RIP Lee Kuan Yew

Almost three years back, I visited the city-state of Singapore. I was quite impressed by the place, professionalism and discipline displayed by its citi-zens. Singapore's success as a nation is exemplary, we all know about that. But a tiny thing about a tiny animal did not go unnoticed to me, it's the conspicuous absence of mosquitoes over there. One would expect Singapore being a tropical country to have lots of mosquitoes. In reality, it is other way round. Though tropical and an ideal ground for breeding of these blood sucking parasites, it is mostly free of them. Thanks to the cleanliness and civic sense of the authorities as well as the citizens.

 

One of the reasons one doesn't get a scratch from mosquito bite can be alluded to a man called Lee Kuan Yew, who built the country from scratch. A diverse nation of quality people, in a short span 50 years, he led its transformation from a struggling nondescript war ravaged port city, to a giant hub of business. It also arguably has the best Healthcare facilities in Asia. Singapore has turned out to be a model state in Asia, least corrupt and the most entrepreneur friendly in Asia.

 

A la America, it is also the greatest example of diversity. Over the years it has attracted the best talents from across the globe to become the epicenter of trade and commerce. Many who contributed to its growth, originated from another nation. Singapore frequently invites our legendary Odia writer Manoj Das as a cultural consultant, using the expertise of a real expert in the field of culture, who is pretty much ignored in his own nation. That tells part of the story. Singapore which lacked human resource, nurtured human resource in a short span of time to touch the zenith of success.

 

Experts say Japan stagnated into a lost decade due to its stubborn refusal to diversify. Diversity is not a dirty word, it is dear word. It creates a conducive environment, a confluence of knowledge and ideas for the betterment of the society. Embrace it to leap forward. Desist it to risk going back to the stone age at a fast rate in a faster changing world. Lee Kuan Yew, the founding father of modern Singapore could envision this. He once famously said " China can draw on a talent pool of 1.3 billion people, but US can draw on the World's 7 billion. " He wasn't far from the truth. His death marks end of an era. RIP Mr. Kuan, without you Singapore would not have been where it is today.