Am I Patriotic???

Am I patriotic is a question to be asked within oneself. If with a true heart the answer is ‘yes’ then India becoming one of the most developed and envied nation is inevitable. Surprisingly with majority of the people the answer will be ‘no’. Why is that so? Sadly, we link patriotism to hoisting flags on independence day and remembering our freedom fighters or to defence people who protect us from enemies from outside the country. What about the enemies lurking large within our system? I think patriotism means rooting out these enemies from the system. But the irony is that we all are part of this system.

We elect a leader for the betterment of our society. That leader becomes a politician, forgets the people who made him what he is and starts taking money for every ‘favour’ he does. A road contractor takes the ‘favour’, lays substandard roads which wear away within no time. This money the politician makes and the substantial profit the contractor makes, is partly used to send their children to USA. Why? Because that is a developed nation. There is no corruption. The roads are so smooth. Now look at the irony of the whole situation. We encourage corruption, we lay substandard roads for extra profits and then harp that USA is a better place to live. Is that patriotism? This was a small example. There are million other ways of corruption at every level going on in the system. Are we not responsible? Is that patriotism? No. It is destruction of the country and ultimate destruction of self.

For whom are the rules made? For you and me. Then why try to bend them or find loop holes in them? Traffic rules are hardly followed by people. A government official thinks his job is safe, so why work, unless of course there is ‘certain motivation’. Even if the patient is in great need of medical attention, Corporate hospitals do not admit patients unless money is paid .Unnecessary tests and medicines are dumped on the patients by doctors. Engineers build substandard constructions. The list is endless. Are they being patriotic? They earn money by tons, but where does the country go?

In spite of the population touching the billion mark, we still see majority of the people not going for family planning. Lack of knowledge, superstitions and religion contribute to this problem. How do you make people understand that religion is for making you a better human being and not for blindly following certain rules written hundreds of years ago. For some the ‘I’ factor comes in. “I must have a son”, “the more the children, the bigger the family, more the relationships, more the security”, “more number of hands to work”, are the general statements given. But in due time what will happen to the nation? Am I not contributing to population explosion? Am I being patriotic?

Our country has a history no country can boast of. It has a culture and tradition unique in this world. Then why is it that we don’t love our country. Why are we not patriotic???