Cyber Security India Essay

†¢After China and the U.S., India has the highest number of Internet users. There are also an estimated over 381 million mobile phone subscriptions with Internet connectivity. In the list of online infection risk India ranks 9th and in personal computer across the globe, India ranks 7th. †¢A recent survey by McAfee named India next to Brazil, Romania and Mexico the least able to defend against cyber attacks. †¢Cyber security threats and hacking attempts in India rose to 22,060 in 2012 from 23 in 2004 What it means †¢Cyber terrorism is the convergence of terrorism and cyberspace. It is generally understood to mean unlawful attacks and threats of attacks against computers, networks, and the information stored therein when done to intimidate or coerce a government or its people in furtherance of political or social objectives. Cyber Threats Cyber threats can be disaggregated, based on the perpetrators and their motives, into four baskets: cyber espionage, cyberwarfare, cyberterrorism, and cyber crime. Cyber Warfare – attacking the information systems of other countries for espionage and for disrupting their critical infrastructure. Why Cyber Security is needed †¢Third most populous country after China and India is not any geographical entity but a ‘virtual state’ called facebook! †¢The same computing DNA that produced the communications revolution has also created acute vulnerabilities – and attractive terror targets – for societies that depend on cyberspace for national security and economic survival. †¢The growing dependency on the information technology (IT) makes cybersecurity a vital component of the India’s national security infrastructure. Lately, data collection, processing, storage, transmission capabilities, mobile, wireless, and cloud computing are increasing in huge numbers and make cyber attacks easily to occur. †¢Considered the newest domain in modern warfare, cyberspace has now joined the ranks of traditional areas assessed by militaries all over the world. And this is exactly how cyberspace should be assessed, since an effective terrorist attack against a nation’s power grid, for example, could result in massive loss of life, crippling damage to infrastructure and a blow to the economy that could take years to repair. Stuxnet has carried out what in the past could only be accomplished by directly bombing a country’s infrastructure or sending in human agents to plant explosives. †¢It can affect Infrastructures like banking system, air traffic control, power infrastructure and gas pipelines. †¢Destruction now can bypass the military force and attack via â€Å"cyber-brute-force† suppressing a country’s military control systems, navigation, communication system, shutting down or paralysing critical infrastructure and affecting the country’s economy, cyber-weapons linking nuclear weapons †¢Most common usage of Internet is by designing and uploading websites on which false propaganda can be pasted. This comes under the category of using technology for psychological warfare. †¢The web can promote and support acts o f terrorism by means of propaganda, promotion, instructional dissemination and execution, financing, training, recruiting and can also facilitate specific attacks. †¢Non-state actors have the technology to create cyber attacks or endanger the cyber environment of the global socio-political system. The 2011, Arab Spring revolution in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya was successful to use cyberspace to pass its message. †¢Threats abound: cyber crime, cyber espionage, cyber war and cyber terrorism, all represent genuine risks to nations, firms and individuals around the world. Experts reckoned it is a matter of time before cyberspace becomes an â€Å"independent theatre of war†. †¢With the rapid march of technology, such attacks will only become more widespread as the use of Internet for manipulating things increases. â€Å"We have now entered into a new phase of conflict in which cyber weapons can be used to create physical destruction in someone else’s critical infrastructure. And there is a distinct possibility that the disruptions and dislocations it causes are permanent and severe.† E.g †¢The Flame virus (which has been circulating for more than five years and has yet to be claimed by an owner, although speculation centres around Israel) has turned the computer into the ultimate spy, gathering data files, turning on PC microphones to record nearby conversations, logging instant messaging chats, taking screen shots and even remotely changing settings on other computers. †¢Moreover, hacker groups, such as Anonymous and Lulz Security (Lulz Sec), have executed distributed denial of service (DDOS). Under that process, they were successful to deface websites to various governmental and corporate interests. They hacked NASDAQ and International Momentary Fund (IMF). †¢Internet’s capabilities dictate the rules of engagement in cyberspace to initiate on-ground battles and at the same time create a fertile ground for new, aspiring jihadist. †¢In the recent past, the case of Stuxnet virus which attacked centrifuges. While the targeted victim was the Natanz nuclear site in Iran, other organisations across the world, including in India, operating with the Siemens system suffered from collateral damage from the attack. †¢Since 2000-01, there have been regular reports of Pakistani cyber criminals defacing Indian websites and writing derogatory messages against India. On the other hand, China has become a formidable adver sary in cyber space. Recent cases of Chinese hacking into many Indian government establishment computers and even the highly secure national security domains provide enough evidence of its capability in waging cyber warfare. Since 2003, the People’s Liberation Army has trained more than 30,000 cyber warriors and another 150,000 in the private sector. According to several reports available in the public domain, the Chinese goal is to build the world’s best ‘informationised armed forces’. †¢ Existing Counter Cyber Security Initiatives. Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (Cert-In). Cert-In is the most important constituent of India’s cyber community. Its mandate states, ‘ensure security of cyber space in the country by enhancing the security communications and information infrastructure, through proactive action and effective collaboration aimed at security incident prevention and response and security assurance’. National Information Security Assurance Programme (NISAP). (a) Government and critical infrastructures should have a security policy and create a point of contact. (b) Mandatory for organizations to implement security control and report any security incident to Cert-In. (c) Cert-In to create a panel of auditor for IT security. (d) All organizations to be subject to a third party audit from this panel once a year. (e) Cert-In to be reported about security compliance on periodic basis by the organizations. Indo-US Cyber Security Forum (IUSCSF). Under this forum (set up in 2001) high power delegations from both side met and several initiatives were announced for intensifying bilateral cooperation to control cyber crime between the two countries. To mitigate supply-chain risks emanating from telecom equipment manufactured by companies belonging to China, the telecom and home affairs ministry have issued guidelines mandating service provides to secure their networks and induct equipment that has been tested as per international standards. CCTNS taking help of ISRO for making project fully indigenous Warned by intelligence agencies that using a foreign satellite in the proposed nationwide Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems (CCTNS) could make critical databases vulnerable to eavesdropping by other countries, the Union Home Ministry has decided to take the help of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to make the project fully indigenous. Since the intelligence agencies raised objections to the proposed use of the IPSTAR satellite managed by Thaicomm in the project, the BSNL diverted to this project some 400 VSATs that it had for other services. Fact Box: National Cyber Coordination Centre (NCCC) Indian government will establish its own multi-agency body — National Cyber Coordination Centre (NCCC) — that would carry out â€Å"real-time assessment of cyber security threats† and â€Å"generate actionable reports/alerts for proactive actions† by law enforcement agencies. NCCC , to be set up at a cost of Rs 1000 crore, would be a multi-agency body under Department of Electronics and IT. It will function in sync with other government agencies. These agencies include: †¢National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) †¢Intelligence Bureau (IB) †¢Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) †¢Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) †¢National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) †¢Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) †¢DIARA (Defence Information Assurance and Research Agency) †¢Army, Navy, Air Force †¢Department of Telecommunications What will be its functions? †¢It will be India’s first layer for cyber threat monitoring and all communication with government and private service providers would be through this body only. †¢The NCCC would be in virtual contact with the control room of all Internet Service Providers to scan traffic within the country, flowing at the point of entry and exit, including international gateway. †¢Apart from monitoring the Internet, the NCCC would look into various threats posed by cyber attacks. †¢ The agency will provide law enforcement agencies direct access to all Internet accounts, be it e-mails, blogs or social networking data. DRDO doesn’t uses any US based company services in its organization. Challenges In India, we need to create an environment within which security is built into our cyber and communications working methods. While it is the government that correctly takes a lead in evolving a coherent picture of what constitutes vulnerability in our cyber domain and a strategy on how to counter attacks, the private sector needs to recognise the real threat it faces. And this is not a future threat or a prospective threat that we need to prepare ourselves against; this is an ongoing, current threat.Cyber threat will continue to grow due to the fast evolution and development of internet and related technologies. At the global level, nations are stepping up their cyber defence efforts. The U.S. was one of the first countries that considered this to be a strategic problem in 2006, both in terms of national security and their future economic wellbeing. †¢The major concern when dealing with Cyber threats is ubiquity and anonymity. What other international medium is highly accessible, far-reaching, ridiculously inexpensive, whereby information is transferred at the speed of light, the attacker invisible and untraceable? Unlike a missile trajectory, IP (Internet Protocol) pathways can be masked and the locations appear opaque. Implicating a source and assigning blame to the attack progenitor is extremely difficult. †¢the extreme difficulty of producing timely actionable warning of potential cyber attacks †¢the extreme complex vulnerability associated with the IT supply chain for various India’s networks †¢India’s approach to cyber security has so far been ad hoc and piecemeal. A number of organisations have been created but their precise roles have not been defined nor synergy has been created among them. †¢ Lack of awareness and the culture of cyber security at individual as well as institutiona l level. †¢ Lack of trained and qualified manpower to implement the counter measures. †¢Too many information security organisations which have become weak due to ‘turf wars’ or financial compulsions. †¢A weak IT Act which has became redundant due to non exploitation and age old cyber laws. †¢ No e-mail account policy especially for the defence forces, police and the agency personnel. †¢Cyber attacks have come not only from terrorists but also from neighboring countries inimical to our National interests. Recommendations. International Co-operation †¢Acknowledging that better indigenous snooping capabilities may not be enough to protect India’s cyber security, National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon has advocated formulating a set of â€Å"standard operating procedures† (SOPs) — ground rules for cooperation which would help India succeed in obtaining Internet information from major powers that control much of cyber space. †¢Given the cyber reality, ‘sensible’ powers should work towards a globally acceptable cyber regime to bring in a set of rules, build transparency and reduce vulnerabilities. †¢Agreements relating to cyber security should be given the same importance as other conventional agreements. †¢The government should also consider joining the European Convention on Cyber crime. †¢A 24Ãâ€"7 nodal point for international cooperation with cyber authorities of other countries should be set up. Critical Infrastructure †¢Cyber security should be mandatory in computer science curriculum and even separate programmes on cyber security should be contemplated. Government should initiate a special drive of implementing practices in the critical infrastructure sectors and provide necessary budgetary support for such implementation. †¢ Government should establish a mechanism for measuring preparedness of critical sectors such as security index, which captures preparedness of the sector and assigns value to it. †¢Government should incorporate IT Supply Chain Security as an important element of e-security plan to address security issues. †¢Government should promote R&D in private industry through active government support for industry-led research projects in the areas of security. Establish enabling mechanisms to facilitate this. †¢Emphasis should be placed on developing and implementing standards and best practices in government functioning as well as in the private sector. Cyber security audits should be made compulsory for networked organisations. †¢Capacity building in the area of cyber crime and cyber forensics in terms of infrastructure, expertise and availability of HR and cooperation between industry, LEAs and judiciary. †¢Cyber security education, R&D and training will be an integral part of the national cyber security strategy. †¢PPP model should be explored for taking security to the regions and industry sectors. †¢Strengthening telecom security – one of the key pillars of cyber security, especially through development of standards and establishment of testing labs for telecom infrastructure(equipment, hardware). †¢More investment in this field in terms of finance and manpower. †¢The impact of the emergence of new social networking media, and convergence of technologies on society including business, economy,national security should be studied with the help of relevant experts, Legal †¢Procedural laws need to be in place to achieve cooperation and coordination of international organisations and governments to investigate and prosecute cyber criminals. †¢Government must put in place necessary amendments in existing laws or enact a new legislation like a Data Protection/Privacy Act so as to safeguard against the misuse of personal information by various government agencies and protect individual privacy. †¢Need for trained and qualified experts to deal with the highly specialised field of cyber security and laws related to it. †¢ Govt Machinery †¢Make it a mandatory requirement for all government organisations and private enterprises to have a designated Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) who would be responsible for cyber security. †¢Establishment of a cyber range to test cyber readiness. †¢ More powers to sectoral CERTs. †¢Establish an online mechanism for cyber crime-related complaints to be recorded. †¢Policymakers need to recognise this and put in place structures that allow the sharing of cyber security information through both formal and informal cyber exchanges. That requires a fast, unified action between government agencies and the private sector. †¢Indian agencies working after cyber security should also keep a close vigil on the developments in the IT sector of our potential adversaries. †¢Joint efforts by all Government agencies including defence forces to attract qualified skilled personnel for implementation of counter measures. Awareness Need to sensitize the common citizens about the dangers of cyber terrorism. Cert-in should engage academic institutions and follow an aggressive strategy. Conclusion †¢Defining how we deal with Cyber threats and attacks internationally is crucial to peace and security. If Cyber weapons are treated with indifference in comparison to other weapons then it can open the doors to multifaceted retaliation if a nation is provoked †¢Enforcing the right policies to amalgamate security of governments and law-abiding citizens is critical. The safety of individuals outweighs commercial piracy. Sophism and intellectual rhetoric redirects focus on eliminating irrefutable threats like violence and terrorism. Instead, diluted versions of policies are implemented and lives are put at risk. †¢. â€Å"India must take an early lead in creating a framework where the government, the national security experts and the industry catering to strategic sectors of economy, can come together, to pursue the goal of cyber security in the larger national cause †¢Need to prepare cyber forces . The United States was the first country to formally declare this as the fifth domain warfare after land, sea, air and space. It has also formally classified the use of cyberspace as a â€Å"force†, a euphemism for offensive capability. The Chinese adopted the concept of â€Å"informationalisation† in the mid-1990s and have relentlessly built up structures and operations in this domain. Cyber Security Dilemma †¢John Herz, an American scholar of international relations and law is credited for coining the term â€Å"security dilemma†. †¢ The dilemma expresses how both the strong and weak states can upset the balance of power that could eventually become a catalyst for war. The security dilemma could arise from the state’s accumulation of power due to fear and uncertainty about other states’ intentions. †¢ Post-9/11, successive US administrations have mostly attempted to handle global disorder by accumulating more â€Å"power†. Not surprisingly, since 2007, the US has been collecting and analysing significant amount of data available in the cyber space. †¢Cyber security dilemma of the US was recently exposed by the US whistle-blower Edward Snowden, giving details about the US National Security Agency’s controversial Prism programme. †¢ The US, clearly has been monitoring the global e-traffic covertly and in the process checking on c yber activities on Google, You Tube, Skype, Facebook, etc. This has resulted in a huge amount of metadata (a data about data). †¢ US administration has been spoofing on the rest of the world. †¢In the 21st century, with the number of computer and internet users is increasing significantly, the cyber environment has almost become fundamental to a nation’s ‘existence’. †¢ Over the years Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) have become central to various sectors from social, economic, political to defence. The fillip side to it is that various unauthorised, illegal, criminal, anti-national and terrorist activities have also become rampant. Astonishing as it may sound, but the third most populous country after China and India is not any geographical entity but a ‘virtual state’ called