By Col Sudhir Rana (Retd)
When termites attack a house, it appears as normal till the destruction is complete and then everything crumbles suddenly. Similarly the silent destruction of a nation, institution, belief system or even relationship remains invisible till the final moment of no return. Because the termites eat away at structures unseen. When we overlook and don’t address unspoken issues, negative habits, or deceit before they cause irreparable damage, we cannot prevent the collapse. “A stitch in time saves nine.” But it seems that we are waiting till the last. Like a typical Bollywood movie, we are waiting for some hero or God Himself to save us from the consequences of our laziness or cowardice. We don’t want to do anything and keep on daydreaming and hoping for divine intervention.
When we look at our country today, what do we see?
At the time of independence, we were an extremely poor nation, depending upon leftovers and charity of other nations. But even then during my childhood, medical treatment and education was affordable and of decent quality. Can we say the same thing now? Education is expensive and of poor quality. We are churning out engineers who cannot build, doctors who cannot treat and teachers who don’t know their subject.
The people accommodated with each other without grudge and shared. People wore simple cloths but now everyone wants to show off. You had few clothes and to get hand me downs from elder sibling was OK. Now try this and you will be hated by your children. Disposable income was low then but the greed was also less. The food was simple but shared happily with guests. Even cows, birds, dogs and ants were fed. Now we get chemicals and poisonous adulterations in food items and even medicines too.
A corrupt person was not respected. But nowadays you are respected if you are rich, no matter how you got your wealth. Teachers are insulted but smugglers and thugs are revered. Earlier, first you earned and saved, then only one purchased things for use. Nowadays credit cards and EMI make you purchase things you don’t even need and as a result in bargain you sell your future and freedom.
Newspapers were trustworthy and editors valued freedom. Judiciary could hold election of a PM invalid. Can you say the same thing about the press and media now? Judges get caught with their hands in the till and nothing happens. Life goes on as usual. The police protects the criminal and implicates the hapless innocent. The priests loot offerings and so called babas rape innocent devotees. Newly constructed roads get potholes next day, bridges collapse after inauguration and tunnels cave in.
Elders were respected then. They are slighted and mocked now. Cuss words were not part of speech. Now your earlobes will turn crimson at the foul language you hear from youngsters. Bad and loud behaviour was looked down upon earlier. Now our politicians abuse and shout in the temples of democracy. Now law breakers make the law for us.
We move in BMWs and throw trash on streets. People riding BMWs in Delhi were caught stealing flowerpots from venues of some public events. Crores worth of linen is stolen from bogies of railways. People steal towels from 5 star hotels. We bully the weak and cower in front of the powerful. We want to keep our house clean but spit on walls of public places and piss publically on somebody’s wall. We take our pedigreed dogs on a walk and let them defecate on the neighbour’s gate.
We shout but we don’t listen. We demand our rights and privileges but haggle with poor and deny them the fruit of their labour. We grovel in front of the mighty and bully the weak. We lecture on truth, honesty and character and act just the opposite at the same time. We say we will be a developed nation by 2047. The rivers of milk and honey will flow and the whole world will respect us.
Are we doing something to achieve those goals or are we daydreaming like proverbial “Sheikh chilli”?
Or in the words of Mirza Ghalib:
“Hamein maalum hai jannat ki haqeeqat lekin,
Dil ke bahlaane ko Ghalib khayal achha hai.”
(We know the reality of Heaven, but there is no harm in daydreaming.)
Are we prepared to work hard and gas the termite out of the house or are we waiting for it to collapse?
