Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, Feb 21: The social networking sites are no longer just virtual platforms where you meet and interact with friends. Those, of late, have become much more than walls where you post your selfies and photographs for your friends to watch and admire, or write about your college life or a holiday well-spent with friends and relatives. Not such a new piece of information, you may say. That the social networking sites have the ability to spark mass protest, which can lead to a ‘revolution’, is a known fact. But what is unknown is that next-door boys and girls today are using it in a way that is not just furthering their immediate goals but also is also helping society progress.
Recently a group of enthusiastic youths of Tamil Nadu came forward to clean a part of a heritage site in the Nilgiris, India’s first biosphere and one of the 14 ‘hotspots’ of the world because of its unique bio-diversity. After forming a group of like-minded people on a social networking site, they toiled hard to transform a not-so-frequented filthy nook in a heritage site into an attractive place.
Seeing the youth’s interest in the social media, not just the marketing companies but also the political parties are using it in a better way. BJD, the ruling party of the state, has recently launched a mobile application to connect to the youth through technology. Other parties are either doing the same or are likely to follow suit.
Many in the city that this correspondent spoke to pointed out that with the passage of time, these sites had turned out to be a perfect place for persons who needed some kind of help – for example, an introvert, who wanted to be part of a group upholding a specific idea or ideology, can now easily become so without stepping out of his home; a book lover, who otherwise could never have interacted with an author freely may do so; or a student preparing for some competitive examination may get as much help as s/he wants.
“I see a variety of post on Facebook these days. The usage of social networking sites has witnessed a tremendous transformation in the last few years. Earlier people used to exploit it just for getting in touch with their friends, uploading pictures, writing about their college etc. But now, many people come here to utilise it in better ways. I have seen some people posting and sharing information of some missing persons or pets. It really pleases me when I later read that due to efforts of some netizens the missing persons/pets are found. There are many such incidents,” says Tushar Kanti, a PG scholar at Utkal university.
For the 26-year-old Smita Dash, a city-based corporate communication professional who also is a avid reader the social networking sites are a place where she can get ‘personal’ with authors. “I was astonished to see the presence of many renowned authors on these sites. I started following them here and often gave them my feedback through these sites.”
Moreover, Smita and her friends on the site now can nominate other friends to write about 10 books they liked most. “This trend was a big success on the cyberspace which gave other readers an idea about the taste of fellow readers and also gave them an opportunity to meet like-minded people,” she said.
24-year-old Sandeep Banerjee, who is an engineering student at KIIT and an introvert by nature has also a story to tell. “I hesitate to speak in public, but I like talks and discussions. These sites have given me an ideal platform to speak in public, that too in my own way. I often express my views on diverse topics which I seldom did publicly among friends. People earlier had different thoughts about me but now they have started to respect me. Now we often engage in online conversations.”
Kounteya Mishra is an IAS aspirant. Neighbours thought he seldom used social networking sites. But he has a different story to tell. “Social networking sites can be used in different ways. It really helps in my preparation. I have started following some reputed newspapers and magazines. The best part of following them is you can select the news you want to read. There are different government organizations too which have their presence on FB. I regularly get authentic information through them. Moreover, the magazines also tell us when their latest editions are hitting the stands. This really saves our time and makes our preparation
more effective.”
