My Country – India
Traditional Name – Bharat
India is my country. The traditional name of India is “Bharat”. India is a big and great country. It has a long coastline. The Indian Ocean lies to its south, the lofty and majestic Himalayas to the north, the Arabian Sea to the west and the countries like Myanmar and China to the east.
A mammoth population
India has a mammoth population. It exceeds one billion. Though India has rich resources, yet a large number of people in India are poor, mainly because of its runaway population.
Ancient culture and Deterioration
India has a very rich culture. It is a land of rishis and seers. The Rig Veda is perhaps the oldest book in the world. It was written in India. Later, there came some sort of deterioration, and many westerners who first called India “The Golden Sparrow”, began to term it as a land of snake charmers and magicians.
Agricultural country
India is still an agricultural country, though industrialisation on a large scale has come to stay in India. More than 70 per cent population of India lives in villages and is dependent on agriculture.
The Asian Tiger
India is now growing as a mighty power. It is called “The Asian Tiger.” It has a strong industrial base and powerful armed forces. It is a nuclear power and has made tremendous progress in the space technology.
Nuclear power and Change in the attitude of foreign countries
India made the first nuclear underground explosion in 1974 at Pokharan in Rajasthan. Later, when she made the second similar test in 1998, the developed countries like the USA, Canada, Britain, France, Japan, Australia, etc. went against India. Later, they realized India’s compulsions and changed their policy. Sanctions against India were also lifted by and by.
Accordingly, the then Defence Minister of India, said, “India’s position in the world order has undergone a sea change in the last few months. From a time when New Delhi was lectured on a host of issues, countries are now displaying a greater understanding of our strategic and defence concerns.
Relation with neighbours, Pakistan in particular
As a matter of fact, India has been hard-pressed by circumstances to become a great military power. First, China stabbed India in the back in 1962 when she suddenly attacked her while chanting “Hindi-Chini Bhai Bhai” Then Pakistan attacked India four times, that is in 1948, 1965, 1971, and 1999. Even at present, Pakistan is hostile to India. These countries are always at daggers drawn during conferences like those of NAM and SAARC.
India, like Pakistan and other South Asian countries, has to tackle several ticklish problems, like poverty, housing, population increase, illiteracy, disease, unemployment, etc. That can be more effectively done if the precious resources are not wasted on the arms race and war preparations. But that depends on the neighbours also. Although India has cordial relations with all other neighbours, yet Pakistan is a great source of headache to her. India would like to see Pakistan prosper, but for that purpose, a proper atmosphere should be there. India is the land of saints like the Buddha, Guru Nanak and Gandhi, and, as such, believes in non-violence and peaceful co-existence. India’s policy is “Live and let live.”
Progress
India has made tremendous progress in almost all fields, particularly in the field of Information Technology. A large number of its brave young men and women have gone to foreign countries like the USA, Canada, Germany, Italy, Australia, etc. where they are earning a fortune. India has a very large foreign exchange reserve. It has surplus stocks of food grains and is the largest producer of milk and fruits in the world. In the field of vegetable production, its place is second only.
Despite, the tremendous progress made by India, most of its people are not happy. India is a sovereign democratic republic. But several reforms are required in this area. The sense of Indianness has still to be created so that there should not be any communal riots and disputes, and not many economic disparities.