The very idea had been implemented as early as the 1990s. A riveting concept which had been bought into life in hopes to ease the process of voting system and enhance technology and politics altogether. But what is i-voting?

According to the California Internet Task Force, in 1999 the definition adopted by them was “Casting of a secure vote and secret electronic ballot that is transmitted to the officials over the internet.” It had been accepted that i-voting is a sub type of e-voting. Now what is e-voting? Electronic is simply the means to cast a ballot via broader range of electronic telecommunications technology including telephones, cable, and satellite and computers without the internet.

To advance this piece of technology, bills have been passed to initiate the study of i-voting, the countries included Washington and Minnesota, Australia, France, Switzerland, and these bills were passed in the 1990s. Soon after, in 2005, Estonia finally became the very first country to implement the system of i-voting for their general elections. Did the mock trials turn out to be cost effective? The answer would be a big no, for the reason even though an infinitesimal group was involved in the testing, giving birth to what seemed as a hypothetical project requires large investments as well as piloting the new system.

So, when does India come into the picture? Gujarat was one the states in India to conduct mock trials for e-voting in 2015 but unfortunately did not turn out to give the expected success rate. In fact, recently, the Senior Deputy Election Commissioner Mr. Sandeep Saxena claimed “the concept of ‘blockchain’ technology is a two-way electronic voting system, in a co trolled environment, on-white-listed IP devices on dedicated internet lines, enabled with biometric devices and a web camera". Unfortunately, this did not indicate the freedom of voting from home. It was quite the opposite, the voters still had to be physically present on the day assigned as well as the Time and Venue. The Deputy went on to explain "two-way block chain remote voting" consisted of a two-step verification and authorisation process using a multi-layered IT enabled which would be working on the EC's e-Governance award winning Electoral Registration Officer Network (ERO Net) using biometrics and web cameras.

Upon approval, a personalized e-ballot paper will be generated which will be encrypted generating blockchain hashtag. Even though the technology is advancing for the greater good, it still needs a way to reach the expatriates and military personnel.

The advancement of technology can be seen as a boon or a bane. It can be a boon for those who do not continue to live in their hometown, expatriates and military personnel. There is a possibility the voter turnout may increase effectively. But the issue which stands in the way of its adaptation are the security concerns. The very channel or medium is prone to cyber-attacks, which is the reason why it’s commencement should include a small sector of people, which may include, Universities, Private Organisations etc. Restricting the votes to a certain section of people may reduce the possibility of cyber-attacks and in fact turn out to be a boon, especially amidst the pandemic.

Do you think with the introduction of i-voting in private organisations can turn to be an impressive tactical method for the company in decision making as well as conducting Executive Officer or Single Winner Elections-?

The pandemic had resulted in a halt over everyone’s education, careers, livelihoods, but for the fraudsters in Sydney. These grifters have a fresh way to make their living now, and they chose the Chinese students who’ve been stranded in the unknown land, away from their homes as their new means of income.

The process they follow as these scam artists after choosing their victims, they tend to blackmail them to release sensitive information. In order to avoid that the victims are forces to stage their own kidnapping and make the abduction seem genuine and send this recording as a proof to their relatives in China which will help them obtain the ransom. They deliver the messages to thousands of random phone numbers purporting to be from a messenger service. It is a robocalls and says a package needs to be delivered.

On Tuesday, the police in New South Wales confirmed of eight such cases had occurred with ransom one case confirmed that the family paid $2 million and in others the price range was between a few thousand dollars to more than $200,000, of kidnapping which never took place. A young, 21-year old woman was a victim of such a scam. The video she sent to her family in China seemed genuine to them where the student seemed to be in pain and pleaded for their help in an unreleased location in Australia. A few hours later the female’s housemate information the police in Sydney on July 14, she was found be safe at a hotel where she lured by the perpetrators.

The victims in Australia return calls from someone who greets in Mandarin and ask for their basic identity information or that they have been implicated in a crime in China as the person claims to be speaking from the Chinese Government or the Chinese embassy or some other authority. In some cases, the students were also persuaded to not to contact their families for days in order to root a possibility that the student might in danger.

What seemed unusual to the police that after the ransom was paid, the victims were found safe and sound the very next day. The reason the affected students did not report this crime was that they felt ashamed of reporting it in the first place, still traumatised and frightened of the fact that their information might be leaked or that their parents won’t spare them.

