Social media illusion and us

I have two best friend, a male and a female one. We have a strong bonding. But you would feel strange knowing that within the duration of 8 and 12 years of our friendship we have hardly 50 photographs together. It was so funny,  that one day we three went for a photoshoot with his DSLR camera and were able to click not more than 10 photographs one whole day. That’s probably because we were more into spending quality time with each other.

We have become unsocial after using social media. Most images shared on social media’s are just an illusion of our real life. Reality is quite the contrary. Everyone just wants’ others to know how much happy they are, when they actually aren’t. Someone who gives attractive status upload should be able to realise the importance or the true sense of happiness in life. How can one "feel happy with 30 others", or "feel alone with 15  others", "a day like never before", "a wonderfull day with 20 others".

It’s a wonder how the most important events in our lives are overshadowed with posing for the perfect capture, till the moment itself is lost. We live in a society, where the value of human life and the importance of relationship has decreased. Here, I reminded of a story of two terrorist who talk about their plan of killing 30 people and a dog. One man overheared them and could not control his curiosity and loosely enquired, “Why the dog?”. That’s the reality. No one really cares about the lives of people anymore.

One can cite the example of celebration of the days like “mother’s day" with a photo of his/her mother. Instead of giving her the love and respect she deserves in real life, we believe that public display of emotion on social media even when she doesn't have a mail id is quite ironically.

We have become more dependent on our phones and make the social media the primary concern of our life. This is the reason why games like 'Blue whale', 'momo challenge' can cost lives and change their perspective towards the society. Well mobile phones and social media have become an integral part of our life and we cannot deny the importance of it. But one should realise the pros and cons of it and let it not rule our lives.

       
                    NILAKHI HAZARIKA.

ৰাসোৎসৱত অত্যাধুনিকতা

ৰাস মহোৎসৱ । আঘোণ মাহৰ পূৰ্ণিমাত উদযাপন কৰা হয় ৰাসোৎসৱ । ঠাইভেদে ৰাসৰ ভিন্নতা দেখা যায়। অসমৰ বহু ঠাইত ভাওনা, কৃষ্ণৰ লীলা নাট্যৰূপত পৰিবেশন কৰি উদযাপন কৰা হয়, আকৌ কিছু ঠাইত মৃন্ময় মূৰ্তিৰে কৃষ্ণৰ লীলা বর্ণনা কৰি ৰাস আয়োজন কৰে। ঠাইৰ ভিন্নতাত প্ৰদৰ্শনো ভিন্ন হয়। 

সময় বাগৰাৰ লগে লগে ৰাসোৎসৱৰো কিছু উপাদান যেন সলনি হৈছে। বিশেষকৈ মৃন্ময় মূৰ্তিৰ প্ৰদৰ্শিত হোৱা ৰাস মহোৎসৱ সমূহত । অসমৰ বহু উল্লেখযোগ্য ৰাস মহোৎসৱ আছে য'ত কেৱল মৃন্ময় মূৰ্তিৰ ৰাসৰ বাবে বিখ্যাত হৈছিল। কিন্তু আধুনিকীকৰণৰ লগে লগে ৰাস সমূহত বৈদ্যুতিক মাধ্যমৰ প্ৰভাৱ পৰা পৰিলক্ষিত হৈছে। লগে লগে বৈদ্যুতিক আহিলাৰে মৃন্ময় মূৰ্তি সমূহ আৰু অধিক আকৰ্ষণীয় কৰি তুলিবলৈ চেষ্টা কৰিছে প্ৰতিখন ৰাস উদযাপন সমিতিয়ে , আৰু নিসন্দেহে বৈদ্যুতিক আহিলাই ৰাসৰ মূৰ্তিসমূহ আৰু অধিক আকৰ্ষণীয় কৰি তুলিছে। 

 কিন্তু ইয়াৰ লগে লগে গা-কৰি উঠিছে কিছুমান সমস্যাই । আমি দেখিবলৈ পাইছো বহুকেইখন উল্লেখযোগ্য ৰাসত বৰ্তমানে মূৰ্তিৰ নামত ইংৰাজী জনপ্ৰিয় কাৰ্টুন ধাৰাবাহিকৰ জনপ্ৰিয় চৰিত্ৰ বৈদ্যুতিক মাধ্যমৰ আহিলাৰে আৰু অধিক আকৰ্ষণীয় কৰি ৰাসত প্ৰদৰ্শিত কৰিছে। সৰু ল'ৰা -ছোৱালী , জেষ্ঠজন সকলোৱে আনন্দেৰে এই কাৰ্টুনৰ মূৰ্তি সমূহ উপভোগ কৰিছে। 

