Some time ago, in the month of late February and early
March, I had the opportunity to travel from New Delhi to Allahabad (now
Prayagraj; though I still love to address it by its old name). I chose to
travel by an early morning train, instead of opting for a night journey, simply
for the reason that I wanted to enjoy huge wheat fields that gave me a reason
to rejoice.
What a mesmerizing scene it was! The crop was ripening and it looked like a vast golden harvest.
The hard work of the farmers had paid dividends as they proudly moved around
the golden fields praying to the sun god to keep them blessed for some more time
to come. Everyone knew even a little rain would deprive them of the rewards
they were waiting for.
After about a
fortnight I returned home by a night train as my heart contended and I had
that happy feeling within me.
This time, my stay
in my home in Noida was not long as I had to come to Sidharth Nagar, a backward
and poor district in eastern Uttar Pradesh, where my better half happens to be
a professor of mathematics at the Sidharth University Kapilvastu (SUK). The
newly-formed state university is situated away from the city and the railway
station, amidst vast fields where wheat crops stood ready to be harvested.
Before I came to
this remote area I took it as a god-sent opportunity to breathe some fresh air
in the rural ambiance that I shall be getting here. Delhi and its surrounding
areas have earned a poor reputation for rising air pollution which has become a nightmarish experience for all those living there.
By the end of
April, most of the wheat crop had been harvested. It didn’t take much time as
the farmers leased huge machines to accomplish the task. The machine would
finish off the job in several hours which would, otherwise, take several days
and lots of manpower. The crop was harvested and the residue left by the
machine painted the earth with a golden hue. The machine is not capable of
removing the plants from its roots so the stubs remain there. The wheat stubs
are the bone of contention as the farmers do not have any method other than setting
them on fire.
Traveling from
Delhi to Allahabad and again to Sidharthnagar, followed by some more road
travel to the adjoining areas gave me ample opportunity to see the crops and
their harvesting from a close distance.
While I rejoiced
over the high yields I was shocked to see farmers burning the wheat stubs. Drive-in any direction and you come across black smoke billowing from the fields
engulfing the entire atmosphere. The highways passing through the villages
became dangerous as thick smoke reduced the visibility to zero.
I was dismayed at
the condition of villages. So far I thought I would be happy spending some time
in the rural areas where greenery and clean air would welcome me. The reality turned
out to be far from the imagination as things were worse than the metro life
where I had spent several decades of life.
I was shocked. I
was in pain. I was helpless. I felt like crying.
It was not a
one-day problem. Every morning I woke to inhale the polluted air. I had started going
for morning walks but stopped it now. The air was not fresh anymore. The wind blew
minute burnt particles, the odor coming out of the ashes made breathing much more
difficult and there was itching in my eyes too.
Everywhere the
agricultural fields were on fire. I am told it is more or less the same
scenario in the entire state of Uttar Pradesh. Be it the day or be it the night
it hardly matters. The scene at night is even more frightening. From a distance, you can see a red hue over the fields and thick black smoke going up in the
sky. It’s fiery. The golden fields are on fire.
I could not stop
myself. My mobile phone was in my pocket and I made the best use of it. No, I am
not a ‘selfie’ guy, also, I do not spare any such opportunity that touches
me or allows me to capture moments of significance. Some pictures were clicked
during the day and some at the night too.
SLEEPY
ADMINISTRATION
Of course, I used
them to tweet to the state government or the administration though I knew it
would hardly make any worthwhile impact. At the same time, I cannot keep my
mouth shut and eyes closed. Not only that I am concerned about society I am
also an aware citizen of my country.
The grave matter
refused to go away from my mind. I talked to everyone I could. Everyone showed
concern. Many people, like me, had pictures and short video clips on their
mobiles. However, none shared them on any social platform, unlike me. Why
people are not moved or have they made videos just for their collections, I
mused.
