There are soothsayers and experts galore who have suggested what a Modi 2.0 Government should attempt to do
When somebody asked me to predict the results of the elections a few weeks ago, I stuck my neck out and said the BJP would get 220 to 230 seats and of course lead an NDA Government, the Congress would double its 2014 tally and Mamata and Stalin would reign supreme in their respective states. Came to the exit polls and I scoffed at extreme forecasts of 300 seats for the BJP and 350 for the NDA and when the results unfolded on May 23rd, I was the first to admit I have completely underestimated the will of the very decisive Indian electorate. Congratulations Mr Prime Minister, wonderful election strategy Mr Shah and what an achievement by one man in the trenches Mr Kailash Vijayvargiya! Did somebody say Who? He is the BJP David in Bengal who is taking on the TMC Goliath and delivering some telling blows with his sling!
Yes, we all have read enough times that this is a victory for a robust nationalism which stole the narrative away from the distress in the rural economy and the alarming jobs situation in the country and rallied national sentiment in most parts of the country towards Mr Modi’s almost Presidential campaign. Nobody really bought the “Chowkidar Chor Hai” allegation and the impregnable armour of personal commitment and incorruptibility that Mr Modi wears, made all opposition arrows seem like mere pebbles hurled at a giant. And eventually, the TIMO factor (There is Modi only) prevailed and left many of us wannabe psephologists very red-faced. For those who still wanted to flash the H word and sulk about the future of the nation, Mr Modi in his extremely well thought and delivered speech to BJP Parliamentarians (what’s new about his eloquence?), came up with the Sabka Vishwas supplement to his slogan for the nation and committed to take everybody along, those who supported him and also those who voted against him!
In such situations, I like to see what some of my favourite columnists say. Not surprisingly, while their praise may not be fulsome, their criticism is very nuanced. Former FM Chidambaram defines secularism in the modern day as “eschewing extreme positions and being inclusionary” and hopes that the process of governance will be inclusionary. Tavleen Singh has chosen to join the ranks of the many who are seeing this vote as the final end of the “court of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty” and has suggested that the nation has clearly chosen the working man in preference to the prince. And Ruchir Sharma, author of “Democracy on the Road” suggests that nearly a 100 million new voters, “mesmerized by the image Modi projects of a decisive leader who works 18-20 hours a day” have decided that their future lies with this man and this narrative of a new India where they can find their place.
Ruchir goes on to suggest that experiments like demonetisation, “a self-defeating move” could be avoided by inducting more of the intelligent elite into the decision making and validation ranks. He also cautions that second term leaders worldwide very often become complacent, though one could argue that what he calls the “second term curse” is more a US phenomenon where Presidents only get two terms. In our country, given the state of the decimation of the opposition particularly North of the Vindhyas, one could argue that Mr Modi will lead for the foreseeable future…and beyond! And how long will a Kerala or Tamilnadu or a shaky Bengal withstand the saffron wave?
The impregnable armour of personal commitment and incorruptibility that Mr Modi wears, made all opposition arrows seem like mere pebbles hurled at a giant
There are soothsayers and experts galore who have suggested what a Modi 2.0 Government should attempt to do so let me not add to the noises on inclusion, growth revival in manufacturing, farm rejuvenation and the other obvious agenda items. A few thoughts on the areas that I am most passionate about – entrepreneurship, sustainable livelihoods creation and social progress. We have a major opportunity to invest as a nation in sandboxes and acceleration centres for start-ups to enable them to scale and not fritter away the money of friends and family through somewhat copycat and half-baked ideas. Let us target to take a million start-ups all the way to scale in the next ten years. They, in turn, would each create 100 jobs. Ten crore new high-quality livelihoods would be created for the country’s youth.
Livelihood building itself needs a national movement away from obsolete skilling mechanisms and the search for the jobs of yesterday which will be inexorably eaten up by AI and automation. A serious training effort is needed for building ignored industries like textiles, semi-automated electronics manufacturing and new AI-enabled services. And there is an opportunity to bring best practices from the corporate to the social sector akin to what we at Social Venture Partners have been able to accomplish. Indeed, the growth that wonderful NGOs like Educate Girls, Teach for India and Pune City Connect demonstrates every day could ensure that social entrepreneurs add another million or more jobs and also greatly contribute to all-round progress in the country.
A new India is rising. Let’s join hands and help our Prime Minister and the new Government to deliver a new tryst with destiny!
By Ganesh Natarajan
