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NEWS YOU CAN USE (NYCU) is a specially formulated
development mediascan directed to meet the specific information
needs of NGOs. Published on a monthly basis, NYCU presents a
comprehensive compilation of selected media clippings of news
that could be direct use to NGOs working at the grassroot level.
This publication can also serve as a ready reckoner for development
news on a monthly basis.
NYCU includes a selection of newsitems/feature/articles/editorials/
letters from leading national newspapers and newsmagazines.
Each newsitem carries the source, name of publication and date
of publication. The compilation is categorised under appropriate
heads with an index for easy reference.
This issue : Rs. 30.00
NYCU Team:
Shangon Das Gupta
Pushpa
Vimmi Poovaiah
Shobha. C.

News You Can Use is compiled and published by
Communication for Development and Learning (CDL) with support
from National Foundation of India
Please address your subscription to
Communicatioiffor Development and Learning
Post Box 3457, x
Koramangala,
Bangalore - 560 034

News You Can Use (NYCU) is a monthly publication designed to
serve as a development update for NGOs and development workers
located in remote parts of the country. In the existing era of
information highways and global villages'for information networking,
the NYCU aims to focus on groups where access to basic channels
of information is not available. Newspapers is one such channel
that is seldom available in its‘city-form’ to NGOs located in the remote
rural areas.
The publication was started in 1998 with support from the National
Foundation for India (NFI). It may be mentioned here that the
publication was a part of an earlier project, also supported by NFI,
titled ‘What Makes News? Understanding Media for Advocacy’. As
a part of this project, CDL had come to house a vast amount of
development news, news that we believed was not known, nor
available to other NGOs. NYCU emerged as a vehicle to share this
information and the first edition was mailed in July 1998. A nominal
subscription amount was invited from readers who wished to receive
the publication on a regular basis.

From the time the first subscription came in, the response to the
publication continues to be positive. The number of subscribers
has consistently grown, though we must admit to periods of
trepidation, anxiety and long waits for renewals. Vimmi, our
circulation manager tried various creative means to stretch a
negligible marketing budget to attract readers to stay with the
publication.
Today, though the total subscriber list is not a large number by itself,
it is surely indicative of a spontaneous response from a user
community, generally used to receiving literature that is “free of cost”.
The fact that this group is willing and even volunteering to pay to
receive another NGO publication confirms that this indeed, has a
‘use value’. Renewals and bulk subscriptions are other indicators of
appreciation.

In an evaluation of the programme carried out in October 1999 by
NFI, the evaluator had this to say :

“Compiled from different sources, not all of them readily accessible
to smaller NGOs, it is more than likely that they may not get to know
about these developments, but for this digest ..... it is a very good
experiment and may well outlast the period of the current

project
.1 have sampled the issues that have come out so far
and am impressed by the production qualities and diversity of
contents
Its contents should widen the horizons of NGOs, some
of whom may not be au fait with development areas other than their
own.
The journal thus helps create freemasonry of NGOs and
makes possible collaboration and synergy as a follow-up.
Readers have found it to be a good documentation effort, a valuable
reference source, useful for training programmes and for locating
data for fund raising. Some have offered to contribute material. All
this bespeaks exceptional reader involvement and a result-oriented
approach from people with felt needs in the context of their own
work
"

While this certainly contributed to the morale of the group, it didn’t
absolve us of our yearly tensions. The difficulty in ensuring financial
support, combined with the increase in the cost of paper and printing,
and the occasional postal hikes, makes the production of each
volume a challenge. Our production manager, Shobha looks
progressively tired - trying to get the issue to the press in time.
Yet, it is our commitment to ensure that NYCU not only continues to
provide this service but also extends the reach of this information
base to other areas, as well as through other channels.

In the third year of its production, we propose to initiate some
changes to enhance the use value of the publication, while
maintaining the focus of its objectives. As such the major thrust will
rest on reproduction of relevant news clippings in the form that it
appears in the original publication. The emphasis as before, will be
on innovative, easy-to-replicate and interesting innovations on issues
of relevance to the development sector. The next edition will also
include classified information such as advertisements, publications,
workshops, programmes, announcements etc.
Your comments on this are welcome. Please forward any
suggestions that you may have on building this publication. Because
eventually, NYCU is designed to meet’ your information needs. And
who is the better guide on this, than you, our readers.
A feedback form is enclosed within this edition.
sending us your immediate comments.

Shangon Das Gupta

April 2000

Please use it for

APRIL 2000

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Agriculture

Environment

‘Blue’ revolution booms in green
Haryana now
36
Farming a career
41
Illiterate Orissa villagers show the might of
woman power
43
Food for thought
46
AIDS/HIV
30,000 kids among 3.5 lakh people are
HIV positive
07
AIDS training for teachers
08
Free HIV test kits to voluntary agencies
15
Where are funds for AIDS going?
24
U.N. booklet on AIDS prevention on
‘over-reaction’
30
Light music to create awareness on AIDS
32
NGOs in AIDS scheme
37
Lacunae in AIDS control programme
41
Child
Calling all children
25
ICCW on the look-out for foster
parents for Orissa orphans
34
Children waiting for revolution
35
90 million working children in India: ILO
48
Disability
Centre to amend laws on disabled
02
An eye-opener
08
A slice from a disabled’s life
14
‘Deaf vulnerable to sexual abuse’
32
Lack of sight does not dampen their
zeal to teach
45
Drinking Water
Watering Hole
14
Empowered to be proactive
18
Against the Tide
20
Water, water
40
Education/literacy

New methods will exploit bamboo to
replace timber
’ 02
Conservation work in offing to save Majuli
03
A river is reborn
05
Ministry to launch bio-diversity action plan
19
TN mill awarded for making paper
without cutting trees
Experts plan model of BR Hills experiment
Chief seattie speaking ,

26
37
38

Govt. Scheme/Policy
‘Developmental schemes lack proper

implementation’
Commonwealth lauds India’s role in

27

women empowerment
14 yrs likely as minimum age for

32

employment
Women pradhans resent being used as

37

dummies
IBRD okays $700-m aid for 5
Indian projects

45

Prescription for information

45
Health
01

Polio cases challenge eradication

drive in Bihar
Govt, must finance public health: experts
A green library

08
23
33

Innovative modules on health developed

44

Information Technology
Hybrid mail casts its net on villages
02
Cyber-savvy smart schools in pipeline

08

Ancjhra villagers get treatment through
telemedicine

21

Fund schools in MP with a mouse-click
Nayla village ‘nets; first place with

21

7th National Essay Competition on ....

07

information kiosks

30

Learning lessons with toy libraries

13

Now cartoons teach maths, geography ...

30
37

India’s terrible educational inequality

27
27

100 schools to be named ‘Smart schools’
‘Wired’ Siddapur now part of global village

In drought-affected India what can IT do:

42

India catching up on its literacy rate

33

Jungle-age to cyber-age

47

Microcredit

Woman power
Credit as a human rights
Women self-help scheme to be extended
Freedom at last! Self-help group rescues
bonded labourers
Clinton invites Indian NGO to conference
Gujarat governor extends curb on NGO .

