Although the United States offers some of the highest quality health care in the world, there are still many difficult challenges left to solve. From heart disease and chronic illness to alcoholism and prescription drug abuse, there’s no shortage of public health problems that need to be addressed. And while public health professionals are constantly engaged at the local and national levels, making a positive impact isn’t easy.
Tackling key health issues in America requires input from a diverse range of stakeholders, including government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and private medical facilities. The ability to collaborate across industry lines is essential, as breakthrough medical treatments and public health initiatives depend on experts with different specializations. For example, educating citizens about the risks of excessive alcohol consumption relies on the knowledge of medical practitioners, the communication skills of health educators and the policy experience of lawmakers. But what exactly is a public health problem and how do experts keep track of them over time?
What makes something a public health problem?
Public health is the science of improving the well-being of communities through research, health programs, policies, and education. Unlike the health care field, public health is more about protecting entire populations (CDC Foundation, 2018). This could be something as small as a rural neighborhood, or as large as an entire country. Rather than treating existing medical issues, public health professionals try to prevent problems by promoting healthy lifestyles, designing outreach campaigns, and advising policymakers. They also work to eliminate health disparities by advocating for health care equity and accessibility.
Author: News Updates
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IS SOCIAL MEDIA TOXIC?
BY: VAIBHAVI MENON
We live in a generation where everything is controlled by social media and it is something that is normalized now. But if social media is seen as neither positive nor negative, what is true is that it leaves people fighting for views, claps, likes or praise. That affects both the younger and the older generations. The constant search for recognition and attention can have detrimental effects on our lives and leave us hurt or needing more attention. Increased use of social media can lead to a high chance of people feeling depressed, anxious etc.
Technically, you can switch off your mobile phone, or you can set up a time limit for your social media use. This will simply prevent you from using these platforms. Of course this is not so easy, as everyone is online, including our friends and families, with whom we would like to keep contact. This means we should be more ‘news literate’ and more educated about the news and any information we read online. For example, we should always check the source or the profile of the person who shares a suspicious post. We should also read from a wide range of sources, and not limit ourselves. Sharing something without reading it is a big no. Social media is toxic not just because it is addictive by design, but also because platforms spread disinformation and they encourage their users to engage with these fake news more than with fact checked ‘real’ news. As a consequence, disinformation spreads faster and reaches a wider audience. This has a toxic impact on public trust in democratic institutions like elections, governments or any public services. What it means is that our own democracy can be established and undermined by outside influences simply by exploiting the loopholes in today’s social media. Social media allows people to share their lives, but it also allows others to criticize, belittle, bully, and berate others on such a grand scale that it sometimes leads to depression and in extreme cases, suicide. I Young children are often hounded by “influencers” to buy merchandise, dress a certain way, eat certain foods, listen to specific music, and think a specific way in order to be accepted. The Logan Pauls and Kardashians of the Internet feed off of the image hungry youth. Even on Youtube and TikTok, everyone is wearing the same brand names, doing the same dance memes, and promoting the same diet or lifestyle products to cash in on the hoards of people watching and envious of the success. Showing off your newest car, handbag, watch, condo, or remote island beach house is no longer considered vain, shallow, or superficial. It’s now considered lucrative. Even on Medium, where words and ideas are King, the first step to getting anyone to read your story is the title and image. And to further cement your superior status, having a boat-load of claps and being published in a successful publication boosts your credibility.
taken control on our life and it makes the decision of what is right and what is wrong which can prove to be toxic because nothing is what it seems on social media. Its not reality.
