My dear friend and batch mate Pranavanand, as a facilitator of our alumni e-group keeps us thinking, active and fresh all the time. The article he uploaded yesterday, “Four Reasons Why Any Action is Better Than None” by Roasabeth Moss Kanter, Prof at Harvard Business School and author of Confidence and SuperCorp is truly an insightful and motivational piece (blogs.hbr.org/kanter/2011/03/four-reasons-any-action-is-bet.html). After a long time this set my thoughts free in the alumni forum through this article. It also reminded me of the old saying "action speaks louder than word."
These days I am seriously engaged with the idea of social enterprise and exploring the actual feasibility of integrating social enterprise in the work with the poorest communities. I am coming face to face with all the principles discussed by Kanter. I am realizing how even small dose of initiatives and action in new direction break inaction and passivity of months. Over a period of time, such practice helps us overcome worst of our fears and anxiety and suddenly we see ourselves taking risks and bold steps, which we never thought we were capable of taking.
While lack of work culture, enterprise and innovation have made our bureaucracy and government almost crippled and ineffective, moving in the same direction are our not for profit and to an extent corporate world - as passivity, ivory tower thinking and idle talking tends to dominate our social and professional space. Many second and third generation enterprises in our country and abroad are seeing the culture of passivity pervading the work spaces all over. In the US and many European countries, the top leadership is faced with the problem that even the senior management has grown sufficiently complacent – one of the reasons why USA in recent times has gone so liberal with
its H1 b regime.
Our country is faced with another set of problems mainly inflicted through the Maculay doctrine, that privileges ‘chaplusi’ (sycophancy+), ‘divide and rule niti’, passing on the buck (so that it stops nowhere) and ‘bhrastachaar’ (corruption not restricted to unethical economic dealings); over sincerity, talent and hard work. This is why we see such terrible lack of motivation, passion and initiative in most workspaces, where even the leadership and top management seem to deliberately discourage feeling of ownership on the part of workers.
Talking about the middle class, parents still feel happiest when their children, howsoever talented, manage to get secured jobs even if that be less paying and would have less prospects compared to something which brings new challenges and with them opportunities to touch the sky. Even in today’s time one has prevalence of a mindset which seems to believe that secured job is what counts everything else can wait for tomorrow, day after or some time in future. No surprise then that there is such terrible lack of social enterprises, innovation and so few of Indian companies in the Fortune 500.
Yet, what really keep the hope alive is that our population has lakhs and lakhs who break the barriers around them, refuse to let their mind be captive of the situation they are in, among them are the best of thinking people who are also hardworking, all set to achieve the desirable situation - solutions to the most complex of problems. They are not willing to let the situational compulsion hold the entrepreneurs in them, captive.
These people are not just the less celebrated or in the making, 'Narayan Murthy's, 'Nandan Nilekane's or 'Indira Nuyi's of the country who redefine and rewrite success and excellence achieved through a combination of their exceptional minds, ethical tactics and hard work. Actually they are also those many non MBAs, non professionals and without formal education out there, whom we see and meet while commuting in public transport or traveling by trains, who through their indomitable spirit, entrepreneurship and exceptional sense of duty do make us all proud.
As examples of the above kind, I can think of two sets of people. In the first category are employees in different sectors and the second are entrepreneurs who follow the principles discussed by Kanter in his article. These are highly motivated and responsive employees even found in many small town sarkari or municipal offices, court, banks and all kinds of offices who put that extra bit so that they do not go home with unfinished work. We see them in district hospitals or economic nursing homes, as doctors and nurses who would not leave a single stone unturned for the well being of the patients, in school as dedicated teacher whose only goal in life is to nurture his/her every student so that they excel.
I remember many of my school teachers in middle school and high school, whom even as a child and adolescent boy I knew well that they were not very well paid. But till date I can feel their total ‘samarpan’ (unparalleled dedication) for their profession, I can remember Michael sir and Mundu sir of my middle school so vividly and sirs - Narayan Roy (Physics) , Kongari (Hindi), R. Prasad (Chem) who was also the NCC sir and gave up his life for saving a cadet for drowning, Ram Mahato and UK Roy (Maths), G. D Mishra (Chemistry in undergrad) and scores others, so many from XISS too. So are many of my daughters’ teachers. I remember so many sincere and committed clerks and bank mangers and senior ranked officers including from SIDBI, IDBI and NABARD who all made great contribution to SHG movement and later micro finance in our country. So are many state and central government officials at all levels, ministers, MPs and MLAs.
In the other category I can think of my St. Aloysius classmate from Ranchi, Om Prakash or OP as we cal him, set out to study MBA in Delhi but ended up forming a reasonably huge service network for supply and fire sensor devises used in most centrally AC buildings. Amongst his clients today are big public and private sector companies, inistries and government offices in entire NCR. I can think of another classmate Prakash who after completing his engineering degree, built a cloth wholesale empire in Ranchi alone, rising much above his father’s 8’ by 8-9’ readymade shop and also helped his brothers to grow sizeable business. He is prominently involved in charity and various social activities.
Last year while traveling back from Ranchi I met someone in his late 30s from Samastipur in Bihar, who came to Delhi to look for a job some 8-10 years back and now runs a readymade garments factory somewhere in Shahadara employing over 250 women and other staff and exporting to EU. So is the story of Israfil who has the maintenance contract of the intercom system in our office, who came from a village in Burdwan and worked in they have in common with Bill Gates, Barack Obama, Narayan Murthy, is their absolute conviction that the only thing constant in our live is in fact change and they are the agents who would see the situation improve significantly during their own lives. I recommend you all to read Rashmi Banasal’s books – I have a Dream and ‘Connect the Dot’. Although her first book ‘Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish’ is no less inspiring.
We have so much of talented, hardworking and goal oriented people amongst us. Then, I sometimes wonder what exactly is ailing us! As the saying goes in Bihar – ‘Pados Mein Bhagat Singh Paida Ho, Hamare Ghar Mein Nahin’. This captures everything. We all know what should be the real nature and goal of education but as parents, students and policy makers and implementers just go by its instrumentality. But change is inevitable. If we don’t change this mindset ourselves, we will be changed by circumstances and for worse. If we change ourselves, we still could actually be the masters of our own destiny.
As in recent times, concerns of inequity and injustice in social and economic spheres have created new challenges and implications for the non profit sector in the country. Traditional not for profit funding sources are dying fast. Government funds are schematically tied up. Apart from these bursting of the micro-credit bubble and lack of well grounded mechanisms that can balance social, economic and political agenda in development action domain, which off late is getting too polito-centric have intensified the challenges for the non profit sector.
