Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s 2012 speech The idea of India as an individual Fellow countrymen, it is customary to talk about the nation on its birthday. Allow me to make an exception, because these are exceptional times. Allow me to talk about two individuals as representatives of the nation. Myself and you. Allow me to talk about myself as human being first and as PM next, then allow me to talk about you as a human being first and as a citizen next. The Prime Minister preparing his address to the nation on Independence Day. PTI After all, we are a democracy ;) Even I have a right to speak my mind ;) (You have been complaining I don’t smile enough, so I have smiled twice!). Let me begin with myself as a human being. Here’s what I believe as a human being living in India in 2012: the Indian nation inherited a mature and spiritual civilisation that did not shun material goals or progress, but Indians have reduced that greatness to an immature pursuit of only material goals as progress. Here’s what I believe is my role as a PM (After all, between 1947 and now, I have spent the third longest time (over 3000 days) in the office of a PM, after Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and Srimati Indira Gandhi.) I believed in thinking of the future of our nation, realised the problem of growth was inequality of income and attempted to facilitate its reduction. I as PM introduced four Acts that are considered ‘game-changers’ by other Prime Ministers: the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, the Right to Information Act, the National Rural Health Mission of India and the Unique Identification Authority of India. I believed in thinking of the future of our nation, then focussed on growth of income and attempted to facilitate its increase. As the I mentioned in my speech in acceptance of an Honorary Degree from Oxford University on 8 July, 2005, “India’s share of world income collapsed from 22.6% in 1700, almost equal to Europe’s share of 23.3% at that time, to as low as 3.8% in 1952. Indeed, at the beginning of the 20th Century, “the brightest jewel in the British Crown” was the poorest country in the world in terms of per capita income.” (Hope you realize that when I wish to be frank, I am frank!) My dream is to return India to 1700 in the next 50 years. I will not be around, but I hope the opening up of the economy that I started in 1991 will take India to that dream. Enough said about me. Let me now hold the mirror to you as a human being and to your role as an Indian. Pandit Nehru once said, “We have to wash out the past with all its evil.” What 8/10 of you are doing instead is strengthening the evils of the past to fragment the nation: by increasing the currency of caste, by increasing the currency of a patriarchal society, by hiring children as slaves: currencies that destroy the equality of human beings and women and children. What 8/10 of you are doing is avoiding your responsibility as a citizen: from the micro to the macro: from respecting traffic signals, saving rainwater, littering at our heritage sites to paying taxes and respecting laws. What 8/10 of you as Indians are doing is this: screaming for your rights without paying any attention to your responsibilities. You have joined rallies and created social media groups and worn caps and created cartoons against corruption. Who amongst you is not corrupt? The TV journalist who reports on corruption but lives in a posh flat gifted to her by an industrialist in South Mumbai or South Delhi? The industrialist who speaks about giving back to society but spreads rumours about his competitor? The school Principal who talks about values but accepts personal donations? Gurus turned politicians who have generated crores for themselves? The corrupt uncles and grandfathers in your own family who have made India the capital of incest in the world? The corrupt in-laws who make life hell for the dowry-less daughter-in-law? You know all these people, you know their names and their faces: they are part of you and they are growing. There are millions of them destroying our present and our future by continuing the ‘past with its evil.’ And yet, you seek a solution in one man, just because the name of his role is PM? You believe a society can be corrupt but the politicians that emerge out of it can be incorruptible? You believe you can care about your locality without caring about your city, care about your city without caring about your state, care about your state without caring about your nation? You believe because media allows you to voice your opinion, your opinion is truth? You believe once you start doubting my behaviour, you can start doubting my intentions? I believe my job as a human being and as a PM is not done, but neither is yours, neither as human being nor as professional, politician, teacher, journalist, soldier, farmer. I promise to continue doing my job, 9 am to 11pm as always. Please start doing yours. Jai Hind! But The reality is.............. u all will give a shit even after reading this... mera bharat mahan
Posted on: Thu, 15 Aug 2013 17:56:05 +0000
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