NSSB Nagaland: The End of the Backdoor Appointment Era?

Approximately 50k aspirants sat for the historic, ‘Combined Staff Recruitment Examination 2022’, conducted by Nagaland Staff Selection Board, as recorded by the local newspapers in Nagaland. It was the first time the CSRE was conducted under NSSB, which is in the lines of SSC. The number of posts was 610 out of which few of them were for specialized candidates like confectionary, hairdressing fashion designing, plumber, electrician etc. It was a golden opportunity for the educated unemployed youths of Nagaland who had invested their precious years seeking for government jobs but was not successful in their endeavors due to various reasons. One of the reasons could be lack of advertisement for the vacant posts in various governmental departments of Nagaland. Many a times, these vacant posts are filled by candidates on the grounds of nepotism and favouritism shown by the top-notch executives, whether it be permanent or political executives. This is not hearsay as there have been agitations about backdoor appointments in the state. Such unethical appointments deprive the deserving candidates from securing a government job.

Due to all the politics involve around securing a government job, some may say, why waste your time and energy in pursuing government jobs, try private sector jobs. True, private sectors job is an alternative for government job, but we, Naga youths, if not all then at least the majority give government job more priority. And there is nothing wrong in doing so, everyone has different approach to life, have different personality, have different level of energy and creativity and have different preferences of what their working environment should be. Moreover, capital generates capital, not everyone is blessed to be born in a rich family to back up a startup and acquiring loan is not easy. Hence, preference of government jobs over private sector jobs is justified,

Coming back to NSSB, Naga Students’ Federation (NSF) has done a remarkable job in making NSSB a reality. Imagine, 610 falling under ‘questionable appointment’ category if NSSB had not conducted the CSRE. I hope in coming years too, the exam will be conducted in a free and fair manner making the deserving ones get the jobs they deserve. Lastly, let us not make fun of people who prepares for various competitive exams conducted by the government but are not successful in clearing any; it is more painful for the aspirants than for the people who never sat for any of the competitive exams. Why sprinkle salt to their wounds! At the same time, let us encourage one another to have a Plan B to make our lives more balance when our Plan A fails.

The Raven: Naga Version

I once sat near the door, my room doesn't have a window.

That day, I had a guest.

The guest was black, and I am not racist.

It was a raven bird, the indication of something sinister in most of the horror movies.

It looked sad, filled with negative energy.

I asked the guest, what brings you here?

That illiterate raven could speak only one  English word, Nevermore!

Every question I asked was met with the same reply, Nevermore!

Taylor Swift was better with her Evermore, I assumed.

Its Nevermore was plain annoying.

I tried chasing the guest away but like any other guest we know, the raven lacked the etiquette. 

I felt like torturing the guest in the Nazi way.

But I held on to my pacifist policy.

Just then I got an idea.

I brought my mobile phone, opened the YouTube app.

I screamed, Naga singers with American accent is going to help me. 

The plan worked, the raven flew away.

Just then I saw street urchins jumping with catapult in their hands.

The raven was on the ground, it was dead.

Soup for tonight! One said.

Never anymore! I replied.

YOUR GUN, MY SHOULDER

Shoot one’s gun from someone else’s shoulder,

This expression means, when Rose wants to do something dangerous or shitty but wants someone else to execute the task so that s/he is not blamed for anything in the end.  In Chanakya Neeti, this phase is taken into a whole new level to achieve the end goal. In politics, the end determines the means, which means even if your way of achieving your goal is unethical as long as you achieve it, you hold no guilty. Gandhi was an exception, he believed, means justifies ends. Hence, he vouched for morality in politics. But this post is not about political thoughts. I have something else to talk about. 

Sometimes we don’t even know that we are being used for the sake of friendship or family’s honour. While we were kids, someone might have executed their plans using us and we might not have been aware as our infant brain could have not comprehended it. But as we grew up, there might have been several experiences that proved how well we were played.

