Modi Model and Model Modi

So there weren't 15,000 people that were rescued by innovas, boeings and luxury buses; so this may be just another ploy to distinctly chart a route to New Delhi via Kedarnath; so the 2 crores are a dismal amount compared to the 25 pledged elsewhere or pledged by another politico 'monitoring' the situation keenly; so the ones saved were Gujaratis.

So what?

Is one life saved not better than one life lost? Is a PM candidate who at least sets foot with planes, trains and automobiles not more deserving of a ticket to the Capital than those in power who refuse to unshackle themselves even at a moment that is symptomatic of a ghastly tragedy in an ideology dominant nation, and at a moment that is so blatantly politically relevant? Are 2 crores not needed in addition to whatever else can be spared? Is the gargantuan task of the reconstruction of the Holy Shrine not significant? Is Gujarat not a part of India?

Thankfully for us, it is. For the only agenda that is succeeding today is the one that has been in motion in that state for the past decade. Narendra Modi is not the agenda. His burgeoning ambition and trailblazing rise in, outside and beyond Gujarat is not the agenda. But what he represents is. Both as his model; and as a model. It is India's agenda to cull, create and curate what clicks and rise to the occasion, when the occasion rises.

For a 'model' politician, one that has been democratically elected, especially one that has been elected to a High Office is expected to show his empathy (not just couch-camera-couched sympathy) in times of disaster and tragedy. It is impressive for him to physically partake of the experience, imperative for him to at least speak up! And yet, New Delhi with its de facto PM, veiled PM, and PM-in-the making, remains apathetically quiet. How easy it would be to rouse the angry populace by smearing this silence with allegations of religious indifference. That however is not my agenda!

I watch, rue and writhe at shorn images of rescue operations relayed from Uttarakhand, as real heroes risk their lives to save the thousands stranded in what is considered to be the supreme holy precinct of Kedarnath, Badrinath and Uttarkashi - Char Dham- in the Hindu trajectory.

Befittingly, the heroes in uniform, who are seen carrying dazed, hurt devotees on their backs, are extending themselves beyond the call of duty in a race against time, again this time. Theirs is the duty-in-motion that is markedly missing in all other areas of public life. Why else would it take serpentine relief operations to be set in motion in the face of evident disaster?

That said, the efficiency, speed, selflessness and dexterity with which the IAF, the Indian Army, the NDRF and scores of self-driven factions have combed the ravaged peaks and valleys is remarkable. The high-pitched Operation Rahat with over 1,160 sorties arlifting 9,230 people and ferrying over 1,50,000 kg of relief material and load has been the biggest ever; indefatigable Army and NDRF personnel continue to press forth without respite or hesitation; scoured roads are being repaired and hope, reconstructed. This is indeed model efficiency, seamless collaboration and selfless service.

This 'Netra' has not only identified massacred sites and hapless evacuees but has altered the nation to the need to accord utmost respect and highest regard yet again to unsung heroes, our men in uniform who wear more than just the uniform to work. More often than not, they wear their lives to work.

The Himalayas have seen both sides of the coin, heroes - with and without heroics. Our real heroes are neither buoyed by visiting politicians, nor disenchanted by absentees. They are not aligned with parties or politicians or votes or agendas. Officially, they don't even have a voice in the matter! A visiting Modi is not needed for them to bridge Alaknanda; but the model of good governance, of swift delivery, of proactive assistance and of tangible support that he represents, even as heroics, is far better than a sleeping Janpath!

Source: http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/chasing-nirvana/entry/modi-model-and-model-modi?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=TOIBlogs