Chris Devonshire-Ellis
2point6billion.com
August 17, 2009
While China turns to partial lock down in the lead up to the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, India last Saturday celebrated her 62nd year of independence. The two anniversary celebrations cannot be more different.
China is starting to restrict entries to foreigners; particularly journalists during their anniversary and other sensitive parts of the country, like Tibet, Xinjiang and Beijing. Media access will be restricted with military and police presence likely to be overwhelming. Social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook are blocked, as are video sharing services such as You Tube.
In moves that would bring down the government in India, human rights lawyers in China being detained and barred from practice. There have been Chinese protests in Australia against the screening of a documentary on the exiled Uighur leader Rebiya Kadeer. India meanwhile has had to endure comments from a quasi China government backed website calling for the nations ‘dismemberment’ in order to protect Chinese interests.
When I mention that You Tube and Twitter are blocked and internet access is restricted in China, friends and colleagues in India just laugh. Paranoia, a “nanny” state, and a disbelief that people would tolerate a one party state- although Indians of course endured their version under the British Raj- brings a knowing raised eyebrow that the Chinese are, well, perhaps potentially unpredictable.
The unpredictability, Indians feel, represents a danger. When one contrasts the build up to the Chinese anniversary and the Indian one, it’s hard not to see that particular point of view may have some merit. While we have to wait for the pomp and circumstance of the Chinese anniversary, we have been promised a massive military parade which apparently includes a display of ballistic nuclear weapons.
We’ll also have to wait for the political rhetoric to justify that, but no doubt “national security” and a whole hearted assault on people to be patriotic towards the Communist Party will be very much in evidence.
Those issues gives a cause for concern when Chinese anniversary preparations are compared against the preparations that occurred in Delhi on Saturday. China intends to command its people to be loyal to the party for the benefit of national security and a “harmonious society.” On the other hand, India’s Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, had to justify to the Indian people why his party were in power and what they intend to deliver to the people of India.
In terms of the actual event, it began by Dr. Singh paying homage to the man considered the nation’s father, Mahatma Gandhi, at the Gandhi memorial. The PM then traveled to the Mughal-built 17th century Red Fort in Delhi and unfurling the Indian national tri-color flag from the rampart of Lal Quila. He then gave his speech, the highlights of which we discuss below.
Around 700 people, including school children clothed in the national flag as well as political VIPs and diplomats, packed the enclosure facing the Fort. There was no display of nuclear or military might; largely because the Indian
government does not require such statements to be made to its own people. The Indian government retains their own confidence purely in the system of elected government, although the Prime Minister did inspect the Indian honor guards lined up to meet him.
In terms of Dr. Singh’s speech to the nation, it represents his promise to the Indian electorate, and the words that his party will be held accountable in next three and a half years. This is different to China’s own National Day, where the onus is on following the Party line.
We divide the highlights of Dr. Singh’s speech up into different categories as follows:
General Promises to the People
* Nation building will be our highest duty.
* No one will go hungry
* Will ensure that benefits of development reach  all sections of society and all regions and citizens of the country
* Every citizen of India should be prosperous and secure and be able to lead a life of dignity and self respect
* Special care to be taken of needs of women and children. Benefit of ICDS (integrated child development services) to be extended to every child below the age of six by March 2012
* Government should be sensitive to people’s complaints and dissatisfaction but nothing is achieved by destroying public property and indulging in violence. The government will deal firmly with people who indulge in such acts
* Seek active partnership of the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes in the development process
* Schemes for the welfare of the minorities to be taken forward
* Funds enhanced substantially for special schemes for development of districts with concentration of minorities
* Will take care of the special needs of the backward regions with redoubled efforts to remove regional imbalances
* Special efforts to strengthen administrative machinery for rural programs
* Benefits of good programs will not reach the people till the government machinery is corruption free. Public administration to be more efficient.
* Need to improve delivery systems to provide basic services to citizens
* Renewed efforts to decentralize public administration through Panchayati Raji (de-centralized) institutions and to ensure greater involvement of people * Initiative will be taken for a new partnership between civil society and the government so that tax payers’ money is better spent
* Right to Information Act to be improved to make it is more effective and enhance accountability and transparency
Financial
*Restoring growth rate to 9 percent is the greatest challenge we face. We expect that there will be an improvement in the situation by the end of this year
*Appeal to businessmen and industrialists to join in effort to tackle difficult situation and fulfil their social obligations
Agriculture and  Food
* This year, there has been deficiency in the monsoon. We will provide all possible assistance to our farmers to deal with the drought
* Date for repayment of farmers’ bank loans postponed. Additional support given to farmers for payment of interest on short term crop loans
* We have adequate stocks of foodgrain. All efforts will be made to control rising prices of foodgrain, pulses and other goods of daily use
* Country needs another Green Revolution. the goal is four percent annual growth in agriculture; achievable in the next five years.
* Food security law to be enacted under which every below poverty line family will get a fixed amount of foodgrain every month at concessional rates
Medical

* National Rural Health Mission to be expanded to cover every family below the poverty line
* No need to panic in the face of H1N1 flu. No disruption of daily lives.
Education
* Right to Education Act enacted, funds will not be a constraint
* NREGA (national rural education guarantee act)  program to be improved to bring in more transparency and accountability
* Special attention to be given to the needs of disabled children
* Secondary education will be expanded to ensure that every child in the country benefits
* Bank loans and scholarships to be provided to the maximum number of students
* New scheme to help students from economically weaker sections get educational loans at reduced interest rates; will benefit about five lakh  students in technical and professional courses
Housing
* Additional funds allocated for Bharat Nirman (rural housing) program for the development of rural and urban areas to be speeded up
* Rajiv Awas Yojna (a slum free India in 5 years) program is now being launched
* Accelerated efforts to improve physical infrastructure; construction of 20 km of national highway