A woman observes the scene of an attack a day after a car bomb went off in Herat, Afghanistan on March 13, 2021. | Image: IC
India has safely evacuated its citizens, and Pakistan got a warning to dislodge terror entities from their border. Almost all the neighbouring countries are stressed. Continues 20 years of war is yet to settle, foreign forces are pulling out of Afghanistan following a deal between the US and the Taliban militants they removed from power back in 2001. The clash has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions.
India had a month back pulled out around 50 diplomats and security personnel from its consulate in Kandahar as the security situation deteriorated and the Taliban gained control of new areas around the southern Afghan city.
Back in 2001, the US was responding to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington, in which nearly 3,000 people were killed. Officials identified Islamist militant group al-Qaeda, and its leader Osama Bin Laden, as accountable. Bin Laden was in Afghanistan, under the protection of the Taliban, the Islamists who had been in power since 1996. When they refused to hand him over, the US intervened militarily, quickly removing the Taliban and vowing to support democracy and eliminate the terrorist threat.
The Taliban swear not to allow Afghanistan to become a base for terrorists who could threaten the West. But its hard-line past monarchs has swiftly gained territory in recent weeks from Afghan army soldiers, who are now being left to protect a fragile government. The Taliban also made a pledge for national peace talks, but many fear a worsening civil war remains a far more likely outcome.
Afghanistan continues to allege that Islamabad is aiding Taliban terrorists and is also sending thousands of terrorists to the country to destabilise the government. Pakistan continues to deny any such role while highlighting that it is due to Islamabad’s efforts Taliban has sat down with the US and Afghanistan to talk peace and stability.
Despite being on the peace committee, where the US and the Afghanistan government are stakeholders, the terrorist group has used violence to stamp its authority and take control of vast regions of Afghanistan. The US and Nato to withdraw all their troops by August 31. The US, however, has not made any changes to its troop withdrawal plans which has provided a fillip to the Taliban which is advancing at a fast pace and has captured several major cities and provinces in the conflict-ridden nation. The US feels that Pakistan is safe for these Talibanis are they are causing uncertainty and instability in the conflict-ridden nation.
As per Britannica mention, the Afghan War, in the history of Afghanistan, the internal conflict that began in 1978 between anti-communist Islamic guerrillas and the Afghan communist government (aided in 1979–89 by Soviet troops), leading to the overthrow of the government in 1992. More broadly, the term also encompasses military activity within Afghanistan after 1992—but apart from the Afghanistan War (2001–14), a U.S.-led invasion launched in response to the September 11 attacks on the United States in 2001. By this broader definition, many analysts consider the internal Afghan War as lasting well into the 21st century and overlapping with the U.S.-led Afghanistan War.
The roots of the war lay in the overthrow of the centrist government of President Mohammad Daud Khan in April 1978 by left-wing military officers led by Nur Mohammad Taraki. Power was thereafter shared by two Marxist-Leninist political groups, the People’s (Khalq) Party and the Banner (Parcham) Party, which had earlier emerged from a single organization, the People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan, and had reunited in an uneasy coalition shortly before the coup. The new government, which had little popular support, forged close ties with the Soviet Union, launched ruthless purges of all domestic opposition, and began extensive land and social reforms that were bitterly resented by the devoutly Muslim and largely anti-communist population.
Insurgencies arose against the government among both tribal and urban groups, and all of these—known collectively as the mujahideen (Arabic: mujāhidūn, “those who engage in jihad”)—were Islamic in orientation. These uprisings, along with internal fighting and coups within the government between the People’s and Banner factions prompted the Soviets to invade the country in December 1979, sending in some 30,000 troops and toppling the short-lived presidency of People’s leader Hafizullah Amin.
The aim of the Soviet operation was to prop up their new but faltering client state, now headed by Banner leader Babrak Karmal, but the mujahideen rebellion grew in response, spreading to all parts of the country. The Soviets initially left the repression of the rebellion to the Afghan army, but the latter was overwhelmed by mass desertions and remained largely ineffective throughout the war.
Afghanistan has never conducted a full census, and it is thus difficult to gauge the number of casualties suffered in the country since the outbreak of fighting. The best estimates available indicate that some 1.5 million Afghanis were killed before 1992—although the number killed during combat and the number killed as an indirect result of the conflict remain unclear. The casualty rate after 1992 is even less precise. Many thousands were killed as a direct result of factional fighting; hundreds or thousands of prisoners and civilians were executed by tribal, ethnic, or religious rivals; and a large number of combatants—and some non-combatants—were killed during the U.S. offensive. Moreover, tens of thousands died of starvation or of a variety of diseases, many of which in less-troubled times could have been easily treated, and hundreds of thousands were killed or injured by the numerous land mines in the country. (Afghanistan was, by the end of the 20th century, one of the most heavily mined countries in the world, and vast quantities of unexploded ordnance littered the countryside.) The number of Afghan refugees living abroad fluctuated over the years with the fighting and reached a peak of some six million people in the late 1980s.
