This Dussehra when people of Patna (Bihar) gathered at Gandhi Maidan to celebrate the festival, the event turned into a tragedy. An unfortunate stampede claimed about 35 lives and left scores injured.
Dussehra is one of the festivals Patnaites wait for every year. The fun and attraction involved with Durga Puja is simply incomparable. Children love it for they get holidays from the sixth day itself, getting time to explore a dazzling and shimmering side of Patna, something which is not available for the rest of the year. The festivities culminate on Vijaya Dashmi or Dussehra with the burning of huge effigies of Meghnaad, Kumbhkaran and Raavan in that order.
About 4 to 5 lakh people assemble at the historic Gandhi Maidan, spread over an area of 62 acres in the shape of a circle, surrounded by busy roads, in the center of the city. The whole of Patna witnesses the grand event, marred by fireworks to commemorate the victory of goodness and ‘dharma’ over evil and ‘adharma’.
The day of Dussehra has always been an eager and anxious wait for evening so that parents would be requested for a visit to ‘Raavan-dahan’ site. It would be an awesome scene with a sea of human beings gleaming in joy. Balloons, roadside chaats and other delicacies like cotton candy would be the added attractions. However, my parents never allowed me to enter inside the Gandhi Maidan during that day.
We would always watch from the other side of the road so that running away could be easy as soon as the human tsunami would erupt after Ravan dahan. We would be extra intelligent to leave as soon as Meghnaad’s effigy was burnt. Reaching home at night and a nice dinner would mark the end of the festivities. A nostalgic sadness would ensue while realizing that another Dussehra has passed.
Who knew a gloomy Dussehra was waiting for Patna this year. By evening, news of stampede was confirmed, with about 35 deaths and more than 100 injured. Sadness engulfed the city, especially for those who have suffered loss of their near and dear ones. Most of the deceased are women or children. The injured have been admitted at Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH).
The Prime Minister has already announced a compensation of Rupees two lakh to the nearest kin of the deceased and Rupees fifty thousand to the injured. According to witnesses, a rumor about a live wire led to a panic which resulted into a stampede in no time. Whatever may be the reason it is a horrifying incident which could have been avoided.
It is no secret that lakhs of people assemble at Gandhi Maidan on this day. Besides Dussehra, many rallies and political gatherings, book fairs and other events take place at Gandhi Maidan throughout the year. Yet enough arrangements are never made to avoid emergency situations.
The city administration doesn’t have an SOP for safe evacuation of people during any crisis and as a result, stampedes have been a common feature in the past. The administration needs to be more vigil and better prepared so that such incidents can be avoided in future.
A nice article on Bhagat Singh and why he shouldn’t be ignored. He gains even more relevance as once again, we are moving to an era where everything may fall on deaf ears. Barring Aam Aadmi Party, none of the parties could even organise a decent commemoration of Bhagat Singh’s birthday.
Many paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi and Lal Bahadur Shastri on October 2. In comparison, only few paid homage to Bhagat Singh on his birth anniversary on September 28, recalled brave deeds of the martyr and cursed contemporary politicians for not following Shaheed-e-Azam’s ideology. The big question, however, is how many of us actually know about the ideas of the legendary revolutionary, which, I believe, are more relevant today.
The bombs hurled in the Central Assembly were not just to `make deaf hear’ but also to oppose the repressive bills aimed at curtailing freedom of press, curb civil liberties and restrict rights of workers. We may or may not agree with the method of protest but cannot disagree with his idea of India – free, just and equitable system where the voice of weakest of weak is heard and addressed. Here is the complete text (courtesy http://www.shahidbhagatsingh.org) of the leaflet…
सितम्बर का महीना देश के लिए मंगलयान की सफलता के रूप में एक नया और नायाब तोहफा लेकर आया. पूरे देश में हर्ष और उन्माद का वातावरण कई दिनों तक छाया रहा. आखिर पहले प्रयास में और सबसे कम लागत में हमने वो कर दिखाया जो तकनीकी में कहीं आगे, जापान और चीन भी न कर सके. क्या स्कूल, क्या दफ्तर, क्या चपरासी, क्या अफसर! सभी ने इसरो के वैज्ञानिकों के साथ मिलकर जश्न मनाया.
