BENGAL: A Tale of Two Times

Bengal: A Tale of Two Times

It was once remarked by Gopal Krishna Gokhlae, that- 'What Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow'. This was in describing the shining beacon that Bengal was and whose light India could follow to attain the same levels of standing. Today, there is a slight problem- today, as one Quora user would describe- with the ostentatious and self-centred individuals who fill the government, the saying seems to have turned on its head. Today, it seems, What India thinks Today, Bengal thinks after a Year.

The objective of the article is not to debate on the veracity of the statement above but rather to look at why across, both the virtual as well as non-virtual world, individuals increasingly are pointing towards the deplorable state that the present day state of West Bengal finds itself in and as to why the statement seems to have turned upside down?

What did Bengal Think?

The Bengal that Gokhale spoke about was the heart of British India. The Bengal that Gokhale spoke about produced towering giants in almost every conceivable field and the Bengal that Gokhale spoke about spearheaded social, cultural and political revolutions- revolutions that promised eventually to take alongwith itself, all of India to heights hitherto inconceivable. From Raja Rammohan Roy to Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar to Swami Vivekanada to Rabindranath Tagore to Jagadish Chandra Bose and Satyajit Ray- the list could go on and on, about the contributions that Bengal made in putting India on the world map. Multi faceted, and talented, the aforementioned individuals, alongwith many more saw that Gokhlae's views were not misconstrued at all.

The very national movement- the building of a national consensus, the germination of national ideas could also be found in the writings of Bengali authors- who first sought to differentiate between the ruler and the ruled.[1] In the scientific front, Bengal boasted of the likes of Bose, Saha[2] and a host of plenty others, who proved that Indians could stand at par with the Westerners when it came to cutting edge scientific technology- a testament of progress and advancement of the early twentieth century. Similarly, in the field of performing arts, very few names in India could stand at par with Satyajit Ray. An individual of multi-faceted talent, Ray was not merely a filmmaker- with an Oscar for lifetime achievement, but also concurrently, he was an author who is remembered till date for characters, that resonate in the minds of his readers.

So what happened?

To find a definitive account of what transpired, would take up both space and time that is not within the scope of the paper, but certainly an attempt may be made to point to the broader causes that had a momentous impact on the destiny of the state.

It is the view of the author that partition itself as a phenomena had almost a numbing effect on the population of the region. In contrast to the Western region i.e. Punjab, Bengal had never really been subject to incursions in a torrential form for over two millennia. While prima-facie this may appear a deterministic line of thought, it nonetheless helps in understanding how and why Punjab as a region was able to recover better and faster, despite being equally devastated by the effects of partition.

Secondly, with partition, large swaths of jute growing areas- areas that sustained the economy of the region was lost to East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). This had a crippling effect on the fortunes of many as hundreds of thousands lost their livelihoods in a short span of time.

Thirdly, the political culture that developed after independence- firstly, under the Indian National Congress and then under the Left Government, had little coordination with the ground level realities, while the leadership was busy accumulating power and consolidating their positions- the chasm between rhetoric and praxis was constantly widening.

Fourthly, and the Left Government must shoulder most of the blame for this, there had been virtually no major industrial or commercial project that was undertaken by Writer's and thus further economic stagnation easily set in- a fact only served to further alienate the common person from the government.

Finally, the continuous everyday experiences of redtapism and corruption, especially once again under the Left Government, clearly displayed the hypocrisy that had become inherent in the political culture of the state. These factors, in varying proportions, of course, can be held responsible for the downfall of a once proud state into one whose very future looks untenable to say the least.

The Present

While the rule of the left front was brought to an end by the Mamata Banerjee led, Trinamool Congress, signs do not show improvement. Instead, the state has been rocked with scandals and corruptions to the tune of billions of dollars, while Banerjee and her closest associates have frequently been accused of muscle politics, intimidation and even coercion to stay in power. Apart from the above, the party has also been slapped with allegations of playing the communal card- playing up tensions between communities for political ends. It seems now, that the state can best be described with the idiom- 'From the Frying Pan and into the Fire'. While it would be overly pessimistic to completely denounce the chances of recovery, it is nonetheless an extremely long and torturous journey ahead for this once most progressive part of India.

The Future

Looking ahead, as already mentioned, the journey for West Bengal seems stricken with difficulties, while the state may look towards rejuvenating the economic base of the region by investment in manufacturing and industries, the problem of red-tapism as well as corruption needs to be curtailed. Further investment, would be required in ensuring education is not politically motivated or charged, as has also been among the allegations often slapped of late. Above all, participatory and transparent governance has to be the order of the day as more and more individuals become disillusioned and either take to anti-social activates or choose to completely withdraw from any affairs of the state. Further, the almost sea gap that exists between the political leaders and the masses needs to be rectified and leaders become involved in grassroots activities, otherwise, to tweak Gokhlae's argument- 'Bengal may end up not having the capacity to think at all'.

[1] Bankim Chandra Chatterjee's novel Anandamath, deals with this issue- as the protagonists not merely grapple with how to oust the 'outsiders' but also to chart out a new path that would lead to glory and progress for the motherland. Incidentally, it was also this novel that for the first time introduced the character of 'Bharat Mata', who would eventually be drawn by Abanindranath Tagore and also subsequently a symbol of Hindu revivalism.

[2] Jagadish Chandra Bose and Meghnad Saha were two of the foremost scientists of the day- the former is well known for his diversified repertoire, ranging from the fields of zoology to electrical engineering, while the latter was one of the foremost physicists who alongwith Homi Bhabha, played a crucial role in the setting up of nuclear research in India.