My interactions
proved on point. Everyone in the society was seeing the wrong taking place
except for those who should be noticing it. The administrative machinery has proved
it is in deep slumber. Even the gravity of raging fire is not enough to wake it
up. The entire state of Uttar Pradesh is burning and the authorities do nothing
to stop it or find a solution.
I thought even the
ministers or top officials must be breathing polluted air full of burnt carbon
particles. I wonder what stops them from reacting to the issue.
Shocking isn’t
it! The villages too are victims of air pollution now. We in cities would often talk about spending some time in villages where you can eat healthy and breathe fresh.
Things do not seem to be the same now. Things are no more the same in villages now as the sky is hazy, air is polluted and the
water too is not clean.
ANY REMEDY
The problem of
wheat stub burning is not a small issue. The farmers have found it an easier
method to clean up their fields and leave them for some time before they reap
another crop.
Burning the stubs
is quick and simple. Otherwise, they would have to spend weeks in the fields to
manually remove stubs from the ground. I
thought the root problem is the lack of a machine that could remove those stubs. If
the engineers could make it possible through some innovation we shall, perhaps,
be able to prevent fire, feels the second opinion.
While talking to
some people I came to know that in some places farmers grow onions as an extra
crop which gives them some extra earnings too.Also, this is the time to grow sunflowers in the fields. If farmers are
educated to plough the stubs and grow sunflowers instead, perhaps, they will go for
it as it offers them some lucrative alternative. After all, it is a question of
good earning between two crops that governs the entire thought process of
farmers. If adopted this will lead to double benefit. One, we will have beautiful fields full of smiling sunflowers and, second, the farmers will benefit financially.
BAD FOR SOIL
Burning crops
offer no solution. The fire spoils the upper crust of the soil besides burning alive
several insects including earthworms.
Small carbon
particles cause breathing problems for everyone including the farmers living in
the area. If taken for health check-ups most of the farmers will report lung
problems and bronchitis symptoms.
Burn scars remain
in the fields for some time. The farmers leave their fields because there is nothing to grow and cultivate during this period. They wait for the monsoon to set in
and for the rain to wash away the ashes.
TIME FOR
INNOVATIONS
It is for the
government and local administration to prevent the farmers from ‘burning their
fields’. It is for the government to push scientists and engineers to find an
inexpensive and lucrative alternative that is widely acceptable to the
farmers.
Though rules ban
burning in the open they remain ineffective. One thing has become clear for now
that mere laws cannot stop malpractices there have to be better education as
well as better solutions in hand.
If we do not want
to see those golden fields turning black we have to be serious. The seriousness
should be such that we see the end results in the fields and do not end up in
debates, classroom discussions, and tall talks.
The Second Opinion
feels if farmers and scientists join hands the fields will smile and remain
green forever. This is what we all look forward to.
SINCE childhood I have been visiting Varanasi, my ancestral
town, and watching devotees offering water and worshipping the rising sun on the banks of the holy
Ganges. My father also took me to Darjeeling, West Bengal, where we booked a
long hilly drive for Tiger Hill just to have a glimpse of the rising sun. We
were unlucky as the sky was overcast. Nobody could not even notice when the sun
tore apart the thick layer of clouds. The golden sun rays greeted the anxious
tourists with a smile to say a very Good Morning. Everyone understood that its
time to leave and better luck next time.
We were,
however, lucky next time during our visit to Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, where the
sun popped up from behind the ocean leaving everyone spell bound.
The rising sun
is admired worldwide be it tourists or the devotees. It is rightly said that
the rising sun brings with it new hopes and energy for the mankind. It is aptly
said that the “people only worship the rising sun”.
It is true that the world worships the rising sun, but, it is also true
that the beauty of setting sun can stop you on where you are. The setting sun
can be seen anywhere whether you are in a city full of concrete jungle, whether
you are in a village or on banks of a river or in the mountains or in a forest.