 এনেদৰে আমাৰ সকলোৰে চকুৰ আগতে লাহে লাহে বৈদ্যুতিক মাধ্যমৰ দ্বাৰা আৰু বাণিজ্যিকৰনে ৰাসৰ ঐতিহ্য আৰু গৰিমাৰ প্ৰতি ক্ৰমান্বয়ে এক ভাবুকিৰ সৃষ্টি কৰিছে। প্ৰকৃততে ৰাস মহোৎসৱ উদযাপন কৰা হৈছিল ভগৱান শ্ৰীকৃষ্ণৰ লীলা পৰিবেশন আৰু তেওঁৰ অৱতাৰ সমূহ বৰ্ণনাৰ উদ্দেশ্যে । কিন্তু বৰ্তমান সময়ৰ এনেকুৱা জনপ্ৰিয় ইংৰাজী কাৰ্টুন চৰিত্ৰ সমূহে ৰাসৰ মূল উদ্দেশ্যৰ পৰা আঁতৰাই আনিছে লগতে  শিশুসকলৰ মনত ইয়াৰে বিৰূপ প্ৰভাৱ পৰিব। আচলতে তেওঁলোকে ধাৰণা কৰি লব যে ৰাস মহোৎসৱ মানে কাৰ্টুন। 

মানুহে যি দেখে বা শুনে সেয়ে শিকি লয়। গতিকে আজিৰ  নৱপ্ৰজন্মই ৰাসৰ প্ৰকৃত উদ্দেশ্যৰ পৰা অজ্ঞাত থাকে তেনেহলে অদূৰ ভৱিষ্যতে হয়তো ৰাস মহোৎসৱৰ পৰম্পৰা আৰু ঐতিহ্যৰ হেৰাই যাব এয়া নিশ্চিত।

এনেক্ষেত্রত আমাৰ সকলোৰে ৰাস উদযাপন সমিতি , সংস্কৃতি সাধক, সচেতন নাগৰিক এক গুৰু দায়িত্ব আৰু ভূমিকা আছে। মূল উদ্দেশ্যৰ পৰা বিচলিত নোহোৱাকৈ আধুনিকতাৰ দ্বাৰা আজিৰ পৰ্যায়ৰ পৰা আমাৰ সংস্কৃতি আৰু উন্নত কৰা চেষ্টা আমাৰ সকলোৰে কিন্তু আধুনিকতাৰ নামত অত্যাধুনিকতাৰ দ্বাৰা প্ৰকৃত উদ্দেশ্য হেৰুৱাব নালাগে।

-ৰাকেশ হালৈ

Veganism as a new food-culture

In a country like India, where numerous animals, birds are mercilessly slaughtered in the name of religious rituals, sacrifices and consumption, in contrary also experiences the high rate of obesity and high mortality rates in the name of health issues. 

So, few days back I was going through an Indian Female Youtuber's Channel which is most probably a food vlog where she not only talked about her resolution on having vegetarian food once a week but also talks about the 'Vegan' Culture. The video fascinated me a lot since the way people were starting to adapt to the new food culture is indeed interesting. 

'Vegan', the word's usage or introduction dates back to the 1840s. Donald Watson coined the term vegan in 1944 when he co-founded the Vegan Society in England . At first he used it to mean ''non-diary vegetarian'', but from 1951 the Society defined it as ''the doctrine that man should live without exploiting animals. However, the interest in the particular doctrine increases in 2010 and in the latter half. 

As per few rules, the vegans do not even use any products be it cosmetics or medicines that are being previously  tasted on animals. They believed that no animals should be harmed for the survival of human. 

 Vegan diets tend to be higher in dietary Fibres,Magnesium,Folic acid,Vitamin C,Vitamin E,Iron and Phytochemicals and lower in Dietary Energy,Saturated fat,Cholestorol,Long-chain omega-3 fatty acids,Vitamin-D,Calcium,Zinc and Vitamin B,and therefore vegetarian diet is not much recommened to the pregnant women and adolescents specially. 

However, a huge study of Seventh Day ,Adventists says, who ate little or no meat showed longevity of life span increased by 7.28 years in men and 4.42 years in women. Also an average life span could increase by 3.6 years with a complete vegetarian diet, moreover few plant supplements could nourish the immunity system.  A vegetarian diet also reduces the risks of cancer which is of much probability for non-veg eaters.

