IS BAN ON PLASTIC BAGS THE WAY AHEAD?

The demands to ban plastic bags are echoing all around the place with many states having already banned them or are in the process of passing such judgment. These plastic bags have created many problems ranging from choking drains and marine life to affecting environment on account of their being non-biodegradable. But this reckless banning of them raised a question in mind as to how these plastic bags came into being?

Well the plastic bags came into being to prevent the massive felling of trees for manufacturing of paper bags. So the plastic bags were seen as the saviors and hailed. So their manufacturing was also recklessly promoted as they are being banned these days. Plastic bags did help in serving that purpose, preventing deforestation. But yes they did become nuisance because they choked drains, became a threat to marine life and due to their non-biodegradable properties. So the bags once made were there for always.

So does that mean that manufacturing them was a big mistake that we committed and now it should be corrected by banning their production? The places where plastic bags have been banned, shopkeepers have started using paper bags. So we are actually going back in time. Our drains will flow freely again but trees will be cut again.

The solution doesn’t lie in a blanket ban on plastic bags. That way we’ll just reach that point from where we began. Promoting paper bags in place of plastic bags is in no way wise. The media is full of myths about plastic bags and their uses. One of them is that it is costlier to recycle plastic bags than to produce new. A website thetruthaboutplasticbags.com quotes a leading recycler as that recycling is in no way costlier but is about four times less costly. Govt. should actually promote recycling of plastic bags instead of having them dumped off in the landfills and then complain about their taking up space for ever.

Biodegradable plastic and plastic bags of appropriate thickness should be made available and promoted. These are any day better to environment than paper bags. The govt. should direct retailers in this direction as to promote these bags and also cloth bags. Kroger, a leading retail chain gives 5 cents off for every recyclable bag you bring yourself, a way of passing on the saving one does by not having to give away plastic bags. Providing incentives for the production of degradable plastic bags, setting up recycling plants and taking steps to promote their reuse is the way ahead.

A complete ban on plastic bags will only worsen the situation and take us full circle. We need to promote its judicious use and reuse and then its recycle. Alternatives like clothe bags and jute bags which have longer life and are nature friendly as well should be promoted and their production should be given incentives as well. Plastic's not bad but it’s about using it judiciously.

RACISM: INDIA'S DOUBLE STANDARDS

So a month of atrocities on our fellow countrymen, our youth, down under. A foolish and stupid cowardly act by Australians. All sympathies to them and their families who have suffered, living in fear all the time. To be at the receiving end of a fight with no logic whatsoever in a foreign land tests the courage of even the mightiest. And a sudden spate of such incidents, clearly racially motivated, has forced many to escape leaving their studies in middle, after all life’s more important than those hundreds of thousands of rupees you spent in getting there. The attacks, clearly visible, have been spurred up the by the recent success of India on the international scene and also of the Indian students there instilling a sense of insecurity in the people living there.

So our govt. has denounced those attacks in harshest words. Amitabh Bachchan is not going to accept its Doctorate from Queensland University. Bollywood’s up against shooting there. Waugh’s appealing to the countrymen. Media’s up in arms against Australia. The whole country is showing solidarity to those being attacked. Gosh!! We’re such dangerous victims, isn’t? Even the Australian PM Rudd can feel the heat with the whole of Australian media denouncing him in some harsh words. Meanwhile the racist attacks continue, but we hope that Australian govt. will take some strict action.

Diversity! What better place to witness it other than India. So a young Aussie kid who has just started to read newspapers would make of India as a place with Integrity in Diversity! Look into your backyard, which we never do, and you’ll be proud to find a sport where we can beat the Aussies any day with our hands down. North Indians and South Indians greet each other so warmly that an aussie would be embarrassed of the hospitality he offers. Divides here are more prevalent and visible. We don’t even need the caste system to prove this. Including that will make us more invincible than Don Bradman’s team ever was. Come to north and instantly be labeled as a Maddu if you’re a Southy or a Chinka if a North-eastern. Go to south and you’re looked upon as a man with no brains if you’re from north. From UP or Bihar? You’re everyone’s bhaiya and if you’re travelling to Mumbai, rest assured, a warm reception awaits you there courtesy, MNS.

Not that Aussie acts are justified, but if we are pointing a finger to them, do check out that four point to us at the same time. Sheer hypocrisy we cried when Aussie cricket team accused us of racist comments and going against ‘game spirit’. Isn’t the same happening here too? We’re just so good at playing victims. Hypocrisy is just not the word for us brother. We’re probably too much for that. We’re a country where everyone’s got a mindset ready in their self-proclaimed wise brains attached to your caste or your region. Southern people consider themselves to be having the most ‘grey area’ and northern ones to be people who just love to show off. Calling someone Maddu is okay but getting called a Paki is racially offensive and enough to raise a huge hue and cry. And the warmth which we show to north-eastern people especially girls who are subjected to scores of lewd comments and taunted for their Mongolian features.

India has been able to save itself from harmful strictures in International fora with a few legal minds distinguishing casteism from racism. But is it really? Isn’t it just another form of discrimination? But hats off to us for having been able to ward off discussions on this matter at the international level, after all we’re victims not racists!! In no way I’m justifying attacks on Indians that have taken place but if we’re so aware of the pains that these abuses cause then we must introspect our actions as well.

The double standards which we have been maintaining for decades can’t continue like this for long as international community has started to question it. Blogs are full of voice against this hypocrisy. And this hypocrisy has resulted in weakening of our case amongst the international masses. The solidarity will decrease in coming days as the voice against becomes strong. And this is going to make the Indian diaspora more vulnerable as India’s rise seems inevitable making others feel insecure and our track record of discrimination is as bad as it can get, providing them with a perfect excuse. We need to learn to introspect ourselves as well before pointing fingers at others.