The tyrst with destiny on the day of independence did not herald good news for many Indians. Most of our population across Attari had to move to India, leaving behind prop-erty and wealth accumulated over generations. The times were tough but so was the collective will to struggle for survival with a strong sense of camaraderie and brotherhood. It was a brotherhood of the victimized. This collective and communal approach to living slowly healed the wounds of partition and gradually life discovered its wheels of progress. The land and relief distribution could not have been possible without the community leaders who rose to handle a herculean task. They supplemented the efforts of the government in a big way.
Many decades later, the communities became prosperous and their strong community bonds got loosened. An individualistic way of life gradually replaced the community living. A new sector appeared on the horizon… Service sector and with its lucrative economy offered all services for a price. There was no need to build strong association with the community any longer. One can live an individualistic life enjoying the full privacy.
However, no one imagined that if everyone shared the same thought who will do ungainful activity of altruistic social service. Sadly, this void of doing selfless social service has been largely filled with career politicians, keen to push their populist agenda to garner votes rather than doing a community service. They treat community like sleepers outside a bathroom…use them whenever the need be!
The reformers and good community leaders are almost an extinct lot…enjoy your individualistic life..why bother for anyone else!
