Is democracy safe or under siege in India? According to the India Today Mood of the Nation (MOTN) survey, the country is divided on the issue. While a large chunk believes our democracy is not under any threat, many others are apprehensive. This is despite the positive image Prime Minister Narendra Modi enjoys as an exceptional leader and a tough negotiator with a nativist governing philosophy catering to a populist and nationalist sentiment—all fitting the mould of an elected autocrat.
This has increasingly become a worldwide trend. According to the Global Populism Database—a tracker of populist discourse—some two billion people today are governed by somewhat moderately populist, populist or very populist leaders; an increase from 130 million at the turn of the millennium. The research puts Modi in the populist camp. Analysts feel that a lack of trust in democratic institutions is giving rise to illiberal tendencies.
Corruption continues
What is perhaps most disconcerting is that an overwhelming 76 per cent feel that corruption has increased in the country, even though the Modi government has, so far, managed to avoid the mega corruption scandals that rocked the earlier UPA regime. According to the respondents, politicians are among the most corrupt (39 per cent), followed by the police (20 per cent), government officials (14 per cent) and doctors (5 per cent). At 4 per cent each, journalists and lawyers don’t fare any better. However, for 88 per cent of the respondents, newspapers, magazines and television remain the most trusted mediums for news and information, way above social media.
Denne historien er fra February 01, 2021-utgaven av India Today.
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Denne historien er fra February 01, 2021-utgaven av India Today.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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He gave the beat to the world
He would pick up the rhythms of each experience of mobility and weave them into his taals. Thus it was that he reflected joy and laughter in rhythmic cycles...such was the magic of Zakir's fingersText and photographs by Raghu Rai
KERALA TOURISM CAMPAIGN, 1989 - TICKETS TO PARADISE
All it took was a catchy tagline-'God's Own Country'-for the world to discover Kerala's wealth of natural beauty. It remains among the best tourism ad campaigns, earning the state a place among top 10 international destinations
SPIRITUALITY - THE GURUS OF COOL
Among the cult Indian gurus, no one had a bigger hold on western minds than 'Osho' Rajneesh. He's also perhaps the role model for the enterprise-building gurus of today
RETAIL SHOPPING - THE MALL MANIA
Shopping malls, a 1990s innovation in India, changed the way the Indian middle class shops. Their success now lies in being 'shoppertainment' destinations, offering something for everyone
CULINARY RENAISSANCE, 1978 - TANDOORI NIGHTS
ITC's Bukhara and Dum Pukht turned the world to tandoori cuisine and had an enormous impact on the F&B industry. Decades on, they are still a pit-stop for celebrities and heads of state visiting Delhi
INDIAN WRITING IN ENGLISH - REVENGE OF THE NATIVE
Rushdie lit the way but Indian writing in English has taken a life of its own in the past few decades, with translated Indian fiction most recently having its moment in the sun
INDIAN ART - A BRUSH WITH GOLD DUST
The 1990s economic liberalisation came as oxygen, lighting up the Indian art scene. Today, artworks by established masters routinely go for astronomical amounts
FESTIVAL OF INDIA, 1982 - CULTURE CAPITAL
The Festival of India grew into a symbol of our 'soft power', introducing our art and aesthetics to a global audience while also helping rebrand our domestic products
THE INDIPOP TREND - DISCO GOES DESI
For ages, the film song ruled. Nothing else was audible. Then came Nazia, charioteered by Biddu, and Indian ears went into a pleasant madness. Literally, Disco Deewane. A whole genre was born
SHOLAY 1975 - THE BIRTH OF THE FANDEMIC
India had seen hits before. But Sholay seared into its collective psyche like a badland bullet. The effect was on a scale never seen before- one film creating a new mass folk culture. And a trail of monster blockbusters that still continues
