By Swarnavo Ghosh
It was amid the sombre silhouette of despair that a beacon of light slithered upon my skin and created sweet golden pools of hope and joy. I was finally salvaged from my deplorable condition when some of my gallant sons and daughters like Mahatma Gandhi, Subhash Chandra Bose, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Birsa Munda and Rani Lakshmi Bai battered and bruised the British and severed their malevolent eyes that glinted in the dark. The bright deaths quivered at the throats of those Denizens of Hell, and eventually the repugnant billows of the foreign sea melted away in the labyrinth of disasters. I finally stood ‘independent’ on the 15th August, 1947, amid a joyous chorus of victory that resonated all around in a perfect rapture. I am 75 years old at present, and I am now self-reliant, poised and dauntless.
My rise as an ‘Independent India’ amid the gathering flotillas of global turbulence and disruption was really applaudable. I evolved, just like the Phoenix that rises from its own ashes. My standards augmented from a large agrarian and poverty-stricken land to one of the fastest growing economies across the globe. From being the education hub in my ancient days to becoming the hub of information technology (IT) and the third largest military spender, I have come a long way, shaping the decade and determining the trajectory of the decades to roll by. At 75, I am a self-defined democratic power, and democracy is now the very manifestation of hope that entangles the heart and soul of every human like strands in the shapeless web of life in the great microcosm that exists both inside and outside human senses. I have thus become the ultimate panacea and elixir to many a soul dwelling on my reverent soil.
Long before this refulgent chapter of my life unfolded, the Britishers, the dregs of humanity, had left me in dire straits - broken, needy, underdeveloped and economically unstable. In view of this, my scientists prioritized scientific research in the first five-year plan and paved the way for hallowed scientific institutes like IITs and IISC. From launching the first satellite, Aryabhatta in 1975 to being the first country to ever set footfalls on the exotic orbit of Mars in 2014, I have taken confident and gigantic strides in the field of space research technology. All thanks to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), my ultimate saviour! As heaven’s black cradles the sunlight, my stardom now moves in dazzling awe through space. At 75, my heart swells with pride to stand at par with countries like the USA and China- firm and resolute. The same goes with the field of artificial intelligence and that of biotechnology wherein my researchers, coupled with the unswerving support of my exemplary scientists, have procured a vast multitude of vaccines.
In the words of the Prime Minister, I will metamorphose into ‘Digital India’ in a couple of years. Elated! My able sons have been successful in transforming the whole of my entity into a small global village with the advent of technology. At 75, my ebullient heart lurches and I find myself on cloud nine to be the 5th largest economy of the world with 147 lakh crore GDP, accounting for 8% of the global GDP. On my sacred soil, there has been a whopping rise in the number of start-ups, which rose from 471 in 2016 to 72,993 as of June 2022. This phenomenal rise in start-ups has produced millions of new jobs in the country, thereby engendering a steep rise in employment and in turn, the overall augmentation of my economy.
After over 75 years of independence, I bask in eternal glory and ecstasy to become Asia's third-largest electricity generator and the third largest roadway network in the world. My national highway system now spans 1,37,625 kilometres and I have enhanced my potency to produce tremendous power of 3,95,600 megawatt in 2022. My government has succeeded in lighting up all 18,452 villages as opposed to just 3061 in 1950, thereby fostering rural electrification.
At 75, I feel exulted to have a population of nearly 1.4 billion and a sprawling literacy rate of 74.04%, contrary to a population of only 360 million people with an abysmal literacy rate of 12% in 1947. A successful saunter, replete with exuberance and a dazzling hope of forging ahead! Today, my military ranks 4 of 142 among the countries considered for the annual GFP review. From being defeated by the Chinese army in 1962 to becoming one of the largest defence systems across the globe, I have made unfathomable progress. All thanks to the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO), for ever since it came to light in 1958, it has procured many significant programs and critical technologies, including missile systems, small and big armaments, artillery systems, electronic warfare (EW) systems, tanks, and armoured vehicles. In 1989, the long-range Agni was independently designed and tested, and after a decade, the most popular ‘Pokhran’ nuclear test was conducted under the unwavering guidance of Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam. With all these sprees of success, I am now one of a dozen nations that have built and produced their fighter jets, helicopters, submarines, missiles, and aircraft carriers with all efficacy.
In addition to all this, I go over rhapsodies to claim that my enriching architecture has become a rich tapestry of the Indian sub-continent that encompasses a multitude of expressions over space and time. The Taj Mahal, the Qutab Minar, The Jagannath Temple and a myriad of other architectural spots are a perfect paradigm of today’s entrancing architecture.
Although all these advancements have dictated my destiny and shaped my life like a towering tree arising from pale limpid but amidst fields of dew-kissed grass, I find myself in a deluge of apathy to some extent. While I have made a scintillating progress in terms of literacy rate, the quality of education is still a major cause of concern gnawing at me. There isn’t a single university that has managed to be at an exalted position in the top 100 QS World University Ranking pyramid. My health sector is also appallingly worrisome. The doctor-to-patient ratio is merely 0.7 doctors per 1000 people as compared to the WHO average of 2.5 doctors per 1000 people. Many a bereaved soul of my soil sleeps for eternity when they fail to get treatment, being in a scourge of penury. Moreover, my body becomes emaciated when I see many of my own men sacrificing truth and veracity on the altar of pleonexia. Corruption therefore lurks all around! Doesn’t shame stigmatise them for stabbing their own motherly cradle wherein they were born, fed and nourished with so much care and solicitude? The boiling cauldron of moroseness brims over when I see my own people polluting my soil and the attire that drapes my body.
In spite of all these ravages that have left me in gloom, I confide in all my people that they will try to make me resplendent and ever charming by making improvements in all those sectors that call for augmentation. I know that a whole lot of them have a profound love for me which was mirrored in the way they celebrated my 75th anniversary, entitled ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ on the 15th August, 2022. I was ecstatic on that day to see my own identity, the Tricolour, flying with heroic pride and effulgence all across. Their love was what I sought out of my life, like a grail of holy wisdom from the tombs that lie beside a lonely brook in the woods- an image isolated from the mortal complexities of life. As blithesome sounds of my victory and grandeur rang on the zephyr that day, a seraphic smile danced across my lips and my happiness just bloomed in emotional warmth. A ray of ‘hope’ then silkily crawled down my spine -intricately woven and ever dazzling.
By Swarnavo Ghosh