Over at Maami’s weblog, a beautiful (and sad) story is brewing:
“I have one mother.”
Don’t smile, lady reporter with tape recorder and camera person. Many of my friends have more than one. Their first mothers were raped, murdered, jailed or turned soldiers, and now have new mothers from their neighbourhood or camps like these to foster [...]
Archive for the 'Poverty' Category
The Ragpickers’ Education and Development Scheme (REDS) have been trying to help a lot of children on the streets of Bangalore. Vinayak Varma recently interviewed four such children rehabilitated by REDS:
“Before I came here, just after my studies, I did coolie work for a couple of weeks. And before that I was a cleaner on [...]
Remembering K.Balagopal
Published by October 14th, 2009 in Activism, Adivasi, Capitalism, Caste, Dalit, Democracy, Development, Feminism, Human Rights, Justice, Politics and Poverty. 4 CommentsA site dedicated to the memory of human rights activist Balagopal who passed away recently.
Anand Teltumbde recalls his association with his ‘dearest friend and comrade’:
I knew Balagopal since 1980s and admired him for his sharp intellect and deep commitment to human rights. Not many in the movement knew that he was a brilliant mathematician and [...]
R.I.P. Dr.Balagopal
Published by October 10th, 2009 in Adivasi, Capitalism, Caste, Dalit, Democracy, Development, Government, Human Rights, India, Justice, Policy, Politics, Poverty and Violence. 0 CommentsAditya pays tributes:
A relentless crusader for human rights for three decades now, Andhra Pradesh HC lawyer Balagopal has fought cases from extra-judicial killings of political dissenters to atrocities against Dalits and women. And he has often suffered personal attacks for his efforts, by the police and others shamed by his exposes. But he has never [...]
Green Revolution and Norman Borlaug
Published by September 28th, 2009 in Food, Poverty and Sports. 0 CommentsRoshan researches and writes about the father of Green Revolution, Norman Borlaug.
It is interesting to note that Borlaug, an American, did all his work in developing countries during a period that saw a boom in American economy. That means he could have possibly found a good job in the US, and lead a comfortable life. [...]
Child labour- a timeline
Published by June 22nd, 2009 in Children, Education, Human Rights, Policy and Poverty. 0 CommentsKeshaw Bhardwaj has jotted down some interesting notes on child labour in India.
No poverty of contempt here
Published by June 22nd, 2009 in Blogging, Cinema, Media, Poverty, Religion and Society. 0 CommentsChurumuri follows the angry public exchange of notes that started between Amitabh Bachchan and Jug Suraiya, across the media, after the success of Slumdog Millionaire. Select portions from the post:
Bachchan:
I accuse the journalist Jug Suraiya of failing his professional ethical code of conduct by means of wilful error in the collection of facts…. He should [...]
The grime of development
Published by June 9th, 2009 in Development, Economy, Poverty and Regulation. 0 CommentsMost of the units are covered with a layer of black grime, a combination of dust, oil and some unknown substance. Chemicals are strewn all over the place and the air in these factories feels heavy with fumes from machines.
This is not a scene from a Dickens novel, but is in fact the real status [...]
Meira Kumar and Sukka Pagadaalu
Published by June 4th, 2009 in Adivasi, Dalit, Development, Politics, Poverty and Women. 0 CommentsKingshuk Nag would like to know: how’s Meira Kumar’s appointment going to help ameliorate the fate of millions of Dalit women across the country?
If the ruling party is so keen to uplift downtrodden women, it should first think of the likes of Sukka Pagadaalu (picture below), who at 64 is the same age as Meira [...]
Do the poor matter?
Published by May 13th, 2009 in Democracy, Development, Economy, Education, Food, General Elections 2009, Health, Human Rights, India, Politics and Poverty. 1 CommentAdnan talks to Panditji and Aslam:
Aslam has also his share of problems. “If I manage to sell groundnut worth Rs 150, then I save Rs 40-60 per day but that’s not enough to meet my expenses”. On bad days he makes Rs 30.
He has a wife and a young kid. Wife makes carry bags out [...]
Children and Indian elections
Published by May 13th, 2009 in Activism, Children, Democracy, Education, Food, General Elections 2009, Human Rights, India, Policy, Politics and Poverty. 0 CommentsRuby Nakka ponders on the question: how to make children count in elections?
Children need our attention because they are defenseless. Recently I also read a profound statement on the status of India’s children (to describe why they need our attention) published in the Hindu newspaper on May 3rd, 2009 which states the following: “If you [...]
Red Sun
Published by April 1st, 2009 in Democracy, General Elections 2009, Human Rights, Justice, Politics and Poverty. 0 CommentsWhich is the biggest threat for Indian General elections to be held in April/May 2009?
a.Jihadi militants from across the border
b.Insurgents from the North East
c.LTTE from Srilanka
d.None of the above
Charakan says it’s option d.
