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Kumod
Jha, Where Are You?
Ever since I started reading PatnaDaily, the
name Kumod Jha has always been prominent in the
Readers Write section. His letters were well
thought out and relevant, his sincerity
transparent and his comments reflected a certain
bonhomie which is infectious. I looked forward
to reading his articles from which I learnt a
lot. His comments have always been a stabilizing
force especially when discussions got a little
'overheated'. Like the consummate diplomat he
trod with caution, armed with only amicability.
Of late he has kept a very low profile and apart
from an article on fission and fusion on March
7th he has pretty much remained anonymous. I
thought Mr. Siddharth Verma's letter on Sonia
Gandhi or Mr. Ravi Pandey's question 'When India
Will become America' and the subsequent comments
would have galvanized Kumodji to respond but
alas, silence it seems is still golden.
If I, a visitor to this site for a relatively
short period, have missed you then I'm sure that
those who have walked this path for a much
longer time surely would. As busy as you must
be, please spare a little time for PatnaDaily
and for one who has unilaterally declared you a
good friend.
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Comments: |
Thanks
for being so kind and affectionate
to me, sir. To be honest, I felt a
bit embarrassed to read this
appreciation for me in presence of
so many diggajs (veterans). I am
just a small twinkling star in this
galaxy of PD.
A month back, I came to India. Then
The Editor had shut this section
down temporarily. I was reminded of
an incident at my school. During a
lunch break, I ate a pomegranate and
threw the rind inside the classroom.
When the teacher found it, he gave
an ultimatum to the entire class to
declare the culprit. My class was
always united when it was between
the teacher and the class. Just the
way our political parties were
united against the Lokpal bill. He
could not break the loyalty of my
friends who wore an ignorant look at
that moment.
In my school, suspension of a class
was not considered a punishment;
that was something for us to
celebrate for. The way the
adjournment of Lok Sabha sessions is
rejoiced by the members. I was too
scared to confess my crime. The
duster had a hard wooden grip.
Removing one's palm from the target,
just when the duster-weapon is about
to strike, was considered an
absolute denial of the teacher's
fundamental right. He would
retaliate indiscriminately in
protest. After the group ordeal that
day, I felt guilty for being selfish
and coward. I could not guess how
the teacher felt on punishing the
whole class, though. I am no
teacher, neither am I an editor to
understand such things.
A week after I came back, I took a
leave of two weeks to celebrate Holi
with my family at home. Journey to
Bihar always has the potential to
inspire an article. A stay of two
weeks would indeed result in an
epic. I got some interesting topics
to write again. The cheap Airlines
flight from Chennai to Kolkata, the
taxi ride from Dumdum to Howrah,
private petrol pumps, the
significance of a mosquito repelling
coil inside toilet, the security
inside the Deoghar temple, the Kadua
Tel (mustard oil) massage in the
courtyard, the ripening papaya in
the neighbor’s orchard, the villages
with no young man, the delicious
Malpua and Dahi-bada and so on. I
brought some Bihari cookies (Thekua)
and nimki for my friends in Chennai.
But, then some very unfortunate
incidents have happened. Give me
some time to recover and hopefully I
will join you soon. - Kumod Jha -
Apr. 3, 2006
Looking forward to your articles
Kumod Jha. Regards. - Shruty -
Apr. 4, 2006 |
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