Readers' Forum
Problems in Udvada
Living in a multicultural society as we do here in India gives us a wonderful opportunity to observe a great variety of lifestyles. It is fascinating to see how people of diverse religions celebrate their festivals, conduct ceremonies and take part in religious services, or even how they approach their place of worship.
Many Tibetan Buddhists, for example, when they go on a pilgrimage, instead of walking, prostrate themselves on the ground every few steps and that too over the entire stretch, mostly in very cold and hilly terrain! Or certain Catholic pilgrims when approaching their holiest shrine walk on their knees, even climbing the stairs in this manner.
I do not imply that Parsis should do all this; we are not even expected to. But is it necessary to be driven in one’s car right up to the gates of our holy Iranshah Atash Behram in Udvada, especially when one is young and able-bodied, and then to instruct the driver to keep the motor running so that the car remains cool while one is inside, thereafter speeding away, oblivious to the pollution left behind, and in the process almost running over some poor pilgrims on foot? In order to protect the Iranshah from crumbling through pollution, there should be a ban on cars in its vicinity, except in certain difficult situations.
It is becoming increasingly difficult to negotiate the streets of Udvada gaam (village). The local young men seem to be in an awful hurry and race their motorbikes at full speed, breaking all possible traffic rules! I have even seen a 12-year-old riding his brother’s motorbike with the full approval of his parents! In the absence of any authority in the village, there seems to be only one solution to this perennial problem: speed-breakers. And the sooner they are installed, the better.
Another problem which seems to be getting worse with time is the beach at Udvada. Just when one thinks it can’t get any filthier, one discovers that it can! Udvada is such a pleasant and prosperous village; if only the gram panchayat could take better care of it, how lovely would it look!
On a different tack, the political party, Shiv Sena, ably managed by three generations of the Thackeray family based in Bombay also has a presence in southern Gujarat. The Valsad jilla (district) pramukh (chief) is a Zoroastrian called Shahin Jamshed Mehershahi (Irani) who runs the Parsi Dharamshala next to Udvada railway station. This is a good move; Parsi/Irani presence in local as well as national politics should be encouraged.
From Udvada we move to Daman. The Daman Agiary has a full-time priest, but no full-time assistant to clean and maintain it. No doubt, some helpful young local Parsis/Iranis do visit the Agiary at regular intervals and work hard to clean the place, but in the absence of a permanent assistant the priest, who is not very young and walks with a stick, has to take care of the entire premises on his own. Since the Agiary trust doesn’t have sufficient funds for a permanent worker, it would be most welcome if some Parsis/Iranis could make generous contributions or pledge a certain amount on a regular basis in the form of a monthly salary. If you are interested in contributing to this noble cause, please get in touch with Dosabhoy Oliaji of Duke Hotel, Devka, Daman 396210, tel 0260-2254251/2251292 in order to keep our Daman Agiary fire burning.
Many Tibetan Buddhists, for example, when they go on a pilgrimage, instead of walking, prostrate themselves on the ground every few steps and that too over the entire stretch, mostly in very cold and hilly terrain! Or certain Catholic pilgrims when approaching their holiest shrine walk on their knees, even climbing the stairs in this manner.
I do not imply that Parsis should do all this; we are not even expected to. But is it necessary to be driven in one’s car right up to the gates of our holy Iranshah Atash Behram in Udvada, especially when one is young and able-bodied, and then to instruct the driver to keep the motor running so that the car remains cool while one is inside, thereafter speeding away, oblivious to the pollution left behind, and in the process almost running over some poor pilgrims on foot? In order to protect the Iranshah from crumbling through pollution, there should be a ban on cars in its vicinity, except in certain difficult situations.
It is becoming increasingly difficult to negotiate the streets of Udvada gaam (village). The local young men seem to be in an awful hurry and race their motorbikes at full speed, breaking all possible traffic rules! I have even seen a 12-year-old riding his brother’s motorbike with the full approval of his parents! In the absence of any authority in the village, there seems to be only one solution to this perennial problem: speed-breakers. And the sooner they are installed, the better.
Another problem which seems to be getting worse with time is the beach at Udvada. Just when one thinks it can’t get any filthier, one discovers that it can! Udvada is such a pleasant and prosperous village; if only the gram panchayat could take better care of it, how lovely would it look!
On a different tack, the political party, Shiv Sena, ably managed by three generations of the Thackeray family based in Bombay also has a presence in southern Gujarat. The Valsad jilla (district) pramukh (chief) is a Zoroastrian called Shahin Jamshed Mehershahi (Irani) who runs the Parsi Dharamshala next to Udvada railway station. This is a good move; Parsi/Irani presence in local as well as national politics should be encouraged.
From Udvada we move to Daman. The Daman Agiary has a full-time priest, but no full-time assistant to clean and maintain it. No doubt, some helpful young local Parsis/Iranis do visit the Agiary at regular intervals and work hard to clean the place, but in the absence of a permanent assistant the priest, who is not very young and walks with a stick, has to take care of the entire premises on his own. Since the Agiary trust doesn’t have sufficient funds for a permanent worker, it would be most welcome if some Parsis/Iranis could make generous contributions or pledge a certain amount on a regular basis in the form of a monthly salary. If you are interested in contributing to this noble cause, please get in touch with Dosabhoy Oliaji of Duke Hotel, Devka, Daman 396210, tel 0260-2254251/2251292 in order to keep our Daman Agiary fire burning.
ABAN BANA
Udvada
abanbana123@rediffmail.com
Udvada
abanbana123@rediffmail.com
◆ ◆ ◆
From the archive