Just Thinking

I had given up on finding my old school in the concrete jungle, but a local resident and employee of the host organization here in Ranchi, blessed me with his local knowledge. He knew the location of the hillock which has a water tank on top. I realized I can still see my school and I ventured out. He took me near the hillock, in front of a very big nice looking school, St. Francis High School. He was sure that this had to be my school, but I knew I was not that lucky to have studied in schools like these. But I could still see the hillock and the water tank on top, our favorite place for having lunch around 23 years ago.

I wanted to go there again on the hilltop and somehow I found a way to go there and on the way I could see a almost dilapidated building and here I was. That’s my school, I shouted. Rajkiya Krit Madhya Vidyalaya, Harmu – 12. Suddenly those faint memories became vivid. I could remember the place I used to stand for morning prayers and the school gate and numerous incidents related. School gate has to be a common factor in most of the incidents. I jumped the wall to go inside the campus (once inside I realized there were numerous ways, and surely not intended ones, to get inside the campus, the surrounding wall was broken at many places) and saw menu of the food served under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan painted on  the wall. Hmm, we never used to get any food. :(

I pulled out my cam, wanted to capture these moments of relived, realized nostalgia. Great feeling to there. If I look back on my school days, the biggest complaint (apart from not being able to study in any ‘decent’ schools) is my fathers job forcing frequent school changes for me, that means I could never have those childhood friends. All gone. No trails.

@Ranchi – Remembering Golden Childhood Days.

I am at Ranchi, almost after 23 years. I was so excited to visit this place, to see my school and go to those places which were slowly getting eroded from my memory. But the menace of ‘Naxalism’ has completely ruined my enthusiasm. We cannot go to remote villages and surely not in Cars as they attract extra attention, and one local naxalite expert told me that in election time Naxals do not think before bashing any outside face. Their policy.. first bash them up.. we will see the other issues later.

Though Ranchi city seems quite peaceful, I ventured out on bike to find my childhood school and all I know about that school is that there used to be a small hillock near the school and at top of that hillock there was a water tank. I called my mother to get more info, she told that the school was near a Hanuman temple in Harmu. We drove in and around Harmu and were able to locate almost 4-5 temples but the hillock was nowhere. That means there is no way to get to my school. New constructions and other developments have made this place completely different from the image of this place I have in mind.

So came back to guesthouse, disappointed and full of thoughts. Naxalism, Development, Urbanization etc.. My plan to take a road trip to Daltonganj, Garhwa and Ranka is now cancelled. I wanted to use this weekend for that. It would have been an experience to visit these places but the fear of Naxalites and poor connectivity to these places have left me with no options. Probably I will dare again, after the elections when the naxal activities subside.

I have a unique respect for this town called Ranchi, it provided my father a job, a job which made all the difference to my life otherwise I would have been another Bihari lad searching for a Rs. 4000 per month job in Asam or Punjab or Mumbai.