किन्तु एक खबर ने चौंका कर रख दिया है. सुनने में आया है कि बिहार के मुख्यमंत्री श्री जीतन राम मांझी मधुबनी जिले के एक मंदिर में गए थे. मांझीजी के अनुसार उन्हें बाद में बताया गया कि उनके लौटने के बाद मंदिर और मंदिर में स्थित प्रतिमा की सफाई की गयी ताकि वो फिर से शुद्ध हो सके. ये किस दिशा में जा रहे हैं हम लोग? ऐसा लग रहा है मंगल से वापस धरती पर पटक दिया किसी ने!
पाठकों की जानकारी के लिए बता दूँ कि श्री मांझी ‘मुसहर’ नामक जाति से हैं. यह जाति बिहार की सबसे पिछड़ी जातियों में से एक है. मांझीजी का मुख्यमंत्री बनना ही इस बात का प्रतीक था कि अब बिहार में भी लोग जाति व्यवस्था से ऊपर उठकर भाईचारे के साथ काम करेंगे. किन्तु पुरातन सामंतवादी सोच लोगों का पीछा ही नहीं छोड़ती. दलित तो पैरों के नीचे ही ठीक है. ऊपर उठ गया तो सवर्णों की साख कम हो जाएगी. उनकी पूछ घट जाएगी. ऐसी बातें कब तक इंसानियत को शर्मसार करती रहेंगी. ऐसी घटनाएं बिहार ही नहीं, अन्य राज्यों में भी होती रहती हैं. किसी भी सभ्य समाज के लिए ऐसी घटनाएँ निंदनीय है.
सोचने योग्य बात यह है कि राज्य के मुख्यमंत्री के साथ ऐसा व्यवहार हुआ है तो फिर गाँवों में रहने वाले भोले भाले और कमजोर लोगो के साथ किस तरह का बर्ताव हो रहा होगा? दिल दहल उठता है ऐसी परिस्थिति से! क्या हम आने वाली पीढ़ियों के लिए ऐसा समाज बनाना चाहते हैं? क्या हम नहीं चाहते कि भविष्य मेहनत और मेधा के आधार पर तैयार हो! क्या हम नहीं चाहते कि भविष्य खोखले स्तंभों की जगह मजबूत विश्वास और सौहार्द्रता की नींव पर खड़ा हो? अमंगलकारी सोच और बातें किस कदर हमारे मानसिकता में अभी तक घर किये हुए हैं इसका अंदाजा लगाना भी मुश्किल है! वहाँ हमारे वैज्ञानिकों ने चाँद को छू लिया, मंगल पर कदम रखने की पूरी तैयारी कर ली है और यहाँ धरती पर दलित, हरिजन, छुआ-छूत, जाति-पाति जैसे अमंगल सोच से भी पीछा नहीं छूट रहा.
पवन श्रीवास्तव नाम के एक युवा निर्देशक दलितों के ऊपर एक चलचित्र बनाने जा रहे हैं. शायद वो समाज के इस अभिशाप से लोगो को अच्छे से रू-ब-रू करा सकें. कुछ वर्षों पहले पटना स्थित महावीर मंदिर में एक दलित को पूजा के लिए नियुक्त किया गया था. कितनी ख़ुशी हुई थी सुनकर कि जाति की जगह महावीर मंदिर ट्रस्ट ने योग्यता पर भरोसा किया और पूरे देश के लिए एक उत्तम उदहारण पेश किया. ऐसा सोचने वाले इतने कम क्यों हैं! फिर भी, उम्मीद पर दुनिया कायम है. आशा है कि मंदिर धोने वाली घटना लाखो में एक हो और एक बुरे सपने की तरह फिर से परेशान न करे.
Watching news channels these days sends only one message- Television media is in a bit of dilemma- who to support! Congress remains the ground spectator with a few of its spokespersons claiming to win a handsome number of seats, in case of a re-election; while amusing the audience. Nevertheless, as Bhagwant Mann pointed out in a Mumbai conference, Delhi temperature soars higher in degree Celsius than the number of congress MPs and Lalu Yadav may have more children than their number in Delhi Assembly. Thus, no one is giving a damn about the party. Rahul Gandhi himself is more interested in dhol-beating of Modi.
Everything was crystal clear when Mr. Jung wrote to the President, and people might have embraced BJP government in order to avoid a no government situation when this hell of a video stung the BJP ‘Sher’. That turned the tide. BJP people have gone to the extent of denying Mr. Dagar as an authorized person and issuing show-cause notice to him simultaneously, leading to tweets asking if BJP has a separate department for horse-trading!! Nevertheless, a BJP state vice president being a nobody with Rs 4 Crore, is justified to an extent as Modi and Amit Shah are the whole and soul of the party.
