India: The Sab Chalta Hai Syndrome

Lokpal Bill stuck in the Parliament again. Yet another train accident claims many lives. Another RTI activist killed. The list is endless... Whenever we read such a headline, no doubt all of us feel enraged. We talk about it for a day or two and then we forget.

Last year, when Anna Hazare had hit the road asking the Lokpal Bill to be passed by the Parliament, there was a lot of support for him and thousands of people had rallied behind him. Now after two sessions of the Parliament, we seem to have forgotten all about the Bill.

Last year, several railway accidents took place in the country. There was some grief, some public anguish, a lot of blame-games and of course a bunch of enquiries!

There are numerous cases of infant deaths in hospitals of West Bengal and Jammu and Kashmir, several whistleblowers and RTI activists have been murdered, but we pay little attention to these.

Perhaps this behaviour of ours can be attributed to the Sab Chalta Hai syndrome. We have become so accustomed to the inefficiencies of the system that it hardly takes us a moment to dismiss the happenings around us by saying “Sab Chalta Hai”. We have been affected so much by this syndrome that things like trains getting late, poor services in hospitals and officers demanding bribes hardly have any impact on us.

Someone once said, “There’s a problem only if there is a solution”. So, what is the solution for Sab Chalta Hai syndrome?

If we observe carefully, in cases of Lokpal Bill, Jessica Lal murder case, etc, whenever we have been led properly, we have indeed come out against the faults of the system. Perhaps our country suffers from a severe crunch of leaders who can take a stand against the inefficiencies of the system. I feel that if a greater weightage is given to the personality of the candidates appearing for government services like the IAS, etc, we would be able to get more leaders into the system. No doubt, marks are important, but what is equally important is the person’s personality and his approach attitude towards problems and life.

Another antidote to the Sab Chalta Hai syndrome is framing of better laws and quick disposal of cases. Most of us are unwilling to act against the ills associated with the system because the laws are not strong enough to protect the whistleblowers and to keep their identities secret. Also, the entire process of enquiry, investigation and judgement is very long and takes a heavy toll on an individual.

Last, but not the least, proper education and guidance will help us successfully overcome the effects of the Sab Chalta Hai syndrome. If some leadership lessons and case studies are taught at the school level itself regarding how individual and community action successfully acted against some social malady, right from a young age we will have enough motivation and examples to take the initiative.

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