The late leader, Mr Periyar is credited with having launched a series of movements to get his message right -- he was an atheist, and this was not acceptable to a huge majority of people.  Yet, in his fight against superstitions, he was able to mobilize hundreds of thousands of people, through his thoughts and action -- he often lead from the front, and was very friendly with leaders across the entire political spectrum.  In fact, his friendship with the former Chief Minster and a giant of his lifetime -- Rajaji -- is well documented in literature that concerns social movements in Tamil Nadu.

Much earlier, Mahatma Gandhi was the one who mobilized millions through his method of non-violence, and he had a huge moral authority, mainly because he lived his talk.

Cut to the modern times.  The present Prime Minister has unfortunately not been able to carry his messages forward, due to his own party men and his rather hasty utterances -- like the one on the Land Acquisition Bill,  which is now seen -- quite rightly, as against the rights of farmers.  Very fertile lands can now be acquired without the consent of the owners and this is sheer nonsense. Mr Modi was able to get his message of clean India, across to a wide range of people, but was not able to sustain his momentum only because the intent was lost in the maze of his acting on behalf of huge Corporate Houses -- at least the Public Perception was such that, and it still is.

So, we are back to square one.  What should the parties such as AAP do?  Very simple.  They should collaborate with the tribe of investigative journalists, get their cooperation and mercilessly expose corruption in public places.  In particular, all politicians should be taken to task, and no one should be allowed to escape.  When such a movement gets played through the electronic and print media, it is quite possible to enter the collective consciousness of people, and the movement can be sustained, through dharnas, fasting, public interest litigation, and quite simply, protests by huge masses of people -- running into several hundreds of thousands of people.

The use of Student power should also not be underestimated.  When such a movement, with the active involvement of the people is on, it becomes very difficult for the ruling political class to stay away from it.

This has unfortunately not happened in many cases.  For instance, there has been loud shouting by almost every political party in the Opposition, in Tamil Nadu, against the heavily one-sided Himalayan Blunder of a Judgement by the Karnataka High Court in the disproportionate assets case against the present Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Ms. J Jayalalitha.  

It is public knowledge that a mass scale loot was then on by the same Jayalalitha and her cronies in Tamil Nadu, between 1991 and 1996., Every single citizen of Tamil Nadu knows that she had indeed swindled over fifty crores.  Now, the public is brainwashed into believing that this fifity crores is small change, when compared to the hundreds of crores or thousands of crores of other later scams such as the 2G scam or the Coal Scam!!

Such is the ridiculous argument!  Almost every single person has missed the wood for the trees!!!

The present value of all property in the name of Ms Jayalalitha and her cronies is now over five thousand crores, and this is a fact for all to see!!! What was the value of fifty crores twenty years ago?

People have not taken to the streets because the general public shows apathy.  Yet, a whole lot of educated people, who are apolitical, have expressed their angst against one of the worst Judgments in recent times, and it they who should have come to the streets.

We cannot ignore any past sin against any politician, just because he or she is now reformed.  It is just as fine to say that a criminal who has committed two murders, and is now in prison for five years.  His conduct is very good, and so his life sentence should be suspended. 

Similarly, we should all fight against the abuse against the degradation of the environment.  No "development" can really answer the needs of people --- vegetables, milk, rice, wheat and a whole lot of spices would have to be imported, if we continue with the present policies of heavy urbanization.  In fact, there is such a huge shortage of labor for agriculture in rural Tamil Nadu, and this has resulted in farming becoming such a waster of an occupation.  Tamil Nadu has the dubious distinction of the highest percentage of people living in urban areas, thanks to rapid development of small towns, that have developed on the basis of a growing service sector, but one without a huge number of highly needed skills.  

For example, Carpenters and electricians and plumbers are very difficult to find.  It is very difficult to find trained cooks either.  All this, when the State of Tamil Nadu has one of the highest literacy rates in India.

Mass Movements against rampant industrialization and consequent destruction of the environment in total, is so essential.  For example, in Vellore District of Tamil Nadu, the entire town of Ranipet is polluted with a huge number of leather industries.  Each and every capitalist was able to manage for a very long time, without any significant investment in effluent treatment plants.  It is only after the intervention of the Supreme Court, has the situation become slightly better.

