Week 16- My India, My Independence


#1 Dreams Do Come True
In 1954, on the lonely corridors of the Madras Institute of Technology, an introvertive young boy used to sit silently, away from the chaos of the college. His fresh little eyes gazed constantly at a miniature aircraft parked in the premises, under the ambiance of the setting sun. The atmosphere was filled with dullness, darkness and restlessness; but his mind flowed with energy, hope and enthusiasm. He had decided then: he wanted to fly; fly very high into the future, with the hopes of the nation right on his shoulders. It was a dream, a dream that very few from such a humble background would dare to take! 

Slowly and steadily, he went on to change the face of the nation. What then sprouted as a small indigenous missile program in his mind, which he fondly called Agni, today held its roots to make India the possessor of the indigenous Agni V, one of the only five countries in the world to possess an Inter Continental Ballistic Missile with a range of 5000 kms, developed completely on our own. Our defense arsenal then rose leaps and bounds, with India now inaugurating her indigenously built nuclear submarine INS Arihant, completing a powerful nuclear triad of nuclear deterrence from air, land and water, one of the only countries in the world to achieve so, apart from US, Russia and China. We should remember, that only strength respect strength; and India is on the threshold of a technological leap in defense with we developing our selfly built aircraft carriers, the new INS Vikrant and INS Vishaal, shortly to give valour to our lady. 

A short time before, our nation launched her tricolour outside the earth's gravitational influence area for the very first time, when our very own Lunar Probe landed on moon, sending us first pictures of her terrain, much to the jubilation of hundreds of scientists who toiled day and night to achieve this feat on their own, making India's space agency only the fourth in the world to achieve the same after NASA, ESA and China. Our tricolour marks its presence on lunar soil, a tremendous achievement of a nation with a billion dreams!

Our nation has produced gems in R. Srinivasan, a man who was never understood by his generation. Aryabhatta, who calculated astronomical distances that even modern satellites couldn't. Sushruta, a medical prodigy who wrote tonnes of work on surgery by sacrificing his very own nerves. Tagore, whose words surpassed human imagination. Swami Vivekanand, who managed to move civilisation on both sides of the planet, E Sreedharan, who gifted India with a technically and emotionally challenging Konkan rail corridor and one of the world's largest Metro systems in Delhi. Gandhiji, whose mind traversed the emotional limits of mankind managing to break them down into reality, 

At the very same time that we are reading this, scientists and engineers from ISRO are working sleeplessly on the October'13 launch of our most ambitious Mars mission, if successful making India the third country in the world to achieve it after USA and Russia. This very same time, we are developing our own telecommunications network, we are linking cities by futuristic metros, we are creating some of World's largest airports, we are devising our very own nuclear capabilities, we are attracting majority of the world population to our land in search of spiritual and technical competence, we are creating people who are working tirelessly to unfurl the tricolour at even greater heights.

Then why are we complaining? Why not support her giant leaps and the silently working men of our nation instead of always cribbing and opposing our nation? We are a nation of might and valour, of strength and power, of rich history and a promising future. We need the support of our youth. Because if the next 10 years move rightly, India is on the threshold of a tremendous possibility. It is our nation's independence, it is our independence. This is the time to nurture the wings of this nation, for we are going to take flight, a flight into eternity. The world is fearing us, why are we afraid then?

Dr Kalam still lives that dream and he sees it achieve materiality. The corridors of his college are still afresh in his mind, but India has declared herself; proclaimed herself to the world: that here is the next power, waiting on the tarmac, ready to take off! Then why are we nervous or scared? Let us join together in that dream of Kalam then, because after all, it is he who proved to us, that Dreams Do Come True!!!

-Vishnu Chandrasenan (Writer of the Week)
SE, SIES Graduate School of Technology, Navi Mumbai

#2
"Okay students! One thing before leaving tomorrow is Independence Day! And I want every one of you to participate in the celebrations, that’s all, you can go" said the class teacher." “Huh, independence? Freedom? Whatever it is supposed to mean, I am not having any freedom" said Joe. “Your right! All we do is getting ourselves locked from 7 to 2 in school and 6 to 11 in the bedroom, I don't see any independence in this, and still they say India is a free country!" said Jon (short for Jonathan). “And you never will, at least not till you are of 60 years of age, like my grandfather,” said Joe again. They were best buddies from 5th grade to the 10th. And were discussing many such things.

