At midnight of the 14th and 15th, we made a tryst with destiny; Nehru’s words glorified the long struggle of the fight for independence. The nation was unstable; poverty, social ills, discrimination, exploitation, and illiteracy were widespread throughout the nation, despite the fact that all this India was ready to face all the changes that came with independence.
The divided princely states were to be united. Henceforth Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel took responsibility for doing so. The nation was larger, with a greater number of languages and people with different communities, but the aim remained the same for Patel. Negotiations, compelling, coercing, and requests-built India, a country is representing unity in diversity.
The new India faced a lot of challenges, one of which was public health. The life expectancy rate was 32 years at the time of independence. Development in health care facilities, availability of medicine, vaccines, and government initiatives, increase the life expectancy to 70.19 years.
Vaccines and medication helped in fighting diseases like malaria, smallpox, tuberculosis, and polio. In 2014, India pronounced itself Polio free nation. India not only provided vaccines to people in the homeland but also helped other countries to fight back against the Covid pandemic. At present, India is known as the world’s pharmacy as it has organized the largest vaccine program in the region.
Development is possible with two main factors, democracy and literacy. Indian citizens have been given the right to vote since the first day of independence. Democracy became the cradle of India’s development. Guaranteed rights by the constitution are exercised, and people celebrate democracy.
The second important indicator of development, literacy, has improved effectively in the subcontinent. Government initiatives like mid-day meals, scholarships, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao Abhiyan, etc., have increased the rate of student enrolment in school. In 1947, the literacy rate was 12%; today, the bar has been raised to 77.7 %. Consequently, with literacy, people are well aware of their rights. Hence, the rate of exploitation, discrimination, and abuse has dropped down.
Padhega India To Badhega India has raised the number of skilled workers, which supports the Indian economy. The boost in the education system has led to a well-educated workforce, which contributes to India’s economy. Nehru’s technological, infrastructural, machinery, trade, and business ideas have increased employment. India’s share of global GDP is 3.28%. Earlier, India was importing goods; now, it produces them. Our PM’s “Make in India” policy has helped India to be self-sufficient. Initially, India’s per capita income was 2.89 USD; now, it is staged to 1980 USD. Many globally established companies wanted to be a part of the Indian market because of India’s progressive nature.
With the advancement in science and technology, India, in 1962, established The Indian National Committee for Space And Research, and in the subsequent year, India launched its first rocket. The world is witnessing India’s progress with missions like Chandrayaan, Mangalyaan, etc. It achieves the tag of nuclear state despite the serious opposition from the powerful countries in the world. Therefore, they created a strong base of defense against any war.
Today, India is the home to the world’s youngest population. It is praised by many for being the largest democracy; people globally know the Indian film industry. Let’s celebrate India’s achievements on this 75th Independence Day.