On our 61st Independence Day
by Ravinder Malhotra on Aug 15, 2008 10:24 AM Permalink | Hide replies

We are thrilled, that India has

A constellation of billionaires

We are thrilled our companies have

Their sights on global wares

We exult that despite

The West’s economic meltdown,

Our middle class buys apartments

At prices their parents frown

And march on into the malls,

To buy exotic creams

And fly with gay abandon

Beyond their parents dreams

This is one India showcased

In glittering sheen and growth

But another lurks in its shadow

Where life’s of little worth

Debt ridden farmers kill

Themselves in hopeless despair

And poverty forces thousands

To beg everywhere

The future where is pegged to

Maybe a good monsoon

But where the spiralling prices

Eat into their earnings soon

Hungry children drop out of school

And suffer everyday

Die of diseases that can be cured

Where misery holds its sway

Which is the real India?

My countrymen tell me now

61 years of independence

Oh India celebrates how?

………� Ravinder Malhotra 15.08.2008

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RE:RE:On our 61st Independence Day
by Aby Kurian on Aug 15, 2008 07:42 PM Permalink
Superb.

Hope you get an opportunity to publish you poems.

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RE:On our 61st Independence Day
by Gopal on Aug 16, 2008 11:31 PM Permalink
Good poem. The two sides of Indian diaspora. Neatly described. The rulers should see both sides before taking any decision.

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RE:On our 61st Independence Day
by swetambar on Aug 15, 2008 05:35 PM Permalink
Mr.Ravinder Malhotra,

This is an excellent write up. Please keep posting on rediff board, we need quality bloggers like this

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