“My dad says you are free to choose your career."
"You are lucky Joe."
 "Wait! I haven't finished! But only related to studies.”

“Well... I expected that 'but’ of yours there isn't really any freedom left in the country, if the young generations are not free, then who is?" asked John.

“Maybe you have the answer, son.” they heard a voice behind them.
"And who are you supposed to be?" asked Jon.
"Just an old man."
"Have you been hearing us?" asked Joe, this time.
"Well, mostly yes. I heard all about your point of view about the independence.".
“So do you agree with us or not? Do you think India and its people are really free?" asked Joe.
"Well, answer my question first. How would you feel if the British ruled over us even now?" asked the old man.
“Hmm... a good point to think upon. Maybe we would be child workers in some company of theirs?" said John "or maybe in jail for a silly crime?" added Joe.
"It would have been worse for sure, but what about the situation right now?" asked the old man again.
"We have good education, good surroundings, 24 hours of parental care, people’s wants are being heard and fulfilled by the Government, and the list will go on." said the old man. "But what about us? We are forced to do the same chores every day. Our future is pre-planned by our parents, we are unable to pursue our field of interest and all parents care about is good marks for now and good salary later! Why are we not free to do things we like?" asked John.
"You see, its only for about 65 years that we have got our independence, this is too early unlike the Americans who have spent 237 years till now. Our India is a child compared to them, so you can't expect great miracles to happen overnight! Things take time to happen, and good things take longer."
"That is all okay but the problems faced by our Government now is more than it could handle! We don't think India is going to develop any soon and with deep rooted corruption, there is no chance!" said John.
"You have a point, but corruption happens when people don't believe in the future of India. So they look for personal gains instead of the gain of the country, so you see it all comes from us and no level of jurisdiction can remove it unless everyone of us stands against it in our heart."
"Which might be your way of telling it’s never going to," said Joe.
"No that's false, I mean if we people have faith in India, even the most developed nations will be nothing compared to us. Do you know about the legendary kingdom called Rama-rajya?"
"Yeah! The time when lord Ram ruled northern India. It is said that it was the most idealistic kingdom ever and people say  that it was a period when there were no crimes and no fear," said Joe, despite being a Christian, had heard tales about Rama from his Hindu friends. 
"Absolutely, and do you know why was it so?"
"To tell the truth, no," said John flatly.
"It was because of the people's faith in their king and the kingdom! That faith still exists in Indian heart, all it needs is a little persuasion which is done on every 15th of August," replied the old man.
"So is that why we celebrate Independence day? To give people new hope about their country?" John asked.
"Nothing can be truer! Okay it’s getting late for all of us. I should go," said the balding old man.
“Where?" asked Joe. He had begun to enjoy his meeting with this new person.
"To my dwelling," he said without any expressions.
"But at-least tell us who are you?" asked John.
"Wild guess?" he asked with a mild smile and putting on round spectacles from his folds of dhoti.
"Are you..? But how..?" asked the bewildered children and the man vanished right before their eyes.
"He looked a lot like the man in the photo at the principal's room," said John.

"Gandhi! That's the name I was known by." They could only hear the sound but not pinpoint its source. "You, young generation are the way to a bright India. Promise me that you will be grateful to all the freedom fighters and an invaluable thing called freedom to you which is now yours to use. Promise me that you will make good use of it," the voice echoed again.
"We do," they said together and they didn't hear the voice or see the man ever after!

So readers, let us also make the promise to make our country a better place for generations to come!

-Sriram Srinivasan
SE, SIES Graduate School of Technology, Navi Mumbai

#3
मेरा भारत महान…
When I was a child, I had a dream. I wanted to be the prime minister of India. The most important office in the country did not attract me; rather it was the idea of wearing a crisp white kurta pajama and travelling in an elegant ambassador, yes the one with a bobbing red light seemed more lucrative. As I grew up, my naivety left me, the government system felt too complicated to me. The dream waned, but the inner desire to lead lingered.

