India - Are We on Track?

Been a Hiatus since my last post... The lazy person I am, I wait for a sudden impulse to blog. The best thing is to follow Richard Branson's advice... "Screw It, Lets Just Do It" :) So whenever there's anything on your mind...and your mind responds back that there are many better things to do .. like surf Orkut... tell your mind... Screw it and just blog it! :D

Ok.. enough with the intro... I think about this topic almost everyday... Now who doesn't ? Its just that we don't discuss it enough .. so it just stays there in the subconscious. Our mentality adds fuel to the fire..... If It ain't broke, don't fix it!!! I know many people discuss about this.. its so rampant.. but I sometimes wonder... We all know it... but how can we quantify it and try to make a difference even if its small!! ? Okay forget contributing.. are we at least aware of the root problems? (Read - our mentality)

I consider us on track even if we change our mentality.

I had a good discussion over the last 2-3 days with a good friend over this topic... and the result of that is clearer understanding about what makes the Americans better than us and what doesn't.

Okay.. getting back on track to the topic... The Indian economy is improving.. that's obvious. Its the resultant of various factors taken into consideration... The Services sector is the major driving force behind the boom. But the scene is slowly changing.. with most of the global multinationals foreseeing India as a huge and profitable market and making BIG investments.
Just look up any big bank/automobile manufacturer or whoever... Almost everyone has established their base in India... or have plans in the pipeline.

All this is fine... The firangis are happy, Indians working for them are happy, politicians are happy, we are all happy to hear that India is "progressing".

Reading between the lines, I just see this as an opportunity for the outsiders to tap the huge Indian market and make profits, sharing a minuscule portion with Indians. After all, this is what business is about. Globalization is a reason behind this as well... but its a different topic altogether.

But the core issue we all tend to forget is "Development", the only way by which we can move to the First world from the Third World.

There are so many things here regarding Development on my mind. I will try to put them down.

1) When the world thinks about India, all focus is on the major cities - read Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangalore, Gurgaon. So our seemingly obvious approach is to give godlike status to these select cities and create such a hype around it that people all over India come flocking just to the metros. The already burdened metros face even more problems due to the population explosion.
Relatively, the development and focus in smaller cities and villages is on a much smaller scale. A large chunk of the resources are allotted to the big cities. How these resources actually improve the city is a different issue altogether - There are hundreds of players wanting their share of the resource, rather than a few dedicated organizations who can turn around the infrastructure if given power. As the adage goes, Too many cooks spoil the broth.

2) I love to surf Google Maps... and marvel around on how both the big as well as smaller American cities are developed. The standards are so high. An element of smart planning is clear throughout. Everything is so systematic... that you can get exact directions from point A to point B, even the approximate time required. If you read between the lines, you can decipher that we need to draw lines too... keep things separate, have dedicated bodies for specific functions. We need to have a Big Brother who will have an overall perspective on what's happening and can control the different bodies if they are going off track. The big brother approach has really helped the United States and many other countries, I feel. More on this coming in another post.

3) This is a sensitive issue. Frankly speaking, it is one of the most neglected issues here in India. We all have fun and frolic during our larger than life festivals - Diwali, Holi, Ganesh Chaturthi and Visarjan and scores of other smaller ones. I am not at all against any of these, but I feel that its going out of control. Its fun, agreed, but frankly speaking, the consequences are huge. We are damaging and tarnishing our ecosystem, fast depleting natural resources as well as our infrastructure, all in the name of the lord or just for the sake of having fun. Everyone of us should ask ourself a few questions - Is this out of the world celebration really needed? Can it be contained and controlled? Can we prioritize our responsibilities towards our country? Can tradition be discounted for the sake of development? Can we do something constructive rather than take over the streets and cause nuisance? Is there an alternative?

I believe this is where Big brother comes into picture. Capitol Hill is aware that if people are given the power, the consequences can be disastrous. So it creates a fear in the average American, not to mess with the law and order. And it is quite successful in doing so. One factor I am discounting here is the population. The population here in India is growing by leaps and bounds. And a system needs to be in place urgently. Lines must be drawn and rules must be enforced. All it takes is some basic infrastructure like Gates, Walls, anti-cross dividers on roads and railways. Some of us will say that this is a very difficult task, considering the number of people. But look around at the scale of the developments happening in BKC, Mumbai or Gurgaon. All this is certainly achievable. We all talk about the technological progress. But is it used in the Railways? Are there any metal detectors and gates in place? If we demand safety, we have to invest. It doesn't come for free. "Lets just keep things separate", lets use roads for driving cars and not for jaywalking and merry making. Are there any laws to check the population control like some Asian countries do? Let us prioritize on what is important for our development, rather than focusing and doting on irrelevant issues and fighting amongst ourselves.

I know I have cribbed a lot here... but I think every Indian who dreams of living in a "civilized" and developed country should have this mindset, and pass it on to everyone, including the rule makers. I think I have written quite a lot in this post.... If I might have gone a bit overboard, you can correct me on that. The goal of this blog is to start a discussion and share our thoughts in a rational manner.

Adios!