Sometimes looking at people’s civic sense in public places feels like “Angrezo ko humse freedom mili thi, na ki hume unse.” Even today: People want clean countries, but throw garbage outside moving cars. Want less traffic, but break signals to save 20 seconds. Want world-class cities, but damage public property built from their own taxes. Then we emotionally compare ourselves with developed nations. Reality is harsh: A country cannot look first world with third world public behaviour.

Earlier, people used to escape stress by going outside. Now, outside itself feels stressful. Parks are crowded. Temples feel like queues, not peace. Hill stations feel like traffic jams. Tourist places feel like railway platforms. Cafés have waiting lists. Malls feel packed even on weekdays. Whether it is Ladakh Uttarakhand Goa Manali or even local markets everywhere feels overloaded. India’s population has grown, but public spaces, infrastructure and peaceful areas have not grown at the same speed. Sometimes, the only truly peaceful place left feels like your own room at home.

One harsh reality of modern society: Earlier, poor people lacked money but had people around them. Now, many people have money subscriptions followers and smartphones but nobody to call in real emergencies. Thousands of contacts. Very few real connections. In many apartments today, people would notice your food delivery faster than your absence. Buildings became more premium. Human connection became cheaper.

We built malls faster than libraries. We opened more cafés than public parks. We learned online trading before learning civic discipline. We installed ACs everywhere, but forgot trees. We made luxury apartments, but ignored footpaths. We became active on social media, but inactive in society. We mastered EMI lifestyle, but not financial discipline. We want world-class cities, while breaking traffic rules daily. Development is not only what we build. It is also how we live together.

Instead of Mann Ki Baat India now needs Kaam Ki Baat How many factories opened? How many jobs created? How many government schools improved? How many cities became cleaner? How much manufacturing increased? How many courts reduced pending cases? In 2014, India and China were both expanding their railway networks. Today, China has built more than 45,000 km of high-speed rail, the largest network in the world. India is still waiting for its first full bullet train corridor. One country invested in speed, logistics and manufacturing. The other invested in nonstop political entertainment. This is the real gap.

China after 2014: Built superfast trains Opened huge factories Became leader in EVs and batteries Made chips, electronics and solar panels Increased exports worldwide Focused on jobs and manufacturing India after 2014: Hindu-Muslim debates Election rallies all year TV news shouting Boycott trends on social media WhatsApp politics More focus on image and PR One country was building factories. The other was building narratives. Today China sells products to the world. India is still busy fighting online.

The government has linked bank accounts, PAN, mobile numbers, LPG, subsidies and almost everything with Aadhaar. But still many people hold 2-3 voter IDs from different states or addresses. If Aadhaar can verify taxpayers, SIM cards and bank accounts, then why is the voting system still full of duplicate identities? Either link Voter ID with Aadhaar strictly or replace Voter ID with Aadhaar completely. One person should have one identity and one vote. Anything else is a loophole.

Social media makes it look like every second Indian is a crorepati. But Income Tax data says something else. Only around 3 lakh people in India officially reported income above ₹1 crore. Only around 16,000 people showed income between ₹5–10 crore. And only around 10,000 people showed income above ₹10 crore. In a country of 140 crore people, that number is extremely small. Still, open Instagram or YouTube and it feels like everyone owns: luxury cars multiple properties foreign holidays passive income Reality is: either a lot of money never comes into the tax system or social media is showing a fake version of India.

My little one asked me today: “Papa, how does the phone know? We were talking about pizza and suddenly pizza videos started coming. Then we talked about dosa and dosa shorts also started coming…” I smiled… but honestly, even adults get confused now. Are phones listening? Or have algorithms become so powerful that they can predict what we may like next? Sometimes it feels like before we even search something, the internet already knows. Technology became smarter. Privacy became smaller.

People say EV driving is “almost free”. But look at the complete maths: Petrol Car: ₹3,000 petrol = around 360-480 km EV Home Charging: ₹8 per unit × 50 units = around ₹400 for 300-400 km EV Fast Charging: ₹20 per unit × 50 units = around ₹1,000 for 300-400 km Sounds cheap. Now add: • ₹8-15 lakh battery replacement risk • Charger installation cost • Charging wait time • Apartment charging problems • Resale uncertainty • Future electricity price hikes Petrol cars burn money openly. EVs hide costs inside batteries, infrastructure and electricity dependency. That’s the part most reels and influencers skip.

Satyam Scam exposed a harsh reality of the stock market. For years fake profits and fake growth fooled investors. When the fraud came out the government stepped in to save the company and jobs but investors who lost money got almost nothing back. In the stock market, profits are private and losses are personal. That’s when many people asked: If governments can save companies, why don’t they release funds to save investors too?

Yesterday I travelled in a WagonR cab. The driver proudly said, “Sir 25 mileage deti hai… maintenance bhi sasta hai… perfect family car.” Then on highway, a Fortuner passed near us at high speed and for a second the whole WagonR shook badly. Driver smiled and said, “Sir bas isi cheez ka darr lagta hai… gaadi halki bahut hai.” That moment made me realise something harsh. In India, most middle class families are not buying cars for safety or comfort. They are buying: low EMI good mileage cheap servicing and the ability to somehow survive monthly expenses. Build quality becomes important only after an accident. Till then, mileage wins.

Real estate maths explains why old investors preferred plots over flats. Flat maths: ₹1 crore purchase ₹90 lakh interest ₹10-12 lakh maintenance ₹10 lakh interior ₹5 lakh repairs 20 years later: ageing building, maintenance fights, depreciating structure, and resale buyers negotiating heavily. Plot maths: ₹1 crore land. Very low maintenance. No lift replacement. No society politics. No ageing structure. And in most cases good land in developing areas keeps appreciating with time because land supply stays limited. A flat gets older every year. But land usually becomes more valuable as cities expand around it. That’s why wealthy families often focus on owning land first and lifestyle later.