.....pulse of the Nation...

.....disparity , is in itself a disease....defies all epidemiology tools....the  cold spell not so long ago in the Northern & Eastern parts of the subcontinent....the not so lucky at large , with miniscule means had to tide over the crisis of Chills & fogs...children of these unlucky few r worst hit....let alone the old gentry....Our's is not a Developed Nation ...but developing...grappling with these issues of basic nature.....the khadi represented, whn initiated as austerity, cheap, sustainable nd low cost easy to manufacture at home.....represented self sufficiency.....taking a cue frm the Father of the Nation.....who practised wht he preached.....soon the sheen of the khadi wore off with manipulative power brokers...who utilised it to suit their constituency.....to be the Sarpanch of a Panchayat called India , one has to feel the pulse of the Nation....& its not so lucky gentry at large facing adverse situations.....can one imagine wht the position of the Executive is..... nd its highly exalted altar of guiding the destiny of the country.....personally I will be reduced to dust in humility if I call myself an Indian , feeling the pains of my not so lucky fellow citizens, if I am to be catapulted to a high altar.....with the passage of time since Independence, the sensibilities hv nose dived.....to  project urself as an  ordinary, 'sewak', wearing down to earth clothes is necessarily a crime ,whn u really do not practise wht u preach.....nd whn u don't believe in plain living & high thinking.....:the Quintessential tool of the Sewak....nd to wear a designer dress with ur name manufactured in the material....it is even worse & I am let down .....with the demise of the common man's creator (R K LAXMAN), the common man also had a silent obituary...tht day.....!!!!...the Mukhiya frm the powerful nation ,though appeared v humble....holding his own umbrella in the rain....development of a Nation is in its Mind set....the Colonial past lets us down...with its evil practises of disparity still persisting.....robustly we got to deal , nd get our act together.....if India is to achieve Democracy in the truest sense of Equality.....!!!!

.....Heaven on Earth...!!!

.....the Urge for de boarding the Bus was supreme  & at Batot lunch was ordered....fairly simple aromatic Basmati rice nd Rajma(Kidney beans) with a kingsize glass possibly a Brassware with a base laden with lassi was served ,which was devoured nd gulped in no time by five of us (three brothers nd two sisters)....it was my first brush with the kidney beans nd I found the taste to be bland nd the journey to the Valley which was exciting &...on the contrary....1973 ,nd the B class quite comfortable Bus ride frm Jammu to Srinagar took nearly 10hrs...Patni Top,Banihal Pass, Verinag.....nd the mercurial Chenab with ponton bridges erected by the army is well etched in memory not to spk of the Towering Mountains .....the treacherous road dotted with apple trees,sometimes one way...nd the roadside pushtas for straightening ur legs nd inhaling the fresh mountain air.....the hotel room at Regal had no lock system nd we frm the plains were pretty much surprised, assurance frm the Inn keeper...nd we had a gud nite sleep after the arduous journey....only to shift to the more placid Rly Holiday Home of N.Rly in serene environs the nxt day.....whn the Sun set at 8pm I am taken aback nd happy for more playing hrs with my siblings,collecting all sorts of souvenirs of shapely rounded,rocks, possibly morraine left over yesteryrs....the speared fish frm the Jhelum with a telltale scarmark on the trunk nd the saffron laced tea is as fresh in memory as if it was yestday.....the "JalPari" named Shikara ride on the Dal , the House boats ,the Mughal Gardens, the trip to Khilanmarg for skiing with a view of the Nanga Parbat & Wular lake on horseback is well imprinted even after 40yrs.....the average Kashmiri looked  beautiful, Godly nd Innocent .....truly Heaven on Earth.....!!!!.....promising to return with the New Kids ......on the block......!!!!

........A Lifetime Lesson.....

......the 6.32 am Arr.Time of thn 25 Up Patliputra Express at MDP was nothing but a huge wave striking the Home Signal with a thud, enough to unruffle the feathers of a departure Lad for School at the end of term end vacation...though St.Xavier's Sahibganj was not too far off but the circuitous route to SBJ via Kiul Jn was arduous to say the least...as connectivity to Mail & Exp. Trains were scanty....nd the long haul Pass. frm Gya to Barharwa, Farakka on the SBJ Loop line wud stop at all stns....amazingly ,the Loop line had far more no. of Stns upto SBJ....surprisingly whn Bapi accompanied me it was always the King of tht time TSK Mail frm New Delhi to Tinsukia nd the Upper India Expresses....Bapi's clout nd connectivity always ensured a First Class Berth nd reaching SBJ in style....but as it wud happen owing to his pre occupations nd his subtle way of releasing me frm his shadows....wud ensure the Slow or Fast Pass. rides on my own......so, whn at sharp 6.32 am the wave called Patliputra wud hit me hard on the Rly Stn at MDP....the last bastion of swelling emotions nd exposure to tough world wud hv a cataclysmic effect on the new, young at 14, passenger....as the train moved towards Kiul I had recollected enough passing thru JAJ(JhaJha) finally saying adieu to the Santhal Pargana Plateau....the herculean task of detraining at Kiul Jn ....hiring a porter ...crossing over to the opp.platform thru an underpass was all part of Growing up as envisaged by my parents...stopping at every stn towards SBJ,notably Jamalpur & Bhagalpur, Nathnagar ,Sabour, Kahalgaon, until Vikramshila Halt was a journey in eternity....the lunch box packed by Ma & Didis was the last link with home in an unknown terrain....kept me energised till the Gates Of St.Xavier's....!!!!

.....the Advent of the Dry Mnths.....

.....finally ,the Dry Mnths r here...Jan & Feb r supposedly dry mnths  ,with the Rains finally bowing out...bright & Sunny ...gud time for Tourism for the water is crystal clear & warm....though hands r more thn full on the work frnt...the Pt.footfalls of Dec last far exceeded the rest of the yr gone by...nd the gud wrk still continues.... as Jan is no less....as the pending vacation & brk takes a back seat to possibly Mar, whn the kids will hv a term brk....though the fatigue factor is slowly setting here, since Aug 1st its nonstop Juggernaut on the roll....though every day seems to be an elixir or forte as patient feedbacks suggest.....as India reeled under a cold spell....we r more thn happy relishing the Ripe mangoes of  the Nile valley, a gr8 treatise frm Egypt, amidst bright nd sunny weather.....celebrating though Makar Sankranti in traditional style Chura(Smashed Rice) & Dahi(Curd) fortified with Gudd(Date palm origin) frm Kolkata & Thailand....the sesame laddoos frm Thiruvananthapuram......though nothing like Ma's Poush Parbon preparations of  Patisaptaa & Peetha....!!!!!....was amazed though to hear her voice on the ph ...same vigor nd words of strength.....March we Reunite nd can't wait for this eternal wait...!!! 

 .....Ushering in the New Yr.....!!!!...New Hopes...Newer Aspirations....New Grades & New Class....Newer Fronts to watch the Sun & Moon ....newer hangouts.....the setting

 & Rising,with all of us, in tandem....!!!!