facebook! †¢The human rights activists and states who are under the US surveillance consider it an anti-democratic act that undermines the civil liberties and individual privacy. The absence of a globally accepted cyber regime and legal structure adds further to the commotion. †¢ The excessive dependence on cyber tools has given rise to various vulnerabilities. Recently the US National Security Agency chief Gen Keith Alexander, who also heads the US military’s Cyber Command, has expressed concerns and is of the opinion that on a scale of 1 to 10, the US critical infrastructure’s preparedness to withstand a destructive cyber attack is about 3, this in spite the US having established a major defence infrastructure to defend against foreign hackers and spies. This assessment would push the US to strengthen its defences further. However, since the nature of the threat is extremely dynamic it may not be possible to build any foolproof defensive mechanism. †¢Any cyber architecture can be viewed as a doubled edged sword – either ignore it and be exposed or use it to one’s advantage. Cyber espionage is here to stay. Today, the US is upfront because of its technological superiority and ability to ‘manage’ the ICT industry and prevent few acts of terrorism from actually happening. More importantly, the data gathered would have u tility in other fields too. Conclusion: †¢Snowden has clearly exposed the US but it is hard to imagine that the US would halt its cyber activities. As a leading power, the US is accustomed to international criticism, lawsuits and questioning and at the end of the day cyber spying and spoofing actually strengthens their intelligence gathering capability. †¢It is important to note that cyber expertise offers significant amount of asymmetric advantage to the user. In the future, it is not only the US but many other states that are also likely to use this method (mostly covertly). †¢States would support a cyber regime essentially because intelligence collection is not the sole purpose for possessing cyber assets. ITC also leads to empowerment and its importance for socioeconomic development s undisputed. †¢In general, the norms of privacy in a cyber-era world would remain a constant subject of debate since the nature of technology presents a challenging task to catch the actual offender. Technologically superior power would always have an advantage. The time has come to recognize that in the future we would always be watched and mostly against our own wishes! India-US collaboration in Cyber Security Indian officials and security officers would soon be visiting the U.S. for training in an array of courses — from cyber security, megacity policing and forensics, to critical infrastructure protection, financial terrorism and anti-terrorism intelligence. â€Å"The list of training programmes include ‘Land Transportation Anti-terrorism’; ‘Weapons of Mass Destruction’; ‘Seaport Security’; ‘International Border Interdiction Training’ and ‘International Sea Interdiction Training’ to check smuggling and trafficking; ‘Handling of equipment for screening men against radiological, chemical and explosive materials’ and ‘Handling of intrusive detection at airports and seaports.’ With the growing population in cities and increasing threat perception, the U.S. has also offered India to help develop the concept of megacity policing, a step it has been promoting since the 9/11 attacks. â€Å"An advance course in surveillance, control room design and its operation by various security agencies and police authorities are key elements of this concept. Balancing vigilance and privacy As the government steps up its surveillance capabilities, the entire social contract between the state and citizens is being reformulated, with worrying consequences The Indian state is arming itself with both technological capabilities and the institutional framework to track the lives of citizens in an unprecedented manner. A new Centralised Monitoring System (CMS) is in the offing, which would build on the already existing mechanisms. As The Hindu reported on June 21, this would allow the government to access in real-time any mobile and fixed line conversation, SMS, fax, website visit, social media usage, Internet search and email, and will have ‘unmatched capabilities of deep search surveillance and monitoring’. Civil society groups and citizens expressed concern about the government’s actions, plans, and intent at a discussion organised by the Foundation for Media Professionals, on Saturday. The context Usha Ramanathan, a widely respected legal scholar, pointed to the larger political context which had permitted this form of surveillance. It stemmed, she argued, from a misunderstanding of the notion of sovereignty. â€Å"It is not the government, but the people who are sovereign.† Laws and the Constitution are about limiting the power of the state, but while people were being subjected to these restrictions, the government itself had found ways to remain above it – either by not having laws, or having ineffective regulators. States knew the kind of power they exercised over citizens, with the result that ‘impunity had grown’. â€Å"There is also a complete breakdown of the criminal justice system,† Ms Ramanathan said. This had resulted in a reliance on extra-judicial methods of investigation, and ‘scape-goating’ had become the norm. ‘National security’ had been emphasised, re-emphasised, and projected as the central goal. â€Å"We haven’t paused to ask what this means, and the extent to which we have been asked to give up personal security for the sake of national security.† It was in this backdrop that technology had advanced by leaps, and made extensive surveillance possible. The implications are enormous. The data is often used for purposes it is not meant for, including political vendetta, keeping track of rivals, corporates, and digging out facts about a citizen when he may have antagonised those in power. Pranesh Prakash, director of the Centre of Internet and Society (CIS) looked back at the killing of Haren Pandya, the senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader in Gujarat. Mr Pandya was using the SIM card of a friend, and it was by tracking the SIM, and through it his location, that the Gujarat government got to know that Mr Pandya had deposed before a commission and indicted the administration for its role in the riots. Eventually, he was found murdered outside a park in Ahmedabad. The Gujarat Police had accessed call details of 90,000 phones. It is also not clear whether mining this kind of data has been effective for the national security purposes, which provide the reason for doing it in the first place. Saikat Datta, resident editor of Daily News and Analysis, and an expert on India’s intelligence apparatus, said a core problem was the absence of any auditing and over sight. â€Å"There needs to be a constant review of the number of calls, emails under surveillance, with questions about whether it is yielding results. But this does not happen, probably because a majority is not for counter-terrorism. There would be trouble if you build accountability mechanisms.† When he sought information under RTI around precisely such issues, he was denied information on the grounds that it would strengthen ‘enemies of the state’. Anja Kovacs, who works with the Internet Democracy Project, said this form of â€Å"mass surveillance† criminalised everybody since it was based on the assumption that each citizen was a â€Å"potential criminal†. She also pointed out that having â€Å"more information† did not necessarily mean it was easier to address security threats – there was intelligence preceding the Mumbai attacks, but it was not acted upon. She added, â€Å"Most incidents have been resolved by traditional intelligence. Investing in agencies, training them better could be more effective.† Bring in the caveats Few argue that the state is not entitled to exercise surveillance at all. In fact, a social contract underpins democratic states. Citizens agree to subject some of their rights to restrictions, and vest the state with the monopoly over instruments and use of violence. In turn, the state – acting within a set of legal principles; being accountable to citizens; and renewing its popular legitimacy through different measures, including elections – provides order and performs a range of developmental functions. This framework, citizens and civil liberty groups worry, is under threat with governments appropriating and usurping authority to conduct unprecedented surveillance. Citizen groups, technology and privacy experts came together globally to draft the International Principles on the Application of Human Rights to Communication Surveillance. It prescribed that any restriction to privacy through surveillance must be ‘legal’; it must be for a ‘legitimate aim’; it must be ‘strictly and demonstrably necessary’; it must be preceded by showing to an established authority that other ‘less invasive investigative techniques’ have been used; it must follow ‘due process’; decisions must be taken by a ‘competent judicial authority’; there must be ‘public oversight’ mechanisms; and ‘integrity of communications and systems’ should be maintained. (Full text available on www.necessaryandproportionate.org)Mr Prakash of CIS, which has done extensive work on surveillance and privacy issues, said, â€Å"An additional principle must be collection limitation or data minimisation.† Giving the instance of Indian Railways seeking the date of birth from a customer booking a ticket, Mr Prakash said this was not information which was neces sary. But it could be used by hackers and many other agencies to access an individual’s private transactions in other areas. The UPA government is finalising a privacy Bill, but its final version is not yet public, and it is not clear how far the government would go in protecting citizen rights. National cyber security Policy 2013 National Cyber Security Policy 2013 This policy aims at facilitating creation of secure computing environment and enabling adequate trust and confidence in electronic transactions and also guiding stakeholders actions for protection of cyber space. †¢ The National Cyber Security Policy document outlines a road-map to create a framework for comprehensive, collaborative and collective response to deal with the issue of cyber security at all levels within the country. †¢ The policy recognises the need for objectives and strategies that need to be adopted both at the national level as well as international level. †¢ The objectives and strategies outlined in the National Cyber Security Policy together serve as a means to: i. Articulate our concerns, understanding, priorities for action as well as directed efforts. ii. Provide confidence and reasonable assurance to all stakeholders in the country (Government, business, industry and general public) and global community, about the safety, resiliency and security of cyber space. iii. Adopt a suitable posturing that can signal our resolve to make determined efforts to effectively monitor, deter & deal with cyber crime and cyber attacks. Salient features of the policy †¢The Policy outlines the roadmap for creation of a framework for comprehensive, collaborative and collective responsibility to deal with cyber security issues of the country. The policy has ambitious plans for rapid social transformation and inclusive growth and India’s prominent role in the IT global market. †¢The policy lays out 14 objectives which include creation of a 5,00,000-strong professional, skilled workforce over the next five years through capacity building, skill development and training. †¢The policy plans to create national and sectoral level 24Ãâ€"7 mechanisms for obtaining strategic information regarding threats to ICT infrastructure, creating scenarios for response, resolution and crisis management through effective, predictive, preventive, proactive response and recovery actions. †¢The policy will also establish a mechanism for sharing information as well as identifying and responding to cyber security incidents and for cooperation in restoration efforts. †¢The policy identifies eight different strategies for creating a secure cyber eco-system including the need for creating an assurance framework apart from encouraging open standards to facilitate inter-operability and data exchange amongst different products or services. †¢There is in place a plan to operate and strengthen the national Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) to operate 24Ãâ€"7 and to act as a nodal agency for all efforts for cyber security, emergency response and crisis management, as an umbrella agency over CERTs. †¢It is expected that he policy w ill cater to the cyber security requirements of government and non-government entities at the national and international levels. The policy will help in safeguarding the critical infrastructure like Air Defence system, nuclear plants, banking system, power infrastructure, telecommunication system and many more to secure country’s economic stability. National Nodal Agency †¢The National Cyber Security Policy, in order to create a secure cyber ecosystem, has planned to set-up a National Nodal Agency. The nodal agency will be coordinating all matters related to cyber security in the country. †¢The nodal agency has a wide mandate as it will cover and coordinate security for all strategic, military, government and business assets. This is distinctive, since, so far, national security regimes have been divided among the Ministry of Defence (for securing India’s borders) and the Ministry of Home Affairs (for national and internal security across States). Public-private partnership to protect national assets †¢Another defining aspect of the policy is the level at which it envisages public-private partnership to protect national assets. †¢There is a clear recognition in the policy that, apart from India’s IT, technology and telecommunications services, large parts of financial & banking services, airline & transportation services, energy and healthcare assets are not only owned by the private sector but, in fact, remain vulnerable to cyber-attacks, both from state and non-state actors. Protection centre †¢A crucial aspect of the policy is building resilience around the Critical Information Infrastructure (CII) by operationalising a 24Ãâ€"7 Nation Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC). The Critical Information Infrastructure will comprise all interconnected and interdependent networks, across government and private sector. †¢The NCIIPC will mandate a security audit of CII apart from the certification of all security roles of chief security officers and others involved in operationalising the CII. Operationalisation †¢The policy will be operationalised by way of guidelines and Plans of Action, notified at national, sectoral, and other levels. While there is a recognition of the importance of bilateral and multilateral relationships, the policy does not clearly identify India’s position vis-à  -vis the Budapest Convention even though government delegations have attended meetings in London and Budapest on related issues in 2012. Why does India need a cyber security policy? †¢Cyber security is critical for economic security and any failure to ensure cyber security will lead to economic destabilisation. †¢India already has 800 million active mobile subscribers and 160 million other Internet users of which nearly half are on social media. India targets 600 million broadband connections and 100% teledensity by 2020. Internet traffic in India will grow nine-fold by 2015 topping out at 13.2 exabytes in 2015, up from 1.6 exabytes in 2010. †¢The ICT sector has grown at an annual compounded rate of 33% over the last decade and the contribution of IT and ITES industry to GDP increased from 5.2% in 2006-7 to 6.4% in 2010-11, according to an IDSA task force report of 2012. †¢Given the fact that a nation’s cyber ecosystem is constantly under attack from state and non-state actors both. It becomes extremely critical for India to come up a coherent cyber security policy. †¢One of the key objectives for the government is also to secure e-governance services where it is already implementing several nationwide plans including the â€Å"e-Bharat† project, a World Bank-funded project of Rs. 700 crore. Criticism The release of the National Cyber Security Policy 2013 is an important step towards securing the cyber space of our country. However, there are certain areas which need further deliberations for its actual implementation. The provisions to take care security risks emanating due to use of new technologies e.g. Cloud Computing, has not been addressed. Another area which is left untouched by this policy is tackling the risks arising due to increased use of social networking sites by criminals and anti-national elements. There is also a need to incorporate cyber crime tracking, cyber forensic capacity building and creation of a platform for sharing and analysis of information between public and private sectors on continuous basis. Creating a workforce of 500,000 professionals needs further deliberations as to whether this workforce will be trained to simply monitor the cyberspace or trained to acquire offensive as well as defensive cyber security skill sets. Indigenous development of cyber security solutions as enumerated in the policy is laudable but these solutions may not completely tide over the supply chain risks and would also require building testing infrastructure and facilities of global standards for evaluation. Indian Armed forces are in the process of establishing a cyber command as a part of strengthening the cyber security of defence network and installations. Creation of cyber command will entail a parallel hierarchical structure and being one of the most important stakeholders, it will be prudent to address the jurisdiction issues right at the beginning of policy implementation. The global debate on national security versus right to privacy and civil liberties is going on for long. Although, one of the objectives of this policy aims at safeguarding privacy of citizen data however, no specific strategy has been outlined to achieve this objective. The key to success of this policy lies in its effective implementation. The much talked about public-private partnership in this policy, if implemented in true spirit, will go a long way in creating solutions to the ever-changing threat landscape. Central Monitoring System (CMS) project – Justified †¢Indian government’s own Central Monitoring System (CMS) project. †¢roughly 160 million users are already being subjected to wide-ranging surveillance and monitoring, much of which is in violation of the government’s own rules and notifications for ensuring â€Å"privacy of communications†. †¢ While the CMS is in early stages of launch, investigation shows that there already exists — without much public knowledge — Lawful Intercept and Monitoring (LIM) systems, which have been deployed by the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DoT) for monitoring Internet traffic, emails, web-browsing, Skype and any other Internet activity of Indian users. †¢While mobile operators deploy their own LIM system, allowing â€Å"interception† of calls by the government, only after checking â€Å"due authorisation† in compliance with Section 5(2) of the Indian Telegraph Act read with Rule 419(A) of the IT Rules †¢In the case of the Internet traffic, the LIM is deployed by the government at the international gateways of a handful of large ISPs. The functioning of these secretive surveillance systems is out of reach of these ISPs, under lock and key and complete control of the government.

