Self-
Reliance
The Take of
Leaders on Self-Reliance
‘Aatmanirbhar
Bano’(Be self-reliant). This quote reminds you of whom? None other than our
beloved Prime Minister, Narendra Modi. Self-reliance has deeper roots in
India's historical, cultural, and philosophical traditions, and it continues to
be an important principle in the country's development and governance. This concept
was strongly advocated by the father of our nation, who lay the foundation for the
‘Swadeshi moment’ in which several bonfires of British goods took place, ‘Khadi
promotion’ in which machine-made cloth of Britain was burnt to ashes and handspun
cloth was widely encouraged to be made and used.
The late
Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, known as the Missile Man of India and former President,
often spoke about the significance of self-reliance. He believed that
self-reliance in science, technology, and innovation was crucial for India's
progress and development. Dr. Kalam encouraged young minds to contribute to the
nation's growth by being self-reliant. On similar terms, PM Modi launched
schemes like Make in India Campaign (September 2014) ‘Vocal for Local’(May 12,
2020), and Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan (May 2020). Also, Ratan Tata envisioned a self-reliant
India which he believes is possible by supporting innovation and investment in technology.
Not only
Indian leaders, leaders all across the globe, of both democratic and
non-democratic nations promote self-dependence. Some of these leaders are Jacinda
Ardern (New Zealand), Justin Trudeau (Canada), Angela
Merkel (Germany), Emmanuel Macron (France), Scott
Morrison (Australia), Lee Kuan Yew (Singapore), Mahathir
Mohamad (Malaysia), Deng Xiaoping (China), Park Chung-Hee (South Korea) and Hugo
Chávez (Venezuela).
How to be
Self-Reliant as Individuals
Now, I am
sure that by reading the above content, you would have realized the importance
of self-reliance, i.e. self-dependence. Self-reliance is not a concept that
should be restricted to Nationwide development. This needs to seep deep into
our households. We need to become self-dependent in our homes. One instance
which I want to share here is that: One day, a woman’s house was flooded with
water since she had absentmindedly left the tap open. She demanded a maid to
clean up the mess and was reluctant to move from the sofa until her maid came.
The maid arrived in the evening after many follow-ups, since it was a holiday.
The lady sighed in relief and thanked her maid for coming and clearing the
flooded water. Is this how dependent we should be on our house helps? What if
the maid would have arrived the next day? If her home was flooded with water,
did she have waterproof sofas, the wood of which would remain intact even after
being exposed to water for prolonged periods?
If we have enough time and energy, then we
should do our household chores on our own. Doing the household chores such as
mopping the floors serves as a two-in-one: the floors are cleaned plus, you
burn some calories. Distribute it among the family members based on
capabilities instead of overloading the queen of the house. Make your children
and partner realize that the house is not only of the women, it is theirs too
and it is equally their responsibility to keep the house spick and span. After a certain age, we should delegate our
work to our children so that they have a sense of responsibility and ownership.
Encourage your children to make their bed as
soon as they wake up, help you by keeping the cleaned utensils back in place,
washing their bicycle and table regularly, keeping their toys back in the right
place, folding their clothes, and keeping it back in the Almirah, setting the
sofa cushions and cover, switching on the washing machine. Cooking is a skill
that every child irrespective of gender needs to learn since there are stages
in life when these cooking skills come to use. Skills that children need to be
taught include polishing shoes, tying the shoelace, cooking, communication
skills, ethics, moral values, anger management, meditation, and any physical
activity. This would contribute to the upbringing of self-reliant human beings, who would contribute as assets to the Indian economy.
To sum up,
we need to become self-reliant individuals by taking the responsibility of
doing our household work on our own. It is time to change. Don’t let the
sleeping dogs sleep. Let us pledge to become self-reliant individuals and
change our lives.
By Anunidhi Sharma
Engineer by profession,
Content writer by choice
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