Gaandhigiri...

Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of Nation, is today limited to chapters in text books, speeches of politicians and in photoes on the walls of government offices. His principles of Truth and Non-Violence are too hard to follow according to the superfast generations in Independent India. A survey in an economic daily found that Bill Gates is ahead of Mahatma Gandhi as role model for youth today. When Gandhiji was gradually fading in public psych, there came 'Munnabhai...Lage Raho'- a movie which showed the relevance and effectiveness of Gandhiji's methods of Satyagraha to all Indians and today Gandhigiri is again an in thing. There is a news from Lucknow about how people agitated by a liquor shop tried to persuade the liquor shop owner to move his shop. Don't be surprised if you get to hear such news with an increasing frequency. Damaged roads, dirty public hospitals, drinking water problems, corrupt politicians to name only a few problems - this is a gloomy picture for today's India. The citizens today are helpless against authorities, big corporations. Can Gandhigiri be a way for such helpless citizens to solve these problems? Does 'Satyagraha' offers a weapon to all of us?