Saturday, April 15, 2006
Memory is too short!!
More than 100 people lost their life in Merrut fire. For few days all newspaper columns and TV news slots were full of this tragedy. Then everybody forgot it and started talking about blasts in Jama Masjid and Srinagar. Politicians visited Merrut and then disappeared. They were doing their duty, and now to attend to elections in five states. Administration underplayed the number of those who died. They were doing their duty. When will we learn? When we will become human beings?
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Most of the people in India have a selective memory.It is not always short. Depending on the situation and interests involved, the memory can be short or long.Somethings people never forget and also do not allow others to forget. Take the case of babri demolition and Gujrat riots - always remembering and forcing others also to remember. Delhi Sikh riots - do not remember even in dreams. It is unfortunate that even in natural and man-made disasters, people play politics. It is their political interests which dominate their thinking and make people forget or remember tragedies.
Merrut tragedy is also such one tragedy. Politicians, administrators, media and of course people, all of them, have been playing their own politics in this human tragedy. No body is really interested to analyze the accident in a systematic manner so that such accidents can be avoided in future. Like all previous tragedies, this will also be forgotten and people will wake up only when another tragedy occurs.
District Magistrate goes to inaugrate a fair. So, no permission is required, no fire clearance is needed, no body need to bother about safey aspects. In short when the boss himself is there to cut the ribbon who is going to raise inconvenient questions? But accidents do not need any permission. They occur and in Merrut an accident occured. People were burnt alive.
Now the administration comes in to action. Switch off the power. Put bulldozers on the job. The first priority is to downplay the number of deaths. Those perished were unlucky. Those survived were lucky.
Media was full of Merrut tragedy. News collectors, cameramen, news readers did overtime. Politicians took time off from their busy schedule. Local people were angry. They wanted action against the guilty. Some weretransferred. The most severe punishment was given to administrators. Relief money wasannounced. In short the known drama was re-enacted. Now every thing has calmed down. Waiting for another tragedy!!
Three organizers of the event have been arrested. Why no body from the district administration has been arrested? If the event was organized in violation of rules then administration is also responsible which allowed the event without ensuring that all applicable rules are complied with.
Such slip-shod investigations are a shame on the government.
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