ANU RANJAN

...and there’s mayhem & destruction being caused throughout the nation. Two days of rain & the interiors of the swanky new T3-IGI Airport at Delhi are flooded. Two more days and the streets of Mumbai are like flowing rivers. Another day and buildings are collapsing across Mumbai. Another day and an entire state is practically demolished, towns are wiped out, hill sides have given way, roads have disappeared, thousands of lives are lost and the whereabouts of tens of thousands of stranded persons are yet to be accounted for.

Yes, nature’s fury cannot be predicted but this wasn’t nature being ferocious. These are normal rainy days in our country. It’s due to inadequate & inefficient infrastructure that we experience the same turmoil year after year but we don’t learn our lessons. The civic authorities couldn’t care less. Blame games start immediately, at the first sign of trouble and everybody gets busy passing the buck. It’s outrageous. It takes havoc of this magnitude and media attention of this kind for us to even sit up and pay notice.

As reports are indicating, the government of the Uttarakhand region has apparently allowed rampant mining & construction to go about unchecked for years and now the Chief Minister has the gall to blame a “cloud burst” for this devastation. Preposterous! The PM and his High Command apparently did a chopper recce of the area but have not a word to say. Our Home Minister is busy reprimanding the opposition for doing the same recce. Our PM-in-waiting, Prince Charming, is apparently holidaying in Spain but it’s not like we’d have gotten any word from him either ways. No words of comfort are being spoken and no reassurances are being given. What kind of people rule our country, really?

Kudos to the television journalists, the media in totality, the armed forces and the people of this nation who are generously donating their time, money and necessary supplies to help & support all through this difficult time. Our thoughts are prayers are with all those still in the troubled areas and we are wishing they all reach their homes safe and sound, soon.

And, before I conclude, picking up where I left off last time, following all those controversies & complications pertaining to the IPL & BCCI, the Mumbai Indians did finally win the IPL 6 - but somehow (even for us Mumbai Indian fans) there was no real pleasure in this win. Maybe we’re being too skeptical about things but the Chennai Super Kings lost most unconvincingly! Whether it was or not, the final seemed too “fixed” - almost like Dhoni & team had been given instructions to ensure that the Mumbai Indians be allowed to win. Either the win was for Sachin (being his last IPL game) or just to please the Ambanis or just to convince us that a Chennai win hadn’t been “fixed” – whatever it was or wasn’t, the fun was definitely taken out of it.

On that note, it’s goodbye for now. Hope the rest of the monsoon season is pleasant and compassionate to all of us. Enjoy it and until next time, happy reading!



ANU RANJAN
anu@indiantelevisionacademy.com