When Uncle Sam’s cap fell down, the most sought question that started to arose was who ll be picking it up?
One of my mate told, it would be The Red Dragon, while the other argued it would be The Russians, I was perplexed to see my friends for their unpatriotic views, and was confused literally on the grounds of their disloyalty to their country. Have they gone crazy? How they could forget their own homeland, I thought! Not to involve much in to the argument, I stayed in distant. But the confusion prevailed and the thoughts rolled on. Are we ready for the Race of Supremacy? ARE WE THE NEXT SUPER POWER?
Being emotional, Patriotic is apart. How far my opinions can be a reality, I guessed? Is there any political will to carry the country forward, by the politicians? Are the Doctors, Engineers, Lawyers and Entrepreneurs in my country ready to be the world class Leaders? Is the infrastructure of the nation, good enough? Are the sportsmen raring to go and yell to the World, that “WE ARE COMING”? Are the Military men stuffed up with braveness and audacity to prevent infiltration? Thousands and thousands of questions lied ahead of us, but the answer is……
"We Know What We Are, but We Know Not What We May Become"
– William Shakespeare
What are the criteria to be the Global Super Power? Several critics hold different Standards to be the Super Power. Among those the most common ones are sought and analyzed. Are we anywhere near that Status?
· MILITARY MIGHT
When there was no civilization in the other world, we were the biggest traders of those centuries. Kings and Princess ruled over again and again within our own kingdoms and country.
The people who came to trade with us, found the richness of this extravagant land, they invaded and invaded and took away all the plethora of the nation. But we remained silent. We never revolted or rioted. From the Beginning to now, we Feared, we were Dumb, we remained Ugly. Even Pakistan waged four wars with us after the Independence, but we are reluctant to fight them. And Consequently the Infiltration continues, the Terror Attacks increased and the Bomb Blasts have become Common. Have we forgotten that we are a Nuclear Arsenal?
Even the Revenge Between other nations, takes place in India as a result of Soft Target Image e.g.; Recent Attack on Israeli Diplomat. Nothing would look Worst than this. Many Industries were affected by this. But more than that, we lost something which is tough to regain, the hope- the Hope of People. We have the Second largest army in the World and Fourth Largest Air Force, but how effective and how equipped are we, to withstand and hold these attacks are a Question which is tough to answer. Only the World Remembers, how many attacks took place in US after the 2001 Tragedy. So we should realize how important is to Build our Military Power, keeping in mind the ever growing conflicts and ruffles from our neighbors.
How ready are we to tackle these problems only time will tell….But we have to realize, ` What we lost is, what others gained!`
· ECONOMIC POWER
The Area where every Indian can held their heads high is about their Country`s Growth Rate. Though it was projected to Grow in double digit never the late, because of the US Recession each and every economy were hit badly. But even now, we are getting back on track for the growth. They say we can’t clap with one hand, similarly in our country everyone is not growing at the same pace. High economic growth is only for the upper class of the Population. Around 37% of the population is under the poverty line, a study holds. In Short, ‘THE RICH GETS RICHER AND THE POOR GETS POORER’.
When this Disparity increases between the rich and the poor that is where the things will get worse than how it looks, probably the fuse will go off. A country which fussed about ever growing population, has settled now to appreciate its Human Resource which is more precious, as the youths are considered as the Assets of the Nation. The Expectations falls on the heads of these youths to rebuild their nation. If India has to make its position in the world, it is imperative that people starting thinking differently from rest of world. Enough of following others path, it’s time to build a new one, for others to follow.
India need Entrepreneurs who can take her to the world, and show them, how ready and set we are. Indians running to US and other countries for jobs should change and when things reciprocate, it is when we will see a real Giant on the global arena. Unless and until we don’t start Manufacturing and Build our own Brand, the dependence on other countries and foreign firms will keep on growing. We should never forget, that though USSR possessed a very agile Military might than US, their economy was the reason why it couldn’t hold on to the number one status. This is yet another lesson for India.
· VISION
Once a great man, dreamed of India becoming the Super Power in 2020, there lies only the dream. He also quoted, ‘Dream is not which you get during your sleep, Dream is which, won’t allow you to sleep’. –Abdul kalam. At this juncture I feel, pity for this great scientist and responsible for what my country is now. The world knows how Japan arose from the ashes of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to build a nation which became second largest economy in 30 years. And the examples could be added from Malaysia, South Korea, and Singapore to Taiwan.
The only reason they have developed quickly is because of their Hard Work to make sure that the Next generation doesn’t face the hardships they have faced. The sense of laziness and lack of discipline that our people hold will howl at us back. A country which had seen some of the greatest leaders of the world, like Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhash Chandra Bose are now crying over for an Energetic and Inspiring Leader who can lead them from the front. If you don’t know where you are going, you ll never reach where you want to!
‘The Journey of thousand miles, start with a single step’ – Lao Tsu
· POLITICAL ANGLE
Great Nations were built by Great Leaders they say. Now to call India as the next super power, from the political angle, it would be the joke of the millennium.’ When you show or point your finger at the other, don’t forget the other four fingers are pointing at you’, is the quote which was the summary of our bedtime stories. We have to accept the fact, if the politicians are corrupted, it is we who elected them, instead of contesting as a new candidate, we use to vote to the party, which was comparatively less corrupted than the other. When time came to showcase the greatness of the country during the Common Wealth Games, scams over shadowed our athletes’ medals.
Corruption is the Biggest Curse which the country is confronting right now. An example from who we consider as a real threat and competitor for the title of super power should have made us organize and glitter an event better than the Beijing Olympics. But we were never even near of what they have shown the world. The old proverb, which conveys, opportunities knock the door only once should never be forgotten. Everyone blames the other for being corrupted, but none manages to come clean and be ethical in their own fold. Have we learned any lessons? Has the fasting and hunger strike of an old man, bear any fruit? Only time will tell those answers.
CONCLUSION
Success is not a destination, it’s a journey. If we want to see ourselves making the global order of tomorrow, it’s imperative we change ourselves today. There is lot of difference in being the good and the best. When attaining something it is practical, we have to sacrifice something, so the qualities of being the BEST have to be learnt by us. If we don’t start, we will never arrive. But precisely to the question of whether India is the next super power, my answer is …….NOT YET, NOT YET!
“YOU MUST BE THE CHANGE, YOU WISH TO SEE IN THIS WORLD” –
MAHATMA GANDHI
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