regret ending an article of mine titled ‘Caring NRAs’ (Horizon, February 9,
2008) on a pessimistic note. A subject that I always want to give due credence
purely because I am beginning to slowly realize that the best of Assam today
resides outside Assam and that the present populace of Assam, including its
current political leaders, students, bureaucrats, sportsmen, artists,
terrorists, you and me, borders on a quality that hardly makes an impact on the
national scene. The article ended thus:
“If NRAs (non-resident Assamese) have to be contributive to Assam, they have to
do so with deeds and not words. They have to burn their bridges on their way
back and try and work things from the soil of Assam, against the seemingly
insurmountable odds” (instead of just giving front-page interviews while on
their brief holidays here, else) “they may please remain in their comfort zones
and not be bothered about Assam...” (and in which case) “all I can do is quote
Clark Gable from Gone with the Wind: ‘Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.’”
Well (sigh!)…Actually I do give a damn. And I cannot help it that I do. This
feeling of mine stems from my past experiences and my various interactions with
a number of NRAs on an internet discussion forum called Assam Net (1998-2000,
if I remember right). I had watched, observed and sympathized with the large
number of expatriate Assamese people, the sole topic of concern being Assam.
Often, it had appeared to me that these people had indeed missed out on the
love for their soil by becoming so career-centric that their desire to earn in
dollars/pounds rather than rupees after acquiring their impressive education
and skills led them to become expatriates. It had also often crossed my mind,
especially seeing the huge amount of time these people spent discussing Assam,
that in the process of earning all those dollars/pounds, they had sorely missed
being in Assam and were indeed truly concerned that Assam, except for its tea,
terrorism and corruption, did
not find any worthwhile place on the world’s physical, political or commercial
map.
Factually speaking, the NRAs were, at that stage in time, very concerned about
the terrorism problem of Assam. Not that they aren’t now, but I haven’t had the
good fortune to visit ‘Assam Net’ in long years and so commenting on this might
just be a mistake. At that stage though, they were so troubled that a few of
them, torn as they were between their love for their motherland and their
thriving careers in the western world, took an extremely laborious initiative
to draft out a lengthy ‘Appeal-for-Peace’ and direct it to all who they thought
were part and parcel of the terrorism business in Assam. It was a noble gesture
no doubt but to all obvious appearances, a futile wish for peace. I couldn’t
blame the NRAs. They were far too removed from the ground realities of Assam to
realize the intricacy of its problems and that their appeal would get Assam
nowhere on the peace front. Nonetheless, while the appeal was being given
shape, there were
enquiries galore and e-mails flew — the NRAs wanted the newspapers of Assam to
publish the appeal so that the ULFA would read it and stop their drivel, New
Delhi, Dhaka, Islamabad, Kabul and Rangoon would do the needful in cooperating
for peace, Dispur would respond suitably and so finally peace would be ushered
into Assam. Everything was fine except for the utterly patronizing tone that
the NRAs seemed to adopt (for what they thought was one helluva contribution by
them towards their motherland).
One thing though, stands clear to me: the NRAs for sure, have uninhibited love
for their motherland, Assam. It is a pity that they find themselves desperately
trying to make a foreign soil their home while their hearts remain forever
attached to Assam, their homeland which, eternally, beckons them. And it is
pathetic and frustrating that these grumbling, debating, quarreling and yet
very concerned NRAs cannot do something substantially more tangible and
contributive than what they are doing now because this inadequacy on their part
only means a terrible loss for Assam. For me personally though, I can only
quote Clark Gable once again!!!
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Swapnil Bharali
(Horizon,The Assam Tribune,July 05, 2008)
Bring your gang together. Do your thing. Find your favourite Yahoo! group
at http://in.promos.yahoo.com/groups/
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