Ragging is a term used for a pathetic ritual practiced in higher education institutions. This so-called ritual is a serious crime that is found in South Asian countries. This practice is very similar to the practices of Hazing, Bizutage, and Praxe. Ragging involves abusing, humiliating, and harassing the freshmen by the senior students in the college. It initially starts with the idea of having fun, but people need to realize that verbally or physically abusing someone is not fun. Each year hundreds of ragging cases are registered and many people even lose their life.
This is the scenario seen not only in rural institution but also well known educational institutions. Ragging is very often observed in medical and engineering colleges, yes you read it correctly, place from where the country gets its brightest minds. It’s time we start recognizing such problems and uproot them from our society completely. Here are certain steps we can take to completely uproot this evil practice.
Top 15 ways to make this world RAGGING-FREE
1. Stricter rules on the campus
The college authorities should form some strict rules regarding harsh behavior by students in and around the campus. The faculty should continuously keep an eye on their students and also keep their doors open every day, so students can file a complaint regarding any ragging incident they see or experience. Many times it is observed that institutions try to hide such things to keep their reputation clean. Such mistakes will not only promote ragging but also cost lives. It is the responsibility of the institution to address these issues, and take strict actions against the culprits. The actions should involve suspension. Such strict laws will build fear in the minds of the culprits and they will think twice before performing such criminal offense.
2. Make an Anti-ragging committee
The college should appoint an Anti-ragging committee, that must include representatives from every section of the college i.e, high-graders, low-graders, students good at sports, reservation students, female representatives, etc. This committee should continuously work at making the students aware of such evil terms. They must organize Anti-ragging rallies, events regularly. Such events will create awareness, inculcate strength in the hearts of the victims, and fear in the minds of the culprits. Awareness is essential regarding such sensitive issues because many times people don’t know whom to contact when such horrible things happen to them. Such practices put the victim in the state of trauma which enables him to think about what to do next. Such events can help people to clear out the fog in their minds and act wisely.
3. Employ a counselor
College authorities should employ a full-time counselor on the college campus. Things like ragging involves a lot of humiliation that can lead to emotional instability. During such tough times, a counselor can play a crucial role. They will not only help students open up about such tough situations but also help them come out of this dark hole. Counselor helps students cope with depression and anxiety, build self-confidence among students, and help them make better decisions. Victims usually find it difficult to open up to their parents, friends, and school authorities. Therefore, counselors can be extremely helpful during such times.
4. Install CCTV cameras
Installation of CCTV cameras will help the authorities to continuously keep an eye on their students. Students will fear practicing not just ragging but any kind of activities in and around the campus. But the college authorities should not just install cameras but also check them regularly. Cameras will help the authorities to keep a check at places they cannot visit often, such as the canteen, girls common room, college ground, etc.
5. Promote healthy relations between seniors and junior
The main reason behind ragging is creating a sense of superiority among the freshmen, the feeling of superiority gives the culprits a sense of power among the rest. Therefore, the college should promote activities where all the students can come together to work in harmony. This will promote friendship between the freshmen and the seniors, and allow them to respect each other’s views and efforts. It also the responsibility of the college authorities to take care that these activities promote healthy relations not competition among the students.
6. Try eliminating the root causes
The main reason behind this crime is that students cannot see anyone else entering the limelight they have, so they try to establish a sense of superiority among other students to make sure they will never try to steal their throne or power. Another major reason is the students want to prove their masculinity, they want to show the rest that he is the strongest. But many times this race for power and strength can ruin lives. Students are filled with frustration and anger they acquire from the environment or from the educational system, no wonder why maximum ragging cases are from medical and engineering colleges. Therefore, ragging could be a great option to let that anger and frustration out. The parents and the college authorities need to take the responsibility to destroy this damaging mindset of the student. It’s only when you cut the roots of the problem it stops growing.
7. Break the chain
There is a chain that has kept the evil named ragging still alive. This chain is pretty similar to the game ‘pass the ball’. The people or let’s say the freshmen who has being ragged feels that he must pass on that humiliation to the next batch to get rid of the humiliation and anger that he has been carrying with him. So they tend to pass that humiliation to the next and the next and the next batch of students, it’s like a cycle that never stops. Every one of us feels that he/she needs to make others feel the same they did only then the world will understand their pain and they will be free. This is not how you can be free, when you break the chain and make sure no one else suffers the same pain as you do, that’s when we are free and most importantly happy.
