Reflections on India and Need for Greater Participation in India

 It has been more than a month. Let us do an India round up this time. I have been staying for significant amount of time away from the country and it should not be a deterrent to the interests of the nation in any small way. Every person adds up to the nation as a whole and some persons should not offset the work done in national interest by others. In a way it comes to the point if you are working for the nation or against the nation. I can firmly tell my foreign tenures should be a big boost to India. I might be committing a mistake if it is not the case. Indians may spread across the world but everone must work for the interests of the nation, even ahead of the host nations. Else development happens elsewhere and mediocrity prevails in homeland. It is high time that there should emanate a consensus among everyone that the interests of India are paramount and top priority than anything else someone is doing externally or internally. 

When you contribute to high standards elsewhere but don't improve the status quo within the nation, it doesn't make any sense. For instance, India has the highest number of people who live abroad in the world. No other nation has as many people who have emigrated to better foreign nations. Nearly 2 crore people have emigrated out of the nation and settled all around the world. These people become excellent ambassadors for India, serving the local communities and nations with utmost dedication, work ethic. But the question remains whether they go against the interests of India. India has the highest number of emigrants for the least development of homeland among every major nation in the world. While Indians outside the nation does very well, it somehow doesn't translate to Indians within India. First we need to have a great home nation and the spillovers can be relocated to other parts of the world. But it is not the case where Indians grow tremendously well externally but leave the growth of India to shambles. The wave should work in favour of India first and everyone should rededicate for it's cause more than the personal and foreign causes.

In another instance, why the Indians within are living in exclusion to national growth story. It is a big puzzle and a failure of leaders and driving forces not to engage Indians for it's own growth. One plain fact speaks a lot on this - the labour participation rate (LPR) is 40% for men and 33% for women. The working age population(15 years and older) of India is estimated to be about 61% of total population - 840 million. This famed demographic dividend has a short lifespan and will decline after 2036. You can build mountains and reach skies when this enormous potential is tapped with some urgency at its ripe age. But when 60% of men and 67% of women are not working or not willing to work, it dents the chances of the nation in becoming developed in a huge way. When Indians within don't have opportunities and given up on the idea to run for the nation, it becomes a waste of potential of Himalayan magnitude. When you are required to engage hundreds of millions of people above their working standards of present, it requires a tremendous push from all directions. The government and everyone concerned has reached out to the huge volume but still fall very short of the requirement. When the country doesn't mend at the right time and doesn't mend at all, it points out to the waiting for the wave to take them along or waiting eagerly for rainfall in torrid conditions. The wave must come and the rainfall must come as well to bless the nation but no one must act against these happenings.

When there is stimulus applied, the body cannot be in a state of inertia. You never knew how much power is required to overcome this resistance for change. I had gone over and above the orbit in the last decade or more. A great working person in a country looks for similar response from the people. More than who didn't work, I would like to highlight who worked and changed for the better. I am from A.P living in Telengana. I would like to touch up on the tremendous progress made by Telengana after it's formation, raising and working on parallel lines along with me in my journey. It's a good progress card to see for people like me. In this episode of India roundup, let me briefly go over it which should serve as a model to emulate for every other state.

Telengana has become a frontrunner among Indian states, showcasing tremendous economic progress. The state recorded an impressive percapita income of 3.17 lakhs, a staggering 156% growth since its formation. This wealth creation is like water in oasis in India. I got less than this percapita income when I started out in my job. Now everyone is getting these funds is a much needed transformation. This figure is among the highest percapita incomes in the country for a state.

The state has made humongous strides in irrigation in the few years since formation. Irrigation development has been prioritized by allocating significant funds. Many a land which has been barren earlier has turned green producing useful crops after giving adequate sources of water. The success can be demonstrated by the fact that gross irrigated area has increased by 117% in the past 9 years. The completion of Kaleshwaram, the world's largest lift irrigation project in record time and effective implementation of Mission Kakateeya gave a new lease of life to farming community.

The IT sector in the state has soared to new heights in the last decade. The state's IT exports has reached from 57,258 crore in 2014 to 2,41,275 crore rupees in 2023, an explosive increase of 321%. This is a testament to the progress the state has made in covering huge ground in very little time. Hyderabad is now India's top tech hub and an innovation capital, thanks to the waves of progress it has experienced and realization of immense potential it has tapped and unlocked.

Not just these, the state has made measurable, transformational and visible progress in other sectors as well like healthcare, education, village panchayats, state municipalities, environment etc. Nothing will happen if people remained in isolation to great causes and interests of nation. The striking feature is the whole-hearted participation of its people in the ongoing churning happened in the state. The state's model of development and growth has become a buzzword in the country which needs to be spread all across the land. The astounding success and achievements of Telengana in a span of 9 years since formation are a reflection of indomitable spirit of its people. This spirit needs to be contagious in the people and the state needs to be a model to imitate.

These are the reflections from the India roundup for this time where we had seen the necessity from Indian emigrants to prioritize contribution to homeland, instances of low and high levels of participation behind the idea of India's growth.