...TheEx President of India DR. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam ’s Speech in Hyderabad .

The President of India DR. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam ’s Speech in Hyderabad .

Why is the media here so negative?
Why are we in India so embarrassed to recognize our own strengths, our achievements?
We are such a great nation. We have so many amazing success stories but we refuse to acknowledge them. Why?
We are the first in milk production.
We are number one in Remote sensing satellites.
We are the second largest producer of wheat.
We are the second largest producer of rice.
Look at Dr. Sudarshan , he has transferred the tribal village into a
self-sustaining, self-driving unit. There are millions of such achievements but our media is only obsessed in the bad news and failures and disasters.
I was in Tel Aviv once and I was reading the Israeli newspaper. It was the day after a lot of attacks and bombardments and deaths had taken place. The Hamas had struck. But the front page of the newspaper had the picture of a Jewish gentleman who in five years had transformed his desert into an orchid and a granary. It was this inspiring picture that everyone woke up to. The gory details of killings, bombardments, deaths, were inside in the newspaper, buried among other news.

In India we only read about death, sickness, terrorism, crime. Why are we so NEGATIVE? Another question: Why are we, as a nation so obsessed with foreign things? We want foreign T.Vs, we want foreign shirts. We want foreign technology.

Why this obsession with everything imported. Do we not realize that self-respect comes with self-reliance? I was in Hyderabad giving this lecture, when a 14 year old girl asked me for my autograph. I asked her what her goal in life is. She replied: I want to live in a developed India . For her, you and I will have to build this developed India . You must proclaim. India is not an under-developed nation; it is a highly developed nation.
Do you have 10 minutes? Allow me to come back with a vengeance.

Got 10 minutes for your country? If yes, then read; otherwise, choice is yours.
YOU say that our government is inefficient.
YOU say that our laws are too old.
YOU say that the municipality does not pick up the garbage.
YOU say that the phones don’t work, the railways are a joke. The airline is the worst in the world, mails never reach their destination.
YOU say that our country has been fed to the dogs and is the absolute pits.

YOU say, say and say. What do YOU do about it?

Take a person on his way to Singapore. Give him a name - ‘YOURS’. Give him a face - ‘YOURS’. YOU walk out of the airport and you are at your International best. In Singapore you don’t throw cigarette butts on the roads or eat in the stores. YOU are as proud of their Underground links as they are. You pay $5 (approx. Rs. 60) to drive through Orchard Road (equivalent of Mahim Causeway or Pedder Road) between 5 PM and 8 PM. YOU come back to the parking lot to punch your parking ticket if you have over stayed in a restaurant or a shopping mall irrespective of your status identity… In Singapore you don’t say anything, DO YOU? YOU wouldn’t dare to eat in public during Ramadan, in Dubai . YOU would not dare to go out without your head covered in Jeddah.
YOU would not dare to buy an employee of the telephone exchange in London at 10 pounds (Rs.650) a month to, ’see to it that my STD and ISD calls are billed to someone else.’YOU would not dare to speed beyond 55 mph (88 km/h) in Washington and then tell the traffic cop, ‘Jaanta hai main kaun hoon (Do you know who I am?). I am so and so’s son. Take your two bucks and get lost.’ YOU wouldn’t chuck an empty coconut shell anywhere other than the garbage pail on the beaches in Australia and New Zealand .
Why don’t YOU spit Paan on the streets of Tokyo? Why don’t YOU use examination jockeys or buy fake certificates in Boston??? We are still talking of the same YOU. YOU who can respect and conform to a foreign system in other countries but cannot in your own. You who will throw papers and cigarettes on the road the moment you touch Indian ground. If you can be an involved and appreciative citizen in an alien country, why cannot you be the same here in India?

Once in an interview, the famous Ex-municipal commissioner of Bombay, Mr. Tinaikar, had a point to make. ‘Rich people’s dogs are walked on the streets to leave their affluent droppings all over the place,’ he said. ‘And then the same people turn around to criticize and blame the authorities for inefficiency and dirty pavements. What do they expect the officers to do? Go down with a broom every time their dog feels the pressure in his bowels?
In America every dog owner has to clean up after his pet has done the job. Same in Japan.
Will the Indian citizen do that here?’ He’s right. We go to the polls to choose a government and after that forfeit all responsibility.
We sit back wanting to be pampered and expect the government to do everything for us whilst our contribution is totally negative. We expect the government to clean up but we are not going to stop chucking garbage all over the place nor are we going to stop to pick a up a stray piece of paper and throw it in the bin. We expect the railways to provide clean bathrooms but we are not going to learn the proper use of bathrooms.
We want Indian Airlines and Air India to provide the best of food and toiletries but we are not going to stop pilfering at the least opportunity.
This applies even to the staff who is known not to pass on the service to the public.

