With the lockdown being imposed on our country for over a year, the mass multitude had no choice but to stay at home and rely on social media and OTT platforms for entertainment. These platforms are known for their boldness in the expression of ideas and thoughts, which gives its content uniqueness and the ‘kick’ that the content in cinema houses lacks. The content of these platforms is therefore not accessible to everyone due to its density, character and sensitivity. A paid subscription is hence mandatory to gain access to streaming content on these platforms. 

Along with content creators, viewers are largely impacted by the involvement of a censorship committee too. The kind of media consumed now has to pass through the filters set in place by the censors. The positive influences that these bring in are numerous. One of the biggest qualms parents have is that OTT platforms have no restrictions on inappropriate content. For example, some children might get misled by movie titles and end up watching content unsuitable for them. While some OTT platforms display recommended viewing ages, they are merely suggestions and might get overlooked. Censorship, at least to a certain degree, would help children consume media appropriate to their age. Additionally, it would allow control over how gory scenes are, which might otherwise hurt individuals. For instance, scenes depicting violence, self-harm or bloodshed may be a trigger for re-experiencing trauma in some people.

Parental controls are available to monitor what your child views. [ Source: FirstCry Parenting]

 Creating a filter between film and show creators and the audience would be vital in curbing the spread of misinformation. In a survey by YouGov, 57% of people supported at least partial censorship for streaming. Having rules and regulations in place would also avoid hate among different communities. Mere plot devices might cause much damage in a country with such diversity. It might deepen rifts already present amongst people due to political, cultural, and socio-economic differences.

At the same time, it isn’t possible to ignore how the masses are negatively impacted by an intermediary controlling what they watch. With content having to pass through the strict filters of a censorship committee, the variety of media consumed invariably reduces. One of the reasons OTT has surpassed other methods of entertainment is because of the bold opinions and unprocessed truths that can be aired. Censoring content limits what is accessible by the viewers. It does a great disservice to their ability to separate fact from fiction.

 Another risk that the population is at includes the formation of biases. Movies and shows have to meet certain criteria and be edited if notified thus. Involving a third party between the creators and viewers creates the possibility of introducing prejudices in a faulty system. Since the audience is fed content from what the regulator deems correct, it may force people to consume a one-sided view of the world.

A valid argument that audiences put forth against censorship is that OTT platforms, barring a few, are pay-to-use. This means that they are consciously paying for the streaming services. They know what they are paying for and the responsibility that comes along with it. It gives people the option of tailoring the content most suited to their requirements and liking.

 How does censorship affect content creators?

The main aim of these OTT platforms is to provide diverse content to their audience. OTT platforms are unique and a point of discussion because of the flexibility in creativity that it has to offer, one of the distinguishing features that set them apart. Every content creator thrives on being able to holistically express their content to the mass multitude. Censorship not only takes away the element of essence from the piece of work but also downgrades its potential impact on the audience. It leads to compromised quality of content that is being served to the audience.

OTT platforms serve as a great breakthrough for artists who lack a good budget for production. They are fearless of any event and expression. They show various socio-political issues which cannot be seen in mainstream cinema. Censorship restricts the creator’s experimentation sphere with their own content.

Digital content on OTT platforms to be regulated by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry [Source: Fortune India]

Every coin has two faces to it. Censorship does act as an escape from filming explicit/violent scenes for the content creators, but simultaneously it drives away the potential impact the uncensored content could have had on the audience. This content, no doubt, is bold and free at the expression of different perspectives, but it could potentially have an adverse effect on the viewer’s mind which could lead innocent minds to manifest violence in every situation. Censorship takes off streaming regulation from the content creators. They do not have to worry about what content a viewer chooses to consume since regulatory actions are taken by the censor board where the content is edited appropriately.

When publishing any sensitive content over these OTT platforms, every creator is exposed to the chances of facing lawsuits by the concerned authorities due to potentially hurting their sentiments. Hence with censorship being applicable, the tailoring of this content is in the hands of the censor board, which releases the creator from the risk for actions against the creator as the censor board itself takes care of the censorship. Therefore, via censorship, the liability of content shown lies ultimately with the censorship board and not with the content creator.

 What are the OTT platform censorship rules laid down by SC?

The new Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021 are said to supersede the earlier Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules 2011. The new rules are:

Self-Classification of Content:  This guideline states that OTT platforms should self-classify the content present on their platforms into 5 age-specific categories, i.e., U (Universal), U/A 7+, U/A 13+, U/A 16+, and A (Adult).

