Good Speech “Advantages and Disadvantages of automobiles”

Though modern life is much facilitated by automobiles, it would have been better if they were not invented. Do you agree with this statement?

The invention of automobiles has been a landmark in the history of transportation. They are so much a part of modern life that despite their flaws they cannot be dispensed with.

Increased standard of living is reflected today with more number of cars. For personal transportation, having a car means having too many conveniences in the form of commuting, travelling to and fro the child’s school, visiting friends and relatives, roaming around, long drives and travelling out. Single families with cars are a trend these days where cars are playing an important role in maintaining the strength of the family tree. They have a big contribution towards urban sprawl. A good amount of people are able to choose a suburban upbringing for their children, away from congestion and pollution of inner parts of city. This, in turn, has lowered population density in the city centres. Cars have made US typically “a country on wheels”. As far as goods transportation is concerned, modern economics are still much dependent on trucks.

Contrastingly, increased automobiles simply means increased number of accidents and increased air and noise pollution. They are monsters in the eyes of environmental conservationiosts with their role in increasing air pollution. Automobile emissions increase air pollutants like carbon dioxide  and carbon monoxide and contribute to “greenhouse effect” or in other words “global warming”. Toxic hydrocarbons in the emissions are the major contributors to urban smog. We all know how detrimental these auto emissions are for our eyes, skin and cardiorespiratory health as they commonly cause eye irritation, dullness of skin and shortness of breath.

I am not wrong if I say that technological advancement can never be stagnant as materialistic needs of humans will have no end. That is why man just did not stop at the invention of wheel and went on to invent automobiles. Problems are there to work out and not to regret for the invention.

Good Speech-“Effect of Modern Technology on agriculture industry”

The entire face of agriculture industry has changed due to coming of modern technology. It has proven extremely beneficial to the farmers, but one cannot overlook its effects on the environment and society. Do you agree?

Modern technology has brought a lot of desirable changes in the agriculture industry. Changes in techniques are seen right from sowing seeds to harvesting crops. However, it is equally true that it has adversely affected the environment and human beings.

Due to modern equipments of farming, less manpower is needed and land is cultivated in a better manner. It has helped in increasing the yield of crops and generating more profit for farmers. Due to genetic engineering, it is possible to get different fruits and vegetables throughout the year. One can also get seedless fruits and fruits in different shapes and colors. For example, now watermelon is also available in square shape with yellow color from inside. Different irrigation systems have developed like drip irrigation, sprinkler irrigation etc., due to which farmers do not have to depend entirely on the rains for the production of crops. Transportation facility has made it possible to send the food stuff to any part of the world.

However, extensive use of chemical fertilizers has caused an increase in land and water pollution. When chemical fertilizers seep in the land, they are absorbed by the crops and ultimately are consumed by us with food intake, which affects our health. When the same chemical fertilizers get into water, aquatic life is affected. Due to practice of inorganic farming, real taste and nutrition of the fruits is getting lost.

One definitely cannot stop the use of modern technology in farming as it has proven to be quite beneficial. However, one can surely try and reduce its harmful effects on the society by taking certain measures. I suggest that proper guidance should be given to farmers on the usage of chemical fertilizers. They should make more use of natural fertilizers to stop further harm to the environment. Organic farming should be practiced more to benefit the society as well as the environment.

Good Speech-“Information Technology creating polarized society”

There has been a remarkable progress in the information technology field in the last few decades. Still there are many who are not familiar with it and are unaware of its benefits. It creates two extreme poles in the society and leads to social problems. To what extent do you agree with this?

Now, information technology has become the backbone of many fields such as trade, commerce, and education, healthcare and so on. It has become a way of life in the elite sections of the society where people have become habituated to use it in every aspect of living. However, there are people who are still untouched by the concept of IT.

