Vision of a New India

I thought I’ll try and make an attempt to visualize what I wish my country to be like in the (hopefully near) future. I am limiting the scope to my country but this is something that I wish was for the whole world.  I am not saying that where we are now is terribly bad, maybe not yet anyway for most of us (every moment is perfect in its own way as the babas say) but from the perspective of many humans, animals and plants (including life that is currently emerging, young, old or marginalized), I would hazard the opinion that life today is headed in the direction of less and less happiness for more and more individuals and groups. There are flashpoints building up everywhere we see based on the current structure of our world, with the slightest spark being all that is required to ignite our world into flames.

My vision for India is this – a land where all life lives in well being and harmony and where all our energies are devoted to the protection, enjoyment and enhancement of the beauty of life and existence. The term life here encompasses all of nature that is contained within the borders of this great and vast land. I am of the belief that there were periods of time in the past (maybe Ashoka’s, the Guptas, Vijayanagar, Akbar?)  when this was at least significantly so but I believe the opportunity to make this a more profound and permanent reality is so much better now than ever before given our identity as a nation, the level of consciousness everywhere, the energy of youth and the tools of communication and information in our hands.

I wish to see an India where there are no borders within (no external borders with other nations as well is maybe too much to wish for?). No states or divisions within. I believe the idea of division of the country into states may have been a viable option for administrative purposes in the past but it has only served to create divisive forces currently which only seem to be getting worse by the day with every person wanting his own state. My understanding is that the mix of cultures within the country from north to south, east to west is now so complete that the language based separation of boundaries is meaningless and only fosters ill will and plays into the hands of persons who wish to create mischief for personal gain. If we need to have divisions for administrative purposes let us divide on the basis of geography rather than culture. Maybe let us have the Himalayan region, the Gangetic region, the Western Ghats, the different forest regions, the different river basin regions,  the different agricultural regions, etc  each with its own administrative mechanisms. The administration of these areas should be controlled by councils formed by local experts who understand fully the nature of their regions and are motivated at the highest levels (spiritually if possible) to ensure the well being of all that exists within that region and the nation at large and not motivated politically, culturally or economically. I am sure that we already have demarcations along these lines with suitable administrative mechanisms in place but the effectiveness of this is severely hampered by the chaos created when state level and political demarcations conflict (and most often override) this. In today’s world the modern city is a most significant geographical entity so all major cities should be treated as independent entities with their own independent administration mechanisms. The city I think is by far the source of most of the man-made problems of existence today so if the city got its act together the rest would fall in place quite easily.

I wish to see an India which is totally energy reliant and efficient where renewable energy caters to our entire needs. Let us have nuclear fusion (can we not challenge ourselves to achieve this instead of trying to do meaningless things like land on the moon) and fission reactors, solar, wind, wave and any other form of clean energy possible. Let us phase out completely our dependence on coal, natural gas and oil and wash our hands of all the evils that this brings into our world and that our children.  Can we not focus our technical expertise in this direction instead of useless areas like nanotechnology for cosmetics or one car per person? I wish to see every geographically demarcated region as above mentioned energy efficient and independent. Again our cities are the biggest culprits in terms of impact on nature.  If we don’t wish to innovate in areas of urban development , let us at least copy the best of the east or west. There are many places in the world where model towns are coming into existence which have incorporated the latest scientific advances to achieve great things. In India the Harappan cities of old used to be the most advanced and sophisticated of their time. Much more recently, the cities of the Vijayanagar empire were legendary for their design. Let us use the most energy efficient building materials, space utilization methods, networks for transport, water, sewage, lighting, etc, etc to turn our cities from the monsters they are into something beautiful. The same applies to our villages though I suspect we may have many of our own benchmark models to replicate from and need not look elsewhere. Let us create blueprints based on how a city or village should be and create (recreate if necessary – can we be bold enough to do this?) our cities and villages once again.

I wish to see an India where water is once again the most precious element and not money. Let us look to generate and manage water with the passion that we exhibit for money. Remember most societies in the past have collapsed due to mismanagement of water.

I wish to see an India where the available mode of transport is mass transport, the only personalized transport mode being the bicycle. Let the appropriate councils manage air, road, water and rail transport using appropriately efficient energy sources (not oil based fuels after say a given time frame). Let technology build the best possible networks and systems necessary to cater to this so that travel anywhere within this country is of minimum cost to man and nature.  

I wish to see an India without political parties. Each area - be it the geographical regions, transport, energy, etc should be self sufficient and managed by councils of experts with proven merit in these areas and the well being of life and nature being the only motive. Too many times have politicians pulled us back and damaged us for personal gain. The political is just an additional layer of complexity that we don’t need. The village already exists as a self rule system and is evidence of the success of self governance.  This model can be replicated for all other entities such as cities, geographical regions, etc. Knowledge sharing and dissemination of best practices and success through media and technology should enable the spread of good practices and the prevention of bad practices. The vast amounts of resources we spend keeping this political system running have crippled us as a nation. The constant change of political leadership is easily the biggest hindrance to progress not to mention the interference with all walks of life.

