When our children, rich or poor, can flick a switch and study at night

For me, India Empowered will be when darkness is not a compulsion of the night. This will be a time when there is no uncertainty of outcome ...

For me, India Empowered will be when darkness is not a compulsion of the night. This will be a time when there is no uncertainty of outcome at the press of a switch. A time when the poorest of the poor student can do his homework in the light of a lantern for which kerosene was not purchased at black-market price. A time when taps do not run dry because there was no power for water pumps; patients do not die because there was no power for the hospital. This will be a time when women and children do not trudge miles everyday collecting water and wood. This will be a time when the ‘‘fuel mafias’’ in coal, cooking gas, kerosene et al go out of business.

The President, in his address to the nation on the eve of the last Independence Day, had articulated his vision of energy independence for India by 2030. I believe in his vision. We have the resources not only to become energy independent but also to become, in a matter of the next decades, a net exporter of energy to the rest of the world.

What we need is the zeal to transform these resources into efficient, economic and environment-friendly power. Hopefully, things will change. Otherwise, the BRICS idea will be a pipedream. The debate on manufacturing versus services will be pointless. Without power, India will not be empowered.

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The key issues are known—pricing anomalies and theft, whether outright theft, adulteration or diversion. Genuine concern for the poor can be realized only through cost-efficient operations. Because of the inherent contradictions in our policies and practices, the economy continues to be burdened with huge avoidable costs. Ultimately, the tax-payer has to pay for all these inefficiencies. The hard fact is that the benefit of subsidized pricing does not reach the intended beneficiaries.

In many socio-economic aspects, we have outlived the inflexible approach of a closed economy. Energy is perhaps the only area where the dogmas of the past blind us to the realities of the globalized market-place. Partial or incomplete reform is perhaps worse than no reform at all. In a controlled economy, the accountability lies with the State alone.

In the transition phase, the State and the corporate investors keep going round in complicated circles, without reaching anywhere. The fuel resources do not get converted into power because investors are not motivated. The value of power is not appreciated, resulting in unbelievable wastage due to obsolete conversion technologies and indifference to conservation.

For decades, we have been talking about an integrated approach to energy planning and investments. For decades, we have accepted the need of mass transit systems. For decades, we have realized that indigenous coal must be processed through environment-friendly technologies.

There has to be a day when we actually get down to decisions, investments, and implementation. This will not happen unless the ‘‘vested interests’’ are tackled head on. Like everything else in the process of governance, the initiative must come from political will.

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India Empowered will be when all children, whether born to the rich in the metros or the deprived in the hamlets, will be assured of uniform quality of education through a national network sustained by uninterrupted availability of stable, quality energy.

THE BEST SMS OF THE DAY

		• When the birth of a girl is as celebrated as that of a boy and brides are not burnt for not bringing dowry. — Soohas, Pune • When a Kashmiri pandit is not a refugee in his own country • India empowered to me is when any citizen of this country says “I am an Indian“ and gets immediate undivided attention. — Samir shah • India empowered means no communism. Capitalism is the way towards progress — Kishori Visal Send us your take on empowerment through SMS at 8558. The best five SMS everyday will be printed on the Op-Ed page. To send SMS, type IE (space) followed by your empowerment SMS and send it to 8558. Your SMS must not exceed 157 characters.