Campaign to support the Anti Corruption Bill

On June 10th 2009, Dr. Jaya Prakash Narayan submitted a draft bill as an amendment to the anti corruption bill, to the chief minister and the speaker of Andhra Pradesh.  Among the several amendments to the bill, one significant amendment was to deem MLAs, MLCs, elected members of panchayats, municipalities and municipal corporations as public servants and bring them under the purview of the Corruption Act.

Click here, to read the draft bill.

This amendment was good enough for me to join the campaign which we kicked off with in a week of this proposal.  The campaign itself was aimed at making sure the draft was introduced as a bill in the Andhra Pradesh assembly and then to get the approval of all the members to get it approved as a bill. The campaign involved

1. Calling the MLA’s 
2. An Online Petition
3. Email campaign to sign the petition and educate the internet audience.
4. Calling the Political Parties
5. Write to the Media.
6. Talk to the Media.
7. Get the word out to the common man about the importance of the bill and how their support will help.

The campaign’s first step was the email campaign to reach out to the internet audience and create awareness about the bill and make them sign the petition thereafter. This campaign is one week old and yet we have had only 792 signatures at this point in time. Although the number is disappointing, it is expected. However there have been quite a few concerns/criticisms regarding this campaign.

Here are some readers comments.

Reader #1:”First prevent corruption at top level(more power over people) rather focussing to much at small levels,If the things get to work properly at the top level then people at low level(lesser power) will not become corrupt“

To this i’ve to say, corruption is deep rooted in the society. From students, young adults, to middle aged, to old people, everybody is part of the system. If the kid is not taught about the perils of corruption, he or she may become the person in power tomorrow and  the vicious cycle will follow. So corruption needs to be addressed at all levels and treated with same vigor and intensity. So yes this kind of a campaign is a good way to start such debates and discussions.

Reader #2: “JP should petition it to the authorities you are willing and capable to make a difference which is the biggest challenge right now and i’m Afraid  i can’t think of anyone in the country right now of anyone in the country right now”

To this I’ve to say, that that’s precisely the reason why we are running the campaign. If the Chief Minister were to readily agree and sign the bill, these amendments would have been made a long time back. We elect the leaders to do the job, but if they don’t , then we’ve to make sure that they do their job.  Because if we don’t then our leaders have no reason to do either.  

reader #3: “I did delay think hesitate to sign the petetion thinking that this wont make any difference.. .. Y to sign and all that…”

the same reader also said “But when I recollected how RTI was fought for and finally how much useful it was now a days(though its being used in wrong ways by many and for selfish uses)…. its still a very useful act(RTI)”.

But there are many others who simply don’t believe in such campaigns. The fact of the matter is such campaigns don’t directly result in achieving the goal, but generate enough interest/awareness/questions/concerns that make such campaigns hard to ignore by the authorities. It is this pressure that we intend to create through this campaign.

so any suggestions/comments/criticisms….. please keep it coming.

Birds Of Same Feathers !

Birds of same feathers flock together. Well if this is true for the birds, this can also be true for the different groups/organizations working for a common cause i.e. to help those who need help.  There is a large population of groups/organizations/individuals out there working relentlessly towards their respective goals and missions. While they strive for success in their efforts, there are many hardships that come in the way. This could be financial, time, people and many other such similar constraints that restrict an individual/group/organization to be fully effective and successful in their efforts and also in some cases limit their reach.

But what if such similar organizations work together, share resources, share their efforts, share their expertise, learn from each other, gain from each other, communicate with each other, coordinate with each other.

This was the concept behind Birds Of Same Feathers. The concept soon turned into a reality and now there are close to 50 birds in this group. Oh by birds I mean members. All the members are addressed as birds.

The birds certainly liked the idea of working together and so when the idea was proposed they agreed to fly together. BOSF has now it’s reach in Chennai and Bangalore. While BOSF is still in it’s early stages and there is still a long way to go, with some guideliness and simple rules of communication in the group, the coordination  efforts have begun.  Again the key here was that all the birds had a liking to this concept, so guideliness was only for any new birds to join the flock.

So once all the birds new what roles they are going to play, how they would fit into the group,  it was just a matter of time before they jumped into action. While BOSF is still in it’s early stages there has been some significant progress made already.

Another interesting way BOSF is serving it’s members is by providing a platform for everybody to broadcasting their efforts, soliciting help for their efforts and also keep each other well informed. Communication, coordination, discussions and debates are the key elements for any such activities and BOSF offers itself as a perfect platform for that. Although at times, there is too much of that resulting in a somewhat chaotic situation, but then the birds are mature enough to deal with it. 