So, media is trying to decide between the labeled ‘Dramebaaz’ AAP and ‘Saint’ BJP, thanks to the sting by ‘unemployed’ AAP and Arvind Kejriwal. While apologizing to the public about quitting as Delhi CMs on grounds of principles, Kejriwal has once again ‘exposed’ and made the people gape. Amongst the news of horse-trading and AAP sting, the media fraternity seems to be divided as who to support and how much to support. It has created four factions.
The second faction includes some channels who have decided not to telecast sting related news but focus on Kashmir floods. Good that they have something to report about Kashmir, without involving religion and Pakistan. Some channels, the third faction, have tried to dig out AAP related negative news and are telecasting them. They would be revisiting history till they are lost in history. The fourth faction is trying to created news against AAPs to continue pleasing their ‘political and corporate bosses’. The fourth faction is to be beware off! They change their loyalty as per their need and may come up with any twist in the tale, for which media is infamous for, in public.
A recent interview of a poet-cum-AAP leader speaks a million. He wants to convey that opposition doesn’t mean continuous criticism but also praising something good, if being, done by the government. If he praises Modi for visiting Kashmir, what is the harm in that! Don’t we expect praise when we do something good? Besides, his identity and existence is due to his poetry. If he attends an event involving a poetry session, why should it be politicized? Assuming a hypothetical situation, if due to some reason Dr Harshwardhan is in a flight and has to give treatment to a fellow congress traveler during a medical situation, does this mean he is on the edge, and against Modi now! Should he remember his medical duties and treat the ‘congress’ patient or act like a BJP member and deny any treatment! Anyway, the fourth faction will not be able to understand my logic. Thus, I should write about the first faction now.
The first faction should have been, ideally, the only faction of media. That is what media is meant for. This faction is supposed to follow the best policy- honesty. Why should media get into a dilemma of taking sides? Wasn’t the media supposed to be unbiased? Media was supposed to bring to people what’s happening around, without their prejudice and verdict. It was supposed to convey the information and not the message of their ‘bosses’! Of course the honest people are doing their job in media, but, being the honest brats; they don’t indulge in self-advertisements and sensationalism. No wonder they don’t get heard many a times. Thus the first faction is not able to make themselves visible due to their principles. Some of them prefer resigning than continuing in their organization when overtaken by businessmen. They are proud of their principles. Everyone should be! But then, even Kejriwal talks of principles. This faction should have tried to analyze this and voiced what they felt!
A Blog is a website on which an individual or group of users record their opinions, information, etc on a regular basis.
A Blogger is the owner/author of the blog shares his thoughts and knowledge with the world or with the people through the internet.
Blogging is the act of writing a post for a blog.
Blogosphere refers to the blogging world that is used to describe the millions of blogs on Internet.
Reasons to start Blogging?
Blogging is a great way to share your knowledge with global audience.
Blogging is evolving, it is giving opportunity to common people to share their thoughts and write with freedom.
Indeed Blogging is a very good platform to make lots of noise for a silent person.
Benefits of blogging
1. Refines your Writing skills
Blogging definitely improves your writing habit. As a blogger you should think and write a lot for your readers. You must think yourself as a writer instead of thinking not just a blogger . With better writing experience and practice one can become a very good writer.
2. You can learn a lot
To write you have to read and learn. To regularly come up with interesting ideas for your blog posts, you will have to learn a lot of information and find out what is the best for your blog and your readers.
3. You’ll become more confident
Blogging will help you discover more confidence in your life. You will quickly realize that you do live an important life with a unique view and have something to offer others.
4. People know your name
Well-written blog posts will rank well in search results, attracting new visitors to your blog. Ultimately, expertise brings you name and fame, as the number of your followers keeps on swelling. This in turn will help you widen your reader base and reach. Why don’t you try this advantage and give yourself a chance to become famous online?
5. Builds a Community
Blogging allows you to share ideas with an almost unlimited number of people. As new visitors and readers reach your blog, your base of followers will increase. This helps build an online community. Comments and feedback will help you to meet new people.
6. To Connect with Like minded people
Blogging never gets boring .There is an endless supply of topics that people are anxious to learn about. Pick a niche that you want to discuss, share and teach to others. It gives the opportunity to find like-minded people.
