It was initially young working population leaving Kolkata, now it’s the elderly. My in laws, like many, had it enough in Kolkata after spending their entire lifetime left the city after ~ 74 yrs. Like many, they can’t relate to the city & it’s culture anymore.
Couple of developments in the past few years.
1) Security- My FIL (father in law) was the President of one of the oldest Durga Puja Committee in Central Kolkata. He is well revered & well connected. Despite his local reputation, there was an attempted break in. Something unheard of in his hood.
2) When he put his property up for sale he spoke & met 96 prospective buyers. 94 were Muslims while 2 Hindus. All 94 wanted to buy the property in cash. Now, clearly demonetization was a failed venture that put the country through misery for nothing. Moreover Muslims are occupying Hindu belts at alarming rates, changing the demography of the city.
Another interesting observation. There is suddenly a huge trust deficit between the 2 communities. The moment my FIL sold his property some of the neighbors have already started exploring options to move out. They are perceiving Muslim neighbors as threats that is working to the benefit of the Muslim community. They are able to buy good properties on a distress sale.
3) Healthcare has completely collapsed in the city. We all are aware of it.
Million $ question – Will Bengali Hindus in #Bengal over time see the same fate as Jews in Israel? Fighting an existential battle to retain their identity & land?
(This article has been compiled from the tweet thread originally tweeted by @GhostedOU812 on October 21 2022)
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