Hi Guys,

As the Republic of India celebrates its 60th anniversary, there is so much to cheer about for all of us. We all have traveled through very tough and trying times in the past 60 years. I cannot say that we are on top, because we are not. But I can gladly say that we are moving ahead. I still wonder many times what was the real reason for the British to grant freedom to us. I sometimes think that they left us on our own because there was nothing left with us. They literally left us in ruins. 200 years of looting can put any country on the back foot. Historians have estimated that in the last 20 years of the Raj, the crown took a whopping 150 million pounds every year as a tribute.
Independent India's political leadership had such gigantic milestones to achieve. Mere praise is not sufficient for these selfless leaders who sowed the first seeds of development 60 years ago. India's GDP in the first half of 20th century grew at a rate of 0.1% per annum. Since then India has made tremendous progress. GDP has quantum leaped by over 500 times. The average annual salary was Rs 255 in 1951 which is now Rs 33,283. Steel production has soared by 50 times, cement by 70 times, electricity by a whopping 128 times. Food production has shot up by 4 times, thanks to Green Revolution.
Independent India has marched ahead with great pride and is respected by all the developed and developing countries. Indians have made a mark in all fields of engineering, science and technology, buisness, research and development. Even in a recent talk to a group of students, the President of United States Mr.Barack Obama warned the students about the tough competition they would have to endure from people of Bangalore and Beijing. This pretty much sums up how much we have achieved when you compare from where we started 60 years ago.
But is this the true picture of the progress. All this is only the better part of the truth. The bitter truth is that even after 60 years, a shocking 400 million of our brethren are still under poverty line. India has developed on par with global standards in the cities with cars, buildings, malls, planes, metros etc etc. But on visiting the rural areas gives you the right picture. It appears that they live in a ancient civilization bereft of even the basic needs of living. Our development is very much uneven and is a huge concern.
As we are celebrating our 60th anniversary, there is so much to cheer about, the freedon from ruthless economic plunder, our improved strength in the economy, self sufficiency in the food, slow and steady improvement of technology, education and health. But, this is not enough. Much has to be achieved for a decent dignity of livelihood for every man. This is not the job of only our leaders. This is the responsibility of each and every educated individual of our country. We all should be aware of our problems. As part of our college education we had a self reliance program in the rural villages of our country. Many of us were shocked at the plight of the people and their living conditions. That was an eye opener for so many of us. The younger generation of today are hardly aware of the problems that has gripped our country. We have to stop being selfish all the time. Thinking only about us, our career, our assets etc etc is a very selfish outlook of life. We all need to move from this mold of thinking. Thinking & caring for others, acting as a group will put us on the right track. If all the individuals are good, it reflects a good family which reflects a good home which in turn reflects a good society which in turn reflects a good and a strong nation. Each and every individual must think in this direction, that will take care of more than half of our problems.

Signing off for now,
Krishna