The Hindu : Front Page : India’s best and worst: NDTV poll findings

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Sunday, Aug 12, 2007
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India’s best and worst: NDTV poll findings

NEW DELHI: Mahatma Gandhi has been voted the greatest national icon in an opinion poll of icons, events and landmarks conducted by NDTV for the programme “India at 60.”

Other findings are: democracy is the greatest national pride and bribery its worst shame; the IT revolution is the one event that changed the country, while Operation Bluestar and the anti-Sikh riots are its greatest political blot. The NDTV poll was conducted using direct questionnaires administered at street corners in 13 cities, SMS responses, and voting on the worldwide web.

Sachin Tendulkar was voted the country’s greatest sportsperson; Mother India the greatest film; and the patriotic ‘Ae Mere Watan Ke Logon’ the greatest song.

In the perception of the respondents, the Mahatma was ahead of Mother Teresa. Other personalities in the list of icons are JRD Tata, Indira Gandhi, Narayana N.R. Murthy, Amitabh Bachchan, and Jawaharlal Nehru.

The poll found that the national achievements, besides democracy, that give Indians the greatest pride are secularism, the IT industry, the armed forces, the Railways, and the judiciary. Hunger comes next only to bribery as the worst shame, followed by untouchability, dowry, and manual scavenging.

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