"The victims of virtual kidnappings we have engaged are traumatised by what has occurred, believing they have placed themselves, and their loved ones, in real danger," said NSW Police.

According to the advocate for the international students in Australia, made a statement where the person assured that the international students have been the most vulnerable amidst this unfortunate situation. The reason of this he claimed to be was the student’s reliance on casual work and their exclusion from the government welfare.

"Students can do two important things to protect themselves against these types of crimes - firstly, be aware they exist and secondly, ask for help early if they think it might be happening to them or someone they know," advised the NSW Police.

Now there also have been new reports from New Zealand and the United States.

Ambitious, young aspirants, striving to achieve their dreams move away from the comfort of their own homes and set foot in a foreign land to start their journey. The very experience traumatizes a few, not knowing how to deal with it or whom to turn into for help. It is unfortunate to see such bilks are reprobates are on the lookout for such naïve persons to make their living through them. The Government should stringent the laws and take firm actions.

In the 21st century, advancement of technology has reached new heights, one of the most illustrious examples is visible is the Agricultural Technology. As the word suggests, the technology is not used for the improvement of agricultural yield which includes horticulture but also aquaculture. The aim of the very field is simple, to improve yield, efficiency and profability.

The field requires the skills to manoeuvre drones, Light and heat control and utilizes Satellite photography and sensors, IoT-based sensor networks, Phase tracking, Weather forecasts, Automated irrigation, Intelligent software analysis for pest and disease prediction, soil management and other involved analytical tasks. The field of Biotechnology helps developing hybrid plants which are able to adapt to the changing environment of earth.

The water quality for hydroponic system matters to a great deal as the of it will decide the success of the farm. Since the drinking water for humans is often treated with chemicals, most commonly used, chlorine, it makes it harder for the plants to grow. Although it might be safe for human consumption, it reduces the ability of the plants to absorb nitrate and phosphate nutrients. The hard quality of water damages the system of plants as the plants have to spend more energy to absorb the nutrients from it and completely absorb it. Additionally, it can result in the formation of solid calcium carbonate which causes scaling on pipes and pumps. To combat this issue, boiling of water is highly recommended to activate the filter to remove chlorine. A Reverse Osmosis filter is recommended to combat the issue of chemicals and organisms like bacteria or pathogen that can attack the plants.

The use of technology has reached a new level. Instead of using a sprayer to kill the weeds, it can also have a catastrophic effect on the crops. To overcome this, farming robots have been introduced where they use the sensors and vision systems to identify the weeds directly with pesticides. An eminent example of this includes small motors FAULHABER DC micromotors. The dimensions of these are extremely small which start from 1.9 millimetres (mm) in diameter which are ideal for agritech robot applications.

Since the advancement of the technological field, large and heavy machines have certainly lifted the burden off the shoulders of farmers but the heavy movement of these machines leads to compaction of the soil which eventually leads to poorer crop yields and increased pollution from agricultural land. By using light machinery, it avoids the problems stated above and also reduces the use of harmful pesticides and overall can improve the health of the soil. The choice of motor used in farming robots can make a significant difference to its overall performance — helping the industry to continue to reap what they sow. These are a few examples of the benefits of the field of agricultural technology, the promising field is constantly trying to ensure the eradication of the issues faced in the field of agriculture, which hopefully, someday will be achieved.

Image Reference: https://blog.upes.ac.in/evolution-of-agritech-experts-show-the-way/

For anybody whose once normal everyday life was suddenly shattered by an act of sexual violence– the trauma, the terror, can shatter you long after one horrible attack. It lingers. You don’t know where to go or who to turn to…and people are more suspicious of what you were wearing or what you were drinking, as if it’s your fault, not the fault of the person who assaulted you…We still don’t condemn sexual assault as loudly as we should. We make excuses, we look the other way…[Laws] won’t be enough unless we change the culture that allows assault to happen in the first place.

- President Barack Obama, September 2014

It isn’t news to hear the skepticism a victim of rape or sexual harassment faces. There’s no perfect world but what I expect from this world is sympathy/empathy for the person who has gone through a traumatic experience. Everyday hundreds of reports are filed with the police of rape or sexual assault and unfortunately, this has been normalised to an extent that the news fails to astonish us. The question is, why is this being normalised?

