IS PLASTIC BAD FOR THE ENVIRINMENT?

      Plastic is extremely bad for the environment. It is one of man's worst inventions. Plastic is non-biodegradable. This means that waste plastic cannot be turned into any other substance that is eco friendly. Although tonnes and tonnes of plastic are burned in the most advanced incinerators, all that remains in plastic. It doesn't change into anything else, as many other materials do. Hence plastic waste is dangerous to the environment.
      Plastic carry bags reach the drainage system and this causes clogging especially during the rains. If too much plastic ends up in a lake or a pond, it creates a layer that denies oxygen to everything below so that no plant or animal life can survive in that water body. If animals eat plastic bags thrown in rubbish dumps, it knots up their intestines and they die painful deaths. If plastic lies on land, it can choke it to the extent that nothing will grow there again. Hence, plastics must be done away with completely.
      There are many alternatives to plastic and we should use them. For shopping we can use cloth or paper carry-bags. We can get milk in bottles or cardboard cartons. We can use metal containers to store things that are now stored in plastic containers. Many things now made of plastic can have better and eco-friendly  alternatives. So the earlier we say good bye to the plastic the safer be the future of the planet Earth.

SCIENCE AND MODERN INVENTIONS: A BLESSING OR A CURSE?

      Is science that has provided modern man a life of ease, leisure and pleasure. It has brought within the reach of common man comforts and luxuries that were available in the past only to the privileged few.
       Science has invented marvellous machines and discovered energies that run these machines to take the drudgery out of man's work. By doing much of his work and doing it fast, machines have provided man with a lot of leisure. The rosy dream of an easy and luxurious life has come true for him. Distance has been conquered. Modern means of transport and communication have made the Modern means of transport and communication have made the world a global village. Men and things and news and views can go around the globe today with lightening speed. Internet has brought people of the world together and brought about a reveolution in the fields of information and communication. Man has already landed on the moon and man- made satellites have made voyages through the solar system.
      Our life has become healthier and longer. Modern hygiene, sanitation, medicine and surgery are conquering more and more physical and mental illness with each passing day.We now know and experience the joys of good health and longevity. Through the cinema, the radio,, the tape recorder, the t.v and the video, science has worked wonders in the fields of education and entertainment.
      Though we welcome these blessings of science, we have to consider the other side of the picture also. Man has not been able to face the problems created by the inventions of science and to stop the misuse or harmful consequences of scientific inventions. Factories have polluted the water and the atmosphere. They have caused noise pollution.Industrialization have led to slums in which human beings live a degraded life in the midst of filth and squalor. We have allowed science to master us instead of keeping it our servant. Medical inventions have, led to the pollution explosion and the consequent miseries.
       Again, science has put in our hands terrible weapons such as the nuclear bombs, the guided missiles and the means of chemicals and biological warfare. We are in danger of destroying ourselves with these monstrous means that, ironically are our own creations. Rightly used science can bring heaven on earth. Wrongly used, it can turn this earth into hell.. What do you say about it?

DEMOCRACY; THE BEST FORM OF GOVERNMENT?

     Democracy is often defined as ' the government of the people, for the people and by the people'. Since the main stress in any democratic set-up depends on the people, democracy is the system that is the most acceptable. Every single individual in the country is part of the process of governing. The legislature is elected by the people. It makes laws for the people. The executive, selected from the legislature, runs the country from the people. If he is corrupt or fails in its duty, it will not be re- elected the next time.

     This does not mean that democracy is a perfect system. Democracy also has its drawbacks. It does not always guarantee the accountability of the elected representatives. Sometimes those who wield power may be corrupt.

      If democracy is to be effective, the people have to be alert. They must continuously keep track of the activities to those to whom they have given their votes. They must learn to raise their voice against injustice and corruption. 

      Democracy is better that the other forms of government such as monarchy and dictatorship. In both monarchy and and dictatorship, the ruler- individual or group - wields absolute power and the people have no remedy against its misuse. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. There is no individual freedom, freedom of speech or expression...

