In discussing the future of a country much is made of the leader or government in power. But, in the ultimate analysis, it is the people who make the difference. The India of today has emerged through a dialectical process to the cusp of a breakout as an economic, cultural and even military power which none can take away from it. One has to traverse the country to sense this. Cutting across geographies and socio-economic strata, Indians — irrespective of their present station in life — are looking at the future with unprecedented optimism. This confidence once unleashed is difficult, if not impossible, to check.
Where does one see the change? First, as always, is among the youth. There is a restlessness to take charge of their future. Unlike in the past, few are excited by jobs. Those who have to settle for employment also dream of starting something of their own soon. Parents may still try to push them to engineering, medicine or accountancy but secretly they are nurturing larger ambitions. Time was when the dream of a father was to have his daughter or son join the same organisation that he worked for. Now, they do not even ask. The craze for ‘sarkari naukri’ is beginning to wane in the villages notwithstanding reports about stampedes and scams in recruitment for government jobs. Ask a child what she would like to be when she grows up. The audacity of the answers may well surprise you.
India’s resilience
Of course, this may sound anecdotal. However, what is undeniable is the bounce-back one has seen post the pandemic. At the start of Covid19 pandemic, one had thought that it would have left the economy ravaged and the population financially crippled for years to come as the plague did to Europe in the fourteenth century and the two World Wars in recent history. Surely, there has been pain and some of it still lingers on in the form of unemployment and income displacement. But it has also brought to the fore a spirit of resilience that makes Indians such a formidable force in comparison to the population of advanced economies which were long lulled in a comfort zone by state welfarism.
The rapid adoption of digitisation — a tribute to technology — also displayed the latent hunger that existed in the aam aadmi to improve her quality of life. Once it was made affordable and accessible there was no looking back. It is the same hungry spirit that will devour any obstacles that may be placed on the way to derail their dreams. The next generation will not allow politics, caste, religion, community or any other divisive forces or vested interests — either domestic or foreign — to come in between.
What makes me so bullish about the next 25 years? It is certainly not political rhetoric. But the infectious enthusiasm that is all pervasive makes even a congenital cynic like me a convert about the prospects of “Amrit Kaal” as we turn a year older as a democracy.
Sandip Ghose is current affairs commentator and marketing professional. Views are personal and do not represent the stand of this publication.
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