I guess it is not a new concept that cities and metros and megapolises all grew from an embryonic village.
I guess it is not a new concept that cities and metros and megapolises all grew from an embryonic village.
Bengaluru originated near city market and with Kempegowda's efforts it grew into a cluster of semi-urban settlements. Over the years its diversity increased.
We had a healthy mix of animistic worshippers who worshiped nature gods. Later there were Muslim warriors who settled and bred families, sometime of mixed breed. Settlers of various skills and traders came or were recruited by the ruling powers to enrich the economy of the city and its surroundings.
One of the large imports were agriculturist and horticulturists. The Goan and Christian farmers moved south to escape the persecutions and proselytization. On one of his campaigns in Tamil Nadu, Tipu Sultan was impressed with the methodical approach to agriculture of Tami farmers (tigalas) whom he settled in the village of Siddapur near Lal Bagh and integrated the whole process.
I don't quite understand how the multilingual angle entered the picture, but it did. Inevitably with size and ambition came conflict and jealousy.u00a0
It is quite a long way from the Bangalore of 1950 to the BBMP of this millennium.
Concrete has reared its head, like partheniun (Congress Grass) once did. There is no such thing asu00a0 distinct and separated villages. It has become like Kerala of a different design.
A strange paradox is the result. When humans first encroached, animals and reptiles had to move out. By and large they readjusted their places in the scheme pensioners paradise of things. I lived cheek by jowl with a nest of cobras who probably grumbled 'The types who are taking over this neighbourhood. It used to be such a pensioners paradise'.
No longer four families move into their gated gardens (even a harmless rat snake) they get the snake catchers.
One mosquito bite brings on an epidemic of sprays and fumigation. But for a long time the reptiles and the rodents learnt how to keep safely out of harm's way. Beautiful traffic jams blossom at every intersection,u00a0u00a0
But by and large the pecking order of the animal world knows how to live and let live. But not so with the human snake. The conflict is allegedly about religion or language, but it is actually about vote-banks and land grabbing.
As the Mahatma repeatedly asserted, there are enough resources for everyone's need but not to satisfy everyone's greed.
And another of the Mahatma's sayings, specially relevant now (I have it on a gruesomely effective poster) 'An eye for an eye would simply make the whole world blind' With that cheerful parting thought for Muthalik, Modi, Varun (Gandhi, what an irony of a misnomer). Maneka and the various madarasas and jihadis of the country.
Someone in a TV debate was arguing that democracy is not perfect. But it's less imperfect than most other systems of governance we know.
But this is not democracy. It is mobocracy. And we are no longer the peaceful conglomeration of villages which we used to be.
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