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Articles: My Thoughts | For shining India...
- Mr. Ratnakar Sadasyula
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As an Indian first and foremost, as some one who has immense pride being born in this great nation, as some one who is proud to be part of one of the world’s oldest civilization, I want to share some thoughts with people about my country and its citizens. Before I proceed with the essay I would like to share a quote by a famous dramatist, Gurazada Appa Rao,
“Desamante Matti Kadoi, Desamante Manushulu”
Basically it means that a country is not just a physical landmass, it’s what people make it up to be. Any country in the world is as good or bad, as it’s citizens and rulers make it out to be. Today when I hear of India being the world’s next economic superpower, about Indian companies buying up foreign companies, about IT revolution, about India being the most happening place in the world, it makes me feel proud. But the pride is tempered when I hear of desperate farmers committing suicide, of laws being violated, of clashes over caste, religion. I see shiny cars, huge malls, people earning large salaries, all signs of progress, but I also see kids being forced to beg or work as labor, when they should be studying in school, I see potholed roads, filth strewn on roads, and wonder if we have made real progress. The question before us is not whether India is Shining, but what can be done to make India really Shine? It’s not a very easy question to answer, because India is a very huge country, totally diverse and the problems are numerous.These are a few of my observations, which I encountered, and just wanted to share my thoughts with you.
One thing which I observed vastly with many Indians, is that we refuse to face the truth, whatever field we might be in. Either we go into a total self denial mode or go into a breast beating mode. Now when it comes to criticism, there are two modes of criticism- the one which is totally negative and malicious, that sort of criticism needs to be rejected straight away. It’s the sort of criticism which Mahatma Gandhi once described as a “Gutter Inspector’s report of India”. The big problem is when some one points out the bitter truth to us, and suggests how we can resolve the issue, we still never accept it. And it’s something which has percolated to most of us. We sit in our plush luxury flats or drive around in our stylish cars, and deny the poverty existing around us. Some one tells us the truth, and instead of facing it, we just resort to name calling, depending on which side of the fence you are. We must realize that in denying the problems around us, we are only fooling ourselves. When it’s pointed out that most of our IT companies are just providing solutions and not creating any products, we call such persons as negative. When some one points that India is not shining, when farmers commit suicide, we call them as communists or jholawallas. Being honest and truthful does not mean we are negating the achievements we have had so far. But when we live in a state of self delusion, and consider every honest criticism, as something to be met with verbal abuse, we are only fooling ourselves and that is the biggest crime. India is facing many problems, and we can’t afford to be complacent about them. Because those problems are some day going to come back to us. I am not suggesting that we give up our jobs, and lead a revolution, my point is we can’t live in a fake feel good world.
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