Maneka cracks down on defaulting NGOs
Orissa project brings hope for
poverty-stricken tribals
The agony of Patha
Karnataka tops list in misusing welfare
funds
AIDS booklet leads to controversy in
Almora
Attack on NGO criticised
11 NGO members arrested in Almora
Indian Hypocrisy

Where slow is real cool
Participatory policing launched in
Andhra Pradesh

Have You
renewed
your subscription

to NYCU

03
09
34
35
NGOs

13
16
17
19
29

Lessons in leadership from Clinton’s visit
22
A newspaper collector
26
Charity, not earnings, matter most: Gardi
43
People’s Movement
Labour of lave to fulfill a dream
10
Citizens join hands to make a difference
24
Population
Family planning policies hurt women’
17
CBSE manual to train teachers releases
20
Technology

The rural connection
Big catch for cellphones
Power be to people!
'

‘Bharat’ To Go Cellular
38
40

44
48
48
Others

04

15

06
10
28

39
Wastelands
Once barren M’shtra wastelands now
produce mangoes
12
Cultivating profits on barren iands
16
Women
Women for environment
11
A new mantra to empower women
11
It’s women’s world
27
Flower power
31
She gives time, meaning to nursing
31
Kottayam’s ‘ladies with the lamp
36

oes

diabetes

plague

Prescription for information

someone in your family?
Having a problem with
fitness, exercise or nutrition
during pregnancy? Want access to
support groups, or worried grey ■
about what you can do to help I
your child with disability?
Rx: Knowledge
Does this prescription seem
strange? Rather than lengthy pre­
scriptions for various pills, an un­
usual service in the Indian city of
i Mumbai advocates that the best Everyone
j
is welcome, entry is
prescription for the patient is jfree,”
is the motto of HELP.
knowledge! It strongly makes out Institutional members have to pay
I a case that the best patient is a i
though. Those unable to come per­
I well-informed one. Even from a sonally can also send in queries
I doctor’s point of view.
via post or email. They can rely
Help
(Health Education on something quaintly acronymed
I Library for People), located in MISS-HELP (Medical Information
I Mumbai is the largest medical- Search Service for HELP).
I consumer library in the world, In keeping with the Cyber Age,
I says UNESCO. It is packed' with HELP'S Internet link even pro­
I information, and its shelves have vides information on the latest
I books enough to comprise a mini medical research from all over the
I tropical rainforest! Each day, it globe. HELP has become a pro­
draws both general and spe- totype of the modem digital li­
cialised visitors.
brary
too.
Its
web
site
"People often feel that medical http://www.healthlibrary.com
I issues are too esoteric. We’re has many full-text health books
I trying to overcome that. The idea and magazines. So visitors can
I is to educate them so they don’t browse them for free.
I get mislead or misguided. Patients Each month the site receives
I shouldn’t be made into ■ guinea- some 60,000 visitors (500,000 hits),
pigs or taken advantage of just be-' says HELP. "This lets us extend
cause they’re not very well versed1 our outreach services by prowith medical knowledge,” says1 viding consumer health inforthe lady doctor who guided this1 matibn to Internet users from all
journalist round the centre during• over the world," adds Dr Malpani
I a recent visit.
proudly.
"In order’to encourage the raThis initiative was launched
I tional use of drugs, rather than1 by Dr Anirudha and Anjali
I focus only on medical practi- Malpani, famous fertility spe­
I tioners, I feel we need to concern cialists. They found that patients
trate on patients as well,” adds_____
___
_________ of
abroad were
well-aware
HELP founder Dr Aniruddha medical issues, as against ignoMalpani.
rance reigning here. The site’s
[
This, notes Malpani, makes visitors currently include a lot of
sense. Patients themselves have,i«y
jay people, Journalists, reI the "most to lose" iifr *drugs
’*•*«- are searchers, medical students and
started unwisely by them- "We interns, housewives, senior cithave access Io information on ^ens and even some very reputed
every health and medical topic doctors. Many queries come in via
under the sun. explained in terms email too, says pr Hufrisha
that the layperson can under- Suraliwala, a dentist and the
stand,” says Dr Malpani confi- medical information manager. It
dently. »
is run by a non-profit trust.
"We are a public library, currently, it has 50 CDroms, 500

lupica by (he ntHinMream media.

In addition, it hopes that over
time it could act as a stimulus for
patients with a particular disease
to get together, form self-help
* groups, and help each other cope
( with their illnesses.
More knowledge could also
prevent
health
fraud
and
quackery. "Ultimately we hope
that well-informed patients will
demand the best treatment
available, and this will act as an
’video cassettes, 7000 books and the now popular reiki, taichi, incentive for doctors to update
pamphlets, kits, newsletters and yoga, massage therapy, aromathe-' their skills and for hospitals to
journals. All is free of medical raphy, unani, accupressure, ac-. improve their facilities,” adds Dr
jargon and is focussed at the con­ cupuncture, and even - believe it. Malpani.
HELP also has access to speF
sumer.
or not - something as exotic asI
cialised foreign medical databases
"There’s not a single book tickle-therapy.
l
like
MEDLINE,
Cancerlit,
AIDfrom the medical curriculum,”
There's even information from
shys Dr Suraliwala proudly. "It's the world of nutrition, dietetics, SLINE and Healthstar to answer
a consumer library, meant to spiritual healings, etc. On each’ queries. On sending in a query,
provide information to the first and third Saturday, lectures( the confidential reply comes on
about 50-100 pages, or on floppy in
seven days, by registered post. Of
course, this is not meant to be a
substitute for the doctor!
"People in India often don't
bother to take a second or third
opinon on even major health
issues. They take everything lying
- down, and don't bother to re­
search their condition,” says Dr
Suraliwala. .
HELP is also trying to get
doctors to ’ "prescribe InforIt
has
printed
mation*'.
Information Prescription pads,
which are freely distributed to
doctors on request. Instead of just
giving a list of medicines, the
doctor could suggest to the patient
what he or she needs to know
about the disease or ailment.
Doctors can thus indirectly ed­
ucate their patients with a
Prescription for Information.
Then, doctors need to discuss the
results of this information search
with the patient, so that the
layman. Doctors can easily find of medical importance are held a1 doctor can guide patients to locate
their own information; but this the .library. HELP’S aim is to which information is relevant to
often proves to be very difficult promote healthy doctor-patient re­ their particular problem. There’s
for the average person.”
lationships by informing the pa­ perhaps no better way to spread
Information doesn't come in tients better. It says it also wants information, believes this centre.
only from the world of allopathy. to prove to be a useful resource Doctors and patients can thus
Other curative means of medicine for writers and journalists, as this become partners in making
are also used, including home­ could improve the quality and ac­ medical decisions.
Deccan Herald
opathy, ayurveda, music therapy, curacy of reporting on medical

Help (Health Education Library for People), located in Mumbai is
the largest medical-consumer library in the world, according to
UNESCO. FREDERICK NORONHA describes how it can help
consumers

I
I
I

I
I
I
I
I

01 April 2000

N ew s You Can Use

CDL Media C lippings 1

I
I
I
I

Hybrid mail casts its net on villages
Ankur Uppal and Abhilash Gaur
Chandigarh, March 31

T IS in fact e-mail and your postman working
in tandem. Hybrid mail, they call it. With let­
ters from relatives abroad taking at least a
fortnight to reach far-flung areas in the region,
enterprising cyber-cafe owners, and even a
Government department, are offering facilities
to residents of villages and small towns of send­
ing and receiving e-mail.
A cyber-cafe owner S.S. Grewal offers this ser­
vice for which you have to shell out Rs 250 or $20
as security.
"My many clients are from Canada, UK and US
who need to communicate with their relatives in
Punjab. As normal letters take 15-20 days to
reach here, they find this method much better,"
says Mr Grewal.
"I receive e-mail from them on my address,
take a print-out and post it, which is free of cost. While sending mail, I
just scan the letter and e-mail it, charging Rs 20 per mail," adds Mr
Grewal. "Scanning a letter is much easier and a better option than typing
it. Errors might creep in while typing but not while scanning. And also,
letters in any language can be scanned and sent."
But what prompted him to start this service? "My customers themselves
gave me the idea. Many used to come from villages and suggested that I
should start doing this. Thus I started it in March 1999," replies Mr
Grewal. "But I must add it is not very profitable as I have not been able

I

to advertise about it. Yet, I do this as a social ser­
vice," adds he.
Mr Grewal has gone a step further and also
offers voice mail service i.e. he also calls up the
customers when he receives mail. His charges are
Rs 10 per mail.
Another cyber-cafe owner R.K. Sharma is
undeterred by the profitability factor. "I have
heard about it and am keen on offering this ser­
vice to my customers. I have had many enquiries
about it," says Sharma.
Interestingly, while private cyber cafes have
introduced this service only recently, the
Department of Posts has been providing a some­
what similar facility for over four years now.
Called "Hybrid Mail”, the service makes use of
the department's VSAT network spanning over
70 centres in India.
Illustration: Kripai
in order to avail of this service, one has to
approach the nearest VSAT station from where a
typed message can be conveyed to the receiving station via satellite.
Thereafter, the department offers the addressee, a choice between
receiving a hard copy of the message through a postman or downloading
it on to bis own floppy.
In addition to being fast, the service is also affordable. According to
Col. Tilak Raj, Chief Postmaster General, Punjab circle, it takes Rs 20 to
mail a single A4 size document. Additional matter is charged for at the
rate of Rs 5 per sheet. Yet, despite its many advantages, the Hybrid Mail
service has not caught on.

