This piece of writing here is not intended for extolling the charms of the book or for eulogising the novel's popularity it wields among its readers. Perhaps, the novel itself, I think, has been written with a purpose. Beyond the scope of the author's literary pursuit, the clear mapping of the contemporary life in India after the advent of globolization of the economy in the book meticulously stripped naked the deep division caused in the society. Society has been seen distinctively divided between the un-opportuned majority people and the miniscule group of the so called entrepreuners, in matters of economy, education and social status. The novel strives to register that globolization and market driven economy have dredged deep division in the society, the depth of which is increasingly becoming bottomless and unfathomable.
Let us for a moment, stray away from the imaginative pursuit of Adiga in his epistolary novel and ponder over the statement of the learned Finance Minister of India, which he had made during the Economic Editors' conference at Delhi recently.
While the economic melt-down, on its spread, swallows and evoporates and sends into posterity and oblivion even the strongest and capital-centric economic structures, even in the farthest corners of the globle, the Finance Minister of India has declared that recession is no where near India. While the compulsions of the FM in rejuvenating the sagging morale of the business community and the industry leaders, is understable, does the FM's statement reflect the correct picture ?
Mr.Finance Minister, if it is not the recessional effect, what then was the recent incident concerning Jet Airways, in which young boys and girls were shown full-throatedly crying and shedding tears in the streets of Mumbai, Delhi and many metropolitan cities of the countries for having been shown the exist door of their hard-earned employment ? Was witnessing such an incident a mere illusion and mirage viewed from the myopic eyes ?
Many IT companies are in the process of silently throwing axe on their probationers. "Pink-slip" showing symbolic culture has started sending shock waves among the young engineers. Lack of clear labour laws governing IT and ITES industry in the country, has led many ITeans and Engineers to silently accept the wounds and scars of hire and fire weapon idealogy.
Sir, for a common man in the country, these economic terms like the melt-down, recession, inflation, Bullish, Bearish, etc. etc. are all bulll-shit. Price rise of commodaties is going in leaps and bounds. Price of tomato in the vegetable market tumbles like cricket ball in the hands of batsman - going from singles to fours and sixes.
Periodical bouts of statistical information on the economy by the Pay commission protected officers will not help stop the shrinking of peoples' bellies for want of food at reasonable rates. Edible oils and pulses have become rare commodities in the life of people in the country. But then, our Ruleers are honourable men. What they is correct and nothing but truth.
Mr.Finance Minister, can any one have the guts to deny that, though de-regulation of economy has opened opportunities for entrepreuners to test their abilities to explore untrodden territories and untested business ventures, market economy and deregulation have opened flood-gates for carving deep division in the society as haves and have-nots .
Banks are vying with each other with killer instincts that IT industry engineers are lured to their credit card net to make them permanent paupers for the rest of their life. Many engineers are trapped in the unreasonable conditions of EMI and interest rates. Melt-down and recession have been sending jitters of losing their jobs and consequently the burden of repaying credit-card loans has been driving many a youngester into psycopaths, leading to suicidal tendencies. Similar is the case with house-owners in America that preceded the Housing bubble.
Despite engaging the country in LPG (Liberalization, Privatization and Globolization) as early as in 1990, the Human Development Index as assessed by the UNDP on India has shown a pulverized negative indicator, even as late as in 2005. India, has been accorded 128th place among 177 countries in terms of HDI value. In terms of Life expectancy at birth, we stand at 125th palce. In adult literacy. India has attained the 'pride of place' at 114.. Gross enrollment ratio in combined primary, secondary and tertiary education is indexed at 122nd place. In per capita income, we stand at 117th palce. Then, what is the point and pleasure of self-boasting about the mightiness of the Indian economy ?
We are an honourable country with a herd of honourable self-styled leaders. Common man is also deemed an honourable man in times of elections, honourably eating and digesting all these statistical commodities as if his insatiable belly has been ducted down with saliva-secreting food.
We, the people of India having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a sovereign, socialistic, secular and democractic republic, give unto ourselves liberty, equality and justice in economic, educational social spheres . But socialism has become a despicable word in the on-slaught of market driven economy. Secularism has multi-faceted meaning depending upon the ruling and opposition political groups in the country.
Sovereign powers vest exclusively with the elected ones and never was with the people. Equality in opportunities has been bartered away long ago. The politics of caste-based reservation has created ripples of reverse discrimination, endlessly leading to spew venom and hate among caste affiliates. Talking of meritocracy would be short of engaging oneself in Kafkaesquen style of imprisonment. Social justice is justifyably confined as edicts in constitutional law books only.
The maximum the way-ward market economy has done, is the creation of a special breed of real estate terrorists, wealth-concentrating maphias and the creation of a contemporary society devoid even iota of humane element. Society has been divided on caste and communal lines and no body seems to be bothering about it.
If it is for John Osborne's protogonist to become angry, in the author's novel 'Look back in anger', for making the contemporary society, in which he was living, into a souless society at the unleashing of mechanization during the Industrial Revolution in the 18th century, Aravind Adiga's protogonist, Balram Halwai, the murderer-turned-entrepreuner justifies the killing of his employer-cum-foreign returned-filthy rich son of a land lord, on the logic that killing of his master was the product of class-war fare and therefore, it was right.
Such an attitude, even though fictional, is growing up in the society in real terms and therefore it should touch our national conscience for enagaging ourselves in soul-searching exercise and compell us to take corrective action, so that the Indian economy and its society are moulded and made, bristling with human content to serve even the poorest of the poor in the society.
It's now bye from Chandru.
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