1. Preparing unique notes for each topic

Broadly the essay questions can be segregated into the following topics

• Education – Recent issues like NEET, NEXT, etc
• Women empowerment – Gender equality, recent issues like metoo, beti bachao, women contribution in Tokyo Olympics,etc
• Polity based - Democracy, Federalism , current issues like Taliban attack in afghanistan, CPIC , OBOR, etc
• Environment - Agriculture , Sustainable development, Climate change threats ,
• Science and Technology – like Corona Pandemic , cryptocurrencies, etc
• Economy based - growth , development , capitalism,socialism, current issues based
• International organisations - the disputes going on , their relevance , their utility
• Philosophical topics - quotes and sayings

I prepared notes for each of the topics(Hardly 4 pages) which comprised of

• Quotes related to the topic
• Illustrations, stories and real time examples that could add value to essay
• Catchy intro and conclusion lines
• Facts and figures that add legitimacy to the content (possibly from reports of international organisations , government organisations)
• Eye catchy Subheadings

2. Improving vocabulary

Since an essay is a long piece of writing, it is very essential to keep the examiner engaged in your paper by kindling his interest so that the tempo of your writing finally gets converted into marks. To do that, good vocabulary is essential. It ensures you that your arguments are to the point and assures to the examiner that you are not beating around the bush.

For example : If you are writing an essay on poverty , you might be expected to use words like :

• Vicious circle
• Multidimensional poverty, crippling poverty
• Bread and butter
• Subsistence
• Perpetrate
• Materialism, consumerism
• Gravest crime
• Perils of poverty
• Alleviation, Eradication
• Sarvodya, Vasudeva Kutumbakam

This exercise may seem so trivial , but when followed can add immense value to your essay.

Writing the essay :

Beginning the essay with an eye catching illustration

I started the essay with an example, an inhumane incident that happened in Karnataka which was all across the news last year – A man hit by a vehicle was bleeding and begging the bystanders for help while the bystanders kept on clicking pictures and taking videos to be uploaded on social media.

Social media originated to give people a platform to connect, traversing geographical boundaries, race, religion, language etc. But it is to be lamented that it’s making people selfish, hungry for fame and above all disconnecting people from basic principles of humanity

Why is social media selfish?

Developing and promoting materialistic tendencies like - uploading photos of anything and everything in one’s possession, travelling solely for the purpose of ‘check ins’ and ‘ photo uploads’ and deriving contentment by making others envious - Unnecessary status updates- such as ‘Love my new OnePlus 5t’, Check ins - such as ‘enjoying Pizza at Dominos Facebook, Instagram etc - a craze among youngsters. Drives people to show off their possessions and spendings.

Misuse by political parties - mass scale propaganda by creating catchy memes - destroying the democracy by engineering ideas and ideology into the minds of voters - making the powerful much more powerful - US election example

Data theft by internet giants - tracking user behaviors and presenting information as per one’s taste like advertisements, news and content suggestions based on users search choices- google displaying its own products in search results (selfish growth)

So overall it’s making the entire world a marketplace where everyone is competing with everyone.

Is it really selfish? Instances which proved that social media is selfless

However there is another side to it. Social media being used for bringing about huge societal changes. Recent ‘Me Too’ campaign was an eye opener to the injustice happening with our women by providing them a platform to open up.

Used by youngsters and social activists during the time of Chennai floods to reach out to the needy - saved many lives with the help of instant alerts over wide areas.

Many non profit organisations gather help for education and health using social media - investigative journalism and its reach has strengthened after the arrival of social media .

It has made the common man more knowledgeable . Writings and questions of the common man are getting discussed and deliberated, leading to a more informed citizenry.

Thus beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. Our purview decides whether it is selfish or not.

What can be done to make it a selfless media?

Responsibility of internet giants - to make users data safe

International agency to check the spread of fake news via this medium since people of varied knowledge base are exposed Active participation of intellectuals

Basic education about social media - its pros and cons to school children

Tool for change

Social media is just like fire - it can be used to cook food - it can even be used to burn down everything. Thus it is we who should take charge and decide its ultimate utility.

Conclusion

I came across the phrase “Men have become the tools of their tools.” - Henry David Thoreau.

Man should always be the master and never let its tools gain control over him. Though it looks selfish now, it can be used as the most selfless weapon.