Reason why Indians want to go out, is coz, inspite of our stupendous growth in recent years, the standard-of-living is nowhere near the western countries.
Infact, i had read an article somewhere, which said that, even though India might become a superpoower in the next 20years, it standard-of-living will not be like that of Western countries (today).
Per that article, India will take approx 100yrs to reach the standards (at ground level), which western countries have today.
It makes sense, with our level of corruption, slow-moving bureaucracy & anti-economic-politics. How can our congested cities like mumbai/calcutta, morph into the newyorks & hongkongs, when its impossible to remove slums, move people etc etc.
It is due to these reasons, that Indians wanna go abroad. I want to enjoy my life now, & not wait for 100yrs, by which time i will be dead.
But, at the same time, I feel that, many indians, especially educated ones, now are thinking twice before taking up a foreign job.
People at the lower level, will always want to go-abroad, coz of their stereotypes.
Irrespective of whatever we labour to tell and convince ourselves about India's future, two facts about India and Indians will remain impregnable; namely the reality of traditionally well entrenched corruption and that of over population that has been steadily getting worse and will get much worse in the years to come. And these two prospects will ensure that India gets nowhere near the superpower status that has become such a common term of parlance in today's India.
Contrary to what a large segment of public opinion appears to suggest today, corruption (subversion of public services and resources to the detriment of the commoner) in India has been an age old phenomenon; culturally linked to us since the dawn of history. There is concurrence among those who should know that corruption is one evil that will not allow a society to achieve a meaningful level of development as long as it is given a free reign like it always has been in India, whatever that society's merits are otherwise. And it is this reality that has entirely escaped common Indians. To this day, despite India being repeatedly given the unflattering label of one among the most corrupt nations by several agencies (Transparency International included), the full import of such a laurel has not dawned on the general Indian populace. Veritably, we simply do not see the volcano we are sitting on.
On the matter of population, India has the ignominious status of the developing nation with the highest population density (one illustrative measure of this is a plain comparison with China; while India has a population of 108 crores, China has 125 crores with a land area exactly three times as much as India's !!). This density instantly takes away whatever advantages India's growing economy brings for it. Coupled with this scenario is the even more distressing fact that India's population growth rate is still far too high to foresee the day when the population will actually stabilise so that the fruits of economic growth can even begin to reach large sections of the citizenry. Little wonder then that India is one nation that has the dubious distinction of being touted widely by sections of it's media and it's populace as the next 'superpower' while retaining ranks as low as 126 year after year among nations in the 'Human development Index' published by the UN.
If building castles in the air could be a competitive sport, we common Indians would go quite some distance in that !!
Its nice to have an article by Mr. Datta Ray after sometime. I agree totally with him regarding the hipocracy of the politicos and other culturewallahs, specially of the leftist kind.
India is definitely on the growth path. But Modern India is not equipped to face impending dangers India as nation is going to face in view of global terrorist network:
The other serious challenges being India has a worst politicians who fail to understand the need of the hour. Politicians are bound to pull India middle ages by resorting to: 1) Minority appeasment programs 2) Caste based division of society 3) Burden the nation with debts. Billions of dollars are taken as loan from World Bank, ADB etc on short term basis. So a few years of time interests are going to eat away the benefits we are going to see 4) Law and order and Justice system is not equipped enough to sky rocketing organized crime rate like human trafficking, kidnap, prostitution, pornography, drugs and mafia Illegal immigrants from Bangladesh and Pakistan are easily getting Indian passports in Kerala, West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh. 5) Mass media like TV channels and Print Media (news papers) shy away from showing the true social evils listed above for fear of facing political pressures.
It's time rediff started hiring columnists who have at least completed primary school or know how to use a calculator, if this is asking for too much. The esteemed columnist states that 9.8 million Indian Rupees are equal to $24000 USD. This really jolted me as I wondered whether the currency had suddenly devalued 10 times overnight? Luckily I was wrong. It was just rediff who probably is short on copy-editing staff let such an egregious mistake pass. At today's rate of conversion, 9.8 INR amount to $240549 USD. Better luck next time.
RE:Get your Math right!
by sushant naik on May 13, 2007 07:15 AM Permalink
hahaha rediff does it everytime..i have no doubt that the editor failed maths badly..lolz
RE:Get your Math right!
by on May 14, 2007 01:26 PM Permalink
Very true.... rediff always has its maths wrong... and to top it all.. they dont even issue an errata or apology...