Till such time even there is a single family left who don't have sufficient means to eat, remain healthy, get best education for its children and others, live without any fear or discrimination and make informed choices for every member - there is so much to do for everyone. Till the time we make the world free of war, till the time we are able to reverse the global warming, till the time we are able to secure our planet, we have no time to while away. And till such time we can't just be ideating. With this resolve, I will soon be setting out on a new path of exploring social enterprise as my career focus next.
_________________________________________________
9/10/11
4/3/11
Let sports be just sports (Old blog)
Sports today has become very competitive. At the end, what matters is winning and winning at any cost. So much hype has destroed the very nature and purpose of sports.
If we look at the jingoism that cricket has trigered, one really feels sad. We Ranchites were ashamed that a group of young hooligan threw beer and whisky bottles at Shahid Albert Ekka's statue and damaging it. Came to know that at the final, people were saying after beating muslim sena, our Ran sena is going to beat Ravana sena! I found it utterly disgraceful.
The nature of the sports has changed totally. Is sports not supposed to bring countries, culture and people together? It's another matter that history repeated itslelf in winning the cup after 28 yrs! Its truly a joyous moment for the entire nation that has so little for the larger samaj to come together for a common cause! One understands, great divides and fractures in our society, accentuated by poverty, misery, injustice - such moments of fanatic exhilerations in this context, can be equated with the high that one derives from opium. Sports has therefore become like religion. If not appreciated and followed in its true spirit, it can make people as fanatic as religion!!!
It is important that we keep sports as sports and cricket as cricket, and not a weapon of spreading hatred and violence. It will be truly a great day when we learn to celebrate a win, howsoever great it might be and accept defeat even if its by the worst margin, equally gracefully. After all only one side can win, evn when there is kante ka takkar and there is no formula that someone's winning streak will continue for ever. There is joy in both winning and playing well but not winning.
If we look at the jingoism that cricket has trigered, one really feels sad. We Ranchites were ashamed that a group of young hooligan threw beer and whisky bottles at Shahid Albert Ekka's statue and damaging it. Came to know that at the final, people were saying after beating muslim sena, our Ran sena is going to beat Ravana sena! I found it utterly disgraceful.
The nature of the sports has changed totally. Is sports not supposed to bring countries, culture and people together? It's another matter that history repeated itslelf in winning the cup after 28 yrs! Its truly a joyous moment for the entire nation that has so little for the larger samaj to come together for a common cause! One understands, great divides and fractures in our society, accentuated by poverty, misery, injustice - such moments of fanatic exhilerations in this context, can be equated with the high that one derives from opium. Sports has therefore become like religion. If not appreciated and followed in its true spirit, it can make people as fanatic as religion!!!
It is important that we keep sports as sports and cricket as cricket, and not a weapon of spreading hatred and violence. It will be truly a great day when we learn to celebrate a win, howsoever great it might be and accept defeat even if its by the worst margin, equally gracefully. After all only one side can win, evn when there is kante ka takkar and there is no formula that someone's winning streak will continue for ever. There is joy in both winning and playing well but not winning.
4/1/11
Thinking About Social Change Philanthropy in India
Historical wealth has been created in the country in recent times. Burgeoing Indian middle class has attracted best MNCs to India, for hugely expanding their market for best global brands. Yet efforts in raising funds for social transformative work has not gone too far in India, despite the Indian tradition of philanthropic giving. There seems to be a dichotomy here. While it is commonly understood that wealth should serve larger purpose of social good, philanthropy has to self-driven, spontaneous and free flowing.
My thoughts are largely based on experiences of National Foundation for India (NFI) in trying to raise money from the corporate sector and the members of the public, specially high net worth individuals and the middle class for strengthening civil society by improvin social relations at the ground. NFI promotes long-term development initiatives at the grassroots, to address poverty and inequity. NFI's grants and fellowships are under seven thematic areas: elementary education, community health, livelihoods security, peace and justice, local governance, citizens and society and development journalism. In its work, NFI strives to follow four cross cutting principles namely, participation in development, gender equity and justice, institution building and knowledge building.
NFI is working for close to two decades mostly focusing in the poverty endemic eastern and northeastern states. NFI's approach of supporting long term social transformative work for addressing issues of poverty and inequity in the Indian society, even though at a small scale has a lot of value in the present Indian context where development agenda is overcharged by rights discourse. Whereas, there is no gainsaying that constitutionally guaranted entitlements is a necessary pre-condtion for socio-economic equity, provisionisng itself is not a sufficient condition. Evidence of failure of State driven scematic development in the country. While political rights have to an extent made or democracy run, structural inequities of Indian society has widened social and economic divide. Strengthening institutions of common people and through this catalyzing particpatory development could essentially provide the ground for a stronger social democracy and economic equity.
Apart from deriving income from a small corpus fund, NFI also tries and raises funds from donor institutions, individuals and corporate sector for its work. The strength of NFI's social transformative work also limits in some respect its options for raising money from the corporate sector and members of public, specially middle class and high net worth individuals (HNWs). CRY and Helpage like organizations, also raise money from individuals and the corporate sector with much stronger brand appeal. CRY is seen as an organization focused on child development and Helpage on the issues of old age. NFI on the other hand was created with a larger purpose to strengthen institutions of civil society on the ground for addressing structural issues, such as endemic poverty and social inequity with focus on disadvantaged and marginalized citizens such as women, schedule castes and tribe and minorities and simultaneously aspire to inform and shape public consciousness about such work.
Tangible part of NFI's work includes schooling projects for first generation school goers, building knowledge and understanding of women and marginalized on community health issues, improving their awareness to health and other development schemes meant for their welfare, it includes projects for strengthening livelihoods and so on and so forth. Realization of these outcomes require catalyzing a change process for empowering communities, through sustained dialogues and conversations, knowledge and resource sharing and by developing inclusive platforms or local institutions that could help communities to question inequity in social and gender relations, cutting corners for individual gains and also their spectatorship when community and social norms are violated. The efforts aim at enabling common people gain agency for transformative action. However, exact path and outcomes for such processes are context specific, complex and difficult to predict.
NFI's founders had felt that opening up of Indian economy and liberalization will create an environment wherein more and more people of our country, specially the high net worth individuals (HNWIs) and middle class will like to contribute for transformative work on the ground. Various experiences of NFI and others and studies suggest, in India where there is some tradition of philanthropy, the value of philanthropic giving for social change through professionally managed institutions such as NFI, has not yet developed. For a long time now, corporate sector in India is involved in the development of the disadvantaged in various ways, the most prominent among these, is giving donations through company owned and managed implementing agencies, which also compete for the same pool of funding as other voluntary development agencies.
