Wednesday, May 26, 2010

The Uncivilized

Bengal goes for election of civic bodies. A political battle is being waged for Sunday election. Hundreds and thousands political touts with their stooges are making our civic life a hell. The municipalities exist in urban Bengal will elect or select their lords. All eyes are on the civic body election for the great old city of Kolkata (Calcutta). The corporate backed parties are leaving no effort unattended in capturing the power to handle the finance in civic bodies. The corporate backed parties invested huge money for huge return. Hardly there is any party contesting election depend on public funding.

Once late Jamshedji Tata lamented he would rather prefer to be a politician than a business man if he was born again as a human being. Because politician does not require capital investment but false promises. Gone are the days of Sr. Tatas and Batas. Now political establishments are highly professionalised armed with the support of the corporate investment. Its a good business altogether. Some third graded people are allowed to shout in high pitch through microphone day and night making the city life hell. Big cut outs of their leaders or costly placards with wall writings on some substandard politicians would grill the civic population making life worse than hell.  No  law and order compliance. Its free for all.

The party in power may be dislodged in this election and the public will be in queue to get some financial relief from the new power brokers. But there will perhaps be no change in appeasing illegal occupants occupying the footpaths for trading goods in the name of hawkers. No change in work culture in civic bodies. No change in corrupt practices in order to hold cadres for next round of assembly election. The city of Calcutta has already lost its heritage, its culture, its language and its everything of pride. Yet power brokers are fighting hard for loot of the last remains. At this stage no magical change is found possible unless the state is ruled with great amount of conviction. Yet people cry for a change of guard of the state of Bengal.