It's time rediff started hiring columnists who have at least completed primary school or know how to use a calculator, if this is asking for too much. The estemeed columnist states that 9.8 million Indian Rupees are equal to $24000 USD. This really jolted me as I wondered whether the currency has suddenly devalued 10 times overnight? Luckily I was wrong. It was just rediff who probably is short on copy-editing staff let such an egrgious mistake pass. At today's rate of conversion, 9.8 INR amount to $240549 USD. Better luck next time.
The *boom* we are talking about is done by exploiting the environmental resources in highly unsustainable manner. We are already facing shortages of all kinds - be it petrol, minerals, wood etc. Add to it the negative effect such as global warming, pollution etc... you will realize we have reached the tipping point already. Give it maybe 20 more years... there will only environmental bomb, no boom anywhere.
So start saying your prayers no itself that you can enjoy basic clean water, air and have food on the table.
RE:Boom USA?
by sibby mathews on May 14, 2007 02:51 PM Permalink
Very rightly said, Mr. Venkat.
And let me add that our very high tolerance for corruption will only hasten very much the process of environmental degradation to the point of no return. With the way matters lie at present, even after such an apocalypse has fully hit us, common educated Indians will still say 'India is definitely going to be the next superpower'.
What booming India are the commentors talking about here? We dont have 24 electricity to provide, people are dying of hunger everywhere, sanitary conditions are worst than some south african countries, there is no respect for another human being. Government is just focused on building the infrastructure or whatever they think it might be, but not maintenining it. The much over-hyped Mumbai-Pune expressway caved in in just 5 years and people are now using tar mix to fill the pot-holes. Is this the way to become a superpower? Give me a break. No Indian in their right mind will even think about India becoming a superpower in next 100 years.
RE:What booming India?
by blue wrox on May 13, 2007 01:51 AM Permalink
"Give you a break",why are u talking like an american.I believe in india becoming a superpwer in the next twenty years.America is already down the drain.I am not the only one.There are atleast 500 million people who think like me,the 50% optimistic ones
RE:RE:What booming India?
by Truth BeTold on May 13, 2007 03:53 AM Permalink
All those 500 millions must be my fellow Indians like you. There is no harm in dreaming big and achieving it but dont brag about something which we havent even achieved. Law enforcement is the weakest link in India. Everyone and anyone who is someone will try and break the law to get their work done. There are new snazzy malls coming in Mumbai and other places in India but there is no electricity to provide. Have you ever visited the US to say that its down the drain? Forget US, talk bout any western country. Isnt it also strange that only South east asia is the poorest region in the world with not a single world class city in that place? I can argue all day long and still not convience you but time will tell.
RE:What booming India?
by mohammed safiuddin on May 14, 2007 09:02 AM Permalink
did u mean south asia? coz south east asia, far from being poor, is home to the famous tiger economies.heard of singapore, kuala lumpur, bangkok? world class cities right there.
RE:What booming India?
by Yogesh Patel on May 13, 2007 02:44 AM Permalink
Get out of your day dreams buddy...America is not down the drain.. India is progressing but it will be a long way before you even come close to USA. Just think in America, you can drink water at any place without thinking twice... while in India you are even worried about bottled waters. Kind of respect Americans have for Law and Order is not even thinkable in India. Sure we are getting better but to be like USA in every aspect of Human life it will be years. I love my India but we should strive to be as good as America and learn some good things from USA instead of dwelling what America is not doing good. I wish you come to USA and see for yourself what it means to live in a free country.
RE:What booming India?
by Dhrumil on May 13, 2007 03:36 AM Permalink
it took USA 300 years and 2 world wars(weakened other countries) to become a dominant superpower....at least lets give India 70-80 years after independence to become a super power...it well on its way and another 10-12 years we all will see
RE:What booming India?
by Truth BeTold on May 13, 2007 03:50 AM Permalink
We are so pathetically hypocrite. When it comes to history and culture we are a 5000 yr old nation but when it comes to development and prosperity we are just 50 yrs old. Take the US out of equation and think about Japan, Germany and S. Korea who have become what they are in last 50 years, any excuses? Corruptionis so deep rooted in India that getting work done without it is a miracle.
RE:What booming India?
by sumit batra on May 13, 2007 06:09 AM Permalink
no offense but it is true. After 30-40 years india will be called islamic republic of India. That will be a real progress
friends please disregard everything about Murthy as he is an imposter. I bet he has a bad childhood and is a classic case of lack of mothers breastfeeding. That is evident in this tirade against Mother India. He must be a depraved lunatic living below poverty line and gets hallucinations of rich arabs attending belly dancing in dharan. It is not only a mirage but a reflection of his homosexual inclinations which make me suspect Paki influence. So best to ignore him and preserve our composure to discuss various things which are relevant to our Indian way of life.
