Notwithstanding many indicators and indicesboding very well, these are indeedthe testing times for India. Beneathseeming prosperity and success, we are facedwith many systemic maladies which are expressingthemselves in various ways. They includeterrorism, secessionism, Naxalite activismand violence, systemic corruption and institutionaldegeneration at various levels.The vigilance by an overactive civil society,the judiciary, non-governmental organizationsand the media does give us some hope. Surprisinglyenough, we have today guided missiles butmisguided men are out there to scupper theirown boat for a few pieces of silver.
We Indians aspire to be a great power but will doalmost nothing by way of our own behaviour. Believeit or not, our values and ethics are at an alltime low despite those stupendous growth figures.
Infused with a chalta hai attitude, we do anythingand everything that suits us and our interestsbut will shy away by miles to do things thatactually evince a strong character behoving citizensof a great country. We resent a bandh or astrike, but will not flinch from calling and participatingin one such bandh, strike or processionwhen it suits us without any concern forothers. We also destroy our own national propertyduring a bandh or a strike and then complainabout the Government not doing enough.
While almost all of us keep whining about ourGovernment being inefficient, about our lawsbeing too old or too bad, about our municipalitiesnot cleaning the streets, about our transport systembeing the worst in the world, about our mailsnever reaching their destinations in time, andabout our country having been gone to the dogs,turning into absolute pigsty. We keep on complainingand saying such things. But have we everpaused and thought as to what we do about them.The late US President John F Kennedy rightlysaid, 'Ask not what the country has done for you,ask what you have done for your country'.
Similarly, we don't dare to eat in public duringRamadan while in Dubai or we don't dare to goout without our head covered in Jeddah becausethe local laws demand that. We don't chuck anempty coconut shell anywhere other than thegarbage pail on the beaches in Australia andNew Zealand nor do we spit paan on the streetsof Tokyo. We also don't dare to speed beyond thestipulated limit in Washington DC and then tryto get away with it by throwing our weight withthe traffic cop
In countries like the US and Japan, every dogowner has to clean up after his or her pet hasdone the job. But we never do the same when inour own country. We expect the Government toclean up but we are not going to stop throwinggarbage all over the place nor are we going tolearn the proper use of bathrooms even thoughwe expect the Railways to provide clean bathrooms.We want our Airlines to provide the bestof food and toiletries but we are not going to stoppilfering at the first available opportunity.
We go to the polls to choose a government andafter that we forsake everything, forgetting all ourresponsibilities and duties. We sit back wantingto be pampered and expect the government to doanything and everything whilst our own contributionis totally nil or, at times, even negative.
When it comes to burning social issues, wemake loud drawing room protestations but continueto do the reverse at home. Our excuse beingthat 'it is the whole system which has to change.'The system, very conveniently for us, consists ofour neighbours, other households, other cities,other communities and the Government but definitelynot me. When it comes to us actually makinga positive contribution to the system, we lockourselves into a safe cocoon and look into the distanceat countries far away and wait for a Mr.Clean to come along with a magic wand and workmiracles for us with a majestic sweep of his handor else we leave the country and run away.
At times, we talk of the rich demographic dividendsforthcoming from having a predominantlyyoung and productive population by 2040 AD, butwe are hardly bothered as to how to reap this dividendsuccessfully. After all, unless we build and developour human resources, what use they wouldbe of. British thinker John Stuart Mill was rightwhen he said that 'you cannot think of becoming agreat country with small men' with small capacities,small thinking and dubious character.
We should realize that a country is made ofpeople. Unless its people, the basic constituentsforming it, value themselves, their country, theirrights and, more importantly, their duties, Indianswill grovel in the dust and till then, good governancewill continue to be a mirage.
