By Naba Bhattacharya
Winter in Shillong has an innate charm. The season is an assortment of bright, sunny and clear blue sky, oranges, vacation, uninhibited outdoor activities, picnic et al. The season brings forth a serene ambience resulting in an indolent approach to life. The gelid drops of dew fall on the green turf and the rising sun casts a golden colour in them. A mystical package meant to savour. One way to experience the winter delight is to take an early morning drive to the rural locales or down to the plains, revelling in the variation of temperature and vegetation, with the descent. The mild winter sun, slowly breaking through the cold stratum and exuding warmth that keeps rising with each milestone crossed, is another sublime bequest of nature. Last month I realized that this gift of nature too is endangered as a long line of stationary trucks barred movement in all directions. The ordeal continued for almost an hour till the trucks suddenly roared to life, accelerating without moving and in the process belching thick cloud of diesel fumes blended with wafts of coal dust. As we waited, sandwiched between two carriers, the unending fleet of trucks going in the opposite direction, suddenly appeared like the dinosaurs in the magnum opus – Jurassic Park, multiplying in hundreds and intimidating. Dinosaurs are fossilized but fossil fuels continue to impinge on the environment and our free movement. I experienced freezing night temperatures on the highway instead of enjoying the sun’s warmth and finally managing to reach home with the rays of the rising sun.
