Happy Birthday, Mamata Banerjee

Kolkata: Firstly, this is not a political outburst condemning or condoning the ruling party in Bengal. Instead, on the Chief Minister’s 67th birthday, it is a deliberately simplified observation of life in the Communist and the TMC eras.

The last time we had identical parties in power would be 1977 and after that, in spite of loose coalitions, the actors were patently different. The inherent nature of our democratic framework is this temperamental centre-state equilibrium, often acrimonious but eventually collaborative, so truthfully no new news here. Everybody is trying to do their job most assiduously, balancing the interests of the Government and the party.

When I left Calcutta for career pursuits in 2009, the situation was exceptionally grim, as the Singur fallout was still raw. The inability to manage the deal was clearly the fault of the Left Front, with the TMC being a robust opposition but clearly not the implementing force. If the former had played their cards smartly, aligning the interests of the agriculturists more assertively, Tata Nano would not have been born in Gujarat. Surely, multiple opinions thrive on this matter, but in pure corporate logic, there was only one boardroom while there may have been many dissidents.

While growing up, elders in the know insisted that the Naxal uprising led to the flight of corporations from the city and when the CPI (M) came to power, they chose to focus on the rural mandate, including stellar panchayat reforms. As an outcome, the industry was made to languish and the attempts by Jyoti Basu’s successor were a classic scenario of too little, too late. Strategy, in every field, demands clear sacrifices and business growth were thus slaughtered.

Educated Calcuttans, in any case, were flight-happy, classically to foreign shores and now increasingly within the ambit of India, a micro-exodus of some scale. Not being traditionally entrepreneurial, they chased the best jobs successfully and only the lesser-accomplished were left behind. Once again, basic linear logic, but certainly driven by the apathy to developing the white collar equities.

In 2023, truthfully, the scenario could be much worse but is actually refreshingly better and due credit is surely due to the lady celebrating her birthday. While not being irreversible, redeeming the flight of corporations is counter-intuitive to momentum, as the early movers to Bombay, Bangalore and then Gurgaon have led to strong ecosystems. Thus it is far easier for newbies, including the start-up ecosystem, to set up shop there and not here, unless deeply indigenous.

As per other comprehensible metrics, the quality of living is excellent in Calcutta, way above Delhi and Mumbai, and this is a first-hand validation. The cafe culture is no less significant than peers while the retail scenario is truly booming - unlike two decades back, Bombay does not feel like a different country. On work culture, productivity has honestly been standardised by corporate recruitment in service industries - Swiggy and ICICI Bank clearly do not relax KPIs for Eastern India and nor does the Passport Office.

What I also notice is a clear and present solicitation for business growth, the CM unabashedly at the forefront - whether Ambani, Adani, Wipro or homegrown ITC. Gone is the coyness and ineptitude of the Communist era, where ideological imperatives seemed to collide with a developmental agenda, before and after the collapse of the USSR. Results do take time and I am certain that with a greater sense of Centre-State cohabitation, whatever the reasons, implementation will be measurable.

On other softer notes, the airport is vibrant and Indigo has manfully connected us directly to cities that matter. Even international sectors are decently sorted with the Gulf intermediaries and the long-standing SQ-Thai connectivity is further bolstered in South East Asia. Quite suddenly, the traditional alibis of discrimination seem to have been summarily dismissed and the population of luxury vehicles and real estate has intensified majorly. Equally valuably, this is no longer just a Marwari story, as Bengalis across the state are discovering a newfound zeal for entrepreneurship.

But then, you may well pin me down to the scandals of the day, whether education or land or sundry others. This is a pattern that is actually replicated all over India, liquor in Delhi is a case in point, and definitely not exceptional in Bengal. Every party has their share of non-mainstream politicians and their actions embarrass the genuine strata of leadership.

So, on January 5, I sincerely wish Mamata Banerjee a very happy birthday and thank her for liberating us from the incompetencies of the CPI (M) rule. As mentioned upfront, this is a citizen’s opinion, not patently political, and deliberately skewed towards urban priorities. There are many I know who will endorse this view and a few are already plotting their comeback from soulless, albeit profitable, exile.