Category: writing

India and its neighborhood- relations

India shares geographical boundary with eight countries namely Pakistan, Afghanistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Since the inception of our foreign policy, India has aimed at building trust with its neighbors. It aims at peaceful friendly relations and mutual economic development by enhanced trade and investments.

•Pakistan: Improving relations with Pakistan has been among top priorities in Indian foreign policy. After the visit of Pakistan former Prime Minister Parvez Musharaff in 2004, there has been a vacuum in our talks. It seems that radical groups in Pakistan took undue advantage of this vacuum and consequently there has been increased reports of cross-border terrorism activities. 26/11 attack is an unwashable strain on the fabric of friendship between India and Pakistan. But as it is said that ‘time heals all wounds’. The recently elected Narendra Modi led National Democratic alliance government’s attitude is worth appreciation. Indian Prime minister invited his Pakistani counterpart in his swearing in ceremony in New Delhi. This is a clear indication that both Nations are willing to take their relations on newer heights. In this aspect changed outlook India should try to adopt a sustainable foreign policy towards Pakistan. Smaller initiatives like Indo-Pak trade fair at Jalandhar, Punjab (India) needs to be encouraged. Healthy trade relations will help both sides equally.

•Nepal: Since the birth of democratic institution in Nepal, India has increasingly tried to have good relations with Nepal. Currently a joint hydro power project is being built on Sharda River. This power plant is thought to mutually help both India and Nepal with respect to electricity production and irrigation facilities. From the environmental perspective, there are a number of Tiger reserves along Indo-Nepal border. Both countries have identified their importance and are helping each other to sustain the existing ones and creating new ones. •China: China being manufacturing hub of world, is strategically very important to India. In fact China has become a role model for development. India needs to build strong trade relations with China. Increasing Foreign Direct Investment caps in various sectors has been one such step of India to invite investors from abroad.Apart from these bilateral relations, India has been active on various other forums as well which provides for greater engagement with its neighbors. For example India has been one of the pioneering advocate of TAPI (Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India). This project aimed at bringing gas from Gulf countries and distribute it in TAPI countries.

India is an active member in BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India China and South Africa). BRICS is emerging a one of the significant union in world. BRICS nations represent 40 per cent of world population and has approximately sixteen trillion dollars as its Nominal Gross Domestic Product (GDP). BRICS nation contributes around eighteen per cent of world economy. The recent BRICS summit held at Brazil in July 2014.
One of the German intellectual has rightly said that ‘For economic development of a nation, peace with its neighbors is a pre-requisite’. India not only recognizes this statement but also conforms to it. Going by the mood of current Indian government in India, Union government too knows the importance of its neighbors. If India wants to be a super-power then maintaining friendly relations with its neighbors is a first step of ladder in this direction.

India has always wanted friendly ties with its neighbours, there can be no debate around it. We want to live in harmony and peace.

-Narendra Modi

Role of civil services in a democracy .

In the process of governance, which involves several sets of activities to deliver effective services to people, civil services play a pivotal role in providing shape to policies that reflect people’s needs and put their suggestive, analytical and informative roles to implement the
policies. It is recognized that civil services play a crucial role in all societies. In the modern administrative state, public administration has become so significant that our development, upliftment and progress depend mainly upon the efficient functioning of civil services that are
the bedrock of public administration. Civil services have assumed more important role in democracy to ensure good governance, both in developing and developed countries. Civil Services form a part of bureaucracy, wherein the roles of civil servants are determined by
written rules. It’s an impersonal system operating on the basis of calculable rules and staffed by full time appointed officials. Usually, the civil servants are selected on basis of their technical
qualifications, receive fixed salaries, have a defined sphere of competence and work under a clearly defined hierarchy of offices.

The role of Civil Servants across the domains of policy making and policy implementation is critical to the development process. They assist in identifying major policy areas such as preparing major policy proposals, analyzing various alternatives and solutions to societal problems requiring urgent attention, dividing the major policies into sub-policies, determining
program of action and suggesting modification in the existing policy on the basis of its experience on the implementation front.Civil services carry on the governance when governments change due to elections etc. Ramsay
Muir has remarked that while governments may come and go, ministers may rise and fall, the administration of a country goes on forever. It is needless to say that civil services form the backbone of administration. E.g. In India, when the President’s Rule is imposed in a state, the
Governor runs the state through the Chief Secretary and other civil servants.The civil servants are responsible to the ministers of the departments in which they serve. The ministers are accountable to the people through the Parliament or State Legislatures, and the civil servants are accountable to the ministers. They should ideally serve the elected government of the day, as government policies are the functions of the civil services. However, an impartial civil servant is also accountable to the Constitution of India on which he has taken an oath of allegiance.

In India, bureaucracy or civil services is permanent and does not change with the government. The recruitment is based on merit and through competitive exams. This is in contrast to the system followed in the US, where civil servants, especially in the higher echelons, change with the government. This is called the spoils system where people who are close to the government of the day get posts.

With bad laws and good civil servants it’s still possible to govern. But with bad civil servants even the best laws can’t help.

   -Otto von Bismarck.

