INCREDIBLE INDIA!!!!

She is young…yet so old

She is rude…she is nice

She is coward…yet so bold

She is crazy…she is wise

She is peace…she is fight

She is boring…she is fun

She is wrong…she is right

She is many…she is ONE

Yes…she is the one-and-only India…INCREDIBLE INDIA! Just like its cricket team, she will surprise you in a pleasant way when you least expect it, and will disappoint when your expectations are sky high. She is an enigma, a puzzle that no one can solve. There is no one word that describes an Indian. There is more difference between people of Chennai and Bengal than between England and Spain. In fact, there was no India. It has always been divided into smaller kingdoms. There was only three phase of India’s history when major part of the vast sub-continent came under one powerful rule. It was during the rule of Ashoka, Akbar and then under the British. India has been a mixture of different cultures each having its own unique identity. Read on to unravel the puzzle......

She is young…yet so old

India was home to one of the oldest civilizations in the world - Indus Valley civilization – yet it became independent just over 60yrs ago. It is also a young country because of its huge portion of young population that will continue to be young for few more decades unlike China who is growing old fast. Youth is India’s biggest strength, but a large population of unemployed youths can also be a reason to worry about.

She is rude…she is nice

India is a country that taught the world to live in peace. The ancient Vedic philosophies and the teachings of great preachers like Mahavira, Buddha, Guru Nanak, Shridi Sai Baba, Ramakrishna, Vivekananda, Mahatma Gandhi and many others taught us to be nice. Yet it is a country where we fight in the name of cast, state and religion. The capital of the largest democracy in the world is also nicknamed the rape capital of India. It is a country that has respected the freedom of women long before the West spoke of feminist movements as I mentioned in my post Huntress to Seductress. Yet it is a country where there are a high numbers of female infanticides and dowry deaths. A country that had a female prime-minister is also a country where women feel unsafe.

She is coward…yet so bold

India has got its freedom through non-violence. It takes courage to stand armless against the British forces knowing that you are going to be shot at. That is how the bold India got its freedom. Yet it seems that modern India is using non-violence as a veil to cover its cowardice. What has the government done after the repeated terrorist attack in India apart from using public money to feed Kasab? Why has India never taken a strong stance in the world stage? Why does it want to be in the shadows of US? Why is it so afraid of China and is happy to trail behind it?

She is crazy…she is wise

India is also a crazy country. The build-up to the common-wealth games was a national shame, yet it pulled it off in grand style. To have a safe common-wealth game the police kicked the poor people living in the slums of Gurgaon and Delhi out of their house. Many lives were lost unnecessarily in that vulgar incident while the same country rejects the death plea of Aruna Shanbaug. At the same time many westerners look towards this crazy country for wisdom and spiritual improvement.

She is peace…she is fight

The Sino-Indian War humiliated India in front of the world. That fear along with the inferiority complex the British has left as a legacy has made India afraid to go to war. It has been a country that has always voted for peace. It even criticised the recent US-UK-France attack on Libya. Yet it is a country that is struggling with internal fights- fights against religious forces, fight against corruption, and fight against terrorism. Its borders against Pakistan, Nepal, China and Bangladesh are all sensitive. A large portion of India’s GDP is spent in maintaining the border forces which is a hindrance in its growth.

She is boring…she is fun

A major portion of India is poor, and with its poorly developed infrastructure India is not amongst the most happening places. It does not have the entertainment facilities like other advanced cities of the world. Yet it is a place to have fun if you know how to enjoy. It gives you a variety of experience from adventure sports in the Himalayas, to the historical wonders, to spiritual retreats, to the exotic beaches. You can take a camel ride in the deserts and an elephant ride in the jungles. From boat ride to paraglide, it has everything to offer.

She is wrong…she is right

Indians have been victim of corruption that easily breeds because of a weak unstable coalition government. Corruption is part of our everyday life from taxi drivers manipulating with the meters, to donations for school admission, to police officers taking bribes.  There have also been many big scams like the 2G spectrum scam, Commonwealth scam, Satyam scam and many others, which embarrassed India in-front of the world. These corruptions are creating doubt in the minds of the investors and Global Risks Atlas 2011 has rated India as the 16^th most risky place to invest clubbing it with Niger, Bangladesh and Mali. Yet, India has taken many right steps that have made it a fast growing economy. In June 1991 Dr Manmohan Singh (then finance minister) took a bold and decisive step by sharply devaluing the rupee and making revolutionary policy changes to open the Indian market for foreign investment. The young Indian entrepreneurs were unleashed. That smart move have lead to the rapid growth of Indian economy. 9/11 shocked the world, but Indian markets opened for trade the very next day. Again during the 2008 recession the whole world panicked. But a confident India once again allowed the investors to short. India smooth-sailed through the two earth shaking events and shown the world how stable its economy is.

She is many…she is ONE

Blessed with great rivers India has been one of the most fertile lands. Being fertile also meant that it attracted many people, a root cause of the diversities we see in India. India is divided in religion, philosophy, caste, language, food and even skin-colour. It’s amazing to see the matrimonial advertisements where 90% of groom’s family wants ‘fair brides’. While the white-skinned girls of the west are desperate to tan their skin, there is a huge craze of fairness creams in India. The food taste varies from place to place. There is no similarity between the foods of Punjab and Tamil Naidu. The language also differs from state to state. It has hundreds of local languages. The cast system is still very strong in rural India. Inter-caste marriages are rare and still opposed. Indian philosophy is also divided. From the materialistic philosophy of Cārvāka, to the Buddhist philosophy the believed that faith in god was not necessary to attain enlightment, to the spiritual philosophies of Vedas, Indian philosophies had a broad spectrum. It gave people the freedom and had no strict code of conduct. It is one of the most advanced but complex philosophies for a normal person to understand, and hence it has easily misused by the priests. India is also home to many faiths. Four of the world’s major religions- Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism- were born in India. India also has a large population of Christians and Muslims. This makes it a country that is prone to religious riots like the anti-Sikh riots of 1984, Christian-Hindu riots of Orissa in 2007 and the numerous Hindu-Muslim riots. Surprisingly, it is only possible in India where even though 80% of the electorate are Hindu they can elect a Sikh prime-minister, a Muslim President and a Christian leader of the ruling party like we had in 2006. Considering India’s lack of unique identity and it’s poverty it was least likely to enjoy democracy for long. But she defied all prophecies of doom and in now the largest democracy in the world. No one expected the Indian democracy to survive a decade, but it has lasted for over six decades. We have free elections, free speech, a strong free press and civil liberties. We criticise the government in public without the fear of getting prosecuted. Try that in China. Our soldiers have stayed well inside the barracks without interfering with the life of citizens. The Indian democracy is not perfect, there is still undernourishment, ill health, illiteracy and other deprivations, but it is never-the-less a successful one. The variety we have is our weakness, but we can make it our biggest strength. Variety is the spice of life. With our growing economy the onus is upon the youths of India to take her to new heights. If we want we can give a bright, peaceful and prosperous future not only to India but also to the world.