Kolkata Ramblings

P for Paschimbanga. P for potholes. Why not P for progress or P for pride in our achievements? But one thing is certain: P is for peculiar. Things that happen in Kolkata cannot be explained by any logical reasoning. The case in point are the so-called speedbreakers on strips that are passed off as roads. Driving on these roads are directly responsible for vehicle damage, manifold increase in fuel consumption and irrecoverable loss of precious time. A short journey of around 12 km takes more than half an hour which gives an average motorable speed of 24 km per hour. This too around 7:30 in the morning, much before the rush hour! Somehow it never occurs to our wise police department to speed the traffic up. They do not realize that the sooner each person reaches his or her destination, the lesser will be the number of cars moving on the streets. The situation has worsened to such an extent that it takes almost 45 minutes each way traveling for a 10-minute errand. And this is a best-c...

I was elated to learn from the news that our new CM is doing the rounds of the city to observe the traffic conditions for herself. It is heartening to know that she has given instructions to the police to tone down the convoy menace. It is about time too. During the previous regime it had grown into a ridiculous exercise of proportions very similar to that depicted in Tintin and the Picaros . Sirens wailing, everyone shoved out of the way and an uncertain wait till the tinpot dictator passed on. No relief even after that. The police made everyone wait and took their own time till they were pleased to allow us to move on. Of course by that time, traffic snarls developed all around and it took quite a long time to ease back to normal. One of the favorite locations to watch the circus was, well, --- Park Circus 7-point intersection. I know because I have been unfortunate enough to have been there at so many times (mostly at the wrong place, at the wrong time). I have also been a v...

Kolkata, 1:01 PM. Today history was created when Mamata Banerjee became the first woman Chief Minister of West Bengal. Probably the first to walk from the Raj Bhavan to the Writers Building too, instead of commandeering a convoy. Maybe we will see more firsts in the coming days. But it remains to be seen whether the spirit of all the rhetoric percolates down to the grassroot level. It is a long, long way from the ivory tower of the CM's office to the common workers who have actually forgotten what an honest day's work is. Today at the local post office, the clerk at the counter was certain that his duty lay in watching TV rather than attending to the people standing in front of his counter window. After some angry exchange of words, he did update the savings passbook but thats about all he could be persuaded to do. What about the interest that had not been shown in the pass book? He said that we could come back a month or so later and maybe then he will be in a position to ...

The pendulum has swung back. After India's independence Bengal had a rightist government till 1977. So that was a 30 year period. Then we had a leftist government for the next 34 years. Although it is not really possible to fit an equation with only two data points, that is all we have today. Let us wait and see whether it takes the next three decades for the pendulum to complete its oscillation. Nature teaches us that there are cycles in all phenomena. Its only a matter of perspective to be able to perceive it. For processes that take a long time to swing from one extreme to the other, we may be fooled into believing that things are constant and everything is hunky dory. Instead of being complacent, it is always better to accept that change is the constant everywhere. It is a tough lesson that some people are learning the hard way. With this momentous change, let us hope that Bengal emerges as the winner.

Go Green. That seems to be the motto these days. And no, I am not talking about greening the earth or saving the environment. However, there's definitely a change in the air. A heady whiff that permeates the entire city. The heady scent of victory has somehow touched everyone except the die hard Reds. It has perked everyone up and has made them aware that things are brewing up. Hope has timidly poked its head up in everyone's hearts. People everywhere are looking forward to better circumstances. Not many can precisely say what they would like to see come true. Different wishes come forth: peace, discipline, honesty, transparency, no corruption, industrial development and more. What does come out is the fact that people had missed these all these years but had hesitated to say it out loud. Personally, I wish that Kolkata Police becomes transformed into an elite corps that is fair, courteous and incorruptible. For the Greens, there is a long and arduous journey ahead. The fra...

The just declared election results have vindicated the view of the major chunk of people in West Bengal. The theme of the polls was Change. And what change could be better summed up than by the traffic signal analogy. Red denotes blood. It also gives a signal to others that says: STOP, Do Not Go. Though Kolkatans have a strong habit not to follow traffic signals while on the streets, they have faithfully followed the political red signal over the course of decades. Up until now. They have been a most obedient lot who showed extraordinary levels of collective patience that spanned generations. While everyone else all around the globe cocked their snooks at us and galloped ahead, we displayed levels of inertia that proved how true Newton's First Law is. Kolkata remained at rest and others blessed us with R.I.P. Red said stop. Stop work. Stop growth. Stop thinking. Stop studying. Stop excelling. Stop everything. In fact Stop became a  synonym for holiday, albeit a holiday that i...