Veganism as a dietary revolution could not only uplift the health strata of the society but also decrease the amount of killings which goes on for human consumption.

Indeed, consuming veggies all the time looks boring but there are at present large options in the vegan food pantry too with different vegetables,staples,nuts,deserts and many more to constitute different delicious recipes to never bore the taste buds.

Although,it won't be possible for the people in India to go for vegeterian food daily but one can follow the Vegan-Diet once a week which could necessarily bring a drastic change in the terms of health as well as survival of animals.

By Rajashree Das

Bishnupriya Manipuri language and Diaspora

I was deeply desolate on hearing, “You know, we don’t get to see many Bishnupriya Manipuris (BPM) in such events”, commented my friend in an entrepreneurs’ meet when I happened to introduce her to a Bishnupriya Manipuri person, to which I belonged.

 Such statements are commonly heard when you belong to a community that has thrived with all its might to retain its feeble existence in the world where the lingua franca is quite different.  Hence, it  gives me a feeling of despair on seeing a language losing its identity, be it mine or any other. According to the list of endangered languages in the world, Bishnupriya Manipuri has been termed as ‘vulnerable’ by UNESCO in 2011 posted by The Guardian, which generates an impression of it being in danger and unrecognized fully in its own domain.

This also makes me retrospect to instances where I was termed ‘conservative’ when asked about my community, when others are incognizant of the language. The Bishnupriya  Manipuris  has a strength of more than 50,000 speakers presently, a huge number of them living in the Sylhet division of Bangladesh and parts of Assam and Tripura.  The community primarily thrived on an agrarian economy that is rooted to their culture, but the upcoming generation being educated,  look for opportunities to get themselves employed; regardless of their community interest,  thereby discerning them on their skill;

This also reminds me of the instance, where a newspaper interviewer asked me the question, “Do you recognize Bishnupriya Manipuris as the real Manipuri or the Meiteis as the same?”,  to which I felt subservient but  answered on Bishnupriya Manipuri, being an Indo-Aryan language, having its historic roots in state of Manipur and being recognized by the state governments of Assam and Tripura. 

David Kaufman, Linguist and Founder of the Endangered Language Alliance(ELA), a non-profit  organization in New York has taken an initiative; a current project on preserving the Bishnupriya Manipuri language in collaboration with Uttam Singha (founder of POURI International) along with many other minority languages of the world. 

In the Endangered Languages Fair in New York, Uttam Singha, a renowned expert on Bishnupriya Manipuri had given a presentation on its ethnicity and stressed on its preservation in the meet held on September 29, 2012. He has been living in New York for 10-15 years, however laments for his society, its culture, language, history. In Bangladesh he opened an organisation named POURI through which they publishes various magazines, articles, newspapers for the propagation of the language.  Even though the language dates back its origin from Manipur, 200-300 years ago from now, the BPMs got scattered to areas of Assam, Tripura and Bangladesh due to a conflict arising in the state of Manipur.   The Bishnupriya Manipuri youth, speaking and being brought up in the majority language constructs the generation to stay away from its roots thereby being ignorant of its ethnicity, the culture etc., however Uttam Singha yearns for change, he wants the young generation to buck up and make an attempt to make their mother tongue thrive instead of being apathetic towards it and letting it fade casually. He doesn’t want the death of their martyr go in vain. The Bangladeshi diasporas living in the Jackson Heights, Queens, New York (a place which consists of more than 160 spoken languages than anywhere in the world), says, they have been living here since 2000 after leaving their native Bangladesh. It’s a bittersweet feeling to see their children not being able to connect with the culture. On the contrary, the world being competitive, keeping yourself rooted to one’s culture becomes strenuous at times.

 Satyajit Singha, a Bangladeshi diaspora says, he left Bangladesh 10-25 years ago and came to America for a better life, and the former’s easy going life is completely different from the life in the latter. They are so busy that he doesn’t have words to express it. Both are completely different worlds. However he hopes to retain the culture in their children’s lives, as when they visit their homeland, they will be able to interact well and gel up with them.

