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Earlier I
stated that majority
Assamese are Followers (Litikai), Coward and Lazy
(Dhwd). Alpana did not agree with my 'coward' part. Dilip agreed to
agree if I use the word 'majority' which I am doing now as that is what I
mean. Much to the annoyance of some netters, I also want to add the
following two or three qualifications to the Assamese. These are that majority
Assamese are also 'Naive' , ' Narrow minded' and 'Self
centered'. Frankly speaking, as a group the whole Assamese nation may
be said to be 'stupid' and without any national 'unity'. I also say that
Assamese may be said to be more 'corrupt' than the rest of the
Indians. This however I leave it to netters general judgment.
While we all know that Indian
'democracy' has its own problems and the GOI has problems in implementing its
share of responsibilities, we cannot deny the fact that Assam's problems are
aggravated by the Assamese themselves because of their above draw backs.
Normally no one would like to highlight these drawbacks of the Assamese and
would rather like to focus on the shortcomings of GOI. That would have been
fine to a limit. However when we try to take the opposite position that
there is nothing wrong with the Assamese people and that all the problems are
there because of inefficient Indian democracy, corrupt and dysfunctional GOI
etc, then however we need to stand up and say what is the reality. This is
important because otherwise we will fail to do any welfare to Assam if that is
our goal. I feel very strongly that Assamese are not doing anything
to help the pathetic situation of Assam other than blaming everybody else, that
most of Assam's problems would not be solved even if we improve the efficiency
of GOI and Indian democracy. For Assam to improve and develop, Assamese
must to improve and develop.
With that is mind I would
like to refute some of the defenses being put forward in the net against
these drawbacks of the Assamese. First let me take the case of Assamese
laziness. Basically Assamese are lazy people. It is a known
fact. Ask 10 Assamese. They would vouce for this. In this I would agree with
Mridul Bhuyan's examples of the situation Assam and want to take
his question as responded by Chandan as an example:
Mridul - How many people in the village
now can make 'khorahi', 'Passi', 'Bisoni'? Is 'burha tamul' is available in the
villages ?
Chandan *** Guess how much time it takes to make a basket, and
how much as a buyer you would be paying to the rural basket maker ( not to the
Delhi shop--they would make out like bandits) for one? Have you ever made a
basket Mridul? Have you seen one being made? If you want to know more about it,
let me know, I will be pleased to spend an hour to educate you. I know all about
it, because I have done it. It is all about time spent and reimbursements
received for it. Still rural folks would make it for their own use, or when
there is not much to do, will make a few to take it to the 'haat', to sell for
at most, five to six rupees a piece, even in today's environment.
This brings us to the issue of
Economy of Assamese
Pasi-Khorahi
Chandan is trying to tell that the
reason why the Assamese villagers do not make pasi-khorahi-saloni any
more is because it takes time and basically it is not economical and that there
is no market for it. Let us take the case very seriously and try to see
what exactly is happening here.
Chandan says that an Assamese
villager would make a pasi (bamboo basket) for Rs 5 or 6 and sell it in hat
(weekly community market) . First this shows how out of reality Chandan is. So
first I would like to give Chandan a raise. Let us give the villager not 5
or 6 but 50 rupees for a good quality bamboo basket because that is what the
present market is. Assamese household in Assam will pay Rs 50 without any
problem for a good quality pasi khorahi. In place like Guwahati a good
quality bamboo basket will probably sell for Rs 75/100. In place like Delhi
(Dilli Hut) these will sell foe Rs 100/150.
Now while this market is there one
will not find in the village hat or in any govt emporium any good quality
Assamese pasi-khorahi-saloni. If one goes to place like Delhi, one will
not find any Assamese pasi khorahi saloni. I did not find it in Dilli Hut which
was full of handy crafts from all other states.
Now let us pause and reflect what
is happening here.
First Assamese are very
fortunate that they have inherited the Bamboo culture which is found
mainly in South East Asia and China. There are not too many places in the
world where bamboo grows. Assam is one. Assamese have inherited the
special skills of making these handicraft. They have this knowledge which
a Bihari or a Rajasthani does not. There is also a market for such products more
than the 'naive' Assamese would like to think. Then the question is why
the Assamese cannot sell it.
The answer is Assamese are lazy to
try to improve their lot.
What is lacking from the above
equation is the Assamese entrepreneurship of some ambitious unemployed
energetic youth who would give contracts to the ignorant Assamese villagers to
supply good quality pasi khorahi at competitive rates (of Rs 50 each) and who
would in combination with others in towns like Guwahati, Jorhat would sell these
in shops and open market (Rs 75 each) and eventually would sell these in Delhi,
Mumbai, Kolkata etc (Rs 100/150 each).
That there is a world market
for good quality Assamese pasi khorahi is evident if one would simply visit say
a Import store in USA like PIER 1 Imports or Target etc. I checked and am very
pleased to find that such Assamese pasi khorahi saloni would sell for
$8/10. (Rs 400/500). This means that in collaboration with partners
in USA, Assamese can sell these to PIER 1 or Target at least at half that price
which is say $5.00 = Rs 250. If some Assamese youth can supply say 1000 such
bamboo baskets to PIER 1 in USA through a middleman, he can sell the lot
for Rs 10/15,000 at least. I have just shown some numbers for case of
analysis. The fact remains that this market is there and all the existing bamboo
baskets or other bamboo products in PIER 1 and other shops are being imported
from Philippines or China or Thailand. It is a question of Assamese learning the
tricks of the trade, learning quality control, learning how to do export market
in bulk quantity and do it. BTW, one may visit the following web sites of
PIER 1 and TARGET and see the actual prices of bamboo products. (www.pier1.com; www.target.com
etc)
At present Assamese are not doing
it because Assamese are not hard working, smart and are willing to
improve their lot like the Chinese, Phillipines and Thai people.
So let us understand the reality
and let us not come up with some false defenses why the Assamese do
not make pasi khorahi.
I fear that this Assamese laziness
is going to cost the Assamese people very dearky. They are going to loose
these skills entirely.
In the next message later, I will
follow it up with the case of 'Assamese Tilika Goru', the Wretched Assamese
Cow-Why and How.
Rajen Barua
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