Be the change...

Last Friday, on March 27, part of the country celebrated their new year. This New Year tradition, started as "Vikram Samvat" in 78 BC or as Shalivahan Shaka in 57 AD. Both King Vikramaditya and King Shalivahan were heroes of their era whose leadership successfully retaliated the external barbaric attacks and defeated the invasions. It is ironic and to some extent unfortunate that even today both Kings Vikramaditya and Shalivahan and their actions have relevance more than ever. I am sure any Indian can (or should be able to) guess why. But if not think about the terrorist attacks that took place in last 2-3 years in Mumbai, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Ajmer, Jaipur, Ahmadabad, Bengaluru, Delhi, and Imphal. We are already paying a heavy toll in the form of killings of innocents, policemen and other law enforcement authorities by terrorists all around India. Innocent families of those who lost lives are suffering and taxpayers are paying the cost of these attacks.

Sometimes we see intermittent display of anger and protest from citizens and rarely from the Government. But no long-term vision, policy or action oriented programs are visible. By and large, politicians and bureaucrats dare to ignore the seriousness of national security, partly because there is no follow-up by the people who vote for them and as taxpayers, pay their hefty expenses. This inaction will continue further as long as there is no fear of getting ousted by the ballot box.

Thanks to the media, 24/7 broadcast of the November 26, terrorist war helped to alleviate the numbness in public psyche. For the first time, we saw significant protest and peace vigils by Indians and Non Resident Indians all across the globe. It helped awaken the masses to certain extent. We saw eventually leadership change in the ruling state government. But then again back to square one. Neither are we following our demand for the proactive policies to stop terrorism nor government is keen to share its actions, if any taken so far.

In all these attacks the worst ever praise we heard (especially in the case of Mumbai and Mumbaikars) was, "we are resilient!" What kind of resilience is this? Everyone gets and should get busy back in their own business. Nothing should stop. But that does not mean that such attacks can be ignored under the pretext of being "resilient" society. Ultimately, the nation will survive and thrive by our work. However, in the absence of comprehensive and effective national security policy everything can have adverse impacts. If we really want to be a developed nation by 2020, we will first need security, all the way from the nation's borders to alleyways of a town. But that will not happen if we assume that Government will do everything without our following up with the officials, and politicians.

In the eras of Monarchies, Great Kings like Vikramaditya or Shalivahan were responsible for rise of their Kingdoms and defeat of their enemies. But in democracies, that is by default the Government of the people, it is as much responsibility of the masses to follow their civic duties as much as that of the elected officials and beuracrats. People and the Government are two sides of this coin of democracy. In absence of one, it is nothing but khota sikka.

Hence again it comes to the same point - civic engagement. Voting is the least you can do as concerned citizen but is one of the most important civic duties. Even if you think that none of the candidates would be good for your constituency, VOTE for the best possible candidate given circumstances and then demand the best one can deliver once elected.

Also, let us not forget that the civic duty is not over after voting. In fact, it is never over. We need to start engaging our elected representatives from municipal, state and parliamentary bodies in continuous dialogue with us citizens. We need to be informed: How much do we know about our elected representatives? What are they doing for your constituency? How do they plan to spend their Member of Parliament Local Area Development (MPLAD) Scheme funds - Rs. 2 Croers per year? Are they participating in parliamentary discussions? and demand change for better.

During the US Presidential primaries in 2007, Hillary Clinton was addressing Indian Americans in the State of New Hampshire. What she said was not only important to Indian expatriats in the US but the same rule is applicable to Indians in India in the Indian context. Clinton told the audience that while Indian Americans generally make generous campaign contributions, they rarely ask for anything from lawmakers once the campaigns are over and governing begins. She further said that if they [Indian Americans] wouldn’t ask for anything, she couldn't help them, they need to ask, they need to make their voice heard.

We take pride in calling ourselves as a peace-loving and modern society, that honors Mahatma Gandhi as the Father of our Nation... But what we forget, is that he became the Mahatma, not because he accepted the things as they were. On the contrary, he reacted in his own ways and worked tirelessly to change the things that were not acceptable to him. Do we remember what happened at Pietermaritzburg railway station in South Africa that transformed a common man M.K. Gandhi to the most uncommon personality of the 20th century? Just imagine if this common man M.K. Gandhi would have remained resilient... Whose photos our babus and politicians could have hanged on their walls? Gandhiji did exactly what he said - "Be the change you wish to see in the world."

But to be such a changemaker don't you think we need to be well equipped with the right form of education all across the society?