‘India should learn from Japan...’: Former IITan slams healthcare, education double standards 

In a candid post on X (formerly Twitter), Rajeshwari Iyer, a former IITan and an NRI, shared her two-month experience in Tokyo, highlighting Japan’s high standards in civic life, governance, and meritocracy — and urging India to take cues from the East Asian nation to achieve developed-country status. 

“Air quality is excellent, water is safe to drink, food labels are honest, and people are genuinely friendly,” she wrote, praising Japan’s respect for talent, adherence to laws, and strong civic sense. Iyer noted that while healthcare is expensive, it is of high quality — “That’s why Indian politicians prefer treatment abroad.”

She also lauded Japan’s education system, contrasting it with India’s political class that promotes ‘Make in India’ while sending their children overseas for studies. 

Dismissing the relevance of comparing India with Pakistan, Iyer stressed that the real benchmark should be nations like Japan. Responding to a remark about population differences, she pointed out that China, despite having a population similar to India’s, remains a growing economy. “Many will blame dictatorship for China’s success, but the truth is that real progress comes from effective governance, not from blaming the political system,” she wrote. 

India’s healthcare and infrastructure are showing visible signs of strain, with underfunded public hospitals, overcrowded facilities, and a shortage of trained medical professionals leaving millions without timely or quality care. Rural areas remain the worst hit, where basic health services are either unavailable or located miles away, forcing patients to rely on overburdened district centers.

In urban areas, while private hospitals offer world-class treatment, it comes at prohibitive costs, widening the gap between the rich and the poor. Infrastructure, too, struggles under the weight of rapid urbanisation — potholed roads, inadequate public transport, frequent power outages, and water shortages reflect years of poor planning and underinvestment.