The advanced countries are enjoying maximum benefits of IT. Computerization of almost every field in such countries has replaced the manual working style. IT products like mobiles, MP3, laptops have revolutionized the life of people and have become needs, not luxury. Even in the developing countries, the urban people have access to technology and have improved their quality of life.

However, in the backward and poor countries, we will find that there is a small section of the society making use of IT. Development and import of IT in such countries is very less due to lack of funds. Low level of education and poverty in such countries make people ignorant of IT and its benefits. Also, the rural areas in developing countries have yet to develop and catch up the booming technology.

Certainly, the above-discussed technology gap leads to formation of a polarized society. When people least exposed to technology moves to a place which is highly equipped with IT, they are often unable to deal with the work smartly. They face exploitations and rejections and sometimes fall into the abyss of despair and frustration.

I feel that there is a need to achieve a balance among all sections of society. It is possible only with efforts at the national and international level. Financial and technological help from developed countries and balancing act of organizations like UNO can make underdeveloped and developing countries also expand their IT resources.

Good Speech “Should government spend money on weapons?”

Spending more money on weapons means government is neglecting the quality of life and development within the country. Do you agree with this statement?

Spending money on weapons is important for security and defence, but it definitely demands an explanation if a nation spends excess on its armoury.

Third world nation needs to priortise their development and economic growth while budgeting. Overspending on weapons  would not allow them to properly fund healthcare, education, industries, technology and so on where their requirements are higher. Quality life cannot be put at stake just in the name of defence. Merely wasting money behind buying of arms, like Pakistan does, may lead to high dissatisfaction. But then, there are countries having serious conflicts with each other, like India-Pakistan, Iran-Iraq, Israel-Iran, where wars could break out anytime. There are countries where a high crime rate calls for spending on weapons for internal security. Furthermore, terrorist attacks have become a pain in the neck of many countries.

Developed countries are able to direct more funds for the research and production of new weapons to raise their stocks of weapons or even sell them. Even their stockpiling huge amounts of new weapons seems unjustified as their intentions are often just to remain in power more than anything else. The arms race  started by developed countries also influences the developing countries to follow them and thereby wasting a lot of funds. Alternatively, this huge sum of money can be spent on improving quality of life worldwide and advancing technology further for the betterment, for example behind immunization, space exploration.

No country wants its strength to be wasted in wars, and organizations like UNO are there to mediate warring countries. This has caused a reduction in the chances of wars. Moreover, now when we are heading towards a robust globalization, countries would be needing more support and cooperation from one another and this can happen only in a state of peace and harmony. It is better if countries unanimously decide upon minimizing weapon usage and spending on it as there are other areas to worry about.

Good Speech “Should primary education compulsory and free?”

Looking at the increasing value of education, government should make primary education free and compulsory. Do you support this idea for your country?

Mass education is very much required in countries with very high population such as India, my own country and china. The widespread illiteracy in such countries is definitely a big hindrance in their progress. Many governments are supporting education at the primary level by making it free and compulsory. They have realized that progress cannot be made with illiterate and backward people. It is time for us to take this step now.

In my country, India, where more than 60% of the population lives in the rural areas, it is a big challenge for the government to create awareness about education and spread literacy. Government needs to take effective steps to make rural people realize the importance of education. Even in the urban setting, a high proportion is living below the poverty line. High cost of education stops them to send their children to schools and good education of their children just becomes a dream for them. The caste system in India is also responsible for the non-uniformity in terms of education. Level of education in the lower and backward castes needs to be risen. As the government realized the need, it made primary education free, but not compulsory, so it has not been proving effective. Both free and compulsory primary education can achieve the desired result.

Making primary education compulsory would also reinforce children’s right for education. It would have a positive effect in controlling child labor too, which often makes parents take a back seat on their child’s education.

Free and compulsory primary education would not only be a help to those who cannot afford the cost of education but would also change the mentality of people neglecting education as an essential part of life. On the whole, this approach combined with some other programmes like “poverty eradication” would call for nicer developments.