The beauty is mesmerizing which no words can describe; simply spare a few
moments, stand still, keep silence and enjoy!
While the rising sun fills you with fresh energy and enthusiasm the sun down
is pure romance which gives you hope that the sun is setting today, to rise
again tomorrow.
MANY PLACES TO SEE: There are many places in the world where people
travel to witness the disappearance of the sun below the horizon. Some of them
are Barcelona in Spain, Swiss Alps, Cairo in Egypt, Florida Keys in USA.
India too has several spots that one can visit to see the golden rays of
the sun down. Some of them are: Taj Mahal in Uttar Pradesh, Palolem Beach in
Goa, Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, Chittorgarh Fort in Rajasthan and many more.
VISIT TO LANSDOWNE: My passion for places took me to Lansdowne, the cantonment town and home to Garhwal
Rifles, in Uttarakhand some time ago
with my family. It was a pleasant surprise for me to learn about the Sunset
Point where one can stop to admire the beautiful skyline in the evening as the
sun goes down at the other end hiding itself behind the hills. Just stay calm,
sip a cup of coffee and drown yourself in the pure romance of nature.
Divine faith and the excitement to get the best view we pushed ourselves
to the Durga Mata Mandir (temple). It turned out to be a bliss. Standing within
the premises of a temple we could not but express our gratitude to the prowess
and beauty of the nature. Nothing can measure your divine feelings as the deity
within the temple blessed us while the sun bid adieu giving the message of yet
another day and new hopes.
I made a small attempt to capture the scenic beauty with my mobile
phone. Lost in admiring the nature’s gift I managed to take a couple of shots
because I knew pictures can be clicked again but the beautiful sight, if lost
once, is lost forever. I must admit that these photographs have been
photoshopped to enhance their beauty.
There may be a sun set everyday but it does not make them any less
special. That is why, perhaps, my wife pulled a broken chair from the temple
and immersed herself in watching
different hues of yellow and red spread in the skyline as the fireball went
down the horizon hiding itself behind the hills.
Second Opinion brings some of the
photographs along with some famous quotes.
Sunsets are proof that
no matter what happens, every day can end beautifully.
When the sun is setting, leave whatever you are
doing and watch it.
A sunset is the sun’s fiery kiss to the night.
Sunrise is the start of something beautiful—the Day.
Sunset is th start of something beautiful—th Night.
EACH one of us,
these days, is forced to live a life that nobody had ever imagined. Corona
virus, better known as Covid 19, has caused tremendous setback to our personal
health as well as the national public health system. Crores of our fellow
citizens, within and outside the country, have fallen ill and lakhs and lakhs others
have even succumbed to the Covid pandemic. The outbreak has not only added to
the miseries to our lives but also changed the way of life, our thoughts, our
mindset, our priorities, our habits and much more.
Today all of us
are living in lockdowns, a term hitherto unheard of. As of the day almost
everyone of us is staying indoors for the fear of catching the infection. Schools
are closed, no office for most of us as only those involved in essential
healthcare services are moving out, markets are closed so no shopping, cinema
halls are closed so no movie or entertainment, all public parks and restaurants
are closed so no place to go and refresh ourselves. The scenario and our way of
life has completely changed and has fored us to find new methods to keep the
wheels of life going.
Our children
never knew about online classes but today attending them on laptop is a
reality. Except IT people nobpody else had ever experienced work from home
culture but today this too is common. Office work, online meetings on zoom have
become norm of the day. With shutters in the market down the online business
thrived. We are now buying everything for our daily needs through various
portals who have evolved newer strategies to boost sales in the wake of growing
‘online competition’.
In nut shell
while we have managed to keep our life going the pace of life has come to a
standstill as a result of lockdowns and disastrous corona pandemic. In the
beginning the whole thing sounded good and many of us enjoyed as there was no
rush to get children ready for schools, no hurrying to reach office on time, no
more tantrums from wife for not taking her for shopping or a movie and no tension
to find a new restaurant to your girl friend on a dinner date. Everybody was
pleased as everything was closed and you were still available either on video
chat or mobile phones. Lots of people tried cooking newer dishes in between
office work and kept the family happy.
