Date: March 14, 2007
Hon’ble President of India
Words from a teacher of West Bengal
Sir,
Today, I was to plead before you seeking your intervention in the issue of the upgradation of my home University to an INI/IIEST at a time when the institute’s much deserved and recommended conversion seemed to meet a political blockade while the Government continued with declarations of new IITs, IIM and IISER at other places.
Suddenly I found myself losing words about the INI/IIEST issue as I witnessed on TV a big contingent of armed policemen marching towards a gathering of innocent rural people, women and children among them standing in the front. Shortly came into the focus a few bloodstained bodies, dead or half-dead, of women and children being carried away by a few others. The police are of this free country and the people are also of the same very free country. A country that, we say, has the biggest democracy on earth! The place is Nandigram, a village in the rural Bengal, where a pro-people, communism-preaching party leads the Government for thirty long years. An area which, as per the version of none other than the Chairman of the ruling Left Front, remained out of the state’s administrative control for some time.
And me, a servant of an Indian State, a teacher of a University of the state of West Bengal, destined to write to the President about the atrocities of the State that he serves. God knows who is more ill fated; my state or me? Or, my country that has got two most-learned, most qualified, most revered and perhaps most loved persons at the top two positions?
A few recent incidents made me thought a lot. But I am not wise enough to find an answer yet to the question: what public interest is served in horrifying public by implementing or threatening immediate acquisition of lands that they peacefully plough or reside in? Perhaps I will remain ever-stupid and will never understand how a state can acquire so much of cropping land so hurriedly and so securely, as it happened in Singur, snatching out from so many poor men and women for handing over to so big an industrial house like Tata, that is so private an enterprise. I get puzzled when I see that lands for projects like the Metro Railway lines or highways or bridges or flyovers take years and even decades to take over by the state, for the state and sometimes from the state. I cannot understand how a state preaches magical uplift of poor population simply by inviting Tatas or Salims to places where the Government failed to provide the people with safe drinking water, food grain, habitable habitat and electricity in six long decades after independence.
It’s true that the State of West Bengal has ushered into an era of no-discussion, non-consensus governance by a select few, advised by another select few where popular opinions hardly matter in issues of immense state importance. If one looks from Singur to Nandigram, from IT to real estate, from film festival to cricket, from book fair to environment, it’s the same rigidity, same intransigence and same audacity that prevail.
I believe some of the state affairs are equally disturbing for your mind, as for mine. I also know you have your own compulsions and commitments that may come in the way of expressing your mind to your people or the Government.
I’m aware that removing a popular Government is no good. Future Governments can even be worse. But still, containing atrocities by the State to the people of the State is a necessity, in whatever ways possible or feasible. So I, as a mere citizen, would request you to see what you can do about these atrocities.
Lastly, to establish my political non-affiliation, I would only state that I never cast a vote in this democracy, in spite of your public advice in favour of doing so. And, I still find no reason to ask for a voter identity card while I have my Indian Passport, issued under order of none other than the President of the Republic of India.
I remain
yours faithfully,
Dr. Sudip Ghosh
Lecturer (Sr), Department of Mechanical Engineering
Hon’ble President of India
Words from a teacher of West Bengal
Sir,
Today, I was to plead before you seeking your intervention in the issue of the upgradation of my home University to an INI/IIEST at a time when the institute’s much deserved and recommended conversion seemed to meet a political blockade while the Government continued with declarations of new IITs, IIM and IISER at other places.
Suddenly I found myself losing words about the INI/IIEST issue as I witnessed on TV a big contingent of armed policemen marching towards a gathering of innocent rural people, women and children among them standing in the front. Shortly came into the focus a few bloodstained bodies, dead or half-dead, of women and children being carried away by a few others. The police are of this free country and the people are also of the same very free country. A country that, we say, has the biggest democracy on earth! The place is Nandigram, a village in the rural Bengal, where a pro-people, communism-preaching party leads the Government for thirty long years. An area which, as per the version of none other than the Chairman of the ruling Left Front, remained out of the state’s administrative control for some time.
And me, a servant of an Indian State, a teacher of a University of the state of West Bengal, destined to write to the President about the atrocities of the State that he serves. God knows who is more ill fated; my state or me? Or, my country that has got two most-learned, most qualified, most revered and perhaps most loved persons at the top two positions?
A few recent incidents made me thought a lot. But I am not wise enough to find an answer yet to the question: what public interest is served in horrifying public by implementing or threatening immediate acquisition of lands that they peacefully plough or reside in? Perhaps I will remain ever-stupid and will never understand how a state can acquire so much of cropping land so hurriedly and so securely, as it happened in Singur, snatching out from so many poor men and women for handing over to so big an industrial house like Tata, that is so private an enterprise. I get puzzled when I see that lands for projects like the Metro Railway lines or highways or bridges or flyovers take years and even decades to take over by the state, for the state and sometimes from the state. I cannot understand how a state preaches magical uplift of poor population simply by inviting Tatas or Salims to places where the Government failed to provide the people with safe drinking water, food grain, habitable habitat and electricity in six long decades after independence.
It’s true that the State of West Bengal has ushered into an era of no-discussion, non-consensus governance by a select few, advised by another select few where popular opinions hardly matter in issues of immense state importance. If one looks from Singur to Nandigram, from IT to real estate, from film festival to cricket, from book fair to environment, it’s the same rigidity, same intransigence and same audacity that prevail.
I believe some of the state affairs are equally disturbing for your mind, as for mine. I also know you have your own compulsions and commitments that may come in the way of expressing your mind to your people or the Government.
I’m aware that removing a popular Government is no good. Future Governments can even be worse. But still, containing atrocities by the State to the people of the State is a necessity, in whatever ways possible or feasible. So I, as a mere citizen, would request you to see what you can do about these atrocities.
Lastly, to establish my political non-affiliation, I would only state that I never cast a vote in this democracy, in spite of your public advice in favour of doing so. And, I still find no reason to ask for a voter identity card while I have my Indian Passport, issued under order of none other than the President of the Republic of India.
I remain
yours faithfully,
Dr. Sudip Ghosh
Lecturer (Sr), Department of Mechanical Engineering
Bengal Engineering And Science University, Shibpur
Howrah 711103, West Bengal, INDIA
Ph +91 33 2668 4561-63, 0521-25 Ext 288/279Fax +91 33 2668 4564/2916
Ph +91 33 2668 4561-63, 0521-25 Ext 288/279Fax +91 33 2668 4564/2916
Personal webpage: www.freewebs.com/ghoshsudip
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