Letters to the Editor: Of State Politics

Of state politics

With the advent of assembly elections, our state’s political activities are hotting up. In today’s cutthroat politics one cannot trust others, as stabbing in the back has almost become routine among the politicians. In this regard, let us talk about our so-called opposition unity comprising the Congress, RJD, AJP, Leftists and the AIUDF. Akhil Gogoi, the RJD chief, was seen taking a very active role in forming opposition unity and was seen as a spokesperson of the opposition unity bloc. Lurinjyoti Gogoi of AJP was nowhere to be seen, as he carried minimum political weight because of his poor performance in the last few elections when he lost in all the constituencies from which he had contested.

Then came the big surprise. One fine morning, we saw Lurinjyoti Gogoi with Gaurav Gogoi and Rahul Gandhi in Delhi, leaving Akhil Gogoi high and dry. Lurinjyoti Gogoi, as an ex-AASU general secretary, surrendered to the Congress, a party responsible for the martyrdom of 855 indigenous people in 1983. It will be interesting to watch Akhil Gogoi’s next move, as his present Sivasagar seat does not seem to be very secure.

Joel Gayari,

Tangla

Indigenous Muslims in Assam

The news article published in your esteemed daily on August 27, ‘Don't treat indigenous Muslims on the same footing as immigrants’, has drawn our attention. Taking the current situation in the state, a socio-economic survey of Assam's Muslims has become indispensable, and it is the most effective tool for gathering in-depth information and insights on the numerous facets of a population's well-being, economic progress and social structure. According to the last census, Assam had a total Muslim population of more than one crore, making up more than thirty-five per cent of the total residents of the state. The state government should give its in-principle nod to the initiative of a socio-economic assessment of five Muslim communities, namely, Goria, Moria, Deshi, Syed and Jolha, after recognising them as indigenous Assamese Muslims. Now, a question arises: why is this survey necessary? It has become essential to explore the many facets of the said Muslims' lives, including their living standards, employment status, educational attainment and access to healthcare. If the government exerts itself on time-bound assessment of the five indigenous Muslim communities living in the state, there is no doubt that honest execution of framed policy measures will surely be marked as a well-set vision and mission of the popular government to pinpoint the main causes of inequality and social exclusion and take appropriate action by closely examining income inequality, employment trends and educational attainment discrepancies of five Muslim communities in the state for their all-round development.

Iqbal Saikia

Guwahati.

Burnout phenomenon

Workplace burnout is an exceedingly common phenomenon that arises when work-related stress is not efficiently managed. Pessimistic and indifferent workers, appearing drained and weary, point to burnout.They are disconnected from work, besides being exceedingly irritable at the slightest pretext.Unfortunately, these individuals tend to carry their symptoms home, and that may lead to unmanageable consequences. Although these manifestations can be alleviated with appropriate measures, including a human touch, a recent report in a psychology journal has said that a shift towards ‘extremist’ ideas could be a catastrophic offshoot of workplace burnout. Leaning towards radical thoughts may occur subsequent to fear and sadness that generally accompany burnout. Burnout workers may, of course, not take recourse to violence on their own but may develop a distinct affinity and justification for violent ideas. The report of the American Psychological Association’s ‘Psychology of Violence’ is another grim reminder for all stakeholders that a balanced work-life and flexible options at work, together with sympathetic and empathetic employees, are too important to be overlooked.

Dr Ganapathi Bhat

(gbhat13@gmail.com)