Fewer examples of arm length corporate philanthropy that exists in India, are mostly marked by a strong techno-managerial approach, narrowly defined, tangible and short term agendas, which compromise the scope of grants in questioning and addressing deeper structural issues both at the community and discourse level. CAF’s model is an example, which has done well in facilitating corporate support for development projects on the ground, has not been able to persuade long-term and more holistic support.
NFI tried various ways of engaging with the middle class and HNWIs from the beginning. All efforts by NFI including efforts of its most eminent founders and Board members in raising money from Indian middle class, the HNWIs and corporate sector so far has not yielded significantly. NFI tried to raise money from public through campaigns like say no to poly bag and campaign against firecracker in its initail years and through the middle of the last decade. Money raised through such campaigns did not fully cover the costs of these campaigns, let alone creating a surplus. Dedicated fund raising officer worked with NFI team and external experts, however, very little programmatic funds could be generated from individuals and corporate sector.
The experience drove NFI to think of exploring other options for raising funds to grow a critical mass of work in accordance to its broader mandate of social change work. It was felt, presence of a body of work on the ground, would help to evoke larger public appeal. Initial efforts of raising programmatic funds were more opportunist but slowly as NFI’s work started taking deeper roots, it was able to convince institutional donors to give institutional grants in the areas of common interest, which over a period of time enhanced NFI’s visibility in the sector and among donors’ community. Despite the slump in 2007 and 08, it seems NFI is again riding the tide, as some institutional donors are showing confindence in its ability bility to catalyse development initaitives and nurture voluntary organizations in remote and far off parts of the country.
On a parallel track, NFI’s simultaneous efforts to create grounds for engaging middle class and HNWIs peaked in mid 2007 when NFI developed a strategic fundraising communication plan with professional help from fundraisng consultants. A major part of the exercise involved mapping different categories of donors, developing an active database across these categories and developing communication plan specific to each category. Although momentum built through these communication efforts have peaked, significant outcome in terms of actual money raised, is still awaited.
NFI also carried out an endowment feasibility study that allowed us to understand the giving climate in some big cities of the country, with a focus to understand perceptions of HNWIs, existing private philanthropists and institutional donors about giving endowment grants to institutions such as NFI. The study suggests that philanthropic giving for social change and in particular endowment giving in favor of NFI like institution is not an established phenomenon.
Often times, philanthropic giving by trusts and private philanthropists is shaped by personal considerations rather than professional understanding of development. Only very few well established large trusts apply rigours in grantmaking and have an understanding of the concept of endowment grants. Yet they would be very reluctant to give such grants even to an institutions which they know well though they gave such grants in recent past to many NGOs and institutions.
In recent past, we also developed 'friends of NFI' and tied up with restaurants for promoting individual giving. We took help of an agency with experience of advising corporate entities on their CSR, to package and sell photographs of our projects taken by a well established photojournalist. These photographs endorsed with short comments by some eminent personalities, such as Ratan Tata, Shyam Benegal, Mallika Sarabhai, Sharmila Tagore and the likes. Although contacts were made with about 100 corporate organizations we could sell only few photographs.
The biggest challenge therefore, for the voluntary social sector, in particular for an independent, national, professionally managed grant making body as NFI, is to find meaningful ways of engaging potential and established philanthropists. Howver, there is an opportunity for building environment for philanthropy with holistic social change work by going beyond techno-magerial frame of mind, with the help from philanthropic pionners of the likes of Rohini Nilekani and Ajim Premji. Veteran among private philanthropists, the Tatas reposnded meaningfully to a range of philanthropic possibilities by bringing professionalim, deep understanding of the country and a truly pioneering nation building vison. The tradition continues though the broadness of the vison has taken as setback with over emphasis on tencho managerial outocmes.
Philanthropy for social justice also needs to be studied as an academic disipline in development studies and managment isntitutions. A beginning can be made if NFI like orgnisation could take a lead in convening a series of round tables with emerging philanthropists in India with a purpose to share with them real experiences of development. Such efforts taken up nationally could go a ong way in connecting two ends of our civil society. At one end are those who have the wealth and at the other end of the spectrum, who are cut out from civil society and development discourse altogether.
My thoughts are largely based on experiences of National Foundation for India (NFI) in trying to raise money from the corporate sector and the members of the public, specially high net worth individuals and the middle class for strengthening civil society by improvin social relations at the ground. NFI promotes long-term development initiatives at the grassroots, to address poverty and inequity. NFI's grants and fellowships are under seven thematic areas: elementary education, community health, livelihoods security, peace and justice, local governance, citizens and society and development journalism. In its work, NFI strives to follow four cross cutting principles namely, participation in development, gender equity and justice, institution building and knowledge building.
NFI is working for close to two decades mostly focusing in the poverty endemic eastern and northeastern states. NFI's approach of supporting long term social transformative work for addressing issues of poverty and inequity in the Indian society, even though at a small scale has a lot of value in the present Indian context where development agenda is overcharged by rights discourse. Whereas, there is no gainsaying that constitutionally guaranted entitlements is a necessary pre-condtion for socio-economic equity, provisionisng itself is not a sufficient condition. Evidence of failure of State driven scematic development in the country. While political rights have to an extent made or democracy run, structural inequities of Indian society has widened social and economic divide. Strengthening institutions of common people and through this catalyzing particpatory development could essentially provide the ground for a stronger social democracy and economic equity.
Apart from deriving income from a small corpus fund, NFI also tries and raises funds from donor institutions, individuals and corporate sector for its work. The strength of NFI's social transformative work also limits in some respect its options for raising money from the corporate sector and members of public, specially middle class and high net worth individuals (HNWs). CRY and Helpage like organizations, also raise money from individuals and the corporate sector with much stronger brand appeal. CRY is seen as an organization focused on child development and Helpage on the issues of old age. NFI on the other hand was created with a larger purpose to strengthen institutions of civil society on the ground for addressing structural issues, such as endemic poverty and social inequity with focus on disadvantaged and marginalized citizens such as women, schedule castes and tribe and minorities and simultaneously aspire to inform and shape public consciousness about such work.
Tangible part of NFI's work includes schooling projects for first generation school goers, building knowledge and understanding of women and marginalized on community health issues, improving their awareness to health and other development schemes meant for their welfare, it includes projects for strengthening livelihoods and so on and so forth. Realization of these outcomes require catalyzing a change process for empowering communities, through sustained dialogues and conversations, knowledge and resource sharing and by developing inclusive platforms or local institutions that could help communities to question inequity in social and gender relations, cutting corners for individual gains and also their spectatorship when community and social norms are violated. The efforts aim at enabling common people gain agency for transformative action. However, exact path and outcomes for such processes are context specific, complex and difficult to predict.