Good Speech “Has education become an ongoing process?”

In the past, education was pursued either as a formality or just to meet the criteria for job, and now, it has become an ongoing process. Do you agree or disagree with this statement?

In today’s era, man can stand nowhere without education. I certainly agree that now education has become a lifelong process.

In the past, the pace of life was slow. People were contended with their lives. Farming was the main occupation in those times, which needed no formal education. As technology came in and industries developed, people started gaining qualifications for different types of jobs. Even with this competition was less as the population was less. People believed in lifelong jobs and used to remain at one job till they got retired. Gradually, the scenario changed, and with this, the concept of education too.

At present, the importance of education has increased and even the bachelor’s degrees do not hold much value. If a person wants a better job, he has to go for further education and extra qualifications. Today, people aim for a luxurious life and hence go for specialized skills, seeking bright future prospects. Education does not leave them even if they wish. In this age of globalization, they need to learn different languages. They also have to be aware of new technology and its use. In a way, education has gone beyond degrees. Different companies hold training programmes and workshops for skill improvement and upgrading. Employees attend them either willingly or under compulsion to remain competent. Sometimes the field itself demands an individual’s effort to expand his knowledge. Let us take IT field for instance. Fast developments in hardware, software and programming keep the IT professionals on their toes. It is obvious that those who keep on upgrading themselves or gain education as per the requirements of work can secure their jobs. Multi-skilled people are preferred as companies want a single employee to handle a variety of jobs.

I believe that as career consciousness has increased, people have easily accepted the need of taking education seriously and making it a lifelong process.

Good Speech “Importance of National Costume”

 National costume or traditional wears of a particular country are an important part of the culture of that country, but with globalization of cultures and other exchanges taking place, now they seem to be losing importance. To what extent do you agree with this statement?

The national costume or traditional wears of a country have their own uniqueness. They reflect a lot about the country, like its culture, traditions, climatic condition etc. just like other national identities, it is the duty of the citizens of a nation to preserve the value of their national costume and traditional wears.

As the pace of life is increasing, people are avoiding to wear traditional dresses in their own routine. They have become more practical, hence look at the comfort of the dress rather than emotions. They mostly go for casual dresses or formal wears while at work because many times wearing traditional dresses is cumbersome and time consuming. Taking India’s national costume for instance which is “shervani” for men and “sari” for women, it is really difficult to carry oneself comfortably in it for long hours. Moreover, as globalization has taken place, a variety of clothes are available, so it also goes on personal choice of what to wear.

I still do not believe that national costume or traditional dresses have lost their importance. In my country, people still wear traditional dresses on social and religious occasions. They still feel proud when they wear traditional dresses. Even national leaders wear national costume when visit other countries as they represent their nation. In international events like Olympics, Miss Universe etc. , each participant represents a particular country by wearing the national costume. This all signifies the value of national costume and traditional dresses and their place in people’s heart.

Although the use and preference of national costume and traditional dresses has reduced over the years and they have gone out of our routine, they still are a source of inspiration to modern fashion and trends and have maintained their importance.

Good Speech “Positive side and negative side of becoming a leader”

To play a leader’s role is a difficult task, so one should tend to follow a leader than being a leader himself. Do you agree or disagree with this statement?

I disagree with the given statement. Everyone attempts to be a leader somewhere, such as at home, at workplace, in social circle or in public. Leadership is everyone’s dream except for those who have renounced the world. Most of the wars from ancient time till today are fought to prove leadership.

A good leadership comes out with virtues like wisdom, knowledge, powerful speech, flexibility to mould oneself as situation demands, emotional intelligence, mental strength and so on. When people fail to become a leader, they try to blanket their own incapability as it is a human tendency to find replies to failure and shift burden elsewhere. They utter demotivating statements like, “Leadership is a bed of thorns and is futile.” The fact is that leaders are appreciated worldwide : one of the best examples is Mahatma Gandhi. Escapism is a symptom of psychologically disturbed personality. Naturally, such a person can never become a leader and “grapes are sour” is the only excuse he has.

