Fortune magazine in an article entitled ‘The Last BRIC standing’ has this to say: Under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi, India is doing what its once-celebrated cohorts in the emerging-markets bloc can no longer seem to do: emerge.
While dismissing B – Brazil, R – Russia and C – China as disappointments, the magazine adds: The only component of this bloc not imploding is the ‘I’ — India, a country long known for strong potential and feeble performance. Indeed, India is set to become one of the fastest-growing major economies in the world over the next several years … with a GDP of 7.5 to 8% in 2016 itself.
We know foreign media and FDI are fair-weather friends and their concern and compliments are akin to that of a wolf to a goat’s. The phrase ‘emerging market’ itself is a give away on the snooty way they look at India – a fertile field to plant and peddle their wares and scoot with the harvest. Still, for a people genetically programmed to seek ratification from beyond frontiers (no, I am not referring to Modi’s frequent flier fad), such words bring not just comfort but confidence. Spiritual India can say ‘I’ proudly in the material sense.
Fortune’s forecast apart, we ourselves are quite aware of the misfortune of the mismatch between ‘strong potential and feeble performance’. From evocative poets of the past to economic pundits of the present, a wide spectrum of people have bemoaned the yawning gap between what is and what should have been in the decades since Independence. The inadvertent usage of the term ‘spectrum’ above rather sums up one of the major reasons why the chasm came into existence and has kept expanding: Corruption!
Other villains include the vice-grip of a devious dynasty, crony capitalism combined with and camouflaged by a socialist smokescreen, a rusted bureaucratic steelframe that acted more as an armour for the politicos than the people and a society deliberately divided on communal and caste lines by pseudo-secularism and a quirky quota system. These may seem like a simplistic summation of a sixty eight-year history, but will still suffice as recap of what what was and a recharge for what should be. The present is therefore a perfect vantage point for a reality check.
For the first time in its history the country has a leader who enjoys both a clear majority and a clean image. Even his worst critics do not accuse him of corruption. In fact, some have gone as far as saying that he is personally incorruptible. The worst one can hold against him as a private itch is his fancy for flashiness. If indeed it is a vice, trust politics and his own partymen to erase that veneer too soon enough.
The dynasty that corrupted the country’s core for much of its ‘free’ life is now down in the dumps. Babudom is being dusted up from its decay and is stirring to life, albeit slowly and reluctantly. The nation is home to the largest youth population in the world, a major factor that underlies the predictions of a very productive and prosperous future. Despite the din and disorder that manifests most on media, India is a vibrant democracy with vote percentages rising. From environment to tackling terrorism, India’s footprint is planted firmly in the front on all global fora.
There are deterrents though. A dysfunctional Parli is the biggest drag at a time when legislations are critical. BJP’s dependence on discredited and difficult regional lords in the RS is a disturbing roadblock, particularly with many prospective State elections having the potential to aggravate the situation. Cooked up communal tensions and an orchestrated propaganda over non-existent ‘intolerance’ are signs of worse mischiefs in store. And as ever, there are the enemies within to reckon with, who are not going to be as easy a game as Obama and Putin to win over.
India indeed is on a critical threshold of history. Its responsibility is huge because its success could mean a lot to a number of third world nations who had all suffered for centuries under exploitative imperialism. Various countries look at India very positively, for various reasons may be. The Fortune flattery need not be a flash in the pan but a scenario that can actually materialise. India can ill-afford to relinquish its role.
Modi may symbolise the resugerence but people are the real substance. We as Indians must rise above self-defeating cynicism and instead believe in our ability and resources to bridge the great gap between potential and performance. This incidentally is a lesson I learned, or rather, was taught by the Chennai floods.
Happy New Year.
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