I have been receiving messages from my friends in Britain about some juicy dope on the ill fated games that are likely to start in a few days. I am ashamed that some greedy individuals in the position of authority have brought immense disrepute to the nation and to Indians at large.

While I am worried about the images that are being flashed across the world media, the collapsing bridges and the filth, I have a strong belief in the fire fighting abilities of Indian managers who perform far better in times of crisis. The games will be over even before they start and if my guess is anything to go by – with negligible glitches. But I cannot help but stop and reflect as to why India is topmost on the corruption index and why it is still growing at 9% annually and how on earth are we still as resilient as we are that every single business school across the globe is doing case studies on Indian businesses and entrepreneurship.

India is the only country that has never ever attacked any other country in its recorded existence. Instead, it has continuously been attacked and plundered by proselytising invaders. The Mughals and the British have had the maximum impact. Lord Macaulay addressed the British Parliament on 2nd Feb 1835 – “I have traveled across the length and breadth of India and I have not seen one person who is a beggar, who is a thief. Such wealth I have seen in this country, such high moral values, people of such calibre, that I do not think we would ever conquer this country, unless we break the very backbone of this nation, which is her spiritual and cultural heritage, and, therefore, I propose that we replace her old and ancient education system, her culture, for if the Indians think that all that is foreign and English is good and greater than their own, they will lose their self-esteem, their native self-culture and they will become what we want them, a truly dominated nation”

So the Plunderers have been successful in inducing the gene of corruption and lethargy amongst the population of the country that invented the ‘0’ and algebra amongst hundreds of significant discoveries that changed the life of people forever.

But here I am not propounding achievements by Indians. I am making a simple point. We have come a long way in the last 60 years ever since we got our independence. We are still healing our scars left by over 200 years of suppression. And it will be a while before our genetic makeup stops fighting starvation, corruption and suppression.

The wealth in any case was not common or else David wouldn’t have said what he said – David Cameron “I know there is also a great argument about the original provenance of the Kohinoor diamond. I’m afraid this will disappoint viewers, but it’s going to have to stay put. What tends to happen with these questions is that if you say yes to one, you suddenly find the British Museums will be emptied”. So what do I say – An empire and its alleged history and treasures are all a result of mass plundering – the world over.

Meanwhile it’s pertinent to mention that that the games village is actually looking good and hopefully everything would be just fine.