IMPORTANCE OF MENTAL HEALTH
BY: VAIBHAVI MENON
“The only journey is the journey within.” Being raised in an Indian household, mental health was something that was frowned upon or considered unimportant while academic scores decided how happy you were or would be in life. Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act as we cope with life. Mental health, defined by the World Health Organization, is “a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community”
Mental illnesses affect 19% of the adult population, 46% of teenagers and 13% of children each year. People struggling with their mental health may be in your family, live next door, teach your children, work in the next cubicle or sit in the same church pew. However, only half of those affected receive treatment, often because of the stigma attached to mental health. Untreated, mental illness can contribute to higher medical expenses, poorer performance at school and work, fewer employment opportunities and increased risk of suicide. Stress can be the cause mental health problems and make existing problems worse. For example, if you often struggle to manage feelings of stress, you might develop a mental health problem like anxiety or depression. Mental health problems can cause stress. You might find coping with the day-to-day symptoms of your mental health problem, as well as potentially needing to manage medication, heath care appointments or treatments, can become extra sources of stress. Stress can impact on how you feel physically. May is Mental Health Awareness Month, also known as Mental Health Month. It has been observed each May in the United States since 1949. It has never been more important than now to recognize that mental health is an essential component to one’s overall health and wellbeing, and that mental illnesses are common and treatable. While it may be that some of us are more vulnerable than others, everyone faces challenges in life that can impact their mental health. After all, just a few months ago, none of us had any idea that all our worlds would be upended by the coronavirus, and that worry, isolation, loneliness, depression and anxiety would become collective experiences shared by literally everyone. By virtue of our birthright, as human beings none of us are immune. Perhaps this collective experience of living with the emotional and psychological impacts brought on by COVID will help cultivate not only more awareness of mental health issues, but more compassion too. One can hope. According to a 2017 Centers for Disease Control report, suicide was the tenth leading cause of death overall in the United States, claiming the lives of nearly 47,000 people. Suicide was the second leading cause of death among individuals between the ages of 10 and 34, and the fourth leading cause of death among individuals between the ages of 35 and 54. There were more than twice as many suicides in the United States as there were homicides.
Therefore mental health is very important and we should do our part by talking to others and listening to the ones in need of it.
MEDITATION
The practice of meditation has become popular in many Western nation’s, especially the USA. Meditation originated within the Vedas. The term ‘meditation’ is now loosely wont to ask sizable amount of diverse techniques. These include contemplation, concentration, and even breathing exercises. These techniques work on different levels like the senses, mind and intellect. consistent with Vedanta , truth purpose of meditation is to attach to one’s inner self. Meditation is defined because the mind repeating one thought to the exclusion of the other thought under the supervision of the intellect. If the intellect isn’t conscious of the method , it’s not meditation.
Renunciation or sannyasa is that the essential prerequisite to meditation. many of us are conversant in the term but only a couple of understand it’s true meaning and it’s role in life . One associates sannyasa with abandoning things that are dear to you. A sannyasi is viewed as an individual in ochre robes who has given up wealth and family, abandoned duties and responsibilities and retired to the Himalayas . Krishna defines a sannyasi within the sixth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita together who does what one need to do, performs one’s duties and responsibilities fully , without counting on the fruit of action . A sannyasi isn’t one who doesn’t higher ideal, neither is he an inactive person.
There are four sorts of people within the world. The overwhelming majority belong to the bhogi category. Their only mission in life is to enjoy the planet . They believe you’re born only to enjoys the senses and maximise enjoyment. they are going into the planet seeking objects of desire. alittle minority understand that life offers far more than mere sensual pleasures . they appear inward and upward to seek out deeper and more meaningful avenues of happiness . Of these , the spiritual freshmen are yogis who still have desires for the planet but understand that happiness lies within. Their efforts are therein direction. As they shed desires through Karma Yoga Path of Service , Bhakti Yoga Path of Devotion and Jnana Yoga Path of data , they become sannyasis who are withdrawn from the planet and are knocking at the gates of Enlightenment . they need only a few , subtle desires – to urge to Freedom , serve humanity and repay the guru who guided who guided them to the spiritual path. Such people only got to meditate to beat the last hurdle to Enlightenment.
Meditation is quite just shutting one’s eyes and getting temporary reprieve from life’s problems. it’s the very best spiritual technique that must be practised diligently and devotedly by qualified practitioners. you’re fit meditation when your mind is calm . A mind burdened with desire and attachment is unable to require off into subtler realms of meditation.
In the Bhagavad Gita , Krishna takes us through the preparatory disciplines foe meditation. He also gives the disqualifications for meditation. Then comes the test of Enlightened Soul feels one with all beings. As you see yourself altogether mirrors. A body-conscious person identifies with the mind. His circle of oneness expands to incorporate relations and friends.
Among all yogis, one who worship wholeheartedly and with a transparent purpose , who maintains the goal in the least times and strives diligently, is most united. Thus, a person – literature or illiterate, elite or commoner, regardless of caste, race, religion or background – is aware about the last word state of Infinite Happiness.
MOANA – BOOK REVIEW
Moana is more than just a novelization of the Walt Disney Animation Studios film. In addition to retelling the story, it adds traditional oceanic folk tales between select chapters to highlight the stories that inspired the filmmakers. Adapted by Kari Sutherland, the book is dedicated to all of the people of the Pacific Islands who helped Disney craft this beautiful tale.
