New India as explained by Modi
Usually, it is believed that public
figures prefer to be on forums whose thought process matches with the person's
own world view. Because there is a lot of comfort in being among such people.
Of course, I also cherish being among such surroundings but at the same time, I
believe there must be a constant and continuous dialogue between individuals
and organisations irrespective of one's thought
process.
We need not have to agree on
everything but there must be enough civility in public life for differing
streams to be able to hear each other's point of view.
Here I am, at a forum
where perhaps I do not have many whose thought process is similar to mine but
there are enough thinking people whose constructive criticism is something I
greatly look forward to.
At the core of the New
India spirit are individual aspirations, collective endeavors. and a spirit of
ownership for national progress. New India is about participative democracy, a
citizen-centric government and pro-active citizenry. New India is the era of
Responsive people and responsive government.
For many years, a culture
was perpetrated in which aspiration became a bad word. Doors opened depending
on your contacts. Success depended on whether or not you belonged to an Old
Boy's club. Big cities, select big institutions and big families - this is all
that mattered. The economic culture of License Raj and Permit Raj struck at the
heart of individual ambitions. But, today things are changing for the better.
We see a spirit of New India in the vibrant start-up eco-system. Thousands of
talented youngsters are creating fantastic platforms, show-casing their spirit
of enterprise. We also see this spirit on the sports field.
India is now excelling in
new arenas where we were hardly present earlier. Be it start-ups or sports, who
is powering this vibrancy? It is courageous youngsters from small towns and
villages most people would not even have heard of. They do not belong to
established families or have big bank balances. What they have in plenty is
dedication and aspiration. They are converting that aspiration into excellence
and making India proud. This for me is the New India Spirit. This is an India
where the surnames of the youth do not matter. What matters is their ability to
make their own name. This is an India where corruption is never an option,
whoever the person is. Only competence is the norm.
New India is not about the voice of a select few. It is
about the voice of each and every of the 130 crore Indians. Every citizen either wants to contribute or
give up something for the nation. Take for example the most recent step to
reduce single use plastic. The people of India have taken it upon themselves to
make India free of single use plastic at a time when we mark Gandhiji's 150th birth
anniversary. These are extra-ordinary times and we should not leave any
opportunity that enables us to transform our nation.
Steps to improve 'Ease of Living', be it keeping prices
under control, building 1.25 crore homes in five years, electrifying all villages,
providing water to every household, improving health as well as education
infrastructure are aimed towards creating the right enabling environment for
our youth. The scale and extent to which this government has worked is mind
boggling. We have reached the very last mile, at phenomenal speed and with
unparalleled scale. 36 crore bank accounts have
been opened, 20 crore loans given to small
enterprise, over 8 crore gas connections
ensured smoke free kitchens, pace of road construction has doubled.
These
are just some examples. However, what makes me happiest, and which according to
me is the essence of New India, is how the people of India have risen above
self interest and looked at societal interest. Why else would the poorest of
the poor deposit over Rupees One Lakh Crore in Jan Dhan accounts despite these
being zero balance accounts? Why else would our middle class give up their own
gas subsidy? Why else would the elderly give up their railway concession on
just one request?
Maybe this is a manifestation of what was spoken a century
ago by Gandhi Ji in the form of
the doctrine of trusteeship. Today, there is a sincere desire not only to be a
spectator of India's transformation but also to play their own part in it. No
wonder even the number of tax-payers have risen. The people have decided that
they want to take India ahead!
Now, it is common to see people using Wi-Fi facilities in
railway stations.
Who would have ever thought this would be a reality.
Earlier, platforms were associated with goods and passengers. But now, in
Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, students go to stations after school or college, use
the free Wi-Fi and excel. The system is the same, the people are the same yet,
massive changes have taken place on the ground.
How the spirit has changed in India can be summed up using
just two words. Five years ago, people would ask- will we? Will we ever be free
from dirt? Will we ever remove policy paralysis? Will we ever eliminate
corruption? Today people say- we will! We will be a Swachh Bharat. We will
be a nation free from corruption. We will make good governance a mass movement.
The word ‘will', which earlier denoted a pessimistic question now reflects the
optimistic spirit of a youthful nation.
Language has always been a very powerful vehicle for the
most popular ideas traveling across time and distance. India is perhaps the
only country in the world with so many languages. In a way it is a force
multiplier. But language also been exploited by selfish interests to create
artificial walls in the country to divide. Today, I have a humble suggestion.
Can we not use the power of language to unite India?
Can media play the role of a bridge to and bring people
speaking different languages closer. This is not as difficult as it seems. We
can simply start with publishing one word in 10-12 different languages spoken
across the country. In a year, a person can learn over 300 new words in
different languages. Once a person learns another Indian language, he will come
to know the common threads and truly appreciate the oneness in Indian culture.
This can also give rise to groups of people interested to learn different
languages. Imagine a group in Haryana learning Malayalam and a group in
Karnataka learning Bengali! All big distances were covered only after taking
the first step, can we take the first step?
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