Parental control implementation will be required for content classified as U/A 13+ or higher. A reliable age verification system shall be mandatorily set up for content classified as “A “(Adult). The publisher of online curated content shall display a content disclaimer describing the nature of the content along with the age-restriction specification and providing enough description about the program for the viewer to make an informed decision before consuming the content.

This guideline states the rules with different levels of regulations. The three-level grievance redressal mechanism: 

Level 1–> Self-regulation by the publishers of the content

Level 2–> Self-regulation with the help of these guidelines by the self-regulating bodies of the publishers

Level 3–>Oversight mechanism for constant review

The new IT rules are aimed at making foreign companies comply with these Indian laws, which have often been dodged in the past. The new rules give the executive the power to censor any digital content with little to no judicial supervision.

What is the self-regulation code?

The self-regulation code states that the viewer has the power to control their content streaming flexibility. The content piece will be labelled with age restriction instructions along with parental control guidelines, therefore, transferring the freedom of content consumption entirely on the viewer. This acts as a beneficiary for the content creators as they do not have to film their work in a censored manner. 

After the government felt like the socio-political and religious sentiments of certain masses were hurt via the content of a few series and shows on these OTT platforms, the self-regulatory code alone is no longer considered a reliable censorship method. Hence the new IT rules seem to be stricter in implementation. 

Disclaimer: This article aims to inform students of the measures being taken on campus to ensure safety during the pandemic. It does not serve as a proclamation of support towards either side of the debate on college’s offline resumption.

Ever since the country-wide vaccination drive began, students and parents have eagerly awaited the news of the commencement of offline classes on campus. That day has finally arrived. The college has decided to call its students back to campus in a phased manner.

Third-year students will be reporting on campus from 5th to 10th October 2021. The fourth-year students had been called back from 20th to 25th September. A few second-year students that are a part of Student Projects are simultaneously returning to campus as well. The college is following a set of protocols for the safety and well-being of students, teachers, and staff members.

Students are required to fill this form to disclose their details of arrival to the Chief Warden Office.

Once students report on campus, they have to arrive at NLH, where professors and staff are present at the desk. The required documents for entry are:
1. The vaccination certificate (at least 1st dose);
2. A negative RT-PCR report, tested at least 72 hours before travel.

NLH Screening Centre [Image credits: Amogh Rao]

At the NLH screening centre, a QR code present for scanning gives access to an MS Form. Students must fill this and upload the necessary documents. Physical copies of the documents are not required. After arrival, students who are staying on campus will be issued a green clearance card on arrival. Those travelling from Maharashtra, Kerala, and abroad must undergo a seven-day compulsory quarantine. Students from other states can move around campus but will not be allowed to go to the Academic Section.

“I’m a member of MANAS and since I’ve travelled from Maharashtra to college, I have to undergo a seven-day quarantine. In the hostel, I was told to call up the mess and inform them that I shall be requiring food to be delivered to the room until my quarantine gets over. Since then, I have been in my room. The room is cleaned every alternate day, and everything is normal apart from the fact that I can’t step out. Talking about the campus, it is very quiet compared to how it was in February, and the weather is better this time around.” said Amogh Rao, a second-year student of Mechanical Engineering. After seven days for students from the aforementioned states and 5 days for the rest, a doctor’s stamp is issued on the green clearance card, granting them safe access to places within the campus. A yellow clearance card is given to those living outside the campus, granting similar access. There is no separate procedure as such for students who are arriving before 5th October.

“Students are not permitted to go outside campus without a valid reason. They will have to take permission from their respective wardens if they want to go outside. The warden will sign a slip that states what time you will be back on campus. I reached campus on 22nd August as I am a member of Parikshit,” recounted Arinjay Sinha, a third-year student of Electronics and Communication Engineering. The second and third-year students who are part of Student Projects get a clearance card with a blue seal, allowing them to access workshops within the campus and outside Gate No. 2.

Students will be occupying the rooms allotted in the hostel portal upon arrival. The hostel staff present is vaccinated. The badminton court and gyms are now chargeable and have timing restrictions of 5:30 to 7:30 am in the morning and 4:30 to 6:30 pm in the evening to avoid crowding. Students vaccinated with the first dose will receive the second one on-campus—whether paid or not will depend on availability.

The administration sincerely requests all students to adhere to the guidelines and be cautious while staying on campus premises. Everyone is filled with the hope of offline commencement of classes and is eager to return to their everyday college life, adapting to this new normal.