NFI's founders had felt that opening up of Indian economy and liberalization will create an environment wherein more and more people of our country, specially the high net worth individuals (HNWIs) and middle class will like to contribute for transformative work on the ground. Various experiences of NFI and others and studies suggest, in India where there is some tradition of philanthropy, the value of philanthropic giving for social change through professionally managed institutions such as NFI, has not yet developed. For a long time now, corporate sector in India is involved in the development of the disadvantaged in various ways, the most prominent among these, is giving donations through company owned and managed implementing agencies, which also compete for the same pool of funding as other voluntary development agencies.
Fewer examples of arm length corporate philanthropy that exists in India, are mostly marked by a strong techno-managerial approach, narrowly defined, tangible and short term agendas, which compromise the scope of grants in questioning and addressing deeper structural issues both at the community and discourse level. CAF’s model is an example, which has done well in facilitating corporate support for development projects on the ground, has not been able to persuade long-term and more holistic support.
NFI tried various ways of engaging with the middle class and HNWIs from the beginning. All efforts by NFI including efforts of its most eminent founders and Board members in raising money from Indian middle class, the HNWIs and corporate sector so far has not yielded significantly. NFI tried to raise money from public through campaigns like say no to poly bag and campaign against firecracker in its initail years and through the middle of the last decade. Money raised through such campaigns did not fully cover the costs of these campaigns, let alone creating a surplus. Dedicated fund raising officer worked with NFI team and external experts, however, very little programmatic funds could be generated from individuals and corporate sector.
The experience drove NFI to think of exploring other options for raising funds to grow a critical mass of work in accordance to its broader mandate of social change work. It was felt, presence of a body of work on the ground, would help to evoke larger public appeal. Initial efforts of raising programmatic funds were more opportunist but slowly as NFI’s work started taking deeper roots, it was able to convince institutional donors to give institutional grants in the areas of common interest, which over a period of time enhanced NFI’s visibility in the sector and among donors’ community. Despite the slump in 2007 and 08, it seems NFI is again riding the tide, as some institutional donors are showing confindence in its ability bility to catalyse development initaitives and nurture voluntary organizations in remote and far off parts of the country.
On a parallel track, NFI’s simultaneous efforts to create grounds for engaging middle class and HNWIs peaked in mid 2007 when NFI developed a strategic fundraising communication plan with professional help from fundraisng consultants. A major part of the exercise involved mapping different categories of donors, developing an active database across these categories and developing communication plan specific to each category. Although momentum built through these communication efforts have peaked, significant outcome in terms of actual money raised, is still awaited.
NFI also carried out an endowment feasibility study that allowed us to understand the giving climate in some big cities of the country, with a focus to understand perceptions of HNWIs, existing private philanthropists and institutional donors about giving endowment grants to institutions such as NFI. The study suggests that philanthropic giving for social change and in particular endowment giving in favor of NFI like institution is not an established phenomenon.
Often times, philanthropic giving by trusts and private philanthropists is shaped by personal considerations rather than professional understanding of development. Only very few well established large trusts apply rigours in grantmaking and have an understanding of the concept of endowment grants. Yet they would be very reluctant to give such grants even to an institutions which they know well though they gave such grants in recent past to many NGOs and institutions.
In recent past, we also developed 'friends of NFI' and tied up with restaurants for promoting individual giving. We took help of an agency with experience of advising corporate entities on their CSR, to package and sell photographs of our projects taken by a well established photojournalist. These photographs endorsed with short comments by some eminent personalities, such as Ratan Tata, Shyam Benegal, Mallika Sarabhai, Sharmila Tagore and the likes. Although contacts were made with about 100 corporate organizations we could sell only few photographs.
The biggest challenge therefore, for the voluntary social sector, in particular for an independent, national, professionally managed grant making body as NFI, is to find meaningful ways of engaging potential and established philanthropists. Howver, there is an opportunity for building environment for philanthropy with holistic social change work by going beyond techno-magerial frame of mind, with the help from philanthropic pionners of the likes of Rohini Nilekani and Ajim Premji. Veteran among private philanthropists, the Tatas reposnded meaningfully to a range of philanthropic possibilities by bringing professionalim, deep understanding of the country and a truly pioneering nation building vison. The tradition continues though the broadness of the vison has taken as setback with over emphasis on tencho managerial outocmes.
Philanthropy for social justice also needs to be studied as an academic disipline in development studies and managment isntitutions. A beginning can be made if NFI like orgnisation could take a lead in convening a series of round tables with emerging philanthropists in India with a purpose to share with them real experiences of development. Such efforts taken up nationally could go a ong way in connecting two ends of our civil society. At one end are those who have the wealth and at the other end of the spectrum, who are cut out from civil society and development discourse altogether.
2/3/11
Can not ensure protection and safe environment for our children - what nation are we?
The AIMS resident doctor who molested the 8 year old brain tumor patient the other day, should be permanently chained and put inside a cage in a secluded place for his most heinous crime and lynched publicly everyday till the time he lives. He should be made to eat food that is not fit for human consumption anymore and all his citizen's rights should be taken away from him. Unfortunately the IPC does not have such a provision. My elder daughter Anoushka, just 9, was stunned and shattered when she learnt about the crime while reading newspaper, a habit she has started enjoying. But I doubt if I will have the heart to encourage her to do so actively, given her tender age.
My daughter has been asking me all sorts of questions; thinking about her unfortunate brother whom she has not seen; who underwent a brain surgery for tumor removal just a couple of days before this most shocking incidence; whose parents and others though this doctor to be a noble person. But he has put the noble profession and the entire humanity to shame by his heinous act. His act is unpardonable as he has betrayed the faith of the child, his parents and his colleagues; has snatched away the innocence not only from the helpless little boy but all children of his age. Should we just continue to think that we should do something about it or rather we should all take a pledge to do our bits, be it educating our children or acting in a responsible manner when dealing with such incidences like sexual abuse, by showing support and understanding to the sufferers.
