Where are our Hindu and Indian icons? We cannot wait on the politicians because they are too busy honoring Baron in Debe. When politicians cannot see heroes among their people, they are certainly falling over a precipice. They become blind and numb to the wishes of the people while they give credence to a Sodom and Gamora fantasy.
I was traveling to south Trinidad with my radio on Jagriti listening to the program ‘Maha Sabha Strikes Back’. I listened intently to Vijay Maharaj, Secretary-General of the Maha Sabha, raising ‘some matters of interests.” His first concern was to protest the closure of schools on Wednesdays for sanitizing and he was appealing to the Ministry of Education to implement sanitization on evenings so that classes cannot be interrupted.
Mr. Maharaj then moved on to another matter of interest-Balvikas. Most readers would know that Balvikas is a flagship program of the Maha Sabha that highlights the cultural talents of the youths of the Maha Sabha’s schools. It is a comprehensive program that involves teachers, parents and other talented musicians, dancers etc. from the community, all joining hands to stage one of the finest cultural events in the country. Knowing the value and necessity of Balvikas, Mr. Maharaj said that “a committee has been formed to look into the staging of Balvikas” amidst the Covid 19 Protocols, if only virtually.
I felt joyous as I listened to Mr. Maharaj. Here I was listening to a gentleman who has the future of children in his hands and was aware of his duties and responsibilities. He was not only keen on ensuring a strong academic platform for his charges but also providing them with a cultural mooring so that they would be able to have a sense of identity to help them to surf in turbulent situations that life throws up time and again.
I began to trust that if the many Hindu organizations share similar interests for their membership, the Hindu community would definitely be in a better place. Are they doing anything positive to lift the Hindu community? I know for a fact that the Chinmaya Mission has a series of satsangh (108) throughout the country to bring dharma to the people.
Doesn’t a business develop by providing a need to the community? What are some of the needs of Hindus that would get them active in organizations? One issue is health. It is a major challenge for many Hindu families. Diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and stroke are not alien to the average Hindu family. Is there a movement to restore health to the people? Preventative health care such as developing an exercise routine and a proper diet can go a long way to alleviating this scourge!
What about poverty? Are we identifying the poorest families to ensure that they have the basic needs for survival? Or, are we leaving that to the churches? I know that SEVA TT is doing some work in this field and there are many Satya Sai devotees who are doing some kind of outreach not only in food and medicine but also in building homes.
What about our farmers? Many don’t have proper titles to the lands they are cultivating. Access roads to the lands to bring out harvest remains a dream. However, if there is some kind of pressure group, it would go some way in highlighting the unfair allocation of resources from government to government.
Do our vendors have legal representation when they are evicted from selling along the roadside? I know for certain that when Charlotte Street vendors are served eviction notices, they have free legal representation. However, when vendors along the Divali Nagar stretch were evicted no legal representative from the Opposition came to assist.
Where are our Hindu and Indian icons? We cannot wait on the politicians because they are too busy honoring Baron in Debe. When politicians cannot see heroes among their people, they are on the path to destruction. They become blind and numb to the wishes of the people while they give credence to a Sodom and Gamora fantasy.
When no one is coming forth, the ideal response is to rise up and organize. It is an organization that would provide the personnel and other resources to tackle the needs of the day. So long as a few can stick together and act in the best interest of the majority there is going to be positive results. Only victory must come our way!