By Rashmi Sinha

Turning Cabbie

It was strange to have so much traffic early at seven at MG Marg on a Sunday. The road is usually empty in the morning hours. Turns out some fool was driving his truck on the wrong side of the road to get to a petrol depot. While waiting patiently in the middle of this chaos, I could see a man from my rear view mirror. He was a tall slim guy, somewhere in his late twenties. He was wearing a blue sleeveless, a jogger and a pair of Nike running shoes. It looked like he was in the middle of a run when he possibly received some bad news. He was desperately asking around the cab drivers to drop him off somewhere. After getting rejected by three of them, he took a chance on me. He asked me politely if I could drop him off near St. John’s Hospital. I only agreed because my tennis practice was on the way and the man looked desperate for help. He hopped on and we wiggled past the traffic jam which still did not clear. Before we could hit the empty road, he asked me to fasten my seat-belt as he had done. Usually, in this particular scenario I would have given him a piece of my mind?  Saying, I’m doing you a favour, can’t you be just grateful about it? But I chose to ignore any confrontation.

He looked like he was panicking from the inside yet he tried his best to play it cool and keep his calm. While I was driving, he looked around my Kwid and noticed my tennis kit. My Babolat racket was out in the backseat.  He grabbed it and admired the racket. He examined the strings, shock absorbers and the grip very meticulously. He remarked that it was one of the finest rackets and that he also owned a couple of them. He asked me a little later why I agreed to help a stranger and drop him off half way across the city. I replied that he looked desperate for help and that some sort of emergency might have cropped up.  I also added that my tennis practice is just a couple of kilometres from St John’s Hospital. I said I was only helping out a fellow citizen. He did not say anything; only smiled at the mere thought of it. His phone rang right before I made a turn towards V.K Road where St John’s was situated. He insisted I stop near the tea stall. I questioned him saying we were barely a kilometre away from the hospital. He replied politely that some people were waiting for him and requested me to drop him right there. I wasn’t too happy how things turned out. 

At the back of my mind, during the entire journey half way across the city, I was under the impression that this man needed some help. Perhaps his family member might have met with an accident or something and had to be rushed to St John’s. I was disappointed, I couldn’t play hero but merely followed the instructions without questioning.  I could see some men in casual clothes sipping tea when we reached. The man got out from my car, thanked me and appreciated the help he received. I did not stick around to see what went down next and drove off to practice rather puzzled. 

                 

Later that night, I switched on the six o’clock Prime Time News. The television screen constantly kept popping the breaking news tag: ‘Major Drug Racket Busted’. A few moments later an interview was telecasted where a man was being interviewed by a reporter. I recognised the blue sleeveless and those joggers. Yes! This was the same man I had dropped at the tea stall today morning.  Turns out he is Assistant Commissioner of Police, Narcotics Department.

By Partha Barua

(This article is loosely based on a narrative)

Horn Not Ok Please

Excessive honking of vehicles has turned out to be a matter of great concern in Metropolitan cities of the country today. Even after repeated campaigns like "do not Honk", "horn not Ok Please", and attempts by many NGOs and other public bodies to control the unusual noise pollution created by the horns, there seems to be little or no response to it at all.

   Our environment today is exploited and is a victim of abuse by man plying vehicles and then adding to it is unwanted noise. What has added to the woes is when two wheelers like motorbikes accessorize themselves to amplify the sound quality produced, there is no concern whatsoever to ensure that there are no hospitals or schools around that could be disturbed with this manufactured noise. This noise is so harmful that it can cause serious damage to our ears as well as bring adverse effects to our health.

      Irony is the noise pollution created by the honking or by the accessorized vehicles has become a trend setter for today's young generation. The chaotic sound now has been a part and parcel of living in a big city.

According to World Health Organizations, healthy noise levels should not surpass 55 decibels during the day and 40 at night.India comes among the top ten noisiest countries in the world, to make it even worse three major metropolitan cities of India i.e Mumbai, Kolkatta and Delhi are among the top ten noisiest cities in worldwide analysis. On a satirical note, countries like Egypt, United States, China, Japan and Pakistan are also not so behind the race of winning the title of nosiest countries.

    "Most of the problem lies, due to the imprudent nature of the drivers and also the lack of knowledge of proper driving rules."Mrs Sengupta, a local public transport traveller complained.

   Comparing to the traffic and noise pollution created due to it. Many internet reports suggest that the most countries except India are much developed and well organised in this regard. If these problems are needed to be controlled then, the people themselves should realize about the instrumental effects to the environment and also to us. Rules and regulation should be passed by the government so that immediate legal action can be taken against the person breaking rules.