7. Earns you an income
And of course, You can make money with your blog. A successful and well-written blog can be a cash-cow. If you are able to build a high-quality blog that attracts lots of readers and followers, you can monetize your blog through advertising revenue. There are several ad programs like Google Adsense, Buysell Ads, Chitika and many more present on web to help you earning money. All you need is good amount of traffic.
So, what would you add to this list as a benefit of blogging? Share your thoughts with a comment.
I have no idea how my friends and peer would react if I have to tell them, while crossing a Pharmacist/general store, that I have to buy a sanitary pad for a female friend or my sister. Its a taboo word which brings nothing less than a wicked smile and a silly sense of embarassment. Menstruation and sanitary pads are sort of forbidden words which can only be ‘whisper’ed, not openly acknowledged or discussed. Prerna Subramanian.has stayed-free of the pressures of our hypocrite and pseudo-modern society and blogged the following: Well written and Kudos!! I hope this article would serve as an eye-opener to many! Read on…
I go to the medical shop and ask for a sanitary Napkin.
First, I myself use a euphemism to a ‘pad’. I then correct myself, and say, bhaiiya Pad chahiye.
Then I think, why didn’t I just call it a pad first? What is wrong with a pad? It does not sound wrong? Why was I so sophisticated about it? I decide, that next time I come, I will call it a pad directly, no euphemisms. I won’t even use the company’s name until the shopkeeper asks my choice.
Then he asked me the company, I told him, Stayfree. He asked me the size. I told him. A friend of mine from college, a male friend came inside the shop. I smiled at him. He saw me holding the pack of pads. Then he took his pills and went on his way. He did not even talk to me. He was shy that he ‘caught’ me buying pads.
Then the shopkeeper suddenly emerged with a newspaper, and two polythenes. He took a newspaper, wrapped up my pad, then took up a white polythene, and then put the white polythene in the black polythene.
I said, “Bhaiiya, bomb nahi hai. Aur itna plastic waste mat kariye. Charas leke nahi jaa rahi.” ( Bhaiiya, it is not a bomb, and do not waste so much plastic. I am not taking hashish anyway.)
He just looked at me with a confused look. I removed the polythene, and all the cover ups he had given the mighty packet of pads. I was not even carrying a bag. I just took the plain Stayfree packet in my hand, and I WALKED towards home. And by home I mean college. I live in my college.
Sadly the route I took inside college had nobody. Nobody could see what I had done. I just wished somebody saw me with the packet. Because I bet their reactions would have been priceless- shocked, and flustered.
Why? Why is a packet of pad a matter of shame that it has to be covered up? Why is that it is not simply thought of as medicare? I bleed in a gap of 27 days every month and hell, so did your mother, so does your sister, so does your girlfriend. It is not a matter of shame- it is actually a sign of the health of a woman. Please, I hold hands and I beg of you, not to buy a black polythene covered pad. Just throw it directly in the shopping basket.
And my dad buys sanitary napkin for me, if my mother is unwell and I can’t go out for some reason. Guys, if you are told by your girl-friends, girlfriends, wives, sisters or mothers to buy a pack of pads- do not be ashamed. It is not a matter of shame- it is something a girl needs and it need not be a matter of shame. Please, try and be logical about this. It is not a matter of being flustered. I bleed, I need something to cover it up, and you are buying it, and I am buying, and if you are a seller you are selling it, you don’t have to cover it up under polythenes over polythenes. It just symbolises our society- covered up with hypocrisies and bullshit and whatever is underneath gets lost.
Article on Amit Shah by Rana Ayub pulled down by DNA
This article, published by DNA newspaper group, on Amit Shah has been pulled down by DNA: check http://www.dnaindia.com/analysis/standpoint-a-new-low-in-indian-politics-2000913… Looks like a new low for media self-censorship!! Now that Amit Shah is BJP National President, and even his lawyer a Supreme Court judge, even the not so wise should get a glimpse of whats in store next.. Rana Ayub has tweeted “Feel terrible, disillusioned with the state of media. Will not be writing for @dna henceforth. Had great respect for them. Alas !” an hour ago.
