Change ? What Change ?

 

This is what I wrote about a year ago but it remained as a draft.
"I have not written for quite sometime. It happens with me all the while. I engage in some activity or other, start it with some gusto and then my interest peters out. At least temporarily. Some sort of hibernation, I suppose. It serves an useful natural purpose in case of some living species; in my case none that I perceive.
When I was hibernating, the world was not. Things were happening here and abroad. Post Singur and Nandigram, Mamata Banerjee waltzed her way to victory in a number of constituencies in the last Parliamentary elections. To the accompaniment of her Ma Mati Manush orchestra.She went on to become a Railway Minister in the Union Cabinet and succeeded in inducting a number of her deputies in the party to become junior ministers. Frankly I don't know what they do at Delhi,but they never fail to attend the inauguration ceremonies of various projects that Ms Banerjee has launched and continues to launch in her home state of West Bengal.In fact, she has gone on a spree launching projects,whether they be coach factories or new trains, possibly in a bid to dispel any notion of her anti-industry image which the Singur-Nandigram and the Nano Hatao programme might have protrayed.Only future will tell how many of such projects will see the light of the day, but people have short memories. It is the beginning that matters.More so,if it is loud enough.
   The CPM led left front built a fortress over the years in West Bengal.After 32 years of uninterrupted rule,the fortress can't be said to be crumbling, but there seem to be enough cracks for Mamata and her party to make inroads into hitherto red bastions - whether they be rural areas, panchayats or educational institutions.A no-holds barred turf war is going on with the Assembly elections, barely a year away, in sight.Calcutta is back to the days of bandhs and processions.We,oldies, have seen it all in the sixties and early seventies of the last century when the Left was planning to come to power.
It is no consolation though that history is repeating itself.Mamata Banerjee and her party faithfuls are talking of 'Change',but apart from proposing a change in the Government,no other outline of such ' change' is visible." 
Since then the Assembly election has drawn nearer. The turf war I wrote about has only intensified, if the recent student elections and associated violence in some colleges are any indication.The metro channel is getting blocked practically everyday in rallies and counter rallies causing the usual traffic disruptions and inconveniences to the people.But we, Bengalees, take all these in our strides. We accept this as part of our political culture and know that net practices are required for any big match.

If any thing of note has happened in the last one year in this state, it is the use of the word 'harmad' which, thanks to Mamata Banerjee, has entered our vocabulary and after the country's Home Minister used it in his official communication, is surely on its way to being included in the Oxford dictionary.
After all, nobody can really blame us for neglecting that dictionary. We have contributed words like 'gherao' or 'naxal' to the Oxford Dictionary in the past too.