The news of passing away of Comrade Debabrata Banerjee (Debu) is extremely sorrowful. He died on 13 July 2022 at his flat in Kolkata. He was about 63 years and survived by his caring sister only. His sister was taking care of him in Kolkata for the last several years.
He was a rare person in multiple ways. He considered himself to be essentially a historian and dismissive about all forms of bourgeois life. Furthermore, he was a vigilant and active custodian of the secular India. I always remember him for his enormous courage to standup for his principles, his lifelong commitment to revolutionary socialist ideals and the grasp of historical insights, his generosity, and kindness towards all, particularly the disadvantaged.
By the time I enrolled in JNU in the early 90s, he had left the campus after submitting his PhD. He was many generations senior to us at the university. He did his PhD under the supervision of eminent historian Bipin Chandra on the history of the politico-economic period of the later Mughal empire and the rule of the British. The place where he resided in Delhi at C.R. Park basement was a sort of 'Adda' and shelter for friends. The biggest attraction of his basement living room was the books piled up in stacks, mainly on history, Marxism, philosophy and literature, and the never-ending debates over coffee and food.
In 1997, when Comrade Ajay Bharadwaj was making 'Ek Minute Ka Maun'(A minute of Silence), a documentary on the student movement that followed Comrade Chandrashekhar's assassination, Debu was instrumental in getting the film partially financed through the Urmul trust.
The opportunity to understand him more closely came in 2001 when he was documenting the environmental impact of the Indira Gandhi Canal Project with the Urmul trust in Rajasthan. He called me in Rajasthan for a month to assist with his work. We organised there one month 'Nahar-Yatra' together. He documented the ecological degradation of Thar Desert, and the struggle of people to preserve it, with numerous photographs and excellent commentaries. In those days, he always used to say that why desert is called the 'Marubhumi' in the government documents and planning, whereas so much here, full of flora and fauna.
He warned of the devastating effect the canal had on the ecology of the desert, saying that it would lead to drought and famine, as the drought resistant vegetation of the desert would be destroyed due to excess moisture.He predicted that It will destroy pastoralism and livelihood of the people depended on it. Time proved his prediction right. I hope that the Urmul trust have kept that documentation safely. Together, we did travels to Uttarakhand and Bihar as well. When he shifted from Delhi to Kolkata, whenever I had to go there for any program, I would also have to meet him.
I remember, the last meeting with him on 31 July 2019 at his Lake Garden flat, when I had gone to Kolkata to attend CPIML 'Unite and Resist' mass convention. When I reached his flat, I surprisingly found out two comrades, who came to attend our convention, were sleeping there. Those were Comrades from Jharkhand who were looking for their acquaintance in that locality late at night. Debu saw them and offered the shelter and food. Only those who knew him well can bear testimony to his generosity!
Three months ago, I got the news that he had suffered from a paralytic stroke, and I was thinking of visiting him. For the past several years, he was suffering from urinary tract obstruction, liver problems and diabetes, due to which his activities were limited. The situation became even more dire for him when he succumbed to paralysis this year. His writings, which he wanted to publish, remained unfinished.
Didn't realise that he would leave so soon.Sadly, we never did get to speak again.
Adieu Comrade Debu! Your memories will remain forever!
