The Contemporary Issues in India - Research Paper Example

Inserts His/her Inserts Inserts Grade (07, 09, Contemporary Issues in India Introduction India is a South Asian country and is one the rising economies of the world. It is surfacing as an economic giant alongside with China and its economy is growing at a great pace. The country is growing at a staggering rate for many years and this shows its economic strength. India is also the 10th largest economy of the world (IMF, p.1). The country is developing economically and financially but human development is very low in India. People still live below poverty line and many social issues are prevalent in Indian society. There are other major issues the country is facing today that are holding India from getting in the line of the developed world. The country is suffering from the problem of corruption and this is restricting the human development efforts in the country. Human trafficking is also an issue that is tarnishing the reputation of the country and many people are being trafficked from India into other countries. The increasing population of India is also a major problem the country is facing. All these issues will be discussed in great detail in the essay. Corruption, human trafficking, and increasing population are the three issues that will be discussed in the essay. Corruption in India Corruption is one of the most major issues India is facing today. Many institutions of the country like politics, bureaucracy, and law enforcement institutions all are suffering from the deadly disease of corruption (Express India, p.1). India became an independent state in 1947, before then it was a British colony. In more than half of a century the institutions of the country have not developed enough and this is why the problem of corruption exists in the country. The lack of infrastructure in the country may also be responsible for corruption because people working for the civil services know that they will not be caught while taking bribes. This lack of fear of conviction is one of the major reasons of growth of corruption in India. India is facing corruption problems at the grass root level. It is not just the institutional level of corruption that is haunting India. Lower level civil employees have developed a habit of taking bribes from the ordinary citizens. It is common for very small restaurant owners to pay bribes even to stay open for longer hours (Burke, p.1). This level of prevalence of corruption is extremely dangerous because eradicating it becomes impossible. Top level corruption can be controlled by changing the management of the country through effective leadership but lower level of corruption means that the problem has found inroads in the culture of the country. This is a serious problem that must be dealt quickly. Corruption can also hinder the growth of India that is vital for the country’s aims of economic dominance. Corruption problem will also not allow the country to become a super power as it is hoping to become in near future. People at the grass root level are suffering in the country and even after that they are required to pay bribes to civil servants. With this culture of corruption people will try to break laws in order to protect their income. The corruption of India has been categorized by an Indian bureaucratic as ‘dishonest corruption’ (Vitall, p. 25). He has explained that people in India have lost all financial integrity and even after taking bribes there is no guarantee that work your work will be done. This shows that people have lost dignity and corruption has become a part and parcel of Indian culture. People only care about making money and that is it. There is a lack of national character that helps propagate this culture of corruption. Poverty is also responsible for wide scale lower level corruption in the country. People are extremely poor and they have no option but to take ‘under the table money’ from ordinary citizens. Citizens who pay bribes try to cut corners and exploit loop holes of the system in order to take back the money they have given in bribes. This is a major reason why corruption culture is spreading throughout the country. Corruption in India is also because of its vast population. There are just too many people for whom civil institutions are required. Infrastructure is not available to tackle the problem of corruption. People are not afraid of being caught and this is why corruption is proliferating in India. There is need of proper institutions that should deal with corruption prevalent in the country. Human Trafficking in India Human trafficking is commonly known as modern slavery because victims have practically no control on their lives. Human trafficking involves movement of people from one country to another by coercion or by giving false hopes of employment to victims. This evil is common in developing countries where people have fewer opportunities to avail. In hope of a better life they fall prey to human trafficking agents who take them to foreign countries and force people to work for agents. India is facing the problem of human trafficking. The country is supplying its people to all parts of the world due to lack of opportunities in the country. India is a source, transit, and also a destination country for human trafficking. Children and women are common victims of human trafficking because they can be sexually exploited. Children can also work in industries at nominal wages therefore they are attractive for human traffickers. There are also local businesses like brick building and textile factories that employ children. These children are taken away because