The global financial crisis is still on. God knows how long it will take to get over this situation. Everyone these days are talking about recession. Be it the housewives, the rickshaw pullers, the local grocers. In every little corner of the street, this particular word is ruling with immense potential.

Last year in the middle of July this recession fever gripped us for the first time. The fall of those major investment banks in the U.S. spread a kind of ghostly trauma from which we haven’t yet been able to recuperate. The most powerful and strong economy of the world faced this downturn causing an unprecedented trouble to not only it’s countrymen but also to millions of people living all over the world and who used to follow the U.S. economic model in every respect. Already twenty Euro zone countries are into recession and hundreds of thousands of people have faced the job blues. Our household economy is perhaps the worst hit as a result of this financial meltdown.

Now as it is well known that the readers here are greatly acquainted with this issue on a large scale. I would therefore draw your attention to personal crises as I myself have witnessed in the past few months.

Sometimes back I was working with a recruitment firm in Salt Lake. I had to talk to people from various walks of life regarding job openings and all. During this time I got to know a person whom I had called up for an opening in Mumbai. I still remember the day I called him up. He was already in a good position drawing a very handsome amount annually in his the then company. When I started speaking with him his voice which was matured and dignified, sounded extremely sad.

I got to know that he was serving a notice period in his present company and was about to complete the term. He was eager for this job opportunity like anything and for the next following days every now and then he started tracking me regarding the interview that he was supposed to appear for.

Unfortunately he was not selected and the last mail he dropped me after I gave him this news was absolutely moving. That mail put forth the picture of a dying man who was trying to hold the last available straw to survive. His concern for his wife, for his children and his sadness depicted in that final mail had simply unnerved me.

Quite a few people I have seen who have been handed over the pink slips for their companies to cut cost. I am still watching a young IT engineer who has stopped being his normal self after a number of job cut followed in some of the biggese Indian IT majors and especially the post Satyam scam. The fear of job loss is looming large over many engineers like this young person who even a few months back considered themselves luckiest with a handsome pay package and boast of working in the sunrise sector.

All these pictures present a grim economic situation in dire need of cure. We don’t know when and how the present economic situation will improve. But this is really sad to watch so many people going jobless everyday. The immense psychological trauma that these persons are suffering stands beyond words. The economic downturn is affecting personal relations as well and to a great extent.

In almost every home the children are quietly thinking when the father will return from his strenuous long hours in office and what news he would bring. Will that news be able to make mamma light up??Or will it send her more into mental depression and troubles??They really don’t know why their father remains so angry these days!

Kolkata is unable to breath.The great mass of people living here and commuting everyday for work are silently chocking to death.But see,in spite of taking such emergency actions neither the Govt.nor the common people are aware of this deadly situation.

The High court has long given it’s ordinance of not allowing the three wheelers spreading the poisonous gases anymore. But anybody is hardly paying any heed to all these repeated warnings issued forth both by the High court and the environmentalists.

This auto pollution has really become a menace for the common human being as well as for the autowallahas. In spite of a great number of awareness programs and protests from the environment researchers and scientists the “kata tel” run autos are actually ruling the roost.

“kata tel” as it is commonly called is actually a low quality and highly dangerous life wrecking fuel which comes extremely cheap,15 rupees per liter. Naturally it saves the auto drivers a huge cost compared to petrol and diesel prices.While all the major Indian metros are running their three wheelers on either CNG or LPG, the Kolkata autos are still running on this deadly fuel polluting the environment every bit and pushing the common peoples’ lives to extreme danger.

Environment pollution has taken over the city since long before and now daily breathing of this poisonous gas has increased the possibility of lung cancer by all means.Only the use of either CNG or LPG can curb this pollution and can offer the city dwellers some healthy air where they can at least breath free.

A number of measurements have been taken by the Govt.so far.But implementation of all these ideas have remained distant dreams. The High court has also turned lethargic in tackling this crucial issue with strong hands.Despite the Govt.’s dictate, the opposition from the anti govt.

Political parties has played an important role in not turning this important agenda into reality.the division between the auto operators and in spite of getting the Govt’s financial aid for converting their old autos for clean and green new autos,most of them have remained reluctant. Therefore only a few green autos are running on the city streets with a faint dream of all the autos becoming green too.

But this is high time that the authority along with the common people gear up to implement this life saving agenda with strict measurements.This would at least be able to offer to the coming generation a clean and green environment with some fresh air.This would even help the auto drivers lead a cancer free healthy life which is desired by all and sundry in this city right at this moment.Therefore,let us save not just Kolkata but the planet from the emission of all these deadly gases which are eating into our lives like the scariest nightmare.