This doctor has brought shame to this noble profession and the entire humanity. He has violated the rights of all children to have a safe environment. I am not sure if I did the right thing in inculcating this regular newspaper reading habit in my daughter. In any case every child of her age has a lot of awareness today. My daughter asks me or her mother, what is molestation/ sexual assault/rape. In our attempt to answer her questions and explain to them the gravity of such crimes, I and my wife struggle help her understand the seriousness of the matter in a manner appropriate for her age. This is a subject that we can not avoid, we should not avoid. While being mindful of her innocence filled heart and eyes, we need to be able to communicate to effectively to each child about sex crimes, absolutely in a no nonsense way, for her safety and protection. We should all learn together effective ways of protecting our children and preparing our them to protect themselves. We should pay utmost attention to this communication instead of curbing the freedom of our children to play, laugh and to have fun.
While we should welcome the announcement of this doctors immediate (almost) dismissal and recomendation for cancelation of his registration. The minister acted smartly and quickly. But this is not enough. Given the widespread repeatations of sex/sexual crime against all age groups and gender, law should aim for a set of revised provisions for speedy, scientific and simplified procedures for trial and much harsher punishments than what exists today, akin to what I cited as my outburst in my opening lines. Within the amended provisions, sex crimes against infants and children should attract harshest of all punishments. Definitions of sex crime should be made clear and comprehensive to avoid any ambiguity and differences in interpretation. Although something like capital punishment may be counter productive and these sex criminals would then go to the extent of killing their targets. At the same time, the principle of giving chance to every criminal for reform, should be discarded for this category of crime. In my consideration, sex crime against children, and for that matter against all age groups - of which the children, girl child and women are most vulnerable groups- should be treated as the most heinous crime.
I feel all of us irrespective of our nationality, religion, castes, languages should stand in solidarity to prevent such crimes from happening and protest strongly whenever these happen. There should be zero tolerance against such crimes as they leave a deep and permanent wound in the person who has suffered this. The scar left never heals fully, and has serious implications on the sufferers' mental and physical health, their persona, their attitude to life and so on and so forth.
It is rather shocking to know that some ethno-religious groups/ tribes in some of our neighboring countries treat the sufferers of sex crimes in most inhuman fashion while letting the criminals go scot free. In a similar vein there are people all around us in our country, including some from the judiciary, who believe that a sex criminal should be freed if he offers to marry his target. I would also admonish those of us who feel the act and conducts of the sufferers are responsible for inviting sex crime. They blame the sufferer for the crime rather than condemning the criminals. All research on sex crime prove otherwise. The motive of sex crime is not sex, but to brutalise the target to satisfy some kind of complex sadist tendency or it could sometimes be linked to revenge against the family or close relatives or sometimes against a larger groups of those considered enemy (as in case of sex crimes by soldiers). Otherwise what could be the explaination for sexual assault against innocent children. So the point here for everybody is, do not blame the sufferer, reach out to her/him with full support and understanding.
I feel, total awareness and knowledge building on the issue of sex crime should be given top most priority in our country, as an effective step towards protection of children, women and other vulnerable groups. Multiple pronged communication strategy targeting different age groups and layers of the society is needed. There is a need for knowledge and capacity building of judiciary, police, schools, hospitals, all kinds of institutions and establishments to implement zero tolerance against all forms of sex crimes ranging from sexual abuse, molestation, sexual assaults. Schools should teach children about sex crimes and prepare our young citizens' for their responsibility to fight this out together. Our laws should definitely be made more firm with harsher and sure punishments, but I am not over emphasising it knowing that it takes its own course. There are however, innumerable ways we, the civil society can act towards our collective responsibility and duty to fight out the menace of sex crimes against children and all vulnerable groups. Let's not forget tat we are not a rogue nation, but a nation of oldest civilisation and culture.
My daughter has been asking me all sorts of questions; thinking about her unfortunate brother whom she has not seen; who underwent a brain surgery for tumor removal just a couple of days before this most shocking incidence; whose parents and others though this doctor to be a noble person. But he has put the noble profession and the entire humanity to shame by his heinous act. His act is unpardonable as he has betrayed the faith of the child, his parents and his colleagues; has snatched away the innocence not only from the helpless little boy but all children of his age. Should we just continue to think that we should do something about it or rather we should all take a pledge to do our bits, be it educating our children or acting in a responsible manner when dealing with such incidences like sexual abuse, by showing support and understanding to the sufferers.
This doctor has brought shame to this noble profession and the entire humanity. He has violated the rights of all children to have a safe environment. I am not sure if I did the right thing in inculcating this regular newspaper reading habit in my daughter. In any case every child of her age has a lot of awareness today. My daughter asks me or her mother, what is molestation/ sexual assault/rape. In our attempt to answer her questions and explain to them the gravity of such crimes, I and my wife struggle help her understand the seriousness of the matter in a manner appropriate for her age. This is a subject that we can not avoid, we should not avoid. While being mindful of her innocence filled heart and eyes, we need to be able to communicate to effectively to each child about sex crimes, absolutely in a no nonsense way, for her safety and protection. We should all learn together effective ways of protecting our children and preparing our them to protect themselves. We should pay utmost attention to this communication instead of curbing the freedom of our children to play, laugh and to have fun.
While we should welcome the announcement of this doctors immediate (almost) dismissal and recomendation for cancelation of his registration. The minister acted smartly and quickly. But this is not enough. Given the widespread repeatations of sex/sexual crime against all age groups and gender, law should aim for a set of revised provisions for speedy, scientific and simplified procedures for trial and much harsher punishments than what exists today, akin to what I cited as my outburst in my opening lines. Within the amended provisions, sex crimes against infants and children should attract harshest of all punishments. Definitions of sex crime should be made clear and comprehensive to avoid any ambiguity and differences in interpretation. Although something like capital punishment may be counter productive and these sex criminals would then go to the extent of killing their targets. At the same time, the principle of giving chance to every criminal for reform, should be discarded for this category of crime. In my consideration, sex crime against children, and for that matter against all age groups - of which the children, girl child and women are most vulnerable groups- should be treated as the most heinous crime.
I feel all of us irrespective of our nationality, religion, castes, languages should stand in solidarity to prevent such crimes from happening and protest strongly whenever these happen. There should be zero tolerance against such crimes as they leave a deep and permanent wound in the person who has suffered this. The scar left never heals fully, and has serious implications on the sufferers' mental and physical health, their persona, their attitude to life and so on and so forth.
It is rather shocking to know that some ethno-religious groups/ tribes in some of our neighboring countries treat the sufferers of sex crimes in most inhuman fashion while letting the criminals go scot free. In a similar vein there are people all around us in our country, including some from the judiciary, who believe that a sex criminal should be freed if he offers to marry his target. I would also admonish those of us who feel the act and conducts of the sufferers are responsible for inviting sex crime. They blame the sufferer for the crime rather than condemning the criminals. All research on sex crime prove otherwise. The motive of sex crime is not sex, but to brutalise the target to satisfy some kind of complex sadist tendency or it could sometimes be linked to revenge against the family or close relatives or sometimes against a larger groups of those considered enemy (as in case of sex crimes by soldiers). Otherwise what could be the explaination for sexual assault against innocent children. So the point here for everybody is, do not blame the sufferer, reach out to her/him with full support and understanding.