MahaRERA warns developers are not allowed to sell open parking 3
At regular intervals the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) comes up with new instructions for the builders and developers, such as they are not supposed to provide project updates, along with the sale of houses on a quarterly basis.
Also, it will conduct training and certification of real estate agents, for which a steering committee has been set up. By doing so, it desires to bring a certain level of consistency in the practices of real estate agents, enhance knowledge, awareness of regulatory frameworks and practices. Besides, hundreds of projects have been blacklisted, restricted from sale and advertisements over failure to update the projects for a long time.
Chairperson, Housing and RERA committee of Builders Association of India Anand Gupta told Afternoon Voice that, “Earlier there was a lot of uncertainty on the selling of parking space. However, the RERA Act has clearly mentioned that the developers are supposed to sell parking spaces in podiums, stilts and basements. By issuing such a circular, MahaRERA has brought transparency in the realty sector.”
MahaRERA has specified that the developers of Mumbai and Maharashtra are not entitled to sell or allot open parking space to flat buyers. The open parking space is part of the common areas of a real estate project as per the RERA Act and is provided free floor space index (FSI).
According to the MahaRERA, the notification was issued following cases of disputes over the exact location of the parking space vis a vis the apartment. To prevent such happening, developers will be henceforth required to specifically mark the garage, open and /covered parking space in the real estate project in accordance with the approved/sanctioned plans and tag it to the apartment to which it is allotted.
The regulatory body has directed that the garage/ covered parking space when sold/ allotted for monetary consideration, the type, numbers, size as well as the place where such garage/ covered parking space is situated should be mentioned in the agreement for sale. It should be annexed to the agreement.
2020 & 2021 were the worst of all, some wished for the closure of Afternoon Voice, but we were determined to start again 5
After demonetization, the lockdown was the biggest hit and the Covid-19 crash followed by nationwide lockdown has taken our lives and livelihood on toll. Afternoon Voice experienced a major setback. Keeping our financial wheels turning during the lockdown period was tough due to less revenue and uncertainty in other businesses that supported our publication. Our Major support system is Vaidehee Aesthetics and that was almost shut. When there was not a single rupee income, paying the staff and business rents was a huge liability. I sold almost all that I had to breathe in this catastrophe and survive for better times.
Newspaper stalls were shut, our staff was not allowed to commute; meanwhile, there were various other losses. Some staff members suffered COVID, some of the staff members lost their family members and we lost our trusted watchman who succumbed to COVID. We would not have surrendered to COVID but definitely, the lockdown crises showed us tough days.
Unfortunately, the impact on small businesses like us was way more brutal as we had no cash reserves and had a smaller margin for managing sudden slumps. This is a crisis like no other as there is substantial uncertainty about its impact on our lives and livelihoods. Fortunately, we were not caged because the media was allowed to travel by private cars or bikes and I had my bike. The other staff stayed far away from the office and local trains and buses were not allowing private-sector employees to travel.
A decade ago, we started this newspaper and aspired to take it to peaks of success by mortgaging my house but after a decade, we once again started from scratch mortgaging my property. I and my colleagues did all that was never thought of; we did banner designing for COVID-19 safety promotions, pamphlet designing, letter drafting and handled social media for some actors and politicians. Even without any hesitation, I have translated books written by some regional writers from one language to another with the absence of fair credits. Buying and supplying groceries to various nearby societies. I and my colleague Akshay became part-time journalists and full-time skilled workers. For us, the struggle was ten times more than the routine and full of long work hours.
But frankly, we did not hesitate to slog, because we knew this too shall pass. No one supported us in our hard times and neither did we approach anyone for help. Once the lockdown relaxed, it gave us some breather but there were other challenges waiting for us; paying Income tax to sale tax and shifting the business to an affordable place. By some means, we found one cheaper place near Kandivali station but it was horrible for the newspaper office to function as that location was meant for courier businesses or floral shops.
Somehow, we parked our workstation there and went in search of another affordable but better place. We procured one place just beside another business. Making of this office has another interesting story to tell, but finally, we are at a reasonably good place. Slowly, Vaidehee Aesthetics also bounced back strongly, we got some additional work of publicity and paid write-ups. Still to run the show smoothly, in-between I joined “Free Press Journal” Mumbai’s oldest English daily to support my staff and business. That income really helped me to feed my team and address their minimum needs.
Lockdown and Covid brought many people’s livelihoods to a standstill. It was difficult to see our newspaper vendors suffering due to the lockdown. So, I tried my best to also support not only my staff but them too charity so they and their families survive through this difficult time. This year has taught me all about survival and sustainable arrangements. Meanwhile many wished for the closures of Afternoon Voice during that very difficult timeline, but we gave a strong fight and were very committed to standing again.
"Unbiased journalism can’t expire" - Pride to be only parallel media in India 7
These days media is abused, they are alleged with numerous adjectives. Their credibility has declined. I don’t blame anyone for this, neither media nor the people of this country. The journalist abides accountability before society in general, before the law and before the professional connotation. The social responsibility of the journalist requires that he acts in accordance with his personal ethical standards. Journalists the main goal is to guarantee the right of citizens and people to truthful and important information, which allows them to form an adequate impression about social processes, their essence and importance, about the situation in today’s world.
