REFLECTIONS
ON 31ST DECEMBER 2018
(ALSO DOUBLES AS A NEWSLETTER)
So
2018 has also ended. How am I and how has been the year?
For
somebody ensconced in the Governor’s exalted but totally powerless chair, there
are hardly any ripples, let alone waves. No responsibility either, unless one
happens to be in Jammu and Kashmir or unless something really untoward happens,
as had happened during the very short time I was Governor of Arunachal in 2016.
During
the last year for the first eight months I was Governor of Tripura. The year, however,
did have some ripples. For one, there was a change of government in Tripura – a
sea-change, I must say. Not that I had anything to do with it, but people
either congratulated me for it, or accused me, depending on where they stand
politically. But I can say this in good conscience that I had nothing
whatsoever to do with it. I had reasons to be sore, not very seriously but sore
nevertheless, with the outgoing Chief Minister Shri Manik Sarkar, but I don’t
think he can accuse me of any unconstitutional behaviour. Towards the end of
his reign I wanted the Home Secretary and the Director-General of Police to see
me in connection with a murder charge against a police officer and a few other
issues, but he would not let them see me. It embarrassed the poor Chief
Secretary, who was in the middle, no end. I remember earlier he had crossed my
path once in regard to the appointment of an Officer on Special Duty for me. It
was quite unjustified, in my opinion. I had to put my political skills to work
to get my way. However, relations between the two of us on the surface were
good, and the usual courtesies were not lacking either on his part or mine.
Following
the change of government the new Chief Minister Shri Biplab Deb took office in March
2018. He, of course, treated me like an elder brother. It’s a pity I got so little
time to work with him.
A
Governor normally has no chance to make any personal contributions to the state
he is governing, but I can honestly name two achievements in Tripura. The first
was the completion of the new Raj Bhavan and moving in there in April 2018. My
civil engineering expertise and experience came in very handy in this task, as
also in the second. The second was the improvement of National Highway 44 – not
in Tripura but in Assam, from Churaibari border to Badarpur Ghat in Assam. This
was and still is literally the lifeline of Tripura, but the Tripura government,
for reasons that I know but cannot state just now, was not taking up the issue
with either the Assam government or the Union Surface Transport ministry. I did
what I could and the road is now quite good. I am grateful to Shri Nitin
Gadkari, Union Surface Transport minister, and Shri Parimal Suklabaidya, Assam’s
minister for PWD for their help.
Towards
the beginning of August I got an indication that I was likely to be moved. No
reasons were forthcoming. Then the Union Home Minister called me up to say that
I was being posted in Meghalaya. To tell the truth, I was VERY happy. I had
wanted to go to Odisha and had told him so – no major reason, except that my
wife spent her childhood in Rourkela, and she would have been very happy to go
there again as first lady. Also I am a nature lover, and Odisha offers more
than enough to any nature lover. But Meghalaya is almost equally inviting, and
had other attractions. I was sworn in here on 25th August 2018, and became
the temporary resident of the incredible Raj Bhavan here – British-built, of varnished
Burma teak. Coming to Shillong as
Governor is like a homecoming. I had spent a very significant part of my
childhood here, at Muktakeshi Lodge, Jail Road, till 1952, and I am familiar
with the town of Shillong like the back of my hand. My next younger brother
Saugata (Trinamool Congress MP from Dum Dum, West Bengal) was born here.
There
was a time – till the nineteen eighties – when we had nearly a dozen relatives
in this town, one of whom was my father’s elder brother Dr. Naresh Chandra Roy
who had built a huge house at Laitumkhrah, and was our closest blood relative. He
had died in 1977, but his family was still there and I used to visit them every
other year when I was in college, and even afterwards, quite frequently. His
second son Hiralal, known in Shillong as Harold Roy, was a minor celebrity in his
time. He was a colourful character and a
Guru to us, who taught us many lessons in life, some good, some not so good. My
family, both on my father’s and mother’s side, had been settled in this town
since the early twentieth century. Even my wife’s maternal grandfather, Paresh
Lal Shome, was the Advocate General of Assam in the 1940s and a resident of the
town. As such, this town was a second home for us after Kolkata. But those
relatives had gradually left, either for Kolkata or for the ultimate destination
of everyone, and right now I have only a distant relative here, in Laban. But I
still feel very at home here, and have struck up a very nice and affable
relationship with the Chief Minister Conrad Sangma.
Things
are all right on the family front. My wife Anuradha is a little overcome with
the cold here (around 6o C in the mornings and evenings, likely to
get worse). I am enjoying the cold, and also the fact that all my heavy
woollens and stuff like a North Face windcheater are finding good use here. My
daughters and grandchildren in the US are also fine. The grandchildren, Surya
Kiran Rao (12), Uma Rao (8) and Leon Khedekar-Roy (1) are coming along very
nicely, God bless them. This year in July we made a trip stateside and spent a
lovely time with them. I have planned to tour the state, but so far have made
it only to four district headquarters besides Shillong – namely Nongstoin,
Nongpoh, Khliehriat and Jowai, besides Sohra (Cherrapunji), Shella and Dawki.
Garo Hills are still untouched. Hope to cover it in the near future.
And,
oh, I’ve been busy tweeting. In my conscience I have never crossed the line
that the Constitution sets for Governors, but a lot of people don’t think so,
and throw brickbats. Aw, what the hell, this is a democratic country, and I
have never been a stranger to controversies, nor reputed for political
correctness.
Goodbye
for now. See you on 31st December 2019.
