new policy triggers fears, · pdf filek ! ! ... may shahrukh mistry lead a long and healthy...

`50VOL. 9 NO. 3 JANUARY 2012 www.civilsocietyonline.com

dIsaBlEd By sOcIEty

lUsh wONdROUs jUNGlE

ayURvEda spEcIal

Pages 27-28

Pages 31-32

Pages 36-37

BpNI’s BattlE fOR BaBIEs

hall Of faME fOR EIGht

aNGEls fOR BRIGht IdEas

Pages 8-9

Pages 10-12

Pages 24-25

‘pay MORE

fOR watER

IN GURGaON’

Pages 6-8

Praveen Kumar,Administrator, HUDA

BIG RETAILSMALLFARMER




nEw PoLIcy TRIGGERS FEARS, ASPIRATIonS


CONTENTS

coVER SToRy

Indian farmers need much better access to markets. Butare big international retail chains the solution? Or will theytrigger other problems? Voices from the countryside.

BIG RETAIL SMALL FARMER

Our cover story this month comes mainly out of rural West Bengal.We chose West Bengal because the Trinamool Congress, which is inpower there having recently and heroically defeated the Left, played

a key role in stalling a policy on bringing foreign investments into retailchains in India.

West Bengal is typified by small landholdings. There has also been arecent history of conflicts over land acquisition by the private sector.

We thought it would be interesting to hear what these small farmershave to say about their situation and their aspirations. What are theirfears regarding big retail?

These voices out of West Bengal can also perhaps be seen as being rep-resentative of what small farmers are thinking elsewhere – in TamilNadu, Kerala, the poorer parts of uttar Pradesh. This is in much the sameway as big farmers in Punjab and Maharashtra represent a certain inter-est group in the rural economy.

From West Bengal the message we get is one of confusion and stress.It should be a national priority to change that to a sense of mission andpurpose.

The farmers we spoke to are clearly worried about the strangleholdretail chains may have on them in the future. They fear they will losetheir small plots, which is all they have. But significantly they alsobemoan the fact that they lack infrastructure and don’t get a fair price fortheir produce. They long to be freed from the grip that middlemen haveon their lives.

Clearly, the small farmers can’t go on like this. reforms are needed, butthe question is of what kind.

Given the scale of the problems in our farm sector, the solutions willhave to be both entrepreneurial and driven by government. Investmentswill have to be made in infrastructure and technology. A fresh approach isrequired to collection and storage. Such initiatives don’t necessarily haveto involve FDI. There is enough capital for them in the country itself. But,on the other hand, in today’s world what is wrong with money coming inas long as checks and balances are applied?

The problem as we see it is one of governance. It is precisely becauseof the absence of regulation that the current mandi system under per-forms and middlemen do as they please. If the government has thevision and the resolve it is possible to draw on private capital and expert-ise and use both to the advantage of our rural areas.

unfortunately, reforms haven’t been grown through consensus andshaped to suit Indian realities. They are viewed with fear and suspicionand are seen as a tool that the rich in India use to get richer. Policies likethe one on special economic zones (SEZs) have left many ordinary ruralpeople shaken. There is little trust.

But the fact also remains that people in rural areas want better systemsand higher standards of living. Farmers would like to see the prices theyget go up. They await infrastructure which could save up to 40 per centof their produce.

20

r e A D U s. W e r e A D y o U.

Small dam, big rewards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

. . . . . .14NCPRI camps on grievance redressal

Ingredients of a People’s Budget . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Icons who defeated barriers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-18

. . . . . . . . . . . . 28-29Doubts over MoEF’s green list

MKSS as a role model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Kashmir’s chirpy birds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Green mantra: soil, soul, society . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

. . . . . . . . . . . . . 38Products: Tasty pans, glitzy brass

Small rural voices

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5CIVIL SOCIETY, JANUARY 2012

vOICES

Green architect

The story on Shahrukh Mistry’sbrand of architecture was enlighten-ing. He has aptly combined greentechnology with aesthetics andhumanism. It is very rare to get thiscombination. The green buildingmovement has spread in India dueto the work of architects like himwho have trained younger architectsand inspired them. Even crusty, old-fashioned builders today suddenly

want to turn green. But as Shahrukhsays, green is not just bland science.So the heading of your cover storywas apt – you have to be green onthe inside.

Rohan, Shahana and Preetha

Gurgaon

I like the neat lines of ShahrukhMistry’s work. It’s not fussy or clut-tered. It makes you feel part of thenatural world.

Shikha

May Shahrukh Mistry lead a longand healthy life. India needs him.

Gautam

women drivers

Kudos to Azad Foundation for takingthe initiative of training women tobecome drivers with commerciallicenses. Their programme, ‘Womenon Wheels’ must be a healing touchfor underprivileged, aspiringwomen. The course is very compre-hensive: day and night time driv-ing, driving in heavy rain, how toread road maps, communicate inEnglish, know legal aspects, first aidand computer knowledge. ThisNGO, which is tackling social issues,

must be a paradigm to other organi-zations. The women who havebecome drivers must have becomemore confident and their economiccondition too would have improved.I would like to wish AzadFoundation more success in theirendeavours.

Sunil Bathini

[email protected]

Azad Foundation’s programme is avery comprehensive one. Even sea-soned male drivers don’t know firstaid, legal issues etc. Perhaps drivingschools in Delhi could take a cuefrom them.

Amita Harriet

AFSPA

I agree with Wajahat Habibullah’sviews on the situation in Kashmir.In recent months people havedemonstrated that they want peaceand development. They are sickand tired of violence and of beingat the receiving end of militancy.The panchayat and municipal elec-tions and the desire of youngKashmiris to be part of the civilservices shows that they want toserve the people of the state and be

part of the India growth story.Elected members are not veryaggressive about fulfilling theirpromises to the people. Maybe weneed to give them more time.Perhaps they need capacity build-ing and confidence building meas-ures.

Hashim

I think removal of AFSPA has need-lessly become a political hot potato.It should be calmly discussed, asWajahat Habibullah, says with thearmy. To give people some relief,provisions of AFSPA could bechanged so that the law becomesmore humane. Also, what kind ofpolice reforms should be done inJammu and Kashmir must be dis-cussed. Every state in India has itsown security issues and reformsshould take place accordingly. Onesize won't fit all.

Shankar Ganesh

IN THE LIGHT by SAMITA rATHOr

LETTERS

CORRECTION

In the story, 'Chef lights up humblekitchen' the quantity of ingredientsmentioned in the recipe, 'Onion andCarrot Croquettes' was wrong. Thequantity of onions and carrotsrequired is 250 gm each and not 250kg. The error is regretted.

Editor

CIVIL SOCIETY, JANUARY 2012

INDIA

6

InTERVIEw

Civil Society News

Gurgaon

PuTTING Gurgaon into shape is no easy chal-lenge. From the lack of civic amenities to cor-ruption among officials and politicians and the

defiance of builders, the list of problems to be fixedis a daunting one.

But Praveen Kumar, 51, the new Administrator ofthe Haryana urban Development Authority (HuDA)has plunged in with a zeal and daring that is rarelyseen among Indian bureaucrats.

When we link up with him it is eight in themorning and he has already been on the road for acouple of hours. We are supposed to have breakfasttogether, but instead we head for Silver Oaks, oneof Gurgaon’s innumerable gated communities. Theresidents want Kumar to spend time with themand listen to their problems.

He walks through the neighbourhood with them,examining dustbins for design flaws and discussinghow footpaths can be restored. There are residentswho believe that Silver Oaks can be turned into a“mini Singapore”– at least as far as some amenitiesgo. They want open spaces protected and commu-nity assets revived. Kumar gives them examplesfrom around the world. He tells them about Bogotaand how it was transformed into a city of walk-ways, cycle paths and bus lanes.

From Silver Oaks, the Administrator is off toSector 29 in Gurgaon where a restaurant called ParkBaluchi has appropriated public land for itskitchens and deep-freeze. More land on the otherside has been taken over by the restaurant forthrowing open-air parties. These spaces are reallymeant to be green corridors linking up with a ram-bling park called Leisure valley, a precious greenspot in concrete Gurgaon. But Park Baluchi now ille-gally sits in between.

Kumar’s notices to Park Baluchi have had noeffect. So, this time he has turned up with cranesand a demolition squad and they begin tearingdown structures. Cooks and their helpers scurryabout trying to save what they can. But the BlueStar freezers are massive and getting them out ofthere isn’t going to be easy. So, it is decided thatBlue Star will be called in to help undo this land-grab by Park Baluchi.

The manager, a Sikh with a grey beard, pleads formore time. Kumar tells him that he had been given15 days but did nothing. With the Sikh managertrailing him, Kumar goes next door to the LemonTree Hotel. Though a new and modern enterprise,the hotel is also happily occupying land whichdoesn’t belong to it. Once again the cranes swinginto action – tearing and uprooting railings.

The next stop is the Qutab Plaza market whereshops using the pedestrian areas to display their

goods are in for a rude shock. In a rapid raid, bot-tles of cold drinks, packets of chips, chocolates,clothes, sewing machines are carried away to wait-ing trucks. An old rusted bicycle chained to a tree ishacked free and seized. Suddenly the corridorsopen up and are free of encroachments – a longstanding demand of residents.

For several years now, Gurgaon has witnessed afree-for-all. Kumar has decided to deal with it withhis own dose of heavy action. In the few monthsthat he has been Administrator of HuDA, he hasraised public expectations and cracked down onviolators. Citizens, tired of a slothful administra-tion, are looking upon Kumar as a savior.

He has set a pace which has everyone guessing.But Kumar also goes much beyond raids and thedramatic big ticket action, as we discovered in thecourse of a long interaction. Edited excerpts:

Gurgaon has so many problems which you haveinherited. What are your priorities?I am a person who starts with basics. I am not a per-son who has a plan first. I am very sensitive to theenvironment and I would do anything to improveit. I am a keen mountaineer and I have trained as asky diver too with the Indian Air Force. Whatever Ido should bring some joy into people’s lives. Ibelieve the other person’s life is an intrinsic part of

Praveen Kumar says HudA has strong laws and will use them to fix things

Praveen Kumar, HUDA Administrator, on one of his rounds in Gurgaon

‘Water will be priced much higher in Gurgaon’


INDIA

your own life. This is part of my philosophy whichI have assiduously followed wherever I haveworked and I don’t mind taking risks.

Gurgaon has bad roads, garbage problems,encroachments, no drainage, sewage… you mustbe having priorities?Yes, of course, lots of them. We are already doinga lot of good work in around 20 to 25 areas. Forexample, there is water harvesting. We haveinteracted with the Soil and ConservationDepartment, the Irrigation Department, theSurvey of India, and studied best practices all overthe country – whether it relates to recycling, con-

servation, percolation dams and check dams. Wehave examined the cheapest and most viablestructures. I’m very cost conscious and qualityconscious.

Water harvesting will save roads and conservewater. It’s even more critical in Gurgaon than inFaridabad. We have a lesser band of white waterhere. We will promote rooftop water harvesting. Wewould like to put a price on water. People are justsinking tubewells and using water. Water is notpriced so no one is concerned. When water runsout after 10 years, what is going to happen?

How will you price water?We will be putting water meters. We have alreadyidentified the ones we want. We have been in dis-cussions with the Municipal Corporation of Delhion this. The good thing about those meters is thatthey can’t be fudged.

But right now water is being supplied by the devel-opers and it is all groundwater.We will give people a timeframe. right now peoplebuy mineral water for `10 or `12 a bottle. But lookwhat the government is giving you. For only `3 or`4, three to four thousand litres are supplied. Wewill make it necessary for people to use watermeters. I want to give Gurgaon’s citizens good andcheap models. We have identified a good percola-tion dam design for only `30,000 or `40,000. Itrequires low maintenance, percolates more waterand can be cleaned. I would say water is our mostcritical priority.

But people won’t want to pay for water.We will educate people, create awareness and bringthem together. We can also be strict. There is aWater Conservation Act, an Environment Act, andthe groundwater board authority authorizes you to

take care of this resource otherwise the country willbe in bad shape.

Existing laws are good enough. We are not usingthem. Within HuDA itself I would like to complete-ly check, like a census, the older water structurescreated and their efficacy.

And your other priorities?One of the most important things which is going tohappen in Gurgaon is the creation of low-cost hous-ing. The Chief Minister has okayed the proposal.We have about 500 acres which is encroached.People are paying `5,000 for mosquito ridden, filthyplaces to goons who have occupied this land andbuilt thousands of jhuggies. The poor are living inabsolutely unhygienic conditions.

On that same one acre where 10 to 15 jhuggieswere built we can get as much as 500,000 squarefeet of space for low-cost housing. We will followthe Mumbai model and go vertical. We will workout maintenance fees for those flats from thebeginning. For `2,000 or `3,000 a month for 30years a poor person will be able to get a cleanplace to stay with facilities. Or those flats can begiven on rent. Community facilities and commer-cial spaces can be built there.

We are also requesting the Punjab and HaryanaHigh Court to fast track cases of land encroachmentrather than allow them to linger for 20 to 25 years.Such delays adversely hinder city plans. The courtis sensitive to the issue.

We also want to design a city plan in whichhawkers can be put into zones. Why should resi-dents need to drive to shops which are at some dis-tance? Why can’t we have small, beautiful stalls,clean and regulated in the vicinity and regularizedsomewhere along the way? This is also a priorityarea for us.

The Aravallis is one of the oldest ecological sys-tems in the world, much older than the Himalayas.But we are not protecting this environment. We cutit and burn it and uproot it. These rocks, thiswildlife, this ancient ecological system is not beingshowcased. Look at Leisure valley Park, it is morethan 500 acres of green. Yet there is little awarenessof our ecology.

Tourists don’t stop in Gurgaon. But Gurgaon isfull of history. This is where Eklavya trained. It isthe only place in India to have a temple dedicatedto Eklavya, one of the most outstanding discipleswho ever lived in terms of his commitment andqualities. We want Gurgaon to be recognized as thecity of Dronacharya and Eklavya. Nobody knowswho Eklavya is. He is a forgotten soul.

But, if we may say so, Gurgaon is run by privatedevelopers not the government. The developers dopretty much whatever they please. Governance exists. HuDA is asserting itself and sois the Town and Country Planning Department. Wehave called all the players whether it is unitech orAnsals or DLF. They have been told to do thingsright otherwise we will do it for you. videos of yourmisdeeds will be sent to the Chief Justice of thePunjab and Haryana High Court. If Sushant Lok’sroads are not repaired, if their parks are not proper-

Praveen Kumar says HudA has strong laws and will use them to fix things

Continued on next page

‘Water will be priced much higher in Gurgaon’

‘On that same one acrewhere 10 to 15 jhuggieswere built we can get asmuch as 500,000 square

feet of space for low- costhousing. We will follow the Mumbai model and

go vertical.’

sHAmiK BAnerjee

Civil Society News

New Delhi

SOME time in the early 1980s, Dr r.K.Anand, a paediatrician, returned fromLondon to practice in Mumbai. One

evening, he went to see a film. Advertisementspreceded the main film. Dr Anand watchedwith deep dismay as one of the ad films cheer-ily told mothers that bonny babies came fromtins of Glaxo milk powder. Dr Anand was work-ing in a charitable hospital and he knew thereality was very different – weak, malnour-ished babies fed on bottled milk were dying ofdiarrhoea and pneumonia. But mothers whobreastfed had healthier babies.