Physical Geography

Physical geography is one of the two branches of geography viz., physical geography and human ge­ography. In fact, the study of physical aspects of the earth represents the core of spatial science i.e., geogra­phy. Most of geographers have pleaded for bifurcation of geography into physical and human geography but it is rather unwise to ignore biotic aspect of the biospheric ecosystem of the earth and hence there should be trifurcation of geography into physical ge­ography, human geography and biogeographyPhysi­cal geography in terms of its meaning and definition, scope (subject matter) and methods of study has under­gone sea-change in the past few decades. In the begin­ning, physical geography was defined as the study of only physical environment (namely reliefs, air and water) of the earth e.g., ‘the study of physical environ­ment by itself is physical geography which includes consideration of surface relief of the globe (geomorphology), of the seas and the oceans (ocea­nography) and of the air (meteorology and climatol­ogy) (Arthur Holmes).

Physical geography was considered as the ag­glomeration of different branches of earth sciences or natural sciences viz., sciences of atmosphere (meteor­ology and climatology); science of seas and oceans (oceanography); science of solid earth (geology); sci­ence of soil (pedology); science of plants (botany) and science of landforms (geomorphology).As a distinct branch of geography physical geography studies the spatial patterns and spatial relationships of environmental components of the globe in regional context, it also studies the causes of regional patterns of such spatial relationships, simultaneously it incorporates the ex­planation of spatial and temporal changes of environ­mental components and causes thereof.The study of features resulting from the interac­tions between endogenetic and exogenetic forces in­volves the discussion of mode of denudational proc­esses (weathering and erosion), hetherto termed as geomorphic processes, their mechanism of operation (machanism of erosion, transportation and deposition by running water-river, groundwater, sea waves, wind, glacier and periglacial agent) and resultant landforms.

The discipline of physical geography has evolved through successive stages of its development in terms of methodology and approaches to study. After taking its birth in the philosophical ideas and reports of ancient thinkers, philosophers and historians of the ancient seats of civilization and culture e.g., Greece, Rome and Egypt, the science of physical environment attained its present status wherein different compo­nents were added from time to time.

Geography is also memory. And loss of physical geography is also loss of narrative memory.

Nanotechnology

Nanotechnology is defined as fabrication of devices with atomic or molecular scale precision. Devices with minimum feature sizes less than 100 nanometers (nm) are considered to be products of nanotechnology. A nanometer is one billionth of a meter (10-9 m) and is the unit of length that is generally most appropriate for describing the size of single molecules.The nanoscale marks the nebulous boundary between the classical and quantum mechanical worlds; thus, realization of nanotechnology promises to bring revolutionary capabilities. Fabrication of nanomachines, nanoelectronics and other nanodevices will undoubtedly solve an enormous amount of the problems faced by mankind today.Nanotechnology is currently in a very infantile stage. However, we now have the ability to organize matter on the atomic scale and there are already numerous products available as a direct result of our rapidly increasing ability to fabricate and characterize feature sizes less than 100 nm. Mirrors that don’t fog, biomimetic paint with a contact angle near 180°, gene chips and fat soluble vitamins in aqueous beverages are some of the first manifestations of nanotechnology. However, immenant breakthroughs in computer science and medicine will be where the real potential of nanotechnology will first be achieved.

Nanoscience is an interdisciplinary field that seeks to bring about mature nanotechnology. Focusing on the nanoscale intersection of fields such as physics, biology, engineering, chemistry, computer science and more, nanoscience is rapidly expanding. Nanotechnology centers are popping up around the world as more funding is provided and nanotechnology market share increases. The rapid progress is apparent by the increasing appearance of the prefix “nano” in scientific journals and the news. Thus, as we increase our ability to fabricate computer chips with smaller features and improve our ability to cure disease at the molecular level, nanotechnology is herestorage (or other uses) is enormous. As first described in a lecture titled, ‘There’s Plenty of Room at the Bottom’ in 1959 by Richard P. Feynman, there is nothing besides our clumsy size that keeps us from using this space. In his time, it was not possible for us to manipulate single atoms or molecules because they were far too small for our tools. Thus, his
speech was completely theoretical and seemingly fantastic. He described how the laws of physics do not limit our ability to manipulate single atoms and molecules. Instead, it was our lack of the appropriate methods for doing so. However, he correctly predicted that the time would come in which atomically precise manipulation of matter would inevitably arrive.Nanomachines can also be incorporated into various materials to make those materials respond to their environment, or to outside commands. Examples of such materials would be “smart” fabrics that respond to the environment to become warmer or cooler, or walls and furniture that can move or change shape on command. Nanomachines could also be used as tools both in industry and by consumers. Such tools could cut apart or glue together material far more efficiently than anything large-scale that is used today. Nanomachines could also repair cars, furniture, applicances, or almost anything else quickly and efficiently. Or these objects could be designed with nanomachines to repair themselves should the need arise. Life would be greatly simplified by relieving people of the need to repair objects at home or at work.

In thinking about nanotecnolog today, what’s most important is understanding where it leads, what nanotechnology will look like after we reach the assembler breakthrough.