For years, because of my vocal, crazy, confident personality, I have been the bunker for so many shooters. There were times when someone lashed out their anger, frustrations, and disappointments on me just because someone said or did using my name. My name is not holy; anybody can use it in vain. However, using it to make me the scapegoat, while they remain pure and pristine is a coward act. Now, I am more matured, I know who wants to pull the trigger using my good broad shoulders. I don’t want to be a fighter cock; I don’t want to be the deceived friend. I think before I stand, I tell them to fight their own battles, if it is trivial, as it is good for self-development. If they get killed in the process, I swear I will host the perfect funeral for them. 

It does not mean we should not help our friends. Friendship means being there whenever they need us. However, we should be cautious when we help them, we should take into account all the consequences which might follow. Standing up for one’s friend is one thing and being the victim of someone’s victory is another. 

I could have brought up my personal testimony, but I do want to ruin the nights and days of those people who have shot their guns using my shoulders. They will eventually read this post and might recall the times when they thought they were smart. But actually, they were nothing but snakes. 

A Case of Murder in My Imagination

It was drizzling. I was walking towards my institute. The murder mysteries, the suspense thrillers and Who is the Killer? The genre least read and watched by many, were still lingering on my mind. Just then, I saw a man lying on the pavement. With his faded T-shirt and dirty jean pant he looked like a beggar. His motionless body made me assumed he was dead. I just could not ignore him but there was no passerby to help me out in solving the case. I went near him, I didn't dare to check his pulse, I was not wearing gloves and the first rule is, never tamper the crime scene. 

I ran to the nearest shop and call out the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper acted busy. To make him aware of the situation, I said, 'it might turn out to be a police case and you could be the first person to be interrogated as your shop is nearest to the spot'. He looked blank for a moment. Later, he called his neighbouring shopkeeper, and they went together to check on the man. I watched them from a distant. Much to my relieve, they said that the man was dead drunk but not dead. I thanked them and went my way.

I might have looked dramatic, but I believe, I did the right thing, alerting people of the situation. As of now, I continue to watch murder mysteries. Peace! 

Clean Election in Nagaland (2023)

Infested by unemployment (not for those who know how to pull the right string), bad roads (getting better now), corruption, road accidents and news of someone or the other being detected with cancer, kidney ailments, blood pressure and diabetes, Nagaland sleeps like a giant.

The Clean Election Campaign was started by Nagaland Baptist Church Council to bring ethical and moral values to the electoral politics. But the question is, how far the initiative of 'Clean Election' is/was successful? Some people are of the opinion, Church should stay out of politics. No doubt, the church has its own significance, but the bitter truth is, forget about the Church or the clergies, people are not even taking God seriously. Marx once said, religion is the opium of the masses. I say, these days lots of synthetic drugs are available in the market. Church being the institution for one's spiritual growth has its own share of problems, and we know, the Western notion of secularism and India version of secularism are different in written and in practice. 

As of now, the election fever is going on in full gear, new drama unfolds each day. The usual screenplay is being witnessed which give a space for the public to question the efficacy rate of the Clean Election campaign. However, it does not mean the 'Clean Election' campaign has been a total failure. Any kind of change whether it be in ideologies or practices, take time. And here we are, aiming to bring a structural change. The foundation has been laid. Now, the ground is us, yes, we the public, we can either be rock solid or sandy shaky. Hence, instead of mocking the initiative of Clean Election, why don't we question the social animal in us before we act like political mascots. 

Some of us might not understand the importance of Clean Election, for we fail to understand the literal meaning of the word, 'election' itself. We elect, we don't bet, we don't gamble, we don't get paid to be entertained. While buying a personal car, we don't wake up on a random day and head out to the car shop. We take time to select the best one which aligns with our need and budget. We do our little homework; we do our research. Election is the time to elect which is bigger than select. Clean Election might not be of everyone's interest, but adult franchise is one right which empowers us to elect a person even if he/she is poor to be our representative (not using the term, leader) because we see in him/her a person who is filled with wisdom, integrity and empathy. 

Muscle power, money power, identity card can be displayed by the intending candidate, but we have the power to turn the table. I hope for the best.