Almost 30 years later, Dr Anand still remem-bers that ad jingle and he sang it at the 20thanniversary celebrations of the BreastfeedingPromotion Network of India (BPNI) in NewDelhi.

BPNI was founded on 3 December 1991 atWardha in Maharashtra by a handful of doctorsalarmed by the campaign unleashed by giantbaby food companies inciting mothers toreplace healthy breast milk with their canned

products. Since that historic day, BPNI hasgrown from six small groups in India to 250groups in 166 countries called the InternationalBaby Food Action Network, (IBFAN).

BPNI was then seen as a fringe group. Itevoked amusement, recalled Dr Arun Gupta,founder and central coordinator of BPNI, whoheard Dr Anand speak on breastfeeding at ahospital in Jalandhar and decided to join theWardha meeting. Indian women breastfed theirbabies anyway, it was believed. But thefounders of BPNI knew the truth was very dif-ferent.

The bottle was replacing breast milk.Mothers threw away colostrum, the first breastmilk critical for building the newborn’s immu-nity. Harmful ideas on nutrition for infantswere rampant. Poor feeding practices are thecore reason for India’s miserable infant mortal-ity rate.

Twenty years later, the dedication of BPNI’sfounders has changed perceptions. Nutrition isnow a priority for the union Government, keento lower infant and maternal mortality rates.BPNI’s advice is sought. Dr Arun Gupta is amember of the Prime Minister’s Council on


INDIA

8

ly maintained, HuDA can take over.The government has all the laws in its hand. It has

clear authority which overrides any private developer.The government is very strong.

HuDA is seen as a corrupt and inefficient organiza-tion. How do you propose to deal with that?We are proposing to deal with it in two ways. We aretrying to make our systems as transparent and as avail-able as possible. We are putting up information on theInternet. So, if you have submitted an application fora completion certificate you will be able to track yourapplication. You will know on whose table it is, whenit went and how many days it took. The official con-cerned has to take a decision within a time frame. Ifthere is an objection he has to say so. Or he has to jus-tify the delay.

The second is a carrot and stick policy. Good workwill be appreciated. If you do bad work you will be introuble, serious trouble. We will create an environ-ment which is conducive to good work.

The roads are full of potholes. Are you setting anystandards for road construction?We have already engaged the best people to guide uson the best parameters for roads whether it is buildingthe right kind of water structures, the level of com-paction, redesigning the road to ensure properdrainage, quality of bitumen etc.

We will clear garbage from zero point to end point.The present system of intermediaries is a failure. Thesystem of garbage segregation at household level doesnot work. The garbage is mixed and hard to separate.I have studied international models and models at thedepartment of new and renewable energy. We will cre-ate energy with it.

There is sewage all over. We would like to recycle water which can be used forgardens etc. Water is a clear priority for us. Seventeenpercolation points have been proposed in theAravallis. The systems under the British will berevived, remodelled and restructured. Sukhrali has apond which is 15 acres. It is deep and lying dry. We areplanning to revive it and change it into a clear waterlake.

If residents approach you and say they want to set uptheir own sewage treatment plant and utilise thewater will you welcome it?Yes, very much. Any good sustainable model is wel-come.

Gurgaon also has a new Municipal Corporation. Whatis HuDA’s relationship with it? They are definitely the arms of the government.HuDA has presently more than 21,000 acres and MCGhas about 3,000 acres to look after. But what matters isnot how much land we have. We are already keen towork with each other. For example if MCG starts workon a road, we can complete it and share the costs.

HuDA is leading since it is a major player andbecause of circumstances. A unitary system in termsof governance is a better system than the agency sys-tem particularly for places which are large so as toensure harmony. The government is very clear that wehave to work like a committee. So whether it is me orthe police or the Deputy Commissioner, or the Townand Country Planning Department we are all workingas one. n

Continued from previous page

Dr rK Anand

BPNI’s historic battle for ‘mom-made’

Heroic NGO celebrates 20 years


INDIA

India’s NutritionChallenges. And breast-feeding is included inthe Approach Paper ofIndia’s 12th Plan.

A project in whichBPNI was a partner,promoted breastfeeding and corrected infantfeeding practices in Lalitpur district of uttarPradesh by training health workers. It dramatical-ly improved the health of babies and reducedinfant mortality rates.

“First you get ridiculed, you face opposition andthen you get accepted,” said Dr Gupta philosoph-ically quoting Swami vivekananda. The uniongovernment has been supportive, he said.

“One of the biggest changes is that women dowant to breastfeed. But they need support. That ismissing,” says Dr Anand. Today, Lactogen, Farexand Cerelac have faded away, points out Dr Gupta.The next generation of babies will benefit.

But the journey to success has been tough. DrAnand, Dr Gupta, Dr JP Dadhich and Professor KPKushwaha briefly recounted BPNI’s troubled pastand outlined the challenges ahead.

To beat back the powerful baby food industry,the NGO fought a persistent and heroic battle. In1992, after years of lobbying, the union govern-ment passed the Infant Milk Substitutes FeedingBottles and Infant Foods (regulation ofProduction, Supply and Distribution) Act or in

brief the IMS Act. This law restricts the marketingof infant milk substitutes, feeding bottles andinfant food for babies.

But BPNI, which was put in charge of monitoringthe Act, realized soon that companies did not listenand violations were rife. In 1994 Dr Gupta actingon behalf of ACASH (Association for ConsumerAction on Health and Safety), an NGO founded byDr Anand, filed a criminal complaint against Nestlefor violating the IMS Act. The case is ongoing.ACASH has successfully forced companies likeJohnson and Johnson, Lintas and retail chains likeShoppers’ Stop to adhere to the IMS Act.

BPNI also got the union government to banadvertisements of infant milk and infant food ontelevision. In 2003 it got the government to banpromotion of baby milk and baby food for chil-dren under two years of age. “If we consider theway Tv has boomed, imagine how feeding prac-tices of babies would have been destroyed if theIMS Act did not exist,” says Dr Gupta.

The NGO has beaten back WTO attempts to jet-tison the IMS Act. It has thwarted the ambitionsof the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition

(GAIN), a conglomeration of multinationals whowanted to enter the Indian market to promote‘nutritious’ foods to fight hidden hunger. It hasresisted attempts to merge the IMS Act into theFood Safety Bill.

But while BPNI has succeeded in checking thedecline in breastfeeding, rates have not dramati-cally increased. Dr Dadhich said that 20 millionout of 26 million infants in India do not receiveoptimal breastfeeding despite India’s adoption ofinternational guidelines. In Delhi, just 20 per centof women exclusively breastfeed their babies forsix months.

He said though women did want to breastfeedthey did not get information or support. Theyneeded counselling services. For this training ofhealth workers on a large scale was essential.Harmful beliefs still continued. So a sustainedinformation campaign advertising breastfeedingwas essential to counter industry.

Dr Dadhich also pointed out that there was stillno effective mechanism to deal with violations ofthe IMS Act. To break the nexus between thehealthcare system and industry was very diffi-cult. BPNI has always highlighted that industry’sfinancing of conferences for doctors represents aconflict of interest.

Women in the informal sector need maternityleave and maternity entitlements to exclusivelybreastfeed babies for six months. The IndiraGandhi Matritva Sahyog Yojana does give a mater-nity entitlement of `4,000 in three installmentsto pregnant and lactating mothers but it is inade-quate. BPNI has been lobbying for `100 per day,the minimum wage, to be given to mothers at theanganwadi. It has pinned its hopes on the FoodSecurity Bill.

BPNI is also replicating Lalitpur’s Baby FriendlyCommunity Health Initiative in Punjab’s Ferozepurand Gurdaspur districts and in Andhra Pradesh. InLalitpur district, the project was led by theDepartment of Paediatrics, BrD Medical College,Gorakhpur, in partnership with uNICEF, the districtadministration and the state government.

BPNI’s training material was used to train 48local graduate women as mentors in breastfeeding,complementary feeding, infant feeding and HIvcounselling. The mentors in turn trained anganwa-di workers, the ASHAs and dais, who then formeda ‘mothers support group’ which fanned out to vil-lages, identifying pregnant women, doing homevisits and counselling mothers.

In all the mentors trained over 3,330 villagelevel workers who reached 84 to 90 per cent ofmothers with advice. By 2008, breastfeeding with-in one hour of birth increased from 39.2 to 72 percent, exclusive breastfeeding from 6.85 per centto 50 per cent and introduction of complementa-ry foods from 4.6 per cent to 85 per cent.

A group of anganwadi workers and ASHAs cameto attend the BPNI meeting. "The training wasmost useful," says rama Dubey, an anganwadiworker. “At first the mothers-in-law would not lis-ten to us. So we began with our own families.When a severely underweight baby in my familybecame healthy thanks to my advice, the moth-ers-in-law finally got interested. Now, of course,our opinion is respected."

So what is needed are many more trainedhealth workers, mentors specializing in nutrition,linked to an activist medical college or hospital. n

Dr Arun Gupta

BPNI’s historic battle for ‘mom-made’

Anganwadi workers (in blue saris) and another health worker from lalitpur district

PHoToGrAPHs By sHAmiK BAnerjee


INDIA

10

Civil Society News

New Delhi

EIGHT new entrants to theCivil Society Hall of Fame2011 were honoured at a

special gathering at the IndiaIslamic Cultural Centre onLodhi road in Delhi on 30November.

A diverse audience drawnfrom different walks of life inthe true spirit of civil societyattended the event. It was arare gathering of doctors,lawyers, activists, businessleaders, journalists, teachers,students and ragpickers.

The Civil Society Hall ofFame is for people who makeour world a better, happierand more inclusive place.These are people who live alife of action far from head-lines and public gaze.

Visit civilsocietyonline.com

to see a film of the event

Now in its third year, theHall of Fame is an initiativeby Civil Society magazine andthe Azim Premji Foundation.

This year’s entrants werechosen from a longer list of30. They were identified inremote parts of the country.Some of them had never lefttheir villages before.There were:l Fatima Mynsong, Acquiline

Songthiang and MatildaSuting who have beenfighting corruption in thevillage of Jongksha inMeghalaya.

l Gyarsi Bai, a tribal, fromBaran district in rajasthanwhere she has been freeingbonded labour.

l Bashir Ahmad Mir a peace crusader fromBaramulla in Kashmir.

l Kaippilly Jayan, who campaigns for the jackfruitin Thrissur in Kerala.

l Govind Desai represented urja Ghar whichworks to being communities together inGujarat.

l Chintakindi Mallesham whose invention, theLaxmi Asu. has revolutionized the weaving ofthe Pochampalli sari in Andhra Pradesh.

The keynote speaker and chief guest of the

occasion was activist and National AdvisoryCouncil member Aruna roy, who said Civil Societymagazine had bridged the gap between India andBharat.

Speaking on the ‘role of Civil Society’, she con-gratulated the publication for having created andpreserved the space for people’s issues and strug-gles. She talked about how civil society has cometo be defined in exclusive ways which keep outordinary people.

Such people’s names are hardly seen in a hall offame – they are more likely to be found on BPL lists.

But it is these nameless people who were instru-mental in getting fundamental laws like that of theright to information passed and implemented.

roy recalled how Gyarsi Bai had faced physicalassault in this very struggle. But it was people likeGyarsi Bai, with their extraordinary courage, whomade the foundations of the country.

roy said when her fellow campaigner, Sushila,who hadn’t studied beyond Class 5 in school, wasasked what she understood about rTI, she repliedthat when she could ask her son to account for themoney she sent him to the market with, why

entrants to the Hall of Fame 2011 with their citations

Hall of Fame honour for eight change agentsGAUTAm sinGH


INDIA

couldn’t she ask the government to account for themoney it spent on behalf of the people. She under-stood her rights better than many educated peopleand had the conviction to fight for them.

To institute a hall of fame for such pioneers,roy continued, was to “salute people’s politics –the politics of humanitarianism and justice thatasks for MGNrEGA, not cash transfers, for a griev-ance redressal system, not for the uID.”

“recognizing people in this way is a way to getour own voices registered,” she said. She was joinedby the audience when she concluded her speech

with the slogan: ‘We shall fight, we shall win.’The citations were given away by Dr M.S.

Swaminathan, known the world over as a path-breaking agricultural scientist and communityleader. He commended the selection of the peoplebeing honoured and pointed out that all theirwork was interrelated.

“Freedom from corruption, for which one set ofactivists were fighting, is necessary for freedomfrom hunger which is another activist’s domain,”he said.

In particular, he mentioned Kerala’s Jackfruit

Jayan, stressing that growing of jackfruit as anenterprise must be promoted. The growing of sev-eral commonplace crops in our country is ignoredbecause we are unaware of their nutritional value,something which we can’t afford to do while somany continue to face starvation.

Dr Swaminathan presented the citations after asmall film on each one’s work.

A highlight of the evening was an anti-corrup-tion song sung in Khasi by Fatima, Acquiline andMatilda. They had composed it in Delhi the nightbefore and recorded a background melody on

Aruna roy delivering the keynote address

chintakindi mallesham with Dunu roy and Dinesh mohan

Fatima, Acquiline and matilda sing an anti-corruption song in Khasi

Gyarsi Bai, fourth from left , with other women from her groupDr m.s. swaminathan speaking before presenting the citations

Hall of Fame honour for eight change agentsGAUTAm sinGH

GAUTAm sinGH

sHAmiK BAnerjee

GAUTAm sinGH

GAUTAm sinGH


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12

their cell phone.Speaking on behalf of the three, Fatima said

they never believed that they would be recognizedfor their efforts to fight corruption in the distantvillage of Jongksha.

“To be here in Delhi is like a dream come truefor us,” she said.

Gyarsi Bai from Baran district, rajasthan, talkedabout how bonded labour affects generations in afamily. Workers’ children remaining uneducatedand because of their long hours the workers losetheir health.

For years now, she has been striving for therelease of bonded labourers, apart from workingas an rTI-NrEGA activist. She reflected the relent-lessness of all change-makers when she said thather fight has a much bigger aim – the total eradi-cation of bonded labour in the country.

Chintakindi Mallesham from Andhra Pradeshspoke in Hindi from a Telugu script. He acceptedthe award on behalf of all the illiterate innovatorsin the country and dedicated the public recogni-tion he was receiving to his mother. After 30 yearsof wrapping a fine silk thread on an Asu with herright hand, she had impaired her vision and hershoulder. This had inspired him to invent a mech-nical Asu.

Kaippilly raman Jayan pledged to plant 100,000jackfruit trees and continue his work as long asnature allowed him to do so.

Govind Desai accepted the award on behalf ofurja Ghar, “Such occasions encourage us to contin-ue our work with renewed enthusiasm. Thoughour work is in Gujarat, we are in touch with Delhias well.”

The master of ceremonies for the evening wasviraf Mehta. The celebration concluded with Sufimusic by the innovative band ‘Chaar Yaar’. n

The sufi band, ‘chaar yaar’ with madan Gopal singh singing

Govind Desai and Gyarsi Bai in conversation

Bashir Ahmad mir greeted by shiban Bakshi, a fellow Kashmiri in the audience

Aruna roy talks with members of the audience

rita Anand, Umesh Anand and viraf mehta

sHAmiK BAnerjee GAUTAm sinGH

GAUTAm sinGH

GAUTAm sinGH

GAUTAm sinGH


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Bharat Dogra

Jaipur

THrEE small dams and anicuts in theJaipur and Ajmer districts of rajasthanare providing water to about 40 villages

without causing any displacement. Theachievements of these inexpensive struc-tures, which cost just `1 crore to build,make big dams look rather small.