We already have a supreme court and high courts. Let this entity work as an arbitrator to resolve disputes that may arise between any of the administrative councils in the event that mutual agreement is not arrived at. Let the emphasis however be on zero conflict and resolution of issues on the basis of compassion and benefit to the majority of life. Let each council formulate its policies and let there be mutual agreement through discussion on areas of potential conflict or overlap. Let the members of each council be persons with this larger vision of the nation and not narrow sighted individuals. Let the media serve as positive forces that highlight the right areas to smoothen the working of the nation rather than wasting its focus on petty political and economic areas and corrupting the minds of the young.

I wish to see an India without armies and policing forces. Let us be fearless and non-violent. Let us release the vast resources that we spend on these areas to promote universal well being and take care of our families – man, animal and plant. Let us now practice all that we have preached for thousands of years about spirituality and non-violence and the significance of life and love. Let each individual and group strive for the highest standards of spiritual ethics and not economic, political or social standing. Let us leave punishment for sins to the conscience of each individual and the higher forces of nature.  

I wish to see an India where the freeing of resources used up for political, economic and military reasons is used to ensure food, clothing and shelter for every individual and the protection and sustenance of society and nature.

I wish to see an India without money. Let us go back to the barter system where each of us trades something we have in abundance for something we need based on the ideals of honesty and fairness. Let this foster creativity and craftsmanship within each of us to create what we can in abundance keeping the needs of society and nature in mind. Let there be no limits on this creativity and craftsmanship. Let us get rid of trade and industry as we currently know it driven by profit and with scant regard to nature. If groups come into existence based on the various forms of creativity and craftsmanship, let these groups focus on the betterment of the group within the framework of betterment of life at large and not selfish gain. With our tools of information technology and communication I believe there is no time like now when the barter system will work once again and creativity and craftsmanship will flourish. Let our creativity spark and quench our individualistic desires in a way that is harmonious with nature. Let us get rid of banks, the sensex, share market, and all the nonsense that comes with it. Let the well being of all individuals be the priority of society at large, a society built on compassion and love. If any other nation wishes to share or receive anything that we have let this also be on the basis of a free and fair barter. Let us however as a nation aim towards strength and self reliance from within first and foremost.

 I wish to see an India where there is no private land ownership, where land is available for collective use and for the pursuit of any suitable individual or group craft. The relevant administrative council allots land or space depending on the nature of the craft. No craft is practiced in geographical regions where the practice disturbs the balance of nature and society and the relevant administrative council takes care of this. Doing away with private ownership will I believe rid our society of large areas of crime and misappropriation. Let each of us view the land as something sacred that we look after as caretakers for our children and the future generations.

I wish to see an India where a child’s education consists of yoga, meditation, natural medicine with focus on self treatment, spiritualism and any art or craft that the child chooses to pursue. Let there be no discrimination or competition whatsoever and no comparison between any two individuals. Let there be no stress on the child in terms of time and let each child be free to choose the pace of his or her life. Let us use our technology to make all that a child requires for his or her development to be available at their fingertips and to use whatever is available in the best manner. Let our society be strong enough to provide the support framework to nurture our children and future. Let the education system instill in the child those qualities and ideals that we wish to see in society at large so that the concept of crime against man and nature is a thing of the past. Only then will we become progressively stronger and stronger as a nation rather than weaker as we have now become. Let education teach a child respect, fearlessness, calmness, sustainability and creativity. Let it teach a child how to be mindful and manage the mind.

I wish to see an India where we go back to the ancient methods of natural medicine and yoga to heal our bodies and mind. Let the healing of the mind be the primary focus, the healing of the body and nature will follow as a natural consequence. I wish to see an India where every individual takes care of his or her own health and does not rely on pharma/cosmetic companies, unscrupulous individuals and greedy medical institutions. Let us use our technology and our vast ancient knowledge to achieve this.

I wish to see an India where science and technology are used as aids and catalysts in the areas of education, food, energy, ecology, transport or any of the arts that propagate and protect life. This is as against the current use of science and technology mainly for commercial, military, political and economic purposes. All innovations and advances should be only in the direction of positive life affirmation and not negative individual and commercial gain. I am sure we have sufficient scientific expertise to achieve this and these individuals can focus clearly on the good of existence at large in the absence of political, military and commercial interference.

I wish to see an India where the number of individuals that make up the population is not a burden on the land instead we humans tread lightly on the land in harmony with nature. Let each of us scale down our expectation of how much we desire to possess and think more in terms of how much is sufficient for now. Let the killing of plants and animals not raised for food or utility be treated as the highest sin once again and appropriate measures be taken to prevent this. Proper education and guidance should achieve this?

I wish to see an India where the focus of our energies, our knowledge seeking and our actions is dedicated to making this and much more a concrete reality. Could we use all our resources and means at hand to reinvent ourselves  so that we can create a new and better world for our children and all of nature, a world the way we all thought it was when we came into it and which all our children dream it is till that dream is shattered? The longer we do nothing, the more the gap widens between the point of equilibrium and the point of imbalance.

Related articles:
The Politician
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2017/10/the-politician.html

Political Revamp
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2018/05/political-revamp.html