The Modi Government's welcome push on infrastructure has its challenges, but getting Indians to take the small matter of life a bit more seriously is a harder task. The new administration must not fall prey to populism
It is estimated that over 2,00,000 people died on Indian roads last year; 1,40,000 children under the age of five died from diahorrea; maternal mortality rates remain high. The list goes on, with fairly preventable causes killing millions of Indians annually. While a proper vaccination policy and better implementation of traffic rules on roads will lessen the number of deaths, it must be mentioned at the very outset that there is no silver bullet to cure everything.
However, there is no doubt that a more concentrated effort and particularly better implementation can dramatically bring down mortality rates. And such feats should not be impossible to achieve for a Government that has made ‘implementation’ a buzzword. Of course, the fear is that this Government, like the past Government, could easily become an administration of hollow platitudes. And there have been some worrying signs.
Take, for example, the shoddy case of electric three-wheelers in the national capital. The idea of having electric three-wheelers doing last-mile connectivity in residential areas was a good one. Having slow-moving electric three-wheelers on arterial roads, alongside fast-moving vehicular traffic, on the other hand is not a great idea. Instead of taking concrete action on this front, the transportation ministry has let things continue the way they currently are. Vehicles with little or nothing to protect their occupants from an impact, and travelling at 10-15 kilometers an hour, share space with big buses and fast cars that could crush them in an instant.
This columnist has stated before that the number of people dying on India’s roads is frightening. We have a death rate that beggars belief. If we are indeed to drag India in to the 21st century with rapid infrastructure development, the murder on our roads needs to stop. It is quite conceivable that several thousand deaths on our roads are not even classified as such. There is no doubt that new roads and highways need to be laid down, after all the highways are the arteries of India’s economic engine. But these should be arteries of concrete and tarmac, not arteries full of blood.
On the health front as well, we have failed miserably over the past few decades. Far too many people in India still die from preventable causes. Nothing describes the wealth gap in India quite as well as the differences in life expectancy between the rich and the poor. Unfortunately, this is an anecdotal comment rather than one backed up by empirical data, but there is no denying the rising cost of healthcare, the lack of affordable medical insurance as well as the non-availability of world-class healthcare beyond metropolitan areas. Although, things have improved as far as medical facilities go, much still needs to be done.
Some cases defy common sense — for instance, the senseless infant mortality in West Bengal due to a lack of proper facilities and the deaths of hundreds of children from Japanese Encephalitis in Bihar despite their being a preventive vaccine available. Over-crowded Government hospitals, because of their inability to take in new patients, and private healthcare institutions which outright refuse to do so, are parts of the problem. This is despite their obligations towards the public having received private land. But by far the worst situation is the wanton destruction of hospital property by aggrieved relatives of patients, or worse, politically-backed goons. The destruction of any public property is a criminal offence, but the destruction of hospitals, particularly in a country without enough healthcare, is akin to a crime against humanity.
Another peculiar example is the lack of medical evacuation aircraft in India, particular medical evacuation helicopters. By keeping heavy import duties on aircraft, India has barely two or three certified and equipped helicopter ambulances. Recently, there was a heart-warming tale of an ambulance carrying organs for donations being given a clear pathway in Chennai. Helicopter ambulances would make such life-saving journeys far more convenient and much faster.
But the fact is that an ambulance has little or no chance in peak traffic in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai or any Indian city for that matter. That is tragic enough as it is, but it is not just helicopter ambulances that we lack — far too many people die on the roads through blood-loss simply because there are no ambulances available on most of India’s highways.
But we have been able to do remarkable things if and when we want to. The Pulse Polio campaign has been a prime example. If prompt action is taken, the number of deaths from diahorrea can be drastically brought down through vaccination. It is a matter of pride that we finally have a Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare who is a doctor himself, and who within his first few weeks in office has taken some action on the Japanese Encephalitis epidemic.
However, much like road safety, the focus has to be on prevention rather than just post-facto action. In both cases, the onus is on all Indian citizens and not just the Government. While there needs to be a dramatic improvement in the delivery and availability of healthcare services across the country, the public has to take action on several fronts by maintaining healthier lifestyles and preventing avoidable healthcare risks by taking action against the small things, such as littering and spitting.
The sad fact is that, in India, we consider life to be very cheap. Rich or poor, people die everyday because most of us could not care less. We make a hue and cry about religious issues and small parcels of land and do not think twice about killing people over them. Yet, when it comes to safety, we are extremely selfish. How can religion possibly be a reason to prevent women from wearing helmets on a motorcycle, or for that matter how can religion be a justification against vaccinationIJ
The 21st century is not just about bullet trains and fast cars; it is about improving the quality of lives of Indians. That requires Indians to stop being selfish and care about each other. It is that, and not building railways and roadways that might be this Government’s biggest challenge.