Even the readers, a citizen of this country, need to introspect about the double standards that they carry. Everyone wants journalists to be honest and unbiased. The question is that, do we really respect neutral reporters, newspapers and broadcasters? Ask me what the pain of being impartial is. They are attacked from all sides, and for not taking one particular stand no one stands by them.
This happens with me; I criticize and praise every political party. Whenever I write something against Congress, I am labelled as a BJP supporter, if I write against Modi I am branded as Congress paid media or AAP supporter. We don’t really like neutral journalists, because they are not always what we expect. They speak their mind being unbiased but that is harsh and not easy to digest. Mass media freedom is one of the major guarantees of the freedom of speech, an obligatory element for ensuring other civil rights and freedoms. The freedom of the press involves the possibility to freely discuss and criticize the activities of both the authorities and civil and private structures. Journalists contribute to the realization of the right to express unpopular opinions or agree with the point of view expressed by the majority. The journalist must defend the freedom of speech; retain the independence of his/her political views and convictions. He/she must resist any efforts to misrepresent information or introduce restrictions. Like any other citizen, the journalist has a right to political and other convictions. However, in his/her professional activity he/she should remain neutral and objective.
The journalist should do his/her best to acquire information from all possible sources, to make sure it is complete, truthful and unbiased. The information which may upset or embarrass a person should be checked prudently. Respecting the right of society to objective information, the journalist must convey truthful information and a whole spectrum of opinions on certain issues. Today journalism is in the custody of corporate houses, mafia and politicians, if media goes into wasted people’s hands you cannot expect a hundred per cent truthfulness. Their banner power is bigger than the reporter/anchor or editor. To fight this evil of the fourth estate, we stood all alone as a self-funded organization but people have yet to accept us as we are small media. People don’t want to give priority to small media groups as their reach is limited and such media houses may not help them reach wide.
I am fortunate to have a good number of readers and trusting us for our integrity. Unbiased journalism does not mean that journalists should refrain from expressing their personal opinions. However, the reader should be able to tell the difference between the articles stating facts and materials expressing someone’s opinion or interpretation of events.
However, this principle should not limit the journalist in choosing the style of writing. The journalist should not be a presenter for anyone’s interest. We avoid making mistakes, if at all, then we immediately correct mistakes quickly and incompletely. Corrections of significant mistakes should be published without delay in a visible place. We are not robots.
Expression of emotions is expected. To conceal disappointment, anger, or compassion at human suffering would be dishonest. Yet emotions in journalism can be over-used and manipulated. We need the freedom to breathe, to do justice to this profession. Unwanted and unexpected moral policing and taunting may discourage us from doing well.
For me this journey was not easy, when I was terminated from a media house for not writing what exactly my publisher wanted me to write (that was a one-sided story on a politician, whom the publisher was supporting), I decided to have my own publication, but every venture needs money. No one took me seriously when I express about having my own newspaper.
I had one house which was of my father after his death that got transferred to me. I mortgaged it and had some finance to fulfil my dreams. It’s been five years since the constant struggle. Everything is fresh in memory. The reason to start the endeavour, the reason to cope up with the trends, the challenges against the ethics, those threatening phone calls from the impotent and many other ways of spamming on social networks and the ever famous blogs against me. There have been millions of incidents and many of them I do not want to recall at all, which have tried to delude us in our way. We have skipped the hurdles and reached so far, the next level is still to arrive.
Starting from year one, the first problems which we faced were finances. The lack of finances where one lady had to toss the gambling coin in the air, with a possibility of either getting it or losing it all and guess what, we had the heads and ‘tails’ soon followed. It was totally a game of guts that we did. So far, the media was always owned by the ‘rich or ‘capitalists’ who had their own backing and they rely on them. Thus, the basic idea of parallel media died and pseudo-journalism flourished right from the early times. It was surely difficult for all of us to survive in the market.
The pehchaan; required from distributing the newspapers to holding up the cameras, it was a true challenge against the odds but the challenge was accepted and it had to be won, after all, my only house was on the mortgage for the gamble. Soon after the first year passed, we tried to dive into the various fields and tried to explore the potential talents from various phases of life. One of which was the hackers’ industry, which is just like underworld life. People are always hiding behind the scenes and we took up the challenge of exploring it, thus, our monthly niche Hacker5 was born.
Soon, our journey continued and year after year we finally completed three years, which was last year. The honour of having a television media was about to succeed but, unfortunately, we again met the wrong people at the right time and right place. Though there was a slight setback that was not enough to stop us. We have promised to go ahead and reach out to keep extending our own records, year after year.
2013, our award event was graced by his gracious Late Balasaheb Thackeray honoured us and accepted the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ from us. It was truly an honour to have been blessed by the person who was the living legend and had times when he actually ruled the city. Soon, as life passes, even he made his glorious journey to the afterlife. We thought following his principles of being honest to the journalism, being unbiased and presenting the facts as it is, as much as possible, letting the masses judge us. Some people have taken away powers from the people but we believe in giving power back to the people.
