 half a century of independence. What dominates, however, is a sense of confidence, on a path chosen out of our own free will. India's 360 million people had two political and economic models available to follow in contemporary history. Javaharlal Nehru took a momentous decision to adopt a mixed economy where both government enterprise and private enterprise would function concurrently. The mixed economy formula envisaged major infrastructural development under the public sector and other industries under private initiative. About 50,000 million rupees were invested in the public sector undertakings of the government in the first three decades of freedom. The private entrepreneurs invested four times more than the government during the same period in industrial and manufacturing activities. The government invested in areas of development where private capital, hungering for quick returns, did not care to enter since in fields like power, irrigation, transport and agricultural improvement, profits were low and the period of gestation too long. The single most remarkable achievement in India in the last half a century is the transformation of the food and agriculture situation. Five decades ago, India was substantially dependent on imported food grains, distributed on a rationed basis to its 360 million people. Today, India has surplus food grains for export after consumption by its nearly 1 billion people. Another major supporting activity for agriculture is fertilizer production. India manufactures 11 million tons of fertilizer per year. Agricultural research at the laboratory level and in field conditions continues to pay dividends. It is a tribute to a generation of Indian statesmen and public servants who worked with dedication and integrity. More than anything, it is the victory of the millions of hardworking Indian farmers who adopted modern methods with innovation, speed and efficiency. Due to one of the largest ever birth control programs in human history undertaken by any country, India's birth rate has come down from 40 per thousand in 1947 to about 27 per thousand in 1996. During the same period, due to improved medical and health care, the death rate has come down from 28 per thousand to about 7.5 per thousand. India also has many hospitals with state of the art equipment and facilities, with doctors and surgeons of international reputation. Women have played an equal role in every aspect of India's takeoff. Gender equality has been built into the constitution of India. With 108 million students at the first level of education in schools, India ranks second in the world in the number of children at this level. India's record is indeed impressive in the realm of higher education. With over 3 million productive individuals qualified in science and technology, India ranks high in such scientific manpower. This is also reflected by the tremendous strides made by India in the realm of the new threshold areas of science and applied technology, such as atomic energy and space. Indeed, there are many colorful threads to the tapestry that is India today. The source of joy in India's underlying unity is the freedom of choice in everything, be it the arts, the lifestyles, or of course, political affiliations. In fact, India has indeed come a long way, but we do have miles to go.