The Hindustan Times
01 April 2000

Centre to
New methods will exploit amend laws
on disabled

bamboo to replace timber
Bangalore, March 31: The Indian
Plywood Industries Research
and Training Institute here has
developed simple technologies to
exploit bamboo as a good alter­
native to forest timber in con­
struction industry.
With the estimates suggesting
40 per cent of approximately 30
million cubic metres of forest
timber consumption in construc­
tion applications, scientists here
feel, increased use of bamboo to
replace forest timber for various
applications would ultimately
reduce the dependence on forest
wood and therefore cut down

deforestation significantly. Insti­
tute director, A.K. Bansal said a
simple technology of laminating
bamboo mattings could yield
durable products like bamboo
mat corrugated sheets for house
roofing and cost-effective bam­
boo shelters. And this would pro­
vide cheaper and more durable
alternatives to forest timber.
Mr Bansal said, bamboo mats
woven from the cottage industry
sector were procured from areas
where it was grown in abun­
dance.
These mats were hotpressed in
different layers after mixing phe­

nolic resin at 140 to 150 degrees
celcius at a pressure of 20
kg/sq.cm.
The end product could also be
layered with plantation wood
like silver oak, rubberwood and
eucalyptus timber to provide the
material with additional thick­
ness and strength.
Mr Bansal said bamboo was
known to be one of the fastest
growing woody plant with some
species known to grow up to 1
metre a day.
A majority of bamboo species
grow to a height of about 30
metres before maturing. (PTI)

The Asian Age
01 April 2000

NEW DELHI. March 31 (PTI)

Centre will bring in legislation io
amend the existing laws relating
to the welfare of disabled people
to ensure them more jobs. Union
minister of state for social just in*
and empowerment Maneka Gan­
dhi said here today.
The proposed amendment in (he
Persons with Disabilities (Equal
Opportunities.
Protection
of
Rights and Full Participation) Art
(PDA). 1995 has already been sent
to the cabinet for consideration.
Ms Gandhi told PTI.
The amendment will also widen
the scope of the word ‘disabled* to
include all sorts of disabilities physical, mental or otherwise. <he
said.
Earlier, participating in the in­
augural session of a seminar
‘‘Towards an enabling legal envi­
ronment: Rights of persons with
disabilities." she said PDA was a
well intended Act but somehow it

_________________ Contd...

2

News You Can Use

Contd...
was not working properly and an
amendment had become necessary
to make it more stronger and ef­
fective.
The minister said Rehabilitation
Council of India (RCI) Act will also
be amended to provide a better re­
habilitation regime for the disabl­
ed people. RCI will set up six re­
gional centres in the country to ef­
fectively monitor various projects
undertaken by it. she added.
Ms Gandhi lamented that “we
do not have exact number of dis­
abled in our country,** and blamed
it on the general attitude of not
coming out for registration of the
disabled persons.
She called for sensitising people
about the rights of the disabled as
they were not able to articulate
their needs.
Earlier, inaugurating the twoday seminar organised by the In­
dian Law Institute, Justice S P
Bharucha called for changing the
attitude of the society towards the
disabled people.

Deccan Herald
01 April 2000

comes the reply: "Well, tell me Amendment; the three-tier pan­
what I haven’t done?” After a chayat system? This lady means
brief pause, she reels off a long business.
Manjula has done her matricu­
list - helping her electorate get
ration cards, pension, drinking lation. "I do not know anything
water and sometimes mediating about panchayats right now, but I
with the police on behalf of people will learn about it. And I want to
eet *
Bhagyanima, involved in roadside brawls.
work for the people"
Anasuya and Manjula, all • In which paper are you going
What work? "Just drive down
newly elected panchayat to write all these, she asks. And this road and you will know what
members in the villages on then, "Why don’t you write, for a all I have to get done for this
Bangalore's outskirts. Bubbling Kannada paper so that the people village,” she says, pointing to the
with enthusiasm, they are yet to here can read?"
pathetic roads around.
get over the hangover of their
"You people have water in your
A few narrow roads and dingy
victory in the just-concluded elec­ by-lanes
from
Kothnur
is kitchen, but here even pregnant
tions.
Subramanyapura gram
pan­ women trudge for miles in search
For Bhagyamma of Kothnur chayat, where Anasuya and of water. I want to do something
gram panchayat, it is the second Manjula were elected.
for them."
term while Anasuya and Manjtila
Bhagyamma’s husband has de­
What prompted them to contest
have tasted electoral success for the elections? "Panchayat decides serted her, but Anasuya and
the first time. Having been in- the things for the people here. And I Manjula
have
no
marital
hustle-bustle of panchayat politics have always wanted to become problems. "Our husbands are
(Panchayats are supposed to be someone in the Panchayat," says quite happy that we are in the
non-political bodies, but that is Anasuya.
panchayat,” say both women.
just
on
paper),
illiterate
Bhagyamma. Anasuya and
She has studied upto PUC. Pm
Bhagyamma says "If 1 had a little curious about her understanding Manjula represent thousands of
education like you, I would have of the
Panchayat
system. women panchayat members all
done wonders!" Not necessarily a "Panchayats make roads. They over the state who are preparing
tall claim. That she has managed provide the people with borewells. to juggle their duties as house­
to win a second term is a I want to see that the women in wives
and
local
leaders.
barometer of her popularity in the my village walk fewer miles to Confident, enthusiastic and full of
locality. And confidence has fol­ fetch, a pot of water than what zeal to "do something,” one wishes
lowed her success.
them all the best.
they have to do now..."
Ask her what she achieved
So what if she does not know,
A NARAYANA
during her first term and pat about all the 73rd Constitutional
Deccan Herald

Woman
power

M

01 April 2000

Conservation work
in offing to t
save Majuli

Significant aspect of the latest project ofthe Museum
of Man that functions under Central Government's
Ministry of Culture is that for the first time a team of
inhabitants led by chief of the Anuiati Satra (monastery)
Dr Pitamber Deb Goswami has descended at the mu­
seum.
Size of Majuli used to be 1,256 square km in 1991
which has now been reduced to 875 square km. This
IN ORDER to preserve cultural heritages and eco-sys­ is attributed to earthquakes and soil erosion.
tem of Majuli Island in Jorhat district of Assam, the
It may sound strange, but Majuli which has 50 per­
Bhopal-based Indira Gandhi National Museum of Man cent of fishing tribes among 1.52 lakh people, but the
set up in early 1980s. is going to take up conserva­ Island has all the basic facilities that one may not ex­
tion work.
pect in a village - like STD connection, electricity, wa­
This was disclosed by museum's Director Dr K K ter pumps among others. This is a different thing $ial
Chakravarty at a Press conference here on Friday.
there are there are frequent power cuts particularly
Majuli Island, said to the world's largest inhabited in the evening when the power is most needed.
riverine island is more than 3,000 km away from
Enviornmentalists say that already more than one
Bhopal and is in the middle of the Brahmaputra riv­ third of the island is gone. The great earthquake of
er.
1950 hit the region with such an intensity that the bed
This island, is supposed to be the place wherein of the river was pushed upwards causing it to change
Majuli Krishna is believed to have played with his con­ its course. Since then the Majuli Island has fallen prey
sorts which is thousands of km away from Vrindavan to constant erosion. Fishing tribes had reached Majuli
in Uttar Pradesh, the birth place of Krishna.
’
from Arunachal Pradesh generations ago. Dr Goswami
According to Dr Chakravarty the Museum of Man said "our wife is 'sadhna* (that is prayer) as we lead
is running 50 such projects in India where work for a bachelor's life. In Satras devotion gets precedence
protecting 76 primitive tribes is going on. "We act as over knowledge." Dr Goswami was thrilled to be here
a catalytic agent while local people act as captains for and hoped that the this part of the country would ap­
seeking aid at the national as well as international lev­
preciate hardships being faced by the inhabitants.
el," he said.