Thus, we even came up with the idea of letting the common man or the citizens of India speak up and give out news about anything and everything that they feel is happening with factual evidence, thus citizen journalism was flourished. With power back to the people, it feels like to have accomplished a revolution. There were gimmicks of stopping us, various hurdles like income tax raid in our office, which made us wait for about three days and this happened thrice. We kept on keeping our words of saying that we are honest but we let them do their work, peacefully. By now even the income tax office must have our office address in their mind. The event of coming out clean from various challenges itself was the proof that we no need to show more proof of our honesty and dedication.
Honesty comes with a huge price and we are constantly investing in it, without hesitation. Such things do not affect us anymore, which includes RTI for what we do.
Wise once said, if you speak a lie, you need to remember and be smarter but if you speak the truth, you just have to remember the event and rest the God stands right next to you.
With high regards to my readers who have kept us strong and high respect to people who have taken the time out and contributed in our journey, thanks is a small word for them. We have pulled our socks with this 5th year, soon to hit 1567 days of our glorious journey, we stand up with the pride of being what we are today and will continue carrying on with it. Any hurdles may come but we are committed to being… unstoppable.
Beyond the newsstands for our team. Unshaken and totally dedicated! This was a long year for us. Several incidents had occurred in the country. The media houses were stormed by the events that shook the world. We were equally in rush to cover almost everything with different aspects of that event’s existence. There has been a repeated clear indication that something is going wrong and then there were good moments for our Indians fellow too.
The rise and falls, the ups and downs, many stories untold and many unheard, still we tried covering them all.
From a small team that rose from the ground till we skyrocketed! Today, we have worked more than 1000 days and have made a mark in the hearts of our readers. With our readers’ affection and faith, we have stood strong, stood against the odds and even after the hat-trick; we have this extended hat-trick where we again stand with pride to say. We have stood the test of time and have proclaimed ourselves as the only parallel media in the country which brings to you the as it is news, articles and commentary editorials. Surely, the one who notices evil finds that is just the other side of the same coin. Similarly, we aspire to capture the entire view and show you various traits right from every angle possible. We do not bias ourselves or strangle ourselves by becoming politically correct. For truth, to be blunt, bold and totally awesome, is our motto at Beyond the News (BTN). The wide coverage of our fortnightly magazine has been consistent in portraying truth for four years now and we aspire to continue the same.
The journey was difficult but difficulties are the only things which are guaranteed in life, isn’t it? We have embraced the challenge of running the show and we have proved it, once and for all that running a media house is no more game of the capitalists only. Money is the most important factor to run anything in this world, even your car needs cash to sustain itself. We are not even playing puppets with anyone, how do we ensure money? Struggle story is always aspiring and very inspiring towards growth but no one understands where it pinches in the shoe, except the one who is actually wearing it. If your heart is true to what you wish to do, everything is possible. Beyond the news was introduced to be our blunt mouthpiece with no hesitations in expressing the political and illogical games that are being played in the country.
From Arvind Kejriwal’s fast unto death, which keeps breaking even before his demands are met, his liberal thoughts and so on. Modi and his political moves, Rahul Gandhi and his repeated broadcast of foolishness on the social media, IIPM owning the government, Prime Minister going on foreign tours, the Sanju-Katju jugalbandhi (jammin) and our nuclear tests which are being conducted, South Korean Gangnam style and North Korea’s threat (Nah! they are joking). The voice of people has taken a toll over the past few months and over the repeated incidents, people have become more and more intellectual, politically sound and optimistic towards the opportunities. The growth of the country and the decline of the economics are all tied up into one. The last year which we spent seems like a story summed up over the nightly full of caffeine running across the membranes and still pushing our adrenaline rush into the veins as we typed the stories for you, the readers!
The awesomeness of movies which came out in the past year has taught us all many lessons too; about the politics, about the way people run the show and about the way people make sure that nothing stops them. It would be a wonder for you to know how we have grown. If you asked what happened two years ago and how politics controlled the country, you would have a different story, so did we. The evolution of thoughts is no more the cul de sac of people owning the media; it is even across the people. The stories which are shown to the people have come transparent and we believe, we have shown you what has been even the more transparent, a clear picture. We have grown up and we promise to keep growing. I will steal it from Wikileaks but with your support and love, we will never stop. Keep us strong!
Afternoon Voice - An extraordinary journey of crazy scribes 9
It was 2009 when we started, 13 years have just sailed, and my journey of Afternoon Voice is still fresh in my memory. This story started with a rebellious attempt of quitting one newspaper saying no to the hierarchy and all of sudden starting its publication. That is how “Afternoon Voice” was born, and this is its 13th anniversary.
We don’t follow any philosophy, we don’t hate or love political entities, we don’t have complaints from anyone, we’re not the slaves or supporters of any political groups, we don’t envy anyone. Our sole agenda is journalism. And we love to speak our minds. We have many questions and we try to find the answers too. We want to speak because the common people whom we represent can’t speak for themselves. We have to speak for them to reach their voices in the corridors of power. Now in this struggle, if we love or envy someone, we wouldn’t be able to make our voices loud, clear and audible.
