Unfurling the 79th Tricolour: A Republic Searching Clean Air and Clear Conscience

India is all set to unfurls its 79th Tricolour, the air is thick-not merely with the fervour of celebration but also with a chocking haze that clouds the nation’s vision for the future. The strength of our national determination now stands in question. The world’s largest democracy now ranks fifth globally among the most polluted countries, a concerning status for a nation still striving to maintain a healthy air quality index nearly eight decades after independence.In a parliamentary democracy, citizens directly choose their representatives, and governments rise to power on the strength of public mandate. Yet, the same mandate often becomes a shackle. When strict laws threaten to upset voter bases, practical concerns often take priority over principles. This creates a situation where political caution overshadows public health.

Consider the northern Indian states like Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, where farmers commonly burn crop stubble after harvest. This quick, low-cost method clears fields for the next planting season. Unfortunately, this decades-old practice releases massive quantities of harmful pollutants, covering entire regions in toxic haze. The impact on Delhi, already the world’s second most polluted capital, is catastrophic: PM2.5 levels frequently exceed 90 micrograms per cubic meter, far above safe limits. The economic cost is huge, and the human cost is even higher, cutting short nearly two million lives each year.

Stubble burning has been a norm since the 1980s. Yet, no government has dared to impose a strict ban. The reason is political arithmetic. Farmers make up about 45 percent of India’s population, and any ruling party that confronts their practices, risks electoral backlash. In this uneasy equation of intimidation and appeasement, India’s right to breathe clean air remains a pipe dream.

When health is lost, everything is lost. Sadly, this reality is rarely acknowledged until a serious illness strikes someone. Health policies in India remain little more than paper tigers—impressive in theory but ineffective in practice. Compounding this issue, many citizens generally lack civic awareness and do not see the importance of a clean and green India. This is particularly disheartening for a nation rich in natural resources. Despite having significant water bodies—including oceans, seas, rivers, and lakes—the country has not managed to provide drinkable water from its taps. This harsh truth struck me during my visits to developed countries, where access to clean water is taken for granted.

For those who argue that India is not yet a developed nation, the statement opens the door to a wide and compelling debate. After all, if Gulf countries like the UAE and Saudi Arabia can thrive by “showering in oil wells,” India too rests upon vast mineral-rich mountains. The real issue is not the scarcity of resources but rather the absence of a government’s sense of ownership and the citizen’s sense of responsibility for their country. Until this changes, India’s enormous potential will remain largely untapped.

The buck does not stop here. India, already battling dangerous levels of air pollution, is also grappling with a far graver issue — the communal toxicity that hangs in the air. History makes it clear: no nation plagued by internal conflict between its own citizens has ever truly prospered. South Africa, for instance, sat on heaps of gold yet remained restless until the end of apartheid. Similarly, India — a nation rich in resources and blessed with immense human capital — has been caught in the whirlpool of communal conflict since Independence. A famous African proverb aptly captures the situation: When two elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers. Today, the Hindu–Muslim divide is tearing apart our communal harmony, hindering progress, and weakening the nation. It would not be harsh to hold the ruling dispensation accountable for failing to bring the house into harmonious order. The populist politics that thrives by wooing the majority for short-term electoral gains is nothing but an eyewash, sold under the banner of pseudo-development. This brand of politics has deepened divisions, crippled national unity, and brought India’s progress to its knees.

Today, 80 years after Independence, India stands as the world’s fourth-largest economy and is not far from reaching its ambition of becoming the third largest. Yet, what is most alarming is this: why, despite being on the cusp of such economic achievement, do so many Indians seem to lack faith in the nation’s strength? According to government data, over 1.6 million Indians have renounced their citizenship since 2011.While many news reports attribute this migration to “personal reasons,” but my own interactions with several families who have surrendered their Indian citizenship and settled abroad tell a different story — one rooted in a deep trust deficit in India’s governance. The chaos fuelled by religious and political divisions, the inconvenience caused by poor sanitation and drainage systems, the frustration over unemployment, the disorder of unplanned roads and traffic, and above all, the lack of discipline in public life have together compelled many to make the painful decision to leave. They have walked away from the very motherland where they were born, raised, and created countless cherished memories — not out of lack of love, but out of despair.


The most unfortunate part is that the dream of our founding fathers — who envisioned building the nation brick by brick — now seems to be shattering. The most befitting tribute to the contributions and the sacrifices of our nation-builders is to unhesitatingly swallow the bitter pill of truth, stand together, and embrace the philosophy of cooperation, brotherhood, love, and harmony to make Mother India great again.