Similarly, we need mass movements against the rot in education.  Worse, the Union Government, under one of the worst Education Minsters, is now trying absolutely stupid.  The attempt is made to bring in an uniform syllabus and examination for teachers across all Central Government Universities.  This is the worst reform that is now sought to be introduced.  Each and every Central University needs to have a role of social transformation, given the cultural construct of the particular State and location it is in.  For example, in Tiruvarur, in South Tamil Nadu, it is essential that the focus should be on training through innovative courses, a whole lot of manpower needed for agro based industries, or for service industries such as the Business Process Outsourcing ( BPO), that is now firmly in place, even in small towns in that region.

If there are common courses with common syllabus, with teachers who can be transferred across locations, it will become a fertile breeding ground for corruption and the "localized approach" to cater to particular needs of particular regions will be totally lost. 

Mass movements are  the need of the hour. There are no limits to such movements.  There need to be hundreds of them at any point in time.  Let us all break our heads on how to get such movements going. 

The world we are living is so complex that we are unable to predict what will happen tomorrow. An unexpected event can happen at any time. Whatever planning you make in your life may collapse due to a single event that will make the whole life miserable. At the same time a surprising event can take place that will give you all success and wealth. We call them as fate or luck, depending on the situation. Sometimes another improbable event happens by which you meet an old friend, who turns your entire life through a different direction. You have not even dreamt about it, but it happened; and you call it a ‘coincidence’. You wondered; why it happened? Was it a supernatural power, an intuition, or the ‘decision of God’? Your search after coincidence begins here.

Coincidence …..

What is ? It is defined as a surprising concurrence of certain events which have some meaningful relations, but no apparent casual connection with each other. Coincidence occurs several times in your life. Whenever you think about something, the next moment that thing happens. Or whenever you think about somebody whom you have not met for several years, the next moment he appears before you. Completely strange and unbelievable incidents take place that make you stunned! And you call it as coincidence or chance or luck.  It is not coincidence happened by chance; it is synchronicity that makes these things happen.  It is the law of attraction of the universe that happens in an unconscious level of your awareness. Be aware consciously, and you can influence these random events and experience the improbable coincidence.  

Synchronicity…..

Synchronicity is the law of unity that makes such impossible coincidences possible. It is your awareness; but you are not conscious about it. It consists of a set of internal programs that change your life by organizing the random events to happen as per your choice. It makes the events to happen on the right time. You do not know the time but you have the desire. When you desire something, when you are tuned in to the same frequency of that thing, you will get it. When the vibrations of your desire match with vibrations of your destined object, it will appear before you. Your subconscious will find a way to bring it before you. Your timing is perfect and you are in the right place. You are neither too late nor too earlier. Everything is in perfect harmony. That is synchronicity; it is your awareness, your consciousness; it is your conscious awareness; it is not coincidence happened by chance, but it is coincidence created by your will.  

Carl Jung…..

It was Carl Jung, a famous Swiss psychiatrist, who used the term synchronicity in his essay in the year 1952. He defined it as an “acasual connecting principle”. He believed that events can be connected by either casuality or by meaning. Meaningful relationship exists between events though the casual connection between them cannot be explained. Jung believed that the phenomenon of synchronicity was related to psychic conditions and is shared by the whole mankind. He used the term “collective unconsciousness” to refer the universal interconnection of the unconscious minds that is the basis of operation of the principle of synchronicity.

Universal Interconnection…..

You are not alone. Everything in the universe is interconnected by some unknown forces. Every mind is connected with the universal mind. One small change somewhere, even if it is so insignificant, will have its consequences in every being, and may completely change your life. Your subconscious mind attracts all other minds that are synchronized in similar vibrations. Thoughts are energy. They never die. You know your past. You know your present. You alone can make your future happen. You have the access to the link between the past, present and future. You have the access to the infinite library of this universe. Synchronicity happens from the deepest level of your awareness. You can hear the voice of the universe and become ready to accept the event.

Your World is Incomplete…..

Your perception about this world is incomplete. You cannot see or experience beyond the limitations of your senses and mind. What you observe is only a part of the real world. Millions of beings exist in different planes of existence and live in their own world, unknown to you. You live in a world created by your own mind. Your world exists because of your thoughts.  When you withdraw your attention, your world vanishes. Time and space exist in your mind. Your mind knows all minds in the universe and it knows what to do and when.  When you reach the right place at right time, you experience the amazing power of synchronicity. It is not intuition, it is not luck; it is not coincidence; it is because you are in perfect tune with the universe. Your desires become manifested as surprising events. You have the power to create what you want, because you are a part of the universe.