Deccan Herald
01 April 2000

CDL Media Clippings 3

ness. Garment shops stock designs that reflect the taste
of big city fashion. Brand names like Pepe, Allen Solly
and Polo also have their showrooms here.
. For the beauty conscious, well-equipped parlours
have set up shop offering the latest in beauty treat­
ment facilities. Then there are hotels, restaurants, shop­
ping complexes and wine shops. Interestingly for a
small town, Dhenkanal has a science centre sprawled
over two acres and housing around 100 exhibits.
Although most of these are not in working condition
yet, they attract many visitors because of the^ small
hano, dhanye, planetarium that has been constructed in the vicini­
pushpe bhara, ty.
From Lakshmi Bazaar, the town’s nerve centre,
amader ei bo
■sundhara....wrote theem- Dhenkanal is bubbling with life and looks ready to
inent Bengali poet meet the future head on. On the occasion of Lakshmi
. Dwijendralal Roy. The Puja every year, the whole town is lit up. but this year
song is still being the festival was washed away because of the disas­
hummed and sung by trous super cyclone. Though it did not figure on the
thousands in Bengal who cyclone’s “hit-list”, Dhenkanal did not go unspared.
place it at the top of their Around 32 people were killed and many more lives
list of patriotic songs. affected. Houses were wrecked, trees uprooted and
But how many of us schools ravaged. It’s a wonder UMC, the town’s im­
know Roy wrote these age-maker, was spared the worst.
Dhenkanal accommodates a school for the blind
lines in Orissa, and not, as
you would have sup­ and hearing impaired, in addition to an orphanage for
posed,
in
Bengal. girls. Both organisations have done commendable
Dhenkanal, a small dis­ work despite being hindered by financial constraints.
trict town in Orissa, still There is an old-age home, located some 8 km away.
evokes the same feelings
To a visitor, Dhenkanal has an exportable brand
the poet experienced name in the form of its famous vada, made with pulse
years ago, surrounded as it is by green hills.
ki dal}, chillies and other spices. They call it
Once a princely state, it is now evolving as a seat -‘the taste of Dhenkanal.” You can always spot stuof education and considered happening. Ever since the dents lounging around at Bhaina’s mishti shop, one
Indian Institute of Mass Communication was estab- of the most popular eating joints in this town. Life in
lished here in 1993, the rest of the country has wok- Dhenkanal trails at a leisurely plod. Shops close for
en up to it’s existence. But. why teach media man- lunch at 12 noon and open again at 4 pm. Only to down
agement in a place which doesn’t even figure in the shutters again by 8. 30 pm. ‘
touchdown time for TV crews. If they had to estabApart from a few stray incidents of theft and treslish a centre in Orissa, couldn’t it have been passing, Dhenkanal is by and large a peaceful place
Bhubaneshwar or even Cuttack?
to iay your load down. Hours before this millennium.
The answer is rather a straightforward one. It’s all a computer theft was reported from the Aptech
courtesy the then Information and Broadcasting Computer Centre. The incident created a sensation in
Minister K.P. Singh Deo, the Lok Sabha candidate and the public and among journalism students but soon
Raja of Dhenkanal. Respectability came as the insti- passed oyer.
lute was treated at par with its Delhi branch and not
One of the town’s drawbacks that has affected its
merely as a country cousin. Now, the town will be get­ growth is its sluggish progress in drawing private cap­
ting its own • TV channel, Dhenkanal Television ital for industry. With the exception of a sugar mill,
(DTV).
there are not many industries there. The Kalinga
Passouts from IIMC, Dhenkanal, are currently Spinning Mill and other such units are tottering on
flourishing in both the electronic and print media. The the brink of closure.
SIET (Synergy Institute of Energy and Technology)
But the bright side of the story is that* Dhenkanal
has also been set up here recently, drawing students is pollution-free. This has made it a popular health
from other states. Their arrival is slowly transform­ and holiday resort. Known for green hills, its ponds
ing the town and giving it a more cosmopolitan out­ and foggy mornings, Dhenkanal is also a destination
look. But the grey-haired elders haven’t quite come for pilgrims. The Kunjakanta temple, where the
to terms with the new development.
main deity is Lord Krishna, is about 100 years old and
Conservative mores rule and the sight of young supposedly made by the erstwhile king of Dhenkanal.
boys and girls hanging out together is still apt to raise The DTV has already prepared programmes on
an admonitory finger. Young women in jeans and west­ Sapta-sajya (a temple located on a hill nearby),
ern outfits, always associated with progressive think­ Kapilash (a tourist spot for the pilgrims), and
ing for some unfathomable reason, are still a rare sight. Unnakotishwar.
But their “intrusion” has affected the local market
But the town’s beauty ends with summer heat, when
economy. Soft drinks and ice-creams are major sell­ the verdant city becomes a fuzzy boiling cauldron.
ers. Fast-food counters are mushrooming and PCOs Every year an average of 50 people die from heatwave
with e-mail and site surfing facilities do good busi- and sunstroke.

