India At 75 - A Lot Of Misses
The India Commentary view
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By Our Editorial Team
First publised on 2022-08-15 04:49:05
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The India Commentary view
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As India
turns 75 today and the nation celebrates the occasion, it is clear that there
have been a lot of hits and even more misses in these three-quarters of a century
that the nation has existed as a free, democratic nation. To deny that India
has progressed would be to deny the work done by successive governments from
1947. Yes corruption and crony capitalism did not allow the country to progress
as rapidly and as extensively as it should have given the money, time and
effort spent over the years, but a robust framework, consisting of institutions
and infrastructure was put in place immediately after Independence and that has
served the nation well.
The only
problem is that while India grows at the top, it does not pull the lowest
rungs. Hence, in all fields, there is a wide chasm between the top level and
the bottom level. India has the best institutions imparting world-class education
yet successive surveys show that the learning at the primary and middle school
level leaves a lot to be desired. India has the best hospitals conducting
complex surgeries at reasonable cost yet the primary health centres are in
deplorable conditions. India is self-sufficient in food yet lakhs of children
suffer from malnutrition. India has rule of law and an independent judiciary
yet laws are used to harass the citizens and deny them their democratic rights. India has many billionaires and the list is growing rapidly but it also has millions below the poverty line, unable to get two square meals a day.
The problem
with India at 75 is that the narrative is being hijacked by things that are not
important. Instead of serious electoral reforms, political parties indulge in one-upmanship;
instead of police reforms, all parties use Central and state agencies as their
political tools and instead of reforming sectors such as agriculture and education,
parties never come to an understanding and try to scuttle the efforts of the
government of the day.
India is
suffering from political dementia. Political parties have to realize that being
perpetually in election mode is harming the nation as more speeches are being
made than work is being done. India needs its leaders to do constructive work
to make the nation realize its potential. Everything is in place, it is just
the matter of getting the priorities right.