-Eric Drexler

Agriculture

The word “Agriculture” has no rigid definition. It has been explained by many people very comprehensively. Agriculture has been defined as the science and art of cultivating the soil, and this definition emphasizes the primary nature of plant production in agriculture.Moreover, it is so frequent that the same person performs both the primary functions of growing plants and the secondary one of feeding the plants to livestock that these two industries are grouped together as agriculture. Therefore, it may be said that agriculture includes not only the production of crops by the cultivation of the soil, but also the rearing of livestock.
Thus, milk, meat and wool are as much agricultural products as are wheat, rice and cotton. In the words of George O’Brien, therefore, the word agriculture includes, “every industry which aims at producing vegetables or animals by the cultivation of the soil.”So, agriculture is the business of raising products from the land. The products raised may either be plants and their products or animals and their products. The former are the direct products while the latter are the indirect products of the land. Agricultural products are complex and diverse, in nature, and as such, agriculture may be regarded as complex industry.Modern agriculture is such broader in scope than merely the art and science of cultivating the land. It is the whole business of supplying food and fiber for a growing population at home and abroad. Again in agriculture we include all forms of soil production, from forestry to glass-house culture, from fishery to artificial insemination, and from breeding to horticulture.

Primi­tive men must have begun as food gatherers, eating whatever fruits, leaves and roots they could obtain. Nature must have been bountiful in those days when human numbers were so small and wild plants grew everywhere. As time passed and human numbers grew, fishing and hunting became increasingly im­portant in supplementing what was lacking in the field, and an endless search for food ensued.It was soon realized that some form of food pro­duction was necessary if men were to live long and secure. Animals were tamed, first to provide meat, milk and skin; later for use as draught animals. Seeds were sown in ploughed fields, carefully tended and harvested when the time came.Men were then able to live in settled communities. Because they were no longer continually moving they had time to develop the various arts, crafts and skills that formed the basis of modern industries and also evolved religious and political ideas. Without a settled agriculture, a meas­urable degree of civilization is not possible.

Agriculture
is not farming
it’s feeding

Demography

Demography is the study of human population dynamics. Population is shaped by a number of factors including fertility, mortality, migration and urbanization. Significant demographic changes have been shown in many parts of the world. The world population growth has been decelerating since 1970s. Fertility rates in more developed countries (MDCs) have been showing a declining trend, whereas an increasing one in the less developed countries (LDCs). Mortality rates have gone down in both MDCs and LDCs due to medical advancement. Consequently, the population of the countries with low fertility rates aged more quickly, and the world population growth will be concentrated in those developing countries where fertility rates remain high. Uneven population growth among nations accelerated the migration of people across nation borders and the growth of cities. The changes of these interrelated factors with their causes and problems of each of the factors will be discussed, followed by some possible plans and opportunities that may benefit from these changes.Human birth rate (natality) is the fertility expressed as the average number of live births per thousand populations per year. Since not all age groups in a population have equal fertility, demographers often use more specialized measures of birth rates that relate to age groups.Human mortality rate is the average number of individuals who die per thousand populations per year.

Again, demographers often use more sensitive measures, for different mortality rates. Both the very young and the very old segments of the population have higher mortality rates than are found in other age groups.Human population shows uneven or clumping pattern of distri­bution on earth. The density of human population in a village, district, city, province, country or any area can be obtained by di­viding the total number of persons living in the given region by the total land area of that region.The average number of people per square unit of land area tells us how dense or sparse is the popu­lation in a giver, area. The average population density of the world is calculated about 27 persons per square kilometre.insurance agents to determine life insurance rates.

These early demographic studies were mostly concerned with mortality. However, in the 19th century, studies showed that there was a decline in the number of births, and researchers began to study fertility as well as mortality. These studies led to the idea of “differential fertility.” Differential fertility suggests that different groups within a population have different numbers of children due to factors, such as religion, cultural attitudes, poverty, and employment. Migration of people is the last main factor in demographic studies. It is these three variables (mortality, fertility, and migration) that contribute to population change.Demographers gather data mainly through government censuses and government registries of births and deaths. However, these sources can be inaccurate depending on the precision of government records. Demographers also gather data indirectly through surveying smaller groups within a population. These samples are then examined using statistical models to draw conclusions about the whole population.

Demography is changing us as we are older societies, we’re living longer. How the generations balance each other out, how that affects education and health care.

Disaster management

Disaster is a very common phenomenon to the human society. It has been experienced by them since time immemorial. Though its form may be varied, it has been a challenge for society across castes, creeds, communities and countries. The latest development which has been discovered in the World Disaster Reports recently is that the disasters have increased in frequency and intensity.People are becoming more and more vulnerable to disasters of all types, including earthquake, flood, cyclones, landslides, droughts, accidents, plane crash, forests fire, etc. With the technological advancements and progress, the force of disasters is also changing. When they occur they surpass all preparedness and eagerness of society and pose bigger challenge to them. This is quite true in case of both developed and developing countries. The floods in UK, France, and heat wave in Europe, particularly in France in 2003, claimed more than 35000 lives. In the year 2006, America had to face bigger disaster in the form of tornadoes and other cyclones. They caused great loss of lives and property. All these are sufficient to prove that technological mechanisms are inadequate.There is a direct correlation between higher human development and higher preparedness. The countries which have lesser human development are more vulnerable to risks of disasters and damage. Of all the disasters, floods are the most common followed by wind storms, droughts and earthquakes. But the drought is the deadliest disaster which accounts for 48 per cent of all deaths from natural disasters. The highest numbers of people die from disasters in Asia. India, China and Bangladesh are the worst affected countries by flood. Besides the natural disasters, transport accidents and technological disasters are also faced by the developing countries.

