On 15th August , 1947 the first Prime Minister of Independent India Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru said “At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom.”
And from that day to today, we have travelled 70 years. Yes, today we complete 70 years of Independence.
Lets ask ourselves how much we have achieved. Have we eradicated Poverty. Have we been able to stop communal violence. Have we achieved our goals in Literacy, Employment and Women Safety. Answer to all these questions lies below…
Poverty — It is an important issue in India, despite having one of the fastest growing economies in the world, clocked at a growth rate of 7.6% . Researches points that around 170 million people, or 12.4%, lived below poverty line. Governments have lauched many progrmes for upliftment of poor people but we still have to go a long way for eradicating poverty totally from our country.
Unemployment —With about 800 million people below the age of 35 , India has the largest young population in the world, but still we fail to create environment for quality employment. There have been drastic decline in job creation across different sectors. The solution to this growing unemployment lies in bridging the wide skill gap, better labour policies and creating more opportunities.
Communal Violence — Communal violence has simmers under the skin of India society and often erupts into riots. In 2015 there was 751 cases of communal violence, while there was 268 cases in 2016 and in 2017 , till July there have been around 104 cases of communal violence. The Dhulagarh riots & Basirhat riots in West Bengal are example of mad frenzy of communal violence gripping India. As one act of violence supersedes the other, it unleashes an atmosphere of fear, pain and anguish. Government should take strict action against those who instigate these riots.
Literacy – The literacy rate in our country is 74.04% . According to a report about 282 million people are illiterate. One in every three child in the age group of 7-14 is illiterate, said a study based on Census data. Over one-third of Indian population living in rural areas cannot read or write. The harsh fact is that the drop in illiteracy rate has not matched the rise in population. Its time for government to have a look at primary education.
Women Safety – We talk about women safety alot, but still crimes against them are rising. Womens are harassed, eve –teased, mis-behaved on the regular basis. Many crimes against women do not even get reported because of the social stigma attached to them..A single working woman is seen as a menace to the society. She is frowned at, looked down upon and called names. A woman who speaks her mind, has male friends, wears clothes of her choice ,who works late hours is a certified Characterless , hugely deserving of any trouble she might face. According to a 2014 report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), 93 women are raped in India every day. The figures aren’t getting any better and woman’s safety in India is questioned globally.
I am not saying we have achieved nothing in these 70 yrs. But to call ourselves a developed country & a super power we have to travel a long way.