Gradually the
happiness started fading and boredom, depression and many such things creeped
into our lives silently. The new lifestyle, the result of corona crisis, has
undergone drastic changes and one has to accept the fact that things are going
to stay the same way for some more time to come. It is, therefore, important
that we adapt ourselves to the new-found circumstances and find better ways to
keep us and our families in good shape.
Here are several
aspects of our lives that have changed.
HEALTH
With restrictions on movement and outdoor travel under
strict ban staying inside has proved to be a curse for many of us. It is now
common to find people suffering from low blood pressure, depression, anxiety,
low feeling, irritation, loss of appetite and many similar symptoms. News of
some near and dear one hit by corona virus affects us as well and leaves us
frightened.
We need to overcome the low feelings and depression.
For this it is advised to perform some yoga or meditation everyday, preferably
in the morning. Say a prayer before going to bed; or at least listen one on
your bedside music system. This will give you great respite from the negativity
surrounding your mindset. This is also a good method to energise your loss
strength.
Take short walks in your flat balcony or the verandah
of our home. Think of happy moments of the day and share them with your family
members. This will help you cheer up and refresh your thoughts.
FIGHTING ANXIETY & DEPRESSION
The pandemic has thrown the biggest challenge of our
lifetime in the form of heightened anxiety levels and causing depression to a
growing number of population across the globe. General physicians have been
dealing with similar like never before. Not being able to move out and
remaining confined to the four walls of your home, no interaction with those
close to your heart, salary cuts, job loss and many similar factors are responsible
for leading us to a medical condition.
Fight low feelings by indulging in some or the other
activity in your home. Experts say you and your family members are the best to
find out a suitable method to keep yourself engaged.
Do you remember your childhood days when all cousins
would gather at one place and play various small, silly domestic games! Yes,
they might sound silly today but they kept you involved all day-long and you
even forgot the lunch time. Refresh those days with your children now. Get a
pack of cards, buy a carom, take out the board games like chess, snakes &
ladder, ludo and much more.
Still have energy and time for more! Sing a song with
your kids and it hardly matter how bad you are at music. Nobody is listening
and there is nobody to laugh at. Just fun. If that does not suit you then play
some music on your Bluetooth speaker and dance with your wife.
Believe it or not, these things will have magical effect
on your mind, body and soul. Try!
DIET
Cooking everyday, eating home-made stuff everyday,
months after months, often becomes monotonous. We all fancy outside food and it
is good to go out to a nice restaurant sometime and pamper your taste buds.
Post covid things have changed in a big way. Initially many of us tried new
dishes at home but over a period of time this too has become a task and is no
more enjoyable. In this situation find an outlet that is catering takeaway food
and get something for your family. This will please everyone.
Staying indoors,
eating all kinds of fancy food and no physical movement to the desired level
has its effect on your body. So better avoid heavy food and switch to healthier
diet plan. Include lot of liquids like soup, juices, coconut water etc as they
are easily digestible. Increase intake of green stuff or such food that is high
on protein and low on carb.
LEND A HELPING HAND
Covid has caused tremendous sufferings and added to
the difficulties of the common person. There are children who have lost both
their parents, there are elderly who have lost earning members of the family,
many families are broken and millions of others have lost their savings.
If you are
capable, fortunate to be safe and blessed to have all the facilities of life do
not shy from asking your near and dear ones if they need any help in any form.
During this global crisis we saw thousands of people coming out and doing
charities, social services and various other acts of kindness without any
outside help or without any expectation. A great salute to all such men and women.
I must say we shall always remain indebted to such persons for their noble
gestures.
