It is a good thing that corruption is finally taking center stage in the discourse of our society. It is not enough. No where near enough. So while Sarada Scam has usurped the air waves, our lives are ruled by far greater priorities and urgencies.
In the lead to the West Bengal Assembly Elections 2016, it is importance to start the discourse on matters to the heart and the hearth. Therefore, we will start discussion on industrial malady as the first topic.
With 97% decline in industrial growth in West Bengal since 2010 and joblessness at record highs, it is vital to revive this flagging enterprise in its entirety. But violent trade unions are a dowry inherited from both the CPM and TMC. Lack of available land in the face of a definite Land Acquisition Law is also a severe limiting factor. In the last year, only 65 acres of land has been made available for industrial growth!
This brings us to infrastructure development. Though the government claims to have laid thousands of miles of roads but their upkeep is swept under the carpet. Even in city limits the roads are horribly maintained with potholes galore. Roads are repaired with baked bricks and not with ballast and tar or cement. These repairs barely last a week and give way to even bigger potholes. Walking on the street, one is smothered with a dust ball. Drainage and sewage lines are too gross to be even describe. Street dogs fight over human excrement in a effort to find some sort of food for themselves.
Healthcare and it appalling manifestations confront us on a daily basis. Government hospitals are ill equipped, apathy is a common malady and abysmal wages a stark reality. The best minds and hands are too exorbitant for the average man to afford and the best anyways flee the state as fast as they possibly can.
These are just a few of the ignomious achievements of the past and current state governments. So while Mamata Banerjee is declaring war on PM Modi, she is forgetting a few facts of life. Oil prices came down 8 times in the last 6 months. Food prices have come down by almost 50% in some cases. There has been no increase in inflation in the month of November'14.
These issues and much more affect our lives. Therefore, it makes sense to ensure that we, the most common and humble, set the agenda for the upcoming elections and not the TMC (who has failed miserably) or the media houses (who have equally failed dishonorably).
Sensationalism though inevitable and even required at time cannot and should not determine the discourse in our society and what affects people who are not as fortunate.
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