THE RETURN FROM THE FOREST Oil on canvas, 36 x 30, 2006 Artist - Ranjit Rongpi Private collection, London The people in the hills have hardly been touched by the concept of modern development - they live by the bounty of nature and live in complete harmony with the environment surrounding them. They know edible leaves, mushrooms and fruits lik eno one else. Fishes in the stream and game in the forest ensure that they are have food. Unfortunately, that was in the PAST TENSE. Now the forest is a source for corporate greed - exploit them for the sake of national growth, tear apart the forest cover, scoop up the top soil so that the minerals could be excavated and transported back to the industrial bases out of which companies and corporations can increase their stake at the Stock Exchanges and enjoy the global culture. But what happens to the people who have been living in those forest cover since time immemorial? The water at the streams have dried up, many indigenous plants and animal species have disappeared. There is food scarcity. The government forgets these people and are left to fend for themselves. They migrate to towns and cities and live in ghettoes. While inside the sprawling living room of the corporate masters, champagne flows and flows till it reaches the coffers of the Swiss banks. The once proud people can only say SO BE IT
Posted on: Sun, 04 Jan 2015 03:31:12 +0000
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