The UNDA with Government of India has jointly prepared an action plan for cities and towns vulnerable to earthquakes. The need in the vulnerable zones is that the existing buildings be technically assessed and evaluated and individual owners and group housing authorities should be informed about the weaknesses in their construction. Presently, in India, it is estimated that around 10 lakhs buildings which are constructed every year, an equal number of them get damaged as a result of disasters. It is required that a monitoring mechanism should be set up in disaster prone areas and it must act in proper coordination with the concerned to ensure fulfillment of building codes.
Disaster is a state subject in India; it is, therefore, the responsibility of the state to provide every kind of support and assistance to the victim. The Central Government has a facilitating role. It, with proper coordination with various ministries, extends all required support and helps to the states, namely defence services, air dropping, rescuing, searching, transport of relief goods, availability of rail and ferry services, health personnel and medical support, etc. In the State, the Relief Commissioner or Disaster Management Secretary is the specific authority responsible for handling and management of the disaster.

Rehabilitation is an integral part of disaster management. When disasters occur administrative measures are terribly inadequate and perhaps this is the most difficult period for a victim. The role of administration does not end with end of disasters. In fact its effort and commitment get more complex. It requires proper coordination among various agencies. In this context it is very important to note that disasters are non-routine events that require non-routine response. Government cannot rely on normal procedures to implement appropriate responses- the rescue teams require learning special skills, technologies and attitudes in dealing with disasters.

SUCCESSFUL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT RELIES UPON EXPERIENCE AND EXPERTISE.

Poverty in India


Poverty is defined as the lack of sufficient money to meet basic needs such as food and shelter. Poverty is a situation in which a person is homeless and has very little money. Due to the growing population in urban areas, India’s poverty rate is rising. The most important fact is that huge numbers of people live in poverty, with the majority living on the edge of it. Poverty in India is mostly observed in rural regions due to a large number of uneducated and unemployed people within the growing population.Many people cannot afford proper food for their daily lives, and because they do not have their own homes, they sleep on streets or footpaths. As a result, more people require more food, money, and shelter, but poverty grows rapidly due to a lack of these resources. This is why the rich become richer and the poor become poorer, making it difficult to bridge the gap. Poverty has several consequences, including poor housing, illiteracy, increased child labor and unemployment, and poor hygiene. As a result, these poor individuals cannot afford a balanced diet, decent clothes, or a good education for the simple reason that they do not have enough money.

Poverty may be reduced by providing sufficient education and facilities to farmers, allowing them to become more profitable and not feel the need to migrate to cities in search of work. Also, uneducated individuals should receive a good education to improve their lives, and family planning is also necessary for getting out of poverty. Poverty in our country dates back to ancient times, when the poor were not given the same privileges as the wealthy, and they were even denied access to religious places. Unemployment, a lack of education, poor resource utilization, corruption, and poor government policy are all major causes of poverty.In India, poverty is high when compared to other nations due to the poor growth rate of per capita income per person. Due to a lack of career prospects, many individuals work as rickshaw pullers, construction laborers, domestic servants, and other low-wage jobs, which leads them to live in slum areas.In addition, lack of land resources has been one of the key reasons for poverty in India; even small farmers in our nation are poor since they cultivate but do not receive fair pay in terms of profit, resulting in poverty.

India’s population has been rapidly increasing. In 1991, India’s population was around 84.3 crores, with a high rate of poverty; now, our country’s population is around 130 crores, with the population nearly doubling in the last three decades, but not enough has been done to control poverty in our country. As the population grows, so does unemployment, and poverty is just a reflection of unemployment. More capital is necessary for developing industry, providing adequate transportation, and other projects, as a result of which the country’s deficiency is underdeveloped and more people live in poverty. Lack of skilled labor also contributes to poverty since less-skilled workers lack industrial training and education and miss out on opportunities that more skilled workers can avail. Lack of infrastructure means that transportation and communication have not been properly developed, resulting in farmers receiving fertilisers for cultivation late and industries receiving power and raw materials not on time and thus, end products not being properly marketed and reaching customers on time. Hence, to escape poverty, our government must be more serious, and citizens must share equal responsibility.Remarkably, as a result of rural-to-urban migration, the incidence of rural poverty has fallen steadily. First and foremost, population growth should be strictly controlled to tackle the serious problem of poverty. Other approaches to fight this problem include expanding work possibilities, educating people, eliminating black money, decentralized planning, and assisting women and youth in becoming self-sufficient.

“Paverty” is not created by “poor people”

linkages between development and spread of extremism

In Indian scenario, extremism activities are increasing rapidly. The scale of the extremists operations is massive and consequently these activities have perilous impact on nation’s social, economic and political development.Many scholars explained the notion of extremism as any ideology considered to be far outside the normal attitudes of society or to interrupt common moral standards. It is usually constructed with moderation or extremists with moderates. Various political writers signified that extremism also has numerous strands starting from just holding to one’s ideas and values on one end of the continuum and use of violent means for nuisance on the other end. Thus, extremism is considered as a complex phenomenon.

