INDIA: A THIRD-WORLD COUNTRY?

Tuesday, July 26, 2022

INDIA: A THIRD-WORLD COUNTRY?

"If I were asked under what sky the human mind has most fully developed some of its choicest gifts, has most deeply pondered on the greatest problems of life, and has found solutions, I should point to India." - Max Mueller

The land of the Vedas, the land that found zero, the land of Ayurveda, the land of yogis, and the great Indian Sub-Continent rich in Culture, Heritage, and the best food in the world, India. Being a student of law, the month of July 2022 was similar to a Monsoon Bonanza for me. Every morning I woke up to new legal developments around the world. The rather disappointing highlight was the overturning of the 1973 US Roe v Wade judgment. The pronouncement in Roe v Wade permitted women to undergo an abortion before 24 to 28 weeks of pregnancy or before the fetus is viable outside the womb. The right of a woman to make decisions about her body was established by this ruling. On account of the historic and far-reaching decision of the U.S Supreme Court, many American states have to roll back abortion rights, thus rendering abortion unconstitutional.

This made me inquisitive and I utilized my thirty-minute train ride to the heart of the city to read up on abortion rights in my country. I wanted to get done with my reading spree on the very dispensable topic because in my opinion there isn't a debate in the first place. A woman and only a woman should have the right to make decisions about her child, her womb, her body, and her life. I was reading with rather low expectations because India has often been categorised as a third-world country.

To put things into a better perspective, the world is mainly divided into three groups, the first world, the second world, and the third world. The term "first world" refers to the more industrialized and developed nations; in other words, capitalist nations that sided with the United States and NATO during the Cold War. This includes North America, Japan, Western Europe, and Australia. Second-world nations are those that tend to have socialist societies and, in general, sided with the Soviet Union during the Cold War.
Russia, Poland, China, and various Turkish states are among these nations. All the other nations that did not choose a side are considered to be third-world nations. As a society, we refer to nations in the third world as having high mortality rates, particularly newborn mortality rates. Their economy is also erratic and unpredictable. These are nations that have higher rates of poverty than other countries around the world and, in some circumstances, fewer natural resources. These nations frequently have to rely on more developed nations to support them and stabilise their economies. India has more often than not been termed as and included in the third-world category.

With the above knowledge, I expected women to not have the legal right to abort. But, as per Indian laws, a lady can abort a child up to twenty-four weeks. According to a recent judgment of the Supreme Court of India, It is against a woman's autonomy and freedom to deny her the right to safe abortion. According to Article 21 of the Constitution, a woman's right to reproductive freedom is an integral aspect of her right to personal freedom. She has a sacred right to maintain her physical integrity. Abortion in India has been legal for more than 50 years. I would not be lying when I say I felt tears of joy swell in my eyes. For a faint moment, I was proud of the Indian Judiciary. And I say faintly because everyone is aware of the immense backlog of cases in the courts of India.

India is not a third-world country, for a matter of fact, India is far ahead in the race than most of its first-world counterparts in a lot of aspects. For working women in India, the paid maternity leave is 26 weeks long. While there is no maternity leave in the United States. Few states in the United States offer a few days of paid leave. Despite having 4.25 percent of the world's population, the United States is home to roughly 40% of all civilian firearms! It should come as no surprise that it also tops the list for school and mass shootings. In India Gun laws are restricted and one of the strictest in the world.

There has never been a female president of the United States. The only time a woman temporarily held the office of president in the United States was when Vice President Kamala Harris took over while President Joe Biden received a health examination. On the contrary, Shrimati Indira Gandhi held the office of Prime Minister for nearly 16 long years, and Shrimati Pratibha Patil and now Shrimati Drauapadi Murmu hold the office of the Head of State of the largest democracy in the world. It is acknowledged that the voting processes for the two presidential elections were unique. But it is already a victory for a woman from a small Indian hamlet to be considered for the prestigious position and to garner the backing of lawmakers and members of parliament. Unlike the U.S. Constitution, which does not explicitly guarantee women's equality, Articles 14 and 15 of the Indian Constitution compel equality for women.

India has birthed 100 unicorns as investments nearly quadrupled from 2020 to 2021. NRI CEOs have led top global companies, namely Sundar Pichai at Alphabet, Indra Nooyi at Pepsico, Satya Nadella at Microsoft and many more. India is the top generic medicine provider and vaccine manufacturer, even exporting Covid vaccines to UK and Canada.

Lastly, the third gender has been intertwined with the Indian Culture for thousands of years. Only 14 countries recognize the third gender in official documents and India is one of them.

The India I know is a first-world country. India today is not what it was back in the 70's, this is the rise of a new India, "yeh ghar ke andar ghusega bhi, maarega bhi".