Being parallel or neutral is an annoyance these days because nobody sides with you. If you criticize Congress you are labelled as a BJP supporter. If you ask questions to BJP, they declare you as anti-BJP. If you ask questions to AAP, they think you’re the pawns of national parties. If you praise Arvind Kejriwal, you become an AAPTARD. If you speak of Raj, they will say you are anti-Uddhav, and if you question Uddhav they say you favour Pawar. It is not their fault; the problem is that the media is divided into ideology or favouritism. Either hardcore leftists or right-wing supporters but impartial journalism is rare in the present time.
These days, media is categorized as Presstitutes, sold outs, Lutyens, boot lickers, lap dogs and much more. Fortunately, these adjectives are not applicable to us because we don’t bend at any side. Mainstream Media houses know no boundaries. Either they are the haters or supporters. Thankfully newspapers are still doing better than electronic media.
Ours is a small newspaper, a small team, thousands of readers and multiple audiences, hundreds of calls every day, some praises, some complaints, some calls go missing, some get attended, but we try to listen to everyone and do justice to what they say. There are many decisions taken every moment because the newspaper runs on deadlines. Sometimes decisions go wrong, sometimes we even make mistakes but trust me no slip-up of ours is ever that big that can’t be pardoned.
Everyone wants honest journalism but most of them don’t know how the narrative of honest journalism has changed. You want to listen to the truth but that truth should be pleasing or favourable. And if the journalism comes to terms with those parameters, then coverage gets mortgaged. These days everyone attacks the media, but when the truth is served, they don’t want to digest it because their truth is different from the truth itself.
Well, we chose to be the voice of the common man. We don’t walk with powers or celebrities because we have to walk parallel to illustrate. Now some may ask us “who are you?” My answer would be “Someone who lives journalism”. We are the Fourth Estate fighting odds of all sides.
We are a small part of the big media community. We don’t have a big reach but wherever we reach our voice is loud and clear. We know that we’re going to contribute towards the new India. We tell our readers about the happenings without adding our narrations or gossip. We don’t believe in sensationalizing the news and gaining publicity. We want plain reporting, that may not amuse readers but that will stand its grounds.
Now you must be thinking, without any support how are we running this publication house? Well! We get government advertisements being one of the registered newspapers, we get a lot of classifieds, we do product campaigns and there are many articles on various business groups and their new ventures, those adverts are mostly paid. Above all we have parallel modules, such as I have my clinic, I do cybersecurity audits, all my directors slog in their respective fields and some of the income we contribute for the sustenance of media houses. We also do an annual award event “Newsmakers Achievers’ Awards” that generates funds to breathe. My team comprises some handicapped youth, (divyang brothers and sisters), some acid attack victims, some college dropouts, orphans and some professional volunteers. We empowered many acid attack victims and LGBT community members. We gave assignments to HIV positive people who are dejected by the masses. We want to remain human while talking for the people.
See, how 13 years just passed. I remember when D Shivanand, Former-commissioner of Mumbai police, came to inaugurate my newspaper he cracked a joke stating, “Vaidehi, I should get you and your team arrested under the child labour act”. Because we all were very young, small in size and in fact half of the team members were early college dropouts. We changed the monotonous practices of the media by letting a young team sit on a news desk and lead it.
Even today the senior-most team member on the desk is 25 years old. The team member who manages all the administration is also 27 years old. My team is very young and very small in numbers but big in visions. And perhaps this is the reason we are different from others. We don’t have a very large readership, as we can’t print in large numbers. But we do have our online edition to compensate.
I would request everyone that if you like us, do visit our online edition and keep reading us. Give us a chance to serve honest journalism. Your suggestions are always welcome. And when I said that we’re the voice of the common people then, together we all can change the scenario of the media or bring some change.
Thank you, readers! Afternoon Voice completes its 13 years of successful journey 11
During the lockdown, many newspapers in Mumbai have ceased production. The large issue is not on the supply end, it is not in the newsroom, but at the distribution channel that had been badly affected. Many prominent media houses have sanctioned staff layoffs or mandatory leave without pay. While The Indian Express and Business Standard newspapers have announced pay cuts, others have also taken the steps to curb costs.
15 employees of News Nation, a Hindi news national channel, were asked to leave with immediate effect. On 13 April, the digital news website The Quint had asked about 45 employees to go on indefinite leave without pay. Many news organizations faced a truly unprecedented situation and undoubtedly in these circumstances, revenue was under severe strain. Times Life, the Sunday supplement of the Times of India also asked its employees to leave. Small media houses just silently vanished from the race. There was a survival crisis for us too. Lockdown and covid challenges subjected us to unforeseen challenges and uncertain times.
Vaidehi Taman, Afternoon Voice Editor-in-Chief says, “There was a time when I thought of winding my newspaper, the rival tabloid Afternoon Dispatch and Courier also closed their newspaper forever. Everyday news of closures and layoffs in the media industry were very disturbing and distressing to me. I was almost on the verge of shutting down my newspaper. But my team was so co-operative and positive in their approach, their cheering support forced me to stand strong.”