I feel, total awareness and knowledge building on the issue of sex crime should be given top most priority in our country, as an effective step towards protection of children, women and other vulnerable groups. Multiple pronged communication strategy targeting different age groups and layers of the society is needed. There is a need for knowledge and capacity building of judiciary, police, schools, hospitals, all kinds of institutions and establishments to implement zero tolerance against all forms of sex crimes ranging from sexual abuse, molestation, sexual assaults. Schools should teach children about sex crimes and prepare our young citizens' for their responsibility to fight this out together. Our laws should definitely be made more firm with harsher and sure punishments, but I am not over emphasising it knowing that it takes its own course. There are however, innumerable ways we, the civil society can act towards our collective responsibility and duty to fight out the menace of sex crimes against children and all vulnerable groups. Let's not forget tat we are not a rogue nation, but a nation of oldest civilisation and culture.
1/30/11
So much change in our lives- have they enhanced our wellness index?
Middle class in our country has undergone sea change since Globalisation processes were ushered in by the then finance minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in the early 90s. Suddenly middle class in India shot into prominence with its tremendous purchasing power due to high level of disposable income that was unimaginable earlier. They became the targets for the international brands of goods and services, due to their high disposable incomes. Almost all the best international labels and brands, be it cars or mo bikes, mobile phones, Italian marble for flooring or chimneys for kitchen, jeans and casual wears, formal wears, toys, alcoholic beverages, juice, biscuits, breakfast cereals, pickle and jam, mundane household goods and even small kitchen items like knives and what not, everything imaginable has made an entry to our homes. Swanky malls, airports, frequent air travels, five star restaurants and internationally popular fast food joints, global connectivity are all within the reach of middle class. Amidst all these India shining narrative, there are some who think we are caught in a catch 22 situation. In some sense, my generation of people -those born in 60s and early 70s and grew up through 70s and 80s, who are in between our fathers' generation and the new generation, are well positioned to view this change more holistically as they have ingrained Indian middle class value and adapted the new Indian Middle Class Dream American style. This is an account of my own very personal experience through this change.
Our generation has not so distant memories of austerity being a virtue in middle class families. Physical manifestation of a well to do urban middle class family, apart from the essentials, was limited to a few drawing room furniture made of teakwood and sometimes shisham, few artifacts, a set or two of bone china crockery one or two for special occasion guests, Godrej type amirah, a small refrigerator, a big radio set, handpicked bedsheets and curtains - mosly handloom- in a nutshell what mattered more was a well kept, impeccably clean homes attributable more to the time spent at home by our super moms than the furniture, fixtures and rare artefacts. The essentials were limited to two or three pairs of daily wearing clothes apart from two sets of school uniforms, and winter clothes for children and probably one or two pairs of special occasion dresses. Elders' wardrobes were a bit richer than the children as the size of their clothes did not change, and those underwent less of wear and tear and mothers off course would have their well kept wedding trousseau. All including children's clothes would neatly fit in two odd almirahs for clothes and two cloth racks which we called alnas in Bengali.
I have given this account based on my childhood experience of my parental home as well as those of my uncles, aunts and friends and neighbors. There was some form of equity seen our middle class lifestyles. The variations were seen in absence of the small refrigerator and addition of a radiogram or gramophone (based on income levels of families). My father bought a Phillips philletila radio set later, which remained a prized possession of my mother till recently when she gave it up for another Philips set. The Phillips two in one was a much later addition in 80s.
Contrast this with today’s' scenario with overflowing wardrobes - we have 4 for our small family with two below ten kids. I have lost count for how many and what dresses my daughters have in each of the different categories - party, casual, formals, winter-wear, daily types etc. I keenly read reviews of the latest in electronics and yet I will not be able to describe wholly the gadgets middle class families own these days. A colour TV of a good make is no more the yardstick, with LCDs and LEDs and Plasmas competing with each other to enter your drawing room or home theatre space, for people who can afford it -both its price and also have space at the basement or in the form of an additional study. Kitchen has food processors, sandwich makers, cooking range or electric grill, OTGs and micro oven. Chimney has become a necessity in our new home as my wife reminded me today while cleaning of the oil deposits from the rubber wood kitchen cabinets. We have close friends and relations, who change their bedroom and drawing room furniture fairly regularly though we are still who keep using and recycling the old ones.
An ambassador or a Premier Padmini and much later Maruti 800 car was a midlle class child dream, which I secretly nurture in my school and early college days, hoping my father will be convinced to buy one. But going back to the point on austerity, my father would always ask if we or he really needed a car. My father was a fairly successful lawyer and could have afforded it but he believed in wealth creation, which probably is no more seen as important by the new generation (we are the intermediate generation) thanks to the EMI culture.
Fast food joints were unheard off. But we had our favourite golgappawalas, known for their tasty golgappas which we called phuchka (still so in Ranchi) , dahi vadas and alu tikkis know as tikia in Bihari parlance. I grew up in Ranchi and there were just a handfull of eating out places where our parents would take us occasionally. We had our once in a while ice creams from Kwality stall, which had supplies from Kolkata through Jamshedpur depot. For some time Kwality vanished and gain reappeared later. More frequently in summer specially, we as children would have at our school recesses and breaks. Locally made ice-cream sticks artificially flavoured with different colour syrups of which milk bar and orange stick used to be our favorites. Later in Ranchi the Firayalal joint of softy became very popular. There were few of the goodies that were available and we were quite happy with them. Even in our college and management institute days, we were happy with simple chai from the canteen or thelas outside our college or institute gates, most of the times shared in the typical three out of four or even four out of two, and samosas (called singhara in Bihar and Bengal) and parathas if hungry. Occasionally we pooled money to visit some good restaurant. We enjoyed pure adda talking about latest movies, cricket, politics, career choices and the likes. I am not sure if the younger generation can have the same luxury sitting at Coffee Cafe Day or Dominos with people waiting for tables.
As a college student I had read a travelogue of a famous Bengali novelist whose name I can not readily remember at the moment about an Indian middle class boy who is settling down in USA after his education. He has furnished his flat fully and has a car. IS father gets a shock of his life when he gets to know all these are bought on hire purchase scheme. Indian society has come off age due to economic prosperity or a false notion of it? EMI culture has taken deep roots in our society. Work harder and harder to earn more and more, so that you can afford higher and higher EMIs to afford all that one needs to be happy and successful. This understanding of happiness, success and well being is deeply problematic, more as more and more people of our generation, and almost everyone of the new generation is falling into the trap of believing this to be true.