Featured image credits: MyCollegeKhoj

On 18th March, the Manipal Institute of Technology campus was declared a containment zone. Most of the student population decided to go back home, leaving a few hundred staff and students on campus. After the government opened up vaccination for the general public for the ages 18 to 45, MAHE began preparing for its COVID vaccination drive.

The vaccination of the people who stayed back on campus began on the 7th of June. The college had been following a strict protocol of isolation, and the students weren’t allowed to leave the campus premises. To facilitate the travel to the vaccination site—Marena, the sports complex, the college arranged for a periodic shuttle bus service.

Students being taken to the vaccination site by a periodic shuttle bus service arranged by MIT.  Photo credits- Manas Agrawal, 1st year

The drive was conducted in association with Kasturba Medical Hospital. Students were required to register on the government’s cowin.gov.in site and obtain the secret code (a unique 4-digit code provided on registration) and documents for identification at the vaccination site. Every student was assigned a token number, and after a few preliminary health and safety questions, they were registered in the hospital’s records.

There were multiple vaccination stations present to speed up the procedure. After getting the shot, every student was kept under observation for thirty minutes, after which they were taken back to their hostels. The Covishield vaccine was used as it is accepted for international travels, thus allowing students stranded on campus to return to their homes. In addition to the students, the college staff was also vaccinated.

The doctors and hospital staff present made sure that the vaccination protocol was being followed efficiently. The nurses in charge of administering the vaccine doses were professional and well-trained. A survey form was released to monitor the development of any side effects in students so that they received appropriate medication/help for the same if required.

Students waiting at Marena sports complex to get their first dose of Covishield. Photo credits- Chinmayee Parida, third year

 “The overall experience was good. The procedure went smoothly enough. The only small glitch was that the coordination between the transport in charge and the caretakers was a little faulty as the caretakers weren’t sure where the buses would pick the students up. Apart from that, the process went flawlessly. There were faculties present at Marena who worked tirelessly to see that the vaccination procedure was hassle-free.”  said Vedant Nath, a first-year student, while recounting his experience on getting vaccinated at Marena.

Proper safety measures like wearing masks and maintaining physical distance were followed by all the students, staff, and healthcare workers during the drive.  The organizers and staff were polite and well-equipped to deal with any contingency at the site. The students did not have to pay to get vaccinated as the cost was covered by the college. The hostel caretakers made sure that the students’ health was monitored and taken care of during the entire process.

The college carried out the difficult task of vaccinating the remaining student and staff populace within a short time window without a hitch. Students and parents can now rest easy knowing that their safety is assured at the hands of the college.

Featured Image Credits- The New York Times

Disclaimer: This article aims to inform students of the measures being taken on campus to ensure safety during the pandemic. It does not serve as a proclamation of support towards either side of the debate on college’s offline resumption.

Specific segments of the article regarding issuance of the clearance card and RT-PCR testing are applicable based upon the semester the student is in.

In these times of uncertainty, MIT is undertaking precautionary measures to keep students and staff safe. A significant mandate that has been implemented for staff and students alike is the RT-PCR test. The RT-PCR test is one of the quickest ways to test an individual for COVID-19. A nasopharyngeal swab—better known as the swab test—is performed, the sample is collected, and the PCR machine detects the viral code’s presence.

Taking the RT-PCR Test

A temporary testing centre has been set up behind NLH (New Lecture Hall), serving those who arrive on campus without taking the RT-PCR test 72 hours before travelling. The entire testing centre is carefully sanitised, and doctors and individuals involved in the testing wear PPE kits or face shields. Those who arrive for testing must wear face masks. 

When a student reaches the testing centre, there’s a QR code provided through which they have to fill a simple form. The testing commences at 10 AM and is open till 3 PM. People to be tested will be called token number wise. Doctors from KMC and government officials are present for collecting samples and actively guide the students on how to go about the entire process.

Those to be tested are seated in the waiting room and are made to sit a row apart, leaving a gap of one chair between each other. They are then called to the testing room, where the authorities test only one person at a time. Although testing facilities are available, students are strongly advised to take the RT-PCR 72 hours before travelling and not once they arrive on campus.

For students arriving on campus without taking the test, quarantine accommodations have been made until they are confirmed to have tested negative for COVID-19. Students will be quarantined in New International Hostels (NIH), located outside the MIT campus. If a student’s test report result comes out as positive, they will be sent to the isolation centre at the TMA Pai hospital in Udupi for 17 days. Parents of first years must also take the RT-PCR test before arriving on campus. Third-year students who had received the clearance card in December need to do the RT-PCR again if they travel outside Karnataka.