Thus far, BOSF has started it’s work in the fields of Education and Environment. As part of the education groups, they have started ( or in the process of starting )

• Employable skills training program.
• Sponsoring Education
• Adopting government schools.
• Tutoring school kids.

That’s just to give an idea. Another interesting aspect of BOSF is the way important discussions and debates about important issues are carried out. One bird starts a discussion with a <tag> in the subject line of the email and other interested birds contribute to the discussions and debates.

Like everything else, there are also some short comings of BOSF.  But for now, it’s not so bad that it’s hurting BOSF.

To follow all the discussions: http://groups.google.com/group/birdsofsamefeathers

When technology meets humanity !

I intend to write about an organization/group/individual on a regular basis whom i’ve either interacted with or learnt about, who through their extraordinary work have helped others to live a better sustainable life.

It was purely an accident that i stumbled upon Akshaya Patra ( the rice bowl ) , an organization who started out with feeding a few thousand government school kids have now the reach to feed 100’s of thousands of school kids. It’s not just any food,  it’s a nutritious food, the kind of food a mother would want to feed her child.  Once the child is fed, he/she feels more at ease as they don’t have to go places to find the next meal for the day and are more willing to accept the education system as part of their life.

What is also very interesting about this is that it’s a Public Private Patnership in the Mid Day Meal sector, a government run program. This also goes to show that, the policies/programs proposed by the government are very good , the problem with them is the implementation. So instead of re-inventing the wheel and trying to find a new/alternative solution to an existing problem, if we can ensure or help these programs are implemented effectively, the results can be dramatic. This is proven by Akshay Patra.

Ofcourse, a major contributor to Akshaya Patra’s success is the usage of technology. From cleaning utensils to cooking rice to making chapaati’s to packaging to transporting , there is a heavy usage of technology. While they still need lot of volunteer (paid staff ) support to run the program, technology makes it easily scalable and more reachable and sometimes more affordable.

Take a look at their kitchen operations, the video tells the entire story and is convincing enough to prove that technology if used effectively can play a major role even in Not for Profit efforts.

Bhopal Gas Victims

Bhopal and Victims are often mentioned in the same sentence.  One tragic night changed the face of Bhopal and it’s people forever. So much so that even after 25 years of the disaster , people still continue to suffer, continue to struggle and continue to fight.

The tragedy and the generations of people affected by the disaster reminds us that there is a strong divide between the powerful rich and the helpless poor; that the judiciary is for sale; that no one cares for the poor except for the poor and a few good people.

It’s been more than 25 years since the disaster struck, but the memories of it are still very fresh. Because nothing has been to erase the memories.

1.  The disaster site hasn’t been cleaned up with tons of harmful chemicals still lying around
2. The ground water hasn’t been cleaned/purified.
3. The new generation of kids are born with respiratory diseases, with physical disorders.
4. The affected people, their familes, their kids have not been compensated for their loss.

So nothing has changed, the memories are still fresh. The victims are the ones who have led the fight, continued the fight and are still fighting against one of the biggest corporate giants and also one of the biggest corrupt. From the next generation kids of the victims to the most elderly victims, everybody is part of the long struggle.

With the help of a few select groups/individuals/organizations , the victims have managed to take the struggle forward and together were able to get some of their demands mets. But it took 20 years. 

20 Years is a very very long time to have spent fighting for the mere survival. Hope the campaign run by the victims creates more awareness about the situation and bring the attention of the government of India, the Dow chemical company.

As for me, I’m playing my role in the campaing, hope you can join too !

visit http://www.bhopal.net for more information regarding the campaign and how to get involved.

24×7 news

There was a time when the television news had it’s importance and it’s prominence.  It was only on for 30 minutes in Hindi from 8:30 to 9:00pm and then again from 9:30 to 10:00pm in English. I remember as a kid, my dad used to wait for the English news and within 30 minutes he would know the important national and international news. For everything else he would read the news paper next day.

And I would only be interested in sports, so i would watch just the last 5 minutes of the news. Doordarshan news was the best !

I don’t exaclty remember how this transformation happened or what triggered this to happen, but over the past decade and more importantly in

 

 the past 3-4 years, there seems to be a mad rush for the 24X7 news channels.  Just imagine, from a modest couple of hours a day to 24 hours a day, that’s just mind boggling.  Obviously it can’t be all news , so the news channels started featuring debates, discussions,campaigns, documentaries etc to make it worthwile. 

The 24×7 news has become very powerful, so much so that it can make the most powerful the most helpless and vice-versa. But somewhere in the mad rush of being the number one news channel, the channels seem to have got their priorities all mixed up. In an effort to make every news a breaking news and every news a sensational one, so that they can get better rating than their contemporaries.  This has also meant that no news will be reported unless the news channel thinks it can get some mileage by reporting it.