Moana’s people are in jeopardy as the fish supply around her island dwindles. When she answers the call of the ocean and follows in her ancestors’ wayfinding traditions, she ends up on an incredible adventure to save her people with the help of a shape shifting demigod named Maui. Now this unlikely duo will have to face real monsters to restore peace to Oceania.
The theme of Moana is self discovery and finding your way. The story is wonderfully written. It follows Moana and her journey of discovering who she is and saving her village. She meets up with Maui(a demi god), and they go on an adventure of self discovery.
This book tells the entire story of Moana. The story gives the reader excellent details about Moana’s growing up. Moana’s gramma tells the tale of the warrior Maui being struck from the sky and losing his fish hook. The tale continues because TeFiti lost her heart. Thus the darkness, lack of fish in the ocean, and the TeKa demons take over the island and the livelihood of the island.
Although this is not an illustrated book, the text is so rich in descriptive language that the reader will easily be able to use their mind to see the action in the story.
The reader will see Moana’s challenges as she tries to solve the problems and face TeKa. She convinces Maui to help even with out his magical fish hook.
Moana’s story is one of perseverance, love of family, devotion to a cause, and courage. I am eager to see the Disney movie now that I have read this story.
There’s no romantic love interest.
But Moana is special, because she don’t need no man! She’s on her own journey to figure out who she is and her place in the world.
Moana is an inspiring, captivating story and this novelization does an incredible job of bringing it to life in a different way. Not only is it a solid story, but it has a tremendous amount of heart and is surprisingly funny. I really loved the short stories peppered throughout, which add a lot of color and culture to the book. The book’s design also adds to the effect with artwork before each chapter that matches the look of Maui’s tattoos.
Speaking of ink, this purchase is sweetened by a sheet of tattoos of Maui, Moana and other icons from the story. Recommended for ages 8-12, this is the most advanced Moana movie tie-in book available and the one I also recommend for adult fans hoping to know the story in advance of the film. Moana is such an incredible tale and it translates into a solid book in this novelization. I would give this book an 9/10.
BLACK LIVES MATTER OR DO ALL LIVES MATTER?
BY: VAIBHAVI MENON
“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.”- Nelson Mandela
Racism has always existed and still is an ongoing struggle for a lot of us. Discrimination on the basis of color is very frequently experienced where the “whites” are considered on the higher scale of an hierarchy and the “colored” and “blacks” are considered on the lower scales. The black lives matter moment began after the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of African-American teen Trayvon Martin 17 months earlier in February 2012.The overall Black Lives Matter movement is a decentralized network of activists with no formal hierarchy. he movement returned to national headlines and gained further international attention during the global George Floyd protests in 2020 following the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. An estimated 15 million to 26 million people participated in the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests in the United States, making it one of the largest movements in the country’s history. The movement comprises many views and a broad array of demands but they center on criminal justice reform. The popularity of Black Lives Matter has rapidly shifted over time. Whereas public opinion on Black Lives Matter was net negative in 2018, it grew increasingly popular through 2019 and 2020. A later poll conducted in September 2020 showed that support among American adults had dropped to 55%, with notable declines among whites and Hispanics, while support remained widespread among black adults.
The phrase “Black Lives Matter” can refer to a Twitter hashtag, a slogan, a social movement, a political action committee, or a loose confederation of groups advocating for racial justice. Activist DeRay McKesson has commented that the movement “encompasses all who publicly declare that black lives matter and devote their time and energy accordingly.” BLM generally engages in direct action tactics that make people uncomfortable enough that they must address the issue. BLM has been known to build power through protest and rallies. BLM has also staged die-ins and held one during the 2015 Twin Cities Marathon. Black Lives Matter demonstration in Oakland, California, December 2014. Political slogans used during demonstrations include the eponymous “Black Lives Matter”, “Hands up, don’t shoot” (a later discredited reference attributed to Michael Brown), “I can’t breathe” (referring to Eric Garner and later George Floyd), “White silence is violence”, “No justice, no peace”, and “Is my son next?”, among others. According to a 2018 study, “Black Lives Matter protests are more likely to occur in localities where more black people have previously been killed by police.” The phrase “All Lives Matter” sprang up as response to the Black Lives Matter movement, shortly after the movement gained national attention. Several notable individuals have supported All Lives Matter. Its proponents include Senator Tim Scott. NFL cornerback Richard Sherman supports the All Lives Matter message, saying “I stand by what I said that All Lives Matter and that we are human beings.” According to an August 2015 telephone poll, 78% of likely American voters said that the statement “all lives matter” was closest to their own personal views when compared to “black lives matter” or neither. Only 11% said that the statement “black lives matter” was closest. Nine percent said that neither statement reflected their own personal point of view. According to professor David Theo Goldberg, “All Lives Matter” reflects a view of “racial dismissal, ignoring, and denial”. Professor Charles “Chip” Linscott said that “All Lives Matter” promotes the “erasure of structural anti-black racism and black social death in the name of formal and ideological equality and post-racial colorblindness”. Founders have responded to criticism of the movement’s exclusivity, saying, “#BlackLivesMatter doesn’t mean your life isn’t important – it means that Black lives, which are seen without value within White supremacy, are important to your liberation.” President Barack Obama spoke to the debate between Black Lives Matter and All Lives Matter. Obama said, “I think that the reason that the organizers used the phrase Black Lives Matter was not because they were suggesting that no one else’s lives matter rather what they were suggesting was there is a specific problem that is happening in the African American community that’s not happening in other communities.” He also said “that is a legitimate issue that we’ve got to address.”
