In a country patting itself for an 8.9% Q1 growth, systemic failures in meeting the basic needs of millions have been bewildering. The annual report of the Ministry of Home Affairs, quoting Census 2001, notes that the total percentage of houses having electricity as a source of lighting stands at 55.8%.

But the really electrifying statistics are about the availability of lavatory facilities. Reports state that only 36.4% of households enjoy that luxury (21.9% rural homes and about 73.7% urban households)! If problems related to nature's call are not enough, then you have the same document revealing that only 36.7% of households have taps as sources of drinking water or washing hands!

Such gross inequality is compounded in urban slums comprising about 4% of the country's population. These ecological wastelands score minimally when compared in terms of minimum household amenities. Such statistics can be considered as a pointer to future tensions in the society, where a significant section languishes in utter misery, Q1, Q2 or any Q growth figures notwithstanding...