The article is as follows, without any modification……
Late last week, a special CBI court adjourned the bail application of Amit Shah in the Sohrabuddin and Tulsi Prajapati fake encounter cases, accepting his excuse that he was engaged in political work in New Delhi. Shah, 49, the first serving Home minister of a state to have gone behind bars in a criminal case of murder and conspiracy had a legitimate reason to skip court hearings. He was presiding and taking part in day-long meetings in Delhi with senior RSS leaders and BJP functionaries who were all set to seal his fate as the next BJP President
There is a significant back story to his exemption which did find its way as a small snippet in the media but needs to be brought to light as Shah, the man who waved the magic wand for BJP in Uttar Pradesh, the PM’s confidante and the number two in the government now takes over the reins of the party. Amit Shah had twice in the past sought exemption from personal appearance citing political work, but the then CBI judge JT Utpat had found his excuse inadequate for the court to grant him relief. On June 20, while hearing the application, Utpat allowed the same but made a scathing remark “Everytime you are giving this exemption application without assigning any reason,” he told Shahs counsel. In less than a week, Utpat was transferred to a Pune court before he could preside over Shahs discharge application. Shah managed his way out with a tried and tested formula of transferring judges, practiced brazenly in his home state of Gujarat through his tenure as Home Minister.
As a journalist covering Gujarat extensively since 2005, as someone who exposed Shah’s role in the fake encounters in the state and who can claim to have knowledge of his political trajectory, I would not mince my words in suggesting that by appointing Amit Shah as the president of the party, the BJP has hugely disrespected the law of the land and signalled an all time low for the criminal justice system of India. For the cases against Shah are for crimes so gruesome that the cloak of political astuteness will be too short to cover it.
In its chargesheet filed in the Sohrabuddin fake encounter case, the CBI which had been investigating the case under the watchful eye of the Supreme Court of India had not just named Shah as one of the key accused and conspirators but also named him as the head of an extortion racket which involved underworld thugs, politicians and businessmen. In its submission before the apex court bench of Justice P Sathasivam and Justice BS Chauhan, the CBI stated that the minister was in cahoots with senior cops from Gujarat including the likes of DG Vanzara and Abhay Chudasama who had been sentenced for cold-blooded murder – concluding that Shah was a hardcore criminal. Shah was also chargesheeted in the murder of Kauser Bi, the wife of Sohrabuddin who according to the official papers was raped, sedated, killed and her body burnt and thrown in a river.
One could have well debated the merits of the CBI chargesheet and read political motives but for the fact that the Supreme court itself gave CBI the sanction to arrest Shah at the same time, coming down harshly on the Gujarat state police investigation led by the then top cop Geeta Johri for going slow and misleading the courts. If the SIT verdict on Narendra Modi’s role in the Gujarat encounters is to be held as the final word, by virtue of it being monitored by the apex court, it is baffling then that Narendra Modi who promised clean and transparent governance to this country and setting up fast track courts to look into cases of criminal charges against politicians has turned a blind eye to Shah’s criminal past.
Shah has been Modi’s confidante since his days as a pracharak in Gujarat and Maharashtra. With Shah’s induction on the national scene first as the General Secretary of the BJP and now as the BJP President, Modi has risked his own political image for the sake of his ally and friend who has put to shame the best political pundits and strategists from North India with his shrewd manoeuvring. In the coming days, the party will have to prove its popularity not just in the by-elections of Uttar Pradesh but also in the forthcoming Assembly Elections in three states, the most significant being the battle for Maharashtra. Party insiders have stressed on Maharashtra being a prestige battle for Modi whose party swept the Lok Sabha elections a couple of months ago. Going by the minutes of the internal meetings held between Modi, Shah and senior heads in the BJP and the RSS, the Prime Minister has silenced his detractors in the party who were against Shah’s elevation citing his ability to churn out big numbers.
Many in the Gujarat BJP believe that Modi has been under tremendous pressure by Shah to return the favours he has allegedly bestowed on his mentor in the last two decades of their association. It’s a well known fact that during Modi’s rebellion against former Gujarat Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel and in his fight with the ex-Home Minister of Gujarat Haren Pandya, it was Shah who stood firmly by Modi’s side galvanizing the cadres and leaders in favour of his boss.
As the second in command in the Modi dispensation, the youngest minister in his cabinet who held charge of twelve ministries including the powerful Minister of State for Home, Shah single-handedly thwarted all trouble that came in the way of Modi with his office getting the infamous tag of the “dirty tricks department of the CM”. It was under his tenure as Home Minister that the Gujarat police went on a spree of fake encounters in the state – holding regular press conferences for the media with the bodies of the alleged assassins on display. The officers would claim that the Gujarat CM was under threat from jihadists who were out to assassinate the man who brought back Hindu asmita in Gujarat.
