By Bansharailang Pyngrope
The above is a question I ask myself and my colleagues in our politically affiliated students’ unions. Are we working towards replacing the present leaders of our incumbent government with a different set of leaders who would also function in the same way? Or are we capable of a wider or expansive outlook?
This pandemic has brought some realizations of how broken our system has become, how terribly immediate our problems are and how desperately a solution is being sought for. Looking back at the peak of the lockdown, we were awakened to the horrific situation prevailing around us due to the shortage of food, shortage of medical facilities both basic and specialised, unorganised civic amenities, etc.
In fact there were inadequacies of every basic necessity except for the outsizing human population. But the stream of life goes on. Despite living at a time in history where our political, economic and social fabric is being stretched to its maximum limit, somehow life adapts and goes on. We humans have this unique quality of living in the memories of the past and unknowingly slipping the present into the same past. I, a child of yesterday, am now exposed to the world and all of its intricately deep-rooted problems and strive for their solutions in a world of infinite possibilities.
Politically, our country’s very idea of democracy is being challenged at the very deepest level. Academically, changes are being made in the school syllabus leading to changes in the learning process of the new and future generation. They are being moulded to think a certain way which is killing the very soul of an Indian- the freedom to choose how we wish to think. Economically, we are at a stage where wealth and poverty prominently walk side by side on the same pathway; the disparity being apparent yet oblivious. Never has the economic gap been so wide between members of our very own society. Socially, we instantly see the difference of attitude in each other. While a section of our society works towards unity while some sections play along the lines of disrupting it. There is a constant pull and push, but the sound of the voice that pushes us away from each other feels louder than the voice of our hearts which calls us to pull each other close, to understand that we are all human, we all yearn to be loved and respected, that in all our hearts, there is more good than evil. Hence, the superficial differences are all founded on the inequalities that are based on privileges and opportunities offered selectively to a few among the society.
But how do we fix these deep-rooted problems? How are we going to change? Every member of the society is responsible, but I am nobody to tell anyone what to do, except myself and taking steps to set a good example for change. Being part of a political party, I am aware of the age-old tradition where privileges are enjoyed by party workers when their own party is in power. This is where we can make changes and be different from others. We the party workers need to be aware that these very privileges or vested interests are the weeds that suffocate and destroy the very root of progressive development. We need to uproot the so-called tradition; ’ , we need to go deeper to find out if we actually have any chance of fighting the impending problems like climate change and environmental degradation caused by depletion of natural resources, over population, economic disparity and unemployment problem. Without convincing ourselves first, that we need a revolutionary change in the system we are living in, we cannot expect that these deep-rooted problems would be solved. And we might just end up leaving this world, in a worse condition than the world we inherited from our previous generations.
While our destinies have brought us all to this period of time where there’s undemocratic politics, widening economic gaps and a disrupted social unity, yet if there exists any light at the end of tunnel, any hope for mankind, then it is humankind itself. It is all up to us, humans who throughout history have shown that we are capable of conquering the highest peak, and to do miraculous things.
Our state, our country was founded by people who fought against all odds to achieve what was very tough then. If the pandemic has showed us our flaws, it has also demonstrated our strengths- doctors, health workers, civil society groups, political parties, dorbar shnong, religious institutions all came together to fight the pandemic, to support the underprivileged sections of our society affected by the lockdown with whatever was within their capacities. We saw the human spirit in full pomp! YouTube has shown how creative and talented people of our state are, from musicians, vloggers, comedians, etc to our athletes making us all proud performing at their best.
We have so many entrepreneurs, great thinkers, writers, orators, teachers, religious leaders and many more who are constantly trying to make the world a better place. Our young generation is getting more educated, minds are getting broader as each day passes, but we all need guidance and leaders who will inspire the good in each one of us; leaders who will be role models for the younger generation; leaders who will put the values of an integral society before themselves!
Meghalaya is known for its ethical and deeply principled people who live by values passed down from generations. Meghalaya has been known for its integrity, it’s beauty and it’s huge potential. We can all comment that all political parties are the same, but actually every political party is different and we all can be part of any of these political parties that our principles are aligned with and which we believe represent our aspirations for the state and country at its best.In a democracy, we all have important roles to play. Government employees, journalists, students, teachers, parents, business persons etc., each have our roles which we are to perform judiciously because what we do today, will impact our future generations. Elections are a festival in a Democracy which is celebrated and participated in only once in five years. Now all of that depends on our mental make-up. We can either be on-lookers and wait optimistically for the order of the universe to bring about the ultimate triumph of virtue over evil or instead with a far-sighted attitude, be the change and carry the burden on our own shoulders and work together towards a better tomorrow for all.