Natural Calamities: During the last decade of the 19th century, affliction of people was filled to the brim. Famine, plague, earthquake, war and repressions were let loose in the country. From 1896 to 1900 prolonged and catastrophic famines occurred throughout the length and breadth of the land in a bewildering succession. In 1896 bubonic plague broke out in Bombay and took a toll of millions of lives. These natural calamities were accompanied by the intensified exploitation and suppression by the Government. Such devastating conditions led to development of extremist.

Labour, Unemployment and wages:
Another intense issue that spreads extremism is joblessness which creates insecurity of living. People may develop dissatisfaction and anger both in urban and rural areas. In allocation of government jobs, there has been shown some favouritism and this activity leads to dissatisfaction among youth as they are being ignored.

Policing:Improper policies and their ineffective implementation may result in extremist activities among weaker sections of society. It is very necessary that government must consider poor people when devising policies for economic growth of country. These policies must be well-organized and unprejudiced which reveal good administration .Weaker section of people does not have much confidence in police. People have no faith that justice will be done to them against the powerful person in the society. Such impression about government officials develops extremist thoughts among poorer section of society.

Process of getting Justice:When lower section of society is struggling with various issues related to survival or employment and their conflicts and disputes are not settled in time, frustration among people in society develops. Presently, judicial system of India is very time consuming and disputes are not settled in short time. The parties to the dispute lose control over even the terms and details of the dispute once it goes to the court. These factors create extremist feelings among sufferers.

Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice. And moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue.

-Barry Goldwater

Pharmacology

Pharmacology is the science that deals with drugs.Pharmacology consists of detailed study of drugs, particularly drugs action on living animals, tissues or organs. The action of drugs may be beneficial or harmful.Pharmacology is the science in which we study the response of living animals to chemicals drug Pharmacology is defined as the study of the effects of drugs on the structures and metabolism of natural tissues.Pharmacology can be defined as the study of the manner in which the functions of living system is affected or influenced by chemicals.This subject deals with the properties and effects of drugs and in broad sense, it can be defined as the study of interactions between chemical substances and biological systems.While defining in broad sense, it includes the knowledge of the history, source, physical and chemical properties, compounding, bio-chemical and physiological effects, mechanism of action, absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion and therapeutic and other effects of drugs.

Diseases are as old as man. Fighting disease with drugs is an endless task that originated from existence of mankind. Drugs have its origin with illness and the later has been associated with evolution. Just imagine about the nomads, the primitive man, who was wanderer, a food gatherer and shelter seeking. There was no concept of family.There were no clothes, men and women were wandering naked. Gradually the notion of family started and he lived together with so called his family members. If any of them died the pain of death he might have felt. He must have thought about death. Why some person dies? And then fear of death might have occurred to him. He must have started thinking about death.Homosapiens being the intelligent most among the species evolved, based on the principles of “necessity” and “trial” could observe effectiveness of many plants in relief for his pains and sufferings. The primitive (early) history of the causative agents of diseases included wrong Gods, spirits witches and other evil influences.
The form of therapy was incantation, prayer and ceremony designed to appease the evil agents of the diseases. They were using sacrifice of animals, individuals and prayers.The tribal leaders were known as medicine men or the expert or witch doctors (Ojha), were very powerful men and leader in such all ceremonies. In addition, they had knowledge about certain plants and animal products to be used in the treatment of certain diseases. The first treatise on medicine was undoubtedly the Ayurveda in India and that is at least 500 years ahead of the Greek Medicine.The medical literature was related to metaphysics, hypnotism etc. and belief in supernatural agencies as the cause and cure of diseases. Thus, in India, this was originally a part of the fourth Veda called the Atharva Veda. The real father of Indian Medicine was Atrya with his distinguished disciples-Agnivesha, Bhala, Jatukarana, parasara, Harita and Ksharapani.

Started with Oswald Schmiedeberg (1838-1921). He was excellent teacher of Pharmacology and attracted many persons to study this subject. Like other experimental sciences, Pharmacology, too, is highly dependent upon development in other branches of science.Spectacular developments in physiology, biochemistry, organic chemistry and molecular biology have greatly contributed in advancement of pharmacology. Conversion of the old pharmacology into modern pharmacology is fairly recent and probably started taking shape following introduction of experimental procedures in animals by Francois Megendie (1783-1855) and Claude Bernard (1813-1978).Oswald Schmiedeberg (1838-1921) introduced the technique of per-fusing isolated organs and study the effects of drugs on them. Abel, Cushny, Gottlieb and a galaxy of his other students popularized the expertise in their respective, countries. Thus Oswald become popular as ‘Father of modern Pharmacology’.

Pharmacology is benefited by the prepared mind. You need to know what you are looking for.

Criminal Justice System in India

The aim of the Criminal Justice System is to punish the guilty and protect the innocent. Although the broad contours of the Criminal justice system are seldom codified, these can be inferred from different statutes, including the Constitution and judicial pronouncements. In a democratic civilized society, the Criminal Justice System is expected to provide the maximum sense of security to the people at large by dealing with crimes and criminals effectively, quickly and legally. More specifically, the aim is to reduce the level of criminality in society by ensuring maximum detection of reported crimes, conviction of the accused persons without delay, awarding appropriate punishments to the convicted to meet the ends of justice and to prevent recidivism.In this article, we shall be discussing the history and evolution of the system, the institutions, along with various perspectives of the constitutional aspect of rights of citizens, efforts for reforms, and delivery of justice.

