Glorious India

It is said that unless you dream you will under achieve; today’s dream will be tomorrow’s reality. Also it is only when you dream you know what to do. Mine is a huge dream.

Here is an extract …

SUNDRY   TIMES

Special correspondent

Washington

19 June, 2011

While addressing the United Nations assembly on India’s entry as a permanent member in the Security Council, Prime Minister Singh, announced that the state of J&K is historically and legally integral to the polity of India. He added that a sovereign state never negotiated its territory.

The shock and awe that ensued was perceptible in the Assembly. The statement was received with deafening silence.  Are we seeing a new and resurgent India ready to lead the world through the twenty first century? – may have been the thought pervading the minds of many present.

To the discerning, developments within India over the last few months were indicative of the rising stock of India.

Actually it had all started just prior to President Obama’s visit to India post Diwali last year.

First it was the ousted Pakistan President Mushraf who admitted to training terrorists to act against India. Then it was the former premier of Britain Tony B. saying that the West should have years ago listened to India in regard to terrorists and terrorism.  The world finally woke up to the fact that India has to be heard.

Listening and asking were the only items on the agenda of Barack Obama during the visit, the longest by a serving President of the USA. Even on the first day of the visit it became clear that the USA wanted to take from India rather than give something. The world had begun to realize that while the infrastructure was in China, business and business acumen was in India. You needed the latter more for infusing life in an economy in the short term.

So the USA wanted India to create more jobs in that country. Ban on export of dual use items to India was quietly given the burial. Nuclear business with the USA was assured and a tacit understanding was reached between the countries for a permanent seat for India in the Security Council.

Besides, the USA had not missed India’s stand on up-valuing the Yuan expressed during the G20 meet in Korea just prior to the Presidential visit. India was about the only country that supported China to resist the pressure from other Nations to upgrade the value of Yuan. While all these countries looked at exports into China, India was seeing imports from China of infrastructure projects. In return India inc would set shop(s) in China to boost its economy. The world did not miss the bonhomie and camaraderie between the two great powers.  China was aware that in the ensuing year India will surpass its economy to be the number two in the world.

It is well known that in the beginning of the year Narayana Murthy of Infosys and Bill Gates of Microsoft merged their philanthropic efforts. It is rumored that a conglomerate (in the form of a SPV) to be formed by Infosys, TCS and Wipro coming together, is planning to buy out 66.6% stake in Microsoft.

Internally, India was dealing with situations with an iron glove.  The original team of three interlocutors in Kashmir was increased to eleven to include three Generals who commanded troops in the valley. Well known poet and activist Javed Akhtar and the Shahi Imam of Juma Masjid, Delhi, were also included in the team. The secessionist Hurriyat leaders were given an option to participate in the impending General elections in J&K or face sedition charges. They chose the former.

It was only in December 2010 Afzal Guru, a terrorist convicted of masterminding an attack on the Indian parliament was hanged to death and in February this year the lone terrorist Ajmal Kasab, who was convicted in the 26/11 massacre of the innocents in Mumbai was executed after all due process of law.

There has since been a marked reduction in the number of militants infiltrating from Pakistan.

In late January this year the Government had brought in an ordinance banning religious and extremist groups directly or indirectly participating in politics. The factions of Muslim league in Kerala and at National levels have dissolved and joined their respective coalition partners. On the verge of being banned, RSS dissolved itself and merged with the mainstream BJP.

In a compromise, before the honourable Supreme Court, involving all affected parties, the disputed land at Ayodhya was taken over by a trust comprising representatives of all faiths of the world. A university for study of spiritualism is coming up in the twenty odd acres there, with additional land being given to the trust by the UP government.

In Karnataka, status quo remains. Yeddiyurappa’s government continues. It was agreed that that ` 4.5K million earmarked by various political parties for bribing dissident MLAs be donated to the corpus raised for restoration of all water bodies in Bangalore and other parts of Karnataka.

Similarly, ` 27K million recovered from the CWG scam is being spend by the Delhi government on cleaning up the Yamuna and rehabilitation of slums in the NCR. Part of the fund is also earmarked for promotion of Olympic sports, after India won a record 71 medals in the 2010 Asiad. This was followed by a resounding thrashing of Australia in the just concluded Cricket world cup. Along with Vekatesh Prasad as the bowling coach, Cricket Australia is in negotiations with Mohinder Amarnath as the senior coach and Robin Singh as the fielding coach.

It is apt to mention here that Kapil Sibal, the HRD minister in Singh’s cabinet, has in the pipe line a revamp of the country’s education system, to ensure that at the end of 15 years of learning we get a product that is employable. It was only recently the CII and FICCI concluded after a protracted study, that the problem within the country was of unemployability and not unemployment.

Notwithstanding the big strides made by India on the economic and political fronts, the Union Government of India be impressed upon to maintain an adequate and motivated defence force equipped with the state of the art weaponry and also establish a potent defence related manufacturing base (industry) in the country with the aim of ensuring that India remains a Super Power for a long time to come.