A burning flame of enlightenment for 100 years

Guests and dignitaries on stage during the 100-year jubilee celebrations of church-run St. Nicholas High School in Gazipur district near Bangladeshi capital Dhaka on Jan. 2. (Photo: Robin Noel)

Subir Kashmir Pereira is disappointed that he missed out on an event that he had been looking forward to for years: attending the centenary jubilee celebrations of his beloved alma mater, St. Nicholas High School.

Geographical distance and other complications restricted him from attending the Catholic school's reunion in the first week of January.

Pereira, 49, is a Bangladeshi-born American citizen who settled in Maryland in 2007 with his wife and daughter.

St. Nicholas, where he studied from 1988 to 1991, is located in Nagari in Gazipur district of central Bangladesh, about 40 kilometers from the capital Dhaka.

"When the school marked 75 years [in 1995], I could not attend due to personal reasons. I told myself that I would have to attend the 100-year jubilee, but I missed out again. This failure is likely to upset me for the rest of my life," said Pereira, a Catholic.

Employed at a pharmacy of a multinational company in the US capital Washington, Pereira was a youth activist back home. He is also a seasoned poet with several titles published in recent years.

He credits his days at St. Nicholas, run by the Brothers of Holy Cross, for laying the foundation for what he has become today.

The death ride



Thousands of people gather around the spot where the tragic accident occurred on July 11, 2011 (Photo: Focus Bangla News)



July 11 was a long, hot and tiring day. After a full day’s work, I had a long meeting at the National Youth Commission, where I’m a volunteer. It was 9 o’clock when I got home, exhausted, hungry and badly needing a shower. But there was no electricity, so not only was there no hot water, there wasn’t even water in the tank.

The power came back after an hour. I turned on the TV and suddenly, my little problems didn’t matter any more. They were updating the news; a road accident had killed 44 schoolboys near Chittagong.

Between 60 and 70 were packed into the back of a mini-truck, coming home after winning an inter-school football match at a local stadium. The truck driver was allegedly the driver’s assistant and was unlawfully talking on a mobile phone. He lost control while giving way to an oncoming vehicle, crashed and flipped into a pond.

Many were trapped, even though the pond was not deep. People rushed to the rescue before the emergency services came. But it was too late. Most of the kids died on the spot.

The incident was the lead story on ucanews.com and made headlines all over the world. And every time I read about it, it hurts.

I picture myself as one of the kids who succumbed to death after trying to survive beneath the overturned truck, or as one of the people at the school, the families and the villages, overcome with unfathomable grief.

Who can bear a tragedy like this?

I remember those days when I was at school. I too enjoyed it when our village or school team had won a football match. Coming back in the truck, we used to joke and make up funny football chants. Those kids were probably doing the same. They were only 1.5 kms away from their school. But they didn’t make it.

Now the question is being asked: who can escape blame for this? The driver, the school authorities, the law makers, the rescue services? I say no one. Whatever is being promised to the bereaved families, no condolence can be enough.

Published at UCAN Blogs on July 14, 2011

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