Amid the panic of falling Indian rupee experts are not as much worried – rather many economists strongly believe that India is poised to be the third largest economy someday soon.
World’s largest democracy is vibrant; the proof is in recent changes in several important states, where people thought that the decaying governance would never end.
The latest change occurred in West Bengal, where Mamata Banerjee dislodged the communist regime after a long and lonely battle. Kerala also has removed old communists, and a new government and leadership has emerged. Tamil Nadu has a change of leadership in Jayalalithaa. After a long time, Jharkhand has a stable government under the leadership of Arjun Munda. Change happened in Bihar. The state was not realizing its potentials until the leadership change happened and corruption has been curbed significantly. No wonder, chief minister Nitish Kumar has drawn Bill Gate’s attention.
Gujarat under the leadership of Narendra Modi is leading the nation in many fronts and has become exemplary not only to other states, but also to other developing nations. Corruption-free good governance with visionary leadership can make things happen. Almost all major business leaders of the country have endorsed Modi as the next Prime Minister.
Success stories can be found in many other Indian states. Almost all states’ GDP has doubled in past five years and tripled in a few states like Bihar, Sikkim and Uttarkhand. However, to sustain this growth momentum apart from good governance, India needs to focus on four areas pronto.
First, training and education of its youth to develop skills to match the needs and demands of tomorrow’s India and the world at large. Study of emerging future forms of economies, businesses and technologies is essential to have a fair predictability about job trends. Any education system without the understanding of future will only produce graduates with a certificate and not necessarily employable. It is imperative for the leaders in education to draw from a definite futuristic vision before starting any of the new thousands of universities being planned in India.
Second, needless to say building infrastructure holds the key. However, infrastructure is not just highways, store-houses, power-houses and buildings. It includes efficient management of these facilities and viable distribution channels. Third one is energy. The past century depended heavily upon oil. India is a country with talents and oil-lobby is not snapping at its heels. India imports crude at a very high cost. The nation must focus on alternative and renewable energy to help its economy and environment as well as employment.
Finally, security is equally important. From terror attacks to incursion of neighbors to cyber to space to nuclear – all are threats to our civilization and India which has never attacked or conquered another nation, believed in peace and harmony all along. India needs to be more practical than sensitive to vote-bank politics and take adequate steps to check the spread of Islamic fundamentalism. Naxal uprising is a great challenge, but the root cause – poverty, unemployment and exploitation of less fortunate people must be dealt with sternly to tackle the challenge. Success is being seen in Bihar and Chhattisgarh. Going by the popular perception, GDP is not always the right indicator of progress. Undoubtedly, GDP is a good start. Paul Hawken said: “At present, we are stealing the future, selling it in the present, and calling it GDP.” Fear of a society engulfed in rabid consumerism and materialism with disparity between rich and poor increased is obvious. Culture and environment may be adversely affected, departing from its age-old value system based on Upanishadic messages. Industrialization is not necessarily development; balance between rural and urban, economy and environment, growth and cultural and human values are important factors in progress. Warning signs are reflected in India’s poor ranking in Human Development Index (HDI) and also in the Happiness Index.
The land of Dharma suffers acutely from diseases that all societies are more or less cursed with – corruption and laundering of public funds. Though the judicial system appears to be working well, some leaders have allegedly amassed vast amounts of black money, causing a lot of concern.
If a well-thought out Lokpal bill is introduced and used, if the judicial and investigating agencies do not end up serving the people in power, some guilty will be caught, punished, many corrupt will withdraw that may deter many more to engage in graft. India has something to share with the world which it has to practice first: the unclenching justice, welfare to all, living in harmony with nature – all these are embodied in the concept of Dharma. It is not a rarity to find individuals and leaders who follow this. India needs a critical mass of such leaders not only to change its own, but also to change the world leading by example – and given the long eventful history of India, it is a feasible task.