Vaidehi further stated, “Dealing with monetary disasters was not easy and above all coming up from the scrape looked difficult, but somehow we walked our path making many adjustments and today celebrating 13th year of success. Meanwhile, many forces wished this publication to sink, I am sorry, we have disappointed them (she smiles).”
Akshay Redij, Digital Editor of Afternoon Voice said, “I was always keeping my fingers crossed. Because my heart was all for Afternoon Voice’s survival. The prolonged lockdown was not easy to deal with. I closely watched the struggle of Vaidehi and of course, we all were with her during this tough time. In the meantime, she came up with some parallel revenue model and we really slogged hours to earn that little income to sustain in lockdown. Temporarily she also joined a job in another reputed newspaper to support Afternoon Voice and with her dedication, somehow now everything came back on track.”
Rupal Mistry, the guest writer and well-wisher of Afternoon Voice said, “My job allowed me to work from home and that permitted me to be content support to Afternoon Voice as I have been with this newspaper since its inception. The emotional attachment and regard never allowed me to think of its closure as that was not an option. Somehow managed to share some financial responsibilities till its breaths back as it was just a matter of time. Today I am very happy to be part of its successful journey and very proud of the faith and responsibility with which the whole team worked during such a testing time.”
Afternoon Voice’s Page Designer Dipti Joshi said, “Every day is not the same, I used to tell Vaidehi this shall pass and we shall see the best of days. Lockdown setback cannot be expressed in words, undoubtedly it was a painful time. But we have the right spirit and now we will be rocking again.”
Circulation Executive Vijay Salgaonkar said, “Actually speaking from April 2020 to February 2021 we were at home. Most of the staff is from Vasai and Virar, commuting from those destinations was very difficult as local trains were closed down. By the time I resumed back the situations were slightly coming back to normal. When most of the staff was at home only three people including our editor were managing the show.”
There were many internal issues but when it comes to readers, they never disappointed us. There was constant content flow from their end, columns, letters to the editor and sometimes some feature stories. Our inbox was constantly full of content. Without their support and readership, this day celebration wouldn’t have been possible.
We, The Afternoon Voice team sincerely thank each and every one of our readers and all well-wishers. Their support and blessings encourage our steps towards another success story.
India has become an online hosting hub for child sex material. If we look at horrific figures we will find for every 155th minute a child, less than 16 years, is raped, for every 13th hour a child under 10. It can be three months to ten years; there is no barrier for perverts to choose from. Above all, the Covid-19 lockdown, children and their families were forced to be in the house, schools were shut, no going to play out or meet friends, some unease and irritation levels at peak. The only resort was mobile phones and social networks.
Here is the trap; many children got lured in tempting offers and thrills without knowing the repercussions. According to Interpol, an estimated 2.4 million instances of online child sexual abuse were reported from India from 2017 to 2020. Eighty per cent of these children were girls under the age of 14. The US-based National Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) reported that more than 2.44 million children were abused in 2017 and by 2020 the cases will increase. When it comes to child sexual abuse material, they are getting much more proactive in India. There are many entities that upload these videos that have started moving their hosting to other countries, these syndicates are using children as a tool to their business of paedophilia, porn and pornography.
The problem of child sexual abuse is deep-rooted. Rape is the fourth most common crime against females in India. Childhood sexual abuse proves our country is full of paedophiles that want nothing but to exploit every child they see. People who take advantage of someone’s innocence are nothing but pure monsters, some of which lie in their own house/school/neighbour or in their surroundings, most of them are very well known to the victim. Several rape cases in India received widespread media attention and triggered protests. This led the Government of India to reform its penal code for crimes of rape and sexual assault. The number of juveniles or minors, legally those under 18 years of age, taking up crime has seen an alarming high over the past decade. This should be a particular reason to worry about for a country where 47.21 crore i.e. almost 39% of the population is under 18.
Most children who are abused sexually, never recover. Child abuse occurs in every single society, irrespective of linguistic and religious differences. Child abuse is often perpetrated by someone the child knows/ trusts and these days so-called online virtual friends. The internet has increased the predation of children by facilitating contact between paedophiles and children. But the internet also provides relief to hundreds of kids in danger since they can now expose those who abuse them and seek help. Children are the most vulnerable when they’re young and adults can be the most vicious creatures walking the earth.
There are predators lurking around hooking their victims. The victim is typically a young adult. One that’s ready to be “groomed.” But it can also be an older adult who has something a predator can snatch. The parents and authorities are in the dark about the dynamics of these extremely abusive occurrences, children are left in limbo having to endure and develop resilience to the traumatic impact these aggressive adults cause in their lives. Children are abused, they are not believed, they have no voice, we have to be their voice, expect to be humiliated by those who could care less, little to nothing will be done, and the law does not protect them.
In most of the houses both the parents running for earning, children are left unattended, the vacuum that directs children towards the virtual world. When they express themselves to some so-called unknown people, taking advantage of their loneliness their hormones are taken on the drive. All it begins with conversations and irreparable damage to young minds. Child sex abuse is a crime and many abusers have a sexual preference for children. They are simply using children as opportunistic targets.
