Cool Bihari: It happens only in Bihar

Innovation seems to be the new mantra for officials in Bihar these days. Tired of the old ways of doing things they seem to have discovered the art of making news out of every mundane activity. So what used to be a rather regular chore for a tax collector from Patna Municipal Corporation turned out to be a crowd attracting event for public and media. How else do you explain the novel approach of collecting tax dues in Patna?

NDTV reports that the loss-making Patna Municipal Corporation has come up with a novel method to collect money, due from its citizens. On Wednesday the eunuchs forcefully entered houses and shops in the city with drums and loud music. Quite a few of those who had not paid their taxes were embarrassed into doing so.

TOI also reports “For, the eunuchs, as 'agents' of the government, were out on a mission -- to collect municipal corporation dues from shopkeepers. Needless to say, the mission was accomplished. They collected cheques and cash amounting to Rs 4.25 lakh from the defaulters in different localities on Wednesday alone.

In a flash, perhaps, they did what the army of tax collectors could not do in months. "Tax jama karo. Hum sarkar ki taraf se bol rahe hain. Ghar-darwaza neelam mat karao," Pooja was yelling at the shopkeepers as other eunuchs danced and clapped. One eunuch said, "Our leader Kali Hijra was approached by the government and she drafted us for the job."

Strange but true and highly effective too….

In another interesting move officials of Bihar Govt. say they want to train many of the state's estimated 100,000 vagrants to sing songs in trains and buses and beside busy roads, as well as enact street plays about the deadly virus.

"Beggars are great actors and very creative," Vijay Prakash, Bihar's welfare secretary said. "They always had the skills, but lacked direction which we are giving them and the experiments have so been very successful," he added.

Great idea of tapping human potential in spreading social awareness and a good indicator , how a unique approach towards doing regular things can generate public interest and get some momentum going.