When it comes to burning social issues like those related to women, dowry, girl child! and others, we make loud drawing room protestations and continue to do the reverse at home. Our excuse? ‘It’s the whole system which has to change, how will it matter if I alone forego my sons’ rights to a dowry.’ So who’s going to change the system?
What does a system consist of? Very conveniently for us it consists of our neighbours, other households, other cities, other communities and the government. But definitely not me and YOU. When it comes to us actually making a positive contribution to the system we lock ourselves along with our families into a safe cocoon and look into the distance at countries far away and wait for a Mr.Clean to come along & work miracles for us with a majestic sweep of his hand or we leave the country and run away.
Like lazy cowards hounded by our fears we run to America to bask in their glory and praise their system. When New York becomes insecure we run to England . When England experiences unemployment, we take the next flight out to the Gulf. When the Gulf is war struck, we demand to be rescued and brought home by the Indian government. Everybody is out to abuse and rape the country. Nobody thinks of feeding the system. Our conscience is mortgaged to money.

Dear Indians, The article is highly thought inductive, calls for a great deal of introspection and pricks one’s conscience too…. I am echoing J. F. Kennedy’s words to his fellow Americans to relate to Indians…..

‘ASK WHAT WE CAN DO FOR INDIA AND DO WHAT HAS TO BE DONE TO MAKE INDIA WHAT AMERICA AND OTHER WESTERN COUNTRIES ARE TODAY’

Lets do what India needs from us.

Forward this mail to each Indian for a change instead of sending Jokes or junk mails.

Thank you,

Dr. Abdul Kalam

Let's do it!! Let's make a difference.

Hi all,

Imagine .. if every Indian took onus to change things for the better...imagine what that would do. because the fact is, this is a time of revolutionary change.....because energy is contagious- it creates a chain reaction. there is a lot of energy going round at the moment...raw energy- passion, anger hatred, anxiety....NOW is of the essence to use this energy towards building some thing better. here is what I believe anybody and every body can do...let each one of us do it, let each one of us commit!
let us resolve to help our city of Mumbai.
here are a couple of things i thought of doing, i'm sure we can all add to the list:

- raising funds for the victims and their families
- organize prayer meetings for victims and their families
- TALK! open discussions and debates about what we are feeling and thinking...so we can realize how we can channelize our raw energy constructively...anger is not always a bad thing
- commit to 'people power'- join a forum dedicated to making a specific and serious change...not just some 'in the air' thing.

let us also FIGHT for once! why not vent our anger...
we can resolve to fight:
- apathy and irresponsibility
- disrespect for our laws and rules
- ignorance of our rights
- and we SHOULD fight political bullies

Just imagine....if each and every one of us committed to doing...some thing...each and every one of us can and should because its time to behave responsibly and step out of our comfort zones. let us begin the revolution.

Simmi

On the brink!

Hi all,

Its crazy - there's never been more adrenalin and energy flooding this city and all over India for that matter, and it is now of all times that the leadership can channelize the mass' energy into some thing constructive - it is a time of big change and I am hoping our leaders use their good sense to recognize their opportunity to restore our confidence and get the priorities of the nation in order, thereby allowing the change to be for the better....we're on the brink!....of some thing better I pray…

It is time to focus questions on how to fix the problem rather than questions on who is to blame.
And answers to these questions have to come from those who know what they are talking about- not the politicians, but the professionals from the security forces, experts on terrorism analysis etc . we need answers to questions like:

- How can we strengthen our security forces? we need to see an increase in not only numbers but also an upgrading of A- security personnel, B- equipment and C-training of security forces , D- infra structure has to be created for their co ordination.

- what concrete laws and rules are going to be enforced to counter negligence…how is accountability going to be enforced at ALL levels …right from top government officials and their ancillaries to security forces to even the common man.

- What more is immediately going to be done to tighten security in the city and how can the ordinary civilian help in the process?

- Why aren't more serious efforts being taken to investigate if there are more terrorists on the prowl?

- How is our PM going to take this forward with Pakistan? What message is Pakistan getting from us….really?

And finally, while efforts are now being made to augment the security forces with tangibles and things, it makes no sensible difference without changing dangerous 'chalta hai' attitudes…what with cops still not being able to hear beeps from metal detectors coming from people carrying guns at CST...STILL!! Unfortunately it is our attitude as a people to cut corners and be apathetic. We are the other side of the coin. It is up to us as civilians to firstly respect rules and then pull up and question our protectors- be they cops, customs officials, watch men or security personnel at malls if they are falling short of their job…for this, we also need to be educated about our rights and our provisions as citizens. We need information that is practical and usable. And then it is up to each and every one of us to be responsible, be aware and use this information.

- That's where media comes in to be our eyes and ears. We want to know what our state of security affairs is, we want to know what is going to be done to change things for the better, we want to know that the right people are making decisions and we want to know our rights and how we can help.