As we are celebrating “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav” (75 years of Indian Independence) over the years, there has been a sizable growth in our population with the country poised to surpass China’s population by next year as per World Population Prospect 2022.
India’s population has reached up to 138 crores as against 35 crores in 1947, with Uttar Pradesh topping the list with 20 crores, followed by Maharashtra 12 crore and Bihar 10 crore.
The country’s annual budget has shot up to Rs 39.45 lakh crore as against India’s first budget of Rs 197.39 crore. The RBI Act was passed in 1934. The number of banks which were around 06 during Independence, grew subsequently. But 14 banks were nationalised in 1969. The trend of nationalisation and merger continued and now we are left with 12 public sector banks and 21 private banks. The variation in the value of the Indian rupee against the US dollar continued and now it is around 79.40, which was Rs 24.77 in 1947.
During this long period, the country witnessed developments in the telecom sector. Before 75 years, there were around 84,000 landline telephones across the country. Today we have over 116 telephones including cell phones and landlines, marking tremendous growth in the telephone network. The recent entry of the 5 G spectrum is yet another giant leap. Once upon a time we were depending upon the post, telegram, and money orders. In the subsequent years, we traversed path with inventions like Telex, Fax, etc. Now we are moving ahead even beyond e-mail with Twitter, Instagram, and WhatsApp becoming the order of the day. The telebanking and Gpay and other modes have ushered in a “cashless era”.
The audio-visual medium has also witnessed remarkable changes. The All India Radio was set up in 1932 followed by Doordarshan in 1959. Today there are nearly 850 TV channels and 10 odd OTT platforms. Besides there are quite a few FM channels. However, the cell phone has proved to be the most helpful multi-tasking device.
There had been nearly 30 mainstream newspapers and quite a few periodicals that played important role in the freedom struggle. Now there are over 1.17 lakh periodicals including 17,573 daily newspapers. However, there is a gradual reduction in readership.
In the initial days, we had a limited number of political parties like the Congress, Communist Party, Jansangh, etc. Today India boasts of around 2,858 parties including 8 national, 54 regional, and 2,796 unrecognised parties. Similarly today we have 28 States and 8 Union Territories as against 12 States and 6 Union Territories post-Independence. The strength of our defence forces which was around 4 lakh in 1947 has reached 14 lakh now. In addition, there are around 13 lakh NCC cadets. The “Agnipath” scheme has opened a new vista for youth wanting to serve the nation.
Today we have the manpower, skill, and technical know-how. If no time is wasted in political disputes and agitations and the same energy is channelised for constructive work, India is certain to become a superpower soon.
