Peaceful life has become a rarity
In the present era of globalization where all means of material comfort are easily available, there is one device that is not only indicative of progress in science but also accomplishes multiple tasks. This is proving to be a problem too. The name of this gadget is mobile or cell phone. Without this device, daily routine of many people fails to start. People keep the mobile close to their bosom all day and it has become almost inseparable from daily life. 15-20 years back, this gadget was not easily available. Our life and life of those whom we interact with today using this phone, used to be much more peaceful.
The gift of science
During the past few decades, applied science has developed at a very fast pace and with the dawn of 21st century, electronics has become an indivisible part of our life, to the extent that we cannot imagine living without it. Several devices have added value and utility to human life. Not everyone can buy them, but all those who can afford definitely want to procure them. As a result, our cultural heritage, our lifestyle and the mutual love have been adversely affected in a big way. Our houses are filled with these modern devices. One might not have electricity at home all the time, but as a symbol of status people have bought things like refrigerator, microwave oven, cooking range, mixer-juicer etc.
Smart home appliances
Our homes are gradually becoming smart houses owing to the development of modern appliances. It has become possible to control the air conditioning system, geyser or washing machine in your house while being seated in your car. All the home appliances we see today are exquisite even though they were bought by a middle-class family in easy instalments. Somehow people are arranging for the required money through savings or loans and procuring these. Television provides entertainment throughout the day with more than 300 channels. One might say that present-day life is more enchanting and comfortable as compared to previous generations. But where does the happiness lie? You are bogged down by loans and only a small part of the income reaches home because you have to repay the instalments. Mind is not at peace; and we have developed a crassly materialistic attitude towards life. According to Bhagwad Gita, how will such a restless person attain peace? In addition to all this, will this invention of mobile phone let us live in peace?
Today’s man is way lost and restless
There are several types of cell phones available today. There is camera in some while others can store thousands of songs. There are thousands of varieties of ring tones and caller tones that disrupt the peace of the world. You would find a mobile in every one’s pocket. If someone does not possess one, he is looked down upon as an anachronism. Just as people used to speak loudly over the trunk call, today’s man speaks loudly so as to show off his mobile. Well, nobody can disagree about its utility value. Distances have been bridged between people, communication has become a lot easier, but what is the price we have to pay for it? Has anyone thought about it? The availability of more and more sophisticated electronic gadgets at this frenzied pace has made man more confused and restless than ever before.
Increased number of phone users
In addition to stating the pros and cons of cell phone, it is necessary to present some statistics too. The readers might well be aware that India is the largest consumer of cell phones in the world. Due to economic recession, innumerable foreign companies like Nokia, Sony-Ericsson, Motorola, Apple etc have jumped into the Indian market. Their products are getting sold in India and hence their companies are also operational here. They are able to offer mobiles at low prices because the demand is in millions. Every person wants to own a cell phone. According to statistical data if the consumer base keeps increasing at the current rate, by 2010 more than 450 million Indians will have mobile phones.
The journey of the cell phone
Let us run through the life history of this unique toy called cell phone. In 1926, radio telephony was used in Europe for passengers traveling in first-class. By 1940, this began to be used as a two-way radio in police cruiser, ambulance and mobile hospitals etc. Later, they became famous as bag phones and it became easy to take them from one place to another. They were used in Second World War in the form of 2-way radio and walkie-talkie. For the first time in 1945, there began discussions on 0 G generation of mobile phones. In 1956, Ericsson manufactured a system that weighed 40 kg and did not need to be controlled by hand but was automatic. By 1970, several networks got ready in America and then began the technique of talking while on the move. In 1983, it was possible to carry a cellular phone though it was still heavy. Somewhere during the 90s, between 1992 and 1993, the present modern mobile came into existence and began to get improvised gradually. Once the message sending system developed, people began to use it and the business expanded to millions and then to billions. By the turn of the new century, mobile had taken over the roles right from music system to palmtop computer. Being able to send fax while on the move and transferring files from one place to another became easy with the help of communicator. Slowly, mobile phone has transformed into mobile-office that has video telephony, conferencing etc. Black Berry has almost made cellular phone into a mobile-internet. This has led to a revolution that has transformed the mode of communication in the world.
What will be its future?
What will happen next? Let us delve a little into that aspect. 15 million consumers are getting added per month in the telecom sector. They are being offered a variety of attractive packages like free talk-time, certain number of free SMSs etc. As on January 2009, the number of mobile phone users in the country had touched 366.7 million. By the end of 2010, it is predicted that every third Indian will have a mobile phone. There are about 3 lakh mobile towers established in the country. As per statistics taken in June 2008, it was observed that 10000 mobiles were sold per hour in our country. Even the economic recession has not affected the sales. The sales maintained this momentum till December 2008. By the end of 2012, half the population of India is likely to own a cell phone.
Innumerable features
The latest mobiles that are entering the market have several unique features and facilities. A single phone is supporting four SIM cards. Ones that support two SIM cards have become common. These smart phones are able to control all the appliances at home. A big team of engineers in Microsoft and Apple Macintosh, of whom a significant percentage are Indians, are doing research in this area. Features like ‘child locator’ (with which you can know where your child is) and resource tracking service are being offered with which you can track a situation almost on a minute-by-minute basis. This in a nutshell is the journey of the mobile from its inception and its future projection. Don’t you feel that this is proving to be a toy that is intruding disturbingly in your life?
Increasing connectivity problems
This has led to increased connectivity problems too. These include call dropping (wherein call gets cut in the middle of a conversation), incorrect billing, lack of complaint-handling etc. The biggest problem is losing network because lakhs of users are connecting to a particular service. These problems arise because there are more consumers than what the network can handle. Survey reveals that the users are dissatisfied and are missing their old landline phones.
The mischievous toy that is snatching away peace
What is to be pondered upon is how the present-day common man should emerge from these problems? In the blind race of modernization, let it not be such that the peace in our lives is snatched away. We might be involved in spiritual practices like Jap and Dhyana with the mobile beside us. No one can expect when some emergency call might come. More often than not we would have seen the rosary in one hand and the other hand holding the mobile and the person is busy talking to someone. There are times when an interesting lecture or discourse is in progress and mobile rings. The situation becomes both disturbing and hilarious when the owner of the phone is not conversant in turning it off. In spite of instructions given beforehand, such situations tend to occur frequently thus creating disruption and disturbance. But this is state of present society which cannot live without this toy called mobile phone.
Know the ill-effects and get out of the vicious circle
Many researches have been conducted on the ill-effects of cell phone. It has been found to adversely affect brain functioning; for instance it may cause cancer (especially in the temporal lobe), depression, anxiety, increased heart rate, high blood pressure etc. The profit-mongering companies have prevented the results of these researches from reaching the common man. Everyone is aware of accidents which occur while the driver is talking over the phone. Scientists have also written about the negative effects on those people who are close to the towers that transmit vibrations. This device has also been used by terrorists to blast bombs. Now, we have to analyse the utility of mobile phone in our life in the light of all the side-effects that it has. Those who seek peaceful and healthy life should definitely come out of its clutches. One has to think about controlled usage of the cell phone. It has definitely reduced the distance between places but has increased the distance between the hearts. We have to bridge this gap. We have to create awareness about the ill-effects of mobile amongst those who speak over the phone for hours together. We have to explain the youth on how it is affecting their studies. Only then can the present-day Abhimanyu manage to safely negotiate this Chakravyuh (labyrinth).
Akhand Jyoti Magazine 2009 May-June