These days due to an increased media focus on sexual exploitation of children and mandatory reporting laws post the introduction of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses (POCSO) Act; one may notice how child sexual abuse is on the rise. What we read is all about the reported cases, these are millions of unreported cases. However still there is no deterrence, the crime is on rising and there is no much control on such occurrences.
We might speak about it, there can be reports and news about abuses but all is in a flash time. The child suffers for a long time; many children who have been abused in any form develop some sort of psychological problem. These problems include anxiety, depression, eating disorders, OCD, codependency, or even a lack of human connections. It can result in immediate adverse physical effects but it is also strongly associated with developmental problems and with many chronic physical and psychological effects, including subsequent ill-health, including higher rates of chronic conditions, high-risk health behaviours and shortened lifespan. Maltreated children may grow up to be maltreating adults. Child abuse can cause a range of emotional effects. Children who are constantly ignored, shamed, terrorized or humiliated suffer at least as much, if not more than if they are physically assaulted. Abused children can grow up experiencing insecurities, low self-esteem, and lack of development. Many abused children experience ongoing difficulties with trust, social withdrawal, trouble in school, and forming relationships. Imagine, this general as growing adults, maybe this is the reason the young lives are very much at risk with depression, suicidal tendencies, and mental illness. Children are abused in many ways in India, beyond rapes. We always see kids begging on the roadside, working in shops and being abused. Sensitize the society that a girl or a woman has free will. Be it through social media, discussion forums, candlelight marches, whatever it takes, we need to sensitize our society against these crimes.
Delhi priest rapes and kills minor; victim's family was suspicious as her body was hurriedly cremated 14
A 9-year-old girl was allegedly raped, murdered and then cremated by her attackers in Delhi on Sunday evening. The minor girl lived with her parents in front of the crematorium near the Delhi cantonment area. On Sunday evening she went to get cold water from a water cooler installed at the crematorium. This was her daily routine and the staff of the crematorium is known to the girl’s mother. Following which, the accused called her mother to show her dead body and told her that she died of electrocution.
DCP Ingit Pratap Singh told Afternoon Voice, “At around 5.30 pm Sunday, she went to get cold water from the cooler in the crematorium after informing her mother. At around 6 pm the crematorium’s priest Radhey Shyam and three others are known to the girl’s mother called her to the crematorium and showed the girl’s body stating that she got electrocuted while having water from the cooler. They also pointed out the burn marks between her left wrist and elbow, and the blue colouring of her lips. Radhey Shyam, the priest called the victim’s mother and asked her not to inform the police about the demise of the girl. They scared her, stating that the police will register a case and the body will be sent for an autopsy, during which doctors will remove her vital organs and sell them. The four then cremated the body hurriedly.”
However, according to the police, the girl’s parents later alleged she was cremated without their consent. Subsequently, villagers gathered at the spot soon after the news spread, the villagers protest demanding the arrest of the accused on Sunday night. The accused are identified as Radhey Shyam, Salim, Laxmi Narayan and Kuldeep.
A case has been reportedly filed against the accused under POCSO Act and SC/ST Act. In addition, they have also been charged for murder, rape and criminal intimidation under sections 302, 376 and 506 of the IPC respectively.
DCP South West Ingit Pratap Singh, further said, “They received a PCR call on Sunday at around 10.30 pm at Delhi Cantonment police station regarding rape and death of a minor girl and her body being cremated. The caller also informed that around 200 villagers have gathered at the crematorium in Old Nangal.” “Police rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control.
FSL team and crime team were called to collect any evidence from the spot,” the DCP added. Police said the girl lived with her parents in a rented house near the crematorium.
Highway police to approach Lok Adalat; 81% traffic defaulters yet to pay e-challan dues 16
Nearly Rs 98 crore due in e-challans issued in 10.31 lakh cases between 2019 and July 25 this year, the Highway Traffic Police have now determined to approach the Lok Adalat to recover the amount. The Highway Safety Patrol (HSP), also known as Highway Traffic.
Since 2019, when the force began the e-challan system, until July 25 this year, the HSP has used the e-challan system to book a total of 12,77,694 (or 12.77 lakh) motorists for violating traffic norms and 2,46,272 (or 2.46 lakh) motorists have paid their dues, that is 19 per cent people have paid their dues collectively, worth Rs 24.51 crore. The remaining 10.31 lakh motorists, which are 81 per cent, are yet to pay their dues, collectively worth Rs 98.52 crore.
Motorist Sandeep Sanke told Afternoon Voice ” most of the times these challans were falsely imposed because these collectors are not cops, but they want to throw their weight on people. Their approach towards people is like assigned extortionists.”
Police in Maharashtra, has 63 Traffic Aid Posts (TAP) across the state to regulate, monitor and control traffic on the highways. All the taps, consisting of officers and men, are empowered to enforce traffic rules and book the motorists for violating traffic norms.
Bhushankumar Upadhyay, additional director general (traffic), said “In order to recover the dues, we have the messages to defaulters on their registered mobile number. Police constables are also going to their residences to recover the dues. We will ask them to pay the fine else we will approach the court. We will send the report to the RTO as well, and the latter may take action like cancelling their licences”.
