Youth pledge for peace after Ayodhya verdict

As the nation awaits the verdict on the Ayodha case, a group of city's youngsters have come together to launch an online campaign to ensure the city averts communal trouble.

As the nation awaits the verdict on the Ayodha case, a group of city's youngsters have come together to launch an online campaign to ensure the city averts communal trouble.

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Titled 'I-Pledge', the campaign aims to enlist people with the cause by promising to not indulge in any trouble-making after the verdict.

This campaign has been initiated by the group that had also initiated the campaign about traffic complaints in the city, which led the Mumbai Traffic police into launching their own page on the social networking site Facebook. (See Box)

Ajesh Shah (29), one of the four youngsters, who conceptualised the idea said: "There was a lot of anticipation about how our society would react to the verdict, irrespective of which side of the fence you are. Hence, we decided to take some concrete steps to ensure nothing ugly occurs."

Within two days of the Facebook launch, the campaign already has the support of about 500 campaigners.

Even though frequent questions have been raised about the efficacy of online campaigns, these youngsters stand by their beliefs.

“Last time the campaign about the city's traffic problems began with around 30 of us getting together. Online campaigns can reach a wider number of people and encourage them to contribute to the movement," said Kumar Jhuremalani (23).

The initiative, Kumar added, will also involve asking for tangible contributions from campaigners.

“We are asking them to pitch with solutions about how they can reach out to more people, and tell us about it by posting photos and write-ups about it," he said.