I am no Modi-fan, but I have no doubt that he is a powerful and charismatic leader and has a great following in this country and internationally.
If he wants, this is the best time to make India a leader for world peace - and, in the last two months, I did see some efforts in this direction, though I would add - better late than never. And, internally for the country, this could be the best time to heal India, while knitting India and while much India-boosting & bashing are going around - the right time to make strides towards the great aspiration of the land: 'सर्वेशां स्वस्तिर भवतु| सरवेषां पूर्णम भवतु| सरवेषां शान्तिर्भवतु| सरवेषां मंगलं भवतु|' However, regret to say, this does not seem to be happening to my eyes.
All the same, I have no choice but to confess that the Modi juggernaut has pushed a few slogans which can brighten the political imagination of the state - they are challenging and inspirational.
To begin with was perhaps from the love for 'Made in India' to the thrust on 'Make in India' - involving innovation and investment in India leading to production for a huge receptive market. I feel together with that there was a stress on innovation eco-system and a concomitant skill-based education - skilling India. That has indeed become a thrust of basic and higher education - though the results are yet to be seen - as someone who has been in the system for almost 3 decades now - the thrust is more on papers and less on outcomes, as the system is still the same, operation modality is the same, not fit for these ideas imported from elsewhere with an effort to India-wash them.
The initial phase also saw the campaign - ek bharat shresht bharat - One India, Great India or Noble India. This was meant to assert the unity-diversity aspects of being India, implying understanding of diverse cultures, recognizing and respecting them, and promoting healthy interactions between the cultures. This demands dialogue between regions, religions and languages - making it a great learning experience across age groups.
There was a great emphasis on 'swacch bharat' capitalising on Gandhiji who was otherwise getting branded as a rashtra virodhi, at times, and definitely almost getting displaced as the father of the nation - (Now, if I were to narrate my experience in the North India, where recently, someone is forcibly entering the Principal's office while the father or parent is being asked to report with a ward appearing to be errant, and unabashedly claiming that 'it is not your Christian culture here' - here I am also her father, and he is also her father! Ham sab iske father hein! I don't know what to make of it - that perhaps to have many fathers is perhaps now becoming meritorious, and perhaps, father can be displaced or substituted). I read the report this year that the 10-year campaign has tremendously increased sanitary hygiene, with sanitary toilets being accessible to a large number of people, leading to a drastic reduction in infant mortality on account of water-borne diseases like typhoid and dysentery. It is a piece of good news to hear, but I am sceptical about it. I have seen no improvement in our beautiful land becoming unhygienic and an eyesore thanks to the indiscriminate practices of waste generation and dumping - with hardly any management. The mountains of waste generated in the national capital stand as a symbol of the lack of political will to tackle this menace. If half the effort in promoting cow vigilantes in North India were applied to the task of indiscriminate dumping of solid waste, there would have been a tremendous change on this front. It is yet to be taken up as a religious duty. Though the slogan 'swacchata hi sewa hai' - Cleanliness itself is service - it is yet to catch the minds of people and their leaders.
There was an accompanying 'namaami gange' - Ganga is dear to all of us in India, and a clean Ganga is our dream - however, my understanding is that with more than 20000 crores having been already spent, and more than 20000 more allocated, Ganga is still maili! Impacts, if any, are yet to be seen.
All the same, it must be accepted that the citizens have been given the challenge to take up this as an ideal with the motto: 'swacchata hi sewa hai' (Cleanliness itself is service).
A great assurance was given through the slogan 'Sab kaa saath, Sab kaa Vikaas' (In support of everyone, and Everyone's development). However, other than the trickles down from massive profits up the economic pyramid, what has been the vikaas of the bahujan is yet to be assessed or highlighted. With the third term, new thrusts are added rhymingly - sab kaa vishwaas, sab kaa prayas! I am fully in agreement with the challenge of 'everyone's efforts'. That is a must. The developmental process has to begin with the individual citizen, with me. Unfortunately, sab kaa vishwaas - Does the prime minister desire it? Does he try to trust and believe in that 'sab'? His frenetic and frenzied utterances against communities of the nation (most likely Muslim), his total disregard for the suffering caused in Manipur, his silence towards the angry and open protests against sexual harassment of women athletes by those in the authority of sports belonging to his party, his self-projection with least shame as some avatar, and his explicit alliance with a particular religion while functioning in the capacity as the national leader of a secular democracy, his indifference towards the incarceration and denial of medical help for a venerable saadhu of the Christian religion on the basis of an unproven allegation of terrorist support etc. point to a contradiction - there appears to be a 'wrong number' (PK fame) as far as this attractive promise or challenge is concerned.
