Amidst the bone-chilling cold weather, warmth is visible everywhere in Bihar. Leave aside the talk of politics. Its temperature remains high throughout the year. These days, the temperature of another pillar of democracy, bureaucracy, is also making new records. The situation is such that nowadays people are lighting less bonfires and enjoying the burning news more. What's more, people have also reduced watching laughter shows!
The matter is something like this. Every now and then something strange happens. A few days ago you must have seen the news of Ranji match. Not one, but two teams from Bihar had come to play against Mumbai. Both claimed that they were the real ones. In the end the decision was taken regarding free style wrestling. Well, it is fortunate that the decision was taken and the reputation of the state was saved from falling. But the power-game of bureaucracy is even more interesting. New twists and turns every day. See how.Education department in discussionThe one which is at the center of all discussions was earlier called Human Resource Development Department. There was more pain in the tongue while speaking. Many did not even understand whether this was a department responsible for increasing population or controlling it. Now it is simply called Education Department.
A new senior officer has come to this department. Very harsh tempered. Often remain in the headlines. Sudhi Pathak must know this. The journalists also keep waiting for the officers to say something and they will directly report the news in their name. The news will not run, it will run. This is the era of keywords, tags and social media.
When the public said- Wow, wow!The public was very happy with many works of the department. Teachers who came late to school and remained late in school were ignored. Those who come when the bell rings, but it seems as if the evening has come for those who teach the bell. Jobs were also distributed liberally. There was a competition between the two big parties in power to take credit, but those leaders had no match among the army of bureaucrats. There was a lot of applause. Till now everything was fine, but this story had to go through many twists and turns.list of decreesStrange orders kept coming one after the other from the senior head of the department. The public kept laughing with a handkerchief over its mouth. An order came that the names of children who did not come to school for three consecutive days should be struck off from the register. A completely unique initiative in the history known till now. No one asked back why, under which law? After all they are children. Children are the emperors of their own minds, not bureaucrats.There is an order that the head of the school where the attendance of the children is found to be less than 50 percent will be made to stand in line. Many people remembered the old story of 'The Pied Piper of Hamelin'. When a juggler played the flute in the town of Hamelin, all the children of the town followed him. It seems that the time has come to hand over the same flute to the school heads.One rule is that any teacher will get his application for casual leave approved before time, and then he will be able to go on leave. Someone might ask why it was named 'Accidental'? Keep in mind that mail culture is yet to come here. Can't even use WhatsApp. That means, constantly stay in touch with astrologers and babas. Know in advance what misfortune is going to happen to you.
One rule is that more than 10 percent of the teachers of a school cannot take casual leave simultaneously. Now the children are enjoying Masterji. Why? Some teachers deliberately allowed the children to solve only those questions whose answers came in fractions and the children were troubled. Now due to ten percent issue, Masterji's holiday itself is coming in fraction!cold war of bureaucratsThe conversation started cold. Now a cold war has started in this harsh cold. First understand its background. In fact, when the cold increases, schools for small children are closed in many states due to cold wave. Schools closed, meaning only small children (up to 8th class) will not go to school. Older children will go to school because they have to prepare for boards. In such a situation, in view of the cold wave, in some districts of Bihar, the District Magistrate imposed Section 144 and banned small children from going to school.
Those big officials of the education department did not like this thing. My department, such is the order of the DM! He issued orders to open schools for everyone. The argument is that the 'tradition' of closing schools in the name of winter is wrong. Apart from this, children's education is disrupted, the teachers' habits also deteriorate, it is necessary to keep them in discipline.What kind of traditions!If you look closely, many traditions are actually wrong. Great men take incarnation only to uproot wrong traditions. History books are full of such stories.
Firstly, the new tradition of extreme cold and extreme heat that is emerging across the world these days should be stopped. Secondly, the tradition of not going to warm places when it is very cold and not going to hill stations when it is very hot is also wrong. Look, markets and malls at many places are filled with colorful warm clothes, yet if someone refuses to buy them, then this fashion is also wrong. It is even more wrong to attribute economic crisis as the reason behind this.There are so many notes in the society that even machines have to be ordered to count them. In such a situation, if a brother and sister both live in the same old sweater and go to school one by one, leaving one day aside, then such a tradition is also completely wrong!
And the limit is reached when a child dies while coming to school in the cold. Newspaper headlines show that two-three such accidents have happened in Bihar this season. But if this happens, then it is wrong to blame the stubbornness of the department for this.What happened to the fight?Now let us come to the outcome of the Cold War. There was a clash between the senior officers of the education department and the District Magistrate on the question of 'wrong tradition' of holidays in winter. An endless series of correspondence went on from both sides. The District Magistrate continued the ban under Section 144 by using his judicial power. But the officials remained adamant on sending the children to school.
The dispute almost reached the threshold of the High Court. Children are also confused, the system is also confused. The language of letter writing is such that anyone remembers his mischievous childhood. All these letters are easily available on WhatsApp. That's why instead of lighting bonfires in the cold, the public is just laughing through teeth!
Amresh Saurabh is a senior journalist… has been working in 'Amar Ujala', 'Aaj Tak', 'Quint Hindi' and 'The Lallantop'…
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are the personal views of the author.