8. Take parents in the loop
Parents are the ones who can install the correct mindset into the child and eliminate any evil ideology the child is forming within himself. When we grow up we tend to lose the habit of sharing things with our parents, it’s something both parent and child work on. When a child is suffering through something so miserable, opening up to anyone can be difficult. Parents need to continuously make their children realize that they are safe around them. Parents need to develop a habit of listening to their children carefully and not to judge them. Parents need to keep an eye on their child and have a friendly communication with their children so that the child would open up to them whenever required.
9. Awareness about ragging helpline numbers
There are various organizations and also the government has 24/7 available helplines where you can report any ragging incident, you experience or witness. There ain’t any awareness regarding these helplines because people don’t talk about ragging. We pretend as if such things do not exist in our society, but the fact is they still do, and they will continue to exist until we start addresses these issues and make efforts to eliminate it.
Anti-ragging helpline:- 1800-180-5522 ; Helpline@Antiragging.In
There is also a website by the name Aman movement where you can register online affidavit.
10. Depict the reality
Depiction of reality isn’t something we do in our society, by the depiction of reality I mean spreading awareness about the reality. When you are a victim of ragging or any criminal offenses, you must take up the responsibility to talk about it. By listening to your words the culprits and also the future culprits might realize that their idea of fun and letting out anger is so dangerous that it could damage people’s lives. People don’t realize the extremeness of their crime until the damage is already done. If people will already know where this race of power and strength will lead them into they can stop themselves at the very beginning. People should be aware and make others aware of such sinful practices.
11. Make sure you get cases registered
Elimination of crime we all desire but for our dream to become reality it is essential to get cases register. Many people do not wish to get involved themselves with police stations or courts, since it might affect their dignity to the society. Due to the fear of society and the fear of the narrow-minded people we do not register cases. To seek justice, to make sure those lawbreakers do not get out of this so easily and to make sure no one else goes through something like ragging you must file a complaint. So that our judiciary system can punish those offenders with something they deserve. Statistics show that 90% of criminal offenses in India go unreported. When we do not register a case we make the society we live in turns darker than ever.
12. Stricter laws by the government
Our government seems to go a little gentle on the monsters of our society, coming out on bail is more easier than making an apartment in India. So what do we do? curse our government, NO. We must try signing petitions, organize peaceful processions, and use social media wisely to grab the attention of our government. Brutal punishments for such inhuman activities will inject fear in the mind of those who think about performing such sins. According to our current laws, punishment for ragging is imprisonment for a term of more than 2 years and liable to a fine of ten thousand rupees. Is this enough? for mentally and physically abusing students due to which they suffer most of their lives, sometimes even lose their lives.
13. Invite ragging survivors in the campus
College administration and college students must organize programs where they can call ragging survivors so they can guide us about how we can avoid such terrible crimes. They can enlighten us about the wrong set of mentality we carry with ourselves. You can even call various organizations who work day and night to make this society healthy. Such motivational speeches and conversations will not only help you to stop crime but also encourage social service in the mind of the youth.
14. Appoint multiple people on the campus to whom the students can talk to
Multiple people should be appointed at all levels of the administration who can keep an eye on the students, and give students choice i.e they can talk to whosoever they are comfortable. There should be many doors for the students at the same time, so they can go to any of them without delay. College should appoint various representatives in the college considering the batches, their gender, reservation students, students coming from vernacular mediums, etc. The duty of these representatives would update the college authorities about any form of ragging they observe or hear about. The college can also assign the non-teaching staff with these duties. This small steps will help us to make a big difference. The efforts we make today will help us build a better tomorrow.
15. Make people aware that ‘IT’S A CRIME NOT A RITUAL’
Many people think about ragging as a ritual, this is what both the victims and the culprits think of. According to them its something they need to suffer and later they have to perform on others. It is something everyone goes through, this is part of the college life. Such ideas promote the cycle of ranging. People need to understand that things like ragging is not a ritual, it’s not fun, its not part of college, IT IS CRIME. To destroy a plant we need to destroy its roots, such thoughts are the roots, the very base of crime. Anything that involves abuse whether physical, verbal, or mental is not normal, its darkness, it’s negative, its a criminal offense.
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