Call To Focus On Community’s Survival

Dear Editor,

I feel extremely sick reading last two weeks issues of Jam-E-Jamshed and Parsi Times with letters from the Trustees of BPP and some seemingly engineered letters from some of your readers. All about who said what and one publication not being favoured for the advertisements from BPP! Have not the Parsi Press and the community lost their focus? As regards the situation about the Parsi Community, it is very clear that our numbers are dwindling fast and we will be less than 20,000 by the year 2050 or even earlier.

Is this not the only single issue we all should be thinking and talking about? If we do not care about our survival, then who will? Should not the only focus of Parsi Publications be ‘how can we all combine to resolve our problem of survival?’

As I see the situation, since only our press can reach a large number of community members, they have a very vital role to play today. The time has come to forget their ‘business policy’ and start working on this single issue of survival. I am giving below some suggestions:
1) First of all, you all will have to get together for this single cause. There cannot be any business rivalry coming in the consideration in this matter.
2) Arrange to call for a one or two day’s seminar to discuss ‘Measures to be taken for ‘Revival of Community’. Invite the priests, scholars, lawyers, social scientists and other prominent members of the community like Ratan Tata, Cyrus Mistry, Adi Godrej, Nasli Wadia, Cyrus Poonawalla and other businessmen and industrialists. Discussions in this seminar will pave way to clear our thinking.
3) Ask for essays, papers from all Parsis on the same theme and give prizes for the two best papers. (Though I am a pensioner, I will contribute Rupees one lakh for this project – I am sure many more will like to participate).
I am sure your efforts will be well-appreciated by all members of the community and will help the community come out from the its present confused state.

Kersee Kabraji,
Pune.