When it comes to political and social discussions, the favorite topic in our country is how the government is lacking and what we should do about it. These discussions seem considerably pointless to me. Flawed governments are commonplace in the whole world; idealistic attitude is not compatible in field of politics and national system. Criticism is easy, running a diverse country like India, not so much. Don’t get me wrong, I am not promoting an attitude of indifference towards our country’s political situation, but somewhere in this foolish squabble we are losing our focus on the development issues. Issues like corruption do not hurt our motherland as much as our inaction, not even close. Today most of us think that once we create a stable and effective government, progress will follow. But in today’s cut-throat competition is the world really going to wait for us?

My India is independent, we have our own space in the world and no one to answer to but ourselves, I am proud of that, but patriotism and individual independence go far beyond that. Voicing our opinions and reacting to injustice is important, but what is far more important is to direct our minds to our progress. Let’s face it; no country has developed without a certain degree of selfishness of its people. My independence is not a privilege offered to me by any government; it is a conscious choice I make to be able to decide my course of action. It is a driving force which makes me want to prove myself worthy of being a son to my motherland. I say ‘My India’, so who is responsible for it? Me, or anybody else? 

Making ourselves capable to lead our country to progress is much more effective than blaming the system or government for the lack of opportunities. As almost every great leader of the world has proclaimed, the youth is the strength of a country. Every workforce needs a leader, India does not lack able leaders, rather it lacks responsible ones. Leaders with charisma along with caliber. We can be such leaders the moment we get our priorities straight and actually do something worthwhile. This Independence day we complete 66 years of political and economical independence, so let us take a oath to free ourselves from the shackles which still bind us to ignorance, to really make India the greatest country in the world.

With this oath today, we take one step forward; tomorrow, we will take many more. जय हिन्द!

-Swanand Bhave
SE, SIES Graduate School of Technology, Navi Mumbai

#4 अपना भारत और अपनी आज़ादी

“अपनी आजादी को हम हरगिज़ मिटा सकते नहीं,
सर कटा सकते मगर,सर झुका सकते नहीं|”

भारतीयता और आज़ादी के सम्बन्ध को उपरोक्त संदर्भ से ही जाना जाय तो कोई अतिश्योक्ति नहीं होगी | उस वक्त हर देशवासी के दिल की आवाज़ अपने लहू और अस्तित्व के मूल्यों पर थी | मुल्क को विदेशी हुकूमत से आज़ादी मिल गयी 15 अगस्त 1947 के दिन | उस दिन भारत वैसे शुरमाओं को खो चुका था, जिनके सिधांत, अनुभव एवं सुविचारों पर भारतवर्ष की भावी इमारत बननी थी | पारदर्शी बुजुर्गों ने भविष्य का खाका भी बना लिया था | पूरी तैयारी और उपलब्ध संसाधनों के साथ अग्रसर भी होने लगे | इसी प्रकरण में शुरू हुई हरित क्रांति, औद्योगिककरण,सर्वशिक्षा आदि जैसे ऐतिहासिक कदम,जो आज कहाँ तक पहुची है सर्व ज्ञात है | कारण जो भी रहा हो आज 66 वर्ष बाद रेंगता हुआ भारत तथाकथित विकासशील देशों की गिनती में है | उन शुर वीरों की कुर्बानी उपहासित लगने लगी, क्योंकि भारतीय इंसानियत आज भी आज़ादी के फल से मीलों दूर है | देश का वर्तमान और भविष्य वैसे लोगों के कब्जे में पहुच गया जो अमीरी और ग़रीबी की खाई पाटने के बजाय बढ़ाने में सहायक रहे | अंजाम, भूखमरी, बेरोजगार और बेघर मज़बूर आजाद भारतीय, जो चाहते हुए भी अपनी आवाज़ हुकूमत के “आलावों” तक नहीं ले जा सकते, ना ही आलावों को उनकी कोई फिकर है | चन्द विकसित नगरों की चकाचौंध को थोड़ी देर के लिए अगर नज़रंदाज़ कर दिया जाय तो,

