Page 38 - EducationWorld August 2022

Expert Comment

75th Independence Day

reflections

SANJAYA BARU

F ONE’S BIRTHDAY TENDS TO BE A TIME FOR 21st century India has to do much more
self-reflection, Independence Day should be a time
for national self-reflection. Media publishes data and to realise the dreams of leaders of our
Ianalysis on the state of the nation, economy and the freedom movement. Strengthening
people. Independence Day this year is a special milestone Indian pluralism, maintaining unity
because we observe the 75th anniversary of free India.
There are two ways in which one can measure the state of in diversity remains India's biggest
the nation on this momentous occasion.
The first option is to take stock of the state of the challenge on Independence Day
nation 75 years ago and its condition today. This would
I
be a purely inter-temporal comparison. We can also In a book I recently published ( ndia’ s Pow er Elite:
compare India with countries similarly placed in 1947, Caste, Class and a Cultural R evolution, Penguin
and measure our relative progress. Random House, 2021), I have cited data to prove that an
Purely inter-temporal comparisons tend to be increasing number of young Indians are venturing abroad
encouraging and heartening. We are certainly better for undergraduate and higher education, constituting
off today than we were 75 years ago on almost every a phenomenon that I describe as “secession of the
indicator. Perhaps with one exception — viz , the quality successful”. The data is damning. The foreign exchange
of water, air and soil. Nature has been degraded in the outflow by way of tuition and residential accommodation
process of economic growth and development. India and of Indian students studying abroad has risen sharply over
the world is trying to remedy this but it will take time, the past decade in particular.
commitment and money to do so. ecently, 20,000 medical students from India had to
One metric tells a good story. From 1950 to 1980, Rbe rescued from Ukraine when the Russian invasion
India’s annual national income increased by 3.5 percent began. There are similar numbers of Indian students
per year. Compared with near zero percent recorded in in unfamiliar countries such as Kyrgizstan, Azerbaijan
the period 1890-1940, this achievement was impressive. and Kazhakstan, apart from those studying in English-
Subsequently, in the period 1980-2000, the average rate speaking countries around the world. It used to be said
of annual GDP growth increased to 5.5 percent and 7.5 a 100 years ago that the sun never set on the British
percent in 2000-2015. During the past seven years, it is Empire. Today we can say the sun never sets on Indian
down to around 6-6.5 percent. Even so, it’s an impressive students.
achievement for a poor developing country burdened with Independent India has achieved much on many fronts
the toxic legacy of colonialism and decades of poverty, and within the framework of democracy. This is a matter
illiteracy and disease. of great pride for us. A decade and a half ago, we were
However, in the 1950s India was on a par or ahead described as the world’s fastest growing free market
of many Asian countries that today are way ahead of us. democracy. However, the quality of our democracy has
Most of South-east Asia was economically less developed begun to decline. We live in times where young people
than India. Indeed, even China and Korea were less are being punished for their religious beliefs and caste
developed. Korean economists came to India in the identities. Economic inequality is rising sharply. Some
1950s to learn how to plan and modernise their economy. of India’s business leaders are among the Top 10 richest
Today, almost all countries to India’s east, with few billionaires of the world, yet millions of Indians are living
exceptions, have much better UNDP human development in abject poverty, suffering illiteracy and ill-health.
indicators than India. Twenty-first century India has to do much more to
So, while on Independence Day we will hear a lot of realise the dreams of leaders of our freedom movement.
how much better off India is today compared to 75 years The national freedom struggle united a diverse people
ago, we would also like an explanation as to why so many to establish a united country proud to be the world’s
countries that were at our level of development in 1947 largest democracy that is uniquely multi-ethnic, multi-
are now much better off. The simplistic view that India lingual, multireligious and tolerates multiple cuisines and
has paid a price for democracy has long been dismissed. lifestyles. Strengthening Indian pluralism, maintaining
Numerous research studies have established that the our Unity in Diversity remains India’s biggest challenge
real differentiator is education. All the countries that are on the nation’s 75th Independence Day.
better off than India have made great progress in public
education — basic literacy, school, higher and technical (Sanjaya Baru is former editor of Business Standard, media advisor to the
education. By neglecting education, India has paid a prime minister and author of The Accidental Prime Minister and 1991:
heavy price and continues to do so. How P.V. Narasimha Rao Made History)

38 EDUCATIONWORLD AUGUST 2022