Create Your Own Coincidence…..

Focus on what you want; and believe firmly that it will happen. Repeat yourself that everything is going fine and you will get what you want. Believe and let it go. Believe positively. You need to believe in yourself. You need to believe in this extraordinary power of synchronicity. Your belief is the deciding factor. If you do not believe, this power will not work for you; you cannot see luck smiling in front of you.

Do not have doubt, anxiety or any negative thought. Concentrate on what you want; but, not on what you don’t want. The law of synchronicity will not work with negativity. There is nothing like probability. You can alter your future based on your present desire. You can set the events of the universe in motion as per your will. Your emotions are powerful and you are going to write down your future.

Be alert. Be persistent. The stronger you believe, the sooner you will get the result. Be aware every moment. Your vibrations will become in tune with your desire. Sooner you will hear the gentle footsteps of events. Watch every little thing carefully. Never ignore the events. Every event is a signal from the universe that gives you a message. Ask questions to yourself to explore the meaning of the message. Your subconscious will reveal the answers. The answers may come in the form of some intuitions, some revelations, some unusual experience or in some other forms. You will meet your coincidence face to face. It will be a specific circumstance, an encounter with a person, a chance meeting or anything what you exactly want and guide you to your goal.

Connection is There…..

You may sometimes feel that you have never thought about a particular chance event that happened. It doesn’t mean that there is no connection just because you cannot identify it. There should be an invisible connection, but you are not aware of it. From some point in time, a fraction of your consciousness continues its infinite journey through the passages of the cosmos to fulfill its mission. In an unusual place, it meets the chance events vibrating in the same frequency, ready for an unbelievable meeting. Thus it happens. The connection is there. You cannot deny it because you are not aware of it.

Conclusion

Everything that happens in your life has some special meaning. They transmit you some special messages from the universe. You can listen to what universe talks to you.  If you are in a higher level of conscious awareness, you will become closer to the universe and will manifest more synchronicities. You can create and control them with your conscious awareness. You are the creator of your future…. You are the creator of your life….. You are the creator of your reality!!

Leadership is the art of getting others to want to do something you are convinced should be done. The origin of the word "Lead" is a word meaning "to go". Leadership requires interaction with others being one with 'them and perhaps coming down to their level. The leader is one who is one with others to the extent necessary to give them a feeling of a quality and yet different from them in terms of his own work and achievement for which they admire him.

The need for power encourages the concept of affiliation which presents a problem. It can lead to slowing the system because the time spent in getting to know others and becoming affiliated can mean time from the main activities of the organization. It is also presumed that the need for affiliation may lead to favour and corruption. But in a world which is becoming increasingly impersonal, in which there is a growing dependence on scientific systems the individual can feel lost. Therefore, the need for affiliation, friendship increases. The leader does thing not only for himself, or to gain popularity, but because of his feelings toward humanity. An executive who does his work better than anybody else can and has been recognized in his organization as being able to undertake diverse activity and do them well. However, since the company needs him in the position he holds because no one else can do it therefore, at times a hardworking, sincere, enthusiastic executive remains in that position and is never promoted, even when he approaches the top management for a more responsible position. Executive is told he is indispensable and for the sake of the company, he must be retained in the position in which he is. There is no doubt he would do equal justice to the senior position which he has sought. Possibly, he would improve systems there also. No one is indispensable. The chance for leadership should not be destroyed purely because the executives has been honest and good in the work he is doing now. Perhaps, if he had not been so devoted to this present job, the company would have had to shift him from there and given him the other position. It is also evident that one who likes to work and do it well is running the risk of not becoming obsolete. Inevitably all organizations require leaders to utilize the abilities of their employees to achieve the goals of the organization.

The effective leadership is the lifeblood of an organization survival. Leadership is a complex relationship existing between the leader, the organization, social values, economic and political conditions. A leader influences others by his qualities, viz. confidence; communicative ability, awareness of his impact on others as well as perceptions about the situation and his subordinates. Leadership is the quality of an individual's behaviour whereby he is able to guide the people or their activities towards certain goals. Managers who possess the quality of guiding and directing the subordinates to perform their jobs efficiently can be called business leaders. A leader interprets the objectives of the group and guides it towards the achievement of these objectives.

