द इण्डियन स्ट्रगल / भारतीय स्वाधीनता संग्राम (नेताजी सुभाष चन्द्र बोस - ऐतिहासिक विश्लेषण)

114 THE INDIAN STRUGGLE
the citizens brought about a new civic consciousness.¹
People for the first time began to look upon the Municipality
as their own institution and upon Municipal officers and
employees as Public Servants and not bureaucrats. But the
British vested interests in the city felt that they were losing
their importance and that they could no longer dominate the
Municipality. At that time nearly all the departmental heads
were Britishers, but with one or two exceptions, I had no
difficulty whatsoever, in dealing with them. The majority of
them were quite loyal to the new Swarajist administration and
some of them were even enthusiastic in praising it. Though
within a few months the efficiency of the administration was
considerably raised and citizens' complaints were attended to
more promptly than before, the official bloc in the Corporation,
as also the Government, continued their policy of opposition,
with the result that constant friction used to take place. In
the matter of appointments, they were opposed to the Swarajist
policy of doing justice to the minorities. With regard to the
drainage problem of the city, they were also in conflict with
the Swarajists. The scheme sponsored by the Government
for the new drainage works was rejected by the Swarajists as
being unscientific and useless. In this they had the support
of the Drainage Engineer of the Municipality, the late Mr.
O. J. Wilkinson and of the Director of Public Health, Dr.
C. A. Bentley, while the Chief Engineer, Mr. J. R. Coats,
was on the side of the Government. The drainage controversy
between the Municipality and the Government continued for
a long time and it took the Government ten years to give in
to the Municipality on the drainage question.²
The doings of the Swaraj Party in the Calcutta Corporation
would not have embarrassed the Government so much but
for the fact that there was a simultaneous pressure on the latter
from many quarters. In the Indian Legislative Assembly the
Swaraj Party was fairly strong and on behalf of the Party,
notice of a resolution was given demanding the release of
Mahatma Gandhi. Mahatma Gandhi had fallen seriously
¹ To give expression to this new consciousness, a weekly journal, called
the Calcutta Municipal Gazette was started by the Municipality.
² The drainage scheme which has been adopted now was drawn up by the
Indian Chief Engineer, Dr. B. N. Dey, who is still holding that office.