INDIA'S ECONOMY:  OVERVIEW                                      0F  PRESENT           India's economy was growing at a respectable rate during the  first decade of the twenty first  century. But Manmohan Singh's UPA  govt.'s performance in its second term (2009-2014)  was  disappointing. By its end, gdp growth slowed down to 4 to 5%  from about 8% to 9 %. In 2014,  BJP   came to power on the basis of  "Achchhe Din" promises of Narendra Modi which convinced  most  Indians of change for the better. But the performance of last 6  years of Modi govt. has fallen far short   of its high expectations.   India's gdp growth has gradually slowed down from 8% to 4%, even  prior ...

                            INDIA- OVERVIEW OF RECENT PAST                    Gandhiji awakened India's masses, reinforced their aspiration for freedom from British rule and raised their consciousness about India as one nation. He inspired them to the ideal of nonviolence in resolving all disputes and  tolerance towards all religions. Framing of progressive Indian Constitution and democratic republic form of government based on universal adult franchise were big achievements of the early political leaders, after independence.           Nehru, the first prime minister of India, as a man of integrity, and international outlook was loved by its people. He encouraged industrial development  of India and scientific research in higher education. But his socialistic bent (though well intended) marked by central planning of economy was respon...

                                    A POINT OF VIEW         God made man or man made God? It seems that at the beginning of human civilization, people were overwhelmed with fear during natural calamities, such as, wild fire, earthquake, rainstorm, famine  or an epidemic. They could not fathom what was causing these  events.  They imagined that some powerful entities were  responsible to bring these misfortunes upon the earth. They started  worshipping some forces of nature as Gods, such as, sun, water,  wind, fire.  They attributed human traits, such as, anger  and revenge  to these Gods, and started to perform rituals to  propitiate these Gods, such as, yagna (ceremony around fire) and  sacrifice (throwing food, animals and occasionally human babies in  fire). With time, there developed a concept of one supreme being a...

                                                                                        I AM OK, YOU ARE OK          What does this mean? It means: I respect myself and I respect  you.  This is the first step to achieving peace within self and peace  with  others. We know that no one is perfect, each of us has  drawbacks and deficiencies, but we all deserve basic respect as human beings.       Do not put yourself down when someone behaves  inappropriately with you. To regain your composure after a  momentary bad feeling,  say to yourself: "This reflects on the other  person,  not me. I am all right." Do not evaluate yourself on the basis  of what other people think or...