Statement of Purpose Physiotherapy

I am an Occupational Therapist passed out from Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Institute for the Physically Handicapped, Delhi University (Ministry of Social justice and Empowerment, Government of India). My professional Qualification (B. Sc. (Hons. ) Occupational Therapy is recognized by World federation of Occupational Therapy and Validated by Association of Occupational Therapy, Ireland, Department of Health and child. Presently I am associated with the Health care segment of the largest business group in India, Medybiz Private Limited, New Delhi (India) as an Occupational Therapist and Counselor. There was already an inherent desire to enhance the horizon in my career and I was on the lookout for options. In my understanding, your esteemed university provides a suitable ground for me to sharpen my skills by application of previously acquired knowledge during my working days. I was associated with Rajkumari Amrit Kaur child Study center and The Enabling Centre, Department of Child Development, Lady Irwin College (Delhi University, India) as an Occupational Therapist and Counselor from 1st July 2003 to 28th February 2006 where I was responsible for providing Individual as well as Group Therapy to the age group 0-18 years for Children with Special needs. My experience with this age group, and where so in this field has become a basis for applying to your university for Child and Adolescent Mental Health (CAMH) MSc. After having gone through my profile, I am quite hopeful that you will give enough precedence to my case and offer me the desired course. I am also keen to receive the 30% scholarship, which will help me fulfill my dreams of studying in the UK. With the knowledge gained I would be able to return to my home country and do honours to the field of Occupational Therapy in India.