To conclude this, the Black lives matter movement was never a way to discriminate the others(whites). The whites were always placed on a superior level and it was the colored who were continuously bashed because of their color. they were killed because of this difference and because of this they definitely deserve to have the title that ” Blacks lives matter.”
Drug use
What are drugs?
Drugs are chemical substances that can change how your body and mind work. They include prescription medicines, over-the-counter medicines, alcohol, tobacco, and illegal drugs.
What is drug use?
Drug use, or misuse, includes
Using illegal substances, such as
Anabolic steroids
Club drugs
Cocaine
Heroin
Inhalants
Marijuana
Methamphetamines
Misusing prescription medicines, including opioids. This means taking the medicines in a different way than the health care provider prescribed. This includes
Taking a medicine that was prescribed for someone else
Taking a larger dose than you are supposed to
Using the medicine in a different way than you are supposed to. For example, instead of swallowing your tablets, you might crush and then snort or inject them.
Using the medicine for another purpose, such as getting high
Misusing over-the-counter medicines, including using them for another purpose and using them in a different way than you are supposed to
Drug use is dangerous. It can harm your brain and body, sometimes permanently. It can hurt the people around you, including friends, families, kids, and unborn babies. Drug use can also lead to addiction.
What is drug addiction?
Drug addiction is a chronic brain disease. It causes a person to take drugs repeatedly, despite the harm they cause. Repeated drug use can change the brain and lead to addiction.
The brain changes from addiction can be lasting, so drug addiction is considered a “relapsing” disease. This means that people in recovery are at risk for taking drugs again, even after years of not taking them.
Does everyone who takes drugs become addicted?
Not everyone who uses drugs becomes addicted. Everyone’s bodies and brains are different, so their reactions to drugs can also be different. Some people may become addicted quickly, or it may happen over time. Other people never become addicted. Whether or not someone becomes addicted depends on many factors. They include genetic, environmental, and developmental factors.
How to maintain healthy relationship with yourself
If you’re searching for that one person that will change your life, take a look in the mirror. The relationship with self defines our inner world, and the way we process information and respond to events in life. Being a great friend to yourself unlocks long-term happiness. Finding a way to stay centered can be invaluable. One way that is beneficial in establishing balance is developing a positive relationship with oneself. Your relationship with yourself is arguably the most important relationship in life.
What does a healthy relationship with yourself look like?
A healthy self-relationship is the ability to value yourself as a person, and embrace your strengths and weaknesses.
Here are five ideas on cultivating a good relationship with yourself :
- Regularly make time for yourself.
It is very crucial to interact with yourself. Sit quietly for 10 minutes in the morning with your first cup of coffee. But if your mornings are too hectic then try meditation in the evening or even better you could write a journal.
- Check in with yourself
It’s easy to find yourself wondering, “I don’t know who I am anymore”, if you don’t check in every now and then.
Question yourself everyday, “How am I feeling? What am I struggling with? What am I interested in? What are my goals?” Come up with a list of questions like these that you can routinely quiz yourself with, so you get a sense of where you’ve been, where you are now and where you are going.
Self-awareness is key to improvement.
- Accept yourself
Part of having a relationship with yourself is understanding who you are and accepting the good and the bad. It is extremely important that you learn to forgive yourself and avoid being overly critical. Acknowledge your strengths and give yourself a pat on the back when you are successful.
- Be your own friend
It’s important to evaluate the relationship you have with yourself. Ask yourself, what can I do to make my day-to-day life easier? It could be something as small as reflecting on a mistake you have recently made and taking the time to sort through it. What could you have done differently? How can you keep that from happening again?
