I was staring at the wall when I realised that a coat of paint had started to peel off. Curious and bored, I decided to help the natural process and started to peel it myself. To my surprise, the entire coating peeled off easily and what remained was the same wall which we had covered numerous times with paint over the past 10 years. It was of the same yellowish colour which had now faded and still had the same cracks which it had over a decade ago. It was not repaired but merely covered.
This simple act made me realise that maybe this is the condition of the residents of India. The world’s largest democracy whose people boast of being progressive and aim to make India a superpower are still the same people their ancestors were. We might look progressive because of the paint but beneath us lie the same values and divisions of caste and religion. We might watch American shows and make fun of their President but we still lack many things that used to make us great thousands of years ago.
We are fuelled by communal news and stigma against certain people. This is accurate as it becomes relatively easy for political parties to ignite communal hatred among fellow countrymen for their own political gains – a recent example being communal riots in Bihar during Ram Navami. A report suggests that since the NDA government came into Bihar, there have been almost 200 cases of communal aggression in the state. This brings up the fact that it has been 70 years since the country was divided but its unpleasant seeds are still in the minds of the fellow countrymen.
Rather than living by the ideals which our founding fathers had for this great nation, we have now become mere pawns in a game, where our passions are ignited to gather votes rather than bringing collective good to the country. The question still remains unanswered – how can we repair the wall, that ugly looking thing which remains when the cover is taken off?
Like most complex questions, the answer remains simple. We should break the wall down to pave way for a new one. The citizens of this country must strive to create values among themselves and their fellow countrymen, we should let go of our old ideals and make way for new ideals the promote peace and harmony among the citizens of this country just like our founding fathers intended to. The way is long and tedious and requires a lot of effort. There are going to be problems as well but greatness in only achieved when the present triumphs over the past.