Poetry CornerAl-Mukalla [Archives:2003/698/Education]

By Dr. N. Ramachandran Nair
Professor of English,
Faculty of education
Hadhramout University
Email: [email protected]
Al-Mukalla, the capital of Hadhramout
Reposes on the coast of the quiet Arabian sea.
Mukalla on mid south Yemen could claim a long past.
The hold of Islam on its culture and life is well-writ.

Skirted by the dark blue calm sea,
Enriched with a bounty of fish,
Guarded by blank blazing mountains in glee,
Though humid and hot, Mukalla is on an onward rush.

People say, more than half the population here
Hails from nations like India with a rich past
Most of them embraced Islam generations before
The rich and the poor alike tender a pure life-cast.

The new-found resources of petroleum in Hadhramout
Lend a fresh scenario of buzzing activities.
The rich business men of Hardhramout in Saudi and Dubai put
Mukalla on a new roadmap of well-hatched developments.

Though late, they well gauged the key to success,
Wide spread education; modern, basic and higher.
Centers of learning of all sorts are on the rise
With the private rich and the government in a combined effort rare.

The sleepy stretches of mere sandy, rocky beaches
In a short span of five years, people say,
Have become packed with multi-storeyed buildings and business concerns.
Selfless business groups like Bin Ladens and Buksans are showing a new way.

New broad well-built, well-lit roads
Link Mukalla with Aden, the big city port
Automobiles – cars, 'dababs' and heavy trucks
Keep Mukalla alive day and night.

Mukalla port with its long curved beach
Lined with tall buildings and mosques lighted
Promises reserves of resources to breach
All myopic calculations of development, limited.

Five star hotels like the Holiday Inn,
Cheap motels on the beach from Mukalla to Fua
Fishing, yachting and shipping can win
Mukalla a place on a par with Dubai, mini Mumbai or Goa.
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