Today India is at crossroads. One road leads to economic development and growth
while the other leads to communal in-differences, hatred, and a culture of ban.
The agenda of growth and development is being set and led by the Prime Minister
himself while the drivers on the other road are mostly his junior colleagues.
Whipping up communal fear among Muslims had been the trump card of the
Congress, while the “reverse communal-ism” which saw consolidation of the Hindus
the brainchild of the BJP- both the dispensation are thus birds of the same
feather. This leaves the concept of “sabka saath sabkaa vikas” in
tatters.
Our
Prime Minister believes that the Constitution of India is the only sacred
document for him while his colleagues in cabinet on the contrary believe that Srimad Bhagwat Gita is the only sacred document and even Bible and Quoran are alien
to the Indian culture.
The
Prime minister has made a strong pitch for foreign investment, assuring foreign
investors of a sound business atmosphere in India; but the fact remains that India
is a seen as a nation, the world over, where even the Parliament- the highest
decision making body, is unable to transact its business in a businesslike
manner, while its Prime minister is unable to do anything watching the disruptions as a helpless bystander. These ground
realities makes foreign investors apprehensive of investing in India.
Though
India has managed to become the number one destination for foreign investment despite such intimidating factors, the only
solution which the mandarins of NITI Aayog have for improving investment and
boost growth is to recommend cut in repo rate, while their own reform documents
(viz the Document submitted by Bibek Debroy on Reforms in Railways) licks dust.
The
“Make in India” concept is yet to take off. So are many of the other
announcements made by various Ministries and Departments. We need to come out
of the “steel frame” of the Indian bureaucracy, which did suit the British but
is out of sync in present context. Or else our development and growth will
remain caged within this “steel frame”. The bureaucrats are mere creepers which
thrive on others and are one of the privileged classes- the other being the 'netas'. This must change. The Prime Minister,
who is considered the “Iron Man of 21st Century India”, needs to
bring about a definite shift in the mindset of the bureaucracy. People sitting
cozy in their air-conditioned rooms, taking decisions for the masses has not
paid off in the last 68 years and will neither be able to deliver in the next 68 years-
irrespective of the party in power. If bureaucracy is to be made pro-active
their salary and perks must be tagged with the actual growth and good of the common man
in India. Mahatma Gandhi had shed
his clothes for a loin cloth to identify himself with the masses of nation. On
this 2nd October, the birthday of the Mahatma, let its bureaucracy and leaders lead by example and become the real “sewak” (servant) of the masses, by shedding all the privileges and perks of the system. They must "Give it up" their privileges and perks which creates a wall between them and the common masses.
I
find a huge difference in what is being preached and what is actually being
practiced and hence I feel that India is at crossroads. I hope the PM will
ultimately be able to steer the nation in the right direction as a seasoned
Statesman and not end up merely as yet another “neta” in the annals of Indian History.
I
end this blog with an excerpts from “Why Smart Executives Fail” by Syd Finkelstein who has outlined seven
habits of an unsuccessful Executives, translated here for a Leader: (1) they
see themselves and their nation as dominating their environments, (2) there is
no boundary between their personal interests and that of their nation, (3) they
think they have all the answers (4) they eliminate anyone who is not 100%
behind them, (5) they are consummate spokesperson for their nation obsessed
with the nation’s image and their own
image, (6) they underestimate major obstacles, (7) they rely on what worked
for them in the past.
Leaders
of India in the past have often fallen in these traps.
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