Today we celebrate the 78th Independence Day of India. During these 77 years, India has established itself as one of the key players on the global platform. However, there is never a better time to reflect and analyse what we set out to achieve and what has been achieved so far. Those who fought for the Independence of the country had a dream and aspirations. In 1910, Noble Laureate Rabindranath Tagore translated these dreams into a poetic prayer:
Where the mind is without fear and the head held high;
Where knowledge is free;
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls;
Where words come out from the depth of truth;
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection;
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way into the dreary desert sand of dead habit;
Where the mind is led forward by Thee into ever-widening thought and action;
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.
In recent times, there has often been a question posed: What did the forefathers who laid the foundations of a new independent India do for the country? The short answer is that the present is the result of the efforts in history; however, the larger question is what is being done to correct the shortcomings and provide a better future. Therefore, it is of utmost necessity to analyse the present and place the bricks of development and progress for future generations.
Globally today, every tech giant or financial institution is headed by an Indian who completed their foundational education in India and went abroad to compete internationally. However, what is the state of education in the country and the Goa? Privatisation of education is gaining more and more ground, and only the elite in the society have access to the best and quality education. Despite the Right to Education being implemented since April 2010, there has been little or no progress to ensure the best of education at the higher levels to facilitate the economic cycle of the country. Young Indians want freedom from poor quality of education, as most of the youth who graduate are not job-ready to be absorbed into the market and there is a growing concern due to increasing unemployment, one of the highest in decades.
In addition, when the youth do put in their best efforts to compete and secure a seat in the best public institute or a public sector job, then constant paper leaks drive an already stressed employment sector into a tizzy. The young Indians want freedom from poor quality of education.
Lawlessness is slowly gripping over society’s social fabric. Road rage and bulldozer justice are becoming the norm. And what’s scary is that he police and administration seem to be hand-in-glove with those who are in confrontation with the law. Rapes, murders, drug trade and noise pollution are issues that are giving sleepless nights to the locals. The High Courts and the Supreme Court have had to intervene to provide justice to the people of the country.
The year 2012 witnessed a nationwide campaign against corruption, resulting in the setting up of anti-corruption institutions to ensure a corrupt-free administration and government. However, a decade later, it looks like the corruption virus has latched onto the bloodstreams of the administration. Corruption is decaying the system and intellectuals fear that the nation could soon be on the ICU bed of recession.
Considered the backbone of Goa’s economy, the mining sector collapsed due to the sole reason of corruption and the greed of the few to make quick bucks. Look around and you will see the result of corruption at every step you take. From rampant land conversions to illegal mega constructions, from potholed roads to weak public infrastructure, everything reeks of corruption. The nation is witnessing how new bridges and buildings have been collapsing like a pack of cards, across the country.
Is this the India the founding fathers of this nation wanted its people to awake? Certainly not!
As India makes a stride into the Amrit Kal, it is the earnest demand of every Indian that the government ensures that the country is free from corruption, paper leaks, unemployment, bulldozer justice and rampant exploitation of nature. That the freedom of speech and expression, the freedom to practice and preach one’s faith and the freedom to live with dignity are upheld for every citizen, including the one living on the last mile.
