Over the years

 I out of AC cooled Toyota Innova on the dusty highway. I was around 130 kms away from Baroda and travelling from Mumbai to Baroda.

“Into Modi`s Land”, I said.

12 Years ago I had visited Gujarat and I kind of knew that Gujarat had become a changed state under the leadership of Narendra Modi. This time I was very keen on knowing the impact of this change. From my market research experience, you catch the most obvious of the sample population and survey it rigorously.

On a dusty highway, we caught up with a tea vendor and asked for Chai.

“Sirji, how far is Baroda from here?” I asked.

“One hour, max”, He replied quickly.

“So much has changed in years, we used to take 10 hours by road to reach from Mumbai to Baroda”

“You are in Gujrat Sir, What do you expect?” He said enthusiastically.

This made me realize that this guy has more information to provide than directions.

“So what has Gujrat government done for you?”, I started with my negative hypothesis and now the onus was on him to prove me wrong.

“ A lot”, he continued, “People have changed and the reason for this change is hope. Hope that there is someone behind you, to support you when you fall. I was a failed farmer few years back. I had a huge infertile land piece. Nothing would grow in it. I applied for help in the local Panchayat. I was surprised that they came back with a plan under some government scheme. I was not expecting any of this. The government had realized that there many people like me who have barren, infertile land and something needs to be done.”

“Ah, a proactive approach”, I spelled by MBA Mumbo Jumbo.

“I was not prepared for this change. I was dicey on the way this scheme would be implemented and I will have to make rounds in government offices and nothing will come my way till I bribe someone”

“So how much did you bribe?”

“Nothing. To my surprise, I got every help to change my barren land into a fertile land, without a single money being paid to any government officials.”

“Ok, now you are lying. I know Gujrat has changed, but there has to be some level of corruption somewhere.” I said with emphasis.

“No, I didn’t find any. So with help from my government, I changed this land and repaid all the debt in two years.”

“So why are you selling tea on the highway now?”

“Actually, I own all these shops. Side business, you see.” He said proudly.

“All 10 of them.” I asked

So I suddenly realized that this person was making a handsome amount of money. Over the years, I understood that you change poorest of the poor and it creates a huge impact. A simple push and their hard work can change everything. Change is something which can be achieved only by will to change.

“Sorry, I didn’t asked you your name.” I asked

“My name is Ahmed Khan”.