Public Speaking Review

Public speaking is an essential tool that all students, more specifically communication studies majors, must learn and become familiar with. Learning how to be an influential public speaker can be the key difference to either succeeding or failing, in school, work, at home, and/or in your community. It Is no surprise that public speaking would be a requirement for a communication studies major at LULUS. There are a multitude of careers that a student pursuing a major in communication studies could aim for, it all depends on the person; however they are going to need public speaking in whichever career path they are aiming for.This course is designed to help build individuals' personal and professional confidence, success, and understanding of public speaking. Through the development of confidence, success, and understanding, the student develops the ability to present Information logically, advocate Ideas In an open mindset of civic discourse, and critically distinguish among differe nt opinions, all which represent necessary skills for personal and professional enrichment in the area of public communication. Through experiences within public speaking o develop a sense of self-worth and self-confidence that one might have not known they had to begin with.Developing an understanding of how crucial public speaking Is vital to one who Is studying communication studies. Understanding the art of persuasion and Its connection with public speaking is of utmost importance when interpreting the public speaking course. Aristotle once said, â€Å"speech which fails to convey a plain meaning will fail to do Just what speech has to do. â€Å"(Hosteller ; Kohl) The concept of clarity is important in a persuasive speech because it is the orator's spontaneously to clarify for the audience the topic being advocated and what they need to do to take action.A persuasive speech should cover a controversial topic that a portion of the audience has a view different than the orator. The goal of a persuasive speech is to modify the audiences' beliefs, attitudes, and/or behavior by the use of quality evidence, reasoning, and ethical emotional appeals. Persuading others is particularly important In our everyday lives, often one is called on to convince, motivate, or persuade others to change their beliefs, take an action, or Many people pursue careers that giving recursive speech is a critical part of gaining and continuing career success.Some individuals make careers out of public speaking, to various groups who pay to listen to them, such as, motivational speakers, authors or even pastors. Yearly, these speakers make millions of dollars from people who simply want to be motivated to do better in their every day lives. Nonetheless, persuading others is a challenging task in public speaking. By developing the skill to persuade effectively, he or she will see it as personally and professionally rewarding because it is not an easy thing that Just anyone can do. Info rmative speaking is one of the most common types of public speaking.Every day people give others information in an informal way, whether they realize it or not, for example showing a coworker how to count the money in the drawer. Information plays a vital role in our every day lives. The main goal of an informative speech is to share with the audience knowledge about a subject or teach them more about a subject they are already familiar with. There are a variety of different reasons to deliver an informative speech, such as sharing with classmates about expertise on traveling abroad, or a local community roof might want to hear about a volunteer experience enjoyed over the summer.During the course of ones career and in their personal life, informative speaking will be used. Informative speeches provide people with knowledge, when other people share facts or circumstances associated with some sort of topic; our understanding or awareness is increased. Through an informative speech, o ur perceptions are shaped, by bringing how a person might see a certain subject and bringing it to light, or might influence what is seen as important by simply directing attention to the topic. Information helps us shape who we are, interpret experiences, and gives us meaning to situations.

The Effects Of Modern Technology on Our Lives Essay

The Effects Of Modern Technology on Our Lives - Essay Example development of technologies another kinds of production are also growing up while labor force is becoming cheaper and that allows satisfying all consuming needs of constantly increasing world’s population. But which is the most important, technologies made possible the appearance of new opportunities for communication and quick access to any information we need. But there are certain disadvantages of technology development as well. It became almost impossible to control the amount and quality of produced information, though it is a powerful tool for mind control. The fast rates of production catastrophically reduce a quantity of resources in the world, and at the same time â€Å"overproduction† takes place. So consumers’ needs constantly grow, resources are depleting, but massive production keeps increasing, rising people’s needs. The development of military technologies funded by governments raises a general level of military conflict possibility. It is impossible to imagine our modern world without technologies; we don’t even notice how we aren’t able to live without them anymore. To estimate the effect of modern technology on our lives and definitely say that they are either something good or bad is absolutely unreal. The point is that technologies may controversially effect on our life they constantly do both cause harm and make our lives easier. It is hard to argue that the contribution that modern technologies have brought in our lives’ progress is almost unevaluated, because the opportunities we have now through the technological invasion are much wider than even ten years ago. The first aspect of the contribution we have to consider is definitely a fast development of modern science. At the very beginning of huge rise of technologies scientists were scared that technologies may destroy classical science, because the matter of science is to look for the essence of nature, it deals mostly with philosophical problems of â€Å"why?† and â€Å"how?†.

A Discourse Community jail inmates and those who visit them Essay

A Discourse Community jail inmates and those who visit them - Essay Example As John Wideman put it in his seminal book, a person visiting a prison "is forced to become an inmate . . . subject to the same sorts of humiliation and depersonalization . . . made to feel powerless, intimidated by the power of the state" (p.52). Yet this process of making visitors feel like prisoners paradoxically brings about a sense of community between visitor and inmate that might not otherwise exist.I visited my mother's boyfriend in prison for three years. He had been wrongly convicted and was in a state jail that seemed to attempt to make it very difficult for people to visit the prisoners in comfort. First of all, the criminal background of the person visiting needed to be checked before you could be put on the prisoner's visitor list. In an ironic reversal from the normal of role of prisons, to enter on e as a visitor one could not have a criminal record. Yet at the same time, once you had been passed as non-criminal (or at least never having been convicted of a criminal o ffense) you were then searched quite extensively before being allowed in.The visitors were forced to wait for more than an hour in a quite depressing and dirty waiting-room. The "discourse" that they took part in was one of silence at this point.

Charitable Organizations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Charitable Organizations - Essay Example They just have to manage funds. Lastly, the intangible benefits are immense when it comes to serving in a charitable organization. As for the disadvantages, employee retention and recruitment is a matter of concern as the salary is low and commitment needed is high. Lastly, when charities are newly established, fund raising is a major issue as people doubt their credibility. Charitable organizations are those companies who are working for the sole purpose of doing something good for the society. The organization has charity-oriented factors as its aims and objectives as opposed to a normal company, whose major aim is to maximize its profits. There can be many types of charitable organizations, namely trusts, foundations and associates which are working as unincorporated (Petit-Zaman, 2006). A company might start off with charitable purposes or might become a charitable organization after some time passes after its establishment. There is a difference between a charitable organization and not-for-profit organizations. Charitable organizations are a subset of not-for-profit organizations. Not-for-profit organizations are those which are incorporated as an organization. They have a separate legal entity. They are neither working for purely charitable purposes nor for profit maximization. ... It is actually the responsibility of the state to fulfill these traditional duties, to work for the welfare of the citizens of the state. But often the state is ignorant of these duties and that is when these charitable organizations step in and do some good work. CHARITIES IN UNITED KINGDOM The United Kingdom has a total number of 200,000 charitable organizations (UK Tax). This is a huge quantity and the graph is rising as the sector of charity is rapidly growing and accelerating. Many of these charities are established as limited liability companies so that the owners, i.e. the trustees, are not liable to pay more than their share of investment in the company and so that this factor results in the establishment of more charitable organizations. Charitable organizations are finding new ways to cater to the humanity. The various charitable organizations are basically registered with three regulatory bodies, namely the Charity Commission, the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator and the Inland Revenue. These regulatory bodies are essential to supervise and take care of the activities that these charitable organizations are indulging in. these bodies make sure that these charities do not misuse the money that they collect from the general public for charitable purposes . These charities also have to report its activities to the government. This makes the government fully aware of whether these organizations are fulfilling their purposes or not, as their collections are tax free. This reporting aims to see whether any fraud is being done by an organization opened by the name of charity but eating up money for personal purposes. If a fraud is detected, the license of the

Descartes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 3

Descartes - Essay Example Thus, the dream argument seeks to establish that, inference of the accuracy of information is not entirely a decision that humans can rely on the senses, rather, it is essential to apply rigorous testing to determine their authenticity. The dream argument is a postulation by Descartes. He argues that the act of dreaming is a preliminary evidence of the possibility that the senses that people rely on to make a distinction between reality and illusions are not trustworthy. He further seeks to show that, there is the need for further evaluation of the senses and their perceptions to establish the facts of reality. In the usual life, people dream as they sleep (Descartes 9). However, in these dreams, the people perceive and feel things as though they are real. The people, while in the dream, do not have the knowledge that they are dreaming, they only come to realize they were dreaming when they wake. Thus, this then raises the basis of the dream argument as Descartes presents it, that, there is the possibility that people are constantly dreaming and never wake into reality. Moreover, there is a possibility that people cannot ascertain whether they are in the dream or awake in their engagements. In this first meditation, he presents what is in doubt, opening the mediation with several falsehoods that believed in his life and further faulting of the knowledge that he built on those falsehoods. The mediator sweeps all his former knowledge away, sits himself and decides to build up his knowledge. However, as he realizes from so doing, he establishes that, all the things that he learned in the past came through his senses. He continues further to doubt the foundations of all opinions that he founded on his senses, acknowledging that the senses can deceive. To illustrate his argument, Descartes presents the dream argument using the