The water projects are located in Korsinavillage in Jaipur district and Mandvariya andPalona villages in Ajmer district. TheBarefoot College, Tilonia Shodh Evam vikasSansthan and Prayatna have implementedall three projects.

For a long time, Korsina and its neigh-bouring villages in Dudu block sufferedfrom acute water scarcity. These villages arelocated near Sambhar, a famous salt waterlake. Because of their proximity to the lake,the groundwater here is brackish with highsalt content. villagers had been trying tofind a solution to their water woes sinceages. They finally stumbled upon theanswer – hilltop rainwater harvesting.

Some centuries ago, they recalled, a tradi-tional water collection structure had existedon a hilltop near their village. Its remainswere still visible. However, over the yearsthe structure had eroded. But it still stoodthere, badly damaged and covered in mud.

villagers realized why their ancestors had chosenthis spot for water collection. Water from four nul-lahs flows around this structure. It has a very goodcatchment area. A social worker, Lakshmi Narayan,began a campaign for building a people’s dam hereso that rainwater could be harvested again.

But Lakshmi Narayan died in a tragic road acci-dent. So, the Barefoot College decided to take upthe unfinished task which he had cherished somuch. Belu Water, an organization in the unitedKingdom, agreed to finance this project to thetune of `18.5 lakh. Barefoot College decided tobuild a small stone and cement dam and onemore structure to contain the overflow.

This project was implemented with the help ofPrayatna, a voluntary organisation. The catch-ment was first treated to increase its green cover.Bunds were provided to reduce water pressure onthe hill’s steep slopes. The soil and sand dug upfrom the main storage structure was used to buildbunds further down the water path to increaserecharge. The main storage structure can nowstore up to 15 million to 20 million litres of water.

If this water is not tapped on the hilltop, itbegins its descent into the Sambhar lake and soonturns brackish. But when the water is stoppedand collected near the hilltop, then potable sweetwater becomes readily available to the people andanimals of Korsina and nearby villages.

Several gaps have been created with stones toenable recharge. So less water is stored in the struc-ture. Subsequently, when the gaps are filled with

silt, water will also be stored for a longer time.Just a year and a half after the completion of

the Korsina dam, its beneficial impact is apparent.The water level has risen in almost 50 wells, sev-eral hand pumps and many ponds. Pipes from acentral well in Korsina also take this water tonearby villages. So, the benefits of this increasedwater supply reach several other villages too.

Eventually at least 20 villages will gain, accord-ing to estimates by the Barefoot College. Directlyor indirectly it is hoped that the project will ben-efit 13,874 villagers and 79,850 farm animals,including sheep and goats. It has also been esti-mated that this dam will help to recharge 106handpumps, 36 open dug wells and 31 ponds.Also, project documents reveal that most of theproject funds – nearly `10.5 lakh of the total budg-et of `18 lakh – were used to pay wages to localworkers employed in the project. Nearly 3,196

persons were employed.Of course future benefits will also depend on

timely rains, but the project is structured such thatmoderate rains are enough to fill the storage space.So people have high hopes from this project.

Sonath Gurjar, an elderly villager says, “Thisproject has been very beneficial. It is very wellconstructed. My experience of the previous yearhas been that the water level has risen in at least50 wells. People not only got drinking water, a lotof land could be irrigated as well. Farm animalsand wild animals could also quench their thirst.Apart from Korsina village, benefits also reachedSarthala and Nangal villages.”

Sonath Gurjar then drew a neat diagram toshow how this work can be extended by imple-menting a similar project lower down at Kankrayaso that more water can be collected. He explainedin detail how a natural water storage space existsthere. By spending a little money an even higherquantity of water can be collected.

A few days later ramkaran, a senior coordinatorat the Barefoot College, returned to Korsina andworked with Sonath and other villagers to seehow this water conservation work can be linkedto the Kankraya site.

Similarly, in the villages of Mandavaria andPalona, appropriate sites were located so thatmore water can be collected at a lower cost. Thesetwo projects have the potential to help about40,000 people and 70,000 animals in 20 villagesand replenish hundreds of handpumps, wellsand ponds, without displacing a single person. n

Small dam, big rewards

The check dam on a hilltop which was built for Korsina

Villagers had been trying tofind a solution to their

brackish groundwater sinceages. They finally stumbledupon the answer – hilltop

rainwater harvesting.


INDIA

14

Civil Society News

New Delhi

TAKIYA Kale Khan is an obscure slum behind thehighrises of Connaught Place. You could goround and round in circles trying to find it. On

15 December the slum became the venue for one offour camps held by the National Campaign forPeople’s right to Information (NCPrI) to registerpublic grievances against government-run services.

The camps were meant to show on the groundthe large number of grievances that people haveagainst government services. At Takiya Kale Khanalone there was a steady stream of complaints. AGrievance redressal Bill, tabled in Parliament on 22December, would have to deal with this kind offlood.

The Bill was championed by the NCPrI to sepa-rate grievances from corruption and thereby lightenthe load on an institution like the Lokpal.

The government’s Grievance redressal Bill cre-ates a Central Public Grievance redressalCommission and State Public Grievance redressalCommissions. reservation has been proposed toinclude women and Scheduled Castes and Tribes.

Government departments and ministries willhave a Citizens’ Charter informing people about thegoods and services they provide with a timeline.Each department would also have an officer forredressing grievances and an information and facil-itation centre where citizens can complain.

An independent empowered designated authori-ty will be created above the grievance redressal offi-cer. Citizens dissatisfied with the action taken bythe grievance redressal officer can appeal to thisdesignated authority. The grievance redressal offi-cer too has to report what action he has taken oncomplaints to the empowered designated authoritywhich will have the powers of a civil court.

The NCPrI has welcomed the Grievanceredressal Bill. But it said that the Bill has someshortcomings which if corrected can create a lawthat will empower people to claim their entitle-ments and bring about greater accountability.

First, the NCPrI has asked for the empowereddesignated authority to be at district or sub- districtlevel and to be manned by proper technical staff.This authority should be independent of govern-ment control. Therefore, staff appointments shouldbe handled by the Central or State Grievanceredressal Commissions.

Secondly, NCPrI said that an independent ‘peo-ple’s facilitation centre’ in every rural block andmunicipal ward should be created instead of aninformation and facilitation centre embedded ineach department. Officials in the department couldprevent people from filing complaints or harassthem.

At the ‘people’s facilitation centre’ citizens willbe able to register grievances without fear. Thiscentre will send their complaints to the depart-ment/public authority concerned and track them.NCPrI wants a ‘single window clearance’ system.

The NCPrI camp at Takiya Kale Khan slum on 15

December, was an experiment to find out if griev-ances could be redressed in Delhi under its existingsystem, and if not what were the challenges of get-ting them resolved in a timely manner. Delhi has aDelivery of Services law.

The voluntary groups involved were the SatarkNagarik Sangathan, Josh, Pardarshita and theNational Federation of Indian Women (NFIW),which works in Takiya Khan Kale.

Sitting inside a school in Takiya Kale Khan, ahandful of volunteers diligently noted down com-plaints by a sea of residents, mostly women.Shivam and Siddharth were law students. radhikawas a student of public administration. Mukesh, avolunteer from the MKSS, was supervising theoperation.

“ We did an awareness camp a day earlier, but thepeople didn’t need to be motivated,” said Mukesh.“They are relieved that at least somebody is willingto listen to them.”

Most complaints appeared to be about rationcards and pensions. A large percentage of residentswere impoverished Muslims. A few had AbovePoverty Line (APL) cards. Most residents did notseem to have access to any entitlement, thoughthey knew what their rights were.

Ahmed Bi said she had been trying to get a rationcard for the past 10 years. Her husband works as avegetable vendor and earns a paltry amount. Herfamily has 10 members. “I just want a ration card,APL, BPL, whatever. We can’t afford to buy food atmarket rates,” she said.

A few steps away sat Fatima Bi, her eyes full ofhope. “She is elderly, a widow and handicapped.But she doesn’t get a single entitlement,” explainedMukesh. “She has no death certificate, nor anyhandicapped certificate.”

Another lady said she had lost her ration card andthe department would not give her another. Agroup of women complained they had applied for

ration cards in 2006, received receipts but soonafter the ration card department refused to recog-nize them.

So how much money did the ration card officialsask for? They must have been asked to grease somepalms, surely. The women looked irritated. “Whereis the question of paying bribes?” they replied inchorus. “Those fellows don’t even talk to us. Theyjust throw us out. Or they tell lies. I was told I can’tget a ration card because my slum is classified as ajhuggi-jhonpri colony,” said Ahmed Bi. Mukeshexplained residents here are so poor, officials don’tthink it worth their while to ask them for bribes.

Those who did have ration cards said they nevergot their correct quota of food from the fair priceshops. “Instead of 25 kg of wheat, we get only 10.As for rice, we get 5 kg instead of 10. Forget aboutgetting oil and sugar,” said Shabir and Farzana.

ration cards were seen as prized possessions.The women also asked for voter Identity Cards.rupa, a resident, complained that she couldn’t get acopy of her child’s birth registration certificate andnow her child can’t get admission into school.There were also complaints about the localMunicipal Corporation of Delhi’s school.

Mukesh explained that they were working onlyas mediators. The complaints would be sent to thedepartments concerned. “People don’t know howto write a complaint, where to go and deliver it,” hesaid. The camps revealed that the Delhi govern-ment’s Delivery of Services law did not cover even10 per cent of the complaints registered. Most com-plaints were against the Food and Civil SuppliesDepartment, MCD, DJB, the Education Department,Social Welfare Department, Health Department andthe Delhi urban Shelter Improvement Board.

The Grievance redressal Bill should shake upthese departments. But poorer people need a help-ing hand in the form of an independent people’sfacilitation centre. n

NCPRI tests out grievance redress

mukesh, second from left, listening to grievances at the camp in Takiya Kale Khan


INDIA

Vidya Vishwanath

New Delhi

THE Centre for Budget and GovernanceAccountability (CBGA) held a conference at theend of November to discuss the upcoming

union Budget. In 2006, CBGA and its partnerorganizations had started the People’s BudgetInitiative so that civil society groups, academiaand people’s movements could put forth theirviews on how the government should be spend-ing its money.

Participants expressed concern about privatiza-tion of the education and healthcare sectors. Thegovernment, they said, is talking about a spate ofmeasures like self-financed higher educationinstitutes, maintenance grants and subsidizedstudent loans. All these will boost privatization ofeducation, including higher education. A verycommercial kind of education should be avoided,it was felt.

There was also concern about unspent amountsin education because of a gap in allocations andreleases. In many places Detailed Project reportswere not finalized and district and village levelcommittee plans on spending this money had notbeen drawn up. As a result, utilization of fundson education in states varied widely.

More money needed to be allocated for trainingteachers and improving the quality of education,said participants. According to the right toEducation (rTE) Act, the teacher-to-student ratioto be targeted is 1:30. That means training 90,000to 100,000 teachers in less than two years.Currently, money for training teachers comprisesa paltry two to three per cent of the educationbudget.

The current number of out-of-school children isabout 850,000. According to the rTE Act thesechildren should be enrolled in bridge courses andadmitted to classes commensurate with their age.

Governments are also expected to move on to pro-viding universal secondary education by 2017.

Disquiet was expressed about institutes forhigher education being started without any infra-structure. The government is talking aboutachieving 15 per cent enrolment in higher educa-tion. But this has been realized largely because ofthe growth of the private sector. Now there is talkof increasing enrolment to 30 per cent by 2020. Itwas felt that the government should consolidateall its education schemes and be flexible about

how each state is going to implement them. The panel also discussed the hazards of exces-

sive privatization in the health sector. Participantsdemanded universal public healthcare with nopayment at the point of service. The private sec-tor in health, which has availed of governmentsubsidy in the form of cheap land, should providefree services to the less advantaged. Healthcaremust be seen as a social good. In the 12th FiveYear Plan, at least 2.5 per cent of GDP should beset aside for healthcare.

Also of concern was the way public healthworkers were being compensated. The anganwa-di workers, the Accredited Social Health Activist

(ASHA) and midday meal workers were all seen as‘voluntary’ workers. This has now created awomen workforce of 60,000 who are not employ-ees of the government, have no rights and arepoorly paid. There was a demand to make theNational rural Health Mission (NrHM) a perma-nent entity and to regularize these workers. ruralhealth infrastructure needs to be built urgently.

There were suggestions that funds for socialaudit and administration in MGNrEGA should beincreased. It was noted that panchayat memberswere overburdened. Twelve members had toadminister 214 centrally administered schemes.But only six per cent of money was set aside foradministration. Most of it got spent at zilla level.It was felt that the amount being spent on admin-istration should be increased to 10 per cent. Also,the district planning committee needed to bestrengthened.

There was also a shortage of people to conductthe social audit. Speakers asked for an independ-ent ombudsman. They cautioned that in manyareas the private sector did not want MGNrEGAbecause it deprived them of cheap labour. In foodsecurity, the demand was for a universal entitle-ment. Participants denounced the government’scash transfer schemes, in lieu of food. Since infla-tion was high, cash transfer would be disastrous,they said. Also the money system does not reacheveryone. The rBI innovation of a bank corre-spondent in every village has resulted in themoney-lender becoming the correspondent, theysaid.

Did the union government have the resourcesto implement all these schemes? It was pointedout that the government was collecting taxesmost inefficiently. According to a CAG report, thenumber of returns filed as a percentage of PANcard holders was dropping. Also, out of 800,000registered companies, only 300,000 filed returns.The number of officers for income tax assess-ment had decreased from 3,800 to 3,600. n

Pranab mukherjee

Ingredients of a People’s Budget

SAMITA’ S woRLd by sAmiTA rATHor


INDIA

16

Kavita Charanji

New Delhi

IT was a proud moment for several disabled per-sons and their supporters as they stepped onstage to receive the Helen Keller awards insti-

tuted by the National Centre for Promotion ofEmployment for Disabled People (NCPEDP) andShell.

The chief guest at the awards ceremony wasAjay Maken, Minister of State for Youth Affairsand Sports. unveiling his ministry’s plans tomake stadia in the country accessible to the dis-abled, he said sports was becoming more inclu-sive. The Asian Games, the CommonwealthGames and the Olympics are now much moreaccessible to the disabled.

Maken also said that a sensitisation meeting ofthe disabled with the directors of the SportsAuthority of India (SAI) was on the cards.

While the 13th edition of the awards are causefor celebration, there is still a long way to go forthe disabled, said Javed Abidi, honorary directorof NCPEDP. Accessibility, education and employ-ment remain major challenges. “There is no ques-tion of empowerment of the disabled unlessthere is accessibility – be it in terms of physicalaccess to school, university, the workplace or

transportation, especially public transport.” Interm of facilities for the disabled in India, Abidigives the country not more that a miserable oneon a scale of 10.

The other problem is that policy makers tend toview disability as a charity issue. “My message tothe disabled and their families is that the dis-course on disability should hinge on rights. Weshould demand our rights be it in education,employment or access,” said Abidi.

Though the picture may look dismal, Abididescribes himself as a “terrible optimist.” A newdisability rights legislation is being eagerly awaitedand the emergence of many committed role mod-els at the awards certainly gives reason for hope.