BE SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE
The covid has taught us the biggest lesson of our
lifetime—be socially responsible. When we step out we have to wear a mask not
just to guard ourselves but also for the safety of others.
Another covid protocol is to follow physical
distancing. One must maintain a distance of at least six feet from the person
sitting/standing around you. Many people hurry while in a buying goods at a
store and in the process breach the distancing norm. This is bad and this small
mistake could cost you dearly. It is also the responsibility of the shopkeeper
to ensure that only limited customers are present at the shop counter and
follow distancing norm. In fact, many shopkeepers tend to ignore this rule for
the sake of making more profits by way of higher sales. They are more worried
about higher sales and thereby behave in an irresponsible manner. A bad
practice indeed.
Wash your hands
for at least 20 seconds every time you have returned from outside. Keep
sufficient liquid handwash in advance in home so that you do not suddenly run
out of stock.
GREETINGS
Corona has changed the way we greet people. No more
shaking hands or hugging. It is a joy to find that our own Indian method of
greeting people with a Namaste is now universally accepted method. Nowadays an
elbow bump has come into common practice and looks stylish too.
However, a
flying kiss remains unchanged and you can still send some to your loved ones
without any fear.
MAINTENANCE OF GADGETS
With the
advancement of technology many of us have upgraded our homes and have purchased
a variety of gadgets to keep our homes modern. Now that we do not have guests
dropping in many such gadgets do not find much use and are slowly removed to
one corner of the house. Not using several of these machines disables their
functionality. So try each of them at intervals to keep them in running
condition.
The most
expensive commodity in yiur home is your vehicle be it a car or a bike. When
these are not running their batteries get discharged and tyre pressure reduces
frequently. Hence, get the keys and start the vehicle and leave it for some
time. This will help keep the batteries in good condition. If possible, take
the baby out on a short drive around your home. Get the tyres inflated at the
nearby petrol pump oif they are open. It is advisable you buy your own portable
air compressor and fill air in the tyres at home. Plenty of portable
compressors, both manual and mechanised, are available on various shopping
portals. So get them without having to step out.
ENTERTAINMENT
Many of us have
even forgotten when we had last seen a movie in the theatre. With no sign of
cinema halls opening soon you have to find better ways of keeping yourself and
your family well entertained within the four walls of your home. If you have an
old CD play it on your player which was lying idle for many years. Several
movies ae being released on various online platforms and you can subscribe to
one to keep the family hooked. But keep your choice to lighter stuff like
family dramas, comedy, music and dance and so on. This will keep you in lighter
mood and make you laugh with other family members.
GREENERY
A green cover around your home is very crucial to your
happy and healthy life. In cities we find public parks which are not properly
maintained and do not have enough number of trees. If possible get a tree of
your choice and plant it in a park near your home and also nurture it till it
becomes self-sustainable. This will add to the green cover in your area besides
giving you happiness and good health for lifetime. Don’t fotget this is mere
one time investment, less than the cost of one medium size pizza, and you reap
fruits year after year.
If several people in your locality join hands then you
can plant an entire row based on a colour theme or based on some fruit. If you
go for a row of Gulmohar trees then the entire street will burst into red
colour in summers when the tree blooms. What a nice view you get!Similarly, if you have a small row of
jackfruit trees imagine how much of the fruit your locality will grow! The
community plantation will have two-fold benefits. One, you not only make your
area green but also help people get oxygen for free. During covid time we have
seen how much of oxygen was needed to save our loved ones. So why not take a
lesson and do something in this direction. Two, you provide shelter to birds
who are fast disappearing from our cities. Bring them back.
If you do not
have a park or open space around your locality you may decorate your home with
small pots with seasonal plants. With every season you can change the plants
and refresh your home with a riot of colours.
Good plantation
is key to a healthy life. So spend a little and save the society. Perhaps, this
is the best community service we can do.
READ BOOKS
The lockdown and work from home culture has turned
out to be a boon in disguise for the book lovers. Many of them ordered books
through online stores and finished what they wanted to read for a long time.
