As the country marches towards yet another Independence Day, it's high time for some retrospection; how has the country done in the last few years that saw the paradigm shift in power equations and changing governments? The million-dollar question is: What is our position as compared to our neighbouring countries?

India's expertise in the services sector is not yet matched by any of our neighbour. Banking, insurance, transport, finance, information technology, healthcare and a rule-based administration have been well honed over the decades. At the moment, more than half of the country's GDP is contributed by the services sector. Statistically speaking, India has an estimated 120,000 qualified chartered accountants. More than 10 per cent of these are gainfully employed outside the country. A similar scenario exists in respect of other professionally qualified specialists such as legal experts, architects, and design engineers.... The skills of Indian IT professionals are sought after the world over.

According to experts, India has been able to stabilize economic growth at a level of 6 per cent plus, though, falling way short of the 8-10 per cent desired to make a sizeable impact on removing poverty and generating gainful employment.

Unfortunately, India's economic growth has been erratic. While manufacturing and services sectors have grown commendably, agriculture has still been at the receiving end of the vagaries of nature as well as dependence on irrigated agriculture. Some 37 years after the break of the green revolution, the country has still not been able to settle down to a steady and dependable growth in agriculture. There are encouraging signs of the civil aviation sector picking up leading to a welcome crowding of the skies. But measures in education are still lagging behind. In a country having a population of more than a billion, education is yet to seep to the interiors of rural India.

Looking at the educational scenario in its totality, one finds it difficult to digest the fact that 59 years have rolled on since India became an independent nation. Why is it so? The methods of teaching and learning (mostly by rote) continue along with a morbid fear of examinations among the pupils. There is no dearth of seminars and workshops where the participants stress the need to promote the joy of learning. But in actual practice this joy seems to be eluding our school children. While it is so at the secondary education level, the scene at the tertiary stage, except in a few pockets in the country, is such as to induce a feeling of depression. Does all this mean that India as a nation has failed miserably in the realm of education?

Furthermore, it is pertinent to note that for decades we as a nation have been unmindful to the quality of governance dished out by successive governments. Take for instance the recent rains in Mumbai. When questioned by the media, the civic authorities of Mumbai were quick to point out that Mumbai witnessed unprecedented rains. True there was a cloudburst and the rainfall was the highest recorded in a single day for over a century in Mumbai. The resultant chaos, crisis, calamity and subsequent capital devastation were understandable. But what about the other years, or places, other than Mumbai? Even an hour of continuous rainfall in any of India's metros is sufficient to flood the roads and throw traffic into complete chaos. Such is the nature of our urban planning that year after year after year life comes to a standstill in most of India's cities during monsoons. This is simply because we are incompetent to provide elementary drainage facilities and have effective town planning.

Terrorism and insurgency are the unending battles India has been fighting since Independence. India has suffered for the past nearly two decades from terrorism in Punjab, in Jammu and Kashmir and in other parts of India. Countless innocent lives have been lost to the terrorist's bombs and guns. India has consistently been highlighting the need for a unified international response to transnational and trans-border terrorism that is today affecting many countries and challenging established societies and governments. The links between terrorists groups operating in India and other countries are quite clear today and the role that Pakistan has played in allowing this scourge to spread has also been amply documented.

Pakistan has been the main source of arms, ammunition and training for religious terrorist groups, which operated in the Punjab in the past, and for those, which are operating presently in J&K and other parts of India. The training is given by the ISI, either directly or through religious fundamentalist and pan-Islamic jihadi organizations, in various makeshift camps located in PoK, the northern areas (Gilgit and Baltistan) and the North-West Frontier Province.

India has a little over 140 million Muslims -- the second largest Muslim community in the world after Indonesia. Only a very small section of the community has taken to terrorism due to various grievances and instigation by the ISI and Pakistan's religious, fundamentalist and jihadi organizations. The overwhelming majority of Indian Muslims are loyal and law-abiding citizens. They have not allowed their anger against the Indian government or the Hindus for any reason to drive them into the arms of terrorist organizations. India has the most modern, peaceful and forward-looking Muslim community in the world.

India has always been the land of spiritual development. It has been the birthplace of non-temporal values and attitudes like renunciation, meditation, the physico-psychic discipline of yoga, etc. In terms of arts, Indian film Industry is one of the largest in the world, and the works of Indian directors are appreciated by one and all. How can one forget the world famous concert of "Yanni", which was held in Agra near the Taj Mahal? India can also boast of world famous musicians in Tabla maestro Zakir Hussian, vocalist Pundit Bhimsen Joshi, etc. These and countless more are those individuals are some of those Indians who have made India proud. India, today, is in this position because of such people. The achievements of India in these years have been phenomenal. To cite all of them here would be impossible. The only question one can ask is: "Has any other country achieved so much in so little time?"

People still argue that India has a lot more to achieve. Well, "Yes". That is true. Because, if one has achieved everything, then where would the need arise to be better? But for every achievement there has to be a first step. India has crossed that step. It is not easy to carry the likes of different kinds of people in today's world and make them think alike. But the struggle is going on and India is doing a good job. One would not deny that basic needs like education, sanitation, reduction of poverty; corruption and dramatic changes in standards of living are required. We also need a political system, which is more stable, and governance is free and just. We have to do a lot in this area.

Time has come to make another "tryst with destiny", to rise and salute the land that has given us life and freedom, and to help our country in whichever way it is possible. India needs us today. It needs the courage and determination of every Indian on the face of this earth to help it achieve the place in the world, which every Indian has dreamt of.