The NCPEDP-Shell Helen Keller awards are inthree categories: role Model Disabled Persons,role Model Supporters and role ModelCompanies/NGOs/Institutions.

role Model Disabled Persons: Ashwin Karthik, Delivery Software Engineer,MphasiS, Bengaluru. Ashwin Karthik, India’s first quadriplegic engineerhas achieved success through sheer grit and perse-verance. He has the distinction of securing thehighest percentage scored by a student with cere-bral palsy and receiving the National Scholarshipfor Engineering Studies, which is given to only onephysically disabled student across India.

He has flourished in the supportive work envi-ronment of MphasiS and his success has encour-aged other disabled people to join the company.Karthik is also a budding poet, has appeared onTv shows and other platforms and amply demon-strated that disability need not be a hurdle toemployability.

Nilesh Singhal, deputy manager, SBINilesh Singhal, a visually impaired bank manager,has advocated equal rights for disabled people inMadhya Pradesh. A post- graduate in political sci-

Ashwin Karthik, India’s firstquadriplegic engineer, hasthe distinction of securing

the highest percentagescored by a student with

cerebral palsy.

Winners of the Helen Keller awards with Ajay maken, minister of state for youth Affairs and sports with javed Abidi, seated left

Icons who defeated barriers

sHAmiK BAnerjee

Continued on page 18


INDIA

18

ence, he appeared for theMadhya Pradesh CivilServices Examination butwas not called for the inter-view due to his disability.An undaunted Singhal fileda petition in the MadhyaPradesh High Court whichruled that persons with dis-abilities are equal citizens.Currently, Singhal is deputymanager at the State Bankof India’s (SBI) Bhopalheadquarters.

Singhal’s endeavourshave won wide recogni-tion. He was awarded theGodfrey Phillips BraveryAward in 2011 and theCNN-IBN Citizen JournalistAward in 2008.

Pradeep raj, general secre-tary, Association forDisabled PeoplePradeep raj, a disabled sportsperson, has partici-pated in several advocacy campaigns for disabilityrights, ranging from the inclusion of disability inthe right to Education Act to lobbying for the newDisability rights Law. His crusade against corrup-tion in disability sports led to the derecognition ofthe corrupt Paralympics Sports body in 2011. rajfiled right to Information (rTI) applications toglean the truth and put pressure on the Ministry ofSports and the Paralympics Sports Body. His advo-cacy also ensured the participation of disabledsportspersons in the last Commonwealth Games inNew Delhi in 2010. Currently he is lobbying for theparticipation of deserving disabled sports personsin the London Olympics.

role Model Supporters: Meera Shenoy, Chief Executive Officer, Centre forPwD Livelihoods (CPDL)Meera Shenoy is the founder CEO of Youth4Jobswhich provides market-linked vocational training to

disabled youth from rural and underprivileged fam-ilies. In Andhra Pradesh, CPDL has been set up as apublic-private-partnership, with the Society forElimination of rural Poverty (SErP), a part of thestate government’s rural development department.

CPDL works closely with companies to con-vince them to employ disabled people by conduct-ing sensitisation workshops for CEOs and super-visors and helping make workplaces disabled-friendly. Companies who have subsequentlyemployed people with disability are McDonalds,HDFC rural BPO, Tata Teleservices, Shoppers’Stop and Aegis.

Niranjan Khatri, General Manager ofWelcomEnviron Initiatives, ITC Welcomgroup ITC Welcomgroup is well known for its disabledfriendly policies. Niranjan Khatri heads theSustainable Development Initiative of ITC Hotels.As part of its social responsibility initiative, ITCHotels began working with the disabled in 2005.Besides providing them employment, ITC Hotels

has audited its old hotelsto make them barrier-freeto the best possible extent.

Khatri has also helpedNGOs working on disabili-ty with information and byputting them in touch withpeople in the hospitalitysector in India and abroad.In fact, an inspiring pres-entation by Khatri con-vinced Pointec Pens Pvt Ltdto begin hiring disabledpeople in their company.

Thilakam rajendran,Managing Director,AruNIM (Association forrehabilitation underNational Trust Initiative ofMarketing)Thilakam rajendran hasbeen working for the dis-ability sector for the last 21years. rajendran has

strived to empower people with developmentaland intellectual disabilities. Her goal is to pro-mote the economic independence of the disabled.

Her major endeavour is to create employmentopportunities which are inclusive and make soundbusiness sense. A pioneer of the concept of partner-ships with FICCI, CII, the vocational rehabilitationCentre and the Labour Ministry, she has activelypromoted the concept of ‘Shop in Shop.’ Throughthis endeavour, she has introduced products madeby the disabled to brands like Fab India, Good Earthand Cottage Industry, among others.

Companies/ NGOs/ InstitutionsFive organisations also received awards for pro-moting equal opportunities for people with dis-abilities. These include Aegis Limited, Mumbai,Deaf Enabled Foundation, Hyderabad, ITCMaurya, New Delhi, Muskaan (ParentsAssociation for the Welfare of Children withMental Handicap), New Delhi and Pointec PensPrivate Limited, Bengaluru. n

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A volunteer translates Ajay maken’s speech into sign language

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Continued from page 16


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Arup Chanda

Kolkata

Araging debate on whether international retailers should be allowed intoIndia in a big way seems to have left small farmers in the countrysidemore confused than ever.

Mired in the stress of shrinking holdings and poor access to markets, farm-ers worry about their future – both with a policy change and without one.They want a better return for their produce, but they also fear the hold thatstrong retail chains could have on them in the long term.

There is serious concern about what farm labourers and small local traderswill do if the big chains move in. Land serves more than just the farmer whomay own it. The promise that jobs will multiply once foreign investmentspour in is not taken seriously. Many rural folk lack the skills and educationfor the jobs that might be available.

In the past 20 years in India economic reforms have been seen as widen-ing income disparities. There is a sense that the rich have got richer at thecost of the poor. Foreign direct investment (FDI) in retail is seen as one moresuch reform decreed from above.

We spoke to small farmers in West Bengal because what they say is perhapsrepresentative of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and many other states. The big farmersalready have a voice. But what is going on in the minds of small and margin-al farmers who form the majority? What do they fear and aspire to?

In West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress believes it hasserved its vote banks well by stopping the Central government in its tracks.Without the Trinamool’s 19 MPs the united Progressive Alliance (uPA) could-n’t have ushered in a new policy.

Having just recently defeated the Left Front and come to power theTrinamool is taking no chances. Its main support has come from peasantfarmers for whom land is a sensitive issue as the Nandigram and Singur

SMALL FARMER, BIG RETAIL

Farmers fear the hold that strong retail chainscould have on them in the long term.

Better pricesneeded but loss ofland is a fear

ram Das, a farmer, in Bali village in the sundarbans

Abdul Kalam Gazi, at Taalpukur village in Hasnabad in the north 24-Parganas district

Fruits and vegetables selling at a super market in Gurgaon

PrAsAnTA BisWAs

PrAsAnTA BisWAs


COvEr

uprisings against land acquisition revealed. Support for opening up retailwould make the Trinamool an easy target for the Left.

However, voices from West Bengal’s farms are far from unanimous aboutbig retail. It is from these voices that a more complex story emerges.

At Hasnabad, in the North 24-Parganas district, Abdul Ahmed Gazi says: “Ihave taken six bighas (a bigha in West Bengal is one-third of an acre) of landon lease. I grow tomato, cabbage, brinjal and chilli.I have incurred a loss of `70,000 this year as chilliand brinjal did not fetch good prices. We wantgood prices for our vegetables and if big compa-nies give us that we welcome it otherwise wemight have to give up farming.”

raul Amin Mollah, too, wants a better deal, butworries about losing his land, “I grow a variety ofvegetables and mustard. I have around sevenbighas. I incurred a loss on the vegetables butmustard fetched me a good price so I could man-age a reasonable profit. We welcome retail compa-nies if they provide us with good prices and supe-rior technology. But in no case will I enter into

contract farming with them as I apprehend that they might take over ourland.”

Alamgir Gazi grows radish, carrots, cauliflower, cabbage and potato on 10bighas. “I incurred a loss of `10,000 this year as cauliflower prices were at `4a kg. I want village middlemen to be eliminated so that we get higher prices,”he says. “But I am not willing to give my land for contract farming as my inde-

pendence might be harmed. I don’t know muchabout FDI, but our local political leaders of boththe CPI(M) and the Trinamool have told us that itwill be harmful in the long run.”

Abul Kalam Gazi is clearly opposed to big retail’sentry: “Foreign companies are coming to India notto help farmers but to reap profits. FDI will not bein the interest of farmers. It might help buyers inurban areas,” he says.

Azizul Haque of Bajitpur village, also in theNorth 24- Parganas, says that last year he incurreda loss, but this year he made a profit because ofMetro Cash and Carry.

“The company gave us a good price. The execu-

SMALL FARMER, BIG RETAIL

‘I will not enter into contract farming with bigretail as I fear they might take over my land.’

‘I grow tomato, cabbage,brinjal and chilli. I have

incurred a loss of `70,000this year as chilli and brinjal

did not fetch good prices.We want good prices.’

Abdul Ahmed Gazi, a farmer at Taalpukur village in Hasnabad, north 24-Parganas

subid Ali Gazi, farmer and politician

lAKsHmAn AnAnD PrAsAnTA BisWAs

PrAsAnTA BisWAs


COvEr

22

tives of the company taught us superior techniques which helped meincrease my production. I even grew cauliflower which fetched me a goodprice from this company. Last year I was forced to sell cauliflower to villagemiddlemen at 10 paise a kg and incurred a huge loss. We want these middle-men to vanish.”

But the question is whether replacing middlemen with large retailers is thesolution. Will it do more harm than good in the long term?

Farmers like Subid Ali Gazi, who make up the cadres of the Left, continueto have a strong sway over local public opinion,

Subid Ali owns 12 bighas at Hasnabad. He is the district level CPI(M) leaderand a post-graduate in Modern History from the university of Calcutta.

“I can foresee the situation 10 years from now if FDI in retail trade isallowed. Farmers who own small land holdings like me will become agricul-tural workers for these MNCs and lose their lands,” says Subid Ali.

The 64-year-old lungi clad farmer agrees that in the beginning farmerswould benefit as foreign retail chains would offer very good prices for veg-etables and food grains.

“In the long run these MNCs will force farmers to start organic farming,buy fertilizers from them and then as a first step offer contract farming. Thenext step will be to take their land on long-term lease and employ their ownagricultural labourers,” says Subid Ali.

He paints a grim picture of corporate greed and subterfuge. “If the lease isaround 30 years, then after its completion the companies according to thepresent land laws can record the holdings in their favour in governmentrecords as ‘permissive possession’,” he says. “The MNCs will gobble up theselands.”

Subid Ali says not everyone sells to “phoreys” as the village middlemen arecalled. “Many of us sell directly to wholesalers in cities. Indigenous contractfarming also exists since decades in many parts of the country. This agricul-

tural system employing hundreds of thousands of people has been there forgenerations. The entry of foreign retailers will smash this system. Like theEast India Company these MNCs will control our economy and ultimatelyour politics.”

voices like Subid Ali’s keep the Trinamool firmly opposed to foreigninvestment in retail because it can’t risk a backlash from the Left.

“My topmost priority is to safeguard the interests of the farmers and smallretail shops and I will not support the uPA government on this issue unlessthe farmers have sufficient resources and the small retailers find themselvessecure,” says Mamata Banerjee.

She explained her political compulsions to Prime Minister ManmohanSingh and to union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. She said that shesucceeded in dislodging the Left in West Bengal after 34 years by wooingaway farmers and peasants, one-third of whom are Muslims.

Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee chief, ramesh Chennithala, is in thesame situation as Mamata Banerjee.

He shot off a letter to the Prime Minister describing the “imposition ofFDI” as “anti-people.” He also met Kerala Chief Minister Oomen Chandyand asked him not to implement the central government’s decision –something which till the other day would have been unheard of within theCongress.

Another Congress MP from Kerala, Sudhakaran, staunchly supportedChennithala, saying: “The people of Kerala cannot agree with the Centre’sdecision on FDI. The party cannot agree with it. It will erode our support basebecause the majority of retail merchants are Congress supporters. TheCongress in the state is firmly behind the PCC chief on this issue. We won’tallow the uDF government to implement FDI in retail in the state.”

Echoing the Kerala unit’s concern, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagham(DMK) too opposed FDI in retail because not doing so would have meantalienating small farmers and playing into the hands of Chief MinisterJayaram Jayalalithaa.

ridiculing union commerce minister Anand Sharma’s argument about cre-ation of jobs, Jayalalithaa said, “This will lead to 40 million people beinguprooted and thrown out from their business. Most of these people are notwell educated and will remain unemployed forever. I strongly feel that thisdecision of the union Government of India is a wrong decision, taken underpressure from a few retail giants.”

DMK president Muthuvel Karunanidhi could not help but agree with hismain rival Jayalalithaa. He said, “The move is dangerous and will affect hun-

‘Middlemen might be eliminated but the MNCs will reap the profit nowmade by the middlemen. The presentexploitation of poor farmers will be more organized in a much larger proportion.’

mohammedsalim

‘I keep visiting backward areas likeMaoist-affected Jangalmahal. FDI inretail trade will seriously affect our

agrarian economy leading tounemployment in rural areas and

give an opportunity to the Maoists.’

jyotipriyomullick

A wholesale market for vegetables at sealdah in Kolkata


COvEr

dreds of thousands of small traders as well as poor and middle-class con-sumers. It will also be a cause for the economic decline of our country.”

The agricultural situation in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal is similar. Smallfarmers and traders feel threatened. Even if they want a better deal, they areafraid of big retail chains.

“Eighty per cent of the farmers in Tamil Nadu, which has also witnessedland reforms like in West Bengal, are either small or marginal farmers. No sin-gle farmer in Tamil Nadu has more than 15 acres. If big MNCs are allowednow to play in agriculture, all these farmers will be gobbled up by them andthe entire indigenous system employing lakhs of people will be smashed,”warns S. ranganathan, general secretary of Tamil Nadu Cauvery DeltaFarmers’ Welfare Association.

Talking to Civil Society on phone, the 75-year-old farmer whose family onceowned thousands of acres of agricultural land in Thiruvarur district in TamilNadu said, “Some farmers are convinced it might be good for them as theywill get better prices for their produce. But in reality it will be good for theurban population residing in cities like Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad.”

“We already have our own Indian companies like Spencers and reliance.With the entry of MNCs the retail market in rural areas will be smashed andmany will become jobless,” he felt.

ranganathan agreed with Subid Ali of Hasnabad in West Bengal, thoughthousands of miles separate them: “These MNCs will ultimately offer attrac-tive schemes and dictate their terms not only regarding the crops or vegeta-bles to be grown but also which fertilizer they should use. The MNCs will alsocontrol the price of fertilizers as the central government is planning to with-draw subsidy on fertilizers. At the end of the game the MNCs will gobble upland belonging to small farmers.”

Mohammed Salim, member of the CPI(M) Central Committee, says,“The entire process of exploitation, hoarding and increasing prices of agri-cultural produce will be managed more efficiently by foreign corporategiants.”

He admits that initially procurement prices would go up and farmers mightbenefit and the declining agrarian economy might be boosted. But he cau-tions, “Through contract farming they will defraud farmers. They will decidethe brand and prices from seeds to fertilizers. Middlemen might be eliminat-ed but the MNCs will reap the profit of the middlemen and the presentexploitation of poor farmers will be more organized in a much larger propor-tion.”

