Watch-out !

Coming back to my blog after a long long gap! Watch out !!!!

English Bashing !

        The controversy over languages is nothing new in India. The battle between Tamil and Hindi as well as other such skirmishes are well known. However the constant “enemy” and favourite whipping boy has been the English language! The mantra for all our politicians from earliest days has been – when in doubt hit out at the English language. Abuse it, ridicule it and pin all the woes of this poor country on it. But when it comes to educating your children or grandchildren – seek out precisely those institutions that propagate the use and teach that language.

        India has the unique advantage of having a number of languages which have developed so fully and completely that they are in no way second to any international language be it Spanish, French or English. For example just to name a few like Tamil, Marathi, Bengali have the kind of depth flair and reach of any international language in the world. But then all of them exist in one country – India. Hindi as a language is a latecomer and in many ways the kind of official Hindi that’s used only by AIR and the Government is quite artificial. The original “ Hindustani” was a far more robust and lively language – borrowing freely from whichever language Indian or international that was convenient. On the contrary, the official Hindi borrows strictly from Sanskrit.

        The question then arises as to why our forefathers chose to push Hindi at independence? I have a sneaking suspicion that they knew very well that the language of advancement would remain English but the excessive stress on Hindi and even the other regional languages to the complete black out of English in Government run or aided schools would provide a large section of “followers” disadvantaged by the fact that they didn’t know the language of the “elite” – English. There was also another deep rooted plan. Once Hindi was to be the official language there would obviously be a large demand for those who already spoke that language at the dawn of independence. Employment in Government jobs would be assured and therefore came a large brigade of Government employees from four major states of the north of India, their only qualification being that they already knew Hindi! Sometimes I wonder how the rest of the country never saw through this plan? The “myth” of official language Hindi is perpetuated continuously by the Government of India and its parliamentarians. The MPs on the Official language committee have a field day thundering at departments and public sector and other institutions officers about the use of Hindi. It’s a charade on both sides – 3 hours of abuse and then three days of much needed rest, recuperation and gifts in a 5 star resort at an exotic place.

        I wonder whether the founding fathers ever seriously considered the adoption of Sanskrit as our official language ?  It’s not as ludicrous a suggestion as it may seem at first blush. Remember the Jews adopted Hebrew, an ancient language considered “dead”, at their independence and it is the official language of the State of Israel. Would it have been tougher for us to learn Sanskrit rather than Hindi? Perhaps it may have been but it would have saved the country a lot of trauma and turmoil. Besides spreading the net of Government sponsored language jobs all over the country rather than restricted to the four states! Sanskrit teachers could be found all over India at independence rather than Hindi teachers who were in a few pockets. But that is side tracking the issue and we may spend no more time on the adoption of Sanskrit as the official language. Now it is too late and perhaps possible only after 50 or 100 years when our children’s children search deeper for their roots!

        The English language is now our only remaining edge over the Chinese. They have beaten on every other score – from the sports field through the economic road and even down to the battle field. Even the Chinese acknowledge this advantage and are now desparately trying to close the gap. The fact remains that while the rest of the country understands and knows that the “language of opportunity” is and shall remain English our politicians and leaders find it a convenient non-issue to drum up. Its like the drum of “patriotism” one can beat it as loudly as one wants and side-step all the real issues that confront the country. Rather than face reality and accept the fact that facility in a language doesn’t mean a loss of heritage or culture, many of our leaders would have us believe that knowing English makes for loose morals. Janus like they would never dream of their children not attending those “ English medium” “ convent schools “ and being highly proficient in that language.

        History tells us that India suffered the most whenever it turned xenophobic. The English language provides a window into the outside world – after all it’s the international lingua franca. It is said that over 61 countries speak English more than double those that speak French or Spanish. Internet penetration by language is highest in English. Now with the Chinese also opting for English over other international languages – world commerce will be conducted more and more in that language. And we Indians who have such a head start, such an advantage would be a pitiable lot if we threw away that advantage. Instead of concentrating on improving the way English is taught and making it available at the basic schooling level, we find it easy to indulge in English bashing as an easy way out. There is also another constituency that these so called leaders address when they rubbish English – precisely those whose sole claim to employment is knowledge of Hindi imagine if all the Hindi officers and Hindi departments were to be suddenly closed !?!? More importantly if now new recruitment of “Hindi officers and staff” was to be done? But to speak positively about English is to be not just unpatriotic but down right treacherous. Again reality is diametrically opposite – how come so many “unpatriotic “ young men and women are competing just in one university that the cut off for the Honours Bachelors programme is the highest in all disciplines.

        Its about time the death knell was rung on this constant debate and English bashing.

The other day I happened to read a column in a newspaper about "the illusion of the past". The author seemed to be from my generation and was writing about how that illusion is just that an "Illusion". To those who glorify the past and here I mean specifically the decades of the sixties and the seventies - need to take a harder look at those decades.

For one who grew up in those decades, I would term them as the "deprived decades". Growing up partially in a big city like Delhi and partially in smaller Jaipur. The only window to the outside world in Jaipur, where I went to shcool, was the radio - mostly AIR, occasionally BBC and VOA. I remember staying awake late into the night listening to the VOA over a crackling transistor radio ( a huge technological advancement to the tube based radios!) for a direct feed from NASA as the first man landed on the moon in 1969. Contrast that with direct pictures over tv that now give u real time feeds. TV didnt exist and movies ( english ones ) came after a minimum of six months after their releases abroad. In Jaipur it took longer for the "latest" movies to arrive. Magazines were limited - the Illustrated Weekly of India ( pre Kushwant Singh phase) which printed your black and white wedding photo if you sent it to them! Sports & Pastime was the other magazine that was popular with us for obvious reasons. For "titilation" one of your friends would pass on to you a copy of Filmfare or Femina ! And that about completes the list of magazines - magazines in the vernacular in those days didnt merit serious consideration.

