Author: Raghav Mittal
Publication:
Date:
There has been a lot of hulla-gulla
over the "infamous" India Shining Campaign, with allegations and counter-allegations
made from various quarters. It has been rendered to be a politically motivated
campaign targetted at the forthcoming elections ,so on and so forth. Whatever
may be the objective behind the veils, but one thing is for certain. This
campaign was an indication of National Self-assertion. It might be for
the very first time after a hoary and calamity ridden history of a millenia,
that the entire nation is reverberating with the feeling of self-assertion.
After those centuries of turmoil and subjugation, the Indian psyche is
coming to the forefront. We are no longer feeling lesser than anyone on
this planet. It might be the arrangement of the providence that whatsoever
incidents which took place within the last half a decade really took off
the self-deprecating attitude and mental making of the Indians. But it
is equally true that providence supports only the enterprising and the
daring. The current government should be congratulated for its dynamic
and daring role.
Starting from the pokhran tests,
we proved to the world that the land of Ashoka and Gandhi should not be
taken for granted. We believe in the "ghosha" of "dhamma" but we never
forget our great warriors and uphelder of "Dharma" - Rama,Krishna,Arjuna
besides the innumerable others. We don't have a poor memory which would
forget the dictum of "shatham shaathyam samaacharet". The self-asserted
superpowers started sermoning us, teaching us the message of self-restraint.
But the process of our re-awakening had started. We didn't give in to those
"geedad bhubhkis" and continued our chosen path. Our leadership remembered
that an elephant doesn't digress its way just because some street dogs
are trying to deter him. We showed to the entire world in very loud and
clear terms that India is reviving from her long sleep. This ancient land
of rishis, the sages and seers of the highest order hasn't stopped producing
the men of mettle and intellect.
We showed our military prowess and
depth of valour and courage in the Kargil war. A war which would remain
known for its uniqueness. The odds were heavily against us, but the blood
of the great warriors , the great kshatriyas which was running in the veins
of our soldiers couldn't be detered by any adversity. Our young officers
took the lead, inspired their team , sacrificed their lives but brought
the glory to the land. Kargil re-asserted that we are not a defeated nation.
We still nurture those levels of bravery and courage and have not been
pacified by the adversities of even the millennia long political subjugation.
We as a civilization have continued till now, and we will for ages to come.
We re-asserted this inner and sublime truth in a very robust fashion.
Then came a series of initiatives
on the economic front. Our vast intellectual reservoir started fructifying
all over the world. These blossomed trees of talent gave this "wounded
civilization" yet another feeling , yet another confidence that we are
something. Our culture, our values, our heritage, though might seem to
be in danger at the surface but we all get nurtured from those deepest
ethos. The respect and craving for learning which has been a very unique
feature of the Indian mind since ages, proved instrumental in this era
of "Knowlegde Economy".
We got yet another fillip to self-assertion,
self-pride when a series of initiatives were taken to remove the negationist
and self-dilapidating world-view present in our school text books. For
decades, the young minds of the nations were nurtured with a sense of pity
and defeat towards their own civilization which cannot be considered a
conducive approach of education by all rational standards.
All these stray incidents show to
a logical mind that we are certainly shining as a nation. The process of
national rejenuvation has really taken an accelerated pace and we are definitely
heading towards our destiny amidst the comity of the nations. But one front
at which we are not shining is surely the political one. The feeling of
negationism and self-served opportunism & betrayal hasn't left us.
There is a sheer lack of vision and dynamism in a large quarter of our
political establishment. Even the pioneering institutions are giving way
to hegemony, dynasticism and what not. The still relish and cherish in
the national downfall, as it serves well for their vested interests.
We need to mature as a polity. We
should learn to take pride in the national resurgence and give way to positive
and dynamic constructions. Instead of totally declining the national upheaval,
we could have taken a positive approach and brought to the surface our
own contributions which led to this state of national self-assertion. We
could have claimed that we would be more instrumental in the times to come
to take the nation to further heights.
The days of self-denigrating approaches
are gone. We become what we think of our own. If we think of ourselves
degraded, we would continue to be degraded for ages. We have to shed-off
the age old veil of self-defeating notions and march on forward and forward
to further heights of national glory.
India has started shining and it
will continue to be, irrespective of the political stewardship as of now.
The national psyche is reawakening towards a Second Indian National movement.
A movement which would put the national psyche back on the tracks of the
national destiny. India has had a definite and particular role to play
over the ages. Her destiny is to reinforce that national mission with its
full vigour and dyanmism.
The short spell of sleep after the
first national movement has ended and we as a nation have started realising
that constant endeavours are a must to save our freedom, our glory and
our endeavour towards perfection, towards a "samartha and prabuddha bharat",
a "jagadguru bharat". Let's shed off all the cynicism and get ready for
the rebirth of a India of the dreams of Swami Vivekananda, Sri Aurobindo,
Netaji Subhas Bose, Bapu, Gurudev Rabindra Nath Tagore and the innumerable
others.
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Raghav Mittal
V year , Dual Degree ,
Department of Computer Science
and Engineering.
IIT Kharagpur , India