"A leader is one who directs other people thus, managers at all levels have to perform the function of leader because they manage subordinates whose energies are to be canalized in a definite direction". As leaders, managers have not only to show the way, but also lead the group towards a predetermined goal. James J. Cribban has defined leadership as a "Process of influencing a group in la particular situation at a given point of time and in a specific set of circumstances that stimulate to strive willingly to attain the common- objectives and satisfaction with the types of leadership provided". Dimensions of leadership behaviour, identified as 'consideration' and 'initiating structure'. Leaders who high on the 'consideration' dimension reflected that they had developed a work atmosphere of mutual trust, respect for subordinate's ideas and consideration of subordinate's feelings. Such leaders encouraged good superior-subordinate rapport and two way communication. A low 'consideration' score indicates that leaders are more impersonal in their dealings with sub- ordinates. A high 'initiating structure' score indicates that leaders structure their roles and those of sub- ordinates toward the attainment of goals. They are actively involved in planning work activities communicating pertinent information and scheduling work.

Studies revealed that high structure and low consideration were related to more absenteeism, accidents, grievances and turnover. Leadership in business is never a bossism because the leader is not synonym of the boss. A boss depends upon his authority and as such always drives and orders, but a leader relies upon his confidence and goodwill and always believes in coaching and advising his subordinates. The foregoing analysis reveals that successful leadership calls for ‘the ability to comprehend that human being have different motivating forces in different situations, the ability to inspire, and ability act in a manner that will develop a climate for responding to and arousing motivations, ‘The existence of able leaders is keenly felt in social life. Koontz and O’Donnell rightly observed that people tend to follow these whom they see as means of satisfying their own personal goals. The more managers understand what motivates their subordinates and how these motivations operate, the more effective leaders they are likely to be. The old concept about leadership is that a leader uses his power to secure the support of his subordinates. But leadership over an extended period of time requires not merely the power but also an understanding of the feelings and the problems of subordinates. Power alone is inadequate means of motivating most of the employees.

The major functions of present concept of leadership is guiding and motivating the behaviour and understanding of the subordinates. Leader needs to establish relationship of warmth and understanding. If the informal and formal leaders are the same, leader earns his place and helps the organization and also the members of the team. Leader should encourage voluntary cooperation and should see how cooperation goes into the total leadership process.

Youth is the blossoming age of life. It is the age of dreams and achievements. From the innocence and dependence of childhood a transformation takes place towards the unrestricted world of adulthood. Youth is the name given to this transition period.

There are 1.8 billion young people in the world, the highest ever, in the age group of 10 to 24 years, and ninety percent of them live in less developed countries. As per the report of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), world’s largest youth population is in India; with 356 million young people between 10 to 24 years of age. China stands the second with 269 million young people.

Their Hopes and Dreams

The growing youth have a profound effect on the development of a nation. The future of a nation depends on how it handles the dreams and desires of its young people. If the youth are strong enough, have great leadership qualities, are capable of making right decisions,  and above all, they get proper  guidance, then I am sure  they can transform the future of the whole world.

The hopes and dreams of the 356 million Indian youth are limitless. They dream a world free of unemployment, poverty and inequality. They dream a world free of corruption, human exploitation, and discrimination on the basis of religion, language and gender. Freedom is their nature, and they dream a world full of opportunities and yearn to conquer them with confidence. We need to convert their dreams into reality.

Change in Social Structure

Youth today are passing through a crisis; they are going through a time of restlessness and adrift. Not only in India, but in the whole world, wherever there are human relations, social structure and political administration, everywhere the young generation is moving on their way through revolt and unrest.  But, why does it happen?

For the last few decades, there has been a tremendous change in the social structure. In addition, unemployment, population growth, political disruptions, corruption, commercialization, destruction of human values and a mad influence of western culture created complicated concepts of life in the minds of the younger generation. As a result of industrialization and in the attempt to get employment in the urban areas, the joint family system collapsed and paved way to nuclear family system. In the materialistic world, the cost of living increased, and in order to meet the financial burden, the situation demanded both the husband and wife to step out of the house for employment, leaving the young alone.

Nobody has time to take care of others.  People are confined to their own shelters and are least bothered to know who is staying next door. A dreadful silence and feeling of unfamiliarity prevailed even between the members of the family. Everyone has become selfish; only selfishness is seen everywhere; selfishness wearing the mask of love! No glimpse of love or sincerity. Here, in this haphazard life-style are left alone the most acclaimed youth of the nation, without guidance and without hope.

