RAGGING MENTALITY / A BLEMISH IN THE CHARACTER
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RAGGING MENTALITY / A BLEMISH IN THE CHARACTER

"'Ragging means the doing of any act which causes, or is likely to cause any physical, psychological or physiological harm of apprehension or shame or embarrassment to a student, and includes– (a) teasing or abusing of playing Practical joke on, or causing hurt to any student. or (b) asking any student to do any act, or perform any thing, which he/she would not, in the ordinary course, be willing to do or perform."This is a legal definition given to "ragging"
From this it is very clear that "Ragging" in any form , whether it be physical or mental is a
crime.

Those who support ragging give an unacceptable reason saying that ragging helps in developing a rapport between the seniors and juniors.In practical life,do we rag our neighbour or a colleague in our office who are freshers just to develop a relation? It sounds crude and stupid.

Why can't they introduce themselves and start chatting in a friendly manner? It is indeed a mockery when these people are capable of chatting with totally unknown strangers in the chat rooms.

In the book,'Higher education in transition', by John Seiler Brubacher, Wills rudy, a book on American colleges and universities i found a word,"
Fagging".
Oliver walcott, a one time governor of Connecticut describes fagging thus:Lower class members had to run errand and to behave like unpaid servants to upper class students.This was in 1770. This was abolished later.
Because these which started as harmless errands turned in to abuse.

Running errands which is harmless happen even among the elder brothers and sisters, a form of bullying. Bossing mentality obtained by age, sex and profession,assumed superiority through caste, enriched command through monetary status, empowered haughtiness through physical stature,are already existing viruses in the society.

There is yet another word called Hazing. Hazing is a
ritualistic test and a task involving harassment, abuse or humiliation used as a way of initiating a person into a gang, club, military organization or other group. The definition can refer to either physical (sometimes violent) or mental (possibly degrading) practices. It may also include nudity or sexually oriented activities.(copied from the internet source)

Those who are supporting ragging saying that it is just a harmless fun are mistaken.What happens in the universities in recent times is not ragging but hazing. Because the incidents are similar to the description given above.
There shall be no reason, excuse , explanation or justification given to the persons who rag from the psychological point of view.Ragging is not a psychological disorder. This can never be attributed to the persons who rag..It is a behaviour and character blemish.I would blame it on the poor upbringing. A crude, brutal and animal mentality. Even the animals kill other species to get food for their survival and not for teasing or torturing.

From time immemorial there have been many reports of suicides because of the humiliation meted out by the students. I was of the opinion once that those students were mentally weak.May be or may not be.

But the reports of physical torture like stabbing a person to death is a violation on human rights. The persons who teased were reported to be in inebriated condition. The freshers are sexually tortured. such activities lead to depression and the affected persons do not lead a normal later in life.

Most of the reports are from the hosteliers who are constantly ragged and some times it runs to an endless period.just like arranging farewell parties the should be a freshers party with fun and fare introduced in the college campus.There should be a severe punishment like dismissal for the seniors if found ragging. At the same time there should be some incentives for being friendly and helpful to the freshers. You can tempt the students with incentives rather than making them aggressive by punishing them.

The student community whether a fresher or a senior should realise the sufferings and traumas of their parents, the futility of spending their lives in jail instead of getiing education. Avoid indulging in drugs and intoxicating liquors which make you commit a crime without your
knowledge or with intention.

Posted in sulekha.com

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