Another School Life Article

IGNORANCE CAN KILL AWARENESS

While exploring new vistas of thought arising in my mind for writing some article for the school magazine I just remembered the very many pages that have been used up talking about the overburdening of teenagers and the problems of the education system at large. So, at once I decided not to go into that area any more! However the fact that this is still a huge cause of concern and is even now an inevitable and endless topic, bothers me. I now come to the discussion whereby I would like to focus on the actual importance of such awareness creating and enlightening articles about various social problems so to speak. The point of pressure on the youth and articles in magazines etc regarding this is just a mere example. What I mean to say really is that in reality we find a totally different picture before us.

We find pages and pages of newsprint “wasted” by printing such articles by different activists and for that matter even students. Take for example awareness creating articles and posters banning “Smoking.” Don’t be surprised to see a man reading such an article with great ‘concentration’ and having a lighted cigarette in his left hand! Also the immense care put into publication of write-ups by the schools against putting extra pressure on students on the very day when they have announced some extra “bonus” exams for the students. So, the main problem lies in the attitudes and mentalities of people. No matter how many pages you can fill up trying to create awareness, it will not happen until and unless the urge comes from within. Another example I would like to mention here about such attitudinal problems. Once I was watching a cricket match at the Eden Gardens. I was deeply engrossed in the game when suddenly a person started smoking. It is worth mentioning that smoking was banned in public places just a few days before the incident. May be it was a case of acute of ignorance so I brought this point to his notice. “It’s alright!” he said. “If you are having a problem I am just moving aside.” Just imagine. I am telling someone that smoking is banned and moreover it is injurious to health and the person turns a deaf ear to that and obliges me by moving aside.

My article here is not to suggest that there is lack of awareness but to point out that there is actually no lack of ignorance. Carefree behaviour and irresponsibility to the family and society are also not scarce. Now, how to resolve such a mental problem I don’t perhaps know and neither do I want to waste time writing about it just to find someone reading that and practicing the reverse. So, I conclude by stating that awareness programmes have really done a commendable job in creating awareness about various social sins and public ignorance has gone a long way to strangle this awareness to death!