Thursday 30 August 2012

Onam at BSF Camp:


It has been a season of disgust. 

The political scenario has been very messy.  Corruption cases are coming to light every day.  The famine is gripping several parts of the country.  Protests, strikes, accidents and all chaotic things around us that we are used to - are in full swing.

In the middle of this, something refreshing and rejuvenating happened to me.

I was called  in the celebration of Onam by the I G ,Border Security Force (BSF), Gujarat Frontier at Gandhinagar.  I went without much expectations ,but returned with full excitement.

Onam is celebrated in Kerala, just after the rains when the rain flowers spring out of earth and rice stands heady heavy and ready to harvest.  The snake boat races, flower carpets, rice dishes and a whole range of festivities happen in the Malabar coast.  And here, far away from the coast and in the heart of BSF camp, the Jawans and  Officers of all Ranks with their wives and children celebrated Onam with great commitment.  Traditional food, flower arrangements, cultural events and a whole lot of goodwill to each other.

The Border Security Force not only safeguards our lives and national boundaries.  They demonstrated that they safeguard our cultural diversity and national integrity by celebrating Onam, in a distant land from the festival's origin.

For me, it was a realization that at the core of our great institutions like the BSF, India is still alive with its traditional values of national commitment, sincerity and brotherhood.

V.K. Saxena,
President,
National Council for Civil Liberties,
Ahmedabad




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