I thought this little bit of background weaving will help me to drive home my point, how far have these physical indicators attributed to our happiness and well being? It has made us materialistic and measures of austerity, simplicity and savings are no more seen as virtues. How have these gadgets changed our lives? We have cars that should have shortened our travelling time but today almost everyone owns a car so there is more traffic jams, which prolongs our travelling time anyways. We are also commuting long-distance everyday. Internet and mobile connectivity has certainly revolutioised our lives, but at the same time it has come for a heavy price. Whatever time is left, we like spending in front of our lqarge screen LCDs or LEDs or Plasmas, watching third rate soap opera. Off course these hi tech TVS have added to our thrill in watching sports or live events but it has also meant spending more time in front of these gadgets and less with our family. Has someone cared to do a cost benefit analysis of what we gained due to globaliasation culture and what have we lost. And in doing this we ask ourselves, do we really need all that the globaliation promises to give us or use it judicously so as not to lose on the essence of true meanings of our lives. In having the know how, we should not compromise the vison of creating a truly sustainable globalised society.
Mobile companies advertise in their own ways how their network have brought us closer to our friends and lovers and relations. But the fact is that husbands and wives today because of their busy lives, have to catch up with each other during lunch breaks, over mobile, making weekend or month end shopping list, attending to some urgent family matter or a long postponed weekend trip with the kids. The little time kids are left with after fixing their assignments, they prefer being glued to the TV sets at their homes. In our childhood and early youth days, everyone in the family seemed to have so much time for each other. We soiled our hands and feet while playing, and yet were probably happier as children than our children, who have a collection of toys, that would have shamed a toy shop of our time. Today our children have live opportunities almost comparable to western societies in studies, sports and extra-curricular activities and yet they are not as happy, healthy and cheerful as they should be. We elders are also eating most nutritious food as all of us have become health conscious and yet good health seems to be always eluding from us mostly because of the killer stress. The lifestyle itself creates a vicious cycle with no time to have a heart laugh and light talk. Focused life goals centred around career, has distanced us from what used to be a more holistic life style.
Another contrast that is not so difficult to notice is the fact that divide between the middle class and lower income group and poor people have increased manifold. While all these changes seem very natural to most of us, very little material change has happened in rural areas. Rural infrastructure and economy is in shambles inspite of huge allocations in some of the flagship schemes for poverty aleveiation and employment guarantee as these schemes have not been able to create a shared vision for development in these areas.This has acted as a big push factor increasing rapid migration to big cities. Although migration means a significant increase in income level for those migrants, the lives they havce in big cities, without basic housin, health and education infrastructure, no sanitation facility is precarious.
How the economic liberalisation would change the life prospects for millions of these people is not clear to me. Industrialisation and various economic opportunities are bound to increase manifold also acting a as a pull factor for cheap labour from rural areas in addition to the push factor mentioned above. However, it is not self evident that these low skilled low paying job will give them a dignified and respectful living even if we don’t raise sustainability issues. In any case by all projections, the majority population, not less than 65-70 per cent will remain in rural areas. Even for a moment if we believe in the great American Middle Class Style Dream Economy, where every family has job, home, car and access to modern amenities- aggregate of all Indians fulfilling their great Indian Middle Class Dreams looks scary to me with no space to drive, water scarcity, irreversible environmental pollution and depletion of natural resources, dependence on food import and all. This prospect is doubly disastrous as it would be achieved at the cost of almost uprooting bio-mass civilization. I can not help asking this question out of my naivety perhaps, why are we not paying sufficient attention to small holding agriculture, agribusiness and other rural businesses by facilitating pro-poor value chains to expand, forests that could genuinely strengthen food security and local livelihoods opportunities. In not paying sufficient attention to rural are we not heading towards a situation same as the USA and the prosperous societies of Western Europe? High teenage drug abuse, sex, gang wars, organised crime, racial fights and the likes?
It is high time we should seriously put our minds together to engage in real soul searching and through this will emerge our own vision of our development, not a borrowed one. We need to look at what we really need to lead healthy, happy and successful lives and not become greedy to have what we don't need and thus block the prospect for those who have less opportunities than we have, to have a good life. It is time to remember the idealism that was part of our middle class living. Gandhiji had said there is enough for everyone's need but not greed.
Our generation has not so distant memories of austerity being a virtue in middle class families. Physical manifestation of a well to do urban middle class family, apart from the essentials, was limited to a few drawing room furniture made of teakwood and sometimes shisham, few artifacts, a set or two of bone china crockery one or two for special occasion guests, Godrej type amirah, a small refrigerator, a big radio set, handpicked bedsheets and curtains - mosly handloom- in a nutshell what mattered more was a well kept, impeccably clean homes attributable more to the time spent at home by our super moms than the furniture, fixtures and rare artefacts. The essentials were limited to two or three pairs of daily wearing clothes apart from two sets of school uniforms, and winter clothes for children and probably one or two pairs of special occasion dresses. Elders' wardrobes were a bit richer than the children as the size of their clothes did not change, and those underwent less of wear and tear and mothers off course would have their well kept wedding trousseau. All including children's clothes would neatly fit in two odd almirahs for clothes and two cloth racks which we called alnas in Bengali.
I have given this account based on my childhood experience of my parental home as well as those of my uncles, aunts and friends and neighbors. There was some form of equity seen our middle class lifestyles. The variations were seen in absence of the small refrigerator and addition of a radiogram or gramophone (based on income levels of families). My father bought a Phillips philletila radio set later, which remained a prized possession of my mother till recently when she gave it up for another Philips set. The Phillips two in one was a much later addition in 80s.
Contrast this with today’s' scenario with overflowing wardrobes - we have 4 for our small family with two below ten kids. I have lost count for how many and what dresses my daughters have in each of the different categories - party, casual, formals, winter-wear, daily types etc. I keenly read reviews of the latest in electronics and yet I will not be able to describe wholly the gadgets middle class families own these days. A colour TV of a good make is no more the yardstick, with LCDs and LEDs and Plasmas competing with each other to enter your drawing room or home theatre space, for people who can afford it -both its price and also have space at the basement or in the form of an additional study. Kitchen has food processors, sandwich makers, cooking range or electric grill, OTGs and micro oven. Chimney has become a necessity in our new home as my wife reminded me today while cleaning of the oil deposits from the rubber wood kitchen cabinets. We have close friends and relations, who change their bedroom and drawing room furniture fairly regularly though we are still who keep using and recycling the old ones.
