9 January, 2024
The Maldives became independent in 1965. India has consistently helped the archipelago over many decades. In January 2024, some politicians in the Maldives made desultory remarks about Indians. The Maldives are reorienting themselves towards other countries.
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INDIA AND THE MALDIVES : BITING THE HAND…
“Mother India, a solemn pledge to thee do we make,
Thy unmatch\'d glory to sing, thy fame to uphold,
Come what may, be it flood or earthquake,
For, no one on thee can set a stranglehold.”
---From my poem “India (1)”, written on 22 May, 1994.
“But, throughout it all thy steady light hath shone,
Even unto those who at thee have hoot’d.”
(…)
“And thou giv\'st and giv\'st again generously to all climes,
And thou remain\'st for humanity a Mother unbound\'d.”
---From my poem “India (2)”, written on 22 May, 1994.
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INDIA AND THE MALDIVES : BITING THE HAND…
1st section
Mother, thou giv’st and giv’st more :
To thy own people doth thou deny plenty :
To give to faraway lands and people
Sustenance and rescue when need’d :
Bountiful mother,
Selfless mother :
How to repay thee ?...
2nd
Billions of thy money thou giv’st away,
Providing a future for other people,
While thy own folks in poverty
Suffer,
Survive,
Struggle,
Stumble
And fall…
3rd
But, such be thy heart,
Thy destiny,
That thou wilt give others
Succour,
A life,
A future,
While looking away from misery,
From suff’ring,
In thy own heartlands…
4th
To the Maldives gave thou
The first Covid vaccines,
To save their people…
Thou gave them the life-saving vaccines
While thy own folks died from the malady !!…
They forget :
We remember…
History wilt remember…
5th
Thou gave,
Generous mother,
Thou brought rescue,
Thou sustain’d life,
Thou sav’d myriads of their lives :
And, how do they repay thee now ?...
6th
Today they find
Thy people smell…
What smell had the Covid vaccines thou gave,
The very medicine that sav’d them ?...
What smell had the billions of rupees
Thou gave in aid since 1965 ?...
Ah, Mother !…
A devastating dagger they dig
Into thy generous heart !...
7th
Let them go,
Mother…
Let them go…
No foreigners, no newcomers
Can be a threat to thee,
Neither near thy shores,
Nor far off…
No bases, no fortifications
Hereabouts can vanquish thee…
8th
Mother, build anew on thy own lands,
Nearby or on thy mainland.
Set up what be need’d
To protect thee more…
Newcomers here cannot touch thee…
The writing was on the wall
Since decades…
9th
Thy very land still smells of tragedy :
Yet, wilt thou still give
Aplenty,
Even to those who revile thee…
10th
To thy generous heart
Be dedicat’d these verses,
Mother India !...
Long live India !
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Soman Ragavan
Mauritius (Indian Ocean)
9 January, 2023
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Internet links :
(a)
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india/permanent-smell-in-the-rooms-maldives-politicians-remarks-on-modis-lakshadweep-visit-sparks-boycottmaldives-trend/articleshow/106610952.cms?from=mdr
(b)
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwja5bma3dCDAxXjX_EDHQSMBhwQFnoECCAQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hindustantimes.com%2Findia-news%2Fmaldives-politicians-racist-post-against-indian-tourism-triggers-boycott-calls-101704617284440.html&usg=AOvVaw1dAgCe75eQ-TUWnU7R-td8&opi=89978449
(c)
https://www.google.com/search?q=India+gave+first+covid+vaccines+to+the+Maldives&client=firefox-b-d&sca_
“On January 20, 2021, the Maldives became the first country to receive, as gift, 100,000 doses of India-manufactured vaccines within 96 hours of their country-wide rollout in India. This supported the Government of Maldives to undertake one of the world\'s fastest vaccination drives.”
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