Take On My experience In New Mode and Few Concerns - 3

                          My life is progressing in the new mode similar to a journey on a bumpy road. Though I do not find any bumps or potholes on the roads here, I am facing shudders at regular intervals. I was asked what I would do 5 years from now. The answer is silence. I thought of asking ‘Are you serious, I was thinking about 5 days from now’ but resisted. At times you get as blindfolded as it gets that I remember the situation when I asked myself: How many times you are sacked by despair – zillion. How many times you saw a ray of hope – zilch. If you face obstacles and challenges, overcome the hitches and reach the destination safe then the journey is all the more special and rewarding. Hope that I am on such a path. As such life is not ducking away from rain but dancing in the storm.

                      There are few turns which are taken in the last few weeks and a few need to be taken in the weeks ahead after facing the cross roads. One of the turns is as daunting as it can get and I landed in the world’s leading and most prototyped cities in the recent past. Though it is just a coincidence and has nothing to do with my own personal task, I am trying not to get under the skin of the aura. After coming from India, one thing which never eludes notice is I never feel living among the crazy people of this big city till now. A few days back, I walked along a busy highway. The entire journey felt numb and thought if I was alone in Antarctica going nowhere. There is pin-drop silence and only heard the gush of air from the vehicles sped past. This is because the movement on roads is systematic and incomprehensible for a mean man like me. I felt many times the needless orchestra of horns honking to freak out the weak hearts is a sign of welcome to big cities. That way I am yet to get a welcome over here. Another observation is I am yet to find scores of people in public places in a haphazard manner picturing chaos. These elements which are imbibed in the genes of large cities are all missing.

                            Though it is not less populous when compared to any of the metros back home, they are able to manage the numbers well within the area they had. This leads to emphasis on the buzz phrases ‘population management’ and ‘standard of living’. You cannot have a country of millions who want to migrate for a better living. Peace needs to be found within. A visit to a US consulate reveals the long queues of students and working age people patiently waiting for an appointment.   The population of the country witnessed a jump in numbers post-independence and increased by nearly 250%. This enormous rise in population should not be attributed to the migration as the natural consequence. The land can self-sustain the numbers because India is not a densely populated nation than some of the other developed countries. For example, Singapore and Hong Kong, the world’s best places in many parameters, has a population density of 7000 people per sq. km. whereas India has 430 per sq. km. So, the country can take a lot more than present and yet satisfy them all. I am not sure, if not all, at least the capital state of New Delhi which attracts the nation’s best can match with a Singapore in terms of standards of living and other positive parameters. But I am sure the sound and air pollution are sky-high, matchless and challenges the worst for a place in last.

                       Many a men argue that the nation is younger, became independent very recently and will take a cool couple of centuries before we are ‘there’. But these small nations became independent post our independence and yet managed to evolve as per the requirements. Needless to say, our past successive governments and the people they represent are unbecoming or unconscious of the developments and left for the future generation to scramble and make-up for the shortcomings. This might be because the priorities lies elsewhere and they achieved something else. Those in the centers of legislature resort to escapist and mudslinging patterns without effective law and policy making to build better frameworks and the people love to watch the entertainment which ultimately maintains the status quo. You cannot have the rate of population growth outgrowing the rate of sophistication, rise in standards and satisfaction of living.

                     I mentioned a few times in this space regarding the pros and cons of division of a state. Though the process followed was questionable, creating smaller states for socio-economic development is a good setup to decentralize the powers. Smaller states with autonomous and absolute powers for dynamic policy making will usher in development as envisioned by propaganda of the ruling party. A visionary Chief Minister built a township near my workplace in India which utilizes the resources sparingly and yet elevates the standards of living. These efforts need to be replicated with participation from everyone since there is a growing attitude of shedding the burden and accountability on the heads of state.