Republic Day at Roldih Ashram

Some people treat National Holidays such as Republic Day and Independence Day as a religious occasion – especially in the villages here. They don’t eat or drink before the flag is hoisted and they refer to the sweet that is invariably distributed after the flag hoisting and singing of the National Anthem as Prasad (offering to God).

On the project we don’t share the same belief or faith and so we had breakfast as usual. It was chickpeas and tasted quite yummy. And they we got busy preparing for the ceremony. The flag pole had been erected the previous day so only the benches for the guests were put in place in front of the temple. The children did all this. And then Bansi went to fetch our chief guest – Bishu’s wife. She said she would come by 8:30. She was the one who wanted a saree as payment for hoisting the flag. And then later agreed to do it. But she did not show up while everyone waited and waited. Then just as I was about to invite someone to do the honours, Pitho’s wife came rushing in and announced that Saniram’s wife would hoist the flag. She did. And we all sang the National Anthem.

We invited our chief guest to say a few words and all she said was: Please come to school regularly and keep yourselves clean. Then it was my turn to give a speech. So I did. I talked mainly about how we all need to feel united as Indians and rise above caste, region and religion. I told them that my fater was from the East. My mother from the South and I married a woman from the North and I felt completely Indian and that the reason why I chose to dedicate my life to bringing education to this region is because we are all Indians and they are my countrymen. And that I owe it to my country and them to give them what I can. I told them that if I started thinking about caste and region and religion, I should not be here at all. Bansi translated what I said in Santhali. I don’t know how many people understood what I was trying to tell them. But they listened with attention.

Then we distributed sweets and savouries – first tot he school children, then to the other children who had come, to the women and then to the men who were present. It went off rather well and smoothly except that we had to try to unfurl the flag thrice because it would not open properly during the first two attempts. How embarrassing!

The rest of the day was spent relaxing. But the masons insisted on working and so did the labourers. The repairs are almost complete. They should finish by tomorrow. Balai did not come to paint today. He had gone to bring coal for us. He arrived in the evening with it and so missed out on the ceremony. But we had kept aside some sweets for him. He was happy to have his Prasad.

The girls are all probably leaving on the 2nd of February. They are already feeling sad about leaving. That’s the pity. It takes visitors at least two weeks to get into the groove of things. And if they are coming for a short period, then they have to leave just as they settling in and enjoying their stay. Renee wanted to stay back. But since she has already informed the police she wishes to stay for only one month, it would be difficult (though not impossible) for her to stay on. Besides, Nilambar will be joining the project from 1st February. And I would like him to start off when the project is without volunteers so that he gets used to the routine. We don’t always have volunteers, so he should know what life on the project is like when there are no visitors.

Bhola was here for the ceremony. He brought the sweets. This evening he left for Kolkata. In fact, his bus must have left Godda by now. He’s going to Kolkata to deliver some important documents to Mitali and also pick up the school caps we have ordered.

Dani and Tak had very kindly agreed to pay for them. Ren and Kaz too have offered to pay for the presents we plan to give the children on Saraswati Puja day. These are children who came first, second and third in their respective classes in the final exams held last December. It’s really so nice of these girls to make this offer and I’m quite touched by their gesture. They have promised me that when they go back home they will help raise money for us to build a well on the compound. In fact, the girls are giving me some money right now so that we could start work on the well immediately. That’s great! The well will not only provide a convenient source of water for the children to take to the toilet, but also provide water for irrigating the field we have. This means we will be able to grow our own vegetables and perhaps lentils too. And of course we will be able to plant more trees.

Well, the day has come to an end. The flag has been put away. The temple lamps have been lit and we are waiting for Suman to strike the dinner gong. It’s been a great day for us here. I hope Republic Day has passed off without any mishap in the rest of the country. And I am hoping that one this day at least, we are all feeling one.