 

Research on sexual assault and victim blame typically focuses on one of two perspectives. The first perspective focuses on the features of the observer as they influence victim blaming tendencies, which is referred to as individual factors. The “rape perception framework,” is the second perspective focus where the aspects of the victim, perpetrator, or characteristics of the assault are focused on as they influence victim blame. This is referred to as situational factors. One critical factor affecting victim blame is the societal and institutional factors. These forces refer to the border cultural influences which include gender roles, media, and rhetoric surrounding sexual assault that contribute to an overall environment promoting victim blame.

The researches, while conducting their study, a sexual assault had been divided in three categories: stranger rape, date/acquaintance rape, and marital rape. As the name suggests, stranger rape is where the perpetrator has no prior connection to the victim, not even of an acquaintance, where if the perpetrator turns out to be someone of whom the victim had a prior relation to, such as a friend, classmate, or someone she has gone on a few dates with, then it is classified as an acquaintance or date rape. Please note that “date rape” is also used to describe assaults that occur in established relationships. Finally, the sexual assault which occurs in a marriage, i.e. a forceful physical relationship consummated by the husband is deemed as marital rape.

Although Victims of stranger rape are the least likely to be blamed for their assault; victims of marital rape are much more likely to be found culpable. Even though blaming a victim of sexual trauma may seem straightforward but it varies in terms of literature. Researchers typically present participants with a scenario of a sexual assault case, accordingly, some researchers assess blame, others assess perceived responsibility, others utilize a combination of both blame and responsibility, and still others assess related constructs. Blame is defined as a value judgment of the extent to which one should be held accountable for (and perhaps suffer from) a negative event.

Some judgements were influenced by gender. The researched came up with two possible hypothesis which are contradictory, to explain the reason of discrimination. On the one hand, because rape is mainly a concern of women, they might be expected to blame less as a function of ingroup solidarity. On the other hand, “just world” ideology might suggest they might blame more: Precisely because of the greater threat that sexual assault poses to women, victim blaming may help women distance themselves from the reality that they could be victimized themselves. In a study, women were found to blame the victim significantly less than men.

Rape Myth Endorsement is problematic because rape myth scales focus on stranger rape and assesses beliefs about rape at a general rather than specific level. RME is used to assess (in some matters) the blame suffered by the victim in particular rape cases. Rape Myth Endorsement is significantly correlated with restrictive beliefs about women’s roles and rights. According to Simonson and Subich’s study, they found that after controlling for gender role endorsement, their finding that men blamed the victim more than women was eliminated; gender role attitudes may be a stronger predictor of blame than participant gender Kailash Vijayvargiya, "It [rape] is a social crime which depends on the man and the woman. It is sometimes right and sometimes wrong," Mr Babulal Gaur claimed.

It is desolating to hear from the people who are elected to improve their respective regions for good. Blaming the victim for not wearing appropriate clothes, defaming them just because they were intoxicated, judging her character by the time of night the person reaches home is not acceptable. The fact the victim experienced “frozen fright” during the incident and wasn’t in the right state of mind to defend themselves is not called asking for it. Her clothes don’t justify the statement that she had it coming, her intoxication doesn’t justify the statement that she had it coming, the time of night when she’s out doesn’t justify the statement that she had it coming. The sentence “she had it coming” is absolutely wrong in itself. She doesn’t have a significance only by being a daughter, mother, sister, she has her own identity. RESPECT THAT INDIVIDUALITY.

picture reference- http://www.thestorypedia.com/news/short-clothes-do-not-cause-rapes-men-in-short-clothes-make-the-point/">http://www.thestorypedia.com/news/short-clothes-do-not-cause-rapes-men-in-short-clothes-make-the-point/<;/a>

The normalcy till December 2019 is dearly missed by the people across the globe, with no restrictions, stepping out at any time of the day, be it to simply hang out with friends or to sit and have a little “me time” at the café. The sudden outbreak of the deadly virus has affected people of all age groups. The normalcy was an excuse for some to escape the toxic environment of home and take a break from the reality. Alas, 2020 wasn’t in their favour.

Since the lockdown had been implement worldwide, the aim was to eradicate the spread of the virus and eventually, the virus itself. Confining themselves at home, the mental health wasn’t given much of a thought, with the routine life coming to a halt altogether.

