Chalta Hai India: When ‘Itâ Ok!’ is Not Ok

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India once commanded a massive 30 per cent share of the global GDP and led the world in most fields, but today the country sadly is a developing nation. People often attribute India’s sluggish progress to the malaise called the Chalta Hai (‘It’s okay’, ‘Let it be’) attitude, but not everyone agrees with that presupposition. Debates on the subject are often inconclusive and discomfiting questions remain unanswered. Are we really a Chalta Hai nation? Is Chalta Hai ingrained in our DNA or is it just a bad habit which can be easily exterminated? Will this attitude stop India from becoming a global power?

Alpesh Patel delves into this quirky Indian approach and answers these questions by examining the country’s pace of progress in fields such as education, infrastructure, films and sports since Independence. The book revisits our cultural, ideological and political history over three millennia to trace the roots of the Chalta Hai attitude of Indians. Interesting facts and unsettling inferences force the reader to introspect and awaken him to the need for an urgent action. Finally, the book charts out methods and suggestions on how to get rid of the Chalta Hai attitude and take India closer to the dream of becoming a developed nation.

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