While the chief minister managed to leave unscathed during the investigations of most of the encounters which were later pronounced as fake, Shah found himself listed as the prime accused in three encounters, his role in the other two being probed by the CBI with investigations in the case still on.
Another major dent in Shah’s image came with his alleged involvement in the Snoopgate scandal, in which he is heard instructing one of his key lieutenants – IPS officer GL Singhal who was then incharge of the ATS, to carry on surveillance on a young woman. The tapes which were released late last year created a furore after it became obvious that Shah as the Home Minister of the state was using state machinery to snoop on innocent civilians, monitoring their moves. In this particular case, a young woman whose movements, including aspects of her personal life were being reported to the CM on a daily basis.
With such serious criminal charges against him, has Modi denigrated the position of the party president by handing over Shah the reins of the party. Would it now be safe to assume that Prime Minister Narendra Modi acted against the interests of the judiciary by rejecting the nomination of Gopal Subramaniam as a Supreme court judge as he was also the amicus curiae in the Sohrabuddin fake encounter case. Ever since the Prime Minister assumed office, ex-CBI directors including Ashwini Kumar and AP Singh who were at the helm of affairs in the CBI during the investigation of the encounters, find themselves being at the receiving end of Shah’s wrath. While Kumar has stepped down as governor of Nagaland, AP Singh is reportedly under pressure to step down as member of the UPSC after the Income Tax department served notices to him and his family members in an investigation into alleged tax evasion by meat exporter Moin Qureshi.
These could all well be coincidences if one were to take a larger liberal view of the developments including the transfer of 89-year-old ailing governor of Gujarat Kamla Beniwal, who under her tenure locked horns with Modi and Shah over the appointment of Lokayukta in the state. But even if one were to dismiss these actions against officials, lawyers, judges who played significant roles in the criminal justice process involving Amit Shah as conjectures, will it not be pertinent to suggest that by appointing Shah as the BJP President, Modi has acted in contradiction to his promise of a free and fair government, which will have no space for vindictiveness. Hasn’t Modi and the BJP under the guidance of the RSS just made the first attack on the principle of clean governance on the basis of which the party came to power? Prime Minister Narendra Modi needs to answer this one.
Rana Ayyub is a journalist and a writer. She tweets at @RanaAyyub
Cancer, being a major killer, affects almost every family on this earth, directly or indirectly. The lack of enough awareness and proper cure often leads to poor response from patients, impacting their survival and the quality of life. Treatment, especially chemotherapy/radiotherapy have many side-effects, with hair loss being the most prominent. Other effects include changes in skin texture and coloration, and ulcers. Physical features, especially hairs, are always a prized possession for all of us, and remains a matter of concern. Often, they are an indication of our health as well as well being- socially, culturally and financially.
Cancer treatment being a costly affair adds to the severe discomfort and side-effects faced by the patients. All these start affecting the patients psychologically and a feeling of guilt may develop. Guilt of being a family wrecker, guilt of being a cause of nuisance to all, guilt of letting time and money go waste, without any hope of return. Each moment in front of the mirror reminds them of their situation and misery. Loss of hair, being the hallmark of cancer treatment, isn’t the bullet-mark of pride to a soldier. Loss of hair is the remnant scar which the cancer has afflicted upon the patients. Such scars may even lead to various negative thoughts. Being irritated all the time is a normal behavior. Frequent mood swings and emotional outbursts may be encountered. At times, one may loose temper and may be insulting as well.
Does this mean we, the relatives, the caretakers and the well-wishers should remain helpless? That getting irritated and sometimes yelling may be the natural reaction to their sufferings has to be understood. We can practice not getting agitated by such reactions, even though we may have to face it several times a week. We can imagine ourselves in their situation to understand their agony. We can always take the lead and initiatives to cheer up our unfortunate friends.
A smile on face is always a welcome step. We can often compliment our patients about their inner beauty and the bravery with which they are facing the situation. How they are the inspiration to millions like us who start complaining at the drop of a hat. How the presence and absence of hair has no bearing on our liking them should be stressed. We being their first world are more important to them than other individuals, and vice versa is true should also be conveyed to them. We can always tell them how important and precious they are to us, irrespective of their hair; for its they who are important, and not their hair and physical features. We can also quote the religious scriptures, for they provide with the much needed spiritual guidance.