Amazon.com Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Amazon.com - Research Paper Example Success factors determine the success of both current and future operating activities within an organization. There are different success factors that define the success of an organization. The key industry success factors depend on the nature of the organization and they vary from one organization to another (Rockart 81-93). For instance, market share is one factor that determines the success if an organization. Depending on the market share, some companies will have a competitive advantage over the rest. For example, Amazon, the biggest online retail shop that also deals with other products such as electronic commerce is the world leader in selling various products online. With a market share of 29 percent, Amazon has a competitive advantage as compared to other competitors such as eBay, eMusic, Bol and many more. Another key industry success factor is customers. Organizations that have mastered the art of meeting the demands of the customers are successful and they understand mark et segments well (Daniel 111-121). Competition is also another industry success factor. Here, just like the competitors, Amazon strategizes on how to dominate the market by beating their competitors. For example, with retails shops all around the world, Amazon controls over 30 percent of the world’s consumer electronics and other online retail products due to its burly distributive and networking power. Lastly, the corporation itself is a key industry success factor. Amazon has huge resources and thereore; this makes it more competitive in the market. Additionally, the burly innovativeness experienced in Amazon is vital to its market dominance and has made it to have a competitive advantage over its rivals (Boynlon and Zmud 17-27). Company distinctive competences and competitive advantages Organizations, for example Amazon, which enjoys massive sustained profits within an industry, always have a competitive advantage over competitors. However, it is paramount to note that in order to have a prolonged competitive advantage, business strategy is vital. There are two forms of competitive advantage: cost advantage and differentiation advantage. The company’s distinctive competencies exhibit when the company is able to generate the same revenue as those of the rivals but at lower operating costs—cost advantage. On the other hand, a company that acquires more benefits than those of other rival companies experiences competitive distinctive competencies—differentiation advantage. Thus, competitive distinctive competencies are useful to the company since they help it to fashion better-quality value first for itself, and secondly, the buyers. It is competitive advantage based on cost and differentiation that defines the company’s success history and business success strategies. Through resources and capabilities, big firms such as Amazon have had a competitive advantage over their rivals in the consumer electronics market and sporting products, which has led to advanced value creation (Porter 3-24). In order to create a company’s distinctive competences, there are two things to consider: resources and capabilities. A company with superior resources and capabilities is already having an edge over its competitors. For example, with market share of 29 percent, Amazon already has a competitive adv

The Women, Infant's and Children programs Research Paper

The Women, Infant's and Children programs - Research Paper Example The researcher states that WIC was founded in 1973. But its history stretches back to the 1960s. Studies and national television programs were discovering that starvation, malnutrition and other forms of caloric deficiency were preventing many Americans from having enough to eat. The Poor People's March on Washington and major documentaries focused the issue and brought it to the attention of policymakers. A 1969 Conference was convened, which included in its report a recommendation to focus specifically on the needs of low-income women, pregnant women, children and infants, whose gaps between nutritional needs and opportunities were often most dire. A Commodity Supplemental Food Program was created that targeted women and children under 6, but studies found that it and the Food Stamp Program were not dealing with the special needs of the groups in question. An amendment of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 finally created the WIC department as a two-year pilot. The department was desi gned to work with the USDA, who would provide the food support and commodities. The WIC program differed itself from the CSFP by coordinating food relief with health care and other aid programs. USDA resistance to coordination required a federal court order to force them to comply. The WIC proved successful enough to be established permanently on October 7, 1975, by PL 94-105. Eligibility was expanded to nonbreastfeeding women, and while inadequate income was an eligibility requirement, it was not specifically defined, giving the program flexibility. In 1999, the USDA implemented standard measures of food security and, after two years, published a report that indicated what food scholars had been saying for years: Malnutrition and caloric deficiency were reaching epidemic levels. The standardization of food insufficiency metrics has transformed the debate around food provision entirely and galvanized public interest and support. Mission Statement The WIC's mission is as follows: â⠂¬ ¢ Protect women, children and infants †¢ Improve nutrition and health of poor and disadvantaged women †¢ Provide education, support and information †¢ Support women with post-partum depression The WIC themselves define their goal as, â€Å"To safeguard the health of low-income women, infants, and children up to age 5 who are at nutrition risk by providing nutritious foods to supplement diets, information on healthy eating, and referrals to health care†. They define their mission completion mechanisms as, â€Å"Food, nutrition counseling, and access to health services are provided to low-income women, infants, and children under the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, popularly known as WIC. WIC provides Federal grants to States for supplemental foods, health care referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and children who are found to be at nutritional risk...Most State WIC programs provide vouchers that participants use at authorized food stores.

Systems of Social Stratification Essay Example for Free

Systems of Social Stratification Essay The caste, the class and the colour-bar are among the systems of social stratification. The main aim of this essay is to compare and contrast these systems as well as indicating their advantages and disadvantages to development. The essay begins with defining the key terms which include comparing, contrasting and development. It further goes on to define as well as explain social stratification itself, the caste, the class and the colour-bar systems respectively. The essay further talks about the advantages and disadvantages of these systems of social stratification and how they affect development. Lastly but not the least comes the conclusion of the essay. The term â€Å"comparing† can be defined as the way of coming up or finding out the similarities between two or more items. On the other hand, the term â€Å"contrasting† means finding out some differences between two or more items. However, the term development refers to the act or process of bringing positive change or improvement. It also referred as a multi-dimensional improvement in people’s well-being at all levels. Social stratification on the other hand is defined as a system by which society ranks categories of people in a hierarchy. The caste is the system in which people are categorised in a fixed arrangement of strata from the most to the least privileged, with a persons position determined unalterably at birth. However, class system is a system of categorising people which is based on individual achievement depending on their social and economic statuses. The colour-bar system on the other hand is the system in which involve inequalities between people and they are categorised on account of their skin colour or race (Giddens 2006). According to Joan Ferranti (1982), there are four fundamental principles of stratification: firstly, Social stratification is a characteristic of society and not just due to individual differences. Secondly, Social stratification persists over generations yet most societies allow some sort of social mobility or changes in peoples position. Social mobility may be upward, downward, or horizontal. This means that social mobility may increase, decrease or remain constant. Thirdly, Social stratification is universal but variable (it changes), and lastly Social stratification involves both inequality and beliefs. Furthermore, social stratification is a trait of society and not simply reflection of individual and it is universal, though it varies from society to society. Ferranti further indicated that Stratification is usually based on three major premises: Power which he described as the ability to impose one’s will on others, Prestige and described it as Horner given to someone by others and Property which he described as forms of wealth. If a person’s or group’s respect is given to know whether that person or group possess or does not possess certain traits, then it will be able to predictable with reasonable accuracy how this person or group is likely to fare in the social hierarchy. He also defined Social Hierarchy as a set of ranked statuses and Social Inequality as some types of people systematically experience advantages in society while other types of people are systematically disadvantaged in the society. This determination is based on who is socially advantaged and who is included among the ranks of the socially disadvantaged and it is on certain characteristics that these individuals possess and how society values or devalues these characteristics. Social stratification affects people’s lives and can be manifested in various ways in society (Ferranti 1982). As articulated in the above statements, social stratification is the system of classifying people in terms of gender, race, social-economic conditions, and many other conditions that affect their lives. Social stratification is divided into six major systems, but this assay concentrate much on explaining three of them as listed above. According to Hindson, D (1987), the caste is a system in which groups are separated from each other on account of religious rules of ritual purity. He indicated that this system has recently been practiced much in India and reflect on the Hindu religious belief where the caste system is more than two thousand years old. According to the Hindu belief, there are four major types of castes: The â€Å"Brahmans† mostly priests and scholars, the â€Å"Kshatriyas† warriors, rulers, and large landholders, the â€Å"Vaishyas† merchants, farmers, and skilled artisans, the â€Å"Shudras† labourers and unskilled artisans, However, there is an additional group called the â€Å"Harijans† Sometimes called untouchables,† they are ranked so low that technically, they are outside the caste system itself. According to Krishnamurti Badriraju (2001), the caste system has many advantages: It helped in the preservation of culture because it was passed on from one generation to another. Preservation of purity; because of its endogamous nature, it permitted marriage within the caste thus preserved purity for each caste. Division of labour; caste system required each individual to do work prescribed for each caste. It promoted co-operation within caste to preserve their culture and protect it from degradation from other caste. Caste system was also responsible for protecting the society from alien cultures. Furthermore, the caste system promoted permanency and continuity such that each caste had a permanent constitution to guide its behaviour and action. The caste system also improved living standards because each caste struggled hard to prosper. Badriraju did not only look at the positive side of the caste system but also looked at its negative side and came up with some disadvantages. The caste system was found to undemocratic. This means that it denied equal opportunity for advancement of people belonging to different castes. There was no mobility among the caste because each individual adopted the occupation prescribed for his/her caste. The caste system also prohibited physical contacts or communication between the Brahmin and the Sudra. Furthermore, the caste system is a class of idlers where Brahmins were well entrenched at the top of the social hierarchy and stopped devoting themselves to study, teaching and started living on alms provided by other castes. This made the low caste people to be oppressed regarding their place of living, movements and other activities and this was against the integrity of the nation. The caste system promoted discrimination by the false sense of superiority and inferiority between the Brahmin and the Sudra. Class system is a form of social stratification in which society tends to divide into classes whose members have different access to resources and power. An economic and cultural rift usually exists between different classes. In the early stages of class stratification, the majority of members in a given society have similar access to wealth and power, with only noticeable members displaying more or less wealth than the rest. As time goes on, the large share of wealth and status can begin to concentrate around a small number of populations. As the members of the community begin to spread out from one another economically, classes are created (Hawley, John Charles 2008). Karl Max saw classes as defined by peoples relationship to the means of production. According to him, the Capitalists (bourgeoisie) are people who own factories and other productive business and the proletariat are people who sell their productive labour to the capitalists. Marxs theory has been enormously influential and his work has been criticized for failing to recognize that a system of unequal ewards may be necessary to motivate people to perform their social roles effectively. According to Marxist theory in a class system, social stratification benefits the rich and powerful at the expense of the poor. Karl Marx also described two other classes, the petite bourgeoisie and the lumpenproletariat. The petite bourgeoisie is a small business class that does not accumulate enough profit as compared to the bourgeoisie, while the lumpenproletariat is a low life part of the proletariat class which include beggars, prostitutes and many others (Gimbutas, Marija 1992). Unlike Karl Marx who defined social classes in terms of ownership of the means of production, Max Weber identified three distinct dimensions of stratification. He argued that social standing consists of three parts or dimensions: class, which he regarded as determined mainly by economic standing or wealth; party, which was equivalent to political power; and status, or social prestige and honour. Following Webers lead, contemporary sociologists often use the broader concept of social-economic status to refer to a persons ranking along several social dimensions, particularly education, occupational prestige, and income. He added on by saying that people had different qualifications and skills on the basis of which they can be differentiated. Wright, E. O. (1997), found the class system to have both advantages and disadvantage: It promoted group solidarity and co-operation between people belonging to the same class, it promoted hard work among the lower class as they strived to be as those the higher class, it also promoted pride on one’s success or achievement through hard working. For example, if a lawyer would be seen to the same as a garbage man and get the same salary, he would feel inferior and think that his hard work was in vein as has the same income with someone who did not spend 18 years in school. On a negative part, wright found the class system to be undemocratic as it denied equal opportunities for advancement of people’s belonging to different groups. Another system of social stratification is the colour-bar system (also known as the race system). Jeremy Seekings (2003) described it as a system which involves inequalities between groups of people by the colour or race of its people. Mainly these inequalities deal with the antagonistic action between the whites and black racial groups. The colour-bar is associated with the apartheid in South Africa where people were categorised in four groups: on top of the hierarchy being the whites (Caucasians) followed by the coloureds, then the Asians (mongoroids) and lastly, the black (negroids). This system is also associated with discrimination and prejudice. Furthermore, the system is characterised by racial segregation where racial or ethnic groups inhabit the same territory but do activities separately also termed as â€Å"mix but not combine†. Similarly to other systems, the colour-bar also promotes solidarity among groups of the same race by the preservation of culture because it passed on from one generation to another. However, the colour-bar system was found to have more disadvantages than advantages because promoted racism, discrimination, prejudice, stereotyping, and ethnocentrism because people in the lowest category could feel to be more inferior. In comparing the three systems of social stratification, it would be found that they have some features in common; at the same time they would be found to have some differences depending on how they occur or practiced. According to how scholars have been describing each of these systems, they all come to a common conclusion of classifying people into different categories, they share the same principles as well as dimension which are: wealth, power and prestige. Although these systems share the same principles and dimensions, it is clear from their descriptions that they vary in the way they are practiced. The caste system is a system in which groups are separated from each other on account of religious rules of ritual purity, and the class system as articulated by Karl Marx is a system where people are classified on account of ownership and non-ownership of the means of production. Furthermore, it is a system where people are classified depending on their social and economic statuses. On the other hand, the colour-bar system as shown by Jeremy Seekings (2003), it is a system which involves inequalities between groups of people by the colour or race of its people. However, this clearly shows that although these systems of social stratification have some similarities, they are different in the actual way they occur. During the Conference on Race in Durban in 2001, Dalit participants made out a strong case that caste discrimination was not different from race discrimination and casteism was no different from racism [United Nations 2001]. The Indian Government rejected this equation, just as it rejected calling Indian forest dwelling communities as ‘indigenous peoples,’ though its own terminology of ‘adivasi’ means exactly that. It has maintained that such classifications are not rigorous enough. The Indian government apparently has forgotten that it was the intervention of the Indian delegation in 1965 that forced the International Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Racial Discrimination [CERD] to include the term ‘descent’ as a factor. It has also been pointed out that in practice racial and caste discrimination coalesce â€Å"be it exclusion, inequality, institutionalised prejudices or discrimination† (Khan 2010). On the other hand, the colour-bar system is different from the class system in many ways: the colour- bar is a closed system of social stratification whereas the class is open. This means that in the colour-bar system there is little or no interaction between people of different colour/race, but people of different classes are free to interact in the class system. Social mobility is restricted in the colour-bar system, and open in the class system. Inequality is based on one’s skin colour in the colour-bar system whereas in the class system, it is based on one’s social and economic status. In the colour-bar system, the lowest race (blacks mostly) are denied development opportunities, whereas in the class system everyone is not hindered but eligible of developing his status. The colour-bar system does not allow marrying outside the race (it is endogamous), and this is what makes it similar to the caste system (John S 1983). John did not only look at the differences between these systems, but he also talked about their similarities by outlining that they both have elements of slavery because in the colour-bar system, the whites exercise absolute control over blacks and in the class system, the owners of the bourgeoisie exercise absolute control over the proletariats. Little do these systems of social stratification contribute to development, Davis and Moore argued that the most difficult jobs in any society are the most necessary and require the highest reward and compensation to sufficiently motivate individuals to fill them. This promotes development as it makes people work hard (mostly academically) in order to acquire those positions. However, this argument has been criticised by many scholar as it only apply to the class system and not the caste and the colour-bar where one cannot change his race (the new york times 2005). Since development comes through hard work, these systems play a vital role in promoting development because those in lower class work hard in order to become like those in higher class. However, this development is limited to the class system because it does not occur at a broader level in the caste and the colour-bar systems but occurs within the particular caste or race. The reason is that no matter how much one succeeds in these two systems, he will remain a black, coloured or Sudra. This can hinder development because a Blackman will feel it is better to remain poor and being looked down by a Whiteman than to succeed while still being laughed at. However, this same applies to the caste system where a Harijan thinks that even if works hard; he will not be as pure as the Brahmin. In summary, it would be concluded that these three systems of social stratification hinder development because they all involve inequalities between groups of people. For as long as these systems promote racism, discrimination, prejudice, stereotyping, and ethnocentrism, development cannot occur because people in the lowest category (such as the blacks, Sudra, harijan, the proletariats and lumpens) would feel to be more inferior and think that they cannot do anything where development is concerned. This analysis can be interpreted in a range of ways as regards the positions in society concerning the classification of people. Looked at one way, almost the whole of society can be considered as ‘a society of classes’. For this reason, Karl Marx advocated the attainment of classless society after the workers overthrow the owners of the means of production from power of which it has not been attained even today.

