You might have observed that a few leading newspapers have a regular column labelled “80 years ago,” “100 years ago“ or ” from our archives”. They do it to proclaim their antiquity as to how long they have been in this business, and post snippets or anecdotes from their newspapers published exactly 75, 80 or a 100 years ago . But , besides establishing their credibility, these snippets also open a window of opportunity for readers to peep into the not too distant past and let them see for themselves as to how much things , thinking, and social mores have changed In the intervening period , or Have These Changed At All.
I chanced to see one such revealing news item of 80 years ago that in February 1940, Indian Railways highlighted the vice of travelling without ticket and how much loss the railways incurred on account of this . It states with precise figures that in the year 1938-39, 2411912 persons cheated , and Indian Railways had lost a revenue of Rs 2,823,516/ ( a princely sum in those days ) due to prevalent practice of travelling without ticket on passenger trains . Interact with anyone from the older generation of 40’s and 50’s and you are most likely to hear “ those were the good old days , people were honest ,and life was simple “. They all claim to have been saints. This might even have a ring of truth around it , relatively speaking the alleged sixty- four crore rupee BOFOR gun scam would sound like an incredibly honest deal in comparison with eleven thousand crores of today .
When a man buys a train or bus ticket for his 13 year old child claiming him to be under 12 to be eligible for a concessional half price , It doesn’t leave much to imagination as to what values he imparts to the child in his impressionable years . Boasting that just by employing this little unethical sleight he has saved so much money reinforces the message to the child that to cheat and not be caught is a clever and acceptable thing to do . Just making him read and repeat like a parrot at school that “ Honesty is the best policy “ is not going to teach him ethics when on a daily basis he sees and hears about how clever a person is or was that he cheated and escaped with it .
Ask anyone and they would testify that government jobs in certain departments , or those involving any purchasing capacity , are the most sought after , and in great demand in the arranged marriage market in Indian scenario.
This income by side or Upar ki amdani has become an accepted part of life . So and so , even the best brains after taking their engineering degrees from the famed IITs , instead of engaging in path breaking research , opt for the most prestigious and marketable tag of the IAS ( Indian Administrative Services ) for a cushy , comfortable life .
Even in politics , a regular reader of Indian newspapers very often comes across news items soon after an election that various leaders are competing and vying for a few so-called Plum ministries.
All this is indicative of a deep established malice in our society .These days almost every time print media as well as T V channels talking about nation’s economy come out with all sorts of economic data, and its effect on seemingly the most important parameter- the G D P , the gross domestic product . Panelists on T V channels discuss in details the finer points of economy and a few even raise doubts about the reliability of statistics released by various departments of the government of the day . But the bottom line of all such semantic exercises is the magical figure- the GDP. Is it 8% ,7%, or much lower 5% and so on , what effect this figure will have on the employment scenario and other vital parameters of the economy . To a layman and an ordinary citizen who is forced to drive on pot holed roads, has to grease the palms of a government official to get even the most basic services from the various government offices, to secure admission for his children be it a nursery school or a college , admission to a hospital etc , all such discussions on the intricate points of economy turn out to be meaningless. All he is interested is that he receives honest services from the various departments which have such a stranglehold on his life .
To a common man as immortalised by the legendary satirist R K Laxman in his inimical style , a growth rate of 7% will be very good, 8-9% simply wonderful, but he means a growth rate of “HONESTY INDEX “ .
Imagine an annual growth rate of 1%of 1.35 billion people in India or 1.35 crore ( 13.5 million ) honest people added to the country every year. This translates into an army of 1.35 crore honest men and women, and if we talk of 5 % Gross Honesty Growth , this builds up to a staggering total of 6.75 crore or 67.5 million people of honesty , integrity, and sound moral values who believe in achieving peace and prosperity for themselves and the nation through hard work and sincerity of purpose , people who do not believe in taking shortcuts, or take unfair advantage of others, people who are fiercely proud and dedicated Indians . These 6.75 crore( just 5 %of the nation’s population)will be wonderful role models for everyone to emulate .
This number is equivalent to the entire population of the UK and those of most nations in Europe.These small countries with small, honest , and motivated population create so much wealth . It is only a matter of little back of the envelope calculation to figure out how much wealth such honest , dedicated Indians will create .
We shall have honest engineers building honest roads and bridges which will last a lifetime and beyond . The money which goes into shoddy patchwork repair on such roads will then go into other development and welfare projects .
