India is all set to become a global power to

reckon with but are we Indians ready to

become good global citizens.....
India is the new Mecca of the global economy. May it be exporting computer
software or a global outsourcing base, India has steadily crawled into the arena
and is exerting its influence on the world.
And we? Us Indians , a part of the second most populous country and most
populous democracy. Well, we are the future of tomorrow. The star just below
the horizon and the light soon to spread in the world.
But are we ready to accept the responsibility of being answerable to the world.
Are we ready to be role models for societies? When we scratch the surface , it
seems impossible that we could ever be role models and take on such
responsibility.
Riddled by poverty, plagues by murder, crimes ,and famines. A country where a
bill in the parliament has to be passed to elevate the status of women. A state,
which is reluctant to move from its conservative base, so much so that society
frowns on intercaste and inter-religion marriages.
How can we be global citizens when we can't accept people of other castes and
share our life with them. What sort of a country can even begin to justify honor
killing and where child marriages is a norm. And this is not our government ,
but us, the society and the citizens.
Being a global citizen primarily implies that we learn to accept a world without
boundaries. A citizen who can ignore the colour of the skin and can see through
all the boundaries the society has set for us.
I believe we are close , but not yet there. When we differentiate on the basis of
caste and sex, we display our narrow mindset, which stands firmly in the way.
But yet, India has grown , not inched forward, but by leaps and bounds. From a
country , flattened by colonialism, we have grown to exert our presence on the
world.
The only reason we could achieve this, is because of our stable family life.
India's conservativeness is a boon and a bane. Only when we are on firm ground
can we move up. India has most certainly matured over the years. Sati has been

eradicated and female foeticide and dowry cases have reduced. Inter religious
marriages are occurring with increasing frequency. These cuts and wounds of
segregation are healing and disappearing. We may not be eligible to be global
citizens today, but we most certainly are full of promise. These lines will erode
once we are aware and stop paying heed to mindless customs. We must learn to
accept a global identity and there is no better place than here and now.