While I completely understand that at the end of the day, the news channels are nothing but another business trying to survive the rat race and so can report what they want and how they want, what i don’t understand is when everyother business has some sort of regulations, restrictions, the media seems to have none or even if it’s there, nothing seems to be enforced.

• Why is the media allowed to show dead bodies when a bomb blast happens ?
• Why is the media allowed to negotiate with terrorists ?
• Why is the media allowed to do live telecast of an army operation ?
• Why is the media allowed to play the role of judiciary ?
• Why is the media allowed to do sting operations ?
• Why is the media allowed to use foul language in their debates, discussions ?

And there are obviously a lot of issues, incidents that the media conveniently chose to ignore, should they be reported, then the impact media can have will be tremendous and long lasting.

I only wish the media realizes it’s more than just business. They have a moral and a social responsibility to fulfill just like any other citizen.

Be part of the system to change the system !

I’ve heard this phrase “Be part of the system to change the system” many a times before. I witnessed the people (volunteers of AID ) who became part of the system in an effort to bring the change, during the 3 day conference hosted by AID-INDIA ( Association for All India Development ).  I interacted with volunteers , some of who quit their full time jobs; gave up everything ( their comforts, luxuries and their life style ) to work at the grass root levels with the real people living in the real India i.e, the rural India where more than 70% of the population lives and yet are the most neglected and most deprived. They are all young, energetic, passionate, sincere and most of all are persistent with their efforts.

The volunteers are working along side the people and the government on issues ranging from health care ; to sustainable livelihood ; to sustainable farming; to basic education. Their approach involves educating them about the issues, about their rights, about fighting for their rights and most importantly about finding sustainable solutions for themselves.  This became very evident in the programs they were coordinating and exeucting at the grass root levels.

One such program is Eureka , an educational program implemented in a large number of schools across Tamil Nadu is aimed at improving the basic reading and basic mathematic skills. The premise of this program is not to alienate itself from the government schools but to be a part of it and try to help both the students and as well as the teachers.  Although the program has a long way to go, the fact that the government expressed it’s interest in this program is a testimony to it’s effectiveness.

The other unique aspect of AID is it’s penchant for activism , their willingness to stand up for what is their right and fight for what is wrong. From Salva-Judum to the Bihar floods to the NREGA Act to the Bhopal Gas Campaign, they are involved in everything.  

It gets more interesting. I came across some AID volunteers who were born and brought up in the US, who decided to join the people in India in their fight to survival , fight to livelihood, fight for their basic rights.

To help is one thing, to help someone to help themselves so that they become independent is something else. The volunteers of AID have put in their mind and soul together in doing so. Sometimes they come up with simple but effective ways to solve some of the basic problems. Haybox, for example is an innovative way to cook that not only saves fuel , their by saving money but also saves time. The haybox is priced @ Rs70/-.  And sometimes they patrner with other organizations and groups. The thinking is whatever works for the general good of the community.  And sometimes they would run campaigns to create awareness about the basic rights of the people (NREGA Act).

To sum up , AID is a great bunch of volunteers, a great bunch of optimists, a great bunch of activists, a great bunch of critics, a great bunch of enthusiasts. Hopefully there would be more such individuals, groups, organizations who think and act for the overall sustainable development of the society.

Charity or responsibility

I often struggled to get in terms with the word “Charity”. Charity to me sounds pitiful, derogatory in some cases.  Charity is often thought of as something that is done out of genorosity or out of sympathy. That’s what bothers me. Why should it be our generosity , it should simply be our responsibility.

It’s my responsibility, it’s your responsibility and it’s everybody’s responsibility to do whatever one can in one’s capacity to create opportunities for those who have not been so fortunate to get even the basic opportunities.

Just ask yourself.  Did you not ever approach the bank for a loan to buy a house, to buy an admission in a premiere education institute, to buy a vehichle ? I certainly did and the bank even obliged. But for many millions of people this opportunity doesn’t even exist. They could never imagine going to a bank. If you think about it, they are the one’s who really need the loans. Their life and death depends on this.

With a click of a mouse

1. For just $33 , one can give the gift of vision to a blind : Sankara Eye Foundation .
2. For just $25, one can change someone’s life forever: Kiva.
3. For just $150, one can educate a child for the whole year: Uplift a child , Sphoorti.
4. Aid India
5. Cry

These are just a few organizatiions that i’ve been actively contributing to in the last 3-4 years. Imagine, if with just a click of a mouse , one can transform someone’s life forever, if we are also willing to contribute our time and some effort, how many more lifes we could transform.