is real cool
D

4

The Pioneer
02 April 2000

News You Can Use
was formed the next year com­
prising 142 members under the
chairmanship of Chhaju Kam and
two coordinators - Phool ('hand
HEN
Dhanna
Lal natural drainage of the river at flagged off each year on the
Meena and Kanhaiya Lal.
Gurjar said, "dharti ka source. "It’s because of the eleventh day after Diwali, goes to
Arjun Singh Gurjar, belonging
bhr jayega to nadi ‘johads’ that the wells of our different villages highlighting the
pet bhar
to Kolyala village, also a member
phoot padegi”, nobody had really village are full of water despite virtues of ‘johad’ in rain har­
of Arvari sansad says. ’'Aryan
paid attention to the wisdom of two years of drought in the vesting. Padyatras have also been
sansad ne chawal, mirchi. aui
his words. But when the seasonal region”. By this time, the Tarun held in Saurashtra and Kutch re­
ganne ki kheti par rok laga rakhi
river Arvari really came back to Bharat Sangh (TBS), a voluntary gions of Gujarat, Tikamgarh in
hai. Sansad gaaon walo
life after years of dried up spell, organisation had begun to gain Madhya Pradesh and Jhansi in
ke hith ka pura khayal
the secretary of Tarun Bharat roots in the region. Its secretary, Uttar Pradesh.
rakhti hai. Is ilake me
Sangh realised the worth of Rajendra
Singh
thought it
‘Johads’ - the small earthen shikar par bhi pabandi
Dhanna’s prediction. A simple, prudent to follow Mangu Patel’s check-dams which capture and
hai. Yadi sarkar hamaiT
plain truth which he had stated in advice and the ‘johads’ proved to conserve rainwater, improve per­
khilaf kuch karegi to
his own rustic way, was in fact, be a turning point in the life of colation
and
groundwater hamari sansad uska
the key to traditional watershed both Tarun Bharat Sangh and the recharge, is catching up with the
mukabala karegi”. (The
development. Following this very villagers. While the ‘johads’ trans­ imagination of villagers as the tra­
Arvari sansad had im­
trad itional approach, Bhaonta- formed the ecology and economics dition was already there some­
posed restrictions on the
Kolyala, the twin villages of of the region, it also established where in their collective subcon­
cultivation
of
rice.
Thanagazi block in Alwar district TBS in the region. And the vil- scious. ‘Johads’, popularly known
chillies and cane. The
of Rajasthan found a solution to lagers’ toil bore the ultimate fruit as tanks are a well known tradi­
sansad also takes note of
the water crisis in the region. And in the form of regeneration of tional system of water storage for
the welfare of the villagers. There
it proved doubly rewarding. They Arvari.
lean periods in many other parts is also restriction on hunting in
Rajendra
Singh
told
Sunday
not only managed to check the re­
of the country also. The simple this region. If the government ini­
ceding groundwater table in the» Spotlight at Bhikampura village, mud and rubble barriers built
tiates any action against us, then
region, their effort was recognised[ the head quarters of Tarun Bharat across the contour of a slope to
the sansad will reply back). They
at the national level also. The. Sangh that he had never thought arrest rainwater, ‘Johads’ are the
have forest conservation com
or
even
imagined
that
Arvari
will
village community was recently
ingenious and cost effective inter­ mittee and a gram kosh also to
awarded with the Down To Earth-. become perennial one day. But ventions which have stood the
lend advise and support to vil­
Joseph C John award in appreci­ Dhanna Gurjar did predict it test of time in terms of recharging
lagers, When asked what would
ation of the outstanding work of* years back when he said, ‘jab the groundwater table. Revival of
they do with the one lakh cash
rainwater harvesting, rural engi­ dharti ka pet bhar jayega to nadi ‘johads’ does not entail any
award the village community has
neering and the revival of the phoot padegi’, meaning if the largescale investment but its ben­
received, he said they will deposit
ground water table is high the
river Arvari.
efits are immense - it serves water the money in the bank and utilise
. Bhaonta-Kolyala, the twin vil­ water will automatically come up for drinking and irrigation pur­
the money for further devel­
lages located on the periphery of from the course of river. The poses. provides water for live
opment of the village. A ‘johad*
Sariska Tiger Reserve were facing region is facing drought for the stock and more importantly sta­
has become synonymous with de­
acute water shortage in the 1980s. second consecutive year and the bilises ecological balance. There
velopment in Alwar district and
With four consecutive droughts, river is not flowing at present, but was a time when the Rajasthan
TBS is working as a catalyst. The
there
is
water,
though
shallow,
an
there was widespread poverty, no
government had declared four ‘johad’ watershed has brought
hopes of cultivation and the indication of the fact that the blocks - Thanagazi, Rajgarh,
prosperity to the region, as :i
ground water table so low that groundwater has not depleted, he Lachmangarh and Bansur as dark
village woman Rupa Devi de­
even diesel water pumps were of added.
zones. But with the ecology trans- scribed.
•
"gaon me khushhali
The secretary of TBS, who
no help. At that time, the idea of
formed due to villagers’ effort, (chha rahi hai" and the traditional
came
to
this
region
way
back
in
building ‘johad’ - small earthen
many companies reportedly set <system has come out as one of the
check-dams was floated by Mangu 1986, driven by the Gandhian their eyes on the region.
]
best
possible options in any agroPatel, a resident of Gopalpura. concept of gram swaraj quit his
The state government granted (
The residents of Bhaonta-Kolyala, job as project officer in Nehru leases for fishing in *96 to some climatic situation for recharging
groundwater.
drought-stricken and poor, de­ Yuvak Kendra at Jaipur to asso­ contractors and the villagers had
cided to replicate what Mangu ciate himself wholeheartedly with to go on a satyagrah to press the
Abha Sharma
Patel had suggested. They started the traditional watershed man­ government to cancel the con­
Deccan
Herald
agement
programme.
With
his
with repairing old ‘johads’ and
tracts. Then, there arose the
gradually a whole train of rain motivation, almost 750 villages of question of Arvari’s ownership.
02 April 2000
about seven districts have become
harvesting system emerged.
To find an answer to the question,
Inspired by their initiative, Ipart of the movement. About 3,500 a ‘jansunwai’ was held on
‘
johads
’
have
so
far
been
con
­
about 70 other villages joined the
December 18, 1998, attended by a
movement of making ’johads’ and -structed with the help of TBS and large number of social activists­
to the villagers’ surprise, river 1the traditional concept is be­
and environmentalists. Mr Anil
Arvari was revived. Of the two 1coming popular in villages of Agrawal, one of the commis­
Karauli,
Sawai
main sources of the river, one Bharatpur,
•
sioners of world water com­
Dausa, and some parts
stream originates near Bhaonta- Madhopur,
1
mission who was also present on
Kolyala and the other near Agar. <of Udaipur and Jaisalmer dis­
the occasion suggested that where
Sb, the process of injecting life 1tricts.
conflicts exist over river basins
The credit for popularising the ,
into the river was started at
between different countries, a
Bhaonta-Kolyala. Kanhaiya Lal of (concept goes to the annual padycommission is formed to settle the
Bhaonta village, who is also the ‘atras led by the TBS under the 1
So why not form the
1
secretary of Arvari parliament ]banner “jal bachao, johad banao”. disputes.
Arvari
sansad
(parliament)?
said ’johads’ recharged the The 40-day long march which is J
Accordingly, the Arvari sansad

W

CDL Media Clippings 5

The rural connection
PRASHANT DHAVAN encounters a group of migrants who keep in touch
with their village by meeting in the city regularly
t’s evening on a weekend day at many of them have left for their vil- Chakarmanis."

I

Kotwal .Garden in Dadar. a central lages to attend the annual religious

Young faces are missing from the

Mumbai borough. One can see at fair. The meetings virtually stop in get-togethers.

least

five

different

groups

Chakarmanis — natives from

of April and May since a large chunk of that

the

Old-timers complain
younger generation of

the Chakarmanis enjoy an extended stay Chakarmanis is not attached to their

Konkan region settled in the metrop-in their villages during the summer native place. Says Prabhakar Teli:

olis

for generations

—

“These boys merely eye the village

chatting, vacation.

cracking jokes and relaxing.
Says Tukaram Kerkar, who hails property. They want to sell it off, and
"We have collected some funds for from Sindhudurg district: "I have make easy money. They don’t bother
repairing the temple back in our vil- come to the city to eke out a living, about

their commitment

to

their

lags. The job has to be finished this but 1 miss the coziness of my village. native place."

May, so we have to hurry up, a sen- Thehelps me remain in touch
Owing to the discouraging trend.
ioLjnembef of the group can.be heard with my fellow villagers. These meet- the attendance at the gawki meet­
ings give us a feeling of togetherness. jngS bas slowly decreased. A decade

telling his fellow villagers.

Friends, 1 am retiring next month. 1 in the hectic city life, we manage ago,

there would

be

many more

mandals at the same venue in Dadar.
Similar meetings also take place at *rbe Chakarmanis then would pas-

won’t be with you for long since 1 some moments of respite."

intAid to immediately leave for my

village,

a frail-looking Chakarmani Five Gardens in Matunga and in sionately discuss every small matter
Girgaum, too. Preparations for the related to their village. Now, old-

from another group murmurs.