Criminal law, including all matters included in the Indian Penal Code, Criminal procedure, including all matters included in the Code of Criminal Procedure feature under the concurrent list of the 7th Schedule as entries-1, and 2 respectively.Certain exceptions are also provided under two provisions(Entry-1, and 2) of the 7th Schedule. For example, offences against laws with respect to the matters specified in List-I or List-II of the 7th Schedule of the constitution, excluding the use of naval, military or air forces or any other armed forces come under this category.

•The Criminal Justice System in India follows the legal procedures established by the British during the pre-independence era.
•An Indian Penal Code (IPC) defining crime and prescribing appropriate punishments was adopted in 1860, prepared by the first Law Commission of India.
•It was developed in line with the English criminal law.
•Code of Criminal Procedure was enacted in 1861 and established the rules to be followed in all stages. This was amended in 1973.
•The NN Vohra Committee, set up in 1993, observed increasing criminalization of politics, talked of the unholy nexus.
•It was an effort to push the reforms in the criminal justice system.
•In 2000, the Government of India formed a panel headed by the former Chief Justice of Kerala and Karnataka, Justice V.S. Malimath, to suggest an overhaul of the century-old criminal justice system.
•In 2003, the Justice Malimath Committee submitted a report with 158 recommendations.
•The Committee opined that the existing system “weighed in favour of the accused and did not adequately focus on justice to the victims of crime.”

The entire existence of an orderly society depends upon the sound and efficient functioning of the Criminal Justice System. The law of the land has to be in tune with the demands of the changing times and nature of complexities in offences. There should be a broader dialogue among all the stakeholders for effective provisions so that the interest of justice is served and served right, where no innocent suffers prejudice, exclusion leading to miscarriage of justice. Similarly, the rules and procedures established by law need to reach the common man, and the role of civil society in this endeavour is paramount. Further, there is a need to streamline the police reforms, beef up the forensic evidence-based investigation, and prioritize advanced scientific analysis which must be strengthened and upgraded, catering to the demands of the present times. The infrastructural challenges confronting the judiciary must be addressed to facilitate the process of ensuring justice.

The criminal justice system, like any
system designed by human beings,
clearly has its flaws.

Psychology

Psychology has become a very important and popular subject today. It deals with many problems of everyday life. Psychology helps us to understand the behaviour of people around us, to find out why they behave differently and what forces are responsible to make them so different from others.It tries to explain wide array of factors involved in what we human beings do. The principles explained by psychology give us a rational basis of understanding of what we and others do. Psychology has been defined in many ways. In ancient days people were analysing the behavioural aspects on the basis of philosophy. They believed that there is a soul in every individual and this is responsible for all our activities.
This view led to the opinion that the subject matter of psychology must be the study of soul. But this definition could not answer the questions regarding the existence of soul and its accessibility for study. This condition led to a new definition by Greek philosophers who defined psychology as a ‘science of mind’. But this definition was also rejected on the same grounds as soul was rejected.

Gradually, as a result of the development of scientific outlook people started thinking on scientific basis and began to define psychology as a science of behaviour. Finally, it is JB Watson (1913) defined psychology as a science of behaviour of human as well as animal beings.Today this is the most accepted definition. In this definition the term behaviour includes the cognitive activities like thinking, reasoning, intelligence, imagining, memory, etc., co-native activities like walking, dancing, fighting, attacking and other action tendencies and also the affective activities like feeling, joy, happiness, sympathy, anger, jealousy, etc. in a person. This definition also includes the behaviour not only of human beings and animals, but also all living organisms and their mental processes.

Psychologists do experiments and make observations which others can repeat; they obtain data often in the form of quantitative measurements which others can verify. Like any other positive science psychology is also systematic in its approach. Measurement in psychology is often more difficult of course, than it is in other sciences.However, psychologists have devised many ingenious tests to assign numbers to data. Psychology is following all the principles of science like principles of behaviour,objective experimentation, analysis of data and behaviour, formulation of hypothesis, verification and generalization, etc.As a result of such a scientific approach many theories have been developed to explain the behaviour. Psychology believes in cause and effect relationship in behaviour. It is considered as a behavioural science as it deals with behaviour of the organism.

However, because of its objectivity in analysis of behaviour through experiments, it may be considered as a developing positive science of behaviour.

Psychology has a long past, but only a short history

Horticulture

The science and art of growing, producing, marketing, and utilizing high-value, intensively grown food, and ornamental plants in a sustainable manner is known as Horticulture.Annual and perennial plants, fruits and vegetables, decorative indoor plants, and landscape plants are all examples of horticulture crops.

Horticulture farming also aims to enhance the quality of life, as well as the beauty, sustainability, and recovery of our ecosystem and the human condition.
Horticulture is divided into the cultivation of plants for food (pomology and olericulture) and plants for ornament (floriculture and landscape horticulture). Pomology deals with fruit and nut crops. Olericulture deals with herbaceous plants for the kitchen, including, for example, carrots (edible root), asparagus (edible stem), lettuce (edible leaf), cauliflower (edible flower buds), tomatoes (edible fruit), and peas (edible seed). Floriculture deals with the production of flowers and ornamental plants; generally, cut flowers, pot plants, and greenery. Landscape horticulture is a broad category that includes plants for the landscape, including lawn turf but particularly nursery crops such as shrubs, trees, and vines.

