So, I've started going to the gym (again!). I should thank two aspects that I have incorporated in my routine for this renewed interest in my health - putting my gym dress on as soon as I get back home and TED.
The first idea was borrowed from David Allen's book - Getting things done. When talking about writing down a list of 'to do' items to better organize your schedule, David emphasizes that it is not just enough to write things down, but you should also commit to what you wrote down by taking a first step on actionable items. As an example, he says that whenever he gets back home, he puts on his gym dress, a first step to going to the gym, as a commitment to the act. I thought it was an interesting concept, and frankly, it is. Every time I put on my gym dress as soon as I got home, I've been to the gym, which brings me to my second aspect - TED.
As I had blogged earlier, I am a fan of TED and try to listen as and when possible. Since watching the video, even if only 20 minutes long, is fairly difficult either at work or after coming home, I downloaded interesting videos to my phone and have started watching/listening to them while at the treadmill - which works great!
Ideas on India
One such video that I watched today was Ideas on India's future by Nandan Nilekani. Nandan classifies ideas into four categories and provides key ideas on each category for a developing nation like India. Here's a quick list:
- Ideas that have arrived (accepted and implemented)
- People: from being a burden to engines of growth
- Entrepreneurs: from villains to role models
- English: from the language of colonizers to language of jobs
- Technology: from man vs. machine to man and machine
- Globalization: from Bombay plan to Bombay house
- Deepening of democracy: from one party rule to 13 party rule
- Ideas in progress (accepted but not implemented)
- Education: universal access to primary schools
- Infrastructure: connecting the nation
- Cities: engines of growth
- Single market: smooth, seamless flow of goods across states
- Ideas in conflict (not yet accepted)
- Conflicting political ideologies: policy making gridlock
- Labor reforms: job protection hampering job creation
- Higher education: state control or private funding?
- Ideas in anticipation
- E-governance: Democracy, technology, efficiency, and transparency
- Health: avoiding diseases of prosperity
- Pensions and entitlement: Taking care of the future
- Environment: Can India's growth be clean?
- Energy: Driving growth around a new energy model
While I agree deepening democracy has led to better prosperity, I believe the multi-party system in India is holding India from surging forward as well. In a coalition government like what India has witnessed in the last decade or two, progress literally stalled because political parties were busy fighting among themselves on who can have more power than working together for the betterment of the country. This has even been witnessed in US when one party is the ruling party while the other has the majority in the congress. While I agree that a single party rule is not the alternate answer as it has its own share of problems (especially monopoly), there has to be a middle-ground somewhere.
Similarly, while I agree that cities are engines of growth, I don't think putting more emphasis on the cities than villages is a sustainable solution. With a country having such a huge population as India, the cities rely on the sources from the villages for sustenance. By making cities more important than villages, it's only going to encourage villagers to move to cities, which in turn can reduce the food production, increase dependence on exports, and increase slums in the cities (not all who come to the city realize their dreams, unfortunately). I believe the right balance has to be struck by revamping the agricultural sector by having a more transparent commodity market and by encouraging shared cultivation (encouraging farmers to pool resources and work together so that they can use more advanced technologies for cultivation due to the increased land mass).
I think our 'old' culture, which may be the source of some problems, also holds keys to implementing some of the yet-unimplemented ideas.
The concept of compulsory primary education has been embedded in Indian culture in all its castes by means of Gurukulam (studying by staying at the teacher's - or Guru's - residence and learning till graduation) and apprenticeship (be it warfare, trade, or craft). The problem arose due to the implementation of a western system of schooling without its background. While it may not be practical to enforce the older concepts back (as we have started developing the western background over the years), what might be more effective would be to take some of the aspects of the earlier concepts and applying them appropriately and thereby revamping the educational system in India.
We can also learn a lot from our culture in terms of environment and energy. Indian culture has strong examples on recycling and using biodegradable elements - from 'matkas' (mud pots) used to store and purify water, to 'dhonnai' (cups made of leaf) to serve food. I am sure if we look with a renewed focus, we can find enough and more examples that can be adopted to the new age, while still preserving its fundamentals.
Finally, we don't have to look far on how to avoid diseases of prosperity. At a time when the Western world has taken a new interest in Yoga, India only needs to look inward to ensure a healthy life, while implementing tried and tested Western medicines to eradicate the fundamental diseases.
In all, I'd strongly recommend that you see the video. As Nandan says at the end, it's not just important for India, but for any developing nation and for every developed nation - and this brings me back to my previous title - a strong commitment from the government and its people is needed to help realize these ideas.
