Indians, Indonesians cross cultures

Indians, Indonesians cross cultures
30th January 2010
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2010/01/30/letters-indians-indonesians-cross-cultures.html

I refer to your editorial on Jan 26, wherein you (rightly) congratulated the Indian people for India's achievements. Truly, the credit for keeping our country a genuine democracy goes entirely to its people.
However, our post-Independence leadership was mature. They laid the foundations of our democracy. Our representatives enacted bills that gave the land to the tillers, the rented houses to tenants. This created a big middle class that is the backbone of our country.
Quite often, we Indians say that when we look at the quality of our leadership vis-*-vis the type of progress we have made, the most ardent of the atheists amongst us start believing that God does exist and He is taking care of India!
Your observations as regards the influence of India's culture on and beyond the Indian subcontinent are absolutely correct. Indian culture, Indian music and Indian food are popular everywhere in the world. Indonesian culture, including the Indonesian language, is also close to Indian culture and Sanskrit. Some 500 years ago, many Indonesian kingdoms were Hindu and most of the Indian epics find a place in Indonesian folklore. As we Indians go global, we proudly take these three features of our heritage along with us wherever we go.
Bung Karno and Pandit Nehru were very close and founded the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM). Biju Patnaik is still a household name in Indonesia. Indians are straightforward and don't indulge in double talk. Indians are grateful for the help other countries gave and never bites the hand that feeds. Even today, people of my generation are grateful for US aid.
Without American wheat under the PL-480, most Indians in 50s and 60s would have starved. Later, the "green revolution" swept India, so our younger generation doesn't even know the pangs of hunger. If Indians pledge their friendship, they stand by the pledge, they don't double cross.
Our armed forces remain in their barracks and don't overthrow elected governments. They do take stern measures in states which are being provoked by external elements to challenge its sovereignty, but our Armed Forces never raped the whole country like others often did! However, one of our failures has been the uncontrolled population explosion.
Not only Indonesia, but the whole of the Indian subcontinent should take note of our education system. Its quality is excellent and it's relatively inexpensive. Recently, I came across a book Nuclear Deception. It should be read by everybody belonging to Indian subcontinent; Indians, Pakistanis, Sri Lankans, etc. Indonesians should read it too because it is good "homework" for all!
K. B. Kale, Jakarta