Those before us had less. But they gave more

In the span of a few decades, the sacrifices made by those who came before us pale in comparison to what they offered. Young men from the villages of Majha, Doaba, and Malwa region - Kartar Singh Sarabha at 19, Bhagat Singh at 23, and Madan Lal Dhingra at 25 - gave up their lives for a cause they believed in. Though many had not the slightest knowledge of political theory, they understood that certain values were worth sacrificing everything for.

Today, we often speak of our freedom fighters in an abstract manner, as if they were mere figures in a history textbook, rather than young individuals with dreams, families, and names. However, we must remember that they were young men who came from villages we still drive past. Punjab suffered greatly for the freedom gained through their sacrifices, as evident in events such as Jallianwala Bagh, the Ghadar trials, the Komagata Maru, the INA, and even in the partition of 1947.

The bravery of these individuals did not make them bitter. Instead, they returned to places like Amritsar, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, and Firozpur with nothing and started anew. They worked the land, traded, drove trucks, and ensured their children received an education. They helped build the nation during the Green Revolution and guarded it on the borders. None of these revolutionaries expected anything in return from the nation.

Between those who fought before and us, we seem to have changed our relationship with India. Instead of seeing it as something we built, we now view it as something that owes us. We line up at consulates, direct our grievances to the streets before addressing them in classrooms or fields, and measure our government by what it hands out, while measuring ourselves very little.

This reflects an inherited failure on our part, not theirs. We failed to build upon the nation that had been rebuilt once, allowing our water resources to dwindle, our soil to tire, our industries to drift, and our brightest minds to leave for foreign lands. Yet, there is hope in the restlessness that fuels us, as seen in the actions of Sarabha, our soldiers, and our farmers.

To the young men and women of Punjab and India, I urge you to be revolutionaries again, but choose your revolution wisely. Begin by addressing your own limitations first. Acquire a skill so proficiently that the world comes to seek your expertise. Complete your education. Avoid the destructive habits that have claimed young lives.

Take care of your body and mind. Then, turn your attention to your street. Teach a child who is struggling, conserve water, employ someone in need, and construct something beneficial rather than expecting everything worth building to come from elsewhere. This is not a lesser revolution than the one fought by Sarabha, for we are not yet the country our freedom fighters envisioned.

We are closer than ever before, and the question now lies with the 23-year-olds. Those before us gave more, yet we must remember that we are the ones to ensure their sacrifices did not go in vain.