A Different Independence Day

15 August 2007. India will celebrate 60 years of independence.

Sometimes I wonder, what does Indian Independence really mean to us today? What do we do on 15th Aug? We might get up late. We will buy small tirangas with those spinning chakras attached to them. And then very efficiently we will tie them to our vehicle. All day patriotic songs will be played on Radio Mirchi. That’s it!

We crib that nothing seems to work in India. We curse our system and say “Nothing is going to happen to this country”. It’s good that we realize that there are a lot of issues with our country. And the all issues are inter-linked, forming a vicious circle. But what are we doing to break this vicious circle?

Our heroes of the past cleaned our home for us. They told us "Kar chalein hum fida jaan aur tan saathiyon, ab tumhare hawalein vatan saathiyon". They have handed us the batons. It’s our duty now to wake up and take firm steps to better our country.

This 15th August, let us all do something, anything simple, that will make this Independence Day different.

You can decide to plant a tree or make your maid servant happy by giving her a holiday too. Or you can think of doing some kind of social service. You can do that little bit to avoid pollution by not taking out your vehicle – you can cycle instead! Small things as such cannot change all our issues at an instant. But at least you can give it a start. “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”.

So on this Independence Day, try to do something that can make a difference. It will. And what more, you can share your experiences / episodes of the day, so as to motivate all those around you!

Tax!!

They said that you must pay your tax with a smile!
I tried it... But then they said, they wanted cash!!

As a tax payer, I want to know if I have the right to know what was done with the money I paid to the government? I do not mean the general details - but ALL the details... Where is my money going?

All of us do some kind of recording of their expenses. Some do it in their minds, while others prefer writing it down. How much you earn, how much you spend -All this is tracked in our little "finance notebooks". And there goes one entry under the title "TAX".

Currently India is experiencing a software boom. Every person - left, right & centre - works in an IT company with a hefty pay. And with this hefty pay comes a hefty tax. What is happening to this huge tax that we all are paying?

We have economists who are talking about the "economic imbalance" that is being created because of the growing software industry in India. They are talking about things like "only the software professionals are getting richer, everything else remains where it is". This maybe somewhat true... But cant our great Economists come & tell us how we can do good with the money that is flowing from the global market into India?

I am ready to pay double the tax that I am paying today - If only I can be assured that the money I am paying is going to those needy poor people... I perfectly agree about the economic imbalance. So what can be the solution? Are we expected to step down, so that everyone is equal? Or can we pull up the ones below, so that we are equal? Definitely the second option is better... But how can it be implemented? By paying our tax into the pockets of those who promise to lead our nation? Wont the rich continue to become richer in such a case?!! :)

Divisions

Once upon a time, when the world began, God created 2 divisions: "Male" and "Female". He divided all his creations in these 2 sections.

Then man developed wisdom. And he began creating several divisions.

He divided God and created religions. He divided religions and created castes. He decided some people are more priviledged than others. Man built societies and developed rules to stay in every society.

Let us consider one such section of people: the Indians. We have divisions based on caste, creed, sex, religions... and what not! I have a question here: Is'nt it important to give every division the right it deserves? Yes, I know you all will agree to this.

So someone comes up and puts forth the need for 49.5% reservations in some top shools in India. Reservations that are based on castes and creed.

I believe we should have 60% reservations in all fields. There should be 60% reservations in schools, colleges and offices... But this should be reserved to a different division of people- "The Economically Backward Class".

Think about today. And think about tomorrow. Do we really need divisions in our society based on "upper caste" and "lower caste"? Do we still live the life we lived some thousand years back?

The section of people who really need help today, are the economically backward people. Some of these people wish to study, but cant do so because of lack of finance. Some dont even realise the need for education. We talk about educating such people, right? Then why dont we give them enough resources for the same? Do this, and most of India's problems would be tackled...

A Revolution

I watched "Rang De Basanti" last weekend. I loved the movie and the message that it conveyed made me write my thoughts on this topic.

The Republic day was over. That day I wondered "why are we celebrating this day?". What significance does this day have after 55+ years? What constitution are we talking about?
All day patriotic songs were played on Radio Mirchi. And I wondered what the "freedom fighters" had fought for. They had laid down their lives. And our Mother India got freedom. But freedom from what?

I just shrugged off my thoughts... What use it is to think of all this anyway? What difference is it going to make? But I got a holiday from office. That was all that pleased me.

And then I watched Rang De Basanti.

The movie too showed how we, common citizens, crib about all the problems in our country. But we are ready to do nothing. I liked the way Amir and Madhavan debated on this topic. Amir pointed out that we are unable to move ahead as we all are tied to our past. And yet we think about our future and are trying to run somewhere. He said:
"Humara ek paiir past mein hai, aur ek paiir future mein hai...
Isiliye hum aaj mein moot rahe hain!"
How true!
But what Madhavan replied was equally true. He said, "Everyone wants his home to be clean, tidy and perfect. But no one wants to dirty their hands to clean his house!"

And I agreed completely...

We crib that nothing seems to work correctly in India. We curse our systems and opt to run to the US. But the need of today is to wait here and clean the mess that we are in.
We can identify the problems. And we suggest solutions. What we dont do is, try to implement the solutions. Its difficult, I agree. But now we must fight. Fight like how our freedom-fighters fought. They gave up their lives for a cause. We also have a cause. "No country is perfect. We, the youth must come up and take efforts to make our country perfect", said Madhavan.

Our heros of the past cleaned our home for us. They told us "Kar chalein hum fida jaan aur tan saathiyon, ab tumhare hawalein vatan saathiyon". They have handed us the batons. Its our duty now to wake up and take firm steps to better our country.

Today we are more educated, have more exposure to media, have the mind and the right to express our thoughts, our opinions. The fight to clean India should not be as hard as it was before. Let us not wait for another Bhagatsingh to lay down his life to realise " the start of a revolution".