In the Bishnupriya Manipuri dominated areas we fail to flex our muscles, in Delhi it is a different story altogether.
By Rishikesh Sinha, New Delhi
In the recently held meeting of the Nikhil Bishnupriya Manipuri Mahasabha in New Delhi, a clear and bold message came out that the Bishnupriya Manipuri people living in the capital are beacon of the society and they must be strong. Now, the million dollar question is, are they indeed the trailblazer of the whole community? If yes, are they strong enough to carry the expectation-burden of themselves and at the same time that of his kinsmen? The picture seems bit cloudy, if not crystal clear.
It’s a fact that the Bishnupriya Manipuri people residing in the capital region, considered to be the largest populace in comparison to other metropolitan cities like Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai, have already decided their destiny, a destiny it is said changes with the change in the place. They have involuntarily accepted how their life would be dealt with in the high-entropy city called Delhi. Shifting to Delhi from their cosy, well-to-do village life, they have opted to lead a life they themselves do not know.
Not a fun game
In the island of communities in Delhi, the Bishnupriya Manipuri influx in the city has been too late. One could say they are just sprouting like saplings in the fertile land of Delhi. Would it be a wise decision to treat the saplings like a full grown tree? Obviously not, since there is a factor called wear and tear of nature. The just-sowed plants have to be nurtured, taken care of from the cruel hands of nature. So, that they in the due course of time become huge, shadow-giving trees.
Everyone will agree, staying in Delhi is not a fun game. Staying itself is a struggle, everyday, every minute you have to struggle for your existence. Sustenance is as hard as nut. With the fact that money rules the roost; one needs a deep pocket to live a moderate good life. However, we people are not in the position to take on any blue-collar job in the name of livelihood that people from other community can do, and are doing. It is something, we are genetically programmed and it is not in our DNA. Consequently, at the end of the day, we end up doing or engaging ourselves in the so called decent-looking jobs and thus leading a hand-to-mouth livelihood.
Hand-To-Mouth Lifestyle
A major and very crucial drawback in the hand-to-mouth lifestyle is that a minimum two-month stoppage of money could trigger a chain reaction, raising question mark on our mere existence in Delhi. And God’s sake if it persists for months we will be thrown out as garbage, out of Delhi. Unfortunately, maximum of the people living in Delhi, barring a few, come in this bracket. Those few, they have one entity that is soaring like anything, it is the possession of real estate. A piece of land and constant inflow of money, definitely, allows us to take a sound sleep and to have peace of mind.
In this backdrop of living in a hand-to-mouth economy and not possessing real estate in Delhi, Bishnupriya Manipuri people living in the capital cannot be strong and vibrant. They have a long way to go before they can become pure Bishnupriya Manipuri Delhiites. Forget political power, areas like Palam and Sagarpur where our concentration is high, there is a doubt how many of them can actually exercise their franchise!
Let us wait till Commonwealth games gets underway in 2010. The year would be a litmus test for all Delhiites, ironically the test applies to us as well: Survival of the fittest.
However, the Bishnupriya Manipuri people living in Delhi with meagre resources have been doing their best in contributing what they are capable of for the society. Let us hope the coming years be more vibrant, colourful and enthusing.
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By Rishikesh Sinha, New Delhi
In the recently held meeting of the Nikhil Bishnupriya Manipuri Mahasabha in New Delhi, a clear and bold message came out that the Bishnupriya Manipuri people living in the capital are beacon of the society and they must be strong. Now, the million dollar question is, are they indeed the trailblazer of the whole community? If yes, are they strong enough to carry the expectation-burden of themselves and at the same time that of his kinsmen? The picture seems bit cloudy, if not crystal clear.
It’s a fact that the Bishnupriya Manipuri people residing in the capital region, considered to be the largest populace in comparison to other metropolitan cities like Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai, have already decided their destiny, a destiny it is said changes with the change in the place. They have involuntarily accepted how their life would be dealt with in the high-entropy city called Delhi. Shifting to Delhi from their cosy, well-to-do village life, they have opted to lead a life they themselves do not know.
Not a fun game
In the island of communities in Delhi, the Bishnupriya Manipuri influx in the city has been too late. One could say they are just sprouting like saplings in the fertile land of Delhi. Would it be a wise decision to treat the saplings like a full grown tree? Obviously not, since there is a factor called wear and tear of nature. The just-sowed plants have to be nurtured, taken care of from the cruel hands of nature. So, that they in the due course of time become huge, shadow-giving trees.
Everyone will agree, staying in Delhi is not a fun game. Staying itself is a struggle, everyday, every minute you have to struggle for your existence. Sustenance is as hard as nut. With the fact that money rules the roost; one needs a deep pocket to live a moderate good life. However, we people are not in the position to take on any blue-collar job in the name of livelihood that people from other community can do, and are doing. It is something, we are genetically programmed and it is not in our DNA. Consequently, at the end of the day, we end up doing or engaging ourselves in the so called decent-looking jobs and thus leading a hand-to-mouth livelihood.
Hand-To-Mouth Lifestyle
A major and very crucial drawback in the hand-to-mouth lifestyle is that a minimum two-month stoppage of money could trigger a chain reaction, raising question mark on our mere existence in Delhi. And God’s sake if it persists for months we will be thrown out as garbage, out of Delhi. Unfortunately, maximum of the people living in Delhi, barring a few, come in this bracket. Those few, they have one entity that is soaring like anything, it is the possession of real estate. A piece of land and constant inflow of money, definitely, allows us to take a sound sleep and to have peace of mind.
In this backdrop of living in a hand-to-mouth economy and not possessing real estate in Delhi, Bishnupriya Manipuri people living in the capital cannot be strong and vibrant. They have a long way to go before they can become pure Bishnupriya Manipuri Delhiites. Forget political power, areas like Palam and Sagarpur where our concentration is high, there is a doubt how many of them can actually exercise their franchise!
Let us wait till Commonwealth games gets underway in 2010. The year would be a litmus test for all Delhiites, ironically the test applies to us as well: Survival of the fittest.
However, the Bishnupriya Manipuri people living in Delhi with meagre resources have been doing their best in contributing what they are capable of for the society. Let us hope the coming years be more vibrant, colourful and enthusing.
Please SUBSCRIBE to the Bishnupriya Manipuri Blog.
You have hold the nerve Rishi.... just for an information to the readers ... a shop of 250 sqft in a place like Khan Market or Connaught Place is equally priced to 3000 sq ft commercial area in Manhattan , New York... and a 2BHK flat in South Delhi is equally priced to a villa in CA.... a recent survey says...
ReplyDeleteDespite .. the BMs present in Delhi are trying to mark their presence and do their bid to escalate the community ethos...
Comment by Shri Rebati Mohan Sinha
ReplyDeleteDear Rishi,
As a matter of fact,what you have observed is quite correct, in the sense ,the B M Society in Delhi is like a sapling, not full grown, as far as the source of income is concerned;but our views defer from that of yours.In my view,making Delhities strong is to motivate them to feel they are all united whenever any social requirement arises.I do agree, you have pointed out that the exodus for Delhi from Assam-Tripura was quite belated.People never dared to come to your city for lively hood,even people never visited
Gauhati in those days which is in Assam.We rely on youngsters like you to take the BM society ahead.