The tyranny of NEET

Preparing for a competitive exam is always difficult, and especially an exam like NEET, needless to say, extracts so much from the students. From sleepless nights to endless sacrifices made just to write the exam well, the students wait in hopeful expectation, only to find that the question paper has been leaked. One can only imagine the pain, intense frustration of the students- who, despite giving it all in the exams are eventually faced with the brutal reality of having to write the exam again and start from the scratch.

Many students took their lives due to fear of the future and unspeakable agony. In times such as this, the head of the state(in this case, Narendra Modi) should have at least addressed the issue by delivering a statement, or addressed it in an interview, or convened a press conference. But none of such proactive measures were taken by Modi or people from his administration. Instead , a dictatorial silence, and a heartless lathi charge was the answer given by this government to the peaceful protestors.

Even though the lathi charge happened, the protest was successful as it exposed the BJP’s nature to the masses. The citizens of this nation will now teach a fitting lesson to the BJP this election and strip them of the power that they wield now due to EVM tampering.

Kudos to the CJP, and more particularly Sonam Wangchuk and Abhijit Dipke. Shame on the government and the Delhi Police. More power to the youngsters of this amazing nation. Jai Hind.

UNPOPULAR OPINION: IPL IS NOT REAL CRICKET

The Indian Premier League(IPL) has a huge fan following all over the world. The tournament has been going on successfully in terms of high viewership and a feverish following right from its inception in 2008. In terms of revenue, the league has surpassed the likes of English Premier League, indicating its incredible prosperity. The 2 month long IPL is watched religiously every year. All of these being said, the IPL unfortunately isn’t real cricket. It is entertainment in the guise of cricket. Sport must be distinct from entertainment retaining its uniqueness. But we are not seeing that in IPL, which has welcomed entertainment into it’s setup. The IPL’s foundation, which is the auction per se is rooted in a wrong thought process. Let me explain. Players like Robin Uthappa have already criticized this system of players going under the hammer. It promotes ‘cattle market’ culture that doesn’t give the value a sportsman deserves. The price tag on a particular player also creates immense pressure on the player.

Also, why should money be spent like water like this in a country where 20 crore people go to bed every night without food? Shouldn’t this fact make us all uncomfortable? Some players play well for the IPL more than for their respective nations because they will never get that money even in their wildest dreams when they play for their country.

Next, the presence of cheerleaders. Why do we need them in the first place? Cricket has always been a gentleman’s game, and will remain so. IPL is ruining it with such cheap entertainment. Thirdly, the brand of cricket being played. There are people who say that the batsmen in the IPL play fearless cricket. They praise such type of cricket. As MS Dhoni would say, batting is not about hitting every ball for a maximum, it is about playing tactically by pacing your innings, running one’s and two’s. But we are in the day and age of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi where there is no respect for the bowler. I’m not criticizing the boy, but I’m sorry this is not how cricket should be played. Yes, T20 cricket is designed in a way that it be advantageous for the batsmen, but not like this. It is a rarity these days to see teams not score 200 runs in their 20-over quota.

Lastly, why does not even half of the money being used here in this league, not used for the development of other sports in India? India shines only in a handful of sports like Cricket in the global stage. It’s pitiful showing in every Olympics is a testament to it. India’s performance would be boosted if money is spent on other sports too. But it is always the IPL that takes the center stage. And it is not even real cricket. And that’s a shame. Its high time the organizers do some soul searching.

Why India Needs a New Political Direction Now

Both of India’s major political parties have let their people down-big time. The whole world is watching tensions flare between Iran and Israel. It has become almost a full-fledged war now. Many Indians’ livelihood has become a question mark. But, this hasn’t stopped the BJP and the INC from slinging mud at each other, playing petty politics. Modi, who appears as a courageous leader outside has shown weakness by cowering to the Trump administration. The United States has announced that they have decided to ‘allow’ India to buy Russian oil for a short time. If this is not an international embarrassment, then I can’t say what is! He has compromised India’s sovereignty to a level where a foreign power is dictating our foreign policy. Modi’s foreign policy or should I say his ‘hugplomacy’ has failed to attract takers with none of the prominent countries supporting India after Pahalgam. What’s worse, Trump has said more than 80 times on record that he intervened and stopped a potential Indo-Pak Nuclear War. Then again, the Indian PM Modi hasn’t had the gumption to refute that claim. After several months, now as well the BJP has betrayed India by not providing its citizens a clear pathway of survival in the gas crisis after Iran’s closure of Strait of Hormuz.

Sensing incompetent leadership, the Congress, like a predator that pounces on its prey, tried to hound the Modi Administration. But this is nothing more than pathetic appeasement politics. Where was Rahul Gandhi when Christians in India were attacked during Christmas time? A more interesting matter is Sonia Gandhi writing an article urging Modi to raise the issue of the killing of Khamenei in the Parliament? Where was she when the Christians were and are still being persecuted on a daily basis in this great country? Sonia Gandhi hardly gives her voice to any social issues battering India. She has been silent on the farmers issue, her party’s self-implosion, to name a few. Rahul Gandhi is busy touring the world wasting his time meeting individuals like Ilhan Ohmar in the US. But suddenly, as the elections are near, the mother-son duo have woken up. The hypocrisy is as clear as the day.

It is time that this generation of voters bruises the ego and complacency of these two parties and vote for an alternative 3rd party. That leader or the party isn’t visible as of yet, but we hope that in the not too distant future, it will become a reality.