National Youth Day - Impact on Indian Society

12th January each year is celebrated as the National Youth Day.It is the birthday of Swami Vivekananda. There are celebrations all round. Our present Prime Minister spent the night before Swamiji's birthday at Ramkrishna Mission head quarters at Belur. When he formed the Mission on 1st May, 1897, Swamiji said that the Mission formed based on the ideology of his Guru Ramkrishna Dev would be there in existence for 1500 years. Today Ramkrishna Mission and Ramkrishna Math to-gether 214 centres around the world. In India there are 163 branches including its Head Office at Belur in West Bengal . There are 51 branches in countries with 15 in Bangladesh, 14 in US, 2 each in Russia and South Africa. Countries having one branch each include Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Fiji, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Malaysia, Mauritius,Nepal, Netherlands, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, UK and Zambia. There are sub-centres tolling 45 out of which 22 are in India and 23 are outside India under different centres.  Ram Krishna Math and Mission run 748 educational institutions (including 12 colleges, 22 higher secondary schools, 41 secondary schools, 135 schools of other grades, 4 polytechnics, 48 vocational training centres, 118 hostels, 7 orphanages, etc). Students studying with the Institutions total more than 2 lac. Besides the branches, the Mission has about one thousand unaffiliated centres ( called 'private centres'). These centres started are started by the devotees and followers of  Sri Ramkrishna and Swamiji.

Centres of the Ramakrishna Order outside India are of two broad categories. In Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Fiji, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Fiji and Mauritius the nature of services rendered in India. In Europe, Canada, United States, Japan and Australia, the of the Math and Mission is mostly confined to preaching  Vedanta apart from publication of books and journals. Personal guidance in spiritual matters is popular.The centres called `Vedanta Society' or 'Vedanta Centre'.

We are thankful to Rajiv Gandhi for initiating the move to declare 12th January as the National Youth Day. Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi visited Ramkrishna Mission at Belur but did not spend a night there. Indira Gandhi took the initiate of vacating a tenented building a Kolkat which was not vacated by the tenant even though the building was donated to Ramkrishna Mission. The building is now being used as a Hospital.

Swamiji said that `Service to mankind is service to God'. The Rajah of Khetri gave him the title of `Vivekananda'. Swami Vivekanada travelled to the west from Bombay with stoppage at Japan. He sailed from Yokohama in Japan to Boston in US in the ship Empress. It was on the dock of the ship that Swamiji met Jamshedji Tata who was inspired to set up the first steel plant in India which is in existence for more than 100 years. Swamiji along with the advice asked Jamshedji to set promote indigenous technology in the country. Thus came up the Indian Institute of Science at Bangalore. It also is existence and is to-day internationally recognised.

The Rajah of Khetri was the disciple of Swamiji. He funded a part of the trip to US by Swamiji. The Rajah gave Rs 100 each month to the mother of Swamiji on his request to take of his mother even after Swamiji's death. His estate continued to send Rs 100 to Swamiji's mother who lived in Calcutta even after the death of the Rajah. The action of the Rajah is remembered even today. To-day Ramkrishna Mission looks after the Palace of the Rajah of Khetri. When the Raja of Khetri did all for his Guru little did he know that his Guru would look after his estate after his death when no one would be around to care for it. If we think deeply it will be realised that no action of giving goes unrewarded. Further any gift should be without any attachment. The act of giving is deep rooted.

Swamiji said that all problems can be solved if one surrenders at the feet of Ramkrishnadeva. The thought of Ramkrshna - Vivekananda is researched in advanced countries and they are applied in business also. Ethics and profit and ethics were not complementary. Rather they repelled each other in the early stages of industrialisation. But today Ethics in business is a subject taught in Management Studies. It started from the west though Indians practised ethics not only in business but also in warfare. We learn that after the sun set, the adversaries in the Kurukshetra went to each others camps but fought again the next day to kill each other.

To-day Indian economy is said to be facing turbulent times. Several economists, management consultancies, business leaders are breaking their heads to overcome the present glut. Indian civilisation is one of the earliest civilisations in the world. India followed principles that are followed by the west under different names. It was Arya Bhatt that invented `0' in mathematics to give the subject its present level to advance civilisation. So if Ramkrishna- Vivekananda thought is researched to applied to the economy there could be new dimension. To-day India has legalised corporate social responsibility of companies which is indeed a novel and bold step. The Government even thought of criminalising default by companies. The Government is banking on CSR programmes for funding developmental programmes listed by the Government in Schedule VII to the Companies Act, 2013 read with the rules framed thereunder. It must be remebered that Swamiji was the person in the fromation of the Rockfeller Foundation set up by Rockfeller John D. Rockeller.

Another area where Ramkrishna- Vivekananda that can be made applicable is the case of companies formed but not in operation. The Government has issued several provisions to counter the situation and sometimes they were against the provisions of the Act. The experiment is on. Sustainability of organistions is considered an important feature. Governance is an area which is significant for operation of companies and the Ramkrishna Math and Ramkrishna Math Governance principles can help companies to be governed ethically and this can applied for achieving sustainability by Indian companies.

It must be remembered that the objectives in the Memorandum of Association of the Ramkrishna Mission and Math are similar to the Charter of the UNO set up in 1945. Ramkrishna Mission and Math was established on 1st May, 1897.

The Ramkrishna Order created through the leadership of Swami Vivekananda needs immediate study in depth to find out the principles in the Order on the link of economy and society.