Human Genetic Disorder

Human Genetic Disorder HUMAN GENETIC DISORDER Introduction Human Genetic Disorder is a kind of illness which is caused by chromosomes or genes abnormalities. Some disorders like cancer are in part of genetic disorders but they can also be caused by environmental factors. Many disorders are quite rare and they affect one person in a million. There are some types of recessive gene disorders which have an advantage in heterozygous states in some environments. Both genetic and environmental factors play a role in development of any kind of disorder. Human genetic disorder is caused by abnormalities of individuals of genetic materials. There are four types of genetic disorders; single-gene, chromosomal, multifactorial and mitochondrial. Single gene disorder is caused by a single mutated gene. This disorder can be passed on in successive generations in various ways. This disorder is caused mainly by mutation or changes of the DNA sequence in one gene. Multifactorial is caused by a combination of mutation of multiple genes and environmental factors . Chromosomal is caused by abnormalities caused by chromosomes. Mitochondrial is a genetic disorder caused by mutation in the mitochondria nonchromosomal DNA (Driel, et.al, 57). Single-gene is caused by mutation in the DNA. Gene codes for proteins which are the molecules which carry out most of the work does most of functions in life and even make up various cellular structures. After gene mutation for its proteins product not to carry out its usual functions, this leads to disorder. There are many single-gene disorders which occur in one out of 200 births. Examples include sickle cell anemia, cystic fibrosis, Marfan syndrome, heredity hemochromatosis and Huntingtons disease. Single-gene disorders are hereditary in identifiable structures. Combination of mutation of multiple genes and environmental factors leads to multifactorial (Bennet, 896). There are various types of genes which influence vulnerability to breast cancer which has been found on different chromosomes. Due to complicated nature of chromosomes, this makes it difficult to analyze chromosomal and single-gene disorders. Most of the common chronic disorders are multifactorial. Examples of this di sorder include Alzheimers, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, obesity and cancer. Inheritance of multifactorial is associated with genetic characteristics like height, fingerprint, skin color and eye color (Watson, 44). Chromosomal disorder is associated with chromosomes. Chromosomes are distinct structures which make up protein and DNA. Chromosomes which are mainly the carriers of heritable materials like chromosome structures abnormalities as missing leads to disease. The major abnormalities of chromosomal can be detected using microscopic examination. Trisomy 21 or Down syndrome is a common disorder which occurs when one has copies of chromosome 21. Mitochondrial disorder caused by mutation in nonchromosomal mitochondria DNA. Many genes are named after the disorder they are associated with. The normal functioning of gene is encoded with protein and this is not associated with cause of illness. Diseases linked with genetics occur when genes are not in a position to work properly. The hemochromatosis gene really codes for membrane protein after mutation of the gene in a manner which prevents if from encoding a functional and normal protein products (Milunsky, 67). Human genetic disorder is mainly caused by different kind of gene known as variation or modification of gene known as mutation. There are many diseases which are associated with the aspects of genes. Some like cancer are caused by gene mutation. Mutation can occur randomly or due to exposure to the environment like smoke from cigarette. Some of genetic disorders are inherited. Mutated genes are passed down from one generation to another through a family and each child can inherit those genes which causes the disorder. Other genetic disorders are because of problems with different number of packages of genes known as chromosomes like Down syndrome. Human genetic disorders are the main cause of death, disability and human tragedy. It is rare to find in a family which is entirely free from any kind of genetic disorder. Genetic defects are mainly known to cause pregnancy loss in developed countries and several spontaneous miscarriages involve fetus with abnormal chromosomes (McKusick, 15 ). Human genetic disorder is caused by nondisjunction which is the failure of chromosomes to replicate during the Anaphase II. Genes lacking chromosomes are not able to produce an embryo which is viable. Nondisjunction is most often linked with 21st chromosome giving rise to Down syndrome which increases chances of developing Alzheimers disease. Human genetic disorder is caused by abnormal genes groups which are passed down from one generation to another. Spontaneous mutation of genes is caused by error in the replication of DNA resulting in substitution base or insertion or deletion of one or two pair base from the DNA. Other disorder like somatic genetic disease is caused by sudden appearance of abnormal type of gene in one part of the body like cancer. Others like chromosomal abnormality are caused by abnormalities in the structure of chromosomes causing Down syndrome (Green and Waterston, 1968). Human genetic disorder can be diagnosed. Genetic test can be performed to determine whether the person has or doesnt have the disease even as early as during fetus. This testing is known as antenatal testing. Chromosome test can also be performed to diagnose human genetic disorder. Diagnostic of human genetic disorder is conducted for chromosome disorders, congenital malformations, mental retardation, infertility, learning disabilities, miscarriages, metabolic and molecular disorders and paternity. There are available genetic services for all prenatal, pediatric and adult genetic disorders such as Alzheimers, cancer, heart disease and other late disease onsets. Defects of birth lead to death of infants. There are infants who are diagnosed with the main genetic disorders. Genes and DNA performs are arranged on chromosomes. There are no genes which really cause disease. Mutations in the genes caused serious genetic disorder. Gene mutation in chromosomes caused disorder. Not all mutatio ns of genes lead to genetic disorder because some are unexpressed without any noticeable effect to the organism (Baird, et.al, 678). Conclusion Human genetic disorder occurs due to abnormalities of individuals of genetic materials. Human genetic disorders are of different types depending on the causes. There are four types of genetic disorders; single-gene, chromosomal, multifactorial and mitochondrial. Genetic disorders are mainly caused by mutation of genes and DNA. Each type of disorder has different cause. For example chromosomal disorder is caused by mutation of chromosomes. Swap of DNA by chromosomes to form variety of the gene pool can result to disorder leading to exchange of regions. Through abnormalities of genes and chromosomes human genetic disorder occurs. Some disease like cancer is as a result of genetic disorder but they can occur because of environmental factors. Most human genetic disorders are rare and they affect one person in a million. Some recessive gene disorders give advantage to the heterozygous states in some environments. Works Cited Baird Anderson, et.al, â€Å"Genetic Disorders in Children and Young Adults: a Population Study,† American Journal of Human Genetics, Vol. 42, pp. 677-693, 2000 Insert Surname here 6 Bennet Robin, â€Å"Genetic Disorder and the Fetus: Diagnosis, Prevention and Treatment,† The American Journal of Human Genetics, Vol. 77, No. 5, 2005, pp. 896-897 Driel Marc, et.al, â€Å"A New Web-based Data Mining Tool for Identification of Candidate Genes for Human Genetic Disorder,† European Journal of Human Genetic, Vol. 11, 2003, pp.57-63 Green Ernest and Waterston Roy, â€Å"The Human Genome Project: Prospects and Implications for Clinical Medicine,† Journal of American Medical Association, Vol. 266, 1999, pp. 1966- 1975 McKusick Charles, History of Medical Genetics, in Emery and Rimoins Principles and Practice of Medical Genetics, Churchill Livingstone, Inc.: New York, 1996, p. 1-30 Milunsky Aubrey, Genetic Disorders and the Fetus: Diagnosis, Prevention and Treatment, (5th Ed), JHU Press, 2005 Watson Jean, â€Å"The Human Genome Project: Past, Present, and Future,† Science, Vol. 248, 1990, pp. 44-49

