Comment – Prabhjot Singh

Would you believe that in 1947, the price of gold in India was around ₹88 per 10 grams, while silver was ₹107 per kg? Petrol sold for about ₹0.25-0.27 per liter, rice for ₹0.12 per kg, milk for ₹0.12 per liter, and potatoes for approximately ₹0.25 per kg.

The 24C gold price per 10 gm from 1940 to the present day reflects our fiscal management. Do we have any explanation for the surge between 2010 and 2025? Starting with 1940, it was Rs 36; 1950—Rs 98; 1960—Rs 112; 1970—Rs 185; 1980—Rs 1300; 1990—Rs 3200; 2000—Rs 4400; 2010—Rs 18500; 2020—Rs 48000; 2025—Rs 150000 (as of October 2025).

These figures, taken from the web, have a story to tell. Are we happy with the progress we have made since we became a republic? Many would argue about what gold prices have to do with the progress the country has made. True, gold prices are not the sole criterion for judging a country.

While gold reserves depict the fiscal health of a nation, marketable crude or fuel indicates the energy available to the people of a nation to progress. Gold has gone up from Rs 88/10 gm, and petrol has, during the same period, reached Rs 100/liter. Does it make an argument?

In 77 years, we as a nation are still not able to claim that we have made quality or potable drinking water available to our population. Water, unlike gold or crude, is a necessity. You can survive without gold or even crude, but not without drinking water. Then how do we measure the progress we have made since Independence, especially when potable water is still out of reach of a substantial section of the population, especially in rural and remote areas? Women in remote and rural areas walk several km to bring home a bucket full of water from the nearest unregulated source.

Do the changes in nomenclature or new names to old historic cities or the rechristening of the laws make a meaningful change to the lifestyle of people? Does it help people get better and affordable healthcare or quality and affordable education at their doorstep?

We need to do a lot of introspection and focus on common man-related issues rather than talking big. Yes, we may soon be the third-largest growing economy, and we must not forget that problems grow with the population. We will soon be the world’s most populous nation! And like providing potable drinking water, we have also failed to check the growth of our population.