It is extremely vital to reason with yourself, it gives you perspective and clarity about your life choices.
- Enjoy your company
You need to show yourself that you can be happy and have fun without relying on others to experience it with you. Not that you need to shut people out, but you can keep yourself occupied in healthy ways to discover things and laugh with yourself.
You will be your only constant throughout your life. People will come and go. Some relations will last a long time, some won’t. In this life of hustle, one thing that should never take for granted is yourself. Always remember to be kind to yourself.
Significance Of Marriage As Social Institution
Abstract
Marriage is an institution that admits man and woman to family life. It is a stable relationship in which a man and a woman are socially permitted to live together without losing their status in the community. Marriage is not merely concerned with the couple; rather it affects the whole society and future generations. The responsibilities it entrusts a couple with are thus both heavy and delicate. In Hindu view, marriage is not a concession to human weakness, but a means for spiritual growth. Man and woman are soul mates who, through the institution of marriage, can direct the energy associated with their individual instincts and passion into the progress of their souls. Chaucer, the father of English poetry, has beautifully established a very noteworthy feature of the blissful state of marriage and husband-wife relation in his essay The Merchant’s Tale.
What is marriage?
Marriage is a socially approved relationship between man and woman that binds each other into a permanent, official relation of husband and wife. It is an important social institution that satisfies physical, social, psychological, cultural and economic needs of men and women. According to the ancient scripture marriage is regarded as a socio-religious duty constituted to attain three important aims of life the dharma (duty), rati (sensual pleasure) and praja (progeny).
Marriage as described in religions
Hinduism: Hindu regards marriage as a socio-religious duty of an individual.
Islam: As per Islam marriage is an obligatione. “Sunnah” which must be fulfils by every Muslim.
Christianity: In Christianity marriage is held crucial to life. It lays weight age on the establishment of a mutual relationship between husband and wife and on their duty to each other.
Key elements of marriage
Like family, marriage is also an important universal social institution which is found in almost all societies.
It is socially sanctioned relation where man and woman lives together, have sexual relation and produce children.
It is a permanent and enduring bond between husband and wife which is design to fulfil each other needs.
This relation is valid only when it has social approval without social approval it is illegitimate.
It is a relation between two individuals of opposite sex is based on customs, law, mutual rights and obligations.Marriage is an essential element to establish a family which further helps to protect and up bring the children. Without marriage family is incomplete.
It is an essential relation between men and women to continue the human race through procreation.
It is associated to the religious ceremony which provides it social identity and legitimacy.It regulates the sexual desire of men and women according to prescribed customs and laws.
It is identified as a new phase of life for the married couple.
It is the only a social institution where the sexual gratification is ensured along with social and cultural mechanism for the continuation of the family.
The offspring of the family born of marriage is only considered the legitimate which is very important in matter of inheritance and succession.
SECULARISM- IS IT JUST A THEORETICAL CONCEPT IN INDIA?
BY: VAIBHAVI MENON
“Preamble declares India to be a sovereign, socialist, secular and democratic republic.” With the Forty-second Amendment of the Constitution of India enacted in 1976, the Preamble to the Constitution asserted that India is a secular nation. This very line from the Preamble of India raises the question that is India really a secular country? Secularism is the principle of separation of the state from religious institutions. It allows no discrimination on the grounds of religion. People are allowed to practice any religion or choose not to practice any without getting judged or discriminated by others. However various instances in India have proved to be contradictory to this statement.
India is a diverse country with many religions cultures traditions values yet at times these aspects are not respected. Religious violence in India includes acts of violence by followers of one religious group against followers and institutions of another religious group, often in the form of rioting. Some of these examples range from Exodus of Kashmiri Hindus, Gujarat communal riots (1969), Anti-Sikh riots (1984), Religious involvement in North-East India militancy, Anti-Hindu violence to Violence against Muslims, Anti-Christian violence, Anti-atheist violence. India is characterized by more ethnic and religious groups than most other countries of the world. Aside from the much noted 2000-odd castes, there are eight “major” religions, 15-odd languages spoken in various dialects in 22 states and nine union territories, and a substantial number of tribes and sects. Three ethnic or religious conflicts have stood out of late: two occurred in the states of “Assam and Punjab; another, the more widely known Hindu-Muslim conflict, continues to persist. The Assam problem is primarily ethnic, the Punjab problem is based on both religious and regional conflicts, while the Hindu-Muslim problem is predominantly religious. It is easier to outline these problems than suggest what should be done about them. In a situation of mutual distrust, almost any solution will generate controversy. Still, three solutions seem plausible. First, further decentralization of power to states would be of considerable help. This would partly address the problems in Punjab and Assam, both of which have complained of the gap between the resources they are entitled to and the resources they actually process. Second, a conscious attempt needs to be made to improve the educational attainment and economic level is easily demonstrated of Muslims whose socio-economic backwardness is easily demonstrated. The Muslim elite could do much in this respect. Special educational privileges are constitutionally sanctioned but they ought to be worked on. Modern liberal, as opposed to religious, education would be of great help. The government, for its part, could allay the apprehensions of the Muslim community by better representing Muslims in the police and paramilitary forces. Third, the secular leaders, to the extent that they exist, must make a sustained effort to reintroduce and deepen secular, socioeconomic concern in democratic politics. Partisan communal leaders and communal electoral mobilization, both within and outside the communal parties, but particularly within the ruling party, should be exposed.
