Today, it was a glad moment for me and everyone when our national flag waved high after being hoisted by our honorable Prime Minister. In that very proud moment of celebrating 73 years of independence, a thought crossed my mind… What is Independence? Are we really independent? Were Britishers the only element who snatched us of our freedom? What about the monsters like corruption, unemployment, poverty, insecurity of women and illiteracy? Are we not slaves of these brutes?
How can we call us independent when a girl cannot step outside of her house after dark, when a woman who loves to wear gold cannot move around the corner of her locality wearing it, and when a senior citizen has to bribe a government employee to be able to withdraw his own pension? Can we really call us a free nation where the rich is getting richer at the cost of miseries of the poor?
It has been more than 70 years since we are a “Free nation”, but have we made enough progress to justify the period of 7 long decades? Yes, we have progressed. We have more than 4 billion of smart phones now in India. Forget Moon, India has reached the Mars. But, is the nation really progressing where poor parents admit their children to schools not for them to study but to be able to have free mid-day meals for them? Is the nation really progressing where female feticide is still prevalent? Is the nation really progressing where a girl deserves to be raped just because she was out with her male friend? Is the nation really progressing where the groom’s side considers it as their birth right to ask for dowry and bride’s side believes it to be their moral obligation to surrender to their demands? Is the nation really progressing where a 6 months old infant as well as a 60 years old lady gets raped and still the dressing sense of the victim is held responsible for the heinous crime? It’s a matter of shame that India even needs (great) shows like “Satyamev jayate”.
Independence does not mean the freedom to pee or spit in open; Independence does not mean the freedom to throw garbage anywhere you want; Independence does not mean the freedom to throw acid on anybody’s face. This is not what Independence means. This is not the Independence that our ancestors fought for.
Our great freedom fighters fought till their last drop of blood to earn this freedom, but I am sure this was not the “India” they dreamt of. Hoisting flag on 15th August and parading on 26th January is not the real celebration of freedom. Celebrating another national holiday on Gandhi Jayanti is not the real tribute to the never ending efforts of our true heroes. They played their part and sacrificed their lives in the course.
Now it’s the turn of today’s youth. Fortunately, we don’t have to pull swords and make someone or ourselves bleed to death. We just need to realize and adopt basic moral and ethical values. In addition to teaching our daughters to be careful, we should also teach our sons to behave right and to respect the moral rights of women (every living being in fact). Honesty should not only be a lesson in the books, but parents should also practice honesty in order to teach their children to be honest in their practical lives. There should not be the need to put signs ‘Do not litter’ and ‘No smoking zone’, but these basic rules should be followed by default.
If each and every parent of this country becomes a responsible citizen and inculcate the same values in their children, then very soon this nation will become “The India’ which Jawahar Lal Nehru and Subhash Chandra Bose dreamt of… An Independent India… Independent in true sense.
Also Read:
Dear Parents, Please don’t kill your child’s Humanity
Parents… Where are we going wrong?
Mom, why are you Brown, why am I White?
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