For children, they found comfort and pastime in extreme exposure in front of Television screens, and gadgets supporting the usage of internet. In a study it was found for such a prolonged exposure can lead to lower the child’s self-esteem with the internet proving out to lead in an addiction disorder in many. With limited external interaction, the “indoor pollution” can affect the development of a child and hence results in limited cognitive abilities. Internet is a home to cyberattacks as we as cyber bullying, henceforth, affecting the mental of a child. Therefore, the children plunge themselves in an ocean of depression, anxiety, avoidance behaviour and even PTSD. The same set of problems are faced by children who have been confined in the hospitals from being infected by the deadly virus, especially with the rise of reports in children being sexually harassed during the confinement, the child lives through a traumatic experience without anyone to turn into, apart from their family takes a toll on the child.

A drastic impact proved to be on students and adults living away from home and migrant laborers stranded in their temporary homes, for those living on rent, it put them in a tough situation for them to pay the rent before the regulation of work from home came into effect.  Most adults drove into the decoy of satisfaction by online pornography. The disruption in most people’s sexual lives persuaded the individuals to use such platform to cope up from the on-going stress of rendered jobless with a deadly virus outbreak, living afar from their beloveds, which sadly could lead to depressive symptoms.

Another age group drastically affected by this were the elderly and sick. For those who were assigned caregivers to look after the sick, now were rendered helpless and alone in their homes. Such people are also known to have a higher risk of acquiring an infection, and for those who continued with their jobs were left in wonderment if they weren’t the carriers of the infection which could affect them and their families.

This year also saw an alarming rise within the cases of Domestic Violence alone. Between March 25 and May 31, 2020, 3,11,477 complaints were recorded which were made by women. The complaints recorded within a 68-day period were higher than those recorded between March and May in last 10 years. Delhi and U.P. saw the highest number of complains, followed by Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. According to the data, 86% of women who were victims to the violence during that period never sought help, 77% victims didn’t mention the dreadfulness of the situation to anyone.  Women faced Physical, Sexual and even both. The highest number of sufferers documented were the ones who faced Sexual Abuse, which summed up to about 80.6 who never dared to tell anyone. For those who had reported the incidents were 14% but only 7% reached out to relevant authorities, but more than 90% of the victims sought help only from their immediate family.

A study was conducted by a team of researchers via an online survey which was proliferated over the social media between May 9 to May 15, 2020, using an anonymous Google form. The team used items like anxiety, depressive symptoms, symptoms of internet addiction, pornography addiction, experiences of hostility, changes in food and sleep habits, social empathy and relationship quality, to construct the overall picture of social and psychological experience during the lockdown period. They also conducted 14 qualitative interviews from May 10 to May 17, 2020. The subjects were self-selected by broad social media invitations. The survey included a total of 282 Indian adults, in which ¾ of people belonged to the age group of 30 years and younger. Following the figures, 88% were educated beyond the 12th standard about 81% were urban residents.

The concluded with depressive symptoms, higher amongst those who an addiction towards pornography. The presence of depressive and anxiety symptoms was expected and linked to a higher chance of self-reported sleep disorder and changes in food patterns. For those who were connected with their loved ones and shared their vulnerabilities shoed more social empathy and better social relationships.

The researchers concluded by stating, “To our knowledge, this is the first study to look at the differential psychological impact of the lockdown across different social groups in India. Our study also highlighted a few positive aspects of the lockdown, underscoring the increase in social empathy and strengthened social bonds among Indian adults.”

Image source-https://www.cedars-sinai.org/blog/hidden-symptoms-of-stress.html

It is out there to be serious about mental health these days, specially with the numerous cases of suicides which been rising. But how aware are the citizens of India about the exodus of children who have been victims of PTSD amidst the political insurgency for decades?

Kashmir, a pulchritudinous state of India, now declared as a union territory (UT) has been a victim of the political skirmish which has, in turn, diddled the indigenous beings of Kashmir leading to death of thousands of people including family members, sexual abuse, damage to property and various natural disasters, namely- earthquake and snowstorms. According to reports, majority of the people suffer from PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). As the name suggests, the psychiatric disorder arises in wake of traumatic events. The events are digested and affect each person differently. 

In Kashmir, majority of the children are diagnosed with PTSD. The age group to which these children belong to were above 6 years of age and maximum belonged to 11-15 years of age. The children diagnosed with Abnormalities in brain electrical activity on electroencephalogram were also noted. Children with PTSD were found to perform poorly by affecting their attention, abstract reasoning and executive functioning. Children diagnosed with PTSD were detected in schools because of their behavioural changes and their deteriorate performances. Maximum minors affected belong to rural areas as compared to the urban areas.  Following the figures, 75% of the children belonged to the lower middle class, followed by middle class which entailed 25% respectively. 

