For quite some time, the Tourist department of the govt of India has adopted a USP-Unique Selling Proposition:"Incredible India" as its foremost publicity slogan, to attract foreign tourists to the country. Despite India's tremendous variety of people, scenery, culture, cuisine, languages, seasons, heritage sites, religious practices, festivals, the tourist inflow was much smaller in comparison to its Asian neighbours, let alone smaller European nations like Spain.
However, my main focus in this piece is the meaning of "Incredible India" in its more mundane, existential and every day life sense. There is so such insensitivity, inhumanity and apathy that mark Indians' behaviour to each other; it is totally incredible. Even supposedly good things aimed at people's welfare-particularly poor citizens, are executed haphazardly, indifferently, without any real concern whether these will help them. Crores and crores are budgeted for education, health-care, mid-day meals for poor children to motivate their parents to send them to school. But, thanks to corrupt bureaucracy, mismanagement, misgovernance, govt schools are in a pathetic state: absentee teachers, poor infrastructure, no drinking water, no toilets. Thus, the overall picture is dismal.
In a latest incident in a village school in Bihar(Chappra dist), over two dozen small children lost their lives after consuming contaminated mid-day meals. It was shocking to read the story of utter callousness and near-criminality of the school principal who was supposed to supervise the cooking. The pictures of insanitary conditions in which the cooking oil was stored as well as other material, were appalling. It was reported that when the lady cook drew the attention of the lady principal to the bad soyabeans that were on the menu, the latter rejected her plea and ordered to go ahead and cook it. The bad soyabeans and contaminated cooking oil reportedly resulted in the terrible tragedy of young children of poor families dying in a large number.
Even a cursory look at the implementation of the Centre-State scheme-funded in the ratio of 75% and 25%, seemed so bizarre. How could such a delicate scheme dealing with feeding young children be handled in such a cavalier, ad hoc manner without proper, professional planning, supervision and monitoring on a regular basis? The Bihar incident is not the first such tragic occurence. But, unfortunately, after a short media hype and public anger, the tragedy is forgotten till the next one. There are reports of similar mess and chaos in other areas as well, like medicare. Peons, rikshaw-drivers and others without any medical training are allowed to give injections and allied services in the absence of trained nurses. Is itn't "Incredible India"?
However, my main focus in this piece is the meaning of "Incredible India" in its more mundane, existential and every day life sense. There is so such insensitivity, inhumanity and apathy that mark Indians' behaviour to each other; it is totally incredible. Even supposedly good things aimed at people's welfare-particularly poor citizens, are executed haphazardly, indifferently, without any real concern whether these will help them. Crores and crores are budgeted for education, health-care, mid-day meals for poor children to motivate their parents to send them to school. But, thanks to corrupt bureaucracy, mismanagement, misgovernance, govt schools are in a pathetic state: absentee teachers, poor infrastructure, no drinking water, no toilets. Thus, the overall picture is dismal.
In a latest incident in a village school in Bihar(Chappra dist), over two dozen small children lost their lives after consuming contaminated mid-day meals. It was shocking to read the story of utter callousness and near-criminality of the school principal who was supposed to supervise the cooking. The pictures of insanitary conditions in which the cooking oil was stored as well as other material, were appalling. It was reported that when the lady cook drew the attention of the lady principal to the bad soyabeans that were on the menu, the latter rejected her plea and ordered to go ahead and cook it. The bad soyabeans and contaminated cooking oil reportedly resulted in the terrible tragedy of young children of poor families dying in a large number.
Even a cursory look at the implementation of the Centre-State scheme-funded in the ratio of 75% and 25%, seemed so bizarre. How could such a delicate scheme dealing with feeding young children be handled in such a cavalier, ad hoc manner without proper, professional planning, supervision and monitoring on a regular basis? The Bihar incident is not the first such tragic occurence. But, unfortunately, after a short media hype and public anger, the tragedy is forgotten till the next one. There are reports of similar mess and chaos in other areas as well, like medicare. Peons, rikshaw-drivers and others without any medical training are allowed to give injections and allied services in the absence of trained nurses. Is itn't "Incredible India"?
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