Assimilating the thrust of sustainability through the global goals for 2030, the Prime Minister has given a new mantra LiFE - Lifestyle for Environment - Mission. Here the personal lifestyle which is to reduce impact on the planet is promoted. I am really thrilled by this initiative - however, this has hardly reached anywhere but some elite circles - aam janta, aam vidyaarthi is se poornataya aparichit hain. That notwithstanding, I would add it to the earlier slogan of 'sab ka prayaas' - this has to be sab ka prayaas, beginning with me - from non-littering, to refuse-reduce-reuse-recycle, further on to replace, restore and reconcile. It calls for both responsible consumption and responsible production (SDG 12). Sad to say, this has yet to reach the primary levels of learning (schools)
In this series, would I place a captivating slogan of 'Fit India' - Swasth Bharat! I consider this a first step towards India being also glorious in sporting events at the international level, at the Olympics as an indicator. But primarily, शरीरमाद्यं खलु धर्म साधनम् | A fitness culture is to be promoted, increasing stamina and immunity, focussing also personal and environmental hygiene.
The attention and importance given to the fitness (holistic or integrated) tradition of India - Yoga (which itself means integration), is a unique contribution of PM Modi's government. The easiest and least expensive way in which one can maintain fitness - physical, mental and spiritual - is the ashtanga yoga, a great heritage of Bharat. Having a holiday dedicated to it internationally is a great achievement. Promotion of Yoga in the true sense would also imply the promotion of a non-violent, harmonious, peaceful, truthful, non-covetous, learning and faith-centred life. Hope it does go beyond the practice of Asanas, Pranayamas and Surya Namaskar (that is a good start) but would be further promoted for a non-violent culture of right relationships with self, the Transcendent and other beings. This goes very well with the global agenda of good health and well-being for all (SDG 3).
There was 'beti bachao beti padhao' campaign - perhaps benefitting a few; however, apparently, there are increased instances of violence against women, and women are not yet safe in the land - this has to change. Recognizing the vital role women play in the sustenance of a nation, and the difference between the genders in a society still guided by patriarchal values, it is important that women are safe - that is an indicator of general well-being - that all are safe. And all those systemic elements that prevent women from achieving what they can in any field should be set aside. For that a primary requirement is safety, and education can definitely contribute to that.
Jan Dhan is another attractive notion for financial inclusion of the marginalised, with zero balance accounts, an overdraft facility, and an accident and life insurance provision. It is said to have taken banking to the very many millions, and making the transfer of benefits directly (DBT) for the poor possible, with minimal filterings and losses for the citizens concerned.
On the whole, on Mr Narendra Modi turning 74, and comfortably into 11th year of guiding our great nation, it appears to be acche din for India, and India appears shining - several drawbacks and contradictions notwithstanding. He celebrates his birthday as 'sewa diwas' - that is very noble. But I feel behattar din can be achieved, and India can truly be the Vishwa guru among nations which he aspires it to be, leading peace initiatives, starting with a genuine effort at the inclusion of the smaller communities in number and power, that the ancient aspiration of the land - sarve bhavantu sukhinah, sarve santu niramaya, sarve bhadrani pashyantu, ma kashcit dukh bhaag bhavet - be realised in this our karma bhumi, making it truly a punya bhumi as he guides the nation into viksit bharat target 2047 through the acclaimed amrutkaal. He pledges for a - competent, skilled, noble and divine India - saksham, samarth, bhavya, divya bharat ki saugandh. I assume that either the Prime Minister himself is very imaginative, or he is having a very good team to generate ideas and render them in a captivating manner - after the Gandhian times of hind swaraj and satyagrah and bharat chodo, and the rare slogans of the later leaders like 'jai jawan jai kisan' or 'garibi hatao', it is the first time, people are given action-oriented ideas, also embodying some ideals. Hope they go beyond mere sloganeering to real change and lasting well-being!
Good work 🙏
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