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder consists of risk factors which affects the children to a great extent; lower educations, lower intelligence, absence to social support, sexual harassment, lower socio-economic status, family history of psychiatry illness, multiple traumatic events- are some of the risk factors. Unfortunately, 49% of the children have been witnesses to death of a family member or close friends, followed by arrest, torture of a close relative or being caught up in cross-firing and hearing about the death of a close relative. It is absolutely unimaginable as to what the future of this country has to go through. Kashmir has been regarded as the place called “heaven on earth” but the heaven contains a hell within which largely ignored. Amidst this turmoil , the emphasis ought to be put on the psychological distress, a scar invisible yet the power of changing the entire personality of the human being, affecting the course of their actions and changing the outlook of life, for life.

The destruction of educational infrastructure, in addition to the unlawful detentions, leaves a lifelong impact on children, perpetuating a cycle of trauma, fear and bitterness. The literacy rate in Kashmir is 54.4% as compared to some parts of India, which have resulted in 65% 

The following 3 dimensions which were focussed were shown by the affected for a month which proved them to have paediatric PTSD- 

1. The affected re-experienced the event with deteriorate recollections in the form of dreams, flashbacks, with psychological and psychical distress.

2. They persistently avoided the stimuli associated with trauma that might recall the memories or events of the trauma.

3. There was also an increase in arousal in the form of hyper vigilance and exaggerated startled response, experienced difficulty in sleep, irritability.

In children older than 6 years, there was a repetitive play occurred in which themes or aspects of traumatic events were expressed. They also experienced frightening dreams without recognizable content, a dream which the minors aren’t able to express and even dissociative reactions (eg flashbacks) in which they felt the traumatic events were recurring. Such reactions may occur in continuum, and the most extreme expression of their feeling is expressed by complete loss of awareness of the present reactions.

The unfortunate events lead to persistent and exaggerated negative beliefs about the oneself, others and even the world. In other words, they express themselves by stating, “I am Bad”, “The world is bad and dangerous”, “My whole life is ruined” or “My entire nervous system is ruined”. This leads them to have distorted cognition about the cause and consequences of the events which leads them to blame themselves or others for it.

In order to recover from this the children are subjected to maladaptive method of coping. It was recorded that females prefer for maladaptive method of coping more than males who were associated with PTSD in Kashmir. Most of these patients were even aware what they suffering from and indulged in self-medication, for even somatic issues which included headaches, stomach aches, palpitations, breathlessness, anxiety, panic attacks, loss of appetite etc, which eventually leads to addiction. Popularly benzodiazepine, opioids, and cannabis. In contrast to world reports, alcohol was the used the least (4.8%).

Amidst this turmoil, the children residing in a place regarded as “heaven on earth” go through hell every single day. Not a single day can they have a goodnight’s sleep, a sleep without the fret of being a victim to the worst thought of never seeing the face of a family member anytime. three-year-old boy described the sequence of events leading to the killing of his grandfather. The minor had been subjected to extreme events, events from which even veterans aren’t able to cope up from.  

Picture reference: https://medium.com/@ovaiskarni /psychological-impact-of-armed-conflict-on-kashmiri-children-97c76e77bef1

In the obituary to Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy, the British Medical Journal wrote, “… at his professional zenith, he may have had the largest consulting practice in the world, news of his visit to a city or even railway station bringing forth hordes of would-be patients.”

On July 1, 1882, is marked and celebrated in honour of one of the most legendary physicians and the second chief minister of West Bengal, Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy. Born in Patna, Bengal Presidency, British India, he did his graduation on Mathematician which was followed by study of Medicine in University of Calcutta. A stalwart, he chose to aspire for perfection and went to England to join the prestigious St. Bartholomew’s Hospital in London but unfortunately was denied admission in the first attempt. The issue was of the origin from which came; the boy from Asian continent. Persistent, he was accepted in the university after 30 attempts.

Eventually, he went on and became a prestigious Member of the of the Royal College of Physicians (MRCP) and a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons (FRCS), after his post-graduation in 1911. He believed that medicine would help Indians remain fit, physically which will in turn help them pursue their dream of freedom.  He played an integral role in the establishment of medical institutions like Jadavpur T.B. Hospital, Chittaranjan Seva Sadan, Kamala Nehru Memorial Hospital, Victoria Institution, Chittaranjan Cancer Hospital and the Chittaranjan Seva Sadan for women and children. He even opened centres for women, where they could train in social work and nursing.