An ambassador or a Premier Padmini and much later Maruti 800 car was a midlle class child dream, which I secretly nurture in my school and early college days, hoping my father will be convinced to buy one. But going back to the point on austerity, my father would always ask if we or he really needed a car. My father was a fairly successful lawyer and could have afforded it but he believed in wealth creation, which probably is no more seen as important by the new generation (we are the intermediate generation) thanks to the EMI culture.
Fast food joints were unheard off. But we had our favourite golgappawalas, known for their tasty golgappas which we called phuchka (still so in Ranchi) , dahi vadas and alu tikkis know as tikia in Bihari parlance. I grew up in Ranchi and there were just a handfull of eating out places where our parents would take us occasionally. We had our once in a while ice creams from Kwality stall, which had supplies from Kolkata through Jamshedpur depot. For some time Kwality vanished and gain reappeared later. More frequently in summer specially, we as children would have at our school recesses and breaks. Locally made ice-cream sticks artificially flavoured with different colour syrups of which milk bar and orange stick used to be our favorites. Later in Ranchi the Firayalal joint of softy became very popular. There were few of the goodies that were available and we were quite happy with them. Even in our college and management institute days, we were happy with simple chai from the canteen or thelas outside our college or institute gates, most of the times shared in the typical three out of four or even four out of two, and samosas (called singhara in Bihar and Bengal) and parathas if hungry. Occasionally we pooled money to visit some good restaurant. We enjoyed pure adda talking about latest movies, cricket, politics, career choices and the likes. I am not sure if the younger generation can have the same luxury sitting at Coffee Cafe Day or Dominos with people waiting for tables.
As a college student I had read a travelogue of a famous Bengali novelist whose name I can not readily remember at the moment about an Indian middle class boy who is settling down in USA after his education. He has furnished his flat fully and has a car. IS father gets a shock of his life when he gets to know all these are bought on hire purchase scheme. Indian society has come off age due to economic prosperity or a false notion of it? EMI culture has taken deep roots in our society. Work harder and harder to earn more and more, so that you can afford higher and higher EMIs to afford all that one needs to be happy and successful. This understanding of happiness, success and well being is deeply problematic, more as more and more people of our generation, and almost everyone of the new generation is falling into the trap of believing this to be true.
I thought this little bit of background weaving will help me to drive home my point, how far have these physical indicators attributed to our happiness and well being? It has made us materialistic and measures of austerity, simplicity and savings are no more seen as virtues. How have these gadgets changed our lives? We have cars that should have shortened our travelling time but today almost everyone owns a car so there is more traffic jams, which prolongs our travelling time anyways. We are also commuting long-distance everyday. Internet and mobile connectivity has certainly revolutioised our lives, but at the same time it has come for a heavy price. Whatever time is left, we like spending in front of our lqarge screen LCDs or LEDs or Plasmas, watching third rate soap opera. Off course these hi tech TVS have added to our thrill in watching sports or live events but it has also meant spending more time in front of these gadgets and less with our family. Has someone cared to do a cost benefit analysis of what we gained due to globaliasation culture and what have we lost. And in doing this we ask ourselves, do we really need all that the globaliation promises to give us or use it judicously so as not to lose on the essence of true meanings of our lives. In having the know how, we should not compromise the vison of creating a truly sustainable globalised society.
Mobile companies advertise in their own ways how their network have brought us closer to our friends and lovers and relations. But the fact is that husbands and wives today because of their busy lives, have to catch up with each other during lunch breaks, over mobile, making weekend or month end shopping list, attending to some urgent family matter or a long postponed weekend trip with the kids. The little time kids are left with after fixing their assignments, they prefer being glued to the TV sets at their homes. In our childhood and early youth days, everyone in the family seemed to have so much time for each other. We soiled our hands and feet while playing, and yet were probably happier as children than our children, who have a collection of toys, that would have shamed a toy shop of our time. Today our children have live opportunities almost comparable to western societies in studies, sports and extra-curricular activities and yet they are not as happy, healthy and cheerful as they should be. We elders are also eating most nutritious food as all of us have become health conscious and yet good health seems to be always eluding from us mostly because of the killer stress. The lifestyle itself creates a vicious cycle with no time to have a heart laugh and light talk. Focused life goals centred around career, has distanced us from what used to be a more holistic life style.
Another contrast that is not so difficult to notice is the fact that divide between the middle class and lower income group and poor people have increased manifold. While all these changes seem very natural to most of us, very little material change has happened in rural areas. Rural infrastructure and economy is in shambles inspite of huge allocations in some of the flagship schemes for poverty aleveiation and employment guarantee as these schemes have not been able to create a shared vision for development in these areas.This has acted as a big push factor increasing rapid migration to big cities. Although migration means a significant increase in income level for those migrants, the lives they havce in big cities, without basic housin, health and education infrastructure, no sanitation facility is precarious.
How the economic liberalisation would change the life prospects for millions of these people is not clear to me. Industrialisation and various economic opportunities are bound to increase manifold also acting a as a pull factor for cheap labour from rural areas in addition to the push factor mentioned above. However, it is not self evident that these low skilled low paying job will give them a dignified and respectful living even if we don’t raise sustainability issues. In any case by all projections, the majority population, not less than 65-70 per cent will remain in rural areas. Even for a moment if we believe in the great American Middle Class Style Dream Economy, where every family has job, home, car and access to modern amenities- aggregate of all Indians fulfilling their great Indian Middle Class Dreams looks scary to me with no space to drive, water scarcity, irreversible environmental pollution and depletion of natural resources, dependence on food import and all. This prospect is doubly disastrous as it would be achieved at the cost of almost uprooting bio-mass civilization. I can not help asking this question out of my naivety perhaps, why are we not paying sufficient attention to small holding agriculture, agribusiness and other rural businesses by facilitating pro-poor value chains to expand, forests that could genuinely strengthen food security and local livelihoods opportunities. In not paying sufficient attention to rural are we not heading towards a situation same as the USA and the prosperous societies of Western Europe? High teenage drug abuse, sex, gang wars, organised crime, racial fights and the likes?
It is high time we should seriously put our minds together to engage in real soul searching and through this will emerge our own vision of our development, not a borrowed one. We need to look at what we really need to lead healthy, happy and successful lives and not become greedy to have what we don't need and thus block the prospect for those who have less opportunities than we have, to have a good life. It is time to remember the idealism that was part of our middle class living. Gandhiji had said there is enough for everyone's need but not greed.
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