Everone and Everything Undergoes Changes: Even Countries

Recently, I attended a lecture on “The challenge of change in India” held at Chico State University in its weekly International Forum. It was very interesting to hear where this country is heading in terms of its prospects and future industries. The lecture was given by a grad student who studied abroad in India and three exchange students who grew up in India. We able to get two prospectives on this topic: a visitor’s prospective and native’s prospective.

Three main questions were asked to the three native students. The first being: What is the biggest change today in India? Increased development seemed to be the biggest and most important hands down.  The launching of the manufacturing industry, the new importance given agriculture, the level of scientific training, openings in the financial sector are just some examples which all generate optimism and international interest in a country with the possibility of achieving the highest growth rate in the coming years. India is growing at a high rate in population which might trigger this development.  Re-orientation towards the manufacturing industry is a consequence of changing trends at an international level, but it also falls within the strategy of the Congress Party currently in power, which still enjoys a strong working-class base.  It was also mentioned that unemployment has vanished in India and the number of wealthy individuals is increasing. This may be a result of the industrial boost.

The second question that was addressed was: What has not changed about India? Customs and their culture were the main points in this question. Some customs have changed due to changing times and current laws, but in majority, their customs remain.  One custom that has changed is a custom regarding the death of a husband in India. He is usually cremated and the wife is usually thrown in the fire with the dead husband alive. Obviously we can see why this custom has vanished today. Others such as kids taking care of their parents until death still remain to this day.  Many religions provide diversity in India, which has always been present. So as you can see, this growing country maintains its culture and customs as it continues to flourish.

The last question that was asked was: What is India’s greatest need? Infrastructure is the greatest need today in India. It is growing at such an incredible rate that the current local resources cannot support the populations. The quality of life also suffers due to this lack of infrastructure. You can probably guess the next biggest need in India which is population growth. A fast growing country such as this must be careful not to exhaust its resources. The last need worth mentioning is the energy crisis taking place. The students explained the blackouts and energy shortages that take place on a daily basis.  A reliable sufficient energy source is greatly needed.

There is a lot more that can be said about these questions that were asked, but this is just a brief summary of the discussions that took place during this lecture. More information is available through online sources as well as newspapers for those interested.  The students did a very good job of setting forth the bigger issues that India is undergoing and its changes. I believe it is better to hear it from a primary source, such as this, because it offers more creditability and a personal perspective. It was a very informative lecture indeed.