Smart cow
Sir — In the first documented evidence of cattle using tools, an Austrian cow has figured out not only how to grab a broom but also how to strategically scratch an impossible-to-reach itch. Veronica holds a deck brush in her mouth and, depending on the part of the body she wants to scratch — whether it is the tough skin of her back or the softer underbelly — uses either the bristled end or the handle. Whether this kind of problem-solving behaviour will be replicated by other cows remains to be seen. For now, Veronica’s intelligent feat does challenge the pejorative association of cows with brainlessness.
Bidisha Mitra,
Calcutta
Different fates
Sir — In the early 1930s, two sons of the Bengali elite chose divergent paths. One, Hare Krishna Konar, committed ‘class suicide’, joined the revolutionary Jugantar group, and was sentenced to the Cellular Jail. The other, Jyoti Basu, qualified as a barrister in London and returned to lead the movement through parliamentary politics. Today, while the ‘Barrister-Marxist’ is a global icon, the ‘Andaman-hardened’ architect of land reforms has become a footnote. This erasure explains why the Bengali Left eventually traded its revolutionary soul for a ‘semi-elite’ stagnation.
In physics, radical social change requires a nucleation point — a moment of high-activation energy where an individual breaks the symmetry of his/her environment. Konar was that point. His transition from someone with an elite background to the occupant of the damp cells of the Andamans was a total rupture. As a minister, he used his understanding to dismantle the landlord system, identifying land hidden illegally by families exactly like his own. This was the ‘Normal Science’ of revolution — the structural shift that provided the stable base for 34 years of political equilibrium.
However, the subsequent ‘Basu Model’ can be viewed through Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. Kuhn argued that a “paradigm shift” occurs only when the existing model fails to account for persistent “anomalies”. Under Basu, Marxism became an administrative ‘Normal Science’. The leadership, largely insulated on account of its semi-elite background, remained wedded to an archaic industrial-trade-unionist paradigm long after the global economy had shifted.
This intellectual inertia turned once-thriving industrial arteries into rusted graveyards. The most harrowing anomaly occurred in 1979 at Marichjhapi, where State machinery was turned against Dalit refugee peasants. It was a total inversion of Konar’s ethos; while Konar empowered the landless, the Basu era’s ‘State centrism’ viewed them as a threat to administrative order.
As revolutionary energy decayed, the ‘Syndicate’ emerged — a parasitic class using the flag to enforce a monopoly on local commerce. Why is Basu the icon for modern students of elite universities? Because his model is non-threatening; it allows one to adopt a radical identity without the ‘Konar-style’ requirement of total class rupture.
Hare Krishna Konar is forgotten because his memory is an indictment. He represents the Kuhnian crisis point — the radical rupture required to actually change a system — that the modern ‘semi-elite’ is too comfortable to initiate. Bengal’s future lies not in the seminar hall but in the sacrificial rigour of the man who chose the Andaman cell over the Oxford spire.
Sindhunil Barman Roy,
Calcutta
Strategic honour
Sir — Like previous years, this year’s Padma awards have stirred a political storm. At first glance, the government appears to have made an effort to project inclusivity. The list features figures associated with rival parties, including some who have been harsh detractors of the current regime. Yet, a closer look suggests that this inclusiveness is curated to appeal to voters in election-bound states such as Kerala, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.
Abhijit Roy,
Jamshedpur
Sir — While other important personalities from Tamil Nadu have found a place in the Padma awardees list this year, the exclusion of M.S. Viswanathan is striking. The failure to confer national honour on Viswanathan during his lifetime remains a source of deep regret. His vast body of musical compositions has gone unrecognised by successive Central governments.
Ranganthan Sivakumar,
Chennai
Sir — The Padma Bhushan conferred on Vellappally Natesan is an acknowledgement of decades of public service rooted in social reform. As the general-secretary of SNDP Yogam, Natesan modernised one of Kerala’s most influential socio-spiritual organisations, ensuring its relevance in addressing contemporary challenges.
K.A. Solaman,
Alappuzha, Kerala
Sir — Prosenjit Chatterjee has been awarded the Padma Shri for his contribution to Bengali cinema. There was a period when the Bengali film industry was gasping for breath in the post-Uttam Kumar era. It was at this juncture that Chatterjee emerged, establishing himself as an actor whose performances were both accessible and emotionally responsive.
Pratima Manimala,
Howrah