There was such limited choice in all the simple things that make schools so exciting these days and are available in large numbers and different qualities. Things like satchels, stationary, bags, writing instruments and so on are now available throughout the country - even in very small towns. We had a choice of two bags - one an aluminium bag and the other a First World War vintage webbed khaki soldier's backpack. Everyone carried lunch to school, not in fancy lunch boxes or tiffin carriers but in used JB Mangaram's toffee and sweets tins. How healthy, how nutritious - how boring !

These were the decades of India's total isolation from the outside world. Import substitution and strict controls on foreign exchange meant not even infrequent travel abroad. Thus going abroad was a big event - I remember my first look at a spanking new Boeing 747 ( the Jumbo) acquired by Air India sometime in 1970 thanks to Dad's friends in the Customs. I remember as I walked through the length of the plane and marvelled not just at the fact that the plane was fabulous but also that so many people were in it  and all going "abroad". No wonder the craze for "imported' stuff and thier realtive value. No one will believe it today that not one boy in my class had a pair of Levi jeans and probably not more that a couple in the whole school !

What the deprived decades made most of us do was to take to reading - what alternatives did we have ! The school library became  almost a daily habit and authors like Alistar Maclean, Helen MacInnes, Len Deighton, Ian Fleming, Eric Ambler etc were devoured like popcorn. Voracious reading became the order of the day and this allowed us to develop not just a facility with the language but also fired our imagination. The school was much more than merely a teaching shop, it was a place where one could look forward to for something interesting each day. Unlike schools these days which call in parents to complain about their children, in our case it was mostly parents seeking the schools intervention to keep their kids in check!

I will stop for now and perhaps talk more about the 70s in my next post.

Delhi 4

There is another unique thing about traffic in Delhi - the use of flashers ! Every second car seems to have a red flasher. Visiting VIPs and some not so VIPs from neighbouring states use blue flashers and orange flashers. The world over blue flashers are used only to denote emergency vehicles but not so in Delhi.
I understand there is code on the use of flashers but I am sure its not being followed. The Traffic authorities in Delhi cant have their writ running over citizens of Delhi, so there is absolutely no question of neighbouring states following any rules and regulations in Delhi.

Delhi 3

Delhi 2

The great benefit that one derives from driving in Delhi is improving one's reflexes. You have to be sharp and react quickly. For example the driver just in front of you may decide to do one of so many things. He or she could signal a left turn and turn right, or do the opposite, or could brake suddenly for no apparent reason (he forgot his turn some metres behind and just remembered so what else to do but stop!) and so on. If you presumed that just because the driver was clipping away at a steady pace on a clear road in front of you and braked suddenly making ur front bumper just kiss his rear bumper - you had it ! Obviously you are at fault, he didnt hit you - you did ! Then you have to contend with other forms of transport on the roads besides cars, the scooters or autos ( these are the original Spitfires of the Battle of Britain reborn on the streets of Delhi) the motorcyclists, the cyclists - the list is endless. The other thing one must learn very quickly on the roads of Delhi is to distinguish the registration numbers of the other vehicles. If the registration starts with an "HR" means that the vehicle belongs to a neighbouring state well known for the rags to riches story and the wild arrogance of new money - traffic rules ??? whats that ???!!! I own this road ! The other registration, which one must treat with as much respect as a truck or bus is the one which starts with "UP". Please do remember that with a "UP" registration the driver has double "O" status. If you happen to mess around with one of those you may just realise that its a literal case of "have gun will travel". Then there are registration numbers which are not painted on a white background plate but yellow. God help you if the yellow plate has a an "HR" or better still a "UP" number ! But I like these guys they are the only ones who can make a match out of a game with the trucks or buses. Dont ever for a minute think that you could afford to be courteous on the roads of Delhi - all of us Delhi drivers derive great perverse pleasure in oppressing the "courteous " which in our lexicon is the same as "weak". Any signs of weakness on the roads of Delhi and you may as well stay at home or ride a taxi. For example if you are stupid and foolish enough to allow someone to overtake you ( unless its a bus or truck - in which case you go absolutely to the farthest side of the road slow down and let him pass) be sure that as he passes you by he may side swipe you or run you off the off the road !
(To be continued)

Delhi 1

Everyday in the morning I travel from home to work and watch the way people navigate that short route - Chanakyapuri to Rafi Marg. I love it ! Delhi is probably the only capital in the world where total freedom is celebrated on the roads. Its a delightful place to drive! Delightful because driving is unfettered; no rules except the universal one - survival of the fittest and fastest. As long as you remember that size does matter on Delhi roads. Thus in the pecking order the pedesterian is the last priority. The highest priority is to the buses and trucks - never fool around with them on Delhi roads. They are superior beings on the roads and must be given due consideration, respect and latitude. Some drivers do try and compensate by putting stickers on their rear windows or bumpers, which variously read "ARMY" "POLICE" "NAVY" "DOCTOR" " MP" or simply the surname. Anyone from Delhi will tell you that one doesnt mess around with certain surnames!

But getting back to why driving in Delhi is delightful. Where else in the world can one be in the right lane right next to the traffice light and when it turns green (on those few occasions when you condescend to stop at it ) take a sharp left turn ! A few honks and a few choicest expletives is all that you have to contend with as you merrily zip across into the left turn.
(To be continued)