I returned from school, dead tired, really. Although it was winter, I had felt tired-tired of being silent the whole day. It had been weeks since I had spoken in the class. After the split with Karthik, my best friend of yore, I hardly had the feeling to talk, to discuss about my sister with anybody. Karthik was the best person, but not anymore. I was looking forward to the long weekend, thanks to the Republic day, the next day.
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I had woken up early, for a change, even though it was holiday on account of Republic day. Due to this, or even otherwise, my father decided to take me to Rajpath, the parade venue. The two of us left early, very early in the morning.
The crowd had started to trickle in when we had reached Rajpath. We were just in time to find the front row seat. Minutes later, the site was full; full of enthusiastic spectators, who had come to watch the grand occasion of India’s republic day anniversary parade. A couple of hours later, the parade started.
There, you could India’s military might in display. From the vintage tanks to the technologically advanced machines, all were on display. The air force displayed the new range of military aircrafts, spraying colours of saffron, white and green. Anywhere and everywhere, the tricolour could be seen flying high. Everybody was in a happy state of mind; patriotism filled their hearts, India, the name that repeatedly reverberated in their ears, except in one region, Bhuj.
****
I reached home, excited. I had just a few hours ago seen the republic day parade, something few got to watch live on the spot each year. I had been one among the lucky few that year.
The television was blaring with news contained only about Gujarat. Bhuj, Kutch and other places had been reduced to rubble due to the Earthquake. I had learnt in school, shifting of tectonic plates caused earthquakes and its magnitude is measured on a scale, called Richter Scale.
The magnitude of the quake was 7.7 on the Richter Scale. The temperature in Delhi that morning was 7.7o C on the temperature scale. Both measurements were completely different.
The former had caused massive destruction to life and property, while the latter, did no such thing, but only gave shivers down the spine.
The enormity of destruction could be gauged from the fact that the media was constantly focusing on that issue for a long, long time. The numbers too supported it.
Some 20,000 people had lost their life during the quake and the after-effects of the quake. People in 4, 00,000 were shelter-less. The quake was classified as intense and had struck sixteen kilometres under the ground.
The famed Swaminarayan temple too had bore the brunt, albeit it was destroyed partially. In short, there was nothing, not a single person, who escaped nature’s fury.
Scientists claimed a previously unknown south dipping fault, trending parallel to the inferred rift structures had caused the fault, but then I believed there was no use conducting post mortem in this case; for then humans cannot control the movement of tectonic plates.
One particular newspaper article describing the destruction few days later shall always remain in my memory.
It described about a very rich doctor living on the upper floors of a high raised building. He did nothing different that morning, but his life was to change forever, when the quake comes.
His house was one among many that had been reduced to rubbles. It would not have been possible for him to even identify the bricks with which his house was constructed.
Wearing only a shirt and a pant, he was penniless then, although he had lakhs of rupees moments before. He was one among the millions who was homeless, left to beg for food, his status now equal to that of a pauper. Perhaps, he was a pauper.
Nature always has a neutral say, I learnt. It does not differentiate between the rich and poor, lower caste or upper caste. It just unleashes its fury and all those caught in its jaws have to suffer. No reservations here.
Also, I learnt one more lesson. Change takes place. It does not ask for your permission. It acts when it sees it is desirable for it to act. It acts on its own. There is nothing constant but change. How we adapt to it is in our hands.
But for me, I hated change. Change always brought losses; change was always for the worse.
Change: You continue to be my enemy.