superb...Really superb ----- Original Message ----- From: "Nagendra" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <accessindia@accessindia.org.in> Sent: Saturday, January 26, 2008 4:23 PM Subject: [AI] DR. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam 's Speech in Hyderabad-- worth reading
> *Please read this article by giving 10 minutes from your busy life. Really > good.... ** * > > * The President of India DR. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam 's Speech in Hyderabad . > * > > > Why is the media here so negative? > Why are we in India so embarrassed to recognize our own strengths, our > achievements? We are such a great nation. We have so many amazing success > stories but we refuse to acknowledge them. Why? > We are the first in milk production. > We are number one in Remote sensing satellites. > We are the second largest producer of wheat. > We are the second largest producer of rice. > Look at Dr. Sudarshan , he has transferred the tribal village into a > self-sustaining, self-driving unit. There are millions of such > achievements > but our media is only obsessed in the bad news and failures and disasters. > I > was in Tel Aviv once and I was reading the Israeli newspaper. It was the > day > after a lot of attacks and bombardments and deaths had taken place. The > Hamas had struck. But the front page of the newspaper had the picture of a > Jewish gentleman who in five years had transformed his desert into an > orchid > and a granary. It was this inspiring picture that everyone woke up to. > The > gory details of killings, bombardments, deaths, were inside in the > newspaper, buried among other news. > > In India we only read about death, sickness, terrorism, crime. Why are we > so > NEGATIVE? Another question: Why are we, as a nation so obsessed with > foreign > things? We want foreign T. Vs, we want foreign shirts. We want foreign > technology. > > Why this obsession with everything imported. Do we not realize that > self-respect comes with self-reliance? I was in Hyderabad giving this > lecture, > when a 14 year old girl asked me for my autograph. I asked her what her > goal > in life is. She replied: I want to live in a developed India . For her, > you and I will have to build this developed India . You must proclaim. > India > is not an under-developed nation; it is a highly developed nation. Do > you > have 10 minutes? Allow me to come back with a vengeance. > > Got 10 minutes for your country? If yes, then read; otherwise, choice is > yours. > YOU say that our government is inefficient. > YOU say that our laws are too old. > YOU say that the municipality does not pick up the garbage. > YOU say that the phones don't work, the railways are a joke, > The airline is the worst in the world, mails never reach their > destination. > YOU say that our country has been fed to the dogs and is the absolute > pits. > > YOU say, say and say. What do YOU do about it? > Take a person on his way to Singapore . Give him a name - YOURS. Give him > a > face - YOURS. YOU walk out of the airport and you are at your > International > best. In Singapore you don't throw cigarette butts on the roads or eat in > the stores. YOU are as proud of their Underground links as they are. You > pay > $5 (approx. Rs. 60) to drive through Orchard Road (equivalent of Mahim > Causeway or Pedder Road) between 5 PM and 8 PM. YOU come back to the > parking > lot to punch your parking ticket if you have over stayed in a restaurant > or > a shopping mall irrespective of your status identity... In Singapore you > don't say anything, DO YOU? YOU wouldn't dare to eat in public during > Ramadan, in Dubai . YOU would not dare to go out without your head covered > in Jeddah . YOU would not dare to buy an employee of the telephone > exchange > in London at 10 pounds ( Rs.650) a month to, 'see to it that my STD and > ISD > calls are billed to someone else.'YOU would not dare to speed beyond 55 > mph > (88 km/h) in Washington and then tell the traffic cop, > 'Jaanta hai main kaun hoon (Do you know who I am?). I am so and so's son. > Take your two bucks and get lost.' YOU wouldn't chuck an empty coconut > shell > anywhere other than the garbage pail on the beaches in Australia and New > Zealand . > Why don't YOU spit Paan on the streets of Tokyo ? Why don't YOU use > examination jockeys or buy fake certificates in Boston ??? We are still > talking of the same YOU. YOU who can respect and conform to a foreign > system > in other countries but cannot in your own. You who will throw papers and > cigarettes on the road the moment you touch Indian ground. If you can be > an > involved and appreciative citizen in an alien country, why cannot you be > the > same here in India ? > > Once in an interview, the famous Ex-municipal commissioner of Bombay , Mr. > Tinaikar , had a point to make. 'Rich people's dogs are walked on the > streets to leave their affluent droppings all over the place,' he said. > 'And > then the same people turn around to criticize and blame the > authorities for inefficiency and dirty pavements. What do they expect the > officers to do? Go down with a broom every time their dog feels the > pressure > in his bowels? > In America every dog owner has to clean up after his pet has done the job. > Same in Japan . Will the Indian citizen do that here?' He's right. We go > to > the polls to choose a government and after that forfeit all > responsibility. > We sit back wanting to be pampered and expect the government to do > everything for us whilst our contribution is totally negative. We expect > the > government to clean up but we are not going to stop chucking garbage all > over the place nor are we going to stop to pick a up a stray piece of > paper > and throw it in the bin. We expect the railways to provide clean bathrooms > but we are not going to learn the proper use of bathrooms. > We want Indian Airlines and Air India to provide the best of food and > toiletries but we are not going to stop pilfering at the least > opportunity. > This applies even to the staff who is known not to pass on the service to > the public. When it comes to burning social issues like those related to > women, dowry, girl child! and others, we make loud drawing room > protestations and continue to do the reverse at home. Our excuse? 'It's > the > whole system which has to change, how will it matter if I alone forego my > sons' rights to a dowry.' So who's going to change the system? > What does a system consist of ? Very conveniently for us it consists of > our > neighbours, other households, other cities, other communities and the > government. But definitely not me and YOU. When it comes to us actually > making a positive contribution to the system we lock ourselves along with > our families into a safe cocoon and look into the distance at countries > far > away and wait for a Mr.Clean to come along & work miracles for us with a > majestic sweep of his hand or we leave the country and run away. > Like lazy cowards hounded by our fears we run to America to bask in their > glory and praise their system. When New York becomes insecure we run to > England . When England experiences unemployment, we take the next flight > out > to the Gulf. When the Gulf is war struck, we demand to be rescued and > brought home by the Indian government. Everybody is out to abuse and rape > the country. Nobody thinks of feeding the system. Our conscience is > mortgaged to money. > > Dear Indians, The article is highly thought inductive, calls for a great > deal of introspection and pricks one's conscience too.... I am echoing J. > F. > Kennedy 's words to his fellow Americans to relate to Indians..... > > 'ASK WHAT WE CAN DO FOR INDIA > AND DO WHAT HAS TO BE DONE TO MAKE INDIA > WHAT AMERICA AND OTHER WESTERN COUNTRIES ARE TODAY' > > Lets do what India needs from us. > > Forward this mail to each Indian for a change instead of sending Jokes or > junk mails. > > Thank you, > > Dr. Abdul Kalaam > I humbly request you to forward this to every Indian...... ......... > ......... ... > > > > > To unsubscribe send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] > with the subject unsubscribe. > > To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, > please visit the list home page at > http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in To unsubscribe send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in
