Baisakhi has turned into a grim affair

Gurbachan Jagat

Former Governor, Manipur

Baisakhi is here — Baisakhi, the season and the festival associated with the harvesting of the wheat crop in Punjab and the start of the traditional new year. Bihu to the Assamese and Pongal and Ugadi in the South are similar festivals of the harvesting season and the new year.

Baisakhi used to be a season of joy, a season of fulfilment, a season of activity and, of course, it was on this day in 1699 that Khalsa Panth was born. Before mechanisation, farming was purely a manual effort — the cutting, the threshing, the winnowing, the separation of the grain from the chaff. The farmers proceeded to the mandis, and the mandis buzzed with the activities of the arhtiyas and the buying-selling. Money changed hands and the farmers and traders went home with jingling pockets and goodies for the children. It was time for bhangra and other joyous activities, provided the weather and the gods remained friendly.

However, each passing year shows us the fragility of our agriculture sector, which today is further threatened by climate change. Things have gone awry this rabi season in the north of our country because of a drought in the winter of 2022-23, followed by a wet March. The drought stunted crop growth and the rain as well as high-velocity winds swept the crop to the ground, thereby spoiling the quality and quantity of the grain.

Since farming has been mechanised, the combine harvesters on which the farmers have become dependent are not functional wherever the crop has been flattened. Manual labour is the only alternative, but there is a shortage of labour and the rates have shot up. All in all, it is a losing game for the farmer because the mandis will not easily pick up the grain spoiled by the rain.

The political leadership, as usual, is promising the moon, but I’m not sure about the delivery of the promises. By now there should have been a methodical outreach to the farmers, the mandis and the buying agencies. MLAs, ministers and bureaucrats should have reached the countryside, inspecting and delivering on the ground. On the surface, this should have been the minimum reactionary process, but how about finally waking up to and implementing a more thought-out approach to agriculture? Climate change is here, as is the damage done to our water table, the soil — not to mention our health — by this continuous nurturing of rice and wheat cultivation, fuelled by the extensive use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides.

Most of our heirloom seeds are lost today, as are the traditional crops of sorghum, millets, barley, groundnuts and pulses. The age-old crop rotations, patterns and seeds were lost to the Green Revolution and a nation striving for food self-sufficiency. A new plan was needed to migrate to sustainable farming. Sadly, this plan was never developed and the farmer has been left to plough his lonely furrow and we the people are losing out on the variety and bounty which our land can give. The quality of the produce on our table is intrinsically linked to the farm; we ignore it at the cost of our health and that of future generations.

Baisakhi was also the season when the faithful thronged gurdwaras and temples. These were pilgrimages and added an air of a great joint celebration. All roads leading to these holy places were dotted with langar sites where volunteers made you stop and partake of the food. Even otherwise, festivals today everywhere do not create the anticipation they once did; they now create apprehensions. Before any major festival, advisories are issued, alerts are sounded, additional Central forces are sent, flag marches are held. In some places, violence takes place, cases are registered and some miscreants held, but how about the plotters of this violence, what about the hidden hand? As far as my knowledge goes, no significant leader or group has been picked up in the hundreds of riots that have taken place since Independence. Commissions of inquiry have been set up and their reports are likely gathering dust in the corridors of power or secreted in vaults where no light falls upon them. Such inquiries normally bring out the causes of the riots and suggest remedial measures for the future. There must be underlying causes for situations that are triggered by the flare of a single matchstick, the raising of a single slogan.

The governments, on the other hand, appear to be busy coping with rioting linked to festivals, especially during processions, where agents provocateurs have instigated trouble; this has been observed in West Bengal, Karnataka, Bihar, etc.

In Punjab, a new threat has loomed on the horizon and an organisation, practically non-existent till a few months ago, is making headlines and becoming the focal point of political discussion. The people are yet to be taken into confidence regarding the origins of this so-called movement, its organisation, its membership and leadership.

Also, where is the financial aid coming from? Where are the arms, if any, coming from? All these questions need to be answered urgently because all kinds of conspiracy theories are floating around. Hundreds of young men have been picked up and released and a few of them have been sent to a jail in Assam. What does their interrogation reveal? Finally, what about the leader who is on the run and why do the police seem to be on a wild goose chase? He seems to be seen everywhere, but found nowhere. All these questions need to be answered because to the common observer, there does not appear to be any great movement going on in Punjab. The vast majority of people are busy with the harvest. The least the government can do is to call a meeting of all political and religious bodies, take them into confidence and seek their cooperation in handling whatever problem the government foresees. From the harvesting of wheat to the ‘looming danger’ to the state, Baisakhi — a festival of joy and prosperity — has turned into a grim affair.

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