“आज का भारत मज़बूर है, मात्र मजदूर है,
रोटी,कपड़ा एवं मकान से कोसों दूर है |”

आज़ादी तो मिल गयी थी गैरों से मगर अपनों के कारगुजारी के प्रतिफल से आज़ादी आज भी नहीं मिली है | विकशीलता झलकी भी थोड़ी, संचार के माध्यम और आवागमन के विकास से मानवीय नजदीकियां बढ़ने लगी | थोड़े समय के अंतराल में ही आज़ादी की इस अनुभूति पर पाश्चात्य सभ्यता हावी होने लगी | आज़ादी के ऐसे कई अजीबोगरीब प्रमाण सामने आये | वैचारिक अभिब्यक्ति की आज़ादी, स्वछंदता की आज़ादी, व्यक्तिगत उन्मुक्तता की आज़ादी, अपने आस-पास से सौहार्दता की आज़ादी के मायनें बदलने लगे |

आज हर वर्ग, उम्र, स्त्री-पुरुष अपनी-अपनी मनोभावना के अनुसार ऐसी आज़ादी को परिभाषित कर रहे हैं | कुछ हद तक आत्मनिर्भरता बढ़ी, मगर मानवीय सम्बन्ध दूर होते गए, संयुक्त परिवार एकल परिवार हो गया | यानी आज़ादी के मतलब भी एकल हो गये | रिश्तों की बुनियाद गिर चुकी | आज़ादी के असली मतलब की बुनियाद भी हिल चुकी | परिणामतः, आज का नौजवान आजाद भारत के संस्थागत ढांचे से अलग रह कर जिंदगी जीने और अपने विचारों से भविष्य तलाशने में लग गया | जो नौजवान आजाद हिन्दुस्तान के कर्णधार और नींव बने रहे, आज आधारविहीन साबित हो रहे हैं | देश के संस्थागत ढांचे और भविष्य के योगदान से अपने आपको दूर रखना चाहते हैं| कारण, आज की राजनीति की नीतिगत खामियां अगर मानी जाय तो गलत नहीं होगा | अगर समय रहते आज का नौजवान वर्ग अपना चिर-परिचित योगदान भारतीय राजनीति और समाज को नहीं दे पाता है तो भ्रष्टाचार और मानवता का हनन उस अवस्था तक भी पहुच सकता है जहाँ से भारतीयता और आज़ादी की पहचान जैसे मनोभाव शुरू हुए थे |

-एक अस्तित्व

#5
'मेरा भारत महान' We claim this but how many of us, really mean it and support its development? In comparison to other countries around the globe, the most liberty is enjoyed by us-Indians in the context of travelling, migrating, settling etc. without the problem of 'Dual citizenship.'

We all tend to misuse this liberty which is so called 'independence,' don’t we?
As we go through the timeline from the 15th century to the present, we come across several instances of struggle, victory, defeat, sacrifice, bloodshed and last but not the end is complete independence from slavery. But are we free and enjoying our independence in the real sense?

We are cognizant of the atrocities charged upon the weaker sections of our society, then why are we taking a back seat and becoming a mute spectator to this injustice? Just as we love to enjoy freedom so does the suppressed classes have the will too. Among us are those who haven’t seen a ray of light, felt rain or breeze, inhaled fresh air or even got to know how the world looks like. Approximately 60-150 million kids are bonded labourers just to pay debts of their parents and these toddlers grow up with deformities and die by the age of 50. The minorities and tribes aren't given their due acknowledgement as they are exploited even after all the legal amendments. It’s a shame, if we turn a blind eye upon these crimes.

Women are dependent on men even in this 21st century. Where is independence, then?
Child Labour Prohibition and Regulation Act, 1986; Working women’s Protection Act, 2008; Sexual Harassment of Women at workplace Act, 2013 etc. are some of the initiatives but can be enforced only if the rights of every citizen is given due importance.
Our Alma Mater teaches us to take the national integration pledge: 'India is my country. All Indians are my brothers and sisters... I shall give my parents, teachers and all elders respect and treat everyone with courtesy. To my country and my people, I pledge my devotion'. 

