India Republic @70: Of the people, for the people, by the people

India is a country of contrasts and contradictions. Its massive population is both its biggest strength as well as its most sensitive sore spot

As India celebrates its 70th Republic day, it is a shining example of how a former British colony has emerged as one of the most rapidly rising economic and political powerhouses in the world. It is nothing short of an economic miracle that a country that was, until 1991, closed to the outside world and was on the brink of bankruptcy is now ranked as the world's sixth largest economy.

The UAE and India have a conjoined history, a connected present and a common vision for the future. The two great nations enjoy close people, social and economic ties. The UAE hosts the largest number of Indian expats in the world, with a 3.3-million strong community living, working and thriving in this modern country with a deep-rooted social and cultural bond with India. This bond has been recently reinvigorated with high-level delegations and bilateral visits from both countries. These visits have not only led to an increased rapport between leaders of the two countries but also led to a further strengthening of the economic and commercial relations of UAE and India, with several new agreements, trade contracts and technical cooperation MoUs being signed between the two.

India is much more than just a modern economic success story. It has been, since time immemorial, an inspiration to scientists and poets alike, to men and women who want to chart their own course, and to millions who want to follow the right path to achieve their dreams and aspirations. In the words of famous writer Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known by his pen name Mark Twain, "India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend and the great grandmother of tradition. Our most valuable and most constructive materials in the history of man are treasured up in India only."

India remains a country of contrasts and contradictions. Even as it has over 100 billionaires, the country was until last year home to the largest number of the world's poor. Its massive population of 1.3 billion is both its biggest strength as well as its most sensitive sore spot. It is second only to China as the world's largest market, with everyone from smartphone manufacturers to carmakers making a beeline to sell their wares to India's financially empowered and rapidly rising urban middle-class. But that same strength in numbers also poses a social dilemma in terms of the need for consistent job-creation, food security issues and maintaining law and order, among others.

The country has nevertheless kept its every appointment with history and had invented and then reinvented itself whenever the need has arisen. From the creation of its first atomic reactor in 1956 to conducting the Smiling Buddha nuclear tests in 1974, from the setting up of world-class technology and management institutes (starting in 1951) whose alumni now run some of the world's most powerful companies to the green revolution of 1965, from nationalisation and then privatisation of banks, utilities and other large conglomerates to the economic liberalisation of the 1990s, from launching its first satellite Aryabhatta in 1975 to Indian students sending their own satellites to space, from the first indigenous Hindustan Ambassador car rolling out in 1958 and the first Maruti car in 1983 to becoming a global car-manufacturing hub, from demonetisation and GST reforms to the 'Make in India' campaign, India has checked every socio-economic development parameter on its own.

The country has charted its own path to prosperity, learning from its mistakes on the way and is now at the cusp of becoming an economic superpower. As it grapples with its growth pangs and deals with issues emanating out of urbanisation, the need for rapid infrastructure development and catering to the demands of an ambitious population, its people will remain its greatest asset who, with the help of technology and inherent creativity and innovation, can transform lives, not just in India but across the world. While the story of the first 70 years of the Indian republic has been one of starting from scratch and putting together a solid base from where to catapult itself and its people to greater heights, the next 70 years offer the best chance ever for India to regain its superpower status and lead the world on a path of non-violence, sustainability, peace and opportunity.

Jai Hind.

- vicky@khaleejtimes.com

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