Guwahati Literary enthusiasts are waiting to rub their soldiers as Pragjyotishpur Literature Festival 2023 kick starts at Asom Sahitya Sabha and district library premises in the city on 29 September. The three-day LitFest will unfold a series of literary activities which is expected to an intellectual and interactive treat for the celebrated authors, cultural connoisseurs and budding writers.
When we used to presume the Editors Guild of India (EGI) as a national forum of editors, the journalists-editors of Manipur changed the perception. Two major local media bodies have challenged the EGI over its fact-finding report on the ongoing ethnic conflicts in the northeastern State and it only reflected that the editor’s club may not have representative in all States of Bharat.
Drug addiction has become a major curse of our times, a menace which threatens public health and results in the dissolution of human personality, promoting conditions for various forms of human degradation, whose consequences spread to crime, lawlessness and ruination of families. People using drugs are generally associated with violent crime, robbery and burglary and other forms of crimes. Social effects of drug abuses are a higher crime rate, declining health and depression for friends and family.
Indian Railways safety has taken a big hit with the June 2, 2023 horrendous Odissa triple train accidents. Budgetary allocations for safety of rail services have come down drastically since 2014. Commensurate with that massive vacancies in Indian Railways have plagued rail safety.
Spam calls continue to intrude daily lives of mobile users with impunity. Users maintain they disconnect and block three and more spam calls daily despite Do Not Disturb (DND) facility having been introduced since 2007 by the union government. Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has already introduced in 2010 a framework, Telecom Commercial Customers Preference Regulation (TCCCPR), to curb spam calls. But the spammers went ahead and thwarted this regulation as well. Union government also keeps introducing new regulations from time to time to keep spam calls under checks.
Cyber crime is a reality and cyber financial fraud a harsher fact. According to the RBI annual report, the banking sector recorded 9,103 cases of frauds involving Rs. 60,414 crore in 2021-22 and 7,359 cases of fraud involving Rs.1, 38,211 crore in 2020-21. May 2023 saw a sudden surge in bank fraud/internet banking fraud cases. Thousands of people get scammed daily and lose money to Internet banking fraud or mobile banking fraud.
Promises made by BJP to come to power in 2014, such as, 20 million (2 crore) jobs every year, Rs.15, 00,000 in every bank account, a US $5 trillion economy by 2024, doubling of farming income by 2022, cooperative federalism, a Congress-free (mukt) Bharat, evaporated in thin year in the last nine years of RSS Pariwar union government. People scurrying around looking for fulfillment of such promises, found so far were a big jumla.
अमूमन हर राजा-बादशाह और शासक अपने कार्यकाल में कुछ ऐसा कर जाना चाहता था, जिस कारण इतिहास में उसे खास स्थान मिल जाये. वे इसके लिए खर्च की परवाह नहीं करते थे. उनको पूछना भी किससे था. सरकारी खजाना अपनी जागीर थी. दुनिया भर में शासकों की ऐसी महत्वाकांक्षा या सनक के कारण बनी शानदार दर्शनीय इमारतें आज भी मौजूद हैं. वैसे कुछ राजा जनोपयोगी निर्माण- बांध-सड़क आदि- पर भी खर्च करते थे.