Temperate zones for horticulture cannot be defined exactly by lines of latitude or longitude but are usually regarded as including those areas where frost in winter occurs, even though rarely. Thus, most parts of Europe, North America, and northern Asia are included, though some parts of the United States, such as southern Florida, are considered subtropical. A few parts of the north coast of the Mediterranean and the Mediterranean islands are also subtropical. In the Southern Hemisphere, practically all of New Zealand, a few parts of Australia, and the southern part of South America have temperate climates. For horticultural purposes altitude is also a factor; the lower slopes of great mountain ranges, such as the Himalayas and the Andes, are included. Thus, the temperate zones are very wide and the range of plants that can be grown in them is enormous, probably greater than in either the subtropical or tropical zones. In the temperate zones are the great coniferous and deciduous forests: pine, spruce, fir, most of the cypresses, the deciduous oaks (but excluding many of the evergreen ones), ash, birch, and linden.

There is no sharp line of demarcation between the tropics and the subtropics. Just as many tropical plants can be cultivated in the subtropics, so also many subtropical and even temperate plants can be grown satisfactorily in the tropics. Elevation is a determining factor. For example, the scarlet runner bean, a common plant in temperate regions, grows, flowers, and develops pods normally on the high slopes of Mount Meru in Africa near the Equator, but it will not set pods in Hong Kong, a subtropical situation a little south of the Tropic of Cancer but at a low elevation.In addition to elevation, another determinant is the annual distribution of rainfall. Plants that grow and flower in the monsoon areas, as in India, will not succeed where the climate is uniformly wet, as in Bougainville in the Solomon Islands. Another factor is the length of day, the number of hours the Sun is above the horizon; some plants flower only if the day is long, but others make their growth during the long days and flower when the day is short. Certain strains of the cosmos plant are so sensitive to light that where the day is always about 12 hours, as near the Equator, they flower when only a few inches high; if grown near the Tropic of Cancer or the Tropic of Capricorn, they attain a height of several feet, if the seeds are sown in the spring, before flowering in the short days of autumn and winter. Poinsettia is a short-day plant that may be seen in flower in Singapore on any day of the year, while in Trinidad it is a blaze of glory only in late December.

The glory of gardening: hands in the dirt, head in the sun, heart with nature.

To nurture a garden is to feed not just on the body, but the soul.

Communalism

For centuries people belonging to different religious communities have been living together in India without any friction or ill will. Major communities in India being the Hindus, the Muslims, the Sikhs, the Christians, the Parsees, the Jains, the Buddhists, etc.All these communities lived with each other in perfect toleration. It was only at the turn of the century that the British rulers in India followed policy of divide and rule and with that the gulf between various religious communities very considerably increased.The device of giving separate representation to each major community in elected bodies and civil services widened the gap, particularly among two major Indian communities, namely, the Hindus and the Muslims. When late Muhammed Ali Jinnah expounded his two nation theory, gap between these communities still more widened.The result of all this was that there was communal hatred. Before the partition of the country, there were communal riots in some parts of the country resulting in the killing of several hundred people and looting and burning property worth crores of rupees. Everything inhuman and unhuman was done in the name of religion.The country had to be partitioned because the Muslim League, under the leadership of M.A. Jinnah made it clear that the Muslims and the Hindus were two separate nations, which could not live together and partition of India was the only solution of communal and political problems of the country.

Communalism as a political philosophy has its roots in the religious and cultural diversity of India.It has been used as a political propaganda tool to create divide, differences and tensions between the communities on the basis of religious and ethnic identity leading to communal hatred and violence.In ancient Indian society, people of different faith coexisted peacefully.Buddha was perhaps the first Indian prophet who gave the concept of secularism.Meanwhile, Kings like Ashoka followed a policy of peace and religious tolerance.Medieval India witnessed the arrival of Islam in India marked by occasional occurrences of violence such as Mahmud Ghazni’s destruction of Hindu temples and Mahmud of Ghor’s attack on Hindus, Jains and Buddhists.While, religion was an important part of people’s lives but there was no communal ideology or communal politics.Rulers like Akbar and Sher Shah Suri followed the religious policy of toleration towards different cultures and tradition practiced across country.However, some sectarian rulers like Aurangzeb were among the least tolerant towards other religious practises.
As a modern phenomenon it has arose as a result of British colonial impact and the response of Indian social strata.