By Ria Chowdhury

Banning the “Bandh" culture

I heard the distinct cries of pain. I heard the screams that even the cloth she held over her mouth couldn’t drown. I saw my cousin sister clutching on to her stomach, pregnant well ahead in her third trimester, desperately trying to act fine but every contraction made her body crumble in pain and defeated her resolve. At that time, her husband was on a flight back home and would take another 6 hours to reach. Our car, unfortunately, was on servicing. With no car in the house and no transportation available due to the on-going Assam Bandh, now a more regular occurrence than electricity in most villages, we were at a loss as to what to do. It was our neighbour with their ever friendly smile and old but functioning i10 car who came over hearing the commotion and insisted on taking my sister to the hospital, two hours after her water broke, and that saved the day from turning into a disaster that could have wrecked the family forever.

While on the way to the hospital, I witnessed the lifeless streets- the closed shops, the sleeping rickshaw pullers, the child begging with a bowl without any money looking at our car passing by with hunger in his eyes. When I came home that day, my mind was churning with questions and contempt towards these futile steps taken to combat an issue in this state instead of taking any concrete ones. I wondered if Assam Bandh has become the only way to support or protest against anything disagreeable that occurs in this state.

“Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016”, a burning topic of today but the people who very eagerly celebrated the Assam Bandh weren’t even aware of the core issues, the drawbacks of the said Bill, the repercussions of its implementation and its effects on the State.  More than half the population only celebrated this day as a holiday without even understanding why it was for. Declaring a Bandh without citing or explaining “what for’’ and “why for” or without showing needed rectifications in the Bill isn’t justified.

The state has been mute spectator to innumerable Andolans and Bandhs to address certain issues since the 1980’s but, till date,has borne no fruit whatsoever. Assam is still lagging behind in terms any work culture or job opportunities."The Bandh culture goes against the notion of individual rights and is a stigma on the effectiveness of local governance structures, and is unconstitutional to say the least,” said a resident of Guwahati city, BishnuDas(name changed). It adds nothing to the state except leading to a stunted economy, a tremendous loss for the already deprived section of the society, for example, the daily wage earners like the small-time rickshaw pullers or labourers who depend on their daily earning to feed their families.

“It takes a lot of hard work to provide food for my wife and three children anyway. These kinds of bandhs make it impossible for us to survive through the day. What do I feed my little girl who’s crying for milk that I can’t buy because there was no earning today?”, stated a visibly disturbed Rickshaw puller. Doesn’t anybody care if their child goes without food for a day or about the problems that can arise due to lack of transportation for the people who are sick and pregnant and needs to get to the hospital? Also, what good does the unnecessary violence do- the burning of tyres to stop traffic on National Highways from Jalukbari areas to Khanapara, the destruction of vehicles at Tezpur, the pelting of stones at vehicles carrying students of a university or attacking buses? 

However novel the cause these organisations are fighting for,  but the reality is that these bandhs only end up causing losses up to crores in the local economy and harassing the general public. All people do the entire day is scroll through their social media accounts and troll people or pick up a fight over the issue. This, in no way, can bring the change we so desperately seek currently. To actually make a difference, to get our voice heard, we need to pick up a better stanch, appeal to the government, hold discussions and debates, make the public more aware, sign petitions and send them to the central government. Leaders must work on development issues, building work culture and providing trade, business and investment opportunities for the betterment of the state. Basically, do anything that’s more productive than just declaring a Bandh sans any results that comes to naught except being touted as a festival nowadays.

MANASWITA MAHANTA

#MeToo: Voice to the Voiceless

By Mosis Wangsa

Lately, whenever digging into your social media accounts, you may have seen this strange hashtag ‘#MeToo’ popping out on every platform. Ever wondered what is it and why it is trending?

The #MeToo movement spread virally in October 2017 as a hashtag used on social media to expose the widespread prevalence of sexual harassment and exploitation, especially in the workplace. It followed soon after allegations of sexual misconduct exploded on social media against top Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein.

The phrase was previously used in this context by African-American civil rights activist Tarana Burke and was popularized by American actress and activist Alyssa Milano when she encouraged women to tweet it “to give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem”. Since then, the phrase has been posted online millions of times, often with an accompanying personal story of sexual victimisation. The response on Twitter included high-profile posts from several celebrities, and many stories of sexual violence were shared, including that of actor/singer Anthony Deane Rapp against legendary actor Kevin Spacey.

