The different isms are making the world an interesting place to live in, right,” Rishi, my colleague commented. “Right,” I said. “We have a wide range of isms to choose from, be it capitalism, communism, socialism...”

“Yes there. But our state has two other interesting isms — ad-hocism and localism.”

“Right you are; ad-hocism has become a part of our culture but what is localism all about.”

“Don’t tell me that you are not aware about localism, an ism which is so deeply ingrained in our psyche,” Rishi shot back sarcastically.

“To be very frank, I just can’t make out what are you hinting at.”

“I am not blaming you as you must be observant enough to notice this special ism which almost all of us practise it so very assiduously in all the aspects of life. In fact, this ism can easily be used as an adjective to describe the people of the state.”

“I am still not getting you...”

“Okay, so let me clear the clouds of confusion that you have with this very important ism,” Rishi said. “Localism is the first thing you would encounter anytime, anywhere in the state. Localism means giving value to the locally available talent, items and it transcends all barriers be it humans, animals.

“Let me give you some small examples so that you can easily comprehend it. If you go to a busy vegetable market the first thing that would strike you if you are observant enough is that the vendors try their best to impress the customers by shouting the word ‘local’. It means they are selling local fresh products. The word ‘local’ gives a licence to sell the product at a premium price even if it is of a substandard quality. Next go to a fish market where the term ‘local variety’ is used, misused to the hilt. This term seems to have a magical charm on the buyers and they are ready to shell out a substantial sum even for a fish whose origin and quality is doubtful. And of course the price of a local chicken comes nowhere near the broiler chicken.”

“That’s fine, but what has the market to do with the localism?”

“It’s just an example. Well, this ism is very much prevalent amongst us as well. Each locality of the state is clearly defined. And with every passing day the local areas are shrinking as new areas are emerging. The local sentiment is so very strong that you would get the feeling that you are an alien if you transgress into some other local area. And in many times it almost becomes impossible to join specially in government service in areas outside the local limits or to carry out business ventures. Not to get swayed by the prevailing winds of globalization and upholding the banner of this ism is really great. Credit must also be given to the politicians as they have all along played a leading role in fostering the local feeling.

“This localism has in turn has helped in promoting the leadership quality in the state as all the local areas have their own leading man. The stress is now on creating new local areas as everyone wants to have a share of the leadership pie.”

“Quite an ism Rishi, I must say. But tell me why the politicians of the state, where the local sentiment is so strong, are obsessed with ‘foreign’ votes during elections?”

“It is question for which I have no answer!”

Manish Goswami