"Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very substantially. At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom."
With these words, Jawaharlal Nehru commenced his speech on the eve of India's independence, towards midnight on 14th August, 1947. In this speech, the first prime minister of India, on behalf of the Constituent Assembly, took the pledge of dedication to the service of India and her people. The service of India meant, according to him, the service of the millions who suffer. It meant the ending of poverty and ignorance and disease and inequality of opportunity. It meant to build up a prosperous, democratic and progressive nation, and to create social, economic and political institutions which will ensure justice and fullness of life to every man and woman.
In this post, I will not discuss the parameters to measure our achievements since independence. I will not discuss how much have we been able to fulfill our dreams - the dreams that our forefathers saw. I will not discuss the success and failure rates of the governments. All such facts and figures are readily available in the media and it is the responisbility of every citizen to be aware of them. Rather, I will discuss what we could have done or what we can do to ensure that we are progressing, both as an individual and as a nation.
It is easy to criticize goverment at every step, to blame government for corruption that we face in our day-to-day lives, to complain about the scams that are revealed every second day, to organize protest march against government policies and so on. But while rendering government accountable for all these issues, we tend to forget that government in itself is no physical entity. Government is a body comprised of people - the legislators, the administrators - they all are chosen from amongst us. So, if we need to get rid of corruption from the country, it is of utmost importance for us to realize that corruption is not in the government. Corruption is in the people. Don't we accept or give bribe in our daily lives - to a policeman, to an agent, to an office-babu? We might ignore these small 'Rs. 100' bribes - credits to our 'let go (chalta hai)' attitude. But, the politician who has recently been caught red-handed while accepting a 'Rs. 1 million' bribe, must have started with a 'Rs. 100' bribe, sometime or the other. The bureaucrat who has been charged of providing a tender without a proper bid, must have bypassed his duties in the past too. This is a fact, hard to digest. But as it is said, the truth is always bitter. If we want a government free of corruption, we need to abolish the corruption from the roots. And at the roots, lie the people. So, the need of this hour is to bring about a change in ourselves.
We often see people complaining about the hygeine and sanitaion issues in India. We feel irritated when we pass by a stinking pile of garbage lying along the road. Again we blame municipality for not taking a proper care of the city. But, is there no way we can help the muicipality in keeping our city clean? Can't we avoid thrwoing away the empty wrapper of Uncle-chips we have just had, on the road? Can't we avoid spitting paan at every possible nook and corner of a public place? Can't we make sure to dispose off our daily household garbage properly? We can. We definitely can. But it is again, the same chalta hai attitude that adds to our misery.
We all stand united when Baba Ramdev starts an agitation aimed to pursue government to bring the black money back into India. We are often found condemning a businessman or a bureaucrat, when he or she is found guilty of having a huge account in the Swiss banks. But what happens when we file our own income tax returns? Why do we restrain ourselves from filling in the genuine details of our income? Why do we show a false proof of our house rent so as to get a better exemption from the tax? Why do we submit fake medical and LTA bills to prevent them from geting included in our taxable income? If we are getting induldged in such activities, aren't we making our contibutions towards the huge sum of black money in the country? Afterall, the motive behind keeping the money in Swiss banks is the same - Tax evasion. And I am sure that if the tax amount evaded by every middle class individual is summed up, it would itself create an unprecedented scam - worse than any scam that we have ever condemned till date. The taxes we pay are used by the government to run the financial machinery of the country. So, it is a duty (not just a responsibility) of every citizen to pay his/her tax.
I know that pertaining to our huge population, it is not easy to achieve the landmarks that we have set for ourselves. But, collective efforts will definitely bear fruits. Each one of us needs to bring a change in oneself. Let us not blame a third person for our problems. Let each of us take up responsibilities. And as Mahatma Gandhi rightly said, "Be the change that you want to see in the world". So, let us start the charity from our own home. Let us not think of our huge population as our liability. Let us make it our asset - our biggest asset, because not many countries in the world have such a huge and young human resource. On the 65th independence day, let us take a pledge that we will play our parts with full endeavour. That way, each one of us will prosper. And when every individual will prosper, the nation will prosper!
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.
