Mother India is our Collective Responsibility

-- Malavika Krishna, IIK Young Reporter

Thursday, August 6, 2020

We are at the eighth month of the historic year 2020. Almost four to five months have passed since the updates on COVID 19 pandemic had taken the media headline space, across the globe. I had almost stopped reading or watching news headlines as it was giving me a negative vibe with the increasing death toll and the helpless situation of people around. Luckily my school decided to start classes online to cope up with the situation and gradually I got immersed in my studies. Holding to that excuse, I purposefully continued my dislike towards the news updates.

But, 16th June, the news that twenty of our brave Jawans lost life at Galwan valley came to us. In the mountainous Leh-Ladakh regions of India, at the disputed Indo-China border area, military unrest was reported and whatever be the reason, end of the day, we lost the life of twenty of our Jawans. Amidst this pandemic, one could think of creating an unrest at the borders; literally it was an unbelievable reality for me!

Have you ever noticed that discussions on national security and peace suddenly arises from nowhere on social media platforms, whenever such specific incidents happen? All these years many of our brave soldiers have sacrificed their lives at many similar incidents, but we the civilians are happy with just discussions, making these sacrifices pointless. We have seen the extremity of our freedom of expression at such points, where verbal abuse of country heads and even the soldiers are done. There is a plethora of factors to consider while one looks at such National Security issues, and an ordinary citizen like you and me might not understand the intricacies and consequences of each action or decision taken by our authorities. All of us cannot be a soldier. The least we can do is, discharging our duties as a responsible citizen and not ignorantly blurting out whatever we think is right on various social media platforms

Mentioning our responsibilities, let me ask you this - are we all responsible towards our nation; its development; its security or its journey towards self-reliant existence? Do you think that since we are away from our mother land, we are not in the scene? Let’s discuss something which seems to be very simple. How many of us use the Chinese Apps that are currently banned in India, be it TikTok, PUBG or even Cam Scanner; even after knowing that it was banned in India for security reasons after this Galwan Valley issue? You can very well come up with wide variety of reasons ranging from ‘user-friendliness’ to the fact that ‘it's not banned outside India’ for not uninstalling them.

But I strongly disagree with all such arguments. Just because we are living far away from our motherland, does not mean that we cannot do our part. We, the NRIs are known around the world for celebrating our festivals to the best way we can, even though we live in a different country. Then why can't we do something simple such as deleting and not using the apps on our smartphones, our country asked us to not use that too in the name of national security. We Indians have never given up an opportunity to support our country though we live away, then why a different stance this time. One needs a really strong reason backed by an even strong reason to ‘let go’, and that one element is missing in us. In a world where everyone needs justification to act, is it not sad that even when we know the facts, we don't act upon it? It's a lot about attitude and mindset.

Speaking on a personal level, I was a regular user of CamScanner App to scan my assignments. But ever since its ban in India, I have stopped using it, and tried to replace it. I have not found another app that is as user-friendly as CamScanner, but there is that sense of responsibility towards my nation in me, that I’m ready to adjust and adapt with other similar apps to submit my work at school. Those banned Apps would give you fun and fame, but a citizen’s responsibility to one’s nation is much more important and significant than our personal fancies.

It is the 74th Independence Day of our Mother India and the josh of ‘Atma Nirbhar Bharat’ is in the air. To be self-reliant was one of the 4 goals of 5-year plans in India back in the 1950s. But even decades after independence we are not self-reliant in ourselves, and one wonders, “Are we really independent from foreign influence?”.

The ‘Make in India’ was one among the first initiatives put forward by the Government of India in 2014. As a result, a lot of Indian start-ups have emerged, but if they are to continue working, then we have to be their ‘demand source’. India can be self-reliant and a global leader in science and technology, but instead of questioning, we have to play our part. Even the COVID 19 crisis showed us the path to rise to the situation and utilize opportunity wisely. India is now a country who exports quality PPE kits and masks to meet the demand across the globe. World eagerly look upon us for the research on developing medicine for COVID.

Any doubt on Indian excellence? The Iron Pillar in Delhi still astounds the best metallurgists around the world. The leeway of mathematics we see today would have been fictitious if Aryabhatta had not contributed zero. Any substitute for our universities Nalanda and Takshashila? From a position where India was the global leader in any field you could think of now, we have reached a state where we are asking ourselves - “Can India become a Global Leader in Science and Technology?”. What an Irony! Actually, what made us reach such a question? If you ask me that question today, without a second thought, I can undoubtedly say-YES, and justify the same.

Many might wonder, how can this be possible when the image of perpetual poverty is still not erased from our minds. Farmers and small-scale businessmen are not able to earn enough for their family because they are being exploited by middlemen, and their goods are not as cheap as the imported ones. So, to help one another, and make our country self-reliant and truly independent, we must promote and use our goods.

The last time when Nationalism calls reached our ears, we drove the British away. Indians have shown time and again that our strength is in our unity. We have to focus on more experiential learning like how our ancestors did and start believing in our capabilities. More focus should be given to the research and development activities. A skill-based youth has to be developed that understands the treasure of knowledge India has in the field of science and technology, the resources we possess and have to work towards restoring and reviving ourselves.

If we have to shine like we once did, we should know about our rich past and its worth, understand its gloriousness, and then work towards claiming our place back in the world. India had an answer for everything under the sun in the past. You name it-India had it. But then, we had succumbed to foreign invasion, and a blind idolization of western culture got inculcated in us like a slow poison and stood as a hindrance to our development. So, what next? Create our own stuff in India. Let India be the answer for any demand. When our brave Jawans safeguard our borders, let each one of us be a soldier who fight to safeguard our country from being a marketplace for other’s products. Let us work towards ‘Atma Nirbhar Bharat’, a self-reliant India, together. Only together can we achieve our goal.

Happy Independence Day to all proud Indians.