MAHATMA GANDHI – HISTORY
News: A
betrayal of the very idea of the Mahatma
What's in the news?
● This
year marks the 75th anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination (January 30,
1948) by a Hindu fanatic who thought the Mahatma was too soft on Muslims.
● The
momentous anniversary comes at a time when his legacy, the very idea of Gandhi,
stands challenged by the prevailing ideological currents.
Relevance of Gandhiji's values in 21st Century:
Need for Tolerance and Peace:
● Each
year, over 1.6 million people worldwide lose their lives to violence. Violence
is among the leading causes of death for people worldwide. It accounts for 14%
of deaths among males and 7% of deaths among females - WHO’s World report on
violence and health.
● Violence ranges from
physical, sexual, reproductive to mental health problems. Millions of lives are
lost every year amid conflict zones. Example- Yemen and Afghanistan.
● Violence
places a massive burden on national economies, costing countries billions of
dollars each year in health care, law enforcement and lost productivity.
● In
world that is moving through the phases of war marred by violence and naked
dance of death of common people due to the menace of terrorism there is a
significant requirement of Gandhian idea of Non-violence more and more today
than the past days.
Sarvodaya:
● According to the recent
WEF’S “Global Social Mobility Report 2020: Equality, Opportunity and a New
Economic Imperative” Report: Indians born in low-income family would take seven
generations to even approach the country’s mean income.
● Some
220 million Indians sustained on an expenditure level of less than Rs 32 / day
- the poverty line for rural India going by the last headcount of the poor in
India in 2013.
● It
is necessary that each individual renders back unto society what he/she, owes
to society.
● Gandhiji's
political order of Sarvodaya encompassing Swaraj, Panchayat Raj,
Decentralization and more importantly a non-violent statehood will be the basis
for the solution to ailing communities all over the world.
Self-reliance (Swadeshi):
● Globalization and
consumerism have in fact made people’s lives
tougher. The gulf between the rich and poor is widening day by day.
● Gandhian
principle of self-sustenance and serving others is a significant requirement in
present times as ever.
● This
can be reflected in the “Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan” started by the
Government.
Sustainable Environment:
● Gandhji’s
environmental concerns were real and are taking shape in the present times.
Gandhiji had said “Earth has enough for
Human needs, But not for Human greeds”
● He
was quite apprehensive of machinery production and industrialization, which
will harm the environment. And here we are, living a deplorable life among the
noxious fumes, polluted, and harmful gases released by these industries.
● Deforestation and
pollution harm the ecological balance of the world.
● The
world is whirling under the burden of global
warming, climate change and resource crunch.
● The
world, including the United Nation has recognized Gandhian idea of sustainable
development. The recent inauguration of Gandhi Solar Park at the headquarters
of the United Nations (UN) is a testimony to that.
● Behind
all the climate deals, environmental conservation treaties and sustainable
development goals of the UN Gandhian view self-sustenance operates as driving
philosophy.
● The
need for sustainable development is quintessential in present times.
Secularism:
● The
secular ideologies of Gandhiji are not only there in Indian constitution but
also there in Indian society as a core value system. That is why so many people
of diverse religions coexist in India.
● Today,
the world needs more and more tolerant people in societies where violence is
committed in the name of religion.
● Tolerance in the society
will help in neutralizing the ethno-centric bias in the globe that is taking
place day by day on the basis of religion, caste, ethnicity and region etc.
Democratic Decentralization:
● Gandhi
made it very dear that concentration of either economic or political power
would violate all the essential principles of participatory democracy.
● To
check centralization, Gandhi suggested the institution of village republics
both as institutions of parallel polities and as units of economic autonomy.
Village is the lowest unit of a decentralized system.
● The
Gandhian idea of decentralization of power is being implemented in democracies
through empowered Local Self Governments at grass root level.
● The
Indian government, for instance, has implemented Local Self Government by adopting the Panchayati Raj and
Municipality system in rural and urban areas respectively.
Casteless society:
● Gandhi
was against the caste system which is still a taboo in India.
● Even
after 72 years of Independence and despite having reservations Indian society
is grappling with casteism, communalism, regionalism and provincialism.
● Gandhiji wanted to
eradicate untouchability and casteism from root and cause through the change in
hearts of people.
● Thus,
the Gandhian philosophy is useful to create a casteless society where everyone
is treated equally irrespective of their caste.
Trusteeship:
● While
India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world, it is also one of
the most unequal countries. The top 10%
of the Indian population holds 77% of the total national wealth - Oxfam Report.
● The
Mahatma had suggested trusteeship as a concept where a certain part of an
individual’s wealth was held in trust for the greater good of society.
● Today,
the concept of trusteeship, can work as an antidote to potential deviations
from public interest.
The ethics of Truth, Non-stealing and Non possession:
● According
to the recent “Global Corruption
Barometer – Asia” Report by Transparency International (TI), India has the
highest overall bribery rate (39%) and the highest rate of citizens using
personal connections (46%).
● The
country is riddled with the politician-bureaucrat-business nexus of corruption.
● Ethical
approach of people in authority and transparency in service dispensation in
institutions like education, law and order, judiciary and transport sectors,
are imperative to curb this menace.
● And
the answer lies in Gandhiji’s Philosophy of Truth and Morality that alone can
rehabilitate India’s Moral Crisis.
Sanitation and Cleanliness:
● Clean
surroundings are a must for humans to exist as such an environment holds the
promise of safeguarding our health to quite a degree against a plethora of
often fatal diseases. It also helps in curbing mortality rates.
● The
health of future generations depends on these factors. The Mahatma rightly
said: "Sanitation is more important than independence".
● India
has ranked a poor 168th out of 180 countries in the 2020 Environmental Performance Index (EPI), according to researchers at
Yale and Columbia universities.
● Gandhiji
had said, “Everyone must be his own
scavenger,” but modern-day India is anything but that.
● We
have let the sanitation of the nation go to the gutter and sent the poorest of
the poor to go clean it up, letting them die in the process.
● Hence,
it is more important today than ever to imbibe the values upheld by the Father
of the Nation when it comes to cleanliness.
● The
government’s Swachh Bharat Mission
is a welcome move in this context.
● “So
long as you do not take the broom and the bucket in your hands, you cannot make
your towns and cities clean,” Mahatma Gandhi famously said and his words are
true even today.
● No
matter how much money is allocated to the cleaning up of the country, it is
only when the individual citizen will take this herculean task in his hands
that we would be able to eliminate the ghoul of dirt from our lives.
● If
we feel ashamed in cleaning the very filth we create, despite having modern
methods of disposing of waste, then we have knowingly pushed the nation into a
septic tank of apathy which will consume us all.
● Swachh
Bharat Abhiyaan needs the Gandhian push if the nation has to become a cleaner
and more disciplined one.
Gandhian
ideologies have become the lighthouse
for Indian policy makers over the years. Starting from poverty alleviation
to Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and universal health care (Ayushman Bharat) to skill
India programs everywhere the core inspiration comes from Gandhianism. National
food security act of India to Obama Care policy of the United States of America
Gandhian concept of socialism holds the key as a guiding principle. Every individual should follow the key
Gandhian ideologies in their day to day life for a happy, prosperous, healthy,
harmonious and sustainable future.