Issuance of the Clearance Card

Those who have tested negative for COVID-19—be it by RT-PCR testing from home or on campus—will have to report to the IC (Innovation Centre) ground floor for their clearance card. The clearance card is mandatory to access any area on campus, be it a day scholar or a hostel resident. Every student must have their clearance card issued before availing any campus facility such as the hostels, messes, or the academic blocks. Students living on campus are advised to go directly to IC upon arriving in Manipal before going to their hostels. First, students will have to drop off their luggage at the luggage sanitisation counter before procuring their clearance card.

Students must produce their RT-PCR test results, the consent form signed by the parent, and one passport size photograph to receive the clearance card. The doctors are present from 9 AM to 8 PM to issue and stamp the clearance card. For those who arrive outside this time period, caretakers will guide them through the entire procedure, although the doctors themselves will not be there. They will have to return subsequently to receive the doctor’s signature. A bus will be present to take the students along with their luggage to the hostel.

“Right now, there are very few people on campus, so people aren’t roaming around in big groups like it used to be, at most three to four people. I guess college might get stricter regarding these things after more people show up,” said Abhijit, a seventh-semester student who recently returned to campus.

Hostels, Messes, and Academic Blocks

The campus will be locked down at 9:30 PM, before which all hostel residents will have to return to their blocks, while day scholars will have to leave campus. The KC gates will close at 9 PM, while the main gates remain open till 9:30 PM. The seating arrangement in the messes has been changed to maximise social distancing. All the messes will be open. Thermal scanning and sanitisation will be conducted at regular points in the hostels and academic blocks.

The hostel rooms have not been opened or cleaned during this period. Once the student arrives and the room is opened, cleaning and sanitisation is expected to take about 30 minutes. Students who have left their key with the caretakers may call the warden and request for their room to be cleaned ahead of arrival. This facility would be granted at the discretion of each block’s respective warden.

Classes will not have more than 30 students each, and the number is expected to be even fewer in labs. There will be markers placed where students will be permitted to sit. The entire area and lab equipment will be appropriately sanitised. There’ll be an increased number of batches for labs to ensure that there are fewer students. The faculty will be equipped with face shields, while students and staff alike will be provided with gloves while handling lab equipment. Face masks will be compulsory for everyone at all times.

Student Apprehensions and Concerns

Students remain apprehensive about returning to MIT at this time. In a conversation with Arjun Sharma, a 4th year ICE student, he mentioned a few points of concern echoing in students’ minds and how the college can improve upon the measures taken to combat them.
“I would suggest that the college take the following measures to increase the standards of safety:
1. Have separate lab batches and rooms during end semester examinations for those who stay outside. Ensure that the students do not crowd the corridors before and after an exam, maybe through the staggering exit as entry would be much more challenging to regulate.
2. Conduct RT-PCR tests once in 14 days for those who live on the campus, including staff, to check the spread and reassure parents and the students.
3. N95 masks, not the regular cloth masks for the mess staff, should be provided and replaced once a week.
4. A group of students or preferably a faculty for each mess should be appointed to ensure mask-wearing is enforced in the messes. If anyone violates the rule, they should be noted and reported upon failing to adhere to a warning.
5. Campus entry and exit time should be further reduced to avoid parties and other super spreader events and limit students’ contact with the outside environment. Only in case of a medical or travel emergency or after seeking permission from the warden should the student be allowed after the reduced campus perm time.
6. Hostel perm time within the campus should be as late as possible, preferably around 11 pm, to ensure smaller batches in the messes. As far as possible, students should be allowed to pack their food in their tiffins instead of the plastic covers the institute charges for right now. It will reduce the spread of the virus, if there is an outbreak, to a reasonable extent and even possibly prevent it. It would also hasten the queue’s speed as students will take their food and get going within 10 to 15 minutes.
7. If it’s not happening already, the administration should request the authorities to ask club and restaurant owners to keep a list of students entering, which would help in contact tracing.”

Overall, MIT has implemented several measures to ensure students and staff’s safety, yet many feel that it is not enough. Students are advised to adhere to the social distancing guidelines and take the appropriate safety measures on or off-campus. Preventive testing and rules for social distancing are being implemented by the university, marking the offline resumption of students’ curriculum and campus life.