      The most important attribute of democracy is that everyone is treated equally before the law, irrespective of caste , creed or sex. Everyone is entitled to freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom of occupation and freedom to move throughout the country. The dignity of man is recognized and respected. People are given ample opportunities to move ahead in life...

MAHATMA GANDHI...

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869 at Porbandar in Gujarat.
     His parents were Kaba Gandhi and Putli Bai. As a student he was brilliant and from a very early age displayed and fostered virtues of honestly and truthfulness.. He completed his school and college education in Gujarat. Mohandas then went to England to study law and became a barrister. On completing his studies in law in 1893 he went to South Africa to practise there. It was here that his eyes were opened to the maltreatment of the Indians. His sentiments rose high and he felt he had to do something about it..
        Gandhiji returned to India and started a movement to make the people aware that all must help to free India from British Rule. He used non-violent methods and asked all Indians to practise Swadeshi- the use of country made things. Gandhiji led the way by using only Khadi clothes. He suffered a lot at the hands of the British rulers and and was sent to jail on a number of occasions. The 'Quit India' movement and the "Non- Cooperation" movement played a great part in the freedom of India,which was eventually dawned on August 15, 1947.
      On January 30, 1948 Gandhiji was shot dead by Nathuram Godse. In his last tragic moment he prayed for God's help....

RABINDRANATH TAGORE...

   Rabindrantah Tagore is the greatest Indian poet. He was born in May 6, 1861 at Jorasanka in Kolkata. His parents were Maharsi Debendranath Tagore and Sarada Devi.
    Rabindranath was educated at home and he was adverse to stuying within the confines of four walls. Under the tutelage of private teachers, he was exposed to various subjects. He began writing poems at a very early age.
    Tagore is famous today for the thousands of poems, songs,dramas,friction,short stories, essays and articles he has written. His works are famous all over the world. He was the first Indian to recieve the Nobel Prize for his poetic creation " Gitanjali" in 1913.
     Added to his credit is the fact that Tagore was also a painter, a philosoper and a great patroit. He is the composer of our National Anthem, "Jana Gana Mana"
     Above all was Rabindranath's love for children. He used to lose himself in joy when teaching little children. He used to lose himself in joy when teaching little children. His interest in the education of children led him to concieve a much better and healthier education. To more than a generation of Indians, he stands in the position of a great teacher who taught them to learn a beautiful languagein the finer shades of poetic art. He has opened to us the beauties of nature. He started the school "Shantiniketan" at Bolpur in the Bhirbhum district of West Bengal. Today it has become a famous university,"Visva Bharti", which is open to students from all over the world....

JAWAHARLAL NEHRU...

Jawaharlal Nehru, son of Motilal Nehru, was born in Allahabad on November 14, 1889.
    he was sent to England for his studies to keep him away from polotics, but his father soon realised that this was quite futile.
    The first Prime Minister of free India, Jawaharlal Nehru became the Congress President first in 1929- 30, and then several times later.
    Nehru was guided by the spirit of democracy and freedom. He was the world's greatest democrat. He was a dreamer and an idealist. His achievements are innumerable and  unmatched. He was one of the greatest captains of the freedom struggle, a man who was next only to gandhiji in his contribution to the shaping of the struggle for which he was in and out of jail. He wrote beautiful letters to his daughter from jail.
     Nehru was India's Prime Minister for seventeen years. It cannot be denied that he laid the foundation of our democracy, our secularism and our policy which is comparable to that of the rest of the world.
     Nehru was a cultured man, polished and polite. He was sincere to his friends, devoted to his wife, affectionate to his daughter and an ideal brother. He loved children very much and he was called "Chacha Nehru" by them. So rightly "Children's Day is celebrated on his birthday. He had a sense of humour that was spontaneous and very original. He had a great sense of duty and believed in the dignity of labour.
      Jawaharlal Nehru died on May 27, 1964....

