Yesterday (the 26th) was the 62nd anniversary of the framing of India's constitution. All through the streets there were people sell flags and other patriotic paraphernalia like orange, white and green pinwheels and arm bans. Many vehicles and auto rickshaws had flags attached.
It was a national holiday but many schools, mine including, were in session for a few hours to hold assemblies. My school day was from 9:30 until 11. At 10 we had an assembly where a few of my classmates gave speeches, along with the principal, and a student who was chosen as a model student from the 12th grade raised the flag. One of the speeches that a boy in my class gave was about how disappointed he was sometimes in the state of India and what a dishonor it was to those who struggled for India that her people are now disregarding basic values. He touched on everything from corruption to obeying traffic laws to saving power then begged his peers to do what they could, every small thing, to turn India away from the direction it's heading. He said he recognized there was nothing that we could do to stop our elders from committing crimes and corruption but if we stuck to our values, when it was our generation's turn to take the positions of power, India could be a great country. He said that most people realize India's heading towards being a great world power, but that power could end up being a bad thing if something did not change. He said "The boat that is India is being rocked and my fear is that I may drown too. Let me take a chance and row even if the boat it full of leaks."
After the ceremony and assembly, we had snacks and then headed home once again.
The celebration also made me think about where, developmentally, India is today versus where we, the United States, was only 61 years after our constitution was signed. Not this close to being a world super power, that's for sure.
It was a national holiday but many schools, mine including, were in session for a few hours to hold assemblies. My school day was from 9:30 until 11. At 10 we had an assembly where a few of my classmates gave speeches, along with the principal, and a student who was chosen as a model student from the 12th grade raised the flag. One of the speeches that a boy in my class gave was about how disappointed he was sometimes in the state of India and what a dishonor it was to those who struggled for India that her people are now disregarding basic values. He touched on everything from corruption to obeying traffic laws to saving power then begged his peers to do what they could, every small thing, to turn India away from the direction it's heading. He said he recognized there was nothing that we could do to stop our elders from committing crimes and corruption but if we stuck to our values, when it was our generation's turn to take the positions of power, India could be a great country. He said that most people realize India's heading towards being a great world power, but that power could end up being a bad thing if something did not change. He said "The boat that is India is being rocked and my fear is that I may drown too. Let me take a chance and row even if the boat it full of leaks."
After the ceremony and assembly, we had snacks and then headed home once again.
The celebration also made me think about where, developmentally, India is today versus where we, the United States, was only 61 years after our constitution was signed. Not this close to being a world super power, that's for sure.
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