A Look At The Grand Past Year, Underprevileged Kids, Infrastructure, Capital Issues and Fires Down Under

                  It has been my first post in this calendar year. While I wish every reader of my blog a very great year ahead, let me reminisce the year went by. By the sheer magnitude of the context, setting, position, time and criticality, I pulled off a great year 2019. I recollect how a hour is hard to go by, a day is harder to go by, a week is hardest to go by and from these innumerable weeks to build months and a year is perhaps the most humbling experience one can have. I motivated people to be more, do more and done my best to be a constant source of inspiration. I never slowed down a bit and always kept the bar very high. I had written a series of blockbuster blog posts which are no mean writings. It is a wonder that it happened in this way and I attribute nothing to myself and everything to the wonderful people all around. It is one of the most eventful years with huge activity round the year. I worked in a real sense of urgency and emergency throughout the year and initiated a revolution. I wish people across the barriers feel it and get benefitted from this revolution.

                    As I said, it is not just myself doing all this but a lot of external factors played their part which created an entire ecosystem through which I just went through my motions. This is what you call as running a revolutionary juggernaut by being at its epicentre. The year is incomplete without the support from the place I work which sustained me for a lengthy period. In short, I had lead an intangible movement, an unseen revolution last year which acted upon the imagination of the public and made a long lasting impact. I hope it is indeed very good for the country in particular and humanity in general. My work should augur well for the nation and the land should be blessed for keeping a weak person like me on the pedestal. I also hope the good work continues for the good of all in the present year.

                     Running a revolution of this magnitude might come with a price. I know within myself that I should take a break for a while or slow down a bit. I may have to pay the price for not calling enough is enough for very long but that is the danger I am constantly plying with for relentlessly marching onward and forward. While I am doing unstoppable adventures and marching ahead with urgency, I do not recommend the same to be imitated by one and all. For the simple reason that it is not a proper living and may be categorized as ‘mad’ or ‘crazy’ in some perspectives. Hence the standard disclaimer comes to my life that viewer discretion is recommended and what you saw should not be imitated. I generally concentrate and put forth those which are the positive outcomes of my actions since there might be some negatives as well.

                     Talking about the positive imitations, there are certain actions which need to be definitely imitated. Few weeks ago, I participated in one of the kind events to bring thousands of students from low income public schools onto one platform and conduct sports and cultural competitions among them. It is just to make the participants happy, winners very happy and to gift a day of joy to the next generation from challenging backgrounds. I escorted a group of students for my part who enjoyed the day very much. It is this positive energy which enables them to rise above their circumstances and pulls out from their quagmire of problems. I can also say that these events help in alleviating the poverty of the participating kids. For the reason that they are mingling with 1500 good-intentioned volunteers, for the reason that they have been attached to a cause, for the reason that they react with renewed energy when made to feel part of the greater whole.

                     Seven years ago, I associated myself with this event for the first time and felt it will uplift people from their poorer circumstances. Though it is not a magic wand to do everything overnight, it is definitely making a giant leap in right direction. These events which form a bridge between the corporate volunteers and impoverished school children also serve as a symbol to bridge the gap between haves and have nots. These events have been praised by eminent personalities as well for being like water in oasis. I sincerely wish that this activity is imitated all over the country with the outlined belief system for making lasting impressions upon the young minds. The children in public schools need to be served and brought on par with anyone else in the country. Till that time, these noble acts need to be organized all over the country. When a good deed takes place in a city, there is no reason why it should not be followed in all the other locations. Hence, these events need to be taken up with much enthusiasm and good intentions which will alter the economic imbalance of future generations.

                     Talking further about the imitations, my work place conditions, amenities and landscape need to be imitated all across the country. There is a deep-rooted rage among the public looking at my status quo. When you are working religiously and leading a good life like mine, you are bound to invoke fury. This fire can be extinguished in two ways. 1. I degrade and go to their level. Or 2. They step up and come to my level. Option 2 is different and reflects strength. One of the avenues to channelize this rage and step up is to create a great work environment. I am aware that more than 90% of the people in this country live through filthy working conditions. I am fortunate to be working in a developed and sophisticated zone within the country. This high standard of working conditions and sophistication need to spread like wildfire across the country. When this happens country becomes automatically developed. As I mentioned, the place I work is highly sophisticated and it is not just built to grow in isolation but to spread inclusion. The development should not be confined to boundaries of few isolated hubs but should inspire all the other locations to follow suit.

