Right from my childhood, I have been hearing that India is a developing nation. However, the question which arises in my mind is why our country has not achieved progress like developed nations such as America, England and others? I was very curious to know about the factors which were responsible for India remaining backward. Recently, I had visited my native place in Bihar.
I noticed so many malpractices which forced me to rethink whether I am really living in the 21st century? I became aware about various factors which were responsible for India lagging behind in development. Few years back, a slogan Padega Desh Tabhi Toh Badega Desh (If India will study then it will achieve progress) was introduced to boost education. This initiative failed to change the education system in India.
On one hand the urban areas are developing at a faster pace on the other hand rural areas is lagging behind its urban counterpart in development due to lack of basic amenities. The main reason behind why India has failed to achieve prosperity is due to poor literacy rate prevalent in rural areas. In Bihar illiterate persons are being looted by mischievous persons due to lack of awareness. This problem can be resolved only by improving the literacy rates in rural areas. Thus people residing in villages are unable to contribute towards the country’s development.
One of my relatives residing in a small village was suffering from fever. I took him to the clinic which is 10 kilometres away from the village for treatment. After reaching there, I found several patients waiting in queues for consulting the doctor. This incident only shows the substandard medical facilities available in Bihar. After treating the patient, doctor gave him a slip mentioning the name of the medicine. It was a plain piece of paper and didn’t have the clinic’s name and doctor’s name.
If the doctor prescribes wrong medicine thereby resulting into the death of the patient then nobody can hold the former guilty due to lack of evidence. Even medical stores sell medicines without demanding doctor’s prescription from patients. They overcharge customers by selling them medicines which are not meant for retail sale.
The Food and Drug Administration monitors the functioning of medical stores and also takes action against it violates the law. On the other hand, there is lack of such institution in villages hence malpractices continue to increase unabated. Pathetic infrastructure denies poor access to quality and affordable healthcare facilities.
Strict action must be taken against those medical practitioners and medical stores who are putting the patients’ life at risk. Thus government must provide better medical facilities and education opportunities in rural areas which will pave way for the nation’s development.