These migrants always seek their annual religious fair, construction of timers rue, the zeal and the passion
return to their roots. These informal a school building, match-making for jg missing. Young fellows like
exchanges help them return to the prospective bridegrooms and even chandu
Kadam,
hailing
from
more familiar settings of their village, settling family disputes are on the sawantwadi, see ’ the gawki as a

A middle-aged man, probably a mill agenda of these meetings. On certain pru;tie<;o exercise save he- -i have
worker, tells one of his colleagues: “I dIys. lhe villagers may have nothing “d aTAy‘tiesX the vilfage'

won’t be able to go to the village this t0 discuss. still, they make it a point 0 whaf>s the

May. Since you are going

inc in attendi

please t0 be there as it gives them a sense of these meetings? j would rather b

hand over this packet to my brother,

'

identity in an alien city. Says Sadoba decent house in Mumbaj than waste

All trivial nuggets of information Kanade:

can’t visit my village fre- m

on

airi

the

vil|

are shared during these gawki meet- qUently, but 1 want to do my bit for it. homc/>
ings. Around 10 to 15 Chakarmanis ] wisb to retain my connections with
usually turn up. For now, there are
Tbe gawki gives me an opportuninot more than five members since ty

to

mingle

with

fellow-

The Observer

02 April 2000

Former guerrillas turn to modern farmers
earn his livelihood.
"Life has changed a lot ever
since I decided to come overground
last year. You can behave like God
when you have a gun in your hand.
GUNS AND explosives were his
passion till last year, when he de­
But at the end of the day there is
cided to come out of the jungles to' no personal satisfaction in killing
join the mainstream in Assam.
or terrorising people at gunpoint,"
Manoranjan Baruah, a hardcore
Baruah said.
guerrilla leader of the outlawed
This man from Bakota Parijat,
United Liberation Front of Asom
a remote village in eastern Assam's
(ULFA), was one of the outfit's
Sibsagar district, 410 km from the
sharp shooters and a weapons in­
capital Guwahati, joined the ULFA
structor, known to the cadres as a some time in 1986. He rose from
tough task master. .
the ranks to become one of the best
But away from the jungle and
known arms instructors in the
the sound of staccato gunfire, the
group, imparting training to
stocky Baruah has transformed
cadres in the use of various
himself into a modem farmer with
weapons, including improvised
a band of followers, toiling hard in
explosive devices.
Last year, Baruah, along with a
the fields from dawn to dusk to
Syed Zarlr Hussain

Bakota Parijat (Assam)

6

dozen other hardcore ULFA guer­
rillas, surrendered before Army of­
ficials with a pledge to start life
afresh. More than 1,000 extrem­
ists have laid down arms and come
overground during the past three
years. The Army was quick to of­
fer help to Baruah and his associ­
ates at Bakota Parijat to enable
them to earn a living under a pro­
ject called Operation Amaranth
(One that does not fade).
"We pumped in some money
and offered technical assistance to
start an integrated farm compris­
ing poultry, piggery, fishery and an
orchard so that surrendered mil­
itants could work and earn a liveli­
hood," Brigadier Ajmer Singh, The Pioneer
commander of Second Artillery
.
.. onnn
Mountain Brigade, said.
IANS
APnl zuuu

News You Can Use

30,000 kids
among 3.5
lakh people
are HIV
positive

7th NATIONAL ESSAY
COMPETITION
ON
LITERACY/ADULT EDUCATION
National Literacy Mission (NLM) has adopted the campaign model as the principal strategy for eradi­
cating illiteracy throughout the country. Literacy, an important tool for communication, learning and informa­
tion, is a virtual precondition for an individual's evolution and national development. NLM aims at imparting
functional literacy to the 15-35 age group in order to achieve the threshold, sustainable level of 75% literacy by
the year 2005.
With a view to stimulating and encouraging creative contribution from students, teachers, writers etc. in
support of the literacy programmes in the country, entries for our Essay Competitions are cordially invited from
different sections of society on the following topics:
FOR STUDENTS AT SECONDARY/SR. SECONDARY

FOR TEACHERS AT

LEVELS (3000 WORDS)

PRIMARY, MIDDLE AND SECONDARY LEVELS (5000

Topic: Literacy Empowers the individual
Prizes
’
Amount

Topic: Literacy for All - The Way to a Learning Society

A

WORDS)

1st Prize

Rs. 6,000/-

Prizes

Amount

1 Ind Prize

Rs. 5,000/-

1st Prize

Rs. 15,000/-

lllrd Prize

Rs. 4,000/-

llnd Prize

Rs. 12.000/-

Consolation prize •

Rs. 2,000/- each

Hird Prize

Rs. 9,000/-

Consolation Prize

Rs. 5,000/- each

GENERAL - OPEN TO ALL INCLUDING

FOR STUDENTS AT

PROFESSIONALS,JOURNALISTS, EDUCATIONISTS,

COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY LEVELS (3000 WORDS)

PROFESSORS, WRITERS, EDITORS, COLUMNISTS ETC.

(5000 WORDS)

Topic: Literacy - Our Window to the World

Prizes

Amount

1st Prize

Rs. 12,000/-

I Ind Prize

Rs.

Topic: Literacy - Critical Factor for the Knowledge Revolution

8,000/-

Prizes

Amount

1st Prize

Rs. 20,000/-

lllrd Prize

Rs. 5,000/-

llnd Prize

Rs. 15,000/-

Consolation Prize

Rs. 3,000/- each

lllrd Prize

Rs. 12,000/-

Consolation Prize

Rs. 5,000/- each

CLOSING DATE : 25 MAY, 2000 LANGUAGE : ENGLISH OR HINDI
RULES OF ENTRY-------------------------------------------- n

r---------------------------------------------------------------------------------I 1.
There is no entry lee or entry form.

I 2.

The competition is open to all Indian nationals except the employees of the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Department

I

I

of Elementary Education and Literacy, including its Subordinate Offices and their dependents.

i

I 3.

A certificate that the essay is original work written by the entrant himself/herseif is to be submitted with the essay entry. Student

I

|

participants should enclose a certificate from the concerned school/college, certifying that he/she is a bonafide student. Teachers

|

|

should enclose a certificate from the concerned school authorities.

|

| 4

Participants should send two copies of the essay. One copy should include name, address, topic, language etc. in capital letters
with the signature of participant while the other copy need not show any such particulars. Both these copies should be sent to
the Directorate of Adult Education, New Delhi Only one essay entry per participant on the suggested topic should be submitted.

[
>

' 5

Submission of the essay entry to the competition impties the acceptance of the rules and regulations of the competition. No
correspondence will be entertained in this regard Each envelope containing the entry should be superscribed with words
'National Essay Competition 2000-2001’.

I

I 6

In all matters of dispute, the decision of the Director, Directorate ol Adult Education, New Delhi will be final and binding.

I

The invited essay entries complete In ell respects should reach on or before the 25th May, 2000 (By hand/post) to:

’

I_____________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ 1
The Director

(

bout 16,000 aids
patients are added in the
world population every
day. In 1998,25 lakh were killed
by the dreaded diseases.
In India, one per cent of the
population, i.e. 3.5 lakh people
are HIV positive. In 1999, 30,000
children were suffering from HIV
positive in India and 1.20 lakh
died from AIDS.
These facts were revealed at a
seminar on AIDS by Indian
Health Management Institute,
Jaipur, sponsored by the Family
Welfare Training Institute here
yesterday. It was suggested in the
seminar by many experts to pro­
vide ‘female condom" to women
for their safetyTIn European and
other developed countries, such
‘female condoms' are provided to
the women. It was also suggested
in the seminar that the women
involved in the sex trade should
be given full information about
AIDS and Government and vol­
untary organisations should pro­
vide them safety measures. Like
vasectomy, mass publicity should
be given to dangers AIDS through
audio and video media. People
should get their blood examined
regularly.
Teenage sex is very common in
western countries like Britain,
France, Italy and USA. But the
percentage of AIDS patients is
much lower in these countries
compared to India. The people
are using safe measures of sex
there.
But in India, people are illiter­
ate and have little knowledge
about AIDS. And perhaps this is
the reason the number of AIDS
patients are fast increasing.
It was also suggested that the
tourists who visit India should go
for HIV tests. If they are found
HIV affected, they may not be
allowed to visit the country.

) Directorate of Adult Education

yl./ Block -10, Jamnagar House , Shahjahan Road, New Delhi -110 011.

