Travelogue of an Itinerant Mind

Luck, fate or chance, whatever you call it, gave me (and many of my colleagues) an opportunity of being a presiding officer in the on-going general elections. Personally, it was an enriching experience, except a few hiccups here and there. I had glimpse of the  process and the efforts that go into making election a successful exercise in the world’s largest democracy. Here is an account of my experience of being in charge of a polling booth in Od isha’s Jagatsinghpur district. 2 nd phase of the general election in Odisha was  scheduled  to be held on 17th April 2014, but we were supposed to report to the district administration on 15th April to meet other team members, collect the Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) and other related materials and then to proceed to our designated polling booths.  Before going for the election duty, all of us were given training on our duties,  responsibilities and were warned about the consequences of a failure. The training...

Last Tuesday Odisha celebrated its Foundation Day, commonly known as Utkal Divas. A function was organised by the administration in the township club. A renowned dance group was hired to perform at the function; one performance was an Odissi and the other was “Chhau” (I didn’t attend, had read the programme schedule). Snacks were distributed. People enjoyed the performance and went happily home. Same evening, some 200 kilometres to the west in Dhenkanal (a district of Odisha), a family of four committed mass suicide, due to poverty. Next day in Office, one of my friends was inquiring two of us about our absence from the function last evening to celebrate Utkal Divas. One of us quoted the news from the morning newspaper about the mass suicide and in turn asked our 1st friend, “What have we achieved to celebrate Utkal Divas?” He had no answer. In a broader sense, the question can be extended to any celebration of national importance. Should we really celebrate Republic Day, Ind...