No thanks to Mamata
Published by March 26th, 2009 in Business, Democracy, Development, Economy, Law and order and Poverty. 0 CommentsOf course, how can someone mention the Tata Nano and not talk about Bengal’s saviour Mamata Banerjee:
In the end, the market prevailed. Tata built its car in Gujarat and now a whole generation of people will be able to own their own cars and the freedom of movement that entails. Additionally, people with the Nano [...]
Traveling to India? Do read this
Published by March 23rd, 2009 in Culture, India, Poverty, Prejudice and Travel. 0 CommentsOn the Journey to India blog, here are a few things you are warned about if you don’t wish to get culturally shocked:
The smells of India can be the best and worst things about the country. The stench of garbage and urine is common, but so are the heady rich aromas of spices and incense.
Evenings [...]
What do we need?
Published by March 19th, 2009 in Democracy, Development, Economy, General Elections 2009, India, Politics and Poverty. 0 CommentsThe future of India may look bright in terms of the demographic dividend, the affluent middle class, the knowledge capital so on and so forth. But it is equally gloomy too. With 27% of the population struggling for their next meal, the global economic turmoil and the marginalized sections facing the heat, the mismanagement of [...]
How do you feel when you donate something to the poor ? Relieved and your conscience swelled up ? Eclipsed thoughts shows us the reality.
I mean why the hell do you need to distribute the poor Nepalese kids living in the Himalayas some sweets and pencils?
Ever thought what that kid would do with that pencil [...]
Kanagu does a researched analysis for the level of corruption in India.
In India, if we talk about the government or government officials or administrators, somehow we can relate them with corruption. We are paying bribe at times willingly to speed up the work and at times, we are paying due to compulsion to get our [...]
‘The fragrance always stays’
Published by November 21st, 2008 in Activism, Children, Poverty and Society. 0 CommentsLet me end the suspense. Here is what happened: last week I got a phone call from a well to do up market lady who lives in one of the poshest colony of our city. She asked me to send someone as she had things to donate for the children. In spite of having been [...]
‘Toxic convergence’
Published by November 13th, 2008 in Development, Human Rights, Poverty, Religion and Secularism. 0 CommentsWhile in Gujarat, chief minister Narendra Modi organised pogroms to kill Muslims in 2002, here in West Bengal we have “cadre terror” and “party rule” in place of the law and order stipulated under the Constitution of India.
Besides, in West Bengal, Muslims are systematically deprived and excluded, with the result that the fabled “peace” that [...]
Right to Education, finally
Published by November 10th, 2008 in Education, Policy and Poverty. 0 CommentsTanushree Bagrodia endorses the Right to Education Bill:
There is also a requirement for private schools to reserve 25% of the class capacity at entry levels for the disadvantaged children from the neighbourhood. Now this makes complete sense as opposed to the caste based reservation that exists at the under and post graduate levels in India. [...]
Why the BJP doesn’t like Aravind Adiga
Published by November 8th, 2008 in Books, Caste, Dalit, Politics and Poverty. 1 CommentDaipayan Halder reads the parivar’s mind:
Between 2004 and now, India hasn’t changed much.
As the BJP prepares for another election, the party and its spokesmen it seems are still unmindful of this other India, the India Whining.
On October 26, in Pioneer, Kanchan Gupta wrote that this year’s Man Booker winner Arvind Adiga’s portrayal of India would [...]
Is e-governance enough?
Published by October 28th, 2008 in Development, Policy and Poverty. 0 CommentsWhat is the point of e-governance if it works on poor information? Akshi Khandelwal has a point:
There were around 50 people of Delasar who completely opposed the implementation of the enrollment process. They claimed that the given list of BPL beneficiaries was incorrect and that the survey conducted in 2002 was faulty. According to them, [...]
Vinay attends a talk given by Nancy Barry, a pioneer in the field of creating private, market-based solutions to poverty alleviation for women across the globe. The gist: governments and NGOs can’t deal with poverty effectively:
MFIs must look beyond being simply mass-lenders, and instead should aggressively focus on providing a full range of financial products [...]
In rural Chhattisgarh, Shantanu doesn’t find the Chandrayaan swinging by:
But this is not a matter of expending money on what one might say are India’s chronically deprived underbelly. Even as I write, the press is reporting about hoe the soldiers in Siachen are being issued old and even torn clothing because new one’s haven’t been [...]
Chandrayaan in the west
Published by October 24th, 2008 in Poverty, Prejudice and Science & Technology. 1 CommentReactions in the western press anger Juggernaut:
It is beyond their primitive brains to understand what an investment in Science and Technology means in the long run. Every one of those scumbags had the standard question “Why waste 80 million $ on lofty moon missions when the money can be better spent feeding your poor?”. You [...]
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