Apart from being a successful physician, he was elected for the All India Congress Committee in 1928. Dr. Roy also conducted the Civil Disobedience in Bengal in 1929 and he prompted Pandit Motilal Nehru to nominate him as the member of the Working Committee (CWC) in 1930. It was on 26 August 1930, that he was arrested along with his members of the CWC and detained at Alipore Central Jail as the committee was declared to be unlawful.

In 1931, when Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi lead the Dandi March many members of the Calcutta Corporation were imprisoned. He was as the Alderman of the Corporation from 1930–31 and as the Mayor of Calcutta from 1931 to 1933 and under his leadership, the cooperation made humongous expansions of free education, free medical aid, better roads, improved lighting, and water supply, alongside he set the framework of dispensing grant-in-aid to hospitals and charitable dispensaries.

National Doctor’s day was established by the Government of India in 1991 to commemorate the contributions of awardee of Bharat Ratna on 4 February 1961, which is India's highest civilian honour. In addition to this, the day has been marked for a tribute to all the doctors across the country. The aim of this ay is to make the citizens aware of the roles, importance, and responsibilities of the doctors as well as promote medical professionals to come closer and follow the responsibilities of their profession very dedicatedly.

This year themes were declared Indian Medical Association, which is 'Lessen the mortality of COVID-19' The theme is decided keeping in mind the larger scale issue related to the medical field and the professionals and doctors. 

Summoning the contributions made by “National Doctor” along with the constant dedications of the doctors culminated to be celebrated in a single day, which may not seem enough, especially during the unfortunate ongoing situation; the Covid-19 Pandemic. Pulling in hours in work, treating several thousand patients indefatigably for several hours straight is a sedulous quality which these medicos successfully personify the very word. India cannot be more thankful and indebt to the doctors for all the efforts they put in to save lives of millions every day.

The government of India on Monday, June 28, 2020 announced yet another astounding news across the country. All Chinese app which are available for android as well as iOS users will be banned, effective immediately, as a result of which a day later, one of the most installed apps; Tik Tok has been taken down from Google Playstore and Apple’s Appstore.

Considering the uproar against Tik Tok which was a result of the CarryMinati’s video which has been eradicated from the popular platform of YouTube, titled “YouTube vs Tik Tok.” The war between content creators comparing the mediums and unity within the community while CarryMinati’s video was reported for harassment and cyberbullying. Following this, the content was critically analysed on the app and hence, brought on a huge negativity on the platform. All this while the apps functionality was also analysed which revealed the Chinese apps were engaged activities which are prejudicial to sovereignty and of India, Defence of India and security and state of public order.

For those who have installed the app “Tik Tok” have received an alert which read “Dear users, we are in the process of complying with the Government of India’s directive to block 59 apps. Ensuring this privacy and security of all our users in India remains our utmost priority.” It has also been claimed by some users that they’ve been facing difficulty whilst scrolling through their feed or they’re unable to it at all and some are even unable to upload videos and a pop-up flashes “network issue.” One explanation to this can be that the telecom operators must have blocked Tik Tok until the government’s next order.

This has also resulted in a moment of cheer for Carry’s fans who had helped trend a hashtag fancied in his name #justiceforcarry  following the removal of the video. Many also felt that the 21-year-old YouTuber predicted the End of Tik Tok.

According to the Digital Forensics, an Open Technology Fund contracted Cure53, which a Germany based cybersecurity firm, examined the Chinese apps by disuniting the app and determining its capabilities. The researchers investigated the Android version of the app, used in smartphones manufactures by Oppo, vivo etc. as in iOS does not allow the type of “superuser” surveillance to be conducted. Although it wasn’t possible to assess the apps functionalities due to the code designed to thwart the attempts to dissect the app, It managed to expose that the code manages to open a back door to the users phone, this, in turn grants the developer of the app tantamount right to the users phone, allowing to download any software, modify files and, install a program to log key strokes, have access to all the messages as well as pictures and even allows them to turn on the microphone as per their will.

This study was reported in the United States of America.

In India, the recommendation of the intelligence agencies backed by the National Security Council Secretariat supported the take of the decision which could be detrimental to the country’s security, a report which was claimed by an unnamed government official. The Ministry of Information Technology received complaints from various sources regarding the misuse of some application in transmission of data in an unauthorized manner to servers with location outside India. The Indian Intelligence agency red flagged these Chinese apps as it challenged the privacy concerns of the users. They were left with two choices, either advice people to not to use the apps or ban the use of it once n for all.