This is also the right time to inculcate reading habit among children.
Encourage your kids to buy some comics or novels for their age group. Reading
is better than tossing browsers in your mobile phones. You can introduce
yourself to some of the most respected authors, novelists who you have never
read or have always desired to but could not find time.
Unfortunately the covid situation exposed us to a quagmire
situation that barely arises once in hundred years and this took everyone by surprise.
The pandemic unleashed a chain of problems that threatened human lives,
challenged our health system, broke our families, forced us to remain confined
within our homes and put brakes on our outside movement, led us to live a life
of fear and hurt almost everyone of us psychologically leading to anxiety or depression
and destabilised the economy. We had never felt so helpless in the past few
decades as we felt now.
But for the tireless efforts of the medical fraternity
and frantic research work done by the scientists all over the world we can now
hope to bring the pandemic under control. Today we have developed vaccines and
managed to bring down the mortality rate drastically.
The corona virus, whether natural or developed in a
lab, has given us many lessons to learn if we prioritise happiness in our
future lives. Until now we lived in a materialistic world where luxuries were a
must for a comfortable life. We worked hard to add a few more gadgets in our
homes. One car was not enough to define our status, we wanted several
apartments to feel secured, bought jewelleries on every occasion for a small
shine on the faces of our loved ones. Craving to make endless money, by any
means, and well stocked vaults meant that our body language stood out from
others, gave us a reason to walk straight with heads up or talk in a distinct
tone. We never lost an opportunity to spend extravagantly to prove our
superiority, we had competition with our neighbours or colleagues and were
jealous of relatives living a good life.
The way the pandemic hit us and the way we found all
our ‘rich belongings’ utterly useless gives us enough reason to rejig our past
priorities. Time has come when we should relinquish a lot many things which topped
our list so far.
While the whole world is recovering from Covid we
should introspect what was necessary in fighting the pandemic and what has led
to our victory. Obviously nothing has helped even though our treasury was
overflowing, even though we were loaded with glittering jewellery, even though
we had several expensive cars, even though there were several apartments and
agricultural land registered in our name or in the names of our close relations.
Human lives were lost like leaves falling from tree in
autumn and we remained silent spectators to the wrath of nature.
Covid has definitely taught simplicity is the key to happiness.
In a speech delivered in London in 1931 Mahatma Gandhi
too had said, “if you have understood my message, you will eat simple food and
only as much as your body requires, you will be satisfied with small living
quarters, and keep your other ‘needs’ in life to the minimum. You will realize
that if you follow this principle and possess fewer assets you will become
purer and truer person. You will also realize that this body, given to you for
a short time, is meant to be used towards service for others and not for your
indulgence. Then your attitude will change towards clothes, food and clothes
used for our body and for our survival.”
The ‘second opinion’ clearly points to the fact that money
and fame cannot get you the true joy. You get it when you build rich
relationships, a happy home and a healthy body. The size of you home, your bank
balance etc etc matter least to build strong relationship with your family and
a group of dear ones who understand you and stand with you come in good and bad
times equally. Spend a few hours with your family every weekend, take them for
dinner occasionally, travel with the family within the country, at least, once
a year. These are not very expensive but give immense pleasure and satisfaction which
nothing else can give.
It is important to take good car of your health and
stick to a strict diet plan. A healthy food does not cost much; it is only a
matter of correct choice. If you cannot go to gym then then you can definitely
do mild exercise inside the home itself.
So, bring some change
in your thought process, somewhat alter your lifestyle and see how happy your
life becomes.
In the last cherish a lovely poem by Harivansh Rai Bachchan:
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NOTE
Read more articles by me on life affected by Corona pandemic. Copy/Paste the given links to open the write-ups.
1) स्वाद का लॉकडाउन https://apurvarai.blogspot.com/2020/04/blog-post_28.html
