Can we afford this ?
As i sit here in front of my comp, thinking about the next string to start on the blog, i think of the life we are leading. In fact i am deeply grateful to God that he has provided me with a secure life, free of worries. i am fortunate to have food three times a day, can study the subject i want to, have both the physical and material resources to do whatever i want, be it books, computers and internet, money to spend at Pizza Hut or McDonald's and what not. i am also extremely happy to be in a protected campus of my University, able to think about a "promising" future. i am surely gifted with so many things. The only thing that worries me is the sense of complacency i can see in my country.
"Wait, wait! What do you mean with complacency ? Our IT industry is the best in the world, we provide the brain to all the fields in the world. Why go far, even in your own city, Delhi, we are coming up with a full-fledged Metro project, scheduled to be completed by 2007 ! What complacency are you talking about ???"
This is just a peek of the criticism i am bound to hear from people who are very optimistic about India, Inc. i don't doubt even an atom of these words. They are surely some of the things that our country is promising us. But......but.......
i have to fight with auto-rickshaw drivers because they don't use the meter, buses are not stopped where they should be, posh restaurants charge exorbitant money, but show utter lack of concern when it comes to customer satisfaction, shopkeepers treat me as the least important object in that place (although a consumer is supposed to be a king), there is still filth and dirt around many posh Malls.......The list knows no end.
We always get irritated whenever the internet connection fails, or power goes off, or an auto-rickshaw driver thugs us. We try to find an alternative, curse the people around and then settle down thinking that this is what God has in store for us. Are we really destined only to feel helpless in this country which we call "Our India" ? Why are most of our experiences about my own countrymen "not so good" ? Why are we ecstatic when we find an honest auto-rickshaw driver ?
As far as the service industry is concerned, when will our countrymen understand that these services are purchased by the people just because they don't have better alternatives. Why don't they understand that provided there is a better service, nobody would like to get onto the autos or buses, dine at restaurants below standards, and shop at places that don't treat them well. It is just because we don't have an alternative that people are using these services.
Am i too harsh ? Am i too skeptical about India Inc.'s success ?
Well i am just critical. We need to think rationally and try to make this place less stressful. There will be people who might just say, "Indian Culture shows how human beings can't parallel the Almighty. He is perfect, and we all are imperfect. So whatever we do is imperfect. Your demand of a comfortable living is not just. " But i would like to say that Indian Culture wants us to constantly strive towards perfection and that is the reason everything is considered to be imprefect. Why are we complacent ? Can we afford it ? Why don't we want to live a bettter life ?
I hope you all don't misunderstand me, since there are many things that have gone untouched in this post. I hope you all make up for it.
Regards,
P r a s a d
"Wait, wait! What do you mean with complacency ? Our IT industry is the best in the world, we provide the brain to all the fields in the world. Why go far, even in your own city, Delhi, we are coming up with a full-fledged Metro project, scheduled to be completed by 2007 ! What complacency are you talking about ???"
This is just a peek of the criticism i am bound to hear from people who are very optimistic about India, Inc. i don't doubt even an atom of these words. They are surely some of the things that our country is promising us. But......but.......
i have to fight with auto-rickshaw drivers because they don't use the meter, buses are not stopped where they should be, posh restaurants charge exorbitant money, but show utter lack of concern when it comes to customer satisfaction, shopkeepers treat me as the least important object in that place (although a consumer is supposed to be a king), there is still filth and dirt around many posh Malls.......The list knows no end.
We always get irritated whenever the internet connection fails, or power goes off, or an auto-rickshaw driver thugs us. We try to find an alternative, curse the people around and then settle down thinking that this is what God has in store for us. Are we really destined only to feel helpless in this country which we call "Our India" ? Why are most of our experiences about my own countrymen "not so good" ? Why are we ecstatic when we find an honest auto-rickshaw driver ?
As far as the service industry is concerned, when will our countrymen understand that these services are purchased by the people just because they don't have better alternatives. Why don't they understand that provided there is a better service, nobody would like to get onto the autos or buses, dine at restaurants below standards, and shop at places that don't treat them well. It is just because we don't have an alternative that people are using these services.
Am i too harsh ? Am i too skeptical about India Inc.'s success ?
Well i am just critical. We need to think rationally and try to make this place less stressful. There will be people who might just say, "Indian Culture shows how human beings can't parallel the Almighty. He is perfect, and we all are imperfect. So whatever we do is imperfect. Your demand of a comfortable living is not just. " But i would like to say that Indian Culture wants us to constantly strive towards perfection and that is the reason everything is considered to be imprefect. Why are we complacent ? Can we afford it ? Why don't we want to live a bettter life ?
I hope you all don't misunderstand me, since there are many things that have gone untouched in this post. I hope you all make up for it.
Regards,
P r a s a d
posted by Prasad at 7:01 pm
2 Comments:
Kshitij,
Thanks for your post! You have hit the bull's eye. That is what i want to ask through this small reflection. Can we really afford to be this complacent ?
In fact the other day, i was walking in a posh locality here with my roomie. There was a person sitting in a car and rinsing his mouth. i was just about to pass beside the vehicle when he spurted out one jet. i had to stop and gesture to him saying, "Yes sir! Go ahead, this is not a road but your bedroom sink." That is what pisses me (and all other sane indians) off. Good that you too have thought about it.
What about Indian Railways ? We have to travel 26 hrs one-way to reach Pune from Delhi. And here you can see how our rail-tracks are converted into "official garbage bins". We make it a point to carry polythene bags with us and turn them into dust-bins. There are some people who understand what we are trying to do and follow, but most just make us laughing stock. i just don't understand why people want to travel with filth around themselves ? Hope our countrymen don't remain complacent. i think we can't afford it.
Regards
P r a s a d
Hummm! Great reflections Prasad san. A very simple solution exists. "Be true to yourself in whatsoever you do." Now howz that goin to help !!!!
I was just reading that book " Chicken Soup for the Soul". It had a story in which a guy was going on making people "happy" in order to make the whole of city a happy place. How come ???? The line of his reasoning was that , if I make this AutoDriver happy, he will handle all his customers in a pleasant manner. Lets, see if one of those customers was a "lady teacher - primary class". If she becomes happy, the class is bound to have a nice day that day. And she the way it might propagate. Geometric Progression. Nah! At a faster rate.
Now, after proving the rate, lets see what happens if we are serious and true to our self. 1. We may change the way our family members act. 2. The family may inturn change the neighbourhood. And so on and so forth.
What if we fail in changing anybody? Ans:: Why fear about the worst? Somoone might get impressed by your way of acting. One light is enough to remove the whole of darkness.
Too much serious stuff .. enjoy blogging ..
amrit
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