When A University Comes Up (Saw At Dumka, Hazaribag, Jharkhand; Felt The Vibes) Poem by Bijay Kant Dubey

When a university comes up, I startle to see the nautanki
Of the local teachers
Wanting to be OSDs,
Officers on Special Duty,
Ready to do dual duties
Of the college as well as the varsity,
But the officers,
Though want they,
But without the official cars
Have to be satisfied with.

When the new academic or the Commissioner-in-charge V.C. comes
Or his name is broadcast over,
The opportunists like the horoscope-makers
Start locating his whereabouts,
Older memoirs, souvenirs and mementoes,
Where is he from,
Where did he read
And was posted,
Who the friends of his,
The supervisors or research scholars?

The oldies and the young start lobbying,
Some wanting to be Controller of Exams,
Someone the Finanece Officer,
Someone in wait for to be the Acting Registrar
As this too may satisfy the thirst for the moment
And someone lying in wait
To met the state ministry men
Through the local party men
Just to be the Pro-V.C. and the Registrar,
But all local college teachers.

Some trying to meet the P.A. of the V.C.,
Some the magistrate in charge temporarily,
Some the Registrar
As for to be officers,
Even OSDs without cars,
One ditching another,
One politicking lowly against another
As for to be officers somehow,
A few of the disgruntled
But they know it not
That their destiny too will turn it someday,
With the change in situation, time and circumstance.

On wanting to be a Proctor,
Another CCDC,
One Dean, Students’ Welfare
Another Sports Officer,
All officers,
Officers officerly,
None without a portfolio,
All with the chairs,
Lobbying for
And getting too,
Those who do not
Sitting on the opposition benches
To lie in wait,
Wait, watch and see, my dear friends,
I am also like you.

Many without Ph.Ds. after doing Ph.Ds.
Turning into guides,
All heads,
University heads,
The local college teachers,
The small, small,
Commissioned not,
Non-comissioned and transferred heads,
Many distant area oldie teachers
Refusing to take the assignment,
But the youngsters happy to get that vacant headship,
Make money.

The office too not left without,
One who had not been sure of his posting
When came he,
Now calling himself otherwise,
Turning into the Assistant Registrar,
Holding a portfolio,
Sitting close to the V.C.,
The library peon or the clerk
Also the head of the library,
God knows, who is what head,
Who is whose head,
Man cannot,
Only God the Almighty,
Omniscent and Omnipresent
Who sees it all from there
Can say it all?