Current Events
India, Still Hat in Hand:
Once a Beggar, Always a Beggar
by SUDARSHAN BHARGAV
"Once a beggar, always a beggar", goes the adage.
So true about my country, India.
On Tuesday, June 14, 2011, the International Development Committee of Britain's House of Commons decided to give India $US 455 million a year for the next four years ... in aid.
Aid! To India?
Are you kidding? To India?
According to The Guardian, the Committee cited that the "average per capita income [in India] is one-twentieth of that in the U.K., and more than 400 million people still live in poverty. According to the United Nations MDG monitor, more than a third of India's population live on less than $1.25 a day."
True.
But India is the 11th largest economy in the world!
And it has a billion-dollar space programme, for heaven's sake!
We boast of the world's richest people in our midst.
And yet, we remain beggars?
We are, after all, a nation of beggars.
We do have the world's largest number of beggars. It is our culture. It is our national icon. It is our national religion. It is our biggest industry. It employs more people in this country than any other sector.
And we do need all that money so-o-o badly. After all, now that the Commonwealth Games are over, where will we steal from; how will we satiate our ever-growing hunger for millions and billions which we then neatly stack in foreign banks.
All I can say is that the world has gone mad.
As a last ditch effort, I want to quote from the official advisory tips that the Indian Travel Industry, with the full endorsement of the Indian Government, gives to foreigners travelling in India:
"If the beggar is a healthy person, don't give him any money or anything else. Ignore such people. Just walk past them or pull up the windows if you are in a car."
Surely, the good law-makers in England MUST know that all of this money will end up in the pockets of corrupt politicians, bureaucrats ... and yes, "godmen" like Ramdev and his ilk. They look pretty healthy to me.
Oh, please ... please spare us! You're giving real beggars a bad name.
June 15, 2011
Conversation about this article
1: Rajiv Chandaria (India), June 15, 2011, 6:51 AM.
If you live in England, you may want to call your Member of Parliament today and let your views known on what is being done with your tax dollars!
2: Baldev Singh (United Kingdom), June 15, 2011, 3:35 PM.
Corruption and pakhand of the pseudo-pious that Guru Nanak spoke out against. Today, the religious clergy are the greatest beggars and thieves. 500 years on since Guru Nanak, and we have still have clergy of every religion preaching hatred and death in exchange for money and power.
3: Sangat Singh (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), June 16, 2011, 4:16 PM.
"Why do people steal?" The answer, of course, is: "Because there are buyers."