The Canto of Unrest Begins

Just imagine about that helpless state of the youth. In a critical stage of their growth, standing spellbound without knowing what to do and where to go, when they needed proper guidance and encouragement, there was no helping hand or at least a ray of light that would have guided them through the path of hope and saved their valuable life. There, in the darker aisles of life, at that cursing moment, begins the canto of unrest of the Indian youth.

When all the doors of hopes are slammed before them and there is nobody to guide in that difficult situation, they, a group of young people joined together and started thinking together; strange and uncontrollable thoughts.  The world shrank within their fingertips. Mobile phone, internet, chatting, drugs, alcohol, pornography,..…!! Their world expanded searching the different definitions of freedom and they got relieved from their loneliness and hurt feelings. Through the secured shores of privacy, they continued their journey; no questions and no consolations; a bewildered journey not able to distinguish between right and wrong.  

Life is a Competition

Coming back to the outer world of life, the youth have to face tough competitions in every field, starting from the academic admission to the competitive exams for getting a job. Due to overpopulation and tight competition, they fail in most cases, thus leading to frustration. They find it difficult to get the course they prefer or a good job.  They become disheartened with their shattered dreams.

Above all, the unbearable pressure from parents and their ridiculous torrent of abuse due to failure in exams, forcing to think about running away from home for ever. This is not imagination. It is true; in every home, the unemployed youth faces this situation. In addition, there are sacred advices from those persons who act as the philosophers of the materialistic society.

And, at last from the darkest corners of reality one great truth is revealed:  to be respectful in life one needs to be rich. Wealth is the yardstick for measuring the status in society.  It is an irrefutable truth.  Now begins another era, the dark age of the youth, adopting shortcuts to become rich as fast as possible. There is only one thought, to become rich. It is money that matters; means are not at all important.  

Dark Age of the Youth

Terrorists, the icons of cruelty, are waiting for these rare moments to trap the desperate youth in their nest. The terrorist masters attract these flexible youth, brain wash them and position them as the protectors of darkness. They shower them with money, but ruin their life.

Some others are hunted by the drug lobbies and become trapped in their mesmeric underworld without getting a chance even for dreaming about freedom.

There are some confused young people with shattered dreams who have witnessed corruption in every phase of life and become members of revolutionary groups to fight against the corrupted society and adopt the extremist way of destroying public properties and eradicating people.

The number of young people with uncertain future who lose their life without any sense of direction is innumerable.Who is responsible for such a disastrous situation? We, each one of us, are responsible for this catastrophe. We have to admit that. We cannot run away from it. It is the setback of a generation. This is the deformed face of the crisis of the Indian youth today.

Awaken the Youth – the Action Plan

The role of younger generation in making a developed nation is most important, because the youth are the power of the nation. They have the strength to identify and solve problems. Their involvement in social movements will produce magnificent results. Instead of becoming a terrorist, they can play a key role in eradication of terrorism.  Under the best guidance and right leadership, they can create wonders.

Education: The beginning should be from their education. Education should prepare the youth for life and should help them identify their skills and aptitudes and provide them with a sense of direction. Skill based education with more connection to the real life, rather than memorizing the information from the books will make them real citizens. Instead of acting like a profitable industry, educational institutions should change their attitude and offer job oriented education, proper guidance and guaranteed job placement.

Answer their questions: Our younger generation is in a state of confusion. They have so many questions to ask. We have to give them opportunities and provide forums to ask questions. Their questions should be answered to satisfaction. The seeds of doubts enrooted deep within their hearts should be completely extracted and removed. Parents, teachers and political & cultural organizations should take initiative to undertake this important task.

Set Goals:  At the time of British rule, there was a common social motive. Independence was an inspiring goal that created some finest qualities of Indian youth with dedication and courage, and they were associated with great leadership. There should be a target, a dream, rather than becoming adrift. Youth should learn to dream great dreams that will raise them to greater heights. They should set goals that will make them optimistic and lead them to a successful life.

Think Independently: Irrespective of whether he is a theist or rationalist, when analysing realities, he should be capable of thinking independently beyond the borderlines of religious beliefs. When he is courageous to say the truth, what he thinks is right, aloud in front of anybody, the youth attains perfection.

Conclusion  

It is the youth who are going to be the creators of tomorrow and they have the power to transform the future of the world. They have to realize their power and responsibilities, and stand up and fight with full confidence. Remember, if they marshal under the right leadership and get right guidance, the youth can even transform the whole universe. So, it is time for us to provide them a sense of purpose in life; and we are not too late.