By the time this communication reaches you, the Commonwealth
Games would have commenced. Over the last three weeks, the Commonwealth Games
have hogged the headlines in the print media and have been the topic of debates
/ discussions on numerous prime-time shows. Much has been said about corruption,
the callous approach in which the Organising Committee, sections of the
bureaucracy, and other agencies have functioned. The object of this editorial is
not to debate upon the absolute chaos which one is witnessing, but to dwell upon
much larger issues which have emerged through debate and discussion on the
Games. The Commonwealth Games are supposed to promote the principles of the
Commonwealth Organisation. Most of us are unaware of the Singapore Declaration
of 1971, in which, promotion of the principles of human rights and good
governance is a significant aspect.
The debate that has been carried on in the media brings to my
mind four specific aspects which we as a nation must address if we are to become
a country that merits the attention of the world. The organisation of the games
reflects four ills which are unique not to the Games but pervade the national
scene. Lack of prioritisation, degeneration of national character, lack of
foresight or vision and finally, our love for the event rather than the object
behind it.
The first is lack of prioritisation. It is said that the
ultimate cost of the Games is going to be equal to the cost of agricultural debt
waiver. Assuming that there is some degree of exaggeration, the money disbursed
is going to reach some pockets, whether they are of corrupt politicians,
bureaucrats or the resident or foreign agencies. The real point is that even if
the money was spent more efficiently, it was not going to benefit the common
sportsman at all. In my view, the organisation of the Games was flawed right
from the conceptualisation stage. The whole objective of hosting the Games was
to create a sporting infrastructure, which would be available to sportsmen at
large. Creating world-class facilities at one location would never serve any
purpose since the access to them is limited to a few. The resources should have
been utilised to create different facilities across the country or at least, the
facilities should have been spread out much more than they are today. It is here
that there is a gross error in priorities.
In a country where resources are scarce, we must see that
they are spent with the right priorities. Despite all its promises, even the
current government has been unable to allocate enough resources for education.
Spending on the health sector is also meeting the same fate. Sixty-three years
after independence, our development is extremely skewed. While we may have made
substantial progress in the field of infrastructure, particularly in the field
of communications, unless we pay attention to the basic pillars of human
infrastructure that is education and health, we will fail miserably in achieving
the dream of a powerful Indian nation. Even when we spend on education and
health, we need to get our priorities in place. We tend to pay a lot of
attention to higher education like creation of better management and engineering
institutes while the real need is to improve the quality of primary and
secondary education. Even in the health sector, we tend to concentrate on super
speciality hospitals while the need is to create a vast network of primary
health centres that will cater to the needs of the common man.
The second problem is in regard to the steady degeneration of
national character. A Union Minister commenting on the collapse of a bridge said
that the bridge in question was not to be used by sportsmen but by members of
the public. The statement is shocking to say the least. Another bureaucrat has
gone on record to say that the standards of hygiene in other parts of the world
are different from ours. This has become a common phenomenon in public life. We
break with impunity the laws we make, and think nothing about the breach of
ethical standards. The problem is that we do not seem to feel aggrieved. It is
this silent acceptance that perpetrates the decay of moral standards. It is only
if we perceive that there is a problem, will we strive to rectify it, otherwise
we will simply lower the bar and that does not augur well for us as a nation.
The next characteristic which was displayed in the
organisation of the Games is a complete lack of foresight or vision. The Games
were allotted to us as early as 2005. Yet, for the first three years from that
date, we did nothing of note in that regard. It is reported that tenders for
work were floated as late as in 2008. Again this lack of foresight / vision is
not unique to the Games .The site of the new Mumbai airport was selected more
than a decade ago. If there are environmental issues today, they would have
existed even then. It is only now that we are looking at environmental
clearances. Further, the site at which the new airport is proposed is such that
experts state that it is not capable of expansion and it will suffer from
congestion in about 25 years. This reflects a complete lack of vision. Today,
the vision is limited to the next election.
The last aspect is our love for events rather than for the
objective behind those events. Out of the aggregate spending for the Games, a
significant quantum is supposedly to be spent on the opening and closing
ceremonies. The programmes planned are such that the limelight is on actors and
not on sportsmen. Success in the Games is to be measured by the creation of
sports persons who will dominate the world of sports and not a spectacle that
the world will see and quickly forget. This is true of many of our festivals and
programmes. The Ganapati festival is an illustration. While it was initiated all
those years ago with the object of ensuring social bonding, people seem to have
lost sight of this very objective.
Having highlighted all these problems and issues, I believe
there is still hope. This is for the reason that whatever ills the media may
suffer from, it has made people aware. The Right to Information Act has created
a virtual revolution. The youth of today give strength to this hope. In them, I
see the urge to act. The ‘meter jam’ agitation is a case in point. It reflects
the non acceptance of injustice. If the “educated” class can lend a helping hand
and contribute their might, things will gradually change. Young India has a vast
pool of talent. All we need to do is harness it to create quality in public
life!
Once the games are over, all the discussion will be forgotten
and the country will bask in the “glory” of the medals that we are likely to
garner in the absence of participation of top sportsmen and athletes. It is this
national apathy which the organisers are banking on and we, the educated class,
must strive to avoid. We must demand an inquiry. Into the shoddy organisation,
total lack of governance and gross wastage of national resources contributed by
the diligent citizens of this country.
