Q3.
Write a précis of the passage given below in about one-third of the length. Please do not give any title to it.
(Note : The précis should be written in your own words.)
(passage)
I have three visions for India. In 3,000 years of our history, people from all over the world have come and invaded us, captured our lands, conquered our minds. From Alexander onwards, the Greeks, the Turks, the Moguls, the Portuguese, the British, the French, the Dutch, all of them came and looted us, took over what was ours. Yet we have not done this to any other nation. We have not conquered anyone. We have not grabbed their land, their culture, their history and tried to enforce our way of life on them. Why ? Because we respect the freedom of others. That is why my first vision is that of freedom. I believe that India got its first vision of this in 1857, when we started the war of Independence. It is this freedom that we must protect and nurture and build on. If we are not free, no one will respect us.
My second vision is for India's development. For seventy years we have been a developing nation. It is time we see ourselves as a developed nation. We are among the top 5 nations of the world in terms of GDP. We have 10 percent growth rate in most areas. Our poverty levels are falling. Our achievements are being globally recognized today. Yet we lack the self-confidence to see ourselves as a developed nation, self-reliant and self-assured. Isn't this incorrect ? I have a third vision. India must stand up to the world. Because I believe that, unless India stands up to the world, no one will respect us. Only strength respects strength. We must be strong not only as a military power but also as an economic power. Both must go hand-in-hand.
Why are we in India so embarrassed to recognize our own strengths, our achievements ? We are such a great nation. We have so many amazing success stories but we refuse to acknowledge them. Why ? We are the first in milk production. We are number one in remote sensing satellites. We are the second largest producer of wheat. We are the second largest producer of rice. Another question : Why are we, as a nation, so obsessed with foreign things ? We want foreign TVs, we want foreign shirts, we want foreign technology. Why this obsession with everything imported ? Do we not realize that self-respect comes with self-reliance ? You must proclaim. India is not an under-developed nation; it is a highly developed nation. (412 words)