“There is no doubt that the present public distribution system (PDS) isweak and faulty but the central government should strengthen it instead oftrying to privatise it and hand it on a platter to foreign corporate giants. Somejobs will be created on the shop floors for urban youth but much more than10 million people will be displaced as the chain in forward and backwardlinkages in the agro-economy will be snapped,” he said.

Jyotipriyo Mullick is West Bengal’s Food and Civil Supplies Minister. Heis also the President of the Trinamool Congress’ unit in the North 24-Parganas district. He and Salim are bitter political rivals but they agree onFDI in retail.

Mullick says, “Being in touch with the masses, the farmers and vegetablegrowers in North 24-Parganas, I know the situation in the villages. Now as aminister I keep visiting backward areas like Maoist affected Jangalmahal. FDIin retail will seriously affect our agrarian economy leading to unemploymentin rural areas and in fact give opportunity to the Maoists to strengthen theirbases.”

“I am now trying to strengthen the PDS. Instead of only food grains, sugarand kerosene I plan to sell household products needed for a middle- classfamily each month through the ration shops. Our government is not profit-oriented and ordinary people will benefit while more jobs will be created,” hesays. Mullick plans to sell detergents, soaps, biscuits and even stationery forstudents through ration shops.

Salim feels that what is applicable in the Western world can never beimplemented in India. He says, “Owning small grocery shops in urban as wellas rural areas is the last resort for unemployed educated youths in our coun-try. Many also work in family run grocery shops. Their income might be lessbut they survive. All these people will be thrown out of work.”

The final word comes from farmers who are worried about land security.Says Zulfikar Ali, who grows vegetables and lentils on seven bighas, “We donot get good prices from middlemen who make huge profits. We will behappy if large companies offer us better prices. But we are not ready for con-tract farming or leasing out our lands. It will be like the days of the Britishraj when our forefathers were forced to cultivate indigo forcibly and refusalled to torture by the sahibs. We do not want that situation to return. We pre-fer to remain content with a small margin of profit than earn more at the costof our land.” n

vegetable market

PrAsAnTA BisWAs PrAsAnTA BisWAs


Aarti Gupta

New Delhi

ALTHOuGH India is perceived as a country famed for itsentrepreneurial spirit, the reality is that the mortality ratefor start-ups is pretty high. It is estimated that over 90 per

cent of enterprises fold up because they lack long-term strate-gy, scalability, ability to evolve and, most importantly funding.

For this reason, Indian Angel Network (IAN), India’s largestgroup of angel investors, set up a community of early-stageseed investors more than five years ago with resourceful andestablished entrepreneurs providing the initial financial cush-ion to start-ups with a sound business model.

IAN was founded by a core group of successful entrepre-neurs like Saurabh Srivastava, Mohit Goyal, Pradeep Gupta,raman roy, Harish Mehta, Jerry rao, Pramod Bhasin, ArvindSinghal and Alok Mittal. It now has 180 members and its foot-print includes Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Pune.

“We are proud to have initiated a vibrant angel investingecosystem to keep pace with young India’s aspirations,” saysrehan Yar Khan, a serial entrepreneur speaking for IAN.Despite a track record of five years, there is a huge hand-hold-ing void in India for first-generation entrepreneurs in their go-to-market strategies. Angel investors, for instance, put in $200million in various stages of incubation of fledgling companies.One only has to look at the figure of $20 billion that wasinvested in the united States in 2010 to realize how vastlyuntapped the potential is.

Extracts from an interview with rehan Yar Khan.

How many start-ups has IAN funded during the last five years? IAN is made up of successful entrepreneurs and dynamicCEOs, passionate about helping young innovators with goodpropositions. Since inception, IAN has invested in over 25companies, including four located overseas. IAN has made fivefull or partial positive exits. As we enter 2012, IAN’s footprintis expanding to Hyderabad, connecting IAN to investors in vir-tually all parts of the country.

We want to help as many worthy ideas and business plansas possible. This is why we meet in small groups every weekto understand, discuss and evaluate business plans from start-ups. IAN has now established a first-of-its-kind science andtechnology incubator, bringing our members as well as a largepool of mentors together to help innovators and entrepre-

BusinessEnterprise

Inclusion

cSR

IcT

Go Green

20 companies incubated but the potential is huge

Indian angels for bright ideas

rehan yar Khan

neurs create ventures. This year has been particularly good for us. We

funded 10 deals with nearly $10 million. We haveoverall directly invested up to nearly $ 20 million.IAN’s portfolio companies leveraged its investmentwith another $25 million or so from the nextround, bringing in an additional $ 45 to $50 mil-lion. The IAN incubator handpicked about 20 com-panies.

Which are the sectors with the biggest potential?What are the kind of projects which interest you? We look for ideas and propositions thatare innovative, scalable and differentiat-ed with a high-calibre execution team.The investments span a variety of sectorswith a bias towards the Internet, soft-ware, mobile technology, education, hos-pitality and robotics, among others. Theprocess of dealing with requests for fund-ing new ideas, nurturing and exiting(early-stage investing) has been testedand formalized over a period of time.Besides the much-needed financialinvestment, the start-ups get from IANmembers key inputs in three key areas –strategic thinking, mentoring and abilityto leverage networks of IAN members. AnIAN investor also serves on the board ofthe portfolio company. IAN members undoubted-ly bring tremendous value to the portfolio compa-ny by mentoring entrepreneurs, sharing theirexperience and wisdom.

What kind of stakes do you typically take in a proj-ect?That is not an easy question to answer becausestakes are a function of what kind of value IANcan add and the phase of the company – whetherit is at an ideas stage, ramp-up stage or a growthphase. With investible funds of tens of millions ofdollars, IAN members look to fund up to $1 mil-lion with an average of about $400,000 to$600,000 and expect to exit in about three to fiveyears or so – angels are patient with their invest-ments.

What do you think of Indian entrepreneurshipemerging from small towns? Is that increasinglybecoming a trend in IAN’s scheme of things?Certainly, entrepreneurship has moved beyond themetros in the last few years. We get lots of ideas

and projects from cities like Coimbatore, Mysoreand Chandigarh. In fact, we funded an embeddedsoftware tool developer, vayavya, a company fromBelgaum. Availability of talent, early exposure toentrepreneurship in schools and colleges throughentrepreneurship development activities is help-ing to widen this basket. India happily is movingtowards creating more job-providers than job-seek-ers. In 2011, IAN began funding projects in theInternet and telecom space which needed fundingof around $150,000.

How many start-ups are aimed at the bottom ofthe pyramid? IAN sees many of its portfolio companies in thesoftware, telecom, Internet and education spaceimpacting people at the bottom of the pyramid.There is the work of mobile video streaming serviceprovider for the feature phone, Jigsee. There is alsothe work that vienova is doing in the affordableeducation space. Both these resonate with Bharat asmuch as India. vienova provides a range of educa-tional services to schools in north India leveragingtechnology to deliver high quality services in value-conscious and price-sensitive markets. Sapience, apatent-pending software product fromInnovizeTech, another portfolio company, delivers15 to 20 per cent gain in work output for companieswith knowledge workforce. Interestingly, this pro-ductivity increase is achieved without changing anyexisting process or additional management effort.The gain has a transformational impact on compa-ny financials. Druvaa is another company portfoliocompany whose software products are gaining trac-tion with global majors.

How does the environment for angel investing inIndia compare to the developed world?It’s not a fair comparison to draw as India was a

closed economy till 1991. Over 90 per cent of theIT start-ups in India have been conceived by firstgeneration entrepreneurs, but beyond that we donot have many examples of entrepreneurship.Entrepreneurs like IIS Infotech co-foundersSaurabh Srivastava and Mohit Goyal led the ven-ture capital funding activity in 2000 by setting upInfinity ventures. Now we have several non-resi-dent Indians returning to India and investing

their wealth generated from their neweconomy ideas.

raising capital in India is still not easy formost companies. How can angelinvestors make a valuable difference andact as a catalyst?Angel investors typically are successfulentrepreneurs who offer funding oppor-tunities to start-ups. Angel investingkicks in once the entrepreneurs haveexhausted their own funds as well as bor-rowings from family and friends. As apart of the Indian Angel Network built‘by entrepreneurs’ and ‘for entrepre-neurs’, investees can gain access to thevast business network of investors. The

biggest pay-off for the angel investors is the satis-faction of converting a job- seeker into a job- cre-ator.

Have some start-ups which have gone on tobecome successful come from small town Indiaand those addressing the bottom of the pyra-mid? It would be incorrect for us to single out any onebut I can certainly say that when two leading busi-ness journals in the country identified theHottest Entrepreneurial Start-ups in the first halfof 2011, we found that one out of five such com-panies was an IAN-funded company. We seekcompanies that create their own IPr and technol-ogy to intrinsically create better value.

What should an entrepreneur do by way of home-work to get you to invest? We feel an entrepreneur’s job is to look for ideasthat fulfill a real customer need in a better, supe-rior and cheaper way than others in terms of qual-ity of experience and great execution abilities. n


BuSINESS

‘We look for ideas and propositions thatare innovative, scalable and

differentiated with a high-calibreexecution team. The investments span

sectors with a bias towards the Internet,software, mobile technology, education,

hospitality and robotics spaces.’

civil Society is going places...Delhi, Dhaka, Trivandrum,Tennerife, Nadia, Nagpur, Kolkata, Ghaziabad, Washington, Geneva,

Bhubaneshwar, Ladakh, Paris, Bangalore, Mumbai,

Meerut, London, New York, Versailles, Dehradun,

Chandigarh, Belgaum, Dibang Valley, Shillong, Patna,

Shimla, Ahmedabad, Panjim, Hyderabad, Singapore,

Porto Alegre, Gurgaon, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Lucknow,

Surrey, Srinagar, Manali, Pune, Peechi, Pondicherry...

r e A D U s . W e r e A D y o U .

WhEREARE WEbEINgREAd?

27CIVIL SOCIETY, dECEMbER 2011

FrOM nursery to Class 8, Wasim Feroz Matoo’smother carried him to school every morning,waited for his classes to get over and then

brought him back home, leaving aside all her dailychores. She sacrificed a lot to get her physicallydisabled son a quality education. Wasim, too, didnot disappoint his mother. He graduated with fly-ing colours and went on to do his B. Ed.

This was the moment, they believed, when alltheir fears would disappear. Their dreams of ahappy life appeared to be on the verge of realiza-tion. But just then an awful step shattered alltheir happiness. Wasim, despite having the requi-site education qualifications, was dropped fromthe Budgam teacher list. The reason cited was hisdisability of the lower limbs. A teacher on awheelchair is not accepted in our society.

Wasim reflects the dilemma of several talentedyet hapless disabled individuals at the grassrootswho have no reason to celebrate World DisabilityDay. Face to face with a physically challenged per-son, the common notion is to adopt a sympathet-ic attitude. They are less fortunate and knownothing about the world, think people. But, thatis not the case. God’s balancing act is beyondone’s imagination. ‘Differently-abled’ people havebeen blessed by God with the sharpest instincts.All that is required on our part is to ‘see’ thosetraits and accept them with a little imperfection.

Persons with disabilities are facing intense dis-crimination at all levels – in education, employ-ment, and accessibility. They are being denied anindependent identity in society. The social stigmafaced by severely disabled persons forces them tolive a dependant life. This discrimination is dueto the adoption of the charity model by stakehold-ers across the country under the pretext ofempowerment of the disabled. If empowermentwas the objective, then why do we still lack basicstructures necessary for their growth?

The situation is worse in far-flung areas likeKashmir where there are no schools for childrenwith disabilities. One special school for severalchildren doesn’t promise a hopeful future. Ontop of that, these schools lack appropriate infra-structure, teaching facilities, learning material

and special teachers. This “taken for granted” attitude towards dis-

abled persons is testified by the fact that individ-uals with less healthy lower or upper limbs areforced to match up to the standards set by the

physically fit. Why is there no feasible curriculumavailable with the state board of education andthe university? The time given to finish an examis similar for all of them – disability is not a hin-drance then.

Many students like Wasim who face disabilityfrom birth are lifted by their parents to the class-room. The parents wait to take them home onceschool is over. Buildings are not disabled friend-ly. There is no provision to accommodate stu-dents with loco-motor disabilities. Neither areclasses organized for them on the ground floor.The children have to crawl, skid or limp indecent-ly to reach classrooms and exam centres.

But kudos to the strength and determination of‘differently-abled’ students. Despite all the big-otry they face they survive to make it big one day.They score well in school, graduate, and go on toearn post-graduate degrees.

The biggest hurdle they face is employment.

ggggInsigh sopinion

Analysis

Research

Ideas

Angst

Disabled by society JAvED AHMAD TAK

Continued on next page

The social stigma faced byseverely disabled persons

forces them to live adependant life. This

discrimination is due to theadoption of the charitymodel by stakeholders.


INSIGHTS

28

ON 30 September this year, the Ministry ofEnvironment and Forests (MoEF) released acircular indicating a list of 100 consultants

who have been officially accredited to carry outEnvironment Impact Assessments (EIA) for theenvironment clearance process. Another 101applications for accreditation are under process.Around 64 applications, says the circular, haveeither not been approved or withdrawn. Some ofthem have been termed ineligible but no explana-tions have been given.

With effect from 1 October 2011, only theapproved EIA consultants will be able to appearbefore the expert appraisal committees whichassess project approvals.

What does this step imply? The preparation of an EIA report is mandatory

for industrial and infrastructure projects which arelisted in India’s EIA notification, 2006. The EIA isone of the most critical processes of ascertainingthe environmental impacts of an external interven-tion on the eco-system and on people’s livelihoods.In practice, EIA consultants are hired and funded byproject authorities to carry out this essential task.Their job is often focussed on enabling the procure-ment of approval in the first place.

It is the quality of these assessments which havebeen a significant area of contention. Civil societygroups, researchers, scientists and locally affectedpeople have repeatedly pointed out the poor andinadequate quality of impact assessments. In fact,examples have been cited which indicate that EIAsare often biased and misleading.

Over the years, the growing concern about thequality of EIAs has been articulated and acknowl-edged by many including relevant ministries and,ironically, project authorities. In fact, the currentaccreditation process was first envisaged in 2007by the Quality Council of India (QCI) in a docu-ment titled, ‘Scheme for Accreditation of EIAConsultant Organizations.’

It stated: “The present situation is far from sat-isfactory since the EIAs being developed, moreoften than not, do not measure up to the requiredquality.” Among the reasons cited, the documentrefers to improper/inadequate scoping for the EIAor the consultants lack of requisite understandingfor developing EIAs. But more crucially, the docu-ment states that EIAs are poor in quality becausethey are ‘copy-cut-paste’ jobs. Further, no liabilityis placed on EIA consultants, nor are there anychecks on their competence.

This initiative of the National registrationBoard for Personnel and Training (NrBPT), a con-stituent of the QCI, came under the scanner ofcivil society groups for several reasons. First, theprocess was closed door in nature and secondly,the registration process was voluntary. The MoEFat that point denied any direct involvement withthis process in writing in response to right toInformation applications. Critical comments,

submitted to the MoEF in April 2007 along with alist of EIA consultants who should be blacklistedrather than accredited, received no response.

On 18 March 2010, the MoEF issued an OfficeMemorandum making the accreditation of theEIA-EMP consultants by the NationalAccreditation Board of Education and Training/Quality Council of India (NABET/QCI) compulso-ry. This letter stated: “No final EIA/EMP from anyProject Proponent prepared by the non-accredit-ed Consultant will be entertained after 1 July,2010.”

