You never know when enlightenment descends. It need not be under a Bodhi or apple tree. For me, it came in the form of a clerk in our village office. All it took was a simple act of starting a journal. Our professional association wanted to launch a journal, a very normal thing to aspire for, in this age of communication and dissemination of information. The application was to be made out and submitted online by the association’s general secretary.
Again a very normal procedure and I had to do it, being the general secretary of our association. Up to this point, everything was moving very normally. As per the new procedure, it was to be a two-stage process: our application had to be cleared at the local level, through the local body here and then it was to be sent to the Registrar of Newspapers, New Delhi, for the ISSN, register number and other stuff. And what formalities! There was to be a police verification, as if I were on the run from law. Then came the call from the village office.
Would I please go there with all the required documents, please? I went, armed with our association’s annual reports and financial statements for the previous two years. “No, ma’am. We want yours, since you are responsible for the publication and it’s your address that is given.” How absurd! The publication was to be brought out by the association and it is its financial health they should be worried about.
Why should they bother about mine? “Sorry, ma’am. Please provide your salary certificate.” “I’m retired now.” “Then give your pension slip.” “Mine was not a pensionable job.” I was cursing my fate and he, his. The poor clerk scratched his head. “Can you provide the survey number and other details of your property? That will be OK.” I scurried home to get the details. My husband was furious. “How can you? It’s not in your name!” “I don’t know about that.
All these years you’ve been telling me all you’ve is mine, too. Better do something about it, fast.” “Are you mad? Just for some stupid journal, I cannot just hand over everything to you! Tell them they have to be contented with the association’s assets.” Realisation dawned. I owned nothing; I had nothing, after 36 years of government service and 42 years of home service! I am still hopeful. I heard that government is thinking of fixing the wages of selfless homemakers like me. Hope they pass it at the Houses pretty fast, to restore my self-esteem at least.
Email: maashu1@gmail.com