7 Simple Ways Every Logical Indian can contribute to national development

India today is the 6^th largest economy in the world. As per the latest estimates by the international monetary fund, in 2017, India has achieved the GDP growth at the rate of 7.6% which is one of the highest rate in the world. Yet, India still cannot be called as a completely developed country.

India is second highest populated nation of the world which results in some major developmental issues for the country. India still has 7.97% unemployment rate and Economist Intelligence Unit has ranked India on 66^th position for the overall quality of life index. There are still several issues with good health care, education and agricultural goods. Inflation is high and corruption is rampant. This shows that India has way to go before it can be called as a completely developed state. And for this, every educated and logical Indian needs to work hard.

Even a small attempt at an individual level can have a huge difference. If each responsible Indian citizen decides follow the below seven principles, it would greatly help in national development

1. Open at least 1 account in Nationalized bank and keep minimum balance:

A saving bank account gives a legal and authorized identity to our income and savings. When Prime Minster Narendra Modi started the Jan Dhan Yojna, he intended to give all the poor people the right to their own hard earned legal money. He has given various leeway and facilities to the nationalized banks. Also, accumulating money in nationalized banks keeps the money in India itself rather than outside.

2. Invest in national savings Schemes like NSC
   

National Savings Certificates, popularly known as NSC, is the Indian Government Savings Bond, primarily used for small savings and income tax saving investments in India. It is part of the postal savings system. NSCs are one of the best money saving and investment option is India as the holder gets the tax benefit under Section 80C of Income Tax Act, 1961. As they are issued for long term maturity of 5 or 10 years, it’s a great way for nation building as the money is used for various national development schemes. Other government initiatives like Kisan Vikas Patra, Senior citizen’s savings scheme (SCSS) etc are started based on the needs of different age groups and needs. Investing in such scheme contributes in a huge way in developmental causes.

3. Pay income tax honestly and on time

Income tax is one of the biggest and most complex aspect of the entire taxing system in India. In spite of declaring clear tax rates, tax brackets and providing various ways of investing and saving taxes, there is almost a huge majority of population which does not pay correct income taxes. People working with government institutions, private firms and companies are at least mandated to pay the taxes. But various self-employed individuals as well as companies have been found out to be not adhering to the taxing system, which leads to huge loses on part of the government. It is therefore very important that income tax should be paid correctly and on time owing to which the funds can be used for improving the nation

4. Reduce fuel consumption

According to the world health report published in 2016, half of the world’s most polluted cities are in India. Not only metros like Mumbai and Delhi but smaller cities like Gwalior, Kanpur, Ludhiana and Bhopal are in the list of most polluted cities. India is the country with the biggest number of four wheeler and two wheeler concentration and the fuel consumption is also among the top. This can lead to fatal effects in the coming decades. So, every individual citizen should try his best to reduce the fuel consumption in every aspect of his life. Reduced consumption of petrol and diesel will help India save dollar reserves and make rupee appreciate. Also, all imports will become cheaper and overall inflation will come down in the country. Citizens should also help in reducing the use of other fuel based appliances like refrigerator, AC, generators, etc.

5. Try to reduce pollution

Not only the most polluted cities, but India is also the country of most polluted rivers and highest levels of sound pollution. The pollution level of river Yamuna has reached magnanimous proportions rendering the water useless for drinking. The condition of rest of the rivers is also similar. What can be worse than Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata being at the top as the noisiest cities in the world. The increasing pollution creates huge burden on the economic conditions of the country. The government has to additionally spend crores of rupees on reducing pollution and programs like Swacch Bharat Abhiyaan which otherwise are used for more important projects. Every municipality and corporation spends separate funds for cleaning our towns and cities and there are also separate fund allocation to reduce pollution. This generation can save this money by contributing in reducing pollution. Citizens today have a huge responsibility on its shoulders to start the efforts toward minimizing pollution so that the future generations can breathe a fresh air and live happy lives.

6. Avoid and resist corruption

According to 2016 results of Corruption Perception Index of Transparency International, India ranks 79th out of 176 countries in corruption levels. Corruption in India is an issue that adversely affected its economy since independence. The country owes its stunted development largely to the rampant corruption. A study conducted by the Transparency International shows that more than 62% of Indians had firsthand experience of paying bribes or influence peddling to get jobs done in public offices successfully. Owing to the large population and per capita income of the country, the corruption runs into gigantic scale. With the recent measures taken by the prime minister, one can be hopeful that there might be a reduction in this. Yet, every citizen at his individual level has to take efforts to avoid and resist corruption where ever possible.

7. Embrace local Indian brands

Almost 50% of the Indian hard earned money is transferred to foreign lands when Indians prefer foreign brands over Indian ones. There are various Indian brands which have maintained highest quality and provide services even better than the foreign brands. With new technologies and the start-up market boom in the last decade, Indian goods and products are at par with the quality and durability of any foreign brand. Hence, citizens should give first preference to all the Indian goods and services to contribute their share in nation building. Brands like Airtel, Lakme, MRF, Macromax, Louie Phillipe, Patanjali, Tata are all Indian and they can provide as much quality as any of their foreign counterparts.