From the above information it can be understood that secularism can be taken as a theoretical concept until the mindset of people can change because in the end only we can bring a change and do something about it.
Economic issues
What kinds and quantities of goods shall be produced, “how much and which of alternative goods and services shall be produced?
How shall goods be produced? ..by whom and with what resources (using what technology)…?
For whom are the goods or services produced? Who benefits? Samuelson rephrased this question as “how is the total of the national product to be distributed among different individuals and families?
Economic systems solve these problems in several ways:”… by custom and instinct; by command and centralized control (in planned economies) and in mixed economies that “…uses both market signals and government directives to allocate goods and resources.The latter is variously defined as an economic system blending elements of a market economy with elements of a planned economy, free markets with state interventionism, or private enterprise with public enterprise…
Samuelson wrote in Economics, a “canonical textbook” of mainstream economic thought[5] that “the price mechanism, working through supply and demand in competitive markets, operates to (simultaneously) answer the three fundamental problems in a mixed private enterprise system… At competitive equilibrium, the value society places on a good is equivalent to the value of the resources given up to produce it (marginal benefit equals marginal cost). This ensures allocative efficiency-the additional value society places on another unit of the good is equal to what society must give up in resources to produce it.
The solution to these problems is important because of the “fundamental fact of economic institution life” that ..
“The economic problem, “the struggle for subsistence”, always has been hitherto primary, most pressing problem of the human race- not only of the human race, but of the whole of the biological kingdom from the beginnings of life in its most primitive forms.” -Samuelson, Economics, 11th ed., 1980
COVID 19 PANDEMIC- IS IT THE END OF THE WORLD?
BY: VAIBHAVI MENON
“We are in this together and we will get through this together” is a quote we often hear in today’s time. The COVID 19 pandemic was definitely a situation that most of us didn’t expect and it resulted in a loss of thousands of lives and heart breaking situations. Coronavirus disease (COVID–19) is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus. The first COVID case was reported from Wuhan, China, on 31 December 2019. From there began the endless struggle to free the world of this hazardous disease and methods on how to do so are still being conducted as of today. The virus spread so quick that no one had time to prepare resulting in loss of economy and loved ones. The numbers kept increasing and it became hard to provide facilities for everyone in need of them.
However ways on how to prevent the virus have definitely been helpful to a lot of us. One huge step taken was the world wide lockdown where people were asked to remain in quarantine and airplanes had shut down preventing travel of citizens to avoid spreading the virus. Prevention methods such as wearing of masks, maintaining social distance, avoiding social gatherings and even a nationwide lockdown were all put into place. Various testing methods had been developed to diagnose the disease. The standard diagnostic method is by detection of the virus’ nucleic acid by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR), transcription-mediated amplification (TMA), or by reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) from a nasopharyngeal swab. Some common symptoms of the virus could be dry cough, fatigue or headaches while non common symptoms could be loss of taste and smell, breathing difficulties etc. Although the virus affected everyone in a negative manner, there were several companies who benefited from it and used it to their advantage. Companies such as Amazon, Zoom, Tesla, Apple had a rise in their economic prices. Vaccinations were soon introduced from different countries where some worked while some didnt and there was shortage in the number of vaccinations due to high demand for them. People also found new ways of communication through the technological platforms further helping in development of countries. Another positive aspect of this is that we as an individual have found time to spend with our family thus strengthening relationships and bonds with family. On the other hand communication has become more hander and children growing in this pandemic have tended to develop a introvert personality which could be a negative feature for them in the future.
In the present people have began to adapt to this form of lifestyle where technology plays a important role in survival and are slowly learning to be more comfortable with this method of communication. Inspite of that studies are still being made on how to put a stop to the virus or how to develop better methods of prevention which hopefully is something that’ll happen soon because We are in this together and we will get through this together.
