areas? What is it that is fanning the fire further? Today, we are most influenced by technology and much of it is being used to promote human weaknesses rather than strengths. Television which now finds its space even in the bedroom space of children and young adults is filled with stories of adultery, crime and violence. Cinema openly flaunts violence and shamelessly promotes lust by cashing in on women's bodies. Cyber crimes against women are also growing. They include online stalking, morphing pictures and creating sexually explicit facebook accounts of women, and uploading personal videos without their consent. Such visuals programme young impressionable minds with fixed negative responses to situations, and create a derogatory attitude towards women. The media space is filled with stories of scams, accidents, killings and bloodshed. While it is obvious that such news must be reported, there is little attempt to balance it with positive news. Happy positive news often goes unreported or is killed due to its 'lesser news value'. It is high time that the government in collaboration with NGO’s, educational organizations and social thinkers, makes a rigorous effort to establish a positive culture through proper use of media, classroom training and campaigns. There should be greater celebration of goodness than the brazen depiction of evil because what is flashed is imbibed involuntarily by the viewers. Such steps would go a long way in hitting the root of the crime in India and they will act as a precautionary medicine for controlling dangerous and unproductive human behaviour by empowering citizens with human values.