Japanese resilience, national spirit are examples to follow

Japan is not new to disasters. Over the course of time, Japan’s national spirit has been synonymous with utmost resilience, reinforced by the country's ability to handle natural disasters in a well prepared and timely manner.

In India as well, natural disasters are a common phenomenon. Cyclone Fani wreaked havoc in Odisha. The preparedness of disaster management authorities was well appreciated across the world, when the coastal authorities in Odisha moved more than a million people from the area within Cyclone Fani’s projected path onto higher ground, significantly reducing the death toll to 89. But, India still has a long way to go.

After the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, the whole of Japan came to a standstill. In the 1950s, Japan aimed to become modern, peaceful, and part of the world’s economic elite. One of the key elements in the construction of this renewed Japanese society was building of a monument to symbolise Japan’s ascendancy as a global economic powerhouse. This led to the planning of Tokyo Tower. The building of Tokyo Tower attracted thousands of Japanese construction workers and instilled a greater sense of nationalism in the hearts of the people. Tokyo Tower glorified their engineering and technical prowess and showed the world that it was way ahead of its time. The collective effort of the entire nation driving the resurgence of the nation’s economy, is what impressed the whole world.

India too has a rich history and culture. Over the course of the colonial rule, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, popularly remembered as Iron Man of India, successfully imbibed the spirit of solidarity within the citizens of the country.To realize his vision, ‘Statue of Unity’ was unveiled as world’s tallest statue in 2018. Like Tokyo Tower of Japan, the ‘Statue of Unity’ of India will serve as a symbol to imbibe a sense of national purpose in hearts of 130 crore Indians.

India is working towards the holistic achievement of the global Sustainable Development Goals, taking unprecedented leaps under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.

Running world’s biggest health assurance scheme covering 500 million citizens, world’s biggest financial inclusion scheme opening over 370 million bank accounts for the poor, India draws inspiration from ‘Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas and Sabka Vishwas’.

In 2014, India was lagging behind in sanitation and an Open Defecation Free (ODF) India seemed a far-fetched dream, with less than 50% of households in the country having access to sanitation facilities.

Yet, India has been able to successfully implement the world’s largest sanitation programme under Swachh Bharat Mission, building 110 million toilets in just 5 years. On one hand, India is committed to achieving the target of 450 GW of renewable energy, and on the other, india is leading the initiatives like International Solar Alliance, Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure, shining examples of her ever-growing global influence.

India is one of the fastest growing nations, with an annual average economic growth of 7.5% over the last 5 years, coupled with low inflation and low fiscal deficits.

In the last 4 years, India has jumped 79 positions in the World Bank Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) rankings, currently ranked at 63, being the only large country in the world to witness such monumental progress.

India needs to address the challenge of engaging with modernity and economic development with cultural preservation, learning from Japan. A lot of lessons can be taken from the Japanese national spirit of collectivism and unity.

--- The writer is Secretary, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA). Views expressed are his own in personal capacity.