From the country of snake-charmers as proudly exhibited by the first Prime Minister to his Western girl-friends ignoring the negative impact on the same on country’s overall image to getting Banaras nominated as the first-ever Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)’s Tourism and Culture Capital during the period 2022-2023, India, the home of world’s one of the oldest civilization and culture, has come a long way since independence 75 years back.
Now, the PM of India is proudly taking his visiting counterparts or the heads of states from developed countries to Sabarmati Ashram, Banaras Ganga Arati, Lotus Temple travelling in Metros, etc. showcasing the country’s proud heritages, possessions and developments. The Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangaluru, has been ranked the “world’s top research university” scoring 100 out of 100 marks in the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World Rankings 2022, an annual publication of university rankings. Commenting on the ranking of Indian institutions, Ben Sowter, Director of Research at QS, said, “This year’s edition of the QS World University Rankings demonstrates the excellent work that many Indian universities are doing to improve their research footprint, with positive consequences for their reputation on the global stage. India’s Higher Education institutions’ graduates have been the most desired Chief Executives of the world’s top Multi-National Corporations now.
In the meanwhile, India has been the world’s Information Technology’s Super Power matching the forecast of US President Bill Clinton in 2000 when he visited Cyber City in Hyderabad, is the 3rd largest economy in Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) and the 5th largest economy in dollar term overtaking United Kingdom (UK) her two centuries long colonial master which looted $45 trillions worth of riches and responsible for several genocides of millions of Indians, 3rd largest military power in the conventional sense, and latest being vaccine capital of the world. So far India has supplied 25.44 crores of Covid19 vaccine doses to 101 countries after adequately meeting its own large population’s requirement despite the blockade of raw material supply by the liberal West during the early days of vaccine production. Here, it is imperative to note that when India started supplying free doses to poor countries, the liberal and developed West, which uses to give lectures to developing and under-developed countries including India about human rights and liberal democracy and are the inspiration of Indian intellectuals, had blocked and stored their production of vaccine four to five times of their actual requirements callously ignoring poor countries desperate needs.
Most recently, India has been successful in controlling the dreaded pandemic Covid19 on par with developed countries administering more than two billion doses of vaccines -manufactured based on domestically developed and imported formula- in less than two years when the country’s leading news weekly India Today (matching with several Western naysayers) forecasted on April 22, 2021, with the headline “India will take 12 years to vaccinate entire population, reach herd immunity in 8 years at current pace: Report”. On July 18, 2022, BBC, which was at the forefront among the Western media demeaning the Indian Government’s fight against the pandemic, announced “India becomes the second country to cross two billion Covid jabs”. This milestone is accomplished mostly free of cost despite domestic politics motivated vaccine hesitations, vaccine destructions, etc. The other country is China which has crossed this milestone amidst reports of frequent ongoing lockdowns in the country’s major cities that have impacted her economy, the phenomenon has been given goodbye in India since early 2022.
Now, the whole world practices Indian civilization’s gift for human health and well-being recipe Yoga and observes International Yoga Day accepting PM Modi’s appeal for the same in 2014 in his first appearance in UNO. Why this scope of Soft Diplomacy, which benefited in building a positive image for the country, was not explored earlier is a billion-dollar question. Now, India enjoys strategic autonomy in its own right. Her top diplomats and leadership with uncompromising confidence used to question Super Powers over the rationalities of their various policies that impact the world economy, security, environment, and international laws and have started asking for their accountability. During the early phases of the Yemeni Civil War and Ukraine wars, India not only rescued her citizens trapped in the war zones but also rescued citizens from other countries including Pakistan and the West despite its leader having been branded ‘fascist’ in those countries.
With the latest development, what is wrong to work for Viswaguru status for India as envisioned in the early 20th Century by the country’s greatest seer Swami Vivekananda, who captivated the Western intellectuals with his address to World Religion Congress in Chicago in 1893? Swami Vivekananda presented India’s past glory to the world, the values it had adhered to in the past and the concern it had shown towards the welfare of all without any discrimination. Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore had predicted that ‘India is destined to be the teacher of the world.’ Similarly, this aspect was elaborated by Sri Aurobindo. He predicted that ‘India will be the moral leader of the world.’
Is the present government in New Delhi doing anything different or deviating from the above-stated objectives of three eminent seers of India that India be Viswaguru? If not, why then does every effort of the present government to accomplice the above objectives being mocked and abused by people of eminence, looks like in missionary spirit? Yes, I do agree that personal opinion over government policies differs from person to person, intellectual to intellectual, organization to organization and party to party. But, when the issue concern to national image, glory, security and the people’s wellbeing, there is a need for a unit. Since the 2019 General Election and during the reign of Covid19, more than 600 columns written by Indians and Western opinion makers with inputs from Indians denigrating the Indian government, her civilization and culture were published in Western print media. If the Electronic Media campaigns are added, the list will have more than a thousand. Verbatim such as intolerant, elected autocracy, fascist, dictatorship, Islamphobist, etc. has got free flow. Is it anything less than “missions denigrate India sabotages vision Viswaguru” and insult three eminent seers who in fact pioneered this proposition century back?
On March 22, 2022, a former cabinet minister of Foreign Affairs tweeted “Sad to note that India was not in the forefront of establishing peace between Russia and Ukraine. But we are Vishwa Guru” as if he was not aware of India’s position over the issue and its well-recognized constraints which prominent stake-holders of the conflict appreciate. Taking a swipe at the Prime Minister over the state of unemployment in the country, the Grand Old Party former President on July 30, 2022, alleged that the “Raja” (King) has now become a “Vishwaguru” (global leader) in “creating joblessness” as if his party had jobs for all the citizens during its rules for several terms, and Covid19 and on-going war in Europe supposed to have no impact on economic activities in globalised India.
The reasons why India should claim Viswaguru are because she gave countless theories in Science, Mathematics, Astronomy and Ayurveda, thanks to the country’s ancient civilization and research by her sages. India is the only country to have a university education during very ancient times. They were destroyed by lunatic invaders. All these research were burnt down to ashes as they were victims of invaders’ hate and jealousy of Indian culture, heritage and civilizational value system and teaching.
