India, 60......Bharat, 5000

For a civilisation whose recorded history dates back atleast 5000 years, of what prominence is a miniscule figure as 60. In modern history, it symbolises the triumph of our brave freedom fighters who delivered independence to the nation. (In an age where sport is war, the victory of our cricket team at England over our past colonisers, couldn't have come at a more apt time, it tastes sweet).
With due respect to the past, more time has to be spent dwelling upon the future and the course that India takes. The country is announcing it's presence in the global arena, and there is a tacit recognition of it's importance. However, back at home, in the villages and cities, in the plains and valleys of this beautiful country, where we define what being an Indian is, is where we need to introspect and build a stronger country.
The congratulatory tones("India rising", "The sleeping giant awakens..") that surround us, hide from us the fact that we still remain a country grappling with social issues which affects millions. The run up to Aug 15, has not been pleasant. Light was shed upon the huge prevalence of female foeticide and infanticide in many parts of the country. Secularism doesn't look threatened, but religious intolerance among the majority and the minorities seems to be on the rise. The rains that wreaked havoc across the country, left villages stranded for days on end. It is ironic that we lose lives both to drought and rain. Politicians were landing blows on each other at a meeting of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, hardly a sign of a civilised democracy. Little children still try and make a living at traffic intersections of cities either through a display of acrobatics or by selling small items.
While the world begins to take notice of Indians and treat them with more respect than they commanded earlier, we should be reminded that our house is not in order yet. We still have a long way to go. Independence as an ideal is yet to be understood by a majority in the country, a majority that struggles to make a livelihood, a majority that is marginalised, a majority that lives without the hope of opportunity. Our celebrations of Independence will be even more joyous when we have saved every single child in the country from the clutches of hunger and child labour, when we have built an environment where the gender of the child will not affect her/his survival, when honest hard working individuals are suitably rewarded, when every Indian attains the right to a life of dignity and respect, irrespective of caste and creed.