There is need to reform in present criminal justice system, speedy trials and adequate compensation to the victims, may act as deterrent.Increase in representation of minority community and weaker sections in all wings of law-enforcement, training of forces in human rights, especially in the use of firearms in accordance with UN code of conduct.Codified guidelines for the administration, specialised training for the police force to handle communal riots and setting up special investigating and prosecuting agencies can help in damping major communal disgruntlement.
Emphasis on value-oriented education with focus on the values of peace, non-violence, compassion, secularism and humanism as well as developing scientific temper (enshrined as a fundamental duty) and rationalism as core values in children both in schools and colleges/universities, can prove vital in preventing communal feelings.Government can adopt models followed by countries like Malaysia that has developed early-warning indicators to prevent racial clashes.The Malaysian Ethnic Relations Monitoring System (known by its acronym Mesra) that makes use of a quality of life index (included criteria such as housing, health, income and education) and a perception index to gauge people’s needs and feelings about race relations in their area.Also the Hong Kong model of combating communalism by setting up a “Race Relation Unit” to promote racial harmony and facilitate integration of ethnic minorities, can be emulated by India.RRU has established a hotline for complaints and inquiries on racial discrimination. Meanwhile, to create awareness about communal harmony, RRU talks to schools on culture of ethnic minorities and concept of racial discrimination.Government can encourage and support civil society and NGOs to run projects that help create communal awareness, build stronger community relation and cultivating values of communal harmony in next generation.
There is a need for minority welfare schemes to be launched and implemented efficiently by administration to address the challenges and various forms of discrimination faced by them in jobs, housing and daily life.A pro-active approach by National Foundation for Communal Harmony (NFCH), the body responsible for promoting communal harmony is needed.NFCH provides assistance for the physical and psychological rehabilitation of the child victims of communal, caste, ethnic or terrorist violence, besides promoting communal harmony, fraternity and national integration.A legislation is required to curb the communal violence. Communal Violence (Prevention, Control and Rehabilitation of Victims) Bill, 2005 must be enacted soon.

When people unfortunately use religion to facilitate their envy, arrogance and hate, communalism surfaces.

Salient features of world’s physical geography.

Earth is splendid terrestrial haven. It is imperative to know physical geography through its display of environmental diversity. In scientific studies, it is established that Geography is a word that originated from two Greek roots. Geo-denotes to “Earth,” and graphy stands for “picture or writing.” Geography is the study of earth as the home of present day human being (Sagmit, 1998).The main objective of geography is the assessment, and explanation of Earth, its variability from place to place, the way places and features transform over time, and the processes responsible for these variations and changes. Geography is termed as the spatial science because it incorporates recognizing, analysing, and explaining the variations, similarities, or differences in phenomena situated on the surface of Earth. Geography is unique among the sciences by virtue of its characterization and central purpose. It describes the values and attitudes towards environment and sharpen intellectual and practice skill.

Earth’s structure is divided into three zones that include crust, Mantle and core. Crust is the solid outer layer of the Earth, and its depth is usually never more than 1 per cent of the Earth’s radius, or averaging 40–50 km, but this varies significantly around the sphere. These are two different types: oceanic and continental. Mantle is the region within the Earth’s interior that range from 25 to 70 km below the surface, to a depth of ~2,900 km. It is composed mainly of silicate rocks, rich in iron and magnesium. At the base of the mantle, temperatures may reach up to 5,000°C. These high temperatures may help to generate convection currents which drive plate tectonics. Core is the very centre of the Earth and is composed of iron and nickel. It consists of an outer core (semi-molten) and inner core (solid). The temperature at the very centre of the Earth (~6,300 km below surface) may reach 5,500°C.

Geography is inherently encompassing discipline. It brings together facts from other sciences such as physical biological and social. Physical geography is related to the physical science. Physical geography includes the processes and attributes that constitute Earth which incorporate human activities where they interface with the atmosphere. Different branches of Physical geography are climatology, Meteorology, Geomorphology and pedageography (Sagmit, 1998).Scientific studies have revealed that physical geographers are more interested in comprehending all aspects of Earth and can be considered generalists because they are qualified to scrutinize a natural environment in its entirety, and how it functions as a unit. In physical geography, researchers study about lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. Due to interaction of these elements, numerous changes occur on earth surface. Most physical geographers concentrate on advanced study in one or two specialties. For instance, meteorologists and climatologists believe how the interaction of atmospheric components influences weather and climate. Meteorologists focus their studies learning the atmospheric processes that affect daily weather, and they use current data to predict weather conditions. Climatologists are interested in the averages and extremes of long-term weather data, regional classification of climates, monitoring and understanding climatic change and climatic hazard, and the long term impact of atmospheric conditions on human actions and the surroundings.

The factors involved in landform development are as varied as the environments on Earth, and include gravity, running water, stresses in the Earth’s crust, flowing ice in glaciers, volcanic activity, and the erosion or deposition of Earth’s surface materials. Biogeographers scrutinize natural and human-modified environments and the ecological processes that influence their characteristics and distributions, including vegetation change over time. They also research and explain the ranges and patterns of vegetation and animal species, seeking to find out the environmental factors that limit or facilitate their distributions. Several soil scientists are geographers, who are concerned in mapping and analysing soil types, determining the aptness of soils for certain uses, such as agriculture, and working to conserve soil as a natural resource. Geographers are broadly concerned to study water bodies and their processes, movements, impact, quality, and other features. They may serve as hydrologists, oceanographers, or glaciologists. Many geographers involved with water studies also function as water resource managers, who work to ensure that lakes, watersheds, springs, and groundwater sources are suitable to meet human or environmental needs, provide an adequate water supply, and are as free of pollution as possible. Hydrology is merging science. It helps to understand the processes in which water plays an important role in nature through oceans, rivers and glaciers in sustaining life forms of earth surface.

IN OUR CHANGING WORLD NOTHING CHANGES MORE THAN GEOGRAPHY