GST: Simplified
GST is a destination-based tax on consumption of goods and services. It is proposed to be levied at all stages right from manufacture up to final consumption with credit of taxes paid at previous stages available as set off. In a nutshell, only value addition will be taxed and the burden of tax is to be borne by the final consumer.
A few important points of consideration are given below:
The tax would accrue to the taxing authority, which has jurisdiction over the place of consumption which is also termed as place of supply.
1. The Existing Taxes that are proposed to be Subsumed under GST-
The GST would replace the following taxes:
(i) Taxes currently levied and collected by the Centre:
a. Central Excise duty
b. Duties of Excise (Medicinal and Toilet Preparations)
c. Additional Duties of Excise (Goods of Special Importance)
d. Additional Duties of Excise (Textiles and Textile Products)
e. Additional Duties of Customs (commonly known as CVD)
f. Special Additional Duty of Customs (SAD)
g. Service Tax
h. Central Surcharges and Cesses so far as they relate to supply of goods and services
(ii) State taxes that would be subsumed under the GST are:
a. State VAT b. Central Sales Tax
c. Luxury Tax
d. Entry Tax (all forms)
e. Entertainment and Amusement Tax (except when levied by the local bodies)
f. Taxes on advertisements
g. Purchase Tax
h. Taxes on lotteries, betting and gambling i. State Surcharges and Cesses so far as they relate to supply of goods and services.
The GST Council shall make recommendations to the Union and States on the taxes, cesses and surcharges levied by the Centre, the States and the local bodies which may be subsumed in the GST.
2. The Status of Tobacco and Tobacco Products under the GST Regime-
Tobacco and tobacco products would be subject to GST. In addition, the Centre would have the power to levy Central Excise duty on these products.
3.Type of GST proposed to be Implemented-
It would be a dual GST with the Centre and States simultaneously levying it on a common tax base. The GST to be levied by the Centre on intra-State supply of goods and /or services would be called the Central GST (CGST) and that to be levied by the States would be called the State GST (SGST). Similarly, Integrated GST (IGST) will be levied and administered by the Centre on every inter-state supply of goods and services.
4. Need for Dual GST- India is a federal country where both the Centre and the States have been assigned the powers to levy and collect taxes through appropriate legislation. Both the levels of Government have distinct responsibilities to perform according to the division of powers prescribed in the Constitution for which they need to raise resources. A dual GST will, therefore, be in keeping with the Constitutional requirement of fiscal federalism.
5. Authority to Levy and Administer GST- Centre will levy and administer CGST and IGST, while states will levy and administer SGST.
6. Benefits from GST- Introduction of GST would be a very significant step in the field of indirect tax reforms in India. By amalgamating a large number of Central and State taxes into a single tax and allowing set-off of prior-stage taxes, it would mitigate the ill effects of cascading and pave the way for a common national market. For the consumers, the biggest gain would be in terms of a reduction in the overall tax burden on goods, which is currently estimated at 25%-30%. Introduction of GST would also make our products competitive in the domestic and international markets. Studies show that this would instantly spur economic growth. There may also be revenue gain for the Centre and the States due to widening of the tax base, increase in trade volumes and improved tax compliance. Last but not the least, this tax, because of its transparent character, would be easier to administer.
7. Concept of IGST- Under the GST regime, an Integrated GST (IGST) would be levied and collected by the Centre on inter-State supply of goods and services. Under Article 269A of the Constitution, the GST on supplies in the course of inter-State trade or commerce shall be levied and collected by the Government of India and such tax shall be apportioned between the Union and the States in the manner as may be provided by Parliament by law on the recommendations of the Goods and Services Tax Council.
8. Deciding Authority for levy of GST- The CGST and SGST would be levied at rates to be jointly decided by the Centre and States. The rates would be notified on the recommendations of the GST Council.
Tax reforms must be implemented. To improve revenue performance factors like globalization, large informal sectors and policies of neighboring countries must be considered.
Karst Topography
Karst is a type of landscape where the dissolving of the bedrock has created sinkholes, sinking streams, caves, springs, and other characteristic features. Karst is associated with soluble rock types such as limestone, marble, and gypsum. In general, a typical karst landscape forms when much of the water falling on the surface interacts with and enters the subsurface through cracks, fractures, and holes that have been dissolved into the bedrock. After traveling underground, sometimes for long distances, this water is then discharged from springs, many of which are cave entrances.