We shall have honest, principled doctors who will truly care for their patients instead of unnecessarily prolonging their stay in the hospitals and recommending various , not needed diagnostic tests with a view to inflate their medical bills and thus fulfil the quota demands required by their bosses in the hospitals . We shall have honest teachers who in return for their salaries teach their pupils, and besides teaching specific subjects will also inculcate in them honesty and good moral values and thus turn in more honest people every year. Imagine an army of such well meaning honest people growing by 5 % every year, meaning another 6- 7 crore men and women of integrity added each succeeding year .
Hordes of honest businessmen , honest workers, honest bureaucrats and other officials in both private and public sectors can do wonders and take India to the TOP in every sphere of human endeavours .
The table here below shows the population , geographical area, and the current status of their foreign exchange reserves of a few countries in relation to India.
SN. Country Geographical area Population Current forex reserve
Take their total wealth generation , per capita income, education, healthcare, and overall position in Human Development Index ranking , these countries excel everywhere. A small country such as Switzerland with a geographical area of sq km ,and a population of only 86 lakh ( 8.6 million ) is the world leader in banking , pharmaceuticals and hospitality industries and boasts of a per capita income of , and a foreign exchange reserve of 792 billion dollars in comparison to India’s population of 1.35 billion and her Forex reserve of 412 billion dollars. Hong Kong with her total population of only. Has a much higher per capita income, and a Forex reserve of 435 billion dollars. One can make many more comparisons and it disappointing indeed that India as a nation ranks very very low in HDI and most such internationally accepted parameters .
We naturally need to sit up , take note of India’s paltry achievements and our ranking in various such tables and parameters. After all , what is it that other nations have and we do not ? What and how these countries and their people do which takes them to the top of the list ? They certainly do not have a god given magic wand .It is sheer hard work, honesty and sincerity of purpose of their people which takes them where they stand today .
Two things stand out . These people at an individual level are more honest in all their efforts and undertakings , and secondly , even if few tend to diverge from this established norm , the laws are such that these reward honesty , but also come down heavily on the deviant and their dishonest practices.
An ordinary citizen gets a message loud and clear that honesty pays and is rewarded . The society at large is also aware that an unscrupulous person, however high and mighty, will be justly punished for his misdeeds . Consequently, an honest , law abiding person does not have fear the police or tax authorities, and is certain in the knowledge that when he goes to a government office with prior appointment for a particular service, he would find a smiling, welcoming officer who will provide the desired service in an efficient manner without any delaying tactics to extract some chai money from the applicant . It does not require much imagination as to how things happen in our bureaucracy infested offices where the first response a nervous citizen gets is “ it cannot be done “. , or “ come tomorrow as the Babu concerned is on leave today “. It goes on and on until such a time that travelling to and fro the person gets totally frustrated only to learn that going through a tout he can get the job done much faster at a cost which would be economically wise thing to do taking into account the hassle and the time involved .
Now imagine all this happening in a country which inherited one of the best administrative establishment at the time of independence from her erstwhile colonial masters.
Indian bureaucrats filtered through one of the toughest competition system in the world are undoubtedly the some of the best brains the country can boast of . These capable brains , with the support of ruling politicians, have the power and authority to transform the nation and state of affairs overnight, if only they WILL to do so .
But , alas , that is not to happen in the foreseeable near future . The same goes for doctors, engineers, the MBAs who enter these professions after clearing the toughest battles for entrance to prestigious institutions such as IITs, medical colleges , and the hallowed IIMs . Even those few who start with lots of idealism get entangled in the corruption net either under peer pressure , or due to unscrupulous political masters, and thus the vicious circle continues. Corruption begets corruption. A common manfails to understand the magic as to how a bureaucrat drawing a monthly remuneration of a couple of lakh can afford to accumulate the hundreds of crore in one life after raising a family , educating the children, and acquiring the basic necessities of life – a decent house, a decent vehicle, and fulfilling other family obligations. It does not need much intelligence to figure out the magic wand involved.
As a mathematically challenged student in my school days I was mighty pleased to say good bye to this taxing subject after my high school in 1960 . But , one lesson my mathematics teacher taught us in geometry class has remained stuck with me throughout - that is
“ Astraight line is the shortest distance between any two points“.
No shorter routes exist in life. How wonderful it would be if we have huge numbers following this simple but effective dictum on following straight lines ( straight liners ) in our country, who would not only practice straight honest ways themselves, but would also influence and mould millions others to emulate them .
There is only this formula for a nation to qualify to be labelled as a developed nation and then aspire to sit on the high table in the international community. Create an environment conducive for the tribe of straight liners ( even if we have to coin a new word ) to grow and flourish , and everything else including GDP will grow by leaps and bounds , as they say . Imagine what pronounced cumulative effect all these developments will have on the overall economy and distribution of wealth in India. Forget GDP ; just focus and concentrate on GROSS HONESTY GROWTH.