their parents are not able to pay their debt. Debt bondage labor is one of gravest form of human trafficking. Men and women are also taken into slavery due to nonpayment of debt. Most of them are forced to work in local factories and other are exported to different countries for other purposes. Female trafficking is mainly done for sexual exploitation. Women are forced to work as prostitutes in India and in foreign countries. Commercial sexual exploitation therefore is the major reason behind human trafficking of women (US Department of State). There is also a cultural element behind female trafficking. Indian society is a highly patriarchal society where men are considered superior to women. Girls are also married at an early age (Cullen-DuPont, p.96) because they are considered a burden. These cultural issues give rise to human trafficking in India. Human trafficking is also significant in the country due to its large population. The poverty level of people living in India is dangerously low and therefore they sometimes have to other option but to sell their sons or daughters. Families are large and it is difficult to feed the whole family. This is why human trafficking is prevalent in the country. Trafficking for bondage labor is also fueled by some industries. Products that are exported can be made at lower rates if labor costs can be significantly lowered. When there is a demand for cheap labor then supply will find its way if the legal institutions of the country are weak. This is what is happening in India as well and human trafficking is increasing rapidly in the country. Increasing Population Population increase is one of the most significant problems that the whole world is facing today. The population of India is growing at a great pace and this will continue to happen in future as well. It is safe to conclude that increasing population trends will not change in near future because education is still not prevalent in all parts of the Indian society. People are unaware of the possible dangers of increasing population and without educating people little can be achieved in this regard. The increase in population is also because of the cultural system of India. As mentioned before Indian society is a highly patriarchal society where boys are preferred over girls. In hope of male child people continue to increase their family sizes without realizing the fact that feeding them will be a problem. From ancient times people have talked about the increasing population of India. The want of a male child has led people from old days to bring more and more children in this world (Mill, p. 300). The growing population is a load on educational institutions and other social institutions of the country. Good governance therefore cannot be achieved when population is growing at a rate faster than growth of social institutions. Increasing population base does not help India because most of the population is not skilled enough to take part in the economy. They are not educated so they cannot contribute socially and at the same time due to lack of skills they are not able to take part in the industrial development of the country. This excess population becomes the burden on the society as well as on the government. The excess population also has a toll on the society because sooner or later they are forced to work for the underworld mafia. Gangs are prevalent in the Indian society and they are fueled by the excess population of the country. When people have no jobs and no education, they are left with no choice but to take part in criminal activities. This is not useful but detrimental for the society. The two issues discussed above of corruption and human trafficking is also enhanced by the increasing population of the country. When resources are not multiplying and there is a wide divide between the rich and the poor problems like corruption and human trafficking will occur in any society. Conclusion India is currently facing many issues and the most significant of them are corruption, human trafficking and increasing population. All these problems are prevalent in the country due to the lack of infrastructure in the country. The economy of India is growing at a good pace and it is known to be an economic giant of tomorrow but all these social problems are coming in the way of making India a developed country. Works Cited Page Burke, Jason. Corruption in India: All your life you pay for things that should be free. Guardian UK. Web September 7, 2011. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/aug/19/corruption-india-anna-hazare Cullen-DuPont, Kathryn. Human Trafficking. New York: InfoBase Publishing, 2009. Print GDP India. International Monetary Fund, 2011. Web September 7, 2011. http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2011/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2008&ey=2011&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=534&s=NGDPD%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPGDP%2CPPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=&pr.x=49&pr.y=13 Indian Bureaucracy the worst in Asia: Survey. Express India, 2009. Web September 7, 2011. http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Indian-bureaucracy-the-worst-in-Asia-Survey/470601/ Mill, James. The History of British India, Volume 3. London: Baldwin, Cradock and Joy, 1817. Print Trafficking in Persons Report. United States Department of State, 2008. Web September 7, 2011. http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2008/105388.htm Vittal, N. Corruption in India: the roadblock to national prosperity. Calcutta: Academic Foundation, 2003. Print Read More