HYDERABAD: Indian-American author and researcher Rajiv Malhotra — raising concerns about the Indian education system, social media policies, outsourcing of human resources and appropriation of western interventions — said India was walking the path of a ‘Vishwa Chela (global follower)’, instead of ‘Vishwa Guru (global leader)’.
Malhotra, who has authored several best-selling books like ‘Breaking India: Western Interventions in Dravidian and Dalit’ and ‘Snakes in the Ganga – Breaking India 2.0’, was speaking at a media interaction in the city as part of his three-day trip.
Malhotra said that there was a downward spiral in the democracy of India as politicians were not offering serious propositions, concepts or long-term plans to people but rather, giving bombastic, hyperbolic statements to appease them and make them feel emotionally good to win votes.
“We are facing a country like China, where people are being educated about their country and its capabilities. There is a lack of proper values in the education system of the country. Even though we say we are decolonised, the government has outsourced a lot of thinking to foreign consultants and we are getting all kinds of advice, like data security rights, national education policy and so on. We are on the path of self-destruction. We can keep having slogans like Vishwa Guru but we are becoming Vishwa Chelas,” Malhotra said.
The author also questioned whether democracy was the best route for India, citing problems faced by the West in implementing democracy.
Stressing a need to transform the NCERT and UPSC curriculum, Malhotra said that Indians were tech coolies and followers, who were doing the dirty work of American multinationals like Google, Apple, and Amazon.
In response to a question by Deccan Chronicle on growing social conflicts in the country, Malhotra said, “Because people are not isolated geographically, everybody knows what everybody else is saying and doing because of social media and the opportunity of conflict is more. What is most disturbing is the fact that the use of social media to create conflicts is being controlled by people outside the country. We don’t have our own social media and it is not our people who control the narrative. What the algorithm will support and not is in external hands and these are serious matters, which is kind of remote-control management of emotions and psychology of people”.
Infinity Foundation India president Vijaya Viswanathan, former home secretary K. Padmabhaiah, former chief secretary L.V. Subramanyam and retired IPS officer K. Aravinda Rao were among those who attended the event.
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