At this point NGOs and environmental groupsonce again wrote to the MoEF highlighting a set ofconcerns. At the heart of this issue was the lack offaith in the QCI which is essentially seen as abody backed by industry associations hand inglove with the EIA consultants in carrying out

Discrimination is at its zenith during this phase ofa disabled person’s life. In Jammu and Kashmir,Circular no. 62-SW of 2001, issued on 23 March,2001, has made disability truly into a ‘handicap’.

The Ministry of Social Justice andEmpowerment identifies, for example, teacherposts for deaf, mute, blind and other severely dis-abled individuals. But in Jammu and Kashmir,thanks to this circular, severely disabled personshave been dropped from the list under the pre-text that no post of teacher has been identifiedfor them. It is very unfortunate that the ServiceSelection Board (SSrB) does not consider personswith either upper or lower limb disabilities forany post. They have identified a long list of postsfor ‘partially’ disabled persons as a step towardscreating an ‘all inclusive policy’.

This sends out a discouraging message to thedisabled community who strive to educate them-selves. The state is telling them – what is the needto walk on a road which is blocked ahead?

But some souls are quite determined and havenever understood the word ‘give up.’ They havefought and become examples for the entire com-munity, not only in the state but at national level.There are officials in the IAS and KAS with severedisabilities (blind or have no upper or lower limbs).

Khursheed Malik, with 100 percent disability, issupported by a wheelchair. But this wheelchairnever became an obstacle to his willingness toserve the state as a Secretary in different depart-ments - Labor and Employment and Flood Controlto name a few. His dedication and honesty wonhim a place in the hearts of the people, thus leav-ing behind many healthy officials.

Despite their talent and special skills, the gov-ernment never misses a chance to be vindictive topersons with disability. In one such case, SyedBashir, who was working as a teacher in theMiddle School at Kanjinag Awantipora in Pulwamadistrict under the rehbar-e-Taleem scheme wasdismissed on the ground that he is unable to usehis ‘arms’ for eating and for using a blackboard.

Bashir did not accept this decision. He decidedto approach the courts. In 2010, a historic deci-sion was taken by a double bench of theHonorable Supreme Court in the Syed Bashir-ud-din Qadri v/s State of J&K case. The SupremeCourt considered Bashir’s expulsion to be asevere case of discrimination under Article 22 ofthe J&K Persons with Disabilities Act 1998, whichguarantees equal opportunities, protection ofrights and full participation. Orders were passedto reinstate Bashir who is presently working as ateacher in the Kanjinag School. He is respectedfor the extra attention he pays to students andhis school.

Persons with disabilities spend more on theireducation and maintenance. Wheelchairs, crutch-es and other aids required for mobility cost a lotand cut into family budgets. Extreme climatic sit-uations also have an impact on the lives of thedisabled and sometimes force them to discontin-ue their education.

They don’t need your sympathy. All they demandis access to their rights. They have challenged the‘disabled’ system with their special abilities. All thatwe are doing is denying them permission to cele-brate World Disability Day at India Gate. n

Charkha Features

Is MoEF’s green list of EIA consultants good enough?KANCHI KOHLI

Continued from previous page


INSIGHTS

faulty and inadequate assessments. Back then,the QCI website accessed on 1 April, 2010, stated:“QCI was set up in 1997 as an autonomous bodyby the Government of India jointly with Indianindustry to establish and operate the NationalAccreditation Structure for conformity assess-ment bodies. Indian industry is represented inQCI by three premier industry associations,

ASSOCHAM, CII and FICCI.” We now have a list of consultants who are on

MoEF and QCI’s ‘green list.’ As anticipated thereis trouble brewing here. Some of these consult-ants have been involved in the worst EIA scenar-ios in recent times.

For instance, the Detox Corporation Pvt. Ltd,Surat, had carried out the EIA for the 300 MW

thermal power plant project of the OPG PowerGujarat Limited in the ecologically and sociallyfragile inter-tidal area of Kutch coast in Gujarat.

The Executive Summary of the EIA in its open-ing lines itself talks about the need for a thermalpower plant. Locating itself within the burgeon-ing industrialisation of the Kutch region, thereport begins with a clear justification for theneed for such a project.

More critically, the EIA Consultant in the draftEIA report which was placed before the mandato-ry public hearing deliberately misled the public bygiving ambiguous information about the locationof the project.

In the draft EIA report, the location of the proj-ect was on the inter-tidal area, that is, the randhBander and the nearest village Bhadreshwar wasshown five km away. However, during the publichearing, the project proponent categoricallydenied that the project would be situated on therandh Bander – an ecologically important site –and clarified that the nearest village,Bhadreshwar, was 1.5 km away. Despite beinglocated on the coast the EIA consultant had notdone the marine EIA when the project was beingdiscussed with the public.

Another problematic name in the list ofapproved consultants is Hyderabad- based vimtaLabs Limited. It is this agency which did the finalEIA for the controversial bauxite mining project inthe Niyamgiri hills. The environment clearancefor this project has been kept in abeyance by theMoEF. vimta Labs also did the EIA for utkalAlumina International Limited (uAIL), Kashipur,Orissa. The problem with this EIA was brought tothe notice of the MoEF way back in 2007 whenthe accreditation process was first initiated. It waspointed out that the EIA contained rampantduplication of data, the environment manage-ment plan was not of bauxite but for limestonemining, the impacts on the nearby forest hadbeen completely ignored etc.

The Water and Power Consultancy Services Ltd(WAPCOS) Limited, also on the MoEF’s accreditedlist, prepared EIAs of the Teesta III hydroelectricproject in Sikkim. The MoEF had been warnedagainst them in 2007. Critiques of the EIA hadpointed out that several aspects had been over-looked in the impact assessment – impact of flashfloods, glacial recession, glacial lake outburst floodsand sedimentation. Seismicity aspects had beeninadequately dealt with. This is particularly impor-tant in the light of the recent earthquake in Sikkim.

The WAPCOS EIA for the Athirapally hydroelec-tric project in Kerala was also proved to be inade-quate by the High Court of Kerala.

There are 100 consultants on the ‘green list’ andanother 101 waiting to be accredited. The deepestfears articulated by civil society groups at the veryoutset of the QCI process are now coming true. n

Kanchi Kohli works and writes on environment, forest, and biodiversity

governance issues. In her writing, she seeks to explore the interface

between industrialisation and its impacts on both local communities and

ecosystems.

Is MoEF’s green list of EIA consultants good enough?

We now have a list of consultants who are on MoEF and QCI’s‘green list.’ As anticipated there is trouble brewing here. Some ofthese consultants have been involved in the worst EIA scenarios.


INSIGHTS

30

THE Mazdoor Kisan ShaktiSangathan (MKSS) celebrates25 years of dedicated work for

the people of Bharat and India thisyear. Although this people’s organ-ization works in obscure villagesin rajasthan it has given thenation crucial laws and systemswhich are attracting global atten-tion. The MKSS has successfullylinked grassroots democracy tonational development. It hasplaced transparency and povertyalleviation on the national agenda.

India’s reputation as a vibrant,even if troubled democracy, hasbeen strengthened by the right toInformation (rTI) law and theNational rural EmploymentGuarantee Act (NrEGA) both ofwhich owe their origins to theMKSS. It has also invented the social audit.

The MKSS was founded by three people verydifferent from each other: Aruna roy, whoresigned from a prestigious job in the IAS,Shankar, 32, a talented native communicator atBunker roy's Barefoot College and Nikhil Dey, just24, idealistic and keen to work for the people.

The MKSS works in six tehsils of Centralrajasthan. These are Bhim, Devgarh andKumbhalgarh tehsils of rajsamand district, raipurtehsil in Pali district, Mandal tehsil in Bhilwaradistrict and Jwaja tehsil in Ajmer district. This isroughly a150 km long and 80 km wide area with apopulation of about half a million. The MKSS’main office functions from one or two huts inDevdungri village which is about 10 km from thetown of Bhim.

The MKSS works for the rural poor. Most of itsmembership comes from them. MKSS’ workimpacts most of rajasthan and has clear nationalresonance. Some of its local struggles are plannedwith an eye on policy changes which can benefitvulnerable people. For instance, the MKSS strug-gle for minimum wages was linked to policychanges taking place in rajasthan and eventuallybenefitted people in the entire state.

The demand for rTI was raised by the MKSS inrajasthan. The way MKSS activists travelled allover the state broadcasting the message that aright to information law was needed is an inspir-ing example of how a small group with meagerresources can have a big impact because of theirdedication and convincing message.

Although a number of people and organisationscampaigned for the rTI and NrEGA, the contribu-tion of MKSS is significant for two reasons.

First, while the MKSS works on a regular basis ina fairly small area it has developed an amazing abil-ity to link some of its local struggles to campaignsat the national level. Secondly, it has been able tocarry on these campaigns for several years on a low

budget. As the MKSS does not accept any institu-tional funds and works with very little money, itsachievements are all the more significant. TheMKSS can afford to support just a handful of full-time activists on the legal minimum wage.

In its initial years the MKSS struggled againstrampant corruption in drought relief works whichplay a very important role in providing livelihoodfor villages in Central rajasthan. The need to putan end to this corruption led to the need to checkrecords related to these relief works and otherpublic works. This in turn led to the demand forthe rTI.

Those early days were difficult. The movementfaced oppression and even ridicule. But undauntedthey organised dharnas in all districts of rajasthan.The prolonged dharnas in the heat and dust testedthe patience of everyone. Yet there was plenty ofsong and dance, wit and humour in the campaign.

A source of strength for the activists was theresponse their yatras got in villages. Many peas-ants and workers, most of them illiterate, recog-nised the importance of the movement andextended their support.

Dharnas for the rTI attracted diverse people and

groups who saw the relevance ofthis law from the perspective oftheir own work. This further con-vinced MKSS activists of the wideapplicability and relevance of rTI.Later when national level allianceswere built it was the grassrootsexperience of MKSS activists whichpropelled them into leading therTI movement.

Similarly, the demand foremployment guarantee grew fromthe MKSS search to find a solutionto the desperate economic condi-tion villagers suffered due to recur-rent droughts. When the MKSSembarked on its first yatra in vil-lages to press for NrEGA, theyfound ready and enthusiastic sup-port. As Shankar, a senior activistof the MKSS says, “In this case no

explaining was needed. People intrinsically accept-ed the importance of this law.”

Once again the MKSS was able to link its owndemand to a larger national campaign for ruralemployment guarantee legislation. It made signif-icant contributions to this national campaign.

An important aspect of the MKSS campaignstrategy is to call upon all democratic forces to getinvolved. Hence MKSS developed good relation-ships with lawyers, academics, officials, legisla-tors, and journalists. While emphasising grass-roots struggles of the rural poor, the MKSS hasn’tignored urban middle class support. Nikhil Dey,leading activist of the MKSS, says, “The enactmentat national level of the rTI Act and NrEGA is likea dream coming true.” Most members and sup-porters of MKSS would readily agree.

Even while this movement was in the thick ofthe rTI struggle, it initiated social reform workparticularly an anti-liquor campaign in villages.

Within a short span of just two decades, theMKSS has brought about remarkable change inthe lives of thousands of people. It has created ahigh level of consciousness among them. It hasgiven the rural poor courage to resist injustice andcreate a better world. What is very noteworthy isthe emergence of a strong feeling of solidarityamong the people.

Many villages, who for years experiencedchronic economic distress and had no choice butto migrate to urban areas, livelihood prospectshave improved due to better rural employmentworks, a new determination to resist corruption,and the creation of a network of fair price shopsset up by workers and peasants themselves.

The MKSS experience shows you don’t need alot of money to usher in social change. Theirmodel depends on bringing out the hidden poten-tial of people to spark change. And it is opensource. That is why the MKSS model is replicableand attractive. n

MKSS as a role modelBHArAT DOGrA

A source of strength for theactivists was the responsetheir yatras got in villages.

Many peasants and workers,most of them illiterate,

recognised the importanceof the movement.


LivingggggBooks

Eco-tourism

Film

Theatre

Ayurveda

Lush wondrous jungle

The placid Parambikulam lake

Susheela Nair

Parambikulam (Tamil Nadu)

AS the sun sank into the horizon a blanket ofblack enveloped the forest. We sat around achai kada, sipping cups of steaming tea and lis-

tening to the sounds of the jungle till midnight. Wewere camping in Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuarynestling deep in a valley between the Anamalairanges of Tamil Nadu and the Nelliyampathyranges of Kerala in the Western Ghats.

With an astounding array of flora and fauna, arange of challenging hills for trekking and exten-sive lakes for boating, we found the sanctuary amust visit for naturalists, nature enthusiasts andtourists. It is the abode of different tribal groupsliving in harmony with wildlife.

The sanctuary has other claims to fame. Itflaunts the Kannimara, the world’s tallest and old-est teak tree, the first ever scientifically managedteak plantation and the erstwhile Cochin ForestTramway, a 65-km metre gauge train, chugging itsway through a dense forest from Annappada nearChalakudy to Parambikulam. The train carts valu-

sUsHeelA nAir

sUsHeelA nAir

Treetop hut at Thunakkadavu


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32

able timber from inaccessible areasto Chalakudy, to be transported byroad to other places. Consequent tothe ban on felling, the tramwaycame to a grinding halt in 1946.From a 48 sq. km. tract of reserveforest, Parambikulam metamor-phosed to a 285 sq. km. wildlifesanctuary in 1985. Though declareda Tiger reserve, chances of sightingtigers are very bleak.

Parambikulam plays host tothree dams – the Parambikulam,Thunakadavu and Peruvaripalamdams constructed by the TamilNadu government across the riverChalakudy for hydroelectricity.Another interesting feature of thissanctuary is that the irrigation proj-ect is connected to the Aliyar damin Tamil Nadu through a series ofreservoirs interconnected byunderground tunnels, channels,river courses and canals linkingeach one of the dams in the sanctu-ary. The five-km underground tun-nel connecting the Parambikulamand Tunakadavu reservoirs passingthrough the rocky vengoli Malai isan engineering marvel.

This wildlife Eden has a bewil-dering variety of wildlife. It shel-ters 268 species of birds, 47 vari-eties of fish (of which seven havebeen listed as endangered), 124species of butterflies, 1,049 insects,39 mammals, and 61 species of rep-tiles. Deer, sambar and gaur roamaround freely in marshy grasslandsknown locally as vayals. Also seendeep inside this sanctuary arethe lion-tailed macaques, tigers,leopards, bears, Nilgiri Tahrs, reptiles like theTravancore tortoise, the South Indian forestground gecko, cane turtles, Ceylon frogmouth,etc. There are some species exclusive to the sanc-tuary like the Parambikulam frog (ranaParambikulamana).

The floral diversity is equally fascinating.Parambikulam has 285 species of flora, 1,408species of flowering plants, including 67 speciesof orchids. The sanctuary is a treasure-house of50 endangered medicinal plants including somethreatened South Indian medicinal plants likesarasparilla, sundew, snake root and woodturmeric besides 285 rare, endemic and endan-gered species of flowers.

Harbouring more than 250 bird species, rangingfrom the common myna, grey headed myna, treepie to the Malabar Grey Hornbill and the GreatIndian Hornbill, for birdwatchers there could beendless moments of discovery of winged speci-mens. This awesome birding getaway was once thefavourite haunt of the legendary ornithologist, Dr.Salim Ali. To indulge in hornbill watching, gostraight to the camp at Kuriarkutty where Dr. SalimAli stayed for three years from 1936 to 1939, or tra-verse the paths which were once followed by thisfamed ornithologist.