Patrolling officials said, “If the HSP comes across any motorists whose dues are pending, they initiate action against them. “We are also getting in touch with insurance companies requesting them to tell the motorists to pay their dues when they come for renewal of insurance,” the official said.
Every seventh suicide in the country last year took place in Maharashtra 18
Many mental health experts feel that underlying mental health issues are often sidelined when the cause of the death is being assessed. The capability and worthiness of a child are judged solely based on academic achievements and society, in general, is not open-minded enough to respect non-scholastic achievements. Such highly polarized judgmental opinions within the family can lead to dejection and the situation may appear to be insurmountable for some children, causing them to take the extreme step of committing suicide.
Every seventh suicide in the country last year took place in Maharashtra, which saw an over a 5% increase to 18,916 deaths from 17,972 in 2018. The number of suicides rose 4.7% in Mumbai, which is placed fourth among cities with 1,229 cases, according to NCRB’s 2019 report on ‘Accidental Deaths & Suicides in India’. Overall, suicides in India— often called the world’s suicide capital —increased 3.4% from 1.34 lakh in 2018 to 1.39 lakh, with Maharashtra reporting the most deaths (13.6%). Farmer suicides accounted for one-fifth of Maharashtra’s suicide tally. Last year, the state had the highest share (38.2%) in India’s farmer suicides, which marginally declined to 10,281 from 10,349 in 2018.
India is a vast country with a population of 1.37 billion. A remarkable observation to be made about suicide studies in India is that suicide rates and patterns differ a lot between different States and territories. Possible explanations for these differences may point to factors relevant to the causation of suicide. Of the total 1.39 lakh suicides recorded in the year 2019, roughly 93,016 or 67 per cent were committed by youngsters (aged 18+ and below 45). Of these, 31,725 (34 per cent) suicides happened because of family problems; marriage related issues drove 7,293 (7.3 per cent) people to suicide. Mental illness was a cause of suicide for 6,491 people or 7 per cent of the total suicide committed by youngsters. Drug abuse/alcoholic addiction drove 5,257 (5.6 per cent) to die by suicide and love affairs drove 4,919 (5.2 per cent) people to kill themselves.
Most importantly, the incidence of suicide due to family problems and mental illness is quite high in males. During the COVID-19 lockdown, reports are pointing to an increase in alleged suicides. Lockdown reported 164 stories talking about around 140 suicides and about 24 attempted suicides.
A teen’s brain is rapidly growing connections that can have certain side effects and that is why a big number of mental disorders like anxiety and eating disorders all kick in during teen years. Teens go through an identity crisis as both the mind and body are changing. They are confused and trying to come to grips with who they are mentally as well as physically. And teens who do not have a healthy support system and coping skills often succumb to suicidal thoughts.
Children during their teen years develop a new sense of identity, new ideas regarding what they want to achieve in their lives. By the time the child reaches his teens, parents have formed solid notions of what the child’s day to day behaviour should be and what the child should achieve in his or her life. This is where disappointments kick in. India accounts for 17.8 per cent of all reported suicide cases. According to the National Crime Bureau, India reported 381 suicides daily for the year 2019.
Some of the most common risk factors include depression, being the victim of sexual abuse, physical abuse, addiction, bullying, marginalization due to sexual orientation, and a family history of suicide. Parents need to watch out for obvious signs of suicidal tendencies, including talk of suicide, social withdrawal, mood swings, drug use, changes in routine, self-destructive behaviour, severe anxiety, and personality changes. As a parent, it is always important to be aware of what is going on. They should have a non-judgmental attitude so the child can talk to them about issues freely. Be extremely aware of their changes and have empathy. Guide them and let them know that it is OK to not be OK. It is OK to feel down. Give them ample space to deal with their issues, while extending support throughout. There are times when the child may not be able to confide in parents, so take them to an expert.
The purpose should be to help them wade through difficult situations and times. Parents have the constant urge to protect their kids from any pain or failure but these should ideally be seen as opportunities for learning. The parental role should be restricted to providing support and love, and the teen should be allowed to use his ability to resolve the issue. Suicide was the leading cause for over 300 “non-corona virus deaths” reported in India due to distress triggered by the nationwide lockdown, revealed a new set of data compiled by a group of researchers. The ongoing pandemic has affected people’s mental health majorly. This year’s theme is ‘Working together to prevent suicide.’
There has been a widespread surge in partner violence during the lockdown. Frontline workers like doctors, nurses, police officials are in dire need of psychological support. 47% of health workers expressed their need for psychological help in a study conducted by Pot loc Many health workers have already complained of a shortage of masks, PPE from various corners of India throughout the lockdown. Many have also reported cases of mistreatment encountered in their communities. Coping with this psychological stress has been quite hard, and many in India have chosen suicide as a way out of their grim reality. Later into the lockdown, there was a spike in the number of suicide cases due to financial distress (misemployment’s and income loss included). The initial phases of the lockdown saw a higher number of suicides from fear.
