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THE harrowing tale of tyranny of the then British Raj has literally been painted in the Nildarpan, a historic drama by Dinabandhu Mitra.
The drama was once included in Bangla syllabus at the secondary level; it aimed at letting students know how innocent people of the then British-India were subjected to torture and intimidation.
Dinabandhu Mitra in his drama narrated how poor farmers were forced to plant indigo instead of rice. The rulers used to take away the produce throwing poor farmers into a sea of torments. Even they were not given the due share of indigo harvest. As farmers were forced to plant indigo on the land traditionally meant for rice cultivation, they had no alternative but to starve. And any violation of dictates would lead to inhuman torture in cells.
Little emphasis is now laid on the subject of subjugation by the then British rulers for long two hundred years and that by the Pakistani tyrants for 23 years at a latter phase. But the trails of such misrule are still left in different tiers of administration and social life. There was a gulf of difference in understanding between the rulers and the people. Masses were always in search of a chance to hit back at the rulers. Such an attitude prevailed during the whole colonial period.
People of the then British-India and East Pakistan could hardly think of owning any establishments or offices. A sense of coercion to work always haunted their minds. They had developed an escapist attitude to evade duties at workplaces whenever possible. The attitude was not unjustified on the part of the employees.
Employees of public offices and establishments used to think that they had been serving the colonial rulers which would, in turn, deliver no good for them. The more the employers used to enforce dutifulness, the more employees tried to evade work. As a result, the situation led to major loss in terms of productivity and development as a whole.
What happened after the independence? It is 34 years that the nation earned independence at the cost of a sea of blood. The main purpose of the Liberation War was to establish a society free from all sorts of exploitation. The country achieved political freedom. But economic progress is still a far cry. But why?
The finance minister recently pointed out that the foreign exchange reserve was not comfortable. According to statistics available, inflation is as high as six per cent and cost of living has gone up. He is too vocal about the ubiquitous corruption and anomalies in different offices both public and private. Terrorism and price spiral are exacting a heavy toll on life.
The size of economy has expanded. Private sector has grown much. The theory of nationalisation has been given up. The country is trying to keep pace with the market-oriented economy as a signatory to the agreement under the World Trade Organisation. But the performance of the public sector is frustrating. Lack of accountability, misuse of funds and politicisation are rampant in every sector of the economy. Public sector employees are still inclined to believe that they are serving anyone else other than the cause of the country. So productivity is the biggest casualty.
On the other hand, there has been strong enforcement of duties in the private sector. As the job market is very small, employers take the advantage of the situation. They can easily employ an MBA at Tk 2000 or Tk 3000 a month. And for years together their performance is not evaluated leading to loss of interest in work at offices The situation has come to such a pass that employers want employees to work for a longer time at a minimum wage and employees tend to work less for lucrative package.
The misunderstanding and lack of coordination thwart all efforts to build a skilled workforce in the country. Launching a business and making money overnight can never be the purpose of building a developed nation. And those who are devoid of morality are the enemies of the country. Malpractices resorted to by them breed corruption and help spread terrorism in society.
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