Desperate measures

They are skipping lunch. They are giving chase to top politicians. They boycotted Republic Day celebrations. Their parents have been inducte...

They are skipping lunch. They are giving chase to top politicians. They boycotted Republic Day celebrations. Their parents have been inducted for sit-ins. Bihar8217;s students have put the state on notice. It began with a protest against the kidnapping of 14-year-old Kishlay Kaushal of Patna8217;s Delhi Public School. And as an agitation after impromptu agitation sets off chain reactions, it has expanded to amplify outrage over news of every subsequent kidnapping. By last count, four schoolchildren had gone missing in the state in the past fortnight alone. But in a society with little visible inclination to organise protest without organisational support, to dwell on statistics would be to miss the import of what8217;s happening in Bihar. Because, the emerging battle being waged by these schoolchildren is also an assault on the numbing coldness of statistics.

For far too long the analysis has been unnervingly pat. In Bihar, they say, a kidnapping industry flourishes. To be successful is to mark oneself out for abduction. Just in recent months intimations of Bihar8217;s flourishing private healthcare sector was confirmed by a spate of kidnappings of doctors. But even the daily wage earners live in dread, with organised gangs extracting protection money in instalments. Abductions are often under-reported though a figure of six a day is bandied about in the state. Along with this come periodic updates on the flight of talent, entrepreneurship and capital from the state. By one estimate, well over Rs 10,000 crore has left Bihar in the last decade. Bihar8217;s problem has been stated eloquently. The political class has been roundly indicted. Yet, it is politicians 8212; in government and in opposition 8212; who are the voices of protest, who lead the debate on solutions.

It is in this context that efforts by Bihar schoolchildren8217;s to wrest the safety of their mates must be viewed. For far too long contenders in the state8217;s electoral arena have enjoyed monopoly in the debate over social and administrative issues. Certainly, they must be key participants in the process. But if students 8212; so far demanding nothing more than a basic right to law and order 8212; can bring in diverse sections of civil society into the process of crafting a new agenda for Bihar, they have have taken considerable ownership of their future.