Shiv Kumar Padha
According to the Japanees, the quality of the products they produce in their country does not depend upon the quality of the raw material available there, but upon the quality of the people who produce them. It is said, family is the cradle of society from where the child gets the first lesson on moral and ethical values which goes a long way in making him an honest citizen in the long run. Truth, honesty, sense of sacrifice, love, affection, cleanliness are some of the values which the child either inherits or acquires from the family members or the society it lives in. It is strange that we in India foster these values in the citizens through special campaigns, wall writings, coining slogans, daily pledges and the processions carrying placards.
Quoting a true incident of an Indian diplomat to the erstwhile USSR, who happened to visit one of Russian schools, where he asked the students to solve the problem on profit and loss from mathematics like'” a milk seller had 10 lt. of milk, he sold it for Rs. 10 a lt. Had he added 5 lts. water in it and sold a liter for Rs. 08, calculate his profit or loss percent”. The students at once rebutted saying, ” this is not a problem of mathematics sir, it is a problem of morality”. Which explicitly means that the factors which make the nations great include honesty, commitment, patriotism of the citizens and their strict adherence and faith in the moral and ethnic values of the nation.
After independence there has been a great deal of enthusiasm particularly among the young men to rebuild their nation and to have the clear idea of the India that is to be. Before any engineer begins the construction of any building, he must have the idea of the purpose that building will be put to use. If we turn the pages of history we see how Great India was in power, wealth and happiness during the times of Ashoka, Chandergupt and others. During the Vedic and Buddhist periods India had great ideals which could make India so great in the past. But it is a matter to be thought about seriously as to what have been the causes which resulted into the degeneration of the ethical values India was known for.
The nation reposed full confidence in the capability, credibility, commitment and honesty of the persons who formed the first Indian Government in 1951-1952. But, in the absence of ombudsman, lack of accountability and transparency many parliamentarians and the legislators in the states and the centre felt tempted by the unguarded national and state coffer and started devising the methods to siphon off the poor tax payers money. Political patronage, in adequate laws, inactiveness of law enforcing agencies, lack of civic sense in the society, flaws and lacunas in the criminal laws resulted into the inculcation of wrong habits among the citizens of the country.
Promises for waiving off the bank loans, granting subsidies , distributing freebies, supplying free electricity and water and right to copying in the examination hall etc. form the headlines of the election manifestos of many political parties which result in breeding corruption among the people of the country. The poor voter doesn’t know that the taste he derives from these freebies is the taste of his own blood.
The long lists of scams which are made public from time to time by the investigating agencies reveal how majority of our legislators, parliamentarians and the blue eyed become multimillionaire overnight through the illegal ways and the bribes they accept during the big deals. Manufacturing spurious medicines, alcohol, low grade cement and important adulterated edible articles, under the patronage of the powerful politicians, has become a flourishing business in the country which results into the death of thousands of the poor persons every day. The laws available in the country, to curb the menace of adulteration in the country, are too weak to keep the culprits behind the bars for more than five days. These killers of humanity often escape from criminal proceedings by dint of their influence and access in the corridors of power. Heads of the nation hung in shame when they watched a stunning news running on the TV channels how some miscreants took away the materials worth crores of rupees used all along the Meerut Noida Express way. Similarly taking away the LED screens from the newly introduced high speed Tejus Express train by the passengers is equally condemnable and shameful for the whole country.
Taking a quick glance of the contrast between the overt and covert behavior of the Indian citizens and the politicians with their counterparts in the world’s most advanced and developed nations we find our nation far behind them in the matters of honesty, law abiding, gallantry, civic sense and selflessness. For instance,
* Hundreds of the Indian farmers end their lives in the hope of exemption from the bank loans as promised by the politicians, at the same time the citizens of the country like Malaysia contribute to pay off the loans of their country.
* The Indian youth always demands rebate in travelling fares, cinema tickets and unemployment allowance for them but the youth of the most of the europian countries decline to accept any monitory assistance without doing any work for the nation.
* Where the Indian universities have been converted into dens for the anti social, antinational and criminal elements, the universities of the most advanced countries of the east and west are producing patriots, honest, dedicated, gallant and the citizens committed for their nation.
* It is matter of shame for the country that majority of the Union Ministers are still occupying dozens of Government accommodation even after ten years of their retirements. The nation pooh poohd the Chief Minister of an Indian state who took away crores of costly fixtures from the bungalow at the time of leaving it while on the contrary there are examples of Ex President Obama of the USA and David Camroon Prime Minister of Britain who left their official accommodation within an hour and were soon seen on the ticket window of the railway station along with their family members and the baggage.
* National property worth crores of rupees is set ablaze and dozens of innocent persons lose their lives as a result of arson and violence during the bandhs and hartals called by the trade unions. Whereas the factory workers of Japan, in stead of rendering any loss to their country, over work day and night in order to register their resentment. The transport workers of South Korea continue their duties during strikes .Instead of adding to the troubles of the people they don’t charge any bus fare from the passengers they carry during the period they remain on strike.
* Parliamentarians and the lagislators of some Indian political parties who take an oath of the constitution of India are brazenly seen joining funeral processions of killed terrorists and patting the back of the enemies of the nation but the live nations have shot down the war planes of their hostile countries even if they dared enter few meters in their territories and have punished such culprits under laws of sedition of their countries.
We should not feel disappointed or dejected for the erosion of the values in our country. It is for every citizen and politician of the country to identify his role and bridge the gap between what they pledge, preach and practice and rededicate for the moral and political upliftment of the nation. The sophisticated weapons, the money in the national coffers and even the most powerful army it has cannot make the nation great unless the citizens of that country possess the exemplary character.
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