Government of Tamilnadu

Department of Employment and Training

Course : TNPSC Group I Mains Material

Subject : Social Issues in India and Tamil Nadu
Topic : Impact of violence on Society

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 IMPACT OF VIOLENCE ON SOCIETY

Introduction:
According to World Health Organization, VIOLENCE is defined “The intentional use of
physical force or power, threatened or actual, against oneself, another person, or a
group or community, that either results in or has a high likelihood of resulting in
injury, death, psychological harm, maldevelopment or deprivation.”

Classification of Violence
Violence may be categorized in many ways: –
• Types of violent acts: Assault, verbal abuse, sexual abuse, etc.
• Precipitating factors: war, robbery, mental illness
• Contributing factors: drugs and alcohol, poverty, culture, emotion, psychosis,
etc.
• Impact of violence: death or disability, economic, mental illness, etc.
• Those affected by violence: individuals, children, community, ethnic or minority
group, etc.

Impacts on Society:
Violence can be imputed to many factors. Disagreement over an issue with others may
whip a person into resentment developing a sense of grudge in him. Religious
obsessions and racism chip in to suppress humanity. People preoccupied with wicked
thoughts resort to terrorist deeds. As money makes a man anything, avarice makes a
human being resort to any criminal activity.

Unemployed, dejected over life, tread on the path of self-employment through

abductions and murders. Greed, revenge, avenge, retaliation, racism, disparities,
inharmony, unemployment contribute to this terrible violence.

People cutting across religions, castes and nationalities indulge in violence. World wars
almost shook the world leaving a burial ground before it.

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Babri masjid demolition in 1992 gave rise to Hindu-Muslim conflicts which is grossly
dismal. In 2002, Gujarat riots encompassing burning of Godhra train led to communal
riots. Maoist attacks in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and West Bengal have been adverse in
the recent past. Year 2008 witnessed the indiscriminate killing of people by terrorists.
Top-brass commandos and policemen were slain in the odious attacks.

26/11 attacks woke up the nation to set up NIA National Investigation Agency and NIA
bill was moved in the parliament in 2008. And even today, Thailand clashes persist
victimizing innocent people.

Violence seems to be eternal which would spell doom to the citizens. Violence however,
has its pros. Its only through violence that India has achieved its independence after
having struggled for several decades. It resulted in loss of many freedom fighters and
economic people.

Had violence been extant in Nepal, Democracy would not have been attained. Peoples'
protests, demonstrations and insurgent activities made their King to bow down to them
abolishing Monarchy and pave way for Democratic regime. Its by the odious violence
that USA put an end to Saddam Hussain.

Violence, on its flipside, has its adverse effects too. The innocent people are becoming
victims for the no-way-related crimes. Violence that results in loss of myriad people's
lives sheerly violates the humanitarian aspects. It simply leaves behind a trail of
destruction and adversity. Loss of property leaves the public in lurch. It gets people
into a bad fix.

Ubiquitous violence sparks a bloodbath killing away umpteen people. Bloodshed is

what one can typically be down in the mouth about. It carries everything else except
woes, yell, cries and doleful moments of the bereaved.

Though the governments keep changing, people are not molding themselves to take the
gauntlet. They are blowing their gaskets. Tempers which usually run high during riots
or clashes have to be confronted sensibly by the government as well as the people.

Weighing the pros and cons of wild activities could be conducive in curbing the
misdeeds. Stringent steps are needed to be initiated by every human being to bring the
circumstances under control.

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The Nation must ensure effective implementation of laws apropos of violence. Sense of
humanity has to be instilled in every citizen's mind. The adage "United we fall, divided
we fall" aptly is in sync with the above measures to eradicate violence from the society.

Unemployed, dejected over life, tread on the path of self-employment through

abductions and murders. Greed, revenge, avenge, retaliation, racism, disparities,
inharmony, unemployment contribute to this terrible violence.

Measures to control violence:

To understand the complexity of violence and to reduce its occurrence, it is critical to
take a health promotion approach to this problem.
1. A thorough understanding of violence requires information on its epidemiology, the
social values underlying human relationships and effective strategies used to
prevent violence and reduce its effects.
2. Healthy public policy to reduce violence will require policy reform in all disciplines
and all sectors. Such policies must be enacted at the national, provincial and local
community levels.
3. The empowerment of community members to set priorities, make decisions, and
plan and implement strategies to address violence. Community action must ensure
the full participation of community members regardless of their socio-economic
status, gender, race, culture, age or sexual orientation.
4. Education and training programs for public health professionals, health promoters
and community developers include a thorough understanding of violence and
effective community-building strategies that address violence.
5. Primary and secondary education of children address such issues as gender roles,
valuing of individual rights and responsibilities, skills for non-violent resolution of
conflict and for the building of healthy relationships with others. Adults who work
with children should also be better prepared to provide guidance in non-violent
interaction.
6. Data-gathering methods be developed to more accurately document the extent of
violence in our society.

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7. Research be done to more accurately describe the human and financial costs of
violence to society and the potential cost savings to the health care sector in
preventing violence.
8. Indicators to measure the impact of intervention and prevention programs and
support for qualitative, quantitative and evaluative research on community
approaches to decrease violence be developed.

Questions:

1. What is violence? What are the factors responsible for violence in India?
2. Explain the measures to control violence in India.

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