Author Sujeet Sarkar is engaged in promoting and strengthening democratic governance and civil society in fragile and conflict-prone countries, over the past fifteen years. Currently working as an international advisor, in a globally reputed organization, he is supporting the portfolio of governance and civil society in selected countries across Africa and Asia, including Afghanistan.

The Kolkata Mail correspondent Priyanka Dutta caught up with the author in an exclusive chat about his book In Search of a New Afghanistan. Excerpts..

Your book is coming out during the time when Afghanistan has been taken over by the Taliban. Why did you think initially of writing this book?

Sujeet Sarkar- There is a lot of positive things that happened during my stay in Afghanistan. Some of them are women empowerment, good governance, and so on. I wrote this book simply to let the readers know about the good things that happen in the country. This is a positive and optimistic book as opposed to the negative stories one gets to hear about the country.

You have worked as an international advisor. What kind of hurdles did you have to face while executing government work in Afghanistan?

Sujeet Sarkar- There were some challenges that I faced as an international advisor. Travelling was challenging as there were security risks and restrictions. Traveling in the Northern part of the country was easy while traveling in the Southern part was a bit difficult.

The second difficulty was in the logistics part. It took 8 to 9 hours to travel.

The third difficulty was the language. Though I learned the language, it was initially a hurdle for me.

The next difficulty was cultural challenges. Many used to interpret things based on the Quran which made things difficult at times.

With your book, how much do you think the readers will become enlightened about the happenings in Afghanistan?

Sujeet Sarkar- This book came out in 2012 and I wrote about the positive things about the country. I wanted people to see the country in a positive light and appreciate the changes happening.

How much time did you take to write this book?

Sujeet Sarkar- It took me a year to complete writing this book.

What are your best memories of working in Afghanistan?

Sujeet Sarkar- We started training the Afghan civil servants as we do for the IAS officers in India. The individuals who became district governors got only 20 days for training. We began the training with 35 Afghans. One among them was abusing us for the training and about how the government did not have enough money. So I made them understand that only having enough money is not everything. You must know how to make the most out of the available resources.

The second incident happened when I went to a mosque and started to pray, the Maulana asked me how can I be a Hindu pray at a mosque. I said that my religion never taught me not to pray at a mosque. He said that Hindus are bad and as proof went to his house and showed me pictures of riots. I pointed out how a minority of the Afghans were engaged in terrorist activities. Similarly, not all Hindus are bad.

I later learned that the Maulanas were trained by the ISI in Pakistan for poisoning the young minds in Afghanistan.

The Taliban have taken over the country now. How much do you think this will impact Afghanistan that has been constantly trying to reconstruct itself post 9/11?

Sujeet Sarkar- The entire development process is frozen. There will be no bilateral trade. The country will not get foreign funds. If the World Bank and other organizations stop funding, it will be catastrophic. My heart bleeds for the women in the country. I have seen their development during my stay in Afghanistan.

What myths about Afghanistan have you denounced in this book?

Sujeet Sarkar- Most books have not written anything positive about the country. So I wanted to highlight the good things in the country like women empowerment, girls going to schools and colleges, how the country is not only a country where war takes place, and so on.

What is next in line for you as an author?

Sujeet Sarkar- Quest For A Stable Afghanistan is my next book that was released recently.

If you want to see Afghanistan in a new light, In Search of a New Afghanistan should be on your reading list.