"The Republic Marches Ahead" News.Indlaw.com 24 January, 2006 Somebody has remarked that if a Rip Van Winkle had gone to sleep in 1950 and woke up in 2006, he would not be able to recognize the developmental revolution of India. A country, which did not manufacture its own needles, is today a nuclear power. Indian enterprise has since proved to the world that it is capable of taking on the best in industrial field and other sectors of development. Infosys, Wipro, an Indian Steel Czar, the Telco global car and so on are all testimony of the astounding transformation.
Progress Saga After gaining Independence in 1947, India turned a Sovereign, Democratic Republic on January 26, 1950. The words Socialist and Secular were added to the Preamble of the Indian Constitution on January 3, 1977. The growth-rate in the First Five-Year Plan was 3.7 per cent. Today we are heading towards 8 per cent without much effort. The days of economic isolation are over. The process of liberalization has made India a high-class economy whose economic growth is second only to China. Globalisation Globalisation for India is also not a new phenomenon. A hymn in the Vedas defines it as 'Vasudhaiv Kutumbkum' meaning that the world is one family. The old Tamil pm 'Kural' by 'Thiru Valluvar' refers to the whole world as a village. Privatisation is an offshoot of globalisation. We have privatized telecom, power, cooking gas, some universities in higher education sector. Agriculture Agriculture is the pride of India, a wealth creator, job provider, food giver and export earner. According to Dr. M.S. Swaminathan, father of India's Green Revolution and currently Chairman of National Commission for Farmers : 'Agriculture is the largest single private enterprise in India'. In 1947 the country produced only six million tonnes of wheat. It was 'ship-to-mouth' existence. Today our production has touched 80 millions. Agriculture is the surest antidote for unemployment. 'Jai Jawan Jai Kisan', the slogan of yesteryears given by Lal Bahadur Shastri has become a living reality today. Rural Employment Guarantee The Rural Employment Guarantee Act and the massive increase in investment in health and education are a product of the realisation that in the long run, if growth is not to splinter our society, investments in the skill base of our people and in adequate social safety nets for the less well-off and deprived citizens have to be made. Rural employment has also been made justiciable under the law. Increased public investments in irrigation and horticulture( through the National Horticulture Mission) are being made. Research on technological breakthroughs for scaling up yields has been intensified. Efforts to liberate Indian agriculture from controls that shackle its potential are under way. Many states have been nudged into amending the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee Acts and removing constraints on agricultural trade. An Integrated Food Law, transferable warehouse receipts and a Forward Market in commodities, along with amendments to the Essential Commodities Act are major steps towards having a single integrated market for agriculture in India. Bharat Nirman A comprehensive programme for rural infrastructure development under the umbrella of "Bharat Nirman" has been announced. Through this time-bound programme, a quantum jump is to be achieved in housing, road connectivity, water supply, electrification and telecom connectivity in the rural areas. Additional one crore hectares will be brought under irrigation. Co-operative Movement The Co-operative movement in India which is about hundred years old has been re-vamped and accounts for 43 per cent of all agricultural credits disbursed. The strength of the movement lies in the fact that it represents grassroots, decentralized action. As a matter of fact co-operation in India has come to mean economic democracy and self-governance. Urban Renewal Mission The speed at which urbanization is now taking place, the day is not far off when over 50% of India's population will be residing in urban areas. Urban areas are the nodes from which enterprise, creativity and prosperity radiate in all directions. They are the engines of sustained growth that can absorb the millions of people who need to be gainfully employed outside agriculture. They need infrastructure, which is world class infrastructure, which can cater to the needs of a rising population, infrastructure that can propel industrial and economic growth. The Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission will cater to the infrastructure needs of the top sixty urban agglomerates. Through this Mission in which the Central Government will invest over Rs 50,000 crores, with much more coming from states and local bodies urban transport projects, slum development projects and urban decongestion projects will be financed. The Centre has however linked funding to taking some basic actions such as improving municipal bodies, their functioning, removing land ceiling and rent control legislation and rationalising stamp duties. Persons with vision can see a robust process of urban renewal all over the country in the coming 2-3 years. Education With about 7 lakh of primary schools, about two lakh of secondary and higher secondary schools, 12,000 degree colleges, 234 universities, 40 lakh of teachers, 14 crore of annual enrolment of children, India today is the largest educational system in the world producing the largest number of graduates. In the field of technical education it is the second largest with 200 technical Institutes at degree level, 101 Polytechnics, 2721 Industrial Training Institutes, 12 Science and Technology universities, 17 Regional Engineering colleges run by the Government and more than 200 run privately, 6 IIT's , 2 Institutes of Information Technology, 6 Institutes of Managements (IIM's). Education is free in India upto class VIII. For girls it is free upto class X. In some states girl's education is free even at college level. Free meals are provided to all primary school children in the country. For weaker sections free text-books, foot-wear and free transport is provided by the state. Empowerment of Women To give women their due which was denied to them for long has been a cardinal principle of all our national endeavours. The country has realized that it cannot be a super power without the empowerment of women. In pursuance of this, the Ministry of Human Resource Development's scheme of 'Mahila Samakhya' (Empowerment of women through education) has been a great success. It is an awareness scheme where women in rural areas are made aware of their rights. Under this scheme they have successfully agitated against alcoholism, polygamy, devadasi system, dowry-deaths, child marriages. Information Technology The greatest success story of new India, however, has come from the Information Technology sector. While education is making India a learning society, IT is making it knowledge-based. Computerisation has become a way of life even in rural India where every villages has telephone. There is mobile revolution in the country. It is estimated that IT alone will create two million jobs and literacy rate would go up to 75 per cent very soon. Court information will link the Supreme Court of India with its 14 High Courts and 440 district courts. Taxes, electricity bills, water and gas dues can be paid on-line. Procedures for getting a passport, telephone, electric connection have been simplified. The rates of telephone and mobile calls are the cheapest in the world, like the bus fare and the college fees. Right to Information With the Right to Information Act 2005 India has emerged as a leader in Asia in transparency and accountability, the two major pillars of democracy. It is expected that RTI (Right to Information Act) will free the citizens from the tyranny of red tape and secrecy. It can easily be described as Magna Carta of freedom. It has done Indian democracy proud.(PIB)