Drifting down the Parambikulam reservoir tothe island of vettikunnu on a bamboo raft, we

came across herds of pachyderms grazing near theriverside and we saw endangered fresh watercrocodiles, otters and turtles apart from a largevariety of fish fauna.

Overlooking the placid lake, our tree hut atThunacadavu had basic facilities and a top-of-the-line location. We saw animals coming out toquench their thirst on the opposite bank of thelake. In the morning, we opted for theKannimara trail, a seven km detour fromThunakkadavu. Trudging through teak planta-tions, we saw a wide variety of animals along thegrasslands bordering both sides of the road. Aherd of gaur was feeding on succulent grass anda spotted deer looked us squarely in the face.

We gaped in wonder at the Kannimara, theworld’s oldest, tallest and largest teak tree. Wewere awestruck by the girth (6.57m) and height(48.5m) of this living relic. It takes five adults toencircle the tree with their hands outstretched.This awesome tree towers above smaller teaktrees in the heart of Parambikulam.

The chances of spotting wildlife are bright, ifyou trek along this route. The tribes worship theKannimara tree, which was awarded theMahavruksha Puraskar by the Government ofIndia in 1994-1995. Legend goes that when peo-ple tried to cut the tree down, blood oozed from itand since then tribals have worshipped the tree

as the ‘virgin tree’ (Kannimeans virgin).

In an effort to bring the bene-fits of tourism to the fourindigenous communities livinghere and to involve them inconservation activities, eightEco-Development Committees(EDCs) have been formed in thesanctuary. All the eco-tourismpackages are run through thedifferent EDCs who are underan umbrella organisation calledthe Forest Development Agency.The eco-tourism packages havebeen designed to make visitorsappreciate how precious ournature and wildlife is. Thenames of some of the packagesare – pugmark trail, high rangehiking, elephant song trail,Cochin state forest tramwaytrekking, full moon census, treetop experience, peep throughwatch towers, vettikkunnuisland vest, bamboo rafting,tribal symphony and hornbillwatching. These are sure to lurenature and wildlife enthusiaststo Parambikulam

Parambikulam has myriadtrekking options – soft, medium,tough and adventurous trails. Ifyou are a hardcore trekker, it’sworth scaling the peaks ofKarimala and vengolimala. You’llbe treated to awesome views ofthe meandering backwaters ofthe reservoirs on one side, thelush green forests and the vaststretches of thick teak planta-tions on the other side. The

chances of spotting Nilgiri Tahrs are bright, if youtrek along the steep slopes and cliffs of vengoliMala. To get a feel of the jungle, trek to the its inte-riors.

vehicles are restricted to 30 per day to maintainthe peace and serenity of the forest. Entry to thesanctuary is through the Sethumada andAnappady checkposts. To get an insight into thesanctuary’s ecosystem, stop by the InterpretationCentre at Anappady.

Many types of tourist accommodation are avail-able. Apart from the Forest Department’s rest-houses scattered all over the sanctuary, there aretree top huts, island inns, tented homes and dor-mitories. If you want a dash of adventure, youcan opt for a night vigil in a watchtower or a tree-top machan from where you can peep at deerand gaurs glaring in the dark or listen to the trum-peting of elephants. n

sUsHeelA nAir

FAcT FILE How to get there:By air: nearest airport: coimbatore -120km

By road: Pollachi -39km, Palakkad-100km

Visiting time: 7 am to 6 pm

contact: Eco care centre, Parambikulam wildlifeSanctuary, Anappady, ThunakadavuP.o.Pollachi(via), Palakkad -678 661 Tel: 04253-245025

Kannimara Tree said to be the world’s tallest, biggest and oldest natural teak tree

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Jehangir Rashid

Srinagar

THE wetlands in Kashmir are now abuzz withactivity as they play host to nearly one millionavian guests who have arrived from all over

the world. The migratory birds are enjoying theserene and mesmerizing eco-system of wetlandsdotted across the Kashmir valley.

The arrival of the birds has gladdened thehearts of the people of Kashmir. Bird watchersand bird lovers are joyous.Local villagers are ecstaticas they say these lovelybirds add to the beauty ofthis ‘paradise on earth.’

Wildlife officialsentrusted with the respon-sibility of looking aftertheir esteemed avianguests are also verypleased. “More than600,000 migratory birdsare present right now inthe Hokersar wetland.These birds have comefrom Europe, NorthernAsia, China, Mongolia andthe lower plains of Indiaand Pakistan. We havebeen receiving almost thesame number of birdsevery year. There is notmuch variation in theirnumbers,” says Abdulrauf Zargar, WildlifeWarden (Wetlands),Kashmir.

rauf said that Teals,Common Teal, Mallard,Brahminy Duck, Grey LegGeese, Formortis, Pochard,Coots, Swamp Hens andmany more have arrived in the Hokersar wetland.He said the department of wildlife intends to carryout a census of these migratory birds in Februarynext year to ascertain the exact number of migrato-ry birds visiting the Hokersar wetland and theother wetlands in Kashmir.

“Our last counting exercise was carried out in2008 - 2009. Since then no such exercise has beenundertaken. We intend to do this probably before15 February as the outward movement of themigratory birds starts from that day onwards,”says rauf.

The chirping of the birds is like an orchestra forpeople living in and around the wetlands. Thebirds, huddling in a group to warm themselves,provide a perfect setting for Kashmir’s snowy win-ter.

“Kashmir is known not only for its beauty butalso for the variety it offers to tourists. Many peo-ple in India wish to come to Kashmir to enjoy itsbeautiful landscape and meadows. There are oth-

ers who visit Kashmir in winter to see the snowand watch birds,” says Muzaffar Ahmad, a touristtaxi operator.

In addition to the Hokersar wetland, migratorybirds visit other wetlands in Kashmir. Theseinclude Hygam, Shalabugh and Mirgund wetlandsand notified areas including Kranchoo, Malagamand Manibugh. However, as these notified areas areyet to be handed over to the wildlife department, itis unclear how many migratory birds visit them.

“Around 200,000 migratory birds are estimated

to be present at the Shalabugh wetland. Accordingto our numbers the Hygam wetland has around100,000 migratory birds. Around 10,000 migratorybirds are present at Mirgund wetland. We hadrequested for the possession of notified areas butthat has not been done so far,” says rauf.

Besides the wetlands and notified areas, migra-tory birds can be seen flitting around in differentwater bodies in the Kashmir valley. If one takes around of the world famous Dal Lake one can eas-ily spot thousands of migratory birds enjoying an

outing at the lake.But a disturbing factor has emerged over the

past few years. Birds are being poached at some ofthe wetlands. This does not augur well for thefuture of these birds since their safety is beingcompromised.

“Due to the eruption of militancy in theKashmir valley, officials of the wildlife depart-ment are not willing to enter deep into the wet-lands. They are not ready to risk their lives toensure that no poaching takes place. Many birds

have been killed over the past few years and suchkillings are still going on,” says Abdul rahim, aresident of Soibugh area that falls in the vicinityof the Hokersar wetland.

In all fairness, wildlife department officialshave often complained that they do not have therequisite manpower and equipment to tacklepoachers at the Hokersar and other wetlands inKashmir. They have time and again urged the gov-ernment to look into this matter so that their gen-uine concerns are addressed. n

Kashmir’s chirpy birds

The chirping of the birds is like an orchestra for people living inand around the wetlands. The birds, huddling in a group to warmthemselves, provide a perfect setting for Kashmir’s snowy winter.

Birds at the Hokersar wetland this year

meHrAj BHAT


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34

Kavita Charanji

New Delhi

Adialogue between leadingfeminist thinkers, aca-demics and economists at

Casablanca, Morocco, inJanuary 2007 spawned awomen’s group called the‘Casablanca Dreamers.’ Thisgroup questioned the existingparadigm of free market-driv-en development which hasresulted in growing povertyand inequity. They dreamedof a new equitable, inclusiveand sustainable world forwomen who bore the brunt ofglobal poverty

The ‘dreamers’ have con-tributed 14 essays to thisbook titled ‘HarvestingFeminist Knowledge forPublic Policy,’ co-edited byDevaki Jain, a well-knowndevelopment economist andDiane Elson, Professor ofSociology at the university ofEssex, uK, who was namedone of 50 key global thinkerson development in 2006.

“The initial aim was to nar-row, influence and actuallyredesign the uN’s framework for what is calledgender and development. We wanted to move itfrom gender equality to the influence of genderedanalysis on macro-economic policy directions,”says Jain explaining the rationale behind this vol-ume of essays.

However, the global financial and economic cri-sis – which Jain describes as the worst since theGreat Depression of the 1930s – intervened. It ledto an intense critique of financial managementand the thinking behind macro-economic policies.The Casablanca Dreamers decided to join the con-versation with their ideas and perspectives. Thisbook is a step in that direction.

The women writers come from countries asdiverse as the Philippines, Japan, China and Cuba.And the topics chosen are timely. Jain has authoredan essay titled, ‘Questioning Economic Successthrough the Lens of Hunger.’ Solita Collas-Monsodcontextualises, ‘removing the Cloak of Invisibility:Integrating unpaid Household Services in thePhilippines Economic Accounts.’ Itza Castanedaand Sarah Gammage explore the links between‘Gender, Global Crises and Climate Change.’

In her opening chapter, Jain points to theIndian paradox of ‘mountains of food and mil-lions of starving citizens.’ Her argument is thatinequity, hunger and poverty in India are due toill conceived liberalism and a blind belief in GDPled growth resulting in a policy shift from tradi-

tional agriculture to export- oriented sectors suchas services, trade and non-food agriculture. Shepoints out that since women play a crucial role infood production, providing them land rights isthe very first need for universal food security.

In her essay, Elson writes that socially justeconomies require changes in the way goods andservices are produced, distributed and consumed.Due recognition needs to be given to unpaidwork, such as providing care for family and com-munities and for producing food, fetching fueland water and housework. The vital need today isto ensure that there is no entitlement failure andgreater attention is paid to social production,

investment and consumption. The catchwordhere would be ‘social’ which includes non-profitslike cooperatives, self-help groups, forest manage-ment groups and state-owned enterprises.

Marta Nunez Sarmiento, a Cuban writer, in heressay writes that the Cuban revolution receivedmass support because it provided universal andfree access to basic benefits. She says that whileCuban working women play an increasing role inthe labour market, they have to invest dispropor-tionate time in unpaid work. Also, many tradi-tional discriminatory and patriarchal attitudessurvive and there is ‘a need to make the decision-making abilities of women workers an acceptedcomponent of gender ideology.’

There are some innovative concepts in the

book. “We advance the idea of how politicaldemocracy should include economic democracyand how we would like to see economic changewithout so much inequity,” says Jain. She pointsto two recent examples of how iniquitous growthcan be a tinderbox – the vociferous Wall Streetprotests, and in India the thumbs down to theentry of foreign direct investment in the multi-brand retail sector.

The book advocates a ‘bubble up’ model of devel-opment led by the poor through ‘demand generat-ed by wage increases of ordinary workers and theearnings of small and medium farmers, micro andmedium businesses and the self-employed.’ n

HARVEStING

FEMINISt

KNOWLEDGE

FOR PuBLIC

POLICy:

REBuILDING

PROGRESS

Edited: Devaki

Jain and Diane

Elson

Sage

The bubble-up theorists

Diane elson

Devaki jain

Due recognition needs to be givento unpaid work such as providingcare for family and communitiesand for producing food, fetchingfuel and water and housework.


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Swati Chopra

Dehradun

SATISH Kumar is a globally renowned eco-philosopher whose work combines spiritualityand ecology. Ordained as a Jain monk when he

was just nine, he was inspired by MahatmaGandhi at the age of 18 to re-enter worldly life andwork in vinoba Bhave’s Bhoodan movement. In1962, he embarked on a peace voyage on foot fromIndia to the uS, during which he presented ‘peacetea’ to leaders of the nuclear nations of the time.

In 1973, economist E.F. Schumacher persuadedSatish to live in England because, as he said,“There are many Gandhians in India, we needone in England.” Satish took over as editor ofresurgence magazine, started by Schumacher topromote his alternative vision of economics,enshrined in Small is Beautiful.

Over the years, Satish has attempted to inspirethe international green movement towards a spir-itual orientation, termed ‘deep’ or ‘reverential’ecology. In 1991, he founded an international cen-tre for learning – the Schumacher College. Hisbooks include You are Therefore I am, The Buddhaand the Terrorist, and most recently, EarthPilgrim, which is also the name of a BBC film onhis life watched by over 3.6 million viewers.

What, according to you, are the challenges beforethe environmental movement today?Climate change, biodiversity demise, the popula-tion boom and growing consumerism. From myperspective, however, the biggest challenge is ourdisconnection with nature, our idea that humanbeings are superior. We see ourselves as being incontrol, and the 8.7 million species on earth mustserve our needs. So we think we can do what welike – over-fish the oceans, clear rainforests to cre-ate cities, factory farming, and so on.

The environmental movement is trying to solveall the other problems without challenging thisphilosophy that puts human beings in charge andallows them to use nature for their benefit. Likehuman rights, we must recognise the rights ofnature. Then, whatever we take from nature willbe as a gift, not as a matter of right.

There is increasing awareness internationally thatthe dominant economic model is unequal andunsustainable. Would you see the Occupy WallStreet movement as part of this questioning?In spite of 100 years of economic growth, particu-larly in the uS and Europe, people are not happy.It was believed that economic growth for the sakeof economic growth was good enough. This isactually not growth in economy but in finance,money. More money is turned around and youmeasure that as your GDP. People buy biggerhomes and new models of cars and computersevery year, but they are not happy. Plus, there ispolluted air and rivers, isolated communities,congested cities, increasing crime – no problemhas been solved with economic growth.

We have created a system in which humanbeings are in a double bind – neither can you stopeconomic growth, nor can you keep at it. On theone hand, economic growth has been unequaland led to environmental destruction. On theother hand, if there is no economic growth, thereis unemployment. Even if you don’t need cars orarms, you still have to keep producing them tokeep people employed.

The other problem is that economic growth isfuelled by oil. In this, too, we are in a double bind.Continued use of fossil fuels will exacerbate globalwarming and climate change, and it is limited. Thedemand for oil is ever-increasing, and its supply isever-decreasing. The West is in a tough situation.

Not just the West, but India and China too.Then they will hit the same brick wall!

How could India better manage its ‘growth story’?In the world, India is seen as an emerging market.That is a fundamental mistake. A nation likeIndia is not merely a market. It is a landscape ofculture. If we have only financial growth andindustrial production, where we follow the samepath as the West, we will come to the same placewhere communities will be broken down, therewill be massive urbanisation, and fewer jobs inagriculture because it will become industrialised.The economic growth model of the West, withoutspiritual and cultural values, turns human beingsinto mere consumers, cogs in the machine of themarket economy.

What can India do differently?

rather than bring everybody from villages to citiesto live in slums, give them land, crafts and work intheir villages. Plant trees, grow food, make clothes– become self-reliant. Do not become dependantfor your livelihood on exports. An export-basedeconomy is unsustainable because how long canyou go on exporting? And if a competitor arriveswith cheaper goods, your economy will fall apart.The European economies are failing because theyare importing and not exporting enough.

