2010, the Decade gone by and a Wish

We are soon going to enter in a new year and a new decade. A decade that will not only define India’s stand in the world but will also be important for youth like you and me who are on the verge of starting out on their career journey beginning 2010. The beginning of the year 2010 will mark the end of the decade 2000-2009 which by far has been the most progressive Indian decade ever. The economy has grown at a brisk pace and has outnumbered and outwitted even the most optimistic of the predictions. Skeptics have been shown the dust by the storm generated by the splurging economy. I am not talking numbers here- no facts, no figures, no expert analysis, nothing. I have witnessed the impact of the growing economy around me and I know and can firmly state that India is on a developmental path which is unprecedented in its history. Yes, 1991 policies of globalization and liberalization have worked and we now have lesser number of people living in poverty than in any other decade. Yes, the Infrastructure, education and health have improved.
I have witnessed the rising confidence levels of the younger generation which is a far cry from the old license raj days where “hope” was a scarce commodity and confidence an equivocal word. Yes we have grown in stature and confidence as individuals, as a community, as a state and above all as a nation.

We have more optimists now than we ever had pessimists. We have more people now who think they can bring in change and usher in a new wave of optimism and hope. The biggest change of the last decade is that the younger generation now has hope and aspiration which could catapult India into the coveted league of developed nations. When this wonderful decade began, I was 12 and now I stand here 10 years hence with entrepreneurial dreams that one like my conservative family background could never have thought of in the previous decade. This fundamental change in our approach towards everything is unprecedented and worthy of a great celebration. Consider this, more than 400 million active mobile telecom users, Rs. 39100crore budgeted spend on NREGA, $1.3 trillion economy, $290 billion forex reserves, $150 billion exports , and more and more and even more numbers and facts confirm the behemoth that India is and will be in the future. The world at large recognizes the importance India has in the world order now and the growing number of foreign investors is a testimony to that. India has a say in the global issues ranging from WTO talks to Climate Change negotiations.

Yes the decade 2000-2009 was ours and the upcoming decade is most probably going to eclipse the success of this decade even better. I hope for the future to be bright and Indians to be affluent. I hope that the light of this decade doesn’t blind the Indians and that they are able to see even better. I hope that they retain the humility and the humbleness which has characterized our culture from the very beginning. I hope that the Indians understand the difference between humility and modesty. I hope that the affluent Indians realize that right now the glass is only half full, and to make it full they would be needed to build a society where there are no biases on whatever basis, where meritocracy will rule, where there would be full transparency, where there would be no corruption, where the poor would get the same opportunities as the rich, where health and education would not be limited to a few, where the country will proceed towards inclusive growth, where no one, however ill or old or poor, will be left out and that integrity will not only be a fancy word but a way of life, where humility will accompany confidence and above all where all Indians will have HOPE. With this wish, I end this decade and welcome the year 2010. A very happy and a prosperous new year to my fellow Indians. “STAY HUNGRY STAY FOOLISH”

- Sunny Gusain