Learning from the past

NOT MERELY SCIENCE, BUT DEDICATION TOO

Tuesday, 11 November 2014 | Ashwani Lohani | in Oped

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Human ego is the biggest stumbling block to progress and growth in today’s era. Bigger the ego, the lesser the delivery

The national penchant for re-inventing the wheel and invariably showcasing efforts as the first of its kind is as damaging as it is hilarious. I vividly remember the beginning of my tenure in the tourism sector when I was asked to take steps to prepare State-level master plans for the development of tourism. I tumbled upon a bookshelf and found that similar reports were prepared many times over in the past.

Yet, in our efforts that are directed towards self-perpetuation, we never learn, nor seem to be inclined to, despite the fact that there is really much that can be gleaned from the affairs of history. Napoleon’s conquests and his emergence as the emperor of France when he was merely 35, the rise of Germany as the most powerful nation in the world within 70 years of its being totally vanquished during the World War I and the ejection of the British Empire from the sub-continent almost single-handedly by Mahatma Gandhi, are classical examples from history that should  inspire us towards achieving greatness.

And it is not merely these great examples. There are many other equally important examples, albeit on a lower scale, that are within the realm of realisation by mere mortals. How many of us know that the great architectural masterpiece, Red Fort, took only 10 years to build — that too almost four centuries ago — and the iconic Howrah bridge took just five? That the three hill railways, namely, the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, the Kangra Valley Railway and the Kalka Simla Railway, each took less than three years to build, is also beyond the realm of comprehension. Unthinkable indeed in the present era, when the skills, technological as well as managerial, are far more advanced than the time when those masterpieces were created.

Perhaps then delivery was as sacrosanct as processes are today. And therein lies the folly of the systems of present times. And it is also about ego. “The bigger the ego, the lesser the delivery”, a statement that symbolises the working of all the enterprises today, says it all about the causes that underline our most glaring failures. That human ego is the biggest stumbling block to progress and growth is a fact that needs appreciation. Yet what really surprises me is adjustable egos that do not even whimper when a superior pulls one up but flare up in the presence of a subordinate at the slightest pretext. And the tantra is perhaps the finest example of egos that remain elastic throughout ones lifetime. What a great waste of life, human life that according to the Hindushastra is conferred after passing through 84 lakh life forms.

The great Indus Valley civilisation of the 5th century BC is an outstanding example of what our ancestors were capable of even in those days that were bereft of technological advancements of the kind that exist today. The strides that this civilisation made in the fields of town planning, trade and culture are really an eye-opener and make us wonder with awe — if so much could be achieved in those days, why not now?

Perhaps it is all about our ability to dream and having a single-minded focus and determination to convert the same into reality. Yet the same would not be possible without three things — leadership, absolute integrity and ethical behavior, the void of which this great nation had been experiencing for quite some time now.  Yet we remain engrossed in trivialities, things that really do not matter in the long-run or even in the short-run. Moreover self-gratification and an absolute lack of concern for the collective can never propel a nation forward.

INDIA HAS SEVERAL NETAS BUT NO NATION-BUILDER

(This article was published in the Pioneer of 31/1/2014)

The emergence of a true leader who has the courage and the gumption to take on the system, and not merely tinker with it for marginal improvements, is the need of the hour. Unfortunately, this country is yet to be blessed with such a leader

It was an inspiring address, delivered by the first Prime Minister of independent India in the first hour of day one, that raised the hopes of an entire nation. The lines that really stood out in that tryst with destiny speech were: “The achievement we celebrate today is but a step, an opening of opportunity, to the greater triumphs and achievements that await us. Are we brave enough and wise enough to grasp this opportunity and accept the challenge of the future?”

India has since then been a land of missed opportunities. Many wonder if we can afford to miss it this time again. Opportunity is not for a select few to occupy high chairs but for genuine nation-building. The realisation that nation- building requires the toil of generations and definitely does not come cheap, has not sunk into the Indian psyche. That there is no quick-fix, and a mere display of intentions and rhetoric is not going to take us anywhere needs to be understood. It is paramount that India’s Gross Domestic Product grows in sync with the developed world.

For the past 67 years, with the exception of the initial few, what the nation has witnessed is a clamour for power, purely for personal gains. Modern day political dynasties, that the nation has not been able to discard, have evolved out of this clamour for power. While some have maintained an association with power since that ‘tryst with destiny’, many other political families (though not as powerful) have also emerged and produced successful second and third generation politicians, occupying benches in the hallowed portals of Parliament and State legislatures across the country. We are taken in by names, and name-throwing has, therefore, emerged as the biggest past-time of the ruling and ruled classes.

What is nation-building all about? A great example is the rise of Germany after its defeats in the first and the second world wars. Its rise after the first war was fuelled by national pride and the leadership of one single individual; after the second, it was the collective effort of its citizens to restore the nation to  its earlier position of glory that made all the difference.

In India’s context, the issues are a bit different. At the time of independence, we were like a child who had been let free. A nation of uneducated people, torrid infrastructure, rampant poverty that was divided on caste and regional lines, was handed the baton with the mandate to govern itself. The ruling classes saw themselves in the same mould as the departing occupiers. Therefore, though the machinery for governance warranted a total overhaul, it was merely tinkered with for minimal effect. The euphoria of independence soon evaporated. Therefore, while minor improvements in infrastructure and major changes in the availability of consumer goods may be visible today, the nation has been slipping down the human development and transparency indices.

India is yet to be blessed with a leader who openly shares his resolve to take the nation forward. Someone who openly declares his abhorrence for corruption and resolves to hit graft at it its roots shall be the one who can build the nation of our dreams. A person who has a vision, sets targets and takes the nation forward by delivering, not merely pontificating on providing governance, education and infrastructure.

The emergence of a true leader who has the courage and the gumption to take on the system, and not merely tinker with it for marginal improvements, is the need of the hour.  Only such leaders are remembered as nation builders. All others merely had a great time.