In our country the real meaning and context of the word
‘Politics’ is completely lost. We think that ‘Politics’ is something dirty and ‘Politician’ is someone who plays this dirty game. The word
‘Politics’ comes from the
Greek word
‘politikos’ meaning – “of, for, or relating to citizens”. It is the practice and theory of influencing other people on individual or mass level for
achieving common good.
Present day India is plagued by so many problems. Industrial growth is at its lowest in last two decades, corruption has increased to unimaginable proportions, the farmers are in a deplorable state, inflation is uncontrolled, crime against women is at an alarming high, female foeticide is on the rise, naxalism has spread its wings in 20 states….the list goes on and on.
This rock bottom scenario can change if the common man takes constructive interest in the political process of the country.
Each and every Indian wants a better India but they are not aware of the ways to achieve this. The foremost among these things is the judicious use of individual voting right. The number of candidates with criminal records among our ‘elected representatives’ is steadily increasing because of the apathy of common man towards the political process. In 2004 Lok Sabha, there were 128 MPs with criminal background; and in 2009 the number rose to 150. Somewhere this trend needs to be reversed.
In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections close to 12 crore youths will be first time voters. This is really a huge number if we compare it with the total number of votes polled by our national parties in 2009 polls. At that time the Congress polled 11.9 crore votes, the BJP 7.8 crore, and the rest of parties much less than that. So if these 12 crore youths really exercise their voting right judiciously, it can completely change the political picture of this country.
The only problem is how to convert all these eligible voters in to actual voters. Most politicians have no interest in increasing the voting percentage because it is against their interests. Under such circumstances it is only the NGOs and their active volunteers who can change the picture.
One such campaign is the “I Vote for A Better India” campaign started by “Volunteer for Better India (VBI)” organization. VBI is a pan-India initiative of “Art of Living” under the guidance of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar ji for citizens of India to come together in to help build a better India.
“I Vote For a Better India” campaign aims at:
1. Educating Indians about the importance of participating in the democratic process and using their right to vote so that they feel empowered to bring about social change. 2. Increasing awareness among the youth for voting – (at present less than 50% in the 18-24 age group and ~20% in the age group 18-20 are registered to vote).
This initiative aims to remove the apathy that has seeped into our social fabric and make individuals realize the importance of their vote. As a first step volunteers are visiting all the colleges, universities and societies for new voter registration. In the second leg, efforts will be made by door-to-door campaigning to motivate maximum voters to exercise their voting right.