Being a leader in itself is a matter of pride as he knows he is the best. He is a role model to his group. “Leaders command, others follow.” Leaders are lawmakers and lawmakers are not bound to follow the law. It is always the leader who receives the biggest share and sometimes the entire. He gets respect and does not have to put much of his physical effort to use. “Pawns are for sacrifice, not king,” as Vishwanathan Anand once said. His importance for the group may get him maximum protection. He has the freedom to follow his wish, though with the sense of responsibility. As nothing comes for free, he has to bear maximum responsibility and blame too when failures are met.

I would conclude with a firm view that one should always aim for leadership as wishing to be just a member itself is a setback in life.

Good Speech “Effect of international music on traditional music”

With a global culture evolving, some people feel that traditional music is getting superseded by international music. Do you agree with this statement?

People listen music for various reasons like to change mood, to relieve stress, to be nostalgic or simply for entertainment. It has always been source of inspiration to many artists. Due to its therapeutic value, it is also used as a cure for many psychological disorders. Music, thus, is intangibly dissolved in our lives.

Talking about the variations in music, in India itself we find different music in every region, every state. Due to globalization, our folk music has disseminated to different parts of the world and is getting worldwide recognition. In this scenario, it is obvious that even music from other countries would be adopted by our country.

Some people think that the youth are highly influenced by such foreign music and so are forgetting their own traditional music. I slightly differ from this opinion. I feel music has only one language, be it national or international. The kind of music does not make any difference as the end result is the same- a soothing effect. Due to technological progress, people are now exposed to multiplicity of music. As far as folk music is concerned, it is still played on social occasions like marriages and even on festivals when youngsters dance on its tunes with great exuberance. In fact it is also getting highly popular internationally through movies. Therefore it would not be right to say that it is losing its popularity. A lot of Indian classical music maestros, like Ustad Bismillah Khan, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, have also highly contributed in making our music international.

Mother nature has provided us with beautiful music like sound of chirping birds, flowing water, blowing wind, and even silence of nature has its own music. It is a language in itself and knows no boundaries. A healthy exchange of music has done nothing less than bringing people closer and giving them a chance to know other cultures.

Good Speech “Change in leisure activities from past”

The entertainment choices have changed now as the modern technology has provided us newer options. The leisure activities earlier were more productive and were a good show of creativity. Do you agree or disagree?

I certainly agree that leisure activities are changing due to advancement in technology. Modern technology has very much entered the field of entertainment. Leisure centres equipped with latest technology have become modern means of entertainment. It is evident that entertainment choices have changed.

Talking about my country, India, in the past, people had a lot of free time. As there were no TVs, CDs or DVDs, people used to engage themselves in creative skills. Children and youngsters used to play local games like kabaddi, kho kho, hide-and-seek etc. which provided them good physical exercise. There were also many indoor games played in those days like chess, ludo, cards, carom etc., which helped them in developing their mental skills. Even women used to engage themselves in activities like stitching, embroidery, painting, handicraft making etc. so, people used to be much creative and tend to utilize their time in a productive manner. People also used to socialize a lot, which enhanced their communication skills.

However, at present, the scenario has totally changed. People, especially non-working women, have become addicted to TV as a lot of entertainment channels are available. Children and youngsters engage themselves in playing videogames or chatting on internet so they have become lazy and less socializing. Instead of playing outdoor games, they prefer to watch games like cricket and football on TV, so they do not get enough physical and mental exercise. Modern hobbies also make use of technology, like the hobby of playing computerized musical instruments. Such instruments can be played easily and some inbuilt tunes are also available. This makes people less explore their creative skills in music.

Excess of anything proves to be dangerous. On the same note, overuse of modern technology restricts mental growth. Thus, I feel people should make use of modern technology but not at the cost of their creativity.