The History of Drugs :: essays research papers

The History of Drugs Drug use and abuse is as old as mankind itself. Human beings have always had a desire to eat or drink substances that make them feel relaxed, stimulated, or euphoric. Humans have used drugs of one sort or another for thousands of years. Wine was used at least from the time of the early Egyptians; narcotics from 4000 B.C.; and medicinal use of marijuana has been dated to 2737 BC in China. As time went by, "home remedies" were discovered and used to alleviate aches, pains and other ailments. Most of these preparations were herbs, roots, mushrooms or fungi. They had to be eaten, drunk, rubbed on the skin, or inhaled to achieve the desired effect. One of the oldest records of such medicinal recommendations is found in the writings of the Chinese scholar-emperor Shen Nung, who lived in 2735 BC He compiled a book about herbs, a forerunner of the medieval pharmacopoeias that listed all the then-known medications. He was able to judge the value of some Chinese herbs. For example, he found that Ch'ang Shan was helpful in treating fevers. Such fevers were, and still are, caused by malaria parasites. South and Central American Indians made many prehistoric discoveries of drug-bearing plants. Mexican Aztecs even recorded their properties in hieroglyphics on rocks, but our knowledge of their studies comes mainly from manuscripts of Spanish monks and medical men attached to the forces of the conquistador Hernan Cortes (1485-1547). Pre-Columbian Mexicans used many substances, from tobacco to mind-expanding (hallucinogenic) plants, in their medicinal collections. The most fascinating of these substances are sacred mushrooms, used in religious ceremonies to induce altered states of mind, not just drunkenness. These were all naturally occurring substances. No refinement had occurred, and isolation of specific compounds (drugs) had not taken place. As the centuries unrolled and new civilizations appeared, cultural, artistic, and medical developments shifted toward the new centers of power. A reversal of the traditional search for botanical drugs occurred in Greece in the fourth century BC, when Hippocrates (estimated dates, 460-377 BC), the "Father of Medicine," became interested in inorganic salts as medications. Hippocrates' authority lasted throughout the Middle Ages and reminded alchemists and medical experimenters of the potential of inorganic drugs. In fact, a distant descendant of Hippocrates' prescriptions was the use of antimony salts in elixirs (alcoholic solutions) advocated by Basilius Valentius in the middle of the 15th century and by the medical alchemist Phillippus Aureolus Paracelsus (born Theophrastus Bombast von Hohenheim, in Switzerland, 1493-1541).

Security in Healthcare: How Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) violates Healt

Bring Your Own Device policy (BYOD) in health care organizations is a growing trend that shows a considerably positive effect that few people could notice any violations that may accompany it. The policy allows staff in an organization to carry their personal electronic devices like mobile phones, computers, and laptops to facilitate their work by helping store and access certain information (Herzig 20). Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was enacted in 1996. It entails security and privacy regulations constructed to ensure good security measures are applied to protect patient data in health facilities, especially where BYOD policy is active. The policies provided in HIPAA also ensure that only authorized people access information stored in the devices used by health providers (Powell 1-2). HIPAA security regulations offer standards for ensuring that patient data on electronic devices are safeguarded. HIPAA cover how we can use and disclose patient information while the HIPAA privacy policies explain how patient information should be accessed and disclosed. Schneider (55) reviews that violation of HIPAA security and privacy laws majorly entail the attainment, retrieving and using medical information by a person who is not subject to the health data or is not permitted to offer medical services. How BYOD can violate HIPAA security/privacy laws Lack of Confidentiality BYOD policy may not promote confidentiality and integrity, which is a major requirement in the HIPAA regulations (Health Information Privacy). Health providers should come up with strategies to follow up on and protect information they have concerning their client. 5111 Physical Security Policy ensures that the security of the devices used by ... ...Security in Healthcare: Building a Security Program. Chicago, IL: HIMSS, 2013. Print. HIPAA. Minneapolis, MN: Minnesota Institute of Legal Education, 2003. Print. Liu, Yu. PACS and Digital Medicine: Essential Principles and Modern Practice. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, 2011. 11. Print Powell, Suzanne. "HIPAA." Lippincott's Case Management 8.1 (2003): 1-2. Roberts, Albert. â€Å"Do BYOD Programs Encourage Bullying.† Edutopia. 24 May 2013. Web. 12 Nov. 2013. . Schneider, Mary Ellen. "HIPAA privacy enforcement. (Policy & Practice)." OB GYN News 2003: 55. Widmer, Lori. "HIPAA critical: since the passage of the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, companies have been working toward compliance. Yet are risk managers ready? (Liability)."Risk & Insurance 1 Aug. 2003: 35.

The Path of a Spiritual Master: A Means to an End or an End-in-Itself?

Throughout history there has been a division between the East and the West, which goes beyond the Pacific and the Atlantic oceans. In short, the world has been separated by Eastern and Western philosophy, cultures, traditions, and religions. However, with the spread of globalization, various religious and philosophical movements made its way across the oceans from East to West, and vice-versa. Even though there is a heavy presence of Eastern religions, traditions, and philosophies in the West, some of the concepts associated with them are yet to be accepted or taken seriously by many in the Western society. To name a few of these concepts, immortality, self-perfection, and asceticism, are just some of the prominent concepts in one particular Eastern religious tradition, Daoism. However, contemporary philosophers and scholars of Eastern thought and tradition are trying to establish an open discussion about these ancient ideas and beliefs that are alive and well in the 21st century Eas tern Asia. While there is a strong belief among Western society that â€Å"no one is perfect†, the adherents of Daoism are focused on achieving â€Å"self-perfection† through attunement with the Dao. The ultimate goal for adherents of the Daoist tradition is to reach a state of immortality, which requires self-transformation through the cultivation of the self by practicing a series of Daoist attainment models. All the while, the Western scientific community is yet to crack the immortality code with all its technology and innovation. Nevertheless, in contemporary times, and with the arrival of Eastern philosophy, religions, and traditions in the West, many people are turning inward and using a tool believed to have more power than an atomic bomb, the human min... ...eration, but it remains unclear if asceticism a necessary and sufficient condition to becoming an immortal. At the very least, it will bring one peace. Works Cited Eskildsen, Stephen. Asceticism in Early Taoist Religion. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1998. The Encyclopedia of Taoism, ed. Fabrizio Pregadio. (New York, NY: Routledge, 2008), s.v. â€Å"Religious Practice and Experience: Asceticism.† The Encyclopedia of Taoism, ed. Fabrizio Pregadio. (New York: Routledge, 2008), s.v. â€Å"Transcendence and immortality.† The Encyclopedia of Taoism, ed. Fabrizio Pregadio. (New York: Routledge, 2008), s.v. â€Å"Taoist Views of the Human Body.† Komjathy, Louis. The Daoist Tradition: Views of self. New York, NY: Bloomsbury Academic, 2013. —. Cultivating Perfection: Mysticism and Self-transformation in Early Quanzhen Daoism. Leiden: Brill, 2007.