Chemical Reaction:-
Limestone is a type of carbonate rock — that is, a rock made up primarily of a carbonate mineral which, in the case of limestone, is usually calcite or aragonite. These are both forms of calcium carbonate (CaCO3). Over time, limestone may be dissolved by carbonic acid (i.e., carbon dioxide dissolved in water). Carbonic acid is formed when rain picks up CO2 as it falls through the atmosphere. Once it hits the ground, it may pick up more CO2 in the soil, turning into a weak carbonic acid solution. When this solution seeps into limestone bedrock via cracks and fissures, larger openings are created. Over the course of thousands of years, this erosive process creates underground drainage systems and caves.
Mammoth Cave,USA is the longest Cave system in the world.
Xiaozhai Tiankeng,China Largest Sinkhole.
Other examples,Yutacan peninsula,Mexico
Cockpit Country,Jamaica etc.
In India karst topography is present in the Vindhya region (mainly southwestern Bihar), the Himalayas (parts of Jammu & Kashmir, Robert Cave, Sahasradhara, the eastern Himalayas, areas near Dehradun), Pachmarhi in Madhya Pradesh, the surrounding coast near Vishakhapatnam, and Bastar in Chhattisgarh.
Landforms :-
THE STARTUP STORY
The new era has ushered in a lot of modernization and technology. This has brought drastic changes to our lifestyle, resources and social conventions. Gone are the days when business had very narrow options, too many restrictions, was very risky, and people with billion-dollar ideas and great potential had to leave their entrepreneurial dreams due to lack of finance, support and funding. Doing business is still risky and markets are still volatile, but today’s smart minds are able to implement their mind-boggling and zealous plans to brick, stone and mighty structures, thanks to the foundation base here – venture capital firms, angel investors, government organizations and policies, and big multinationals in search of innovative technologies to modify the good old operating procedures of their voluminous businesses.
The startup culture in India has taken highway speed and numerous new ideas are turning into success stories every year. A reason for this may be the support that today’s budding entrepreneurs are receiving, the belief and motivation that they can be first generation innovators and the comfort of investments that they secure (though comfort is a euphemized word here; in reality, these enthusiastic people are made to go through tedious processes of convincing their investors to load fuel into their new models (why not! Putting money into their powerful plans is a matter of high trust and equal risk), and public outreach is a different process altogether, very unpredictable and inestimable). In the big picture, we realize how these people thought ahead of time and converted their simple ideas into stupendous businesses, caught the eyes of the public and commercialized their offerings. A large part of their hugely positive reviews can be credited to their excellent market research, reaching out to the right target audience, personalizing and customizing their products and services according to the trends in town and customer needs, revamping their strategies and product range, efficient marketing and social skills. The best part of many of these good startups is that they either innovated into a booming sector, thought out of the box or renovated an existing product or service in the market in a much better way. A large online presence of these companies has also contributed to their connectivity with the consumer directly, resulting in better camaraderie, companies understanding the expectations of their customer and delivering better with time. Technological tools have hugely impacted the way these companies work, which is where local and small-scale ideas are getting the big push to enter a bigger world of opportunities and development.
India has been having its own league of startup unicorns and soonicorns in the recent years. Unicorns are privately held startup organizations with a market value of over 1 billion dollars. India is slowly but strongly transforming into a motivating tech startup ecosystem. The last year of COVID-19 pandemic was expected to be a big disaster in the corporate arena, but entrepreneurs have made huge transitions in their strategies and have played on big risks to make up for an unforeseen, unpredicted situation. Last year rather witnessed the addition of many unicorns into the elite startup club. These companies are mostly active through online mode, including startups in online pharmacies, social media platforms, e-commerce websites, digital and computer technology, digital education apps, online banking and fintech, cryptocurrency, stock market trading, enterprise tech, online dating sites and other technology sectors. They have paced smart, swift and risky to turn an unprecedented lockdown situation conducive to their way and have made an intelligent entry into India’s booming startup hub. A recent report in financial newspaper Business Line suggests 35 soonicorns – soon to turn unicorns are to bag the unicorn title by the end of this year. These companies are establishing their hold into fintech, edtech, healthtech, foodtech, agritech, SaaS, logistics, digital gaming and e-grocery sectors.
The new world is revamping the face of entrepreneurship, paving the way towards digitalization and those identifying niches and turning them into opportunities in this sector have made it well and big. This is a fair opportunity for those brainiacs who have it in them, the ideas and potential to make a change, a place for themselves in this highly competitive and demanding world, and are actively seeking for the experienced bigwigs and believers to power their brave shot.
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