Happily ever after

“Civilizations have arisen in other parts of the world. In ancient and modern times, wonderful ideas have been carried forward from one race to another. But mark you, my friends, it has been always with the blast of war trumpets and the march of embattled cohorts. Each idea had to be soaked in a deluge of blood. Each word of power had to be followed by the groans of millions, by the wails of orphans, by the tears of widows. This, many other nations have taught; but India for thousands of years peacefully existed. Here activity prevailed when even Greece did not exist. Even earlier, when history has no record, and tradition dares not peer into the gloom of that intense past, even from until now, ideas after ideas have marched out from her, but every word has been spoken with a blessing behind it and peace before it. We, of all nations of the world, have never been a conquering race, and that blessing is on our head, and therefore we live!”

- Swami Vivekananda

         Swami Vivekananda rightly says that India is one of the most powerful nations of the time. Her tradition is so rich and full of beauty that all over the world she fascinates one and all with the amazing unity in diversity that she exhibits. Swami Vivekananda further goes on to say that we have the blessing of peace on our head and hence India in spite of her huge diversity is still one of the biggest countries in the world.

           Today, India with the estimated population of 1.12 billion has 28 states and 7 union territories. There are 22 regional languages spoken in India , with more than 10 different religions preached. Here literacy is just 64%, 60% population living in rural areas and hundred’s of registered political parties. This shows how diverse India is, as it stands united. In diversified countries like India , it is almost impossible for anyone to maintain communal harmony. In real life, communities are not just groups of people sharing something in common, it is a far more complex concept. Each member – every Individual, group, organization – try to draw benefits for itself from the community in different ways.

            The major causes for communal imbalance are insecurities in the mind of people, illiteracy and lack of knowledge about people in other communities. For example when the communal riots in Godhra, Gujarat took place in 2002, many Hindus and Muslims died. On the other hand there are places in India where communal riots have ceased to take place. An example of such a place would be Bhiwandi. The last communal riot took place in 1984. Bhiwandi is a small town located at the outskirts of Mumbai, known for its textile industry. The reason for Bhiwandi being a peaceful place today is because of the interaction between the communities and the various steps taken by the administration to ensure that there is a good communication and understanding between the various communities in the area. No common man wants to fight or wants to get involved in riots; everyone wants peace and wants to earn their livelihood easily.

          So to maintain communal balance it is very important to make people from different communities interact with each other. In India , where more than 30% of the population is in the age group 15 to 30, if the youth is made to interact with each other and serve the community, the scenario of communal imbalance will change in years to come. But things like this shouldn’t be imposed on the youth. Youth in India is already worried about the situation in the country, they just need proper direction. With youth clubs coming to the picture, interactions between youngsters from various background increases. There are many international youth clubs, one of them being the Rotaract club. Rotaract is a Rotary-sponsored service club for young men and women ages 18 to 30. Through the Rotaract program, young adults not only augment their knowledge and skills, but they also address the physical and social needs of their communities while promoting international understanding and peace through a framework of friendship and service. It is a fast growing program of the Rotary service, with more than 8,000 Rotaract clubs in about 155 countries. Rotaract has become a worldwide phenomenon. A Rotaractor with a lapel pin of his Rotaract club, can go and visit any rotaract club in the world and stay with them irrespective of which community he is from. He will be welcomed anytime. His stay with the visiting club will be as good as or even better than visiting someone from his own community. This way we can try to create a single community in the world which tries to work for the well being of everyone and not any particular community as such. Rotaract is not just about fun, its about doing what the best they can do in there idle time for the community while enjoying themselves. For example, in 2007 a campaign was undertaken by the complete Rotaract District 3140 (Mumbai) to get eye donation for corneal blind people and to inform people about corneal blindness and about eye donations.  This was done in association with Indian Express. In 2004 – 2005, Despite tense relations between India and Pakistan — and a one-year wait for visas — seven Indian Rotaractors and one Rotarian traveled to Lahore, Pakistan , for a five-day stay as guests of the Rotaract Club of Lahore Garrison. The participants gained a better understanding of each other’s culture and a desire to promote interactions between the citizens of India and Pakistan . This was a project by Rotaract Club of Borivli East named Pahel: Friendship Beyond Borders project.

            It is evident from all that is mentioned above, how clubs like Rotaract can make a difference in the attitudes of people and bring about a feeling of unity between various different communities. Few other popular clubs working in the direction of creating an awareness and making a difference are the Lions club, the Toastmasters International, etc. these clubs involve the youth and give them a sense of responsibility and make them better citizens for a bright tomorrow.

           The children of today are the tomorrow of our nation. This concept is very well understood by these clubs and they strive to bring about as good a communication as possible between people from all backgrounds and communities.

            About 60% of the population even today is living in rural India . A major portion of the communal violence takes place in these areas of the country. This can be brought under control by educating these rural parts and making an effort to bring the different communities together. The targeting of the rural India is evident from the aftereffects of the Godhra massacre so many people had to abandon their villages in fear of being killed in the riots. One such village was Boru in Gujarat where the muslims had to leave their homes in fear. As the riots ceased some of the remaining alive people wanted to come back home and try to rebuild their shattered lives. This was an impossible task without some external help. An NGO, Area Networking and Development Initiatives (ANANDI) is noted for its work in the village of Boru and their great help in building the lives of the people who returned. Such NGOs and government organizations such as the National Foundation for Communal Harmony encourage people everywhere to help them out in their work by giving away prizes for all sorts of contribution to maintaining communal harmony anywhere in India . Such initiatives greatly help in making people aware of the effects of communal imbalance and hence make people feel the need for a sense of peace and goodwill in the country. One another way of propagating communal harmony are the various films and documentaries made in order to reach out to the people and make a mark of peace in their lives. Some of them are short films like ‘Naata’ which give a clear understanding of the need for communal harmony in societies everywhere and the difficulties in implementing it by altering the mindset of people. 

            India has a literacy rate of about 64%. This implies that even today a huge population of the country does not know how to read or write. Educating people will  help them understand the situation of the country better. Through education people can be taught to respect the beliefs of others while abiding by their own. A sense of compassion and tolerance can be inculcated in them. The future of the country can be made secure by ensuring that all the children everywhere are educated.

 “India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grand mother of tradition.” 

This is what Mark Twain once said about our country. We cannot let a country as beautiful and rich in culture as ours break down into fragments within itself. Maintaining communal harmony is of utmost importance today. Today, India is on her way to becoming one of the major superpowers of the world and by maintaining a good sense of communal harmony we can ensure that she successfully completes this journey.