If we trace this evil carefully we can see it operating everywhere around us. Be it at the workplace, office, classroom or even within the four walls of our own home, it has unfortunately become a brutal reality. When asked about it, a young lady scholar from the Department of Political Science, GU, remarked, “I totally stand with the movement. I am glad that through social media, people are finally coming out. Sexual harassment or exploitation was always there, it is just now that more people are speaking about it and exposing it. It is not to be taken lightly. Be it in any form, it is an out and out crime”. Another lady scholar from the Department of Philosophy added, “I encourage every girl out there to come forward if they had ever experienced it. At the end of the day, there is always a helping hand”.

A male scholar from the Department of Law however pointed out: “Right now when the entire world is so taken up with feminist issues, which is great by the way, we often tend to forget the males. There are reports of men too being victimized by sexual predators.”

One significant fact that needs be noted is that with each passing day, the social media phenomenon is growing stronger. The #MeToo movement is a recent instance that shows social media surpassing even mainstream media, with the latter desperately trying to catch up. It may be a double-edged sword, but social media whenever used properly is already giving a voice to the hitherto voiceless.

Cycling for a green campus

In order to stay green and eco-friendly, Gauhati University is set to become a cycling campus soon.
"We have prepared a grand plan to maintain the eco-friendly environment of the campus. The blueprint has already reached our hands. The plan includes various development works to keep the campus environment green. It consists of several work plans ranging from managing biodegradable and non-biodegradable wastes to building up a cycling campus", said Dr Mridul Hazarika, Vice Chancellor, GU.

Using bicycles will also act as an alternative means of transport, as the new regulations to come into effect soon at the completion of closed GU campus will restrict the movement of commercial vehicles inside the campus.

Hazarika added, "Building GU into a cycling campus will also be helpful for students as commercial vehicles will be restricted within the campus once it is closed off. We welcome the positive proposal of Post Graduate Students' Union for a cycling campus. We are making all efforts to bring this about in 2-3 months".

"We have procured a new cycle at our department for easy movement around the campus which sprawls over 600 acres. Our initiative is to help re-install the cycling culture amongst faculties and students of our department, in keeping with the varsity authority's move to convert GU into a cycling campus", said Dr Ankuran Dutta, Head, Department of Communication & Journalism, GU.
Notably, the Varsity Week held in March 8-15 at GU included cycling as a new event for the first time, aimed at promoting cycling culture among students in the campus.

Manash Pratim Duarah, President of Students' Union at GU said,  "We are happy that the closed campus of GU is near completion. Therefore, we have proposed to the authority to provide 5 cycles to each hostel initially for use within the campus, apart from promoting cycling culture through the inclusion of cycling as an event for the first time in this year's varsity week".
"We will also be organising a cycle rally within the campus shortly to further promo
the cycling culture at GU," he added.

By Raja Das

'Equip students to deal with stress'

Varsity life can be daunting for youths with crushing study workloads and gnawing career anxieties, particularly in a State like Assam saddled with chronic joblessness. Relationship problems can add further to their emotional woes, making it a particularly dicey phase.

"A psychological counseling centre is very much important at university level as students remain depressed over job prospects and relationship issues. There is a career and guidance cell at GU, but that alone cannot help students deal with stress. Nor have they involved anyone from Psychology department. Students are mostly lacking in awareness about mental health. This besides, stigma is attached to such problems and seeking of professional help," said Professor Indranee Phookan Barooah of Psychology Department, GU.

"We have proposed setting up a psychological counseling centre to hold family counseling programmes, on the basis of a government notification in 2016, but no response has been forthcoming from GU administration so far," she added.
A mental health awareness programme was organised by Ujjeevit Foundation, a Guwahati-based organisation for overall development of children and youth, in association with GU Study Circle at the varsity on April 1.

"Students labouring under mental stress can come to know scientifically about it by attending such programmes. Mental health awareness programme is helpful to identify depression among students through various symptoms in their behaviour, which can then be overcome through counseling," Professor Barooah said.

Rahul Dutta, founder of Ujjeevit Foundation, said, "This mental health awareness programme is part of our 6-months-long campaign 'Khul Ke Bolo' in which we have targeted to reach 1,000 youths of schools, colleges and universities in the city. Our objective is to lay a platform for them to speak about the stresses troubling them and learn from the success stories of those who fought and overcame their depression."

"There are many GU students who have waited long for this kind of awareness programme to be organised in the campus. This programme will be helpful to all, irrespective of gender in the campus, though some may use this platform to highlight current issues, like the lot of girl students," said Aparajita Mahanta, president of GU Study Circle.

By Raja Das