The extended tussle over the years, over the construction of e a masjid or a Ram Mandir on the disputed site of Ayodhya, does not seem to be easily ending in the near future. This debate, in my opinion, is a waste of time, money and resources of our country.
Recently, we saw the amount of money invested in the construction of Sardar Patel’s ‘Statue of Unity’. If the government started spending the citizens’ hard-earned money in providing employment and quality infrastructure, many poor people would not starve in poverty.
Building another temple/mosque, in a country where we get to see at least one mosque/temple in every locality, is not a brilliant idea, especially when it is competing to be at par with the developed countries of the world, such as the US and Russia.
Would a poor man think of going to visit a temple/mosque in Ayodhya or the Statue of Unity in Gujarat, or would he worry about getting a job to sustain and survive, and fulfil, at least, his basic needs. What is important to ponder over, is that instead of fighting over turning the city of Ayodhya into a holy/religious shrine, why can’t we talk about, or think of, turning it into a smart city? Can’t we keep such a not-so-necessary debate aside and prioritise the development of cities and towns?
According to an estimate, the employment generation programme by the government will cost around 1.7-2.7% of the GDP per year, which can provide work opportunities to around 30-50 million workers. Spending money on such programmes instead of constructing ‘tallest statues’ will not only bring employment to a large number of citizens but will also induce investment in cities and towns, which will further give a boost to the development of public goods and infrastructure, help in providing skills to unemployed workers and quality education to children; thereby improving the living standard of citizens.
Therefore, let us all be development-driven citizens rather than religion-driven vulnerable fools.