Dr. Forqan Uddin Ahmed :
Change is a name of concept and idea which is related to things both in concrete and abstract form in nature. In this world, things are indestructible. After a short period or at the end of life everything in this world including human mankind is being vanished and destroyed. Again new things are formed and newly generated. This is a continuous process and through this process, we see some changes. These changes take place in different ways. We may mention two prominent factors, one is natural and the other is artificial. In artificial format we see different types of changes, namely- physical changes, chemical changes, analytical changes, synthetical changes, reformative changes and evolutionary changes etc. Again changes refer to shifting of one thing to another thing, shifting of one pattern to other, shifting of one step to another step. So the shift directs the motion of all things in the world. Again a change is concept towards modernism. And in consideration of time, most probably we are running the modern time.
In this modern world we are always facing competition of race and in the modern world everything is changing and going fast. Every country is in the race of development. Modernism started in the 19th century. We all are living in the modern age. But could modernism in true sense touch us or touch our country?
The answer would be affirmative. Yes, our country is in the line of modernism. Day by day our Bangladesh is changing. We are getting new things, new ideas and we are also sharing with world people with the concept of development like ICT. Even we are exchanging and contributing our resources in talent hunting around the world. After partition in 1947, only our divisional towns were under the purview of development privileges. Then in the decade of fifty, sixty and seventies, twenty districts headquarters could enjoy the modern development facilities. After independence of Bangladesh, 64 districts headquarters came under the umbrella of development in the decade of seventy, eighty and ninety’s, After that in the 21st century in the first decade and middle of second decade almost all the upazilas and thanas came under the umbrella of development.
If we look to the past, particularly in the decade of sixty’s when I was mere a boy, our villages were under dark even at daytime. It seemed to be dark because in every houses, there were big trees, deep jungles, bushy lands here and there. In my boyhood, I dare to walk through the pathway of ponds, ditches and cannels. Because the ponds and cannel sides were full of bushy plants and grasses. I remember a day, when I was passing bushy places and I happened to see hundreds of foxes and monkeys are moving in my path way. I was frightened and shouting with high voices for my rescue. And that time there was a communication problem, there was no transport and no good road. In rainy season, people were confined to thir own houses.
During the rainy season, people even could not move from one house to another house without the help of boat. When the rainy season is over or at the early stage of rainy seasons people had to walk miles after miles form one place to another place on foot. Because at the time, there where no broad highway carpeting road. So people had to suffer beyond measure. After a long walk, people were bodily tired. In this situation people had not plenty of foods and nutritious food.
The babies and children were deprived of getting nutrition and vitamins. So, they could not groom-up with their body fitness. They were like poor, ill-fated Asmany as depicted by poet Jasim uddin. At that time, the village people could not communicate with person who are living far in the country and even abroad. So, this was a picture of our villages that time. Today, the developmental waves are flowing in every places. If one is just out of his doors one can see many many stationary shops, mobile shops, mobile servecing centre. ICT centre and above all, one can see motor bykes. CNG bykes, ricksaw, bus, truck etc.
People can now easily load and unload their commodities. They can easily export and import their valuable items within a few hours and can easily move to work place, markets and relatives house. It is now much easier. Businessmen carry on their business, farmers can do their job, students can easily go to their schools and colleges. But in our time, all above mentioned things wern not so easy. Now villages are no more rural areas, they are almost nearer to urban. At present village people are very smart. They speak smartly. Village people are no more rustic. Rather they are stylish and fashionable. In our time, we were used to wear lungi, fotua and napkin in the neck.
Now the village people wear polished punjabi, pant, shirt etc. Boys and girls wear 3-quarter pants and modren ganji. There are changes in man’s behavior. There are changes in life style. Even there are changes in the conditions of roads, markets and schools.
There are also changes in all cultural and social festivals. At present, there are changes in sprots arena also. Now village people are urban people are treated as town living people and enjoying all the facilities of urban life. But it is very alarming that we are filling up cannels, ponds and ditches. As a result, water is being logged and we become victim of falsh flood.
For this we suffer a lot. Nature becomes annoyed with us and fall us in troubles. But there is an alternative way which can save us form danger. In conclusions, we can say that we are passing modren times with a changing of time. And we are a advancing with courage and valour for a peaceful and stabled Bangladesh.