The Indian Express
01 April 2000

The Hindustan Times
03 April 2000

CDL Media Clippings 7

Polio cases challenge eradication drive in Bihar
The Times of India News Service

GAYA:The detection of polio case
in village Usari under Manpur
block of the district has put a ques­
tion mark on the polio eradication
drive through mass immunisation.
The World Health Organisation
(WHO), which has been monitor­
ing the pulse polio campaign has se­
riously taken up the incidence of
polio reported even after the mas­
sive drive. Expressing concern over
this, the WHO representative Somi
Anand, addressing health workers
at a programme organised by the
department of audio visual publici­
ty, in the IMA Gaya premises, at­
tributed the detected polio case to
migration of the polio carrier from
the Chandauti area of the district.
When contacted, the Gaya civil
surgeon while confirming the inci­
dence of polio in the Usari village

of Manpur block tiled out the pos­
sibility of carrier ■ ’ration.The civ­
il surgeon told th** . wspaper that
preliminary investigation revealed
that the affected child had all
through remained in the village and
as such the migration theory did
not hold good. Further investiga­
tion was going on and at this stage,
he was not in a position to make a
categorical statement except ruling
out the migration theory.
However, a medical professional,
closely associated with the pulse
polio programme in the region says
that the detection of the polio case
can mean only two things. Either
the cold chain of the vaccine could
not be maintained or a large chunk
of child population of the district
had remained uncovered.The civil
surgeon kept mum on being asked
about the maintenance of the cold

chain and the possibility of a large
chunk being left out of the immuni­
sation drive.
According to experts, secondary
immunisation also takes place as
the vaccine virus, released by the
children who are administered antipolio drops on mass scale, is inhaled
by others. The immunised child
releases vaccine virus through
defecation for about 45 days after
the administration of the drops.
That way, the polio case detected in
Usari village means that a large
chunk of child population of the
area remained uncovered during
the different phases of pulse polio
drive.
Sources say that the WHO has
conveyed its findings to the civil
surgeon and the organisation has
also questioned the authenticity of
the claims made by the health offi­

The Times of India
03 April 2000

Cyber-savvy smart
schools in pipeline
Udayan Namboodlri

loans, computer donations by IT
New Delhi, April 2
companies, bulk donations of com­
puters by NRI organisations, largeTHE
HUMAN
Resource
volume bargain price imports and
Development (HRD) ministry has
multi-lateral funding.
decided to speed up the pace of
“The ‘smart’ schools will not just
introducing computer education in
emphasise information technology
schools. .Between now and March
in schools, but also on the use of
2002, the government hopes to skills and values that will be impor­
introduce computer literacy in at
tant in the next millennium. Pilot
least 10,000 government and aided
projects will be started in each
schools, computer-aided learning state soon”, the minister said. The
first pilot project will be launched
in 1,000, and wants to begin com­
in Dakshin Kannada and Udipi
puter based learning in 100
“Smart” Schools across the coun­
districts of Karnataka.
There is no uniform definition of
try.
HRD Minister Murli Manohar
'smart' schools. Under the scheme
Joshi said the recommendations
they will be required to avail IT in
made by the Prime Minister's task the teaching and learning process­
force on introduction of informa­ es. It is hoped that at least one sec­
tion (of 40 students) in classes 9
tion technology in the education
through 12 will be fully comput­
sector will be followed to the hilt.
The task force has suggested that erised. A school having 160 com­
puters will be dubbed “smart”.
students, teachers and manage­
Realising that the target cannot be
ment of schools desiring to buy
achieved in one go, it is proposed
computers will be extended attrac­
tive financial packages.
to provide 40 computers to 100
such identified schools in the ini­
Named “Vidyarthi”, “Shikshak”
tial phase. The schools will be
and School Computer schemes,
these will be supported by govern­ selected one each from the states
and the rest will be distributed
mental intervention leading to
lowering the cost of personal com­ among the Kendriya Vidyalayas
and Navodaya Vidyalayas.
puters, easy installment bank

The Hindustan Times
03 April 2000
8

cials about the progress of pulse po
lio drive in the district.The civil sur
geon conceded that the detection
of the polio casess even after the
eradication drive was a serious
matter.
According to WHO representa
five Somi Anand, five polio cases
were detected in different parts of
Gaya district in 1999 and of these
three detections were made in
Gaya town itself while one case
each was detected in the Bodb
Gaya and Barachatti blocks.
While speaking at the DAW
programme. Dr U S Mishra in
formed that 90,000 children were.
born in the Gaya district each year
and 10 per cent of the infants in the
0-1 age group died and of the aver
age 9,000 infant deaths in the dis
trict each year,4,500 died of vaccine
preventable diseases.

AIDS training
for teachers
UNITED NEWS OF INDIA

An eye-opener
A young girl and an old man
nudged their way inside a
crowded bus. On finding the
man blind, he was offered a
seat by one of the passengers. The girl stood near him
holding him. When they
reached their destination, the
girl helped the old man get
down. And only when the bus
started moving, did the
passengers realise that the girl
too was visually handicapped
for she was found unfolding
the stick in her hand to walk.

The Indian Express
03 April 2000

KOHIMA, April 4. - The
Nagaland State AIDS Control
Society will impart training on
HIV/AIDS to school teachers
from this year following an
alarming growth in HlV-positive cases in the state.
Dr Vizolie Suokhrie, deputy
project director of NSACS, said*
the organisation decided to
introduce AIDS education in
the state’s school curriculum
as the disease was preventable
through mass awareness.
Dr Suokhrie said 49 AIDS
and 700 HIV cases were detec­
ted in the state so far. Of
these, 10 AIDS cases were
reported between 1992-97.
nine in 1998, 22 in 1999 and
eight in the first two months of
this year alone.
Besides involving NGOs in
various anti-AIDS program­
mes, NSACS has been imparl­
ing regular training to medical
officers, nurses, public leaders.
church leaders, and health
workers to work with the
patients and to spread aware­
ness among the community.

The Statesman
05 April 2000

News You Can Use

Credit as a human right
♦ By Arindam Banik
OVERTY across marginal farm and
non-farm households is one of the
greatest concerns in developing
countries. This is precisely why the con­
ditions of non-farm households, which ac­
count for a major proportion of India's
population, assume importance.
Cheap and plentiful institutional credit
is not an entirely satisfactory solution. If
private credit is dear, the first step is to es­
tablish why this is the case. There are sev­
eral ways in which the government can re­
duce the lender’s business costs; ifmarket
power keeps private credit dear, govern­
ment could step in. In both cases, however,
indirect intervention may be best.
In any event, it should now be clear that
the extension of highly regulated, institu­
tionalised banking services, which has
been so vigorously pursued by the gov­
ernment, is not the sole means ofrealising
economic efficiency and distributive jus­
tice as far as dealings in credit markets are
concerned.
The government is unlikely to forsake
this path entirely; nevertheless it is im­
portant that the associated policy be pur­
sued in the right way. What is needed is
more work on the nature and conse­
quences of competition between the regu­
lated and unregulated sources of credit,
with special attention being paid on ways
to create competition.
Experts .often favour policy interven­
tion in the credit delivery system. In this
context it must be pointed out that con­
ventional banking practices, like require­
ments of physical collateral and daunting
paperwork, do not work for the rural poor.
Paperwork should be minimal and ‘social’
or any other common responsibility sys­
tem must be used to determine the credit­
worthiness of the poor.
The Grameen Bank Approach (GBA)
seems to have found an effective institu­
tional method of reaching the poor in the
non-farm sector. Credit is a fundamental
human right. It may be mentlbned that
giving such an opportunity to the poor to