Women in Bollywood

Film is somehow a depiction of real life. The movies produced reflect a nation’s culture and the interplay of its citizens within the society. Such interplay is the role of a man and a woman in India. Cinema in India is the largest productive movie industry in the world. Known as Bollywood, Indians are able to make films which portray the Indian’s way of life, promote their sense of identity, and their nationalism. By looking at Indian films, one can have the general idea of the Indian society. Women, in particular, are clearly portrayed in Bollywood.There are notions of what a ‘good’ and a ‘bad’ woman is. The actions of women depicted in the films also create norms on how women are placed in the society. Just like films from other countries, Bollywood have mostly projected women in a standardize character (Mishra, 2002, p. xix). Though the Indian culture evolves in accordance with modern times, women representation in films somehow has been ty pified within the norms. Two of the best-selling Hindi movies that made its mark on Bollywood Cinema have women as the main character.Mother India (1957) and Hum Aapke Hain Kaun (1994), both are notable works in the Indian film industry. The former being a dramatic movie and the latter, a romantic comedy combined with musical. These two films presented women who are bounded by the traditions of the society and how they reacted to it. Both of the films pertained to the concept of India’s ideal woman. As heroines from the two movies revolved around different environment and time frame, they were depicted as the women molded into the traditions of Indian society. These traditions lead to the films’ depiction of India’s nationalism.As what Thomas mentioned in her essay (1989) about India’s struggle for freedom in the form of films: Since it first emerged in the context of colonial India’s fight for independence, Indian cinema, for a number of reasons, has been concerned with constructing a notion of Indian cultural and national identity. This has involved drawing on concepts such as â€Å"traditions†. (p. 11) Mother India is a film that has a heavier plot than that of the Hum Aapke Hain Kaun. Radha, the female protagonist faced a lot of moral and social struggles as the story progress.Her personal role as a mother conflicted with her public responsibility as a woman. As a young woman who married the man she loves, she was encapsulated in the dutiful role of a wife. Radha fulfilled the traditional wife duties as her husband’s companion and helper at work. Radha is one of the most dynamic characters in Bollywood. Her change in attitudes in the course of the film was necessary as dramatic situations occurred in her story. The changes that happened in Radha’s character are two opposite personalities of a woman.From the shy, newly married young woman she transformed into a self-dependent single mother who worked h ard to uphold the dignity of her children and their standard of living. Her marriage with Shamu made her a committed and devoted wife to him. She is always at his side especially when working. However, as tragedy followed Shamu getting handicapped resulted into his decision to leave his family, Radha’s role as a mother has to be emphasized. Her timidity turned into a strong, courageous woman who built her family within dignified moral grounds.With this kind of dynamism, Radha was depicted as a powerful woman. The character of an empowered and independent woman was very rare in Indian cinema at the time Mother India was released. This kind of portrayal brought Radha with goddess-like features because of enduring so much struggles and overcoming tribulations. Radha was one of the few fictional female characters depicted in a heroic manner. The flow of Radha’s story is quite similar with the goddess Sita. Radha who endured the hard work together with her husband just like what Sita did when she gave up richness to join her husband in exile.Both of them endured the hardships of raising their children alone. Though both of them may have been portrayed as frail and timid, they exude strength especially in the most challenging aspect of their lives. The loyalty and chastity of the goddess can be seen on the scene where Radha refused Sukhilal’s offer of marriage. Upholding her chastity meant maintaining the dignity of their family despite their situation of poverty. Radha always reminded her sons to live a life within moral principles and to serve as good citizens of their village.The chastity was not only for her but for her family’s name. Her sons became the extension of maintaining that purity despite their strife in life. Another goddess associated with Radha is the goddess Kali. The goddess is described as the â€Å"fierce, passionate goddess of both life and destruction† (Thorner, Raj & Trust, 2000, p. 97). The fierceness of th e goddess can be witnessed when Radha aggressively declined Sukhilal’s seduction and almost caused havoc inside his house. The characteristic of Kali’s destruction can be identified in the event when Radha shot her favorite son.There was a struggle within Radha to be a good mother or to be a law abiding citizen. Birju failed to uphold what his mother have instilled to them and because of this, Radha decided to end his life to maintain the honor of the family. The association of Radha with Kali has been further justified by Rosie Thomas. Focusing on the experiences of men closer to Radha, Thomas indicated Radha’s goddess feature of punishment. Her depiction on the film holding heavy axe and shovel that she uses for farm work portrayed her as a strong woman that is capable of punishing if things does not go right (Thomas, 1989, p.17). The mere association of men with Radha caused the men on the film to be somewhat destroyed. Thomas described this destruction as an attribute to Radha being compared to Kali: She kills her favorite son; her husband loses both arms (and implicitly his manliness)†¦the villainous Sukhilal end up covered in cotton fluff, cowering like a naughty infant as she beats him with a big stick†¦Thus, she is both venerator of men and venerated by them as devi (goddess) and maa (mother), and she is, in turn, in need of men’s protection and a protector and destroyer of men. (p.16) The character of Radha can be quite the contrary for the depiction of Nisha in Hum Aapke Hain Kaun. This is a romantic comedy family-oriented film. If Mother India mostly portrayed the role of the woman in a society, Hum Aapke Hain Kaun showed women’s place within the structure of the family. Indian traditions are clearly emphasized on the film especially in the engagement and wedding ceremonies (Hirji, 2005). Though the plot in the movie consists of light drama, the underlying role of the women in a typical Indian family conn otes how women are in real life.The women in this film are bounded by family traditions which meant that every decision in the family should come from the male member of the family. The arrangement that was made between Mr. Kailashnath and Mr. Siddharth for Pooja and Rajesh’s wedding made it very clear. This scene proved that family decisions should rule and the rule comes mostly from the male members. Women in Hum Aapke Hain Kaun are portrayed as dutiful and obedient. Nisha, the younger sister of Pooja, is the woman who is given focus on the film. She is portrayed in the film as a playful prankster and cheerful woman.As every woman in India, she is deeply attached with her family and it is seen in her relationship with her sister whom she’s closest with. Eventually, Nisha’s relationship with Prem will be greatly affected by her relationship with her family. Like Radha, Nisha experienced a transition within her character. Though Radha is a bit more complex, Nish a’s transition can be seen from being a happy-go-lucky girl to a woman that has to fulfill her family’s traditions. This is more evident when Prem and Nisha sacrificed their love so that she could marry Prem’s brother after Pooja’s death.The woman is seen to give up her own wishes and desires to abide her duties in her family. This aspect of women in Indian culture provided similarities with the goddess that was compared with Mother India. Aside from being loyal and upholding her chastity, the goddess Sita is a devoted and dutiful woman to her sons and to her husband. This feature is apparent on the easy acceptance of Pooja with the arrangement of marriage with Rajesh. The marriage was arranged by two of the highest male authorities of both families and the film portrayed that the decision to marry was a final thing to do.Shedding off whatever attraction that may have happened when they were introduced, an objection for the marriage from either Pooja or R ajesh did not exist for the sake of their fathers. On the other hand, Nisha – despite her feelings for Prem – decided to marry Rajesh for the sake of her nephew and her dead sister. Though it was against her will, she decided to take the route of being married to her brother-in-law. This event, as part of her change, showed Nisha becoming an ideal woman who sacrificed and obeyed her family.Like the goddess Sita who allowed Rama to exile her, Nisha complied with her family’s request even if it entailed to give up her love for Prem. This film showed the Indian traditions viewing Nisha as a heroine who â€Å"would never put her own dreams ahead of the aspirations and desires of her family or men† (Ghose, 2006, p. 5). The conservative woman who considers her self as a second priority is what appeal as an ideal woman. Nisha is a good woman with a generous heart that can be compared to the dutiful goddess Sita who is the epitome of how Indian women are raised.O n the contrary, the opposite of the good or ideal woman is revealed in the character of Mamiji. Nisha is portrayed as the simple conservative girl while Mamiji is depicted as â€Å"selfish, mercenary, and vain† (Ghosh, 2000, p. 86). Her being vain is symbolized as being self-centered which opposed Nisha’s character of selflessness. The fact that Mamiji does not have a child of her own makes her what she is. The lack of motherhood in her personality diverted her attention solely on herself. The concept of a ‘bad woman’ in the film can be compared to the struggle that India has been experiencing after the colonial period.Somehow, the qualities of a ‘bad woman’ in the image of Mamiji such as going to the beauty parlor can be seen as a modern type of woman. As Rosie Thomas mentioned, Indian films are mostly in the context of struggling for independence by showcasing nationalism through tradition (Thomas, 1989, p. 11). The depiction of the scheming Mamiji as a modern woman in oppose to Nisha or Pooja as the traditional women of India; say much about India’s effort to promote its culture rather than the practices that are left by their invaders.Taking all of these into account, somehow it can be determined that an ideal woman within the Indian society is someone who is submissive and selfless. Both films are able to portray those traits. Mother India and Hum Aapke Hain Kaun are perfect depictions of women who are bounded by Indian traditions whether in society or in the family. Though both women differ in strength and with the way they are portrayed, Radha and Nisha are both subjected to the responsibilities that they have as women leaving no room for their own will and personal desires.The portrayal of women in films having goddess-like characteristics, symbolizes the nationalism of India. India regarded many female gods in their religion and they attributed these deities as an example of how a female should behave in the society. Emphasizing traditions in Bollywood is their way of promoting Indian nationalism. One effective way of showing these traditions would be in the form of a female as both of these films have been considered as icons in the Indian film industry.These female characters that were associated with Hindu goddesses transcend into society to be emulated and to uphold the culture. For Indians compare their country to a female that nurture its people and unselfishly gave her land for them to nourish and to raise a dignified India. References Ghose, A. (2006). Of Names of Women in Hindi Cinema. Retrieved October 30, 2008, from Esocialsciences . Ghosh, S. (2000). Hum Aapke Hain Kaun: Pluralizing Pleasures of Viewership. Social Scientist, Vol. 28, p. 83-90.Hirji, F. (2005). When Local Meets Lucre: Commerce, Culture and Imperialism in Bollywood Cinema. Carleton University. Retrieved October 30, 2008, from http://lass. calumet. purdue. edu/cca/gmj/OldSiteBackup/SubmittedDocuments/Fall20 05/graduate/Hirji-%20Refereed. htm. Mishra, V. (2002). Bollywood Cinema: Temples of Desire. New York: Routledge. Raj, Maithreyi. K. , Thorner, A. & Trust, S. (2000). Ideals, Images, and Real Lives. New Delhi: Orient Blackswan. Thomas, R. (1989). Sanctity and Scandal: The Mythologization of Mother India. Quarterly Review of Film and Video, Vol. 11, 11-30.