It’s high time that we, Indians should give the world a piece of our mind to modernize and not westernize. None can be blamed specifically as it’s our collective responsibility to act as we speak. Patriotism shouldn't be restricted to National days but acted upon on a daily basis be it even in the simplest way. Actual liberty can be experienced only if every citizen is free to take up his choice of vocation without discrimination, unaffected by corrupt supremacy, bribe, fear of getting trapped by unlawful means etc.

We proudly sing,
'जहाँ डाल-डाल पर सोने की चिड़ियां करती है बसेरा, वो भारत देश है मेरा' क्या हुआ ?उड़ गयी सोने की चिड़िया? नहीं उससे वापस लाने की प्रयास हम सब को करनी चहिये.  We all need to come together and bring back, home the lost glory and make it self-sustainable. 
Recently an IAS officer was gaoled for exposing scams, the public didn't startle and switched to rebellious mode proving that we cannot be fooled. This should be the attitude that not just a handful, but the whole country needs to possess.

"My India, my Independence
So far it is mine, it’s theirs too"

-Jisby Bose
TY, B.L.S/L.L.B, D.Y. Patil College of Law, Navi Mumbai

#6 Shallow Independence
'इंक़िलाब ज़िन्दाबाद' that’s what I roar and most of us do when there are goose bumps, watching movies on our freedom struggle. Now in an independent India I and you could still connect to the oppression that our ancestors had to tolerate under the British clutch which says the Independent India even after the bloodshed struggle has sustained its independence giving each individual the right to choose as in India, independence is woven with the threads of freedom.

The hunger for independence in Indians and India as a country is very evident just not as we go through the decisions of the country economically and politically but also in its cultural and social pluralism. We could also see how “independence” in the independent India of 1.2 billion people is having its 1.2 billion or more meanings and ironically none in accordance with the thesaurus. During the freedom struggle some saw their ``independence” in dividing the soil. We welcomed it and now what we see it to be ‘Pakistan’. In fact cultural pluralism in India what we boast off, is in itself a strong evidence of how we welcomed the decision of every individual to choose his maker and how we welcomed every religion right from the Parsis in Gujarat, Muslims in North and equally Christianity down there in Kerala. The myriad dialects spoken of about in thousands, speaks in itself how much of freedom is granted to an individual. Even in the making of the constitution we have blended enough of the Irish ideals, bill of rights from the US Constitution and independent judiciary from England all under the brand of `Democracy’ which in itself is a renouncement of independence to the people within the latitudes and longitudes of the land. Democracy which later has collected enough evidence of freedom as it holds the record of more than 44 political parties within the country.

After social and religious independence then in 1991 we declared economic freedom as we welcomed MNCs and private firms which meant independence for an entrepreneur. It is all hunky dory only till we see it through the glares of sophistication but with the naked eye of hard core reality the independence in each sense be it social, economical, political and cultural has not turned out to be leading the country that our fore fathers and the martyrs might have dreamt of. The last years PISA results bore enough evidence of how contaminated the education system is as we have introduced the caste system to dilute the quality of education. The introduction of the caste system somewhere shows the side effects of the country’s understanding for 'equality' which points out inefficient brains in the council of the country who have introduced an inefficient system under the name of equality which is a disguised hunger for the votes of the majority. This opens up a Pandora’s Box of a country which yet decides it’s rulers on the basis of caste and religion. This tangles me enough to take a look at my own statement of how Independent India was in religion.


