Are you the one who can deliver? | Or else, can you bring those who can deliver to the forefront? Either way you can be a part of the process.
NV Paulose, Chairman, Global TV +91 98441 82044
The idea behind the number 1299 is simple yet profound. It represents a way of seeing society through the lens of 1 to 99. Miracles do not happen when systems are torn down or when success is punished. They happen when attention shifts. They happen when a society focuses on to the ninety nine percent while everything else continues as it is.
This is not a call to dismantle systems, disrupt growth, or reverse what is existing. Let everything remain as it is. Let excellence be rewarded at every point. Enhance opportunities for the 99% to gain momentum while the one percent continues to flourish further ahead.
The issue is not prosperity of the one percent. The issue is the silent but purposeful neglect of the rest. A nation can live with inequality even to a large extent. But a society cannot live with indifferent approach to the larger chunk of the population. Equity and equal opportunity should be there on fundamental rules, laws and systems. See the nature to get an idea of this. Can you restrict the poor from breathing the air?
How will you measure happiness? Can you claim happy in the midst of plenty? It is the one who had experienced penury turn to become great in the future. Those who had enjoyed plenty had turned to become poor when they had failed to nurture their person and talent.
The Silent Drift Toward the One Percent
In India Today, attention of the systems increasingly flows towards upward. Economic planning, tax cuts, incentives, urban development, education, healthcare, and even public imagination quietly align around the interests of a small wealthy group. This does not always happen by design. It happens by habit. We silently ignore injustice. It is obvious when it comes to matters pertaining to the commoners.
When leaders, institutions, and systems repeatedly look toward the top, resources follow that gaze. Over time, what begins as growth becomes imbalance. The ninety nine percent are not actively harmed, but they are gradually overlooked. That is the more dangerous mistake.
Ignoring does not make noise. It does not create immediate crisis. But it slowly weakens the foundation of the entire society.
The Real Problem Is Not Wealth, But Neglect
Wealth is not the enemy. Achievement is not the problem. The danger lies in allowing large numbers of people to become invisible. When education is designed for a few, potential is wasted. When healthcare is accessible only to those who can afford it, human strength is lost. When employment systems fail to protect dignity, social trust erodes. These losses do not appear on balance sheets, but they shape the future.
Greed behaves like a bottomless bucket. No amount poured into it ever feels sufficient. But this is not a moral accusation. It is a structural truth. When attention stays fixed on the top, demands from the top never end. Unfulfilled demands attribute unhappiness at the top also. Meanwhile, silence grows below. Roof falls if there is no foundation. We should continuously learn lessons from the wisdom of the universe.
The Lesson of the Lily and Solomon
There is a timeless comparison that reveals the heart of this issue in a profound manner. Consider the beauty of a simple lily in the field and compare it with the splendour of Solomon at the height of his glory. Solomon represents wealth, power, and human achievement at its peak and the lily represents fragility, simplicity, short life and what appears to be insignificant. Yet the lily is clothed with a beauty that rivals royal splendour. The lesson is not that Solomon’s glory is wrong.
The lesson from the timeless wisdom is that the divine attention does not stop with the powerful. Care extends even to what seems to be least important. Nothing is dismissed as unworthy of consideration. This is the attitude societies must learn to imitate. If God does not ignore the least, human systems have no justification for doing so.
Enjoy your possessions and positions, but never disgrace the other on your glorious existence.
Attention Is the First Act of Justice
Justice does not begin with laws or budgets. It begins with attention. What we choose to see determines what we choose to fix. The ninety nine percent do not need to replace the one percent. They need to be seen alongside them. They need to be considered in planning, policy, and priority. Even small acts of inclusion create long term balance.
Just as the lily does not compete with Solomon for beauty, the ordinary citizen does not compete with the wealthy for dignity. Both can exist. Both deserve care. Never ever act as poor are at the mercy of the rich; it is not. In fact, all in the world and beyond are at the mercy of the infinite intelligence that governs the conduct of the universe.
How Everyone Benefits When No One Is Ignored
When the 99 percent are acknowledged, supported, and included, society becomes stronger for everyone, including the one percent. A healthy population creates stable systems. Widespread education and skill development produces capable talent. Accessible healthcare to every citizen sustains productivity. Social trust reduces risk and unrest.
Prosperity built on inclusion lasts much longer than prosperity built on exclusion. The one percent does not lose when the ninety nine percent are lifted from neglect. They gain a more stable and sustainable society in which their success can further more endure.
India at a Moment of Choice
India stands today at a decisive moment. The demographic dividend is in our favour. With the size of population and diversity, we cannot afford to let large sections of its population fade into the background.
Economic indicators may rise, cities may shine at the outset, and wealth may accumulate, but none of this guarantee national strength if the majority feels unseen. It is like the volcano underneath.
Refocusing on to the ninety nine percent and reinforcing the systems in their inclusion means investing attention in rural communities, ordinary people, small entrepreneurs, students, and the vulnerable. It means asking a simple question in every decision: who is being left out.
This is not charity. It is responsibility.
Where Miracles Truly Happen
Miracles do not require dramatic upheaval. They occur quietly when ordinary people are no longer invisible.
- When a farmer feels supported rather than forgotten.
- When a student believes effort will be met with opportunity.
- When illness does not mean financial ruin.
- When dignity is preserved even at the lowest levels of society.
These are the miracles that transform nations from within.
From Ignoring to Seeing
The message of 1 to 99 is not revolutionary. It is corrective. Let everything remain as it is. Let wealth exist. Let success shine. But let no one be ignored. A society that learns to see the ninety nine percent, including the least among them, aligns itself with a deeper wisdom.
Just as the lily is not forgotten in a world that includes Solomon, people must not be forgotten in a nation that celebrates progress. When attention expands to include everyone, miracles follow naturally.
That is the true meaning of 1 to 99.