Official press released on the ban of these apps, the Ministry of Information Technology claimed, “invoking it’s power under section 69A of the Information Technology Act read with the relevant provisions of the Information Technology (Procedure and Safeguards for Blocking of Access of Information by Public) Rules 2009 and in view of the emergent nature of threats has decided to block 59 apps ( see Appendix) since in view of information available they are engaged in activities which is prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order.” Adding to their statement, “upon receiving of recent credible inputs that such Apps pose threat to sovereignty and integrity of India, the Government of India has decided to disallow the usage of certain Apps, used in both mobile and non-mobile Internet enabled devices. This move will safeguard the interests of crores of Indian mobile and internet users. This decision is a targeted move to ensure safety and sovereignty of Indian cyberspace.”

The step has proved to the assurance that India is not only on the verge but it is going to prove it is “atmanirbhar.” The ban on the applications also imply the intensive invasiveness is unacceptable by India and that the relation between the two countries cannot be mended. India has officially made it’s relations with the country loud and clear.

The list of the apps banned is as follows-

Inaugurated in August of 2016, the portal of Governments e-commerce platform (GeM) hosted by DGS&D wherein goods of a common user can which includes services can be procured.  This portal focuses on purchases made by government officers. It is user friendly, self-sustaining and dynamic.

The Public procurement forms a very important part of the government activity and caters the needs of MSMEs. GeM is not only an e-commerce platform but also renders a range of services for the online businesses running in India which includes Company Incorporation, GST Registration, ISO certification, Import Export Code, MSME Registration, Trademark, Copyright, Patent, Tax Return filing, do accounting, legal and financial compliance(s).

India has faced trade imbalance which is heavily in favour of China and with the ongoing border dispute between the two countries has given rise to a nationalist sentiment which has, in turn, driven the citizens of India even more to be “vocal for local” and boycott the Chinese products and services. The Union Government has stipulated that all the sellers to specify the country of origin while registering new products, whereas hitherto the sellers with registered products have been receiving regular warnings where they will be obliterated if they don’t update the information regarding the same.

The commerce & industry ministry has seen Rs 55,048 crore worth of transactions till now, are in the approach of invoking the interest of “Atamnirbhar Bharat” (self-reliant India). “Sellers who have already uploaded their products before introduction of this new feature on the GeM, are being reminded regularly to update the country of origin. It’s with a warning that their products will be removed from the GeM if they fail to update," said the Ministry on Tuesday. 

All central and state governments, related to public sector agencies are mandated to directly purchase common-use goods and services solely through GeM. A provision of indication of percentage has been enabled of the percentage of local products. Class I and Class II (local content greater than 20 per cent) local suppliers are exclusively are allowed to bid on bids which stand below ₹ 200 crores with Class (local content greater than 50 per cent) suppliers getting purchase preference.

The country’s two largest purchases are the ministries of defence and railways which are subsumed under GeM. Therefore, by September, all the goods and services which have been purchased by the Railways and Defence through the Indian Railways E-Procurement Systems, the Defence e-Procurement portal, and the Central Public Procurement portal, will have to be made through the GeM, said officials.

The encouragement towards the policy of self- reliance has led to 395,081 sellers and service providers and according to recent reports, the portal brandishes 1.83 million separate products and services. 

Writing about the members of a community which has been facing prejudices from time immemorial is not easy. The apartheid faced are intense which can easily destruct the very person’s mental stability, driving them to take a step as of taking their own lives. Even whilst the death of an actor has enraged millions which drove everyone to post the trending hashtag #mentalhealthmatters  makes them believe it will help those suffering. At some point of time we all have conjectured people, especially the hijras, from whom we’ve been taught maintain as much distance as we can. But why so? Are they genuinely forgetting about shiv and shakti or trying to ignore it?

Everything happens for a reason; our very existence, actions, everything.  Symbolism exists everywhere around as well in us. The union of Shiv and Shakti is one of the most thunderous and beautiful unification which represents numerous ideologies, one of them symbolising the third gender; transgender, similarly symbolising the importance of gender and harmony amongst them.