There would be more tangles and contradictions for my own statements of what all India was independent of. As reports say more than 77% of Indians live on less than Rs.25/- per day (did I say 'economically independent?'). The incidents of 26/11 tell the fact that India has still issues with Pakistan though we have always been a passive side. So now with a naked eye of truth, what I see is the independence we declared in every dimension of the society is not up to the mark and is only superficial, which says that in India, it is the independence of the powerful, powerful and only powerful and not the common man, though whatever he interprets his freedom to be as 'My India, My Independence'. So again, 'इंक़िलाब ज़िन्दाबाद'


-Vinay Hegde
SE, SIES Graduate School of Technology

#7 What Matters
The gradual collisions of the tectonic plates lead to the formation the Indian subcontinent.
A dive in the Harappan Great Bath. 
The battle; the loyalty; the deceitfulness; the sacrifice; the selfish; an extract of Krishna’s knowledge; the blood stains in Kurukshetra.
A day in the courtroom of Krishnadevraya with Tenali Raman. The religious and intellectual resurgence in the Golden Age of the Gupta Rule. The beauty of Kalidasa’s verse and the treatises of Aryabhata.
The architectural excellence of the Mughals. Tansen’s bringing down rains with his music.
The smell of spices and the air filled with joy in the festival celebrations.
The rebellious cry of Jai Hind during the fight for freedom, against the British Raj.
These events changed the course to the present times. These events I was unable to experience.

Fortunately, I witnessed the election of first woman President.

The bliss and celebration after the Olympics gold medal come home again.
The inexpressible pride of the scientists on the launch of Chandrayan.
Designing the rupee symbol.
The anxiety during the finals of Cricket World Cup.
The amazement caused by the power of social networking and media.
The protests; the lies; the lathi charge; the curfew; the cry for justice; the bomb blasts; and various reported and unreported creativity in scams.

I would not restrict myself with what I want to see. There are infinite areas and surprising potentials.

Maybe we win the FIFA World Cup.
Many things can be achieved if my fellow countrymen understand the fact that citizenship is a piece of paper. We are made from Indian soil. Every cell in the body is Indian.
If there is dissatisfaction with the system, the availability, the injustice, this attitude should be remembered:
‘ it’s not about what you have got, but it’s about what you make of what you got ’

Lets aspire with unending enthusiasm to give our country its perfect citizens.


Lets say proudly, I am India.

-Dharini Dutia
SE, SIES Graduate School of Technology, Navi Mumbai.

#8 Death of Democracy
Death of democracy,
Height of hypocrisy,
Oracle bureaucracy,
Is it just a banana?

All aligned
To maligned
Holy shrine
Devils dine
Power dime
Money Mine
Blurring line
Yet everything is just fine

Death of democracy,
Height of hypocrisy,
Oracle bureaucracy,
Is it just a banana?

The grouch
Sits on the couch
Turns on the tube
Watches violent porn on the news
With every ticking number
The slumber gets number

Death of democracy,
Height of hypocrisy,
Oracle bureaucracy,
Is it just a banana?

Billion toys to make a choice
Deep inside a dwindling voice
Knock knock knocking comes a noise
Someone is losing their poise
Left with a singular choice

-Nilay Shah
Blue Contemplation
SE, D.J.Sanghvi College of Engineering, Mumbai.

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  1. India is a country that is full of cultural,biological diversity. India is the only country in the world that never invaded other country but only spread the message of peace. From the past many rulers capture India and ruled on it right from the time of the Mughals to the time of the English people's rule. never ever India celebrated independence in the past when the mughals left us or when in that matter any other foreign rulers left us for free. then why only celebrating independence now only after the Britishers left us???? This independence meant a lot to we Indians and therefore we celebrate it. this independence was obtained by hard work, willpower, determination and grit. if an outsider comes to your house and occupies your space, rules over you and provides you with the facilities that you require, then why would a person revolt on that person and those outsiders where the kind and generous rulers who created a good image for themselves in the history of India. and if that outsider goes away then you feel bad and that was what the Indian felt when the rulers left them. but if another outsider comes and harasses you and rules over you and takes your space and does not even treat you nicely then you will feel like kicking him out of your house but you cannot do so as you do not have enough power and finally if after much struggle you are able to kick that person out of your house then you rejoice and this is what we Indians did after making Britishers leave our country ie celebrating independence day.
    Salute to all those GREAT SOULS who SACRIFICED their lives for making India free
    JAI HIND
    VANDE MATARAM
    BHARAT MATA KI JAI
    SALUTE TO MOTHER INDIA AND ITS PEOPLES

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