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Created on Thursday, 29 August 2019 06:24
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Netaji Bose would be extremely concerned at the state of affairs in India today”, stated
Narendra Modi as Gujarat Chief Minister on 6th July 2012. He was speaking at a function in Ahmedabad to mark foundation of Azad Hind Fauz.
Netaji would indeed be worried at political half-heartedness in grappling with population explosion (PE). It is an issue that perturbed him. As President of Congress Party, he minced no words in identifying as PE as the country’s foremost challenge.
Addressing 51st Congress Session at Haripura in Gujarat on 19th February 1938, Subhas Chandra Bose said: “With regard to the long-period programme for a free India, the first problem to tackle is that of our increasing population”.
He stated: “I simply want to point out that where poverty, starvation and disease are stalking the land, we cannot afford to have our population mounting up by thirty million during a single decade. If the population goes up by leaps and bounds, as it has done in the recent past, our plans are likely to fall through”.
He added: “It is not necessary at this stage to prescribe the methods that should be adopted to prevent a further increase in population but I would urge that public attention be drawn to this question”.
If pre-partition India added 30 million to its population in 1930s in 10 years, post-partition India added 370 million in 18.5 years since 2000, a rate 20 times the one that rattled Netaji.
Read more: PM’s Population Worry Too Little & Too Late
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Created on Friday, 02 February 2018 19:20
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(Image Courtesy: Dance of Death - World Digital Library)
India’s annual Economic Survey (ES) sees the “ghost of Malthus” on the horizon. This should alarm dream merchants who have been fooling the masses on their way to power by flaunting elusive demographic dividend.
With full respect to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his predecessor, Dr. Manmohan Singh, this column deplores their obsession for demographic dividend. Both have failed to make any significant dent in unemployment and underemployment.
We all have to actually work for saving India from impending demographic disaster against backdrop of triple challenge. It comprises: 1) booming population, 2) agrarian crisis marked by stagnant yields, farmers’ unrest & climate change and 3) ubiquitous spread of automation with the near-arrival of driverless cars and unmanned container ships.
Citizens should thus view ES as the trigger to set a national agenda on India’s Population Bomb, Resources Crunch, Climate Change and Malthus.
Mind you, ES is not the sole official document to voice worry over India’s long-term prospects. The country’s development, when assessed on basis of per capita availability of resources, has been virtually offset by burgeoning population.
Read more: Revisit Population-Food-Jobs Matrix to Overcome Malthusian Pangs
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Created on Friday, 30 December 2016 06:19
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(A Voters' queue - Image Courtesy: PIB)
“Dreams are not seen when you sleep, dreams are those that don’t let you sleep.” This quote from Mr. Narendra Modi, when he served as Chief Minister of Gujarat, is an inspiration for ‘Mind Manufacturing’ focused entity named Gujarat Vittal Innovation City.
I visited this SEZ’s website, which was perhaps last updated in 2010, because demonetization has put me in sleep-struggle mode. I have been facing huge problem in sleeping normally. Regular intake of a nerves-soothing medicine has proved ineffective. And this problem surfaced only after I started dreaming about queueless India as logical extension of Cashless India.
I am just not able to shake off from my mind Prime Minister’s vision to transform India into a queueless wonder. This vision has helped me quash fear over prospects of India dislodging China as the world’s most populous country by 2022.
Before depicting queueless India in different spheres of life, let me quote what our beloved PM stated and which no country’s CEO has perhaps ever dared to dream.
Ridiculing demonetization critics on 3rd December, Mr. Modi reportedly stated: “We had to stand in queue to buy sugar. We had to stand in queue to buy kerosene. We had to stand in queue to buy wheat. Thanks to those who ruled for 60 years, this country was wasting away in queues.”
In obvious reference to queues outside the banks & ATMs since the announcement of demonetization, Mr. Modi said: “What I have done is to start a queue to end all queues.”
I am unsure whether Finance Minister Arun Jaitley would deride me for not understanding that queueless means less queues. Don’t forget he recently chided the Opposition for its inability to understand cashless as less cash.
Read more: Imagine Cashless India transforming as Queueless India
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Created on Saturday, 05 May 2018 03:24
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(Wired electricity supply directly from sun & wind?)
Transforming India initiative has taken wings. Some BJP stalwarts are giving mythological spin to modern science. Recall recent take from a Union Minister that mantras codified Newton’s Laws of Motion before they were framed by Issac Newton.
Other leaders are giving scientific touch to mythology. One BJP Chief Minister has claimed that ancient India had developed technologies such as satellites and internet. Another one claimed that a Vedic sage was like Google.
And some prominent leaders are giving mythological touch to post-Independence history. The first two episodes can be taken as welcome amusement during summer. The third episode, which distorts modern history, should not be taken lightly. It calls for a scrutiny in a scientific manner.
Modi Government’s entire Vikas model is based on 5 elements 1) renaming and repackaging existing schemes, 2) blacking out or marginalizing the good work done in the past, 3) presented facts in distorted manner 4) hogging limelight for all positivity & 5) cursing Congress & Nehru-Gandhi family for India’s problems.
The Government has smartly deactivated a few servers/web links that provided access to treasure trove of archival information. It knows that this is the best way to prevent scribes and analysts from giving historical perspective to India’s achievements. The denial of online access is, however, another cup of tea. It can be set aside for another write-up.
The attempt to recreate history for political aggrandizement can be understood by focusing on rural electrification. It should not be construed as an attempt to undermine well-deserved applaud over India electrifying its last powerless village on 28th April 2018.
Read more: Don’t Give Mythological Spin to India’s Growth Saga