Recently, a boy from Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh committed suicide, why? Because apparently, he had feminine features and continued to live in a toxic environment in which his relatives and batchmates continued to bully him. According to his father, he sometimes used to apply make up and dance which he claimed to be a normal behaviour for a person of his age. His classmates drove him to believe he was a transgender. His note read as,

 “I’m sorry papa as I could not be a good son. I have girl-like features and even my face is like them. People laugh at me. Even I have started feeling that I am kinnar (transgender). My life will darken your life and that is the reason why my death is necessary. Please bless me that I take birth as a girl. If a girl is born in our family, then you must believe that I have returned.”

This not only highlights the dark side of the society but also how a school fails to broaden a child’s perspective. During the initial stages it is the parents from whom the child is most influenced by, and eventually, the school is the place where they broaden the perspective. How can idiosyncrasies be changed when the root problem hasn’t been addressed.

Even though India claims to be republic, it still consists of the certain marginalized communities which have been disfranchised and are made even more vulnerable, rendering them helpless. There are numerous other cases which imply the toxicity against the LGBT community.

Whilst travelling in a metro, I overheard a woman, in her late 40s, saying how thankful she was that her kids were “normal” and that her daughter and son were heterosexual. The very aspect of normalcy is befouling. People are not judged for the very nature they possess but on the preference of their sexuality. The war of their rights will unfortunately continue. Even after the abolishment of article 377, they do not have the freedom to celebrate their love by marrying the person they love, even after independence, it was a long journey for them to finally free themselves from the “indictment” and openly express their love, and still have a long journey ahead of them.

Following presented are some interesting facts which a school curriculum does not cover-

• The first U.S gay rights organization, “The Society for Human Rights” (SHR) was founded in 1924 by Henry Gerber, a German immigrant, which was disbanded in 1925 by police raids.


•  The first newsletter which gave voice to the obstacles faced by the community was “Friendship and Freedom”.


• Similarly, the first lesbian rights organization were formed was called “Daughters of Bilitis” with San Francisco being claimed as its birthplace on September 21, 1955.  

But what about India? In India, post-independence. Light was thrown on the community of the people of LGBT when the famous Mathematician Shakuntala Devi published the first study on homosexuality called “The world of Homosexuals”.

In 1977, All Inida-Hijra Conference was held in Agra where 50,000 members travelled to attend the conference!

Another day and yet another year in which the colours of the rainbow flail with pride, bringing a new perspective everyday of every month of every year. Then why is the entire month of June known as the Pride month?

The story behind the name travels back to 1960s, the time when same-sex relations were illegal in The United States of America. The history of this is particularly linked with the New York City. Since the relations were banned all around, the members of this community flocked to bars, clubs which were specifically designed for them, where they could express their true selves without any fear and restriction. Although the New York State Liquor Authority penalized and closed these bars, the activists legalised the rights for these bars to serve liquor, unfortunately, they were not allowed to display their affection publicly. Even though all bars couldn’t receive the liquor license, they still functioned with zeal as a major reason behind this was, they were backed up by the Mafia.

During this period, the Genovese crime family hegemonized the almost all the bars located in the Greenwich Village. One of them was the Stonewall Inn which was renovated into a gay bar in 1967. History states that the Genovese crime family bribed the sixth precinct of the NYPD to ignore the activities being effectuated. Because of the bribery, the family cut off costs which were required for the maintenance of the club. Which also lacked fire exits.

The very club stood out as it welcomed drag queen which faced prejudice in most of the clubs. The bar was only one of a few which allowed dancing.

The morning of June 28 changed the entire course of future thereafter, it was the day the NYPD raided the bar which came to the people as surprise. The raided ended up arresting 13 people which in turn included employees and people who manifested the courage to stand up against the gender appropriate clothing statute. The arrested were aggressively manhandled. This sparked an infuriating protest against the very riot, which also ended up in igniting the place. Numerous gay rights organizations which included GLAAD (formerly Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation), PFLAG (formerly Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays), etc. Therefore, thousands marched to the streets of Manhattan which was named “Christopher Street Liberation Day” with its official chant being: “SAY IT OUT LOUD, GAY IS PROUD!” The intensive street riots brought on by the enraged members of the community hoped to bring about a change and put an end to the discrimination faced by them for years, as a result of which June 28, 1970 marks one-year anniversary.

America’s 44th President; Barack H. Obama claimed the site of Stonewall Inn, Christopher Park, and the surrounding streets and sidewalks as a national monument in 2016, in respect to the contribution made for the gay rights.

Gradually, to commemorate the very sacrifices, the month experienced a series of events, each year to even more successful than the last, with youth finally accepting their true selves. Unfortunately, they still have a long way to go worldwide.