                   The fire tragedy in Delhi few weeks back that killed 43 people epitomizes the poor working conditions millions of Indians suffer. The fire occurred at a factory building that produces school bags and shoes in Anaj Mandi area of Delhi. Most of the people who died are poor labourers who had been forced to work in illegal factories. If the situation in capital is like this, one can imagine the plight elsewhere. The government and private bodies should have grit in providing excellent infrastructure to the working population. Infrastructure development at large, need to be taken up across the country so that the standard of living is enhanced and working conditions are improved. The government’s recent ambitious plan for 102 lakh crore infrastructure projects is a necessary step in the direction, but it need to quickly turn into action to benefit the common man of the country. I sincerely hope that the place I work serves as a good imitation and a miniature model for infrastructure development across the country.

                  Coming back to the state of A.P. which I follow closely, another issue which has been a reason for unrest and has enough room for debates is the stand taken by the government to build three capitals in the state. One is executive capital, second is legislative capital and the third is judicial capital. This is highly controversial and contradictory to the policy of earlier government to build entire capital at Amaravati. If governments change, capitals should not be changed. Else you will have to witness the severe protests as conducted by the region’s farmers. More than 30000 acres of land has been pooled from 29000 farmers by the previous government for constructing a capital. After executing this mega exercise and construction of capital underway, the policy reversal by the present government dashed the hopes of thousands of farmers. They are now staring at the uncertain future and uncertainty of the land. More than the land they want the capital to be situated in Amaravati. Unfortunately, the present government did not nurse good intentions for Amaravati and has stalled the construction activity for the past many months. Leave alone construction, it has even demolished a huge building ‘PrajaVedika’ built in previous tenure.

                   If the grudges are left aside and looks at the rationale behind the three capital theory, it is a step to decentralize administration, spread development to all regions and lessen the burden on core capital. The intentions are good and can be supported for implementation. The idea is for holistic development of the state instead of concentration of growth in a single region. Even the reports from two committees also vindicated this stand. So, the government is all set to put this 3 capital theory into practice. This is all one side of the coin but if you look at the real side of the story, let me ask you what happened to Amaravati. What happened to the dream of every Andhraite to construct an iconic capital that will put the map of AP on forefront. What happened to the status of the people who constructed two capitals elsewhere but don’t have a solid capital in their own land. What happened to the golden opportunity to construct a modern futuristic city that shall serve as role model to the entire country. What happened to the dreams of all the farmers who gave away their green farm land like nothing with the hope of seeing a great capital region. What happened to the idea of attracting investments and creating wealth by projecting a great capital region as a gateway to the state. And finally, what happened to the hope of building nothing less than grand capital which symbolizes the strength, capability and pride of Telugu speaking people.

                   The idea of a grand capital is so strong that the farmers requested for mass suicides if their demand for making Amaravati as central and whole capital is not met. It is thought as better to die than being alive for a lost cause. The people from throughout the state gave donations to the then government for the construction of a people’s capital which has been acceptable to one and all. The present government must sustain this wish of people and work towards fulfilling the wish. The young government must take steps towards realizing the dream of a great capital without diluting it with three capital theory. A great capital will not just develop the location but can improve the revenue of the state as a whole through which development works can be taken up else where. A great capital can serve as an engine of growth for the entire state. The previous government with Amaravati as capital ranked number 1 in the country by growing over 10% for five consecutive years. The present government came to power through determination and hard work. It should not send all this work down the drain but rather use it fruitfully by showing how determined it is to build a great capital.

                   The opportunity state division has given should be grabbed with both the hands and an inspirational capital should be built. Andhra Pradesh served as growth engine of the country in the recent past and halting Amaravati can be detrimental to the country as a whole. It is in the best interests of the nation that building this capital is continued unabated and central government must play its part towards that end without being a silent spectator. They say it is impossible and impractical to build the conceived capital with available resources but one should remember that Rome was not built overnight. Man did not land on moon first, a thought did. Amaravati is also a thought, a vision which should and must come into the reality. As a young generation it is the gift we can give to its visionary. To conclude, the state government must build on the work done by previous government, lay bricks on top of foundations laid, resume the construction work in the capital area and realize the aspirations of crores of people.

                   Navigating past the borders and into the world, a horrific news is about the fires in Australia. The country has always experienced bushfires – it has a ‘fire season’. But this year they are worse than normal. Almost 7.3 million hectares have been burned across six Australian states – an area larger than the Belgium and Denmark combined. The worst affected state is NSW with more than 4.9 million hectares burned. While 27 people died and many flee the fires, as many as 1 billion animals died across the nation according to ecologists from University of Sydney. The total number of animals died is equal to the population of India. The dead animal estimates are conservative and true mortality is likely to be substantially higher. It is horrific to say the least about the death of hundreds of millions of animals. At this difficult times, let us all pray for the country and wild fires. Hope monsoon rains drench the country and put out the fires. The power of worldwide prayer is huge and let us all pray that the animal life is restored and replenished very soon.