Slum Culture in India

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Slums as perceived by most of us are dirty, dingy, mostly illegal and poor societies that lack amenities, wealth or basic standards of living. Today, for many large slums a part of this definition is true; whereas the other part is not. They are definitely dirty and dingy lacking many basic facilities but some of them possess huge amounts of wealth. India has some of the largest slums in the continent as well as the world in its largest metropolitan like Mumbai, New Delhi etc. This reflects the sharp contrast and irony of the two types of lives led in a developed city.Speech topics

A slum is established when a group or a community of people who are weak economically, socially or culturally find an area to establish their dwellings. With time, schools and hospitals are developed in the region but the facilities are not up to the mark. They have to live a life of insecurity and fear as to when they will be dislocated or will be victimized by attacks from other communities. They are enveloped by the vicious cycle of poverty, unemployment, crime, corruption and illiteracy.

To add to their despair, the poor hygiene conditions, congested areas give rise to various health problems. Due to lack of proper amenities, the crime rate in such regions is extremely high. Probability of riots and fights is also high. But these days, many large slums are house to some of the biggest trades in the world; some illegal others legal. Many communities with a rich culture and indigenous art forms often promote them and resort to cottage industries to earn money. Many others are centres of drug and human trafficking, hubs for gangsters and dacoits and even terrorist camps. Life in a slum is unpredictable and dangerous as there is no security or stability of life. People there are surrounded by the fear as to when the government or any other NGO will come up with a new development project at the site of their settlement and they will have to leave the area. They have no financial or social back up and thus many families eventually land up struggling for square meals by doing odd jobs. Many communities disperse and settle in different cities and towns. Many others go back to villages in search of a stable life. This leads to disappearance of minority groups and their cultures.

Steps are being taken to take care of the slum dwelling people by governmental and non-governmental organizations alike. These people are being given proper legal areas to live and are being provided with employment opportunities as well. They are being protected socially, culturally and financially. Many slums are yet to receive this support. Cooperative measures will help them reap the benefits of our nation’s development.

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India In My Dreams

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We are all used to dreaming and enjoy doing it. The pleasures of building castles in the air are untold and infinite. At times some people sit and discuss about the current political and socioeconomic situation and give their own news and suggestions about the problems facing the country. What kind of a country do we dream of? All of us being inhabitants of citizens of our country naturally dream of the kind of a country that we desire for. We even dream of building a kind of country as we hope it to be.Speech topics

India is a country with an amazing diversity. With the onset of the new millennium, historians, sociologists and other experts predict that only three Asian countries seem to be having the potential of taking Asia to great heights i.e., India, China and Japan, Japan is of course economically challenging but China and India seem to be more dominating and promising because of their impressive size and man power, India marching gloriously ahead after her independence, is emerging as a force to reckon with. But a lot needs to be done on the home front with illiteracy, population explosion, poverty, unemployment, corrupt politicians etc. Besides this, we have failed to provide basic needs of to all the citizens like safe and clean drinking water, housing, sanitation, a square meal a day, medical facilities etc. moreover, the problem of malnutrition, AIDS etc, are growing day by day. According to the report of WHO about lakh Indians were suffering from AIDS at the beginning of the millennium and by 2010 if sufficient measures are not taken India will overtake Africa in HIV infection status.

The India of my dreams may appear impracticable and a little too imaginative to many but then this is what I hope my country to be. In the land of my dreams, the suffering millions and the burden of poverty will be non existent. The ever-widening gap between the rich and the poor will be bridged. Education will be free and compulsory and there will be complete law and order. Crime and violence will be curbed and reason will reign all over. Every citizen will be able to express his/her ideas. No one would be deprived of justice. Everyone will live with dignity. There will be equal rights for everyone-no discrimination between rich and the poor, high or low, man or woman.

Science and technology will reach every village, town and city. Computer literacy will be a haven for scientists. We will produce our own products with indigenous technology. The country will be self-reliant in technology and everything else. All citizens will be swayed only by one emotion-patriotism. Thus, India of my dreams would be strong and self-reliant economically and strong in its defense, politically astute, socially civilized, non-communal, secular, educated and united.

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