India is rapidly discarding its traditionallifestyles, which might actually hold the key to asustainable future.recently, I went to Maheshwar in MadhyaPradesh. There I saw a way of life where peoplelive simply but comfortably. For example, in a cartwith a handmade roof, a woman in a beautiful,handwoven sari was selling papayas she hadgrown. She was contented. Hers is a better quali-ty of life, even if it does not include cars or com-puters. Those people don’t think they are poor.We tell them they are poor because they don’thave this or that.

What can each of us do to become more ecologi-cally sensitive?We can do this by following a model I call ‘Soil,Soul, Society’. ‘Soil’ refers to caring for the envi-ronment, ‘Soul’ for your personal well-being andhappiness. ‘Society’ means making sure no one isin dire poverty, that the underprivileged are notexploited. These three dimensions exist together,and we must take care of them all. n

Website: www.resurgence.org

Green mantra: soil, soul, society

satish Kumar


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36

AGEING is a naturalprocess which will cul-minate in the complete

cessation of life at a prede-termined time. Ayurvedaprepares one to face old agewith dignity and strength sothat the process of ageingcan be enjoyed rather thansuffered. For this one has tounderstand what ageing isand how to prevent orreduce its ill effects.

Mostly vata-related dis-eases appear at this stage, so one has to preparethe body against vitiation of vata. Diseases abovethe neck region which are seen at a young age donot commonly occur in old age since it is domi-nated by vata. Some of the common problemswhich occur in old age are sneezing, allergicrhinitis and chronic running nose.

Many of these conditions can be preventedor corrected if one follows some lifestyle mod-ifications after the age of 60. The body, as asafety reaction, tries to expel allergens thatattack the olfactory region in the form of force-ful sneezing. If the body’s immunity isstrengthened and the dryness of the body isreduced through internal and external unctu-ousness, this can be prevented.

An oil prepared with leaves of Bilwa(Aeglemarmelos), black pepper and a piece of dryginger, used as a head application before havinga bath every day, can prevent or reduce sneez-ing. vilwam Pathyotyadithailam which is avail-able in the market can be used for this purpose.

Also, the application of five drops ofKsheerabala 101 as nasya (after warming slight-ly) in the nose at around 7:30 am for 14 daysis very useful to stop sneezing.

Application of oil on the head regularly is agood practice in old age which will prevent dry-ing up of organs above the neck. This conditionhas to be understood from the Ayurvedic pointof view. Dryness and unctuousness are not objec-tively measurable. But one can appreciate thesubjective condition. Whenever there is sneezingone should stop consuming foods that can viti-ate kapha and vata, like fermented foods, bakedfoods, curd and certain kinds of fruits especiallybanana. Sneezing is not a major disease, but itcan be a nuisance and hinder normal day to daylife. Sneezing can be a premonitory symptom ofconditions like asthma. So, one should alwaysbe careful to lead a healthy life.

Food is important in old age. very light andeasily digestible food should be eaten. Takewarm water, avoid milk products except gheeand reduce intake of fried food. Ghee is one ofthe most misunderstood foods in the science ofnutrition. In Ayurveda, ghee is the only food

which has been equated withlongevity to the extent that oneof the synonyms of ghee is Ayu(long life) itself – GhrithamAyuruchyate.

Ghee when made using thetraditional method from cow’smilk goes through four differ-ent stages of ‘Paka’ or digestion.

First, when milk is boiledand then cooled.

Second, when a few drops ofbuttermilk are added and leftovernight for fermentation.

Third, when the curd which is formed ischurned with a wooden instrument and thebutter is removed.

And last, when the butter is melted under alow fire till all the water has evaporated. Thiscan be measured by the absence of bubbles inthe heated ghritham.

When the gritham or clarified butter or gheeis made in this way it becomes life- enhancingghee. This is what Ayurveda prescribes for oldage, in moderation.

Any indigestion in old agecan result in a cold and runningnose. We have to ensure thatthe agni or the digestive fire ismaintained properly in old age.For this, take one tablespoon ofAshta Choornam either with honey or with hotwater before breakfast, lunch and dinner.

If there is a tendency for constipation alwaysdrink plenty of water boiled with half teaspoonof jeera (cumin seed) and a piece of dried ginger.Whenever there is a cold and running nose, takea pinch of dried ginger powder and smell it sev-eral times a day. This is very effective in treat-ing a running nose. Also avoid washing the headsince it will help the body to fight against cold.Soups made of horse gram dressed with onion,black pepper and minimum salt are very usefulin fighting cold. Not only will such soupsimprove the agni, they will also help to strength-en the body’s immune system.

During old age it is advisable to avoid all deepfried foods since these are difficult to digest andvery low in nutrients. When there is cold orsneezing, or both conditions prevail, one shouldnot go out at night. If at all one has to go out,properly cover both the ears and head first.Proper nutrition which reduces vata, controlskapha and pacifies pitha is the food for old age.They can be designed as per one’s eating habitsand food culture. Take only warm food. Don’tconsume refrigerated and reheated food, deep-fried foods and no cold water. These will keepyou away from cold and sneezing. n

Email: [email protected]

Cold warGREEn cuRES

Dr G. G. GANGADHArAN

wondER PLAnT

AFTEr recovering from his short tryst with ulcers,my grandfather was feeling extremely weak. Therewere moments when he could not even gather

enough energy to walk. All his medical reports werenormal, but he was not feeling too good. To overcomehis weakness, our family doctor prescribed anAyurvedic preparation of Shatavari or asparagus race-mosus. To everyone’s relief my grandfather was up andabout in no time. He regained his lost energy andenthusiasm. My family was delighted when I pointedto the Shatavari or asparagus climber in our garden. Tillthen it had been dismissed as an ornamental addition.

Shatavari or asparagus derives its names from theancient Greeks who used the word to refer to all ten-der shoots picked and savored while very young. InIndia, the tubers of this shrub are used for makingseveral kinds of drugs, the most popular beingChayawanprash.

PrOPErTIES: Shatavari is an Indian word denoting“hundred roots.” It is one of the most importantherbs in Ayurvedic medicine for dealing with prob-lems related to women’s fertility. It is also good forthe heart. The bark is poisonous but Shatavari leavesare boiled to form part of an Ayurvedic poultice

applied for the relief of boils. Its tubersare the commonly used medicinal parts.

The tuber is effectively used to treatproblems of circulatory, digestive, respira-tory and female reproductive organs.Being a rejuvenating herb, its restorativeaction is beneficial in balancing the hor-

monal system of women. It regulates menstruationand ovulation, improves lactation, decreases morningsickness, helps in infertility, menopause, general sex-ual debility etc. However, it is also effective in ail-ments like ulcers and hyperacidity. Its cooling actionworks on chronic fevers, rheumatism, inflammation,nervous disorders, tumors, cardiac debility, throatinfections, cough and bronchitis.

This tonic herb is life supporting and Satvik innature. Shatavari aids in the formation of Ojas, themost subtle, refined essence of life. This in turnbrings about a greater flow of consciousness into ourphysiology and is therefore advised for elderly peo-ple due to its rejuvenating properties.

GArDENING: Shatavari is a perennial climber. It hasa woody stem, whitish grey or brown in colour, withstrong, straight spines and leaf-like rudimentarybranchlets (Cladodes) arranged in whorls. Flowersare white and fragrant and the fruits are berriesresembling black pepper. Its roots are clusters ofcylindrical tubers. It is often cultivated as an orna-mental plant.

Seeds as well as vegetative means can propagateShatavari.

ripe seeds are collected, preferably betweenDecember to April, washed thoroughly and dried inthe sun. The seeds are first soaked in water for twodays before sowing or treated with gibberelic acid for

Admirable

asparagus

TAMBuLIIngredients:Doddapatre leaves: 25-30 leaves Green chillis : 1or 2 (optional)Cumin seeds: 1/4 tspCoriander seeds: 1tbsGrated coconut: 2 tbsp Black pepper: 1/2 tspFresh ginger: 1inch pieceButtermilk: 2 cupsSalt: To tasteFor tempering:Ghee: 1 tspMustard seeds: 1/4 tspCurry leaves: a string red chilli: 1 (broken)Asafoetida: a pinch

Method: Wash the leaves thoroughly and drain theexcess water. Heat a saucepan. Add coriander andpepper seeds and saute for a few seconds. Add theDoddapatre leaves, ginger and saute till the leaveswilt. Turn off the heat and allow to cool. Transferthe fried mixture with coconut, cumin seeds,green chillis and salt to a mixer jar and grind intoa smooth paste. Add the buttermilk and churnonce. Season with mustard seeds, curry leaves,broken red chillis and asafoetida . Serve with hotrice.

This herb is used for curing stomach related ail-ments like cholera, diarrhea etc.

It is very effective in curing skin ailments. Alight juice or Kashaya made by boiling the leaves inwater is an excellent medicine for curing the com-mon cold.

Tambuli is an authentic dish from Karnataka. It

can be made with Doddapatre leaves, (Coleus aro-maticus) fresh pomegranate leaves or cucumber.The recipe is the same.

BOTTLEGOurD IDLIS Ingredients:Bottlegourd or lauki: Around 1 kg raw rice: 1 ½ cups Cumin seeds (jeera): 1 ½ tspSoaked chana dal: One handfulCocunut: ¼ piece or 30 gmAsafoetida: 1 pinchGreen chillis: OptionalSalt: To taste

Method: Cut the lauki and cook with one cup ofwater. Leave to cool.

Wash and drain the rice and let it dry in theshade.

Fry the dried rice, cool, and then powder coarse-ly.

Mix the powered rice with the cooked lauki,jeera, asafoetida, coconut, soaked chana dal andsalt.

Keep aside to soak for about one hour. The mix-ture should be of dropping consistency. If the mix-ture is thick add a little water.

Grease the idli plates, pour the idli mix into itand cook for about 10 minutes. Serve with freshchutney. The cooked lauki and powdered riceshould be cool while it is being mixed.

This dish can be given to any patient but wouldbe more beneficial for people who are obese orthose suffering from high cholesterol. n

(Dr. Jayanthi S, Research Associate, I-AIM)

LIvING

Herbs & rice

oRGAnIc cHEF

24, 48 and 96 hours for higher and early germi-nation. Sowing is done in June and July. Seedsare sown two cm below the soil on raised bedsand germination takes place in 15 to 20 days.

vEGETATIvE PrOPAGATION: The tillers aris-ing from the base of a mature plant can beseparated and planted individually.

Make your medicineFor acidity: Crush fresh tubers to extractjuice. Take six teaspoons of this juice withsugar in the morning and evening for sevendays.

Pound dry tubers to make a powder. Boiltogether three teaspoons of this powder withhalf cup of milk till the solution is reduced tohalf. Take six teaspoons of this concoctionwith sugar twice a day for seven days. For burning sensation on the feet: Crushfresh tubers to extract juice. Apply the juiceall over burning feet and soles in the morningand at bedtime till cured.For hoarse throat: Take one teaspoon of rootpowder with honey two or three times a dayafter food. This is especially useful in condi-tions associated with throat inflammation.As a galactogogue: Shatavari pounded andtaken with milk increases the flow of breast-milkFor excessive menstruation: Crush freshtubers to extract juice. Take four teaspoons offresh juice with sugar thrice a day half anhour before food for seven days.White discharge: Crush fresh tubers to extractthe juice. Take six teaspoons of this juice onan empty stomach in the morning andevening for ten days.For piles: Half teaspoon of Shatavari rootshould be taken with milk.For general immunity: Shatavari also acts as astrength promoter. Extract juice of freshtubers. Boil half cup of the juice with half cupof milk and one teaspoon of sugar. Take thisdecoction every morning for three weeks.Alternately, peel fresh tubers, slice into smallpieces and dry. Pound the dried pieces into apowder and store in an airtight container.Take one or two teaspoons of this powdermixed with one teaspoon of cow’s ghee in themorning and evening for one month. n

Tabassum Ishrath Fathima is a research scholar with the Informatics

Department of I-AIM FRLHT.

LooK Good

IN this competitive world, balancing our profes-sional and personal lives is like fighting a battle.Why this stress? Is it because we think that we

can carry the burden of life by being a slave to themind or is it because we do not want to change ouroutlook?

Stress results in anger, agitation, feeling low andnegativity. Our thought process shuts down andwe tend to commit mistakes.l The first step to beating stress is to control the

mind. Start the day by rising early, do a dailywork out along with meditation, pranayama anda refreshing oil massage.

l Eat for good health and drink water when youbegin to feel stressed.

l Admit limitations. Know your potential. Focus.The mantra to practice is to plan our activitiesone by one and then execute.

l Organize your thoughts. Correct your actionsand never pass on your stress to your near anddear ones.

l Spend time with good people. Share love andhappiness. Your acts of kindness will make youenthusiastic and committed.

l Learn to forgive and forget. Smile and be peace-ful.

l Don’t regret what you lose. Think it was notyours anyway.

l Speak the truth. Be honest and hardworking.l Never keep a pending job for the next day.l Don’t have too many ambitions, ego, pride, over

expectations or over confidence. Don’t underestimate another person’s worth.

l Believe that what actions we do, will be repaidsomeday. It may not be what we expect butwhat we are destined to get. Accept both successand failure.

l Take a good tonic containing Ashwaganda /Brahmi /Sankapuspi to increase your memoryand to maintain mental and physical energy. n

Dr Rekha.R, RMO,I-AIM Health Care Centre

Managing stress



LIvING

38

PHoToGrAPHs By sHAmiK BAnerjee

BlAcK and lovely these kettles,pots, pans and ladles have a smoothsheen. Ashim Pearl shimray, anartist potter from manipur, producesthis handmade kitchenware in Delhi.shimray learnt blue pottery first andthen turned her attention totraditional pottery produced by hercommunity. Black pottery is an artform which was fading away, shesays.

shimray has formed a women’scooperative in Ukhrul district ofmanipur which makes these utensils.Both stone and clay are used. Thestone is ground into a powder andthe blackness comes throughtraditional technology. some of it isexported. shimray says the clayenhances the taste of the foodcooked in it. she has also beentraining young people from manipurwho come to Delhi. They learn, goback home and begin their ownworkshops, says shimray whobelieves it is important to keep tabson modern trends so that blackpottery always has a market. n

TASTy PANS

soUBHiK Daw from shantiniketanhas an eclectic range of products onoffer. There are Dhokra brassimages perfected by crafts peoplefrom Bankura in West Bengal, aswell as pretty jewellery, key chainsand frames you can slip a pictureinto. All at reasonable prices andmade by hand.

Daw says he runs a small-scaleunit in shantiniketan where heteaches Dhokra art and sculptsimages of gods and goddesses. Hisforte is tribal jewellery. He says hehas formed seven ‘kirti udyog’groups of tribal women who makethe jewellery. it is artistic and trendy.The dull brass looks a lot like antiquegold. There are also necklaces madewith colourful beads. such jewellerypairs well with ethnic and westernwear and will surely enhance yourappearance. n For bulk orders contact: soubhik Daw at 09433482710, e-mail: [email protected]

contact: Ashim Pearl shimray, 87- B shahpur jat, new Delhi-110049 e-mail: [email protected]

GLITzyBRASS

P R o d u c T S

RNI No.: DELENG/2003/11607 Postal Registration No.: DL( S)-01/3255/2009-11. Registered to Postwithout Pre-payment U( SE)-10/2009-11 at New Delhi PSO. Dates of Posting: 3 & 4 of every month

new policy triggers fears, · pdf filek ! ! ... may shahrukh mistry lead a long and healthy...

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