CELEBRATING YOUTH

"Born anew, new sun each morn

New hopes and heights every new dawn

Such is the sparkle that lights up the day

And so is our youth, and so they say”

The youth of a nation is not just the muscle but also often a breath of fresh wind that showcases the mundane in a magical light. The world has always been here and always will be, but our perspective can make it look new and different and

this perspective is the true power of youth. When fearless, the youth of the world can bring about change that few would expect and it is this gripping fear that anchors down our youth and hence, us. So what exactly is this fear and who has put it into our world? What keeps the youth from being all that they could be? Today we know that stress levels and depression is extremely high in the youth and this is not only shameful, it also cripples our progress as a country as well as mankind in general. What exactly is the reason behind these issues? this is what we tried to explore this August.

On 12th and 13th August, we (The Department of Community Medicine) at Vardhman Mahavir Medical College (Safdarjung Hospital), New Delhi, celebrated the United Nations International Youth Day, in collaboration with the ‘Indian Association For Adolescent Health’. This year, the theme for this annual global event was ‘Youth Civic Engagement’. We hosted multiple inter-college events conforming with the theme and also tried to explore certain medical issues of today’s youth.

The idea was spontaneously conceived, almost out of no where, and it got together each one of us here to help it become a reality. At first, it was just a bunch of first year post graduate students fiddling with an idea that seemed too difficult to chase in the short span of time that they had. Then, some undergraduate students got interested. “Let us do it.” That is the spirit of youth. It is almost poetic that youth got together to attain something seemingly uphill, to showcase the power of youth.

However, no seed ever germinated without the cool water and warm earth nurturing it and no plant ever becomes a tree without standing tall in the harshest of sun. And so, the seniors ( and I mean seniors as well as the faculty ) carefully helped the idea materialise.

With a lot of team work, a lot of institutions were included and events held. Both medical colleges and non medical institutes got together under one roof to express the various concerns of today's youth via art, photography and the spoken word.

On 12th of August, we had a photography as well as poster making competition. While the photography competition highlighted the ‘Role of Junk Food in Adolescent Obesity’, the poster making competition was an open invitation for participants to express ‘The Power of Youth’ or ‘The issues faced By Today’s Youth’. There were also literary events. A debate competition was organised to compare the role of youth in their health versus the role of the government in promoting the same. In the extempore competition, different participants had different topics, all relevant to today’s youth. All these events witnessed enthusiastic participation by students from various colleges across Delhi and with each participant, the audience could appreciate the various aspects to the multi-factorial issues that revolve around youth.

Since youth is what the children are made into, our program also included a school for underprivileged children. The posters they made emphasised on how junk food was affecting the health of the youth and many children participated. On 13th, we had the opportunity to directly communicate with the children after the extempore competition, which had various youth related topics.

As the event concluded, we realised we made so many new memories for so many people. The beauty of practising ‘public health’ is the impact that it has on the root of an issue. Many gigantic issues can be easily resolved if only seemingly trivial and at times overtly simple, grass root level interventions are devised and implemented and this event was one such small yet significant step.

In youth we learn, in age we understand and since we shall never be as young as we are right now, it makes ‘now’ the perfect time to realise what youth is all about.

The AAP propaganda

The AAP Propaganda

Mrs. Soni and Mrs. Geetha shared a cup of tea at the latter's residence on a balmy October evening. "My elbow pains" complained Mrs. Soni as she sipped.
Mrs. Geetha promptly enquired:
"Does it pain as I press on it?"
"Yes"
"Does it pain when I passively move your hand?"
"Yes"
"Hmm.. Does it pain when you try lift weights?"
"Oh God, yes! You know exactly what bothers me!" Said a delighted Mrs. Soni. Instantly their bond strengthened.

Understanding the issues that bother the person concerned is the basis of interpersonal relationships. It is also a sign of presence of a higher prevalence of a lesser variety of issues. It is also the foundation stone of the Aam Aadmi Party.

The AAP is more than a political party. It is a social experiment as to how the public unites in its grievances even under a leadership that shows less vision and more propaganda.
'Tact' , after all, is the necessity of success of any group activity.

While the AAP successfully showcased the power of democracy, the gullibility of youth and the dynamism of interpersonal relationship, it also highlighted, in the end, the necessity of a leader who not only understands the issues but also possesses the vision to address the same.

In speaking about our major grievances Mr. Kejriwal did indeed create a strong bond with the masses, especially the youth, however one must always remember that speaking of the symptoms does not make one a doctor. To heal, one needs  to 'know how to'. The major problem with the AAP is that although they are very efficient in 'pointing out' problems, they have no clue as to how to address it. It is not the ailment affecting a particular member of the party but it is a general attitude or the modus operandi of the party itself to the extent that pointing out what is wrong with the world seems to have become their bread and butter.

In fact it is sad that the very promising party even now, talks about requiring a "suitable language to HIGHLIGHT THE PROBLEMS". It is fair that a group of activists demand a government that is free from " corruption and crony-capitalism" but that does not mean neglecting governance in toto.
If it is "trying to find holes in Modi's rhetoric" the party is not only harming the positive atmosphere that has blanketed the country after what seems as eras of unrest and dissatisfaction, it is also  creating hurdles in some real, slow and steady but definitely long term and stable development.

Although the young blood is, at times easily driven by propaganda, the youth has definitely learnt to not only see the issues raised by a party but also to fully know their plan to rectify those issues as after all development in the name of development is an eye wash that the liberal minded and forward looking youth has learnt to see beyond, the hard way.

-Kriti Gangwar