My Dream for India



The largest democracy in the world,.. That is how the country and the leaders boast of themselves! But do we understand the true meaning of democracy? The term is derived from the Greek word ‘demokratia’ meaning ‘rule of the people’. But in our country the people play a role only during the election campaigns and while casting their votes, thereafter they are forgotten, until the next elections. The so-called leaders of the nation seem to know what their people need and when these needs have to be met. They treat the country like a natural mine which is so rich in resources, the only change is in the political party that mines it. I wonder what will be the plight when the mine is completely depleted! India is a rich country, which is evident from the umpteem scams that are being exposed each day.
The Prime Minister was so right when he said there is no magic wand to end corruption in the country, but are we asking him to put an end to it overnight? As citizens of the largest democracy what kind of feelings are we supposed to express at this particular moment- anger or pity for such helpless leaders? It’s the 65th year of independence and people are denied their basic rights, the right to protest peacefully and the freedom of speech. I have a dream for my country, but I know I will need a magic wand to see my dream come true.
I just imagined, if I had that Magic Wand, what would I do? I would first dissolve all the political parties in the country. All those who are found guilty will be behind bars, with immediate effect; mind you I have the magic wand. The first task will be to identify the ruling and opposition parties and ministers for the cabinet. Candidates would be selected based on their contribution to various fields such as social development, technology, human resources, agriculture and industrial development etc and persons who have not been convicted for any offence. The people would elect their leaders from among these candidates, and they would be under continuous monitoring as they would be handling public money. This way we can save the huge sums of money that we now spend on the numerous enquiry commissions that our government appoints years after the guilty officials have devoured all the money.
The next activity will be to assign the task of sustainable development to each of the ministers. There will be a team of advisors under each minister to guide and assist in the development in each portfolio. A proper five year plan with action plans is what each minister and his team will concentrate on. I call it sustainable development because what we see now in the name of development is not true development. When a road is laid, if the budget is for 10 crores, only 1 crore goes into the making of the road. It goes without saying that the quality of the road goes for a toss. No wonder we feel like having had a roller coaster ride after travelling through most of the roads in India.
The disparity between the rich and the poor has been widening ever since independence and there seems to be no solution to the epidemic called poverty. If even part of the Rs 175000 crore that the exchequer had lost due to the 2G spectrum scam was spent on the poor, maybe this imbalance could have been balanced a bit. My dream country will have food for all. Just to remind you that I still have the magic wand and it won’t take me the time of a movie song like Rajnikanth’s movie. Education and employment would be provided on the basis of merit and not based on caste and finance. Law and order would be above everything else, mobile courts will take up cases and give immediate judgments. No cases will remain with the court for more than a month; there will be a monthly audit to close the cases at the end of the month. Bribery and corruption would be treated as non-bailable offences.  
Does it sound too much for any magic wand to do? I don’t really know,.. I’ll have to check with some magicians or Magic Consultants if there are any. If this is the plight of our country; that we are so helpless and need the help of Jee Boom Baa, God save our country???
‘Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high, where knowledge is free,…
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls..
Into that heaven of freedom my father let my country awake,..’

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