Students discuss the importance of water in our daily lives.
Ahmedabad, May 22nd, 2019: National Institute of Mass Communication and Journalism (NIMCJ) came up with the 47th episode of their in-house student-led initiative, Independent Mass Power which revolved around the topic “Jal Hi Jeevan Hai.” The event was held at the campus, and the panelists for the discussion were Ms. Nikita Baid, and Mr. Mitesh Parmar, students of PGDMCJ. Mr. Abhay Raval, a former government official from the information department, was the subject expert.
The topic was crucial and required to be discussed because water, the building block of life, is often taken for granted. Because of this, the situation today is such that there are various states in our country like Gujarat, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, which are facing severe water shortage. The anchor for the event, Ms. Shina Utavani initiated the discussion by telling the audience how important water is for sustenance. Then the discussion steered towards how has the government helped the states which receive less rainfall than required. Mr. Raval threw light on the stark contrast between the mindset of the people of urban and rural areas. In urban areas, where water is available 24×7, it is taken for granted and wasted without any reason. Whereas in rural areas, where fresh and pure water is a luxury, people struggle for days.
Further, Ms. Nikita enlightened the audience about how we do not value water because of its steady availability, and ways to preserve it as and when we can. Mr. Raval went on to say, “Water should be accessible to everyone, but this cannot be achieved without ‘jan-sahyog.’ The people and the government have to work in accordance to save water for future generations.” The panellists suggested that workshops and discussions must be held by the government to make people aware of the current water situation and ways to improve it. According to Mr. Raval, “17,000 hectares of land in Gujarat gets drip irrigation which is funded 50% by the government”. This established that the government is also taking steps to understand and the solve the problem of water shortage.
Events like these not only instil confidence in the students but also give us a chance to brainstorm on issues that really matter to us as a society. Around fifty students had participated in this event.
NIMCJ has been ranked 15th in the top mass communication and journalism colleges in the country by Outlook magazine in 2017-2018. It also featured in the Times list of best mass communication colleges. Every year, they take-in students and polish them into media professionals.
IMP, or Independent Mass Power, is a student led initiative started by the college in 2016. So far, it has successfully completed 46 episodes that have covered various issues that affect us on various levels.