The Numbers Game

• 60 people killed and 125 injured in a blomb bast in Iraq
• A UN document being circulated around diplomatic missions in Sri Lanka estimates that nearly 6,500 civilians have died and 14,000 have been injured.
• Since 1997, more than 25,000 farmers have committed suicide, many drinking the chemical that was supposed to make their crops more, not less, productive 

and there are many such statistics that are reported in the news world over. Also, most of the time, the statistics, the numbers are played down. But if you really think about them as people and not merely as numbers, these headlines or news say a very sad story.  

In these tragedies, in these senseless acts of mass murders, genocidies, a child looses it’s parents,a mother his son, a father her daughter, an old parent loosing their only support this is devastating for anyone who form these numbers, these statistics.  Sometimes the people who get killed are fortunate, because who are left behind are left behind to remorse their loss for the rest of their lives.

But when do we start to look beyond these numbers and see the real people , the real lives that make up these numbers.

So what next , after the elections ?

The second phase of the elections have just finished. The verdict will be out in a few weeks from now.  Although i couldn’t vote ( as I’m not currently in India ) , i’ve been closely following the elections ( not the politicians ), the manifesto’s , the independent candidates, the optimism among the youth and the anger among the Indians, which is evident from the boycotting of the elections in some constituencies all over the country.

So what happens after the elections ? There is not an iota of doubt that it will be a coalation government at the center , a multi party government. How will the ruling party then fulfill it’s promises made in the manifesto’s. How can we make sure they fulfill their promises ? How can we make them responsible and answerable to the people ? We don’t want to wait for the next elections to vote for/against a party. If anything it needs to be done while the ruling party is in power.

Honestly i don’t have a thorough answer for this, but i will be looking for them over the next couple of weeks. There are definetly a few things that can be done to begin with

1. RTI: To use RTI effectively to seek information on matters related to the public welfare and its benefits.
2. Know your who’s and what’s : We need to get familiarized with how the government bodies work, who the responsible people are, whom to approach, how to approach , what are the procedures involved etc etc ?
3. A progress report: Come up with a progress report card to track the people in charge of our constituencies and confront them incase of a failure and appreciate incase of a progress.
4. what else ?

I know the above seems to be a lot of work that may involve time and effort and sometimes even money. But we need to do it , for our own sake for our children’s sake , for our community’s sake and for our country’s sake.

we cannot affor another 5 years to simply pass by …….

The new buzz word !

Take a guess, what’s the new buzz word of 2008/2009.  It’s all over the place, everybody is talking about it , be it rich or be it poor, be it the developing word or the developed world, everybody is expecting it. But so far the only rich got it. It’s the big “Bailout”.     

So what is the bailout. Well, in simple terms, when the banks loose money because of bad and risky bets, they go to the government who give them interest free loans or sometimes buy all the bad assets and help the banks restore so that they can make the same mistakes, yet again ! Simple enough, right ?

Vidharbha, a little know village in Maharashtra shot to instant name and fame when the local media reported about the increasing number of farmer suicides. The farmers commited suicide because no one was there to “bail” them out. They were left to die their own death.  So why did the farmers had to take this extreme step ? Well in simple terms

• the farmers took loan from the banks to produce the crop.
• the farming practices that were practiced required pesticides, chemicals and so on so forth. Most of the times the expenses out ran the revenue.
• the revenue ofcourse was largely dependent on the monsoon. No monsoon, no rain meant no revenue.
• so in order to pay for the expenses, they needed to take another loan. Only this time, the lender was not the bank but was the private money lender. The regular bank woudn’t give a second loan without paying the first loan.
• so then, what happens, when the banks come after the farmers for the money and even worse, when the money lenders are after them.
• that’s when the suicide happens.

It’s very unfortunate the way the farmer is financially cornered and then forced to end his/her life. Very unfortunate, especially when you know that car loans are much easily accessible than farming loans and at lower interest rates.

So why can’t the government(s), the banks, the people recognize the suicides trends as a crisis, why by the way is not only limited to Vidharbha , but to other places as well.  For a country that has more than 70% of population dependent on agirculture and which has seen more than 10,000 deaths ( or even more ) in a decade, what more needs to happen to recognize this a major crisis and do something about it.

I guess it’s just no fashionable enough. The banks in distress or the farmers in distress. Which one gets priority, i think the banks, because it’s much more urban, much more fashinable and much more happening.

• http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7383662.stm
• http://www.pbs.org/wnet/wideangle/episodes/the-dying-fields/global-cotton-industry/farmer-suicides-in-india/1948/
• http://www.indianexpress.com/news/in-vidarbhas-darkness-the-first-glimmer-farmer-suicides-down/212704/