WE CAN MAKE 2014 LOOK DIFFERENT

31 December 2013 | Rohinee Singh

First, I would take this opportunity to wish you all a happy new year; 2013 was a rough year for many of us and 2014 could not come soon enough. As the Indian economy endured its slowest growth for over a decade, many plans were put on hold. The media industry suffered as well with large-scale layoffs, as advertising dried up. One can only hope that as the economy turns around, so will the media industry in India.

But 2014 is now upon us and the first quarter of the year, at least in India, will be consumed by the nation heading into the most important general election in a generation. An election, where the two protagonists have clearly different visions for India. But as we are discovering with Mr Arvind Kejriwal in Delhi, there is no magic wand to undo years of misrule.

There is no doubt that India has immense unfulfilled potential — potential that has been frittered away in poorly planned, statist economy freebies that have kept people wallowing in poverty and decades of crony capitalism. The fact remains that without the furious injection of money into the global economy by the US Federal Reserve, the global economy and India’s would be worse off.

But the worst seems to be behind us now and we should start 2014 on a positive note. However, this columnist strongly believes that we ourselves have the ability to change India for the better. One of the ways many of us will do that is to ensure that we cast our votes in the upcoming election.

The importance of voting was highlighted in the recent State Assembly election, with turnouts impressively high, exceeding 70 per cent even in urban areas. Democracy has many flaws, but not voting is clearly one of the worst. As the Assembly election in Delhi proved, nothing is beyond the realm of the possible in elections, as the Aam Aadmi Party had a stellar debut.

Unfortunately, political discourse in this country plumbed new depths through 2013, thanks, in no small part, to television ‘debates’ where civility was thrown out of the window, and despite hopes that things might improve in 2014 that is unlikely. And, god forbid, if there is a hung Parliament, then the loud and highly politicised television debates will not end, even in the second-half of 2014.

While political discourse might remain loud and uncivilised, some things can change. First and foremost, the civic sense of all Indians, which remains woeful. It continues to surprise this writer how we treat our civic property — for example, ‘protests’ on the roads often involve the wanton and unwarranted destruction of public property, because there is little fear of the law.

There is justified anger against corruption. However, when faced with a situation where we should pay a fine or penalty, we try and bribe our way out of it. Take traffic offences, for example: Many drivers willingly pay the traffic police money to avoid paying a fine. Worse still, there is a certain belief in ‘fate’ in the way we choose to live our lives, an attitude that costs far too many lives.

Just because the traffic law, for reasons beyond a sane person’s comprehension, does not insist that women wear helmets while riding pillion on two-wheelers, that is no excuse for not wearing a helmet. Proper helmets can and do save lives. As doctors announced at a Press conference surrounding Michael Schumacher’s accident recently, the helmet ensured that he got to the hospital alive.

Similarly, there is our attitude to getting things done, jugaad is celebrated by some as a good thing, where we find solutions to intractable problems. But jugaad is a horrible weakness, a way of taking short-cuts because the long-way round might appear difficult or inconvenient. Everything from buying train tickets from touts to coming up with solutions which are dangerous. But because we, as a people, do not value human life as much as we should, we continue these disingenuous solutions.

Earlier this year, as reported in this newspaper some young men died because jugaad made by store-owners and electrical workers meant that exposed high-voltage wires were able to give fatal shocks to young people. Heavy vehicles carrying long reinforcing rods still ply the street in connivance with the authorities.

While our elected representatives can do a lot to ensure the rule of law and foster growth, they can not transform India unless we too play a role in the process. Our role has to be one where we start respecting the law more, where we decide to be better citizens, because if we do not change, how can India, no matter who sits in the Prime Minister’s chair come June. Lots of other things need to change in India. The urgent need for judicial and police reform, the way we treat our women, urgent improvements in infrastructure but that is no excuse for us not to initiate change ourselves.

Many resolutions will be made to lose weight and exercise as the clock strikes twelve, but let us also resolve to be better citizens and ensure that when the time comes, we cast our votes. Have a happy new year and wishing all our readers, and all Indians a great 2014.