EXAMINATIONS: A NECESSARY EVIL..

     Most students dread the world ' examination'. But this is something they have to face right from primary school to higher centers of learning. They would probaly have a great sigh of relief if the world was altogether deleted from the dictionary. The reasons are not far to seek.
     The whole career of a student depends on what he is able to write during the short duration of an examination. If he suddenly takes ill or he is unlucky enough to get a tough question paper, he fails, his future is ruined. Examiners have no knowledge of his all- round performance during the academic year. They go just by what is written in the answer paper. Again, assessment varies from examiner to examiner. It does not, in any way, reflect the real merit of the students. Examinations kill student's genuine interest in study and give importance only to cramming. Examinations have become mere games of chance and guessing.
     All this is admitted by everyone. Yet no other method of testing students on a mass scale has as yet been devised. So, examinations have become a necessary evil. But, if there were no examinations, it is likely that the majority of students would not bother to study al all. We would never be able to separate the brilliant students from the average ones. Then whom would we select for higher professional training?

POLLUTION...

    Pollution is the damage caused to the environment by harmful substances or waste. Pollution is our enemy number one today. Modern civilization and material progress have resulted in pollution everywhere; in the atmosphere, on land, in the seas and in the rivers.
   Our air is polluted by smoke, gases and chemicals emitted by vehicles and factories. Besides this, there is noise pollution in big cities caused by vehicles, machines, loudspeakers and crackers. Pollution poisons the air and harms the ozone layer of the earth that protects us from the radiation of the sun. If the ozone layer is destroyed, mankind will perish. Atomic radiation also pollutes the air causing terrible health hazards.
    Tonnes of industrial and chemical waste are thoughtlessly dumped into our rivers lakes and seas and they kiss fish and other marine life. Unplanned growth of cities brings about more and more slums where dirt, disease and death breed.
    We must take immediate and effective steps to fight pollution. We must reduce vehicular and factory smoke. We much shift industries away from the cities. We must stop the dumping of chemical wastes into our rivers, lakes and seas. We must grow more trees, protect our forests, and have have more gardens and open spaces. The sooner effective steps are taken the better it will be for mankind...

BOOKS- OUR BEST FRIENDS

    Good books enrich the mind by providing knowledge. They also widen the horizons of our imagination an give us an insight into different minds. If a man is known by the company he keeps, why should we not, then keep the best company; that of good books? Good literature entertains, instructs, and elevates. It takes us on a flight of fancy, away from our humdrum lives, to a place or country we want to visit without having to pay for the passage.
     Pleasures derived from eating or playing sports are short lived or ordinary, but the pleasure that we derive from reading books is everlasting and fantastic. Even after we have finished reading a book, we continue to think about it and derive pleasure from it.
    To derive maximum from reading, we have to gradually pass on from comics, detective novels, magazines and simple storybooks to classic literature. Just like friends, the quality of the books that we read also determine the kind of person we are. Good books will enrich our personalities and it is these kinds of books that we should to when we have the leisure...

HOME, SWEET HOME..

    'Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home'. These famous words immortalize the importance of the home. Indeed, luxurious castles and glittering palaces seem nothing in comparison with the peace and serenity that even the humblest hut provides.
    'Home is where the heart is'. All our innermost feelings, affection and devotion are concentrated in that one little place in the world, the place where we have been brought up, that is our home. It is the place to which we keep returning to all the time; it is the place which we can never erase from our minds.
    Children grow up. They get married. They raise their own families. But nothing excites and pleases a person so much as a reunion with one's brothers and sisters and their families in the place where they have grown up together. They share the beautiful feeling of oneness with their own family.
    It is the mother who contributes most of the sweetness of the home. She provides everything that makes a house a home- orderliness, comforts, peace, love and security. She is the cement that holds the home together. Each member of the family in their own way contributes and adds to the sweetness of that loveliest place on the earth, The Home...