P

like floods and cyclones are a regular fea­
increase their own incomes would provide
ture in this part ofthe world. It also leaves
them with their livelihood necessities.
open the pressing question of what the fu­
The Grameen bank concentrates its
ture of microfinance is in situations of na­
lending to poor women as they make bet­
tional and global economic instability. For
ter borrowers than men, since they tend to
microcredit programmes to attend full
utilise their loans only for income gener­
sustainability, subsidy dependency may
ating activities and ensure that they
need to be reduced over time, using acompromptly pay back their loans from their
bination of policies like raising interest
profits. Women are also the ones most di­
rectly responsible for meeting household ; rates, reducing administrative costs and
needs, even to the point ofgoing hungry so I improving staff productivity. This will

that there is enough food for the family. i help make microcredit programmes less
vulnerable to disasters.
The GBA has been successfully replicated
It may be mentioned here that rural fi­
in various parts ofthe developing world. It
nance alone will not be able to alleviate
has also been adopted in Canada, France
poverty, because more credit does not nec­
and the United States, where it is being
essarily mean less poverty. Appropriate
used to help people on welfare to become
policies and good governance are critical
income-generators.
for creating an environment in which fi­
It is time to integrate development
nancial services can make a positive dif­
processes in a concerted way, involving
large and small NGOs. However, one must ference to the poor. Besides, people must be
sufficiently educated and healthy to make
follow a local approach. There is no single
workable blueprint for providing finan­ i productive use of credit Efficient func­
tioning markets too are critical if smallcial services to the poorer sections in
scale farmers and entrepreneurs are to ob­
every location. Technical support and
tain the inputs and outputs they need to
training are preconditions for success.
Regulations to protect savings and min­ produce and market their products.
imise loan defaults are necessary, but they
The writer is ACC Chair Professor in the
should be flexible enough to recognise in­
International Management Institute,
formal institutions and allow local organ­
New Delhi
isations to frame their own rules.
There are certain factors which have to
The Indian Express
be considered in the Grameen context It is
04
April 2000
not clear how the situation is to be man­
aged during periods of uncertainty, when
savings are marginal. After all, disasters

CDL Media Clippings 9

Big catch for
cellphones

most 70 per cent of the population.
So the high seas promise to
keep ringing: with the sound of
cellphones.

now gets Rs 100 to Rs 110 per kg
and it makes a huge difference to
them,” Kumar explains.
Kochi, April 3: Call it celling fish.
Cellphones also mean that
The fishsellers’ trade is no fishermen are venturing deeper
longer the same in Kerala. Fisher- into the sea. Fishing parties,
men are catching fish as much which spend four to five days on
with the hook, line and sinker as high seas, can keep in touch with
with Nokias and Motorolas.
their families now, besides being
Once Mohandas—the mobile- able to alert rescue teams during
toting man in a lungi and shirt is trouble.
not everyone’s idea of a fisherman
Rajesh, who owns two vanchis,
— would send out his men to the says since each foray into the deep
sea in vanchis (boats) and keep his sea costs Rs 35,000 to Rs 40,000,
fingers tightly crossed. Back in communication among boats via
his Munambham harbour, he cellphones helps to lead one anwould have no idea about the other to big catches.
day’s catch till the men came
“Earlier, we had no option. It
back. Their return would start an- was like trading blind-folded and
other headache: the fish, depend- we had to take whatever was
Ing on both the variety and the being offered at the local market.
quantity, would have to be sent to Now, we are more or less able to
the right markets.
control the trade, eliminating the
But the cellphone changed it middlemen. Unlike in the past, all
all. Now a techie Mohandas sends grades of fish, shrimp or prawn,
his men into the sea all right, but get a price and there is no
arms them with cellphones too. If wastage,” says Rajesh.
there is a big catch, they get back
Smaller fishermen like Suto him immediately. “Whenever laiman and M.A. Rafi, who have
the catch is big, I divert it to Koi- also acquired cellphones but use
lam where I get Rs 20,000 to Rs them only during chaakara (the
25,000 more though my diesel cost big catch season), agree whole­
may go up by about Rs 3,000,” says heartedly that the wireless handthe soft-spoken 50-year-old, his set has made a difference.
Nokia peeping from his shirt
That leaves cellphone compapocket.
nies fishing for more fishermen.
When he is not directing his In fact, the credit of hooking fish­
men to markets, Mohandas is con- ermen to cellphones goes to BPL
tacting markets along the coast — Mobile business operations head
in Kozhikode, Kannur, Thiru- K.A. Mohammed Saleem. He had
vananthapuram, Kollam or Pon- driven home to the fishermen in
nani — and sending his boats to the utility of the mobile phone,
where the best price is being of- which was at first dismissed as a
fered.
luxury.
Mohandas is not alone. Fisher*
While BPL Mobile already
man alone account for 5,000 BPL boasts of 5,000 fishermen-cusMobile cellphone connections.
tomers, its regional rival, Escotel,
The new technology has paid is also eyeing the fishing commurich dividends, literally. The cell- mty wistfully.
phone-brigade makes sure the
Saleem is still marketing his
fish fetches the right price, sound- ware aggressively among fishering a warning to the middlemen, men. “We are negotiating with a
Says Sudhish Kumar, a trader fishermen’s federation to offer
in marine products: “Now it is not 10,000 mobile phones on most
possible to exploit the mobile- competitive rates so that we can
savvy fishermen as they contact reach
out to
small
and
markets across Kerala and even marginal fishermen as well,” says
Mangalore or Goa to find out the Saleem.
prevailing price and divert the
BPL Mobile has already put in
boats from midsea.
place the infrastructure to cover
“Seer fish, for instance, which the entire 700 km coastal belt ol
earlier used to fetch only Rs 70,JSgralajgachi!^

FROM RAMAKRISHNA
UPADHYA

10

The Telegraph
04 April 2000

Labour of love to
fulfill a dream
TEN KILOMETRES from infa­
20 feet wide canal is being dug in
mous Manoharpur — the scene of the most hostile terrain full of
Australian missionary Graham
rocks and trees.
Staines' grisly killing,
Something or the other keeps
Thakurmunda and its adjoining
cropping up at every step but us­
villages have taken up an exem­ ing their native wisdom and in­
plary project.
digenous expertise, nearly 800
Starved of irrigation facility,
people, including women and
villagers of the area are digging a children, are fighting all odds for
20-km canal for a permanent
the last two years. Working to
source of irrigation. This is a cent shape their own future, it is for
per cent "people’s project" with
them a labour of love.
practically no support from the
Nearly half the canal is com­
Government.
plete. The completed portion is
In fact, it was the Government's situated at a height of about 800
indifference to their problems
feet above the sea level at the
which provoked them to launch
neck of Similipal hills.
their own project.
The people, who have been toil­
The popular movement for ir­ ing ceaselessly for such a long
rigation facilities in the area
time, recently met at Khediaposh
started way back in 1986, when village to celebrate the second an­
people under the banner of a
niversary of the Keranjia move­
Gandhian organisation
ment, which set the ball rolling.
Lokmandal held demonstrations
Having seen the results of their
in the Thakurmunda belt and
endeavour, those who had once
met the Block Development
opposed have stopped becoming
Officer with their demands.
hostile. Some have even turned
After he turned a deaf ear to
friendly and were present at the
them, about 900 people, includ­
anniversary celebrations to
ing 300 women, began their trek complement the brave ones who
to Karanjia and staged a sit-in
had done the region proud.
dhama there for five days.
"This area became notorious
The agitators were attacked by following the alleged macabre
hooligans and several attempts
of Dara Singh. But the project
were made to break the morale
has given it a new positive im­
of rural folks fighting for their
age.
rights.
It symbolises the triumph of
However, their number kept
man’s resolve to sort out his
swelling and finally the
problems on his o\yn," said
Government was forced to call
Chittaranjan, convenor of
for negotiation. The officials
Lokmandal, which has been the
promised to fulfill the demand for
guiding force behind the move­
irrigation water in phases, but
ment.
__________________
later, the assurance turned out to
Ashutosh Mishra
be empty words.
. It was then that these folks de­
The Pioneer
cided to take the challenge of
04 April 2000
digging a canal on their own. The

News You Can Use

Women for environment

omen around the world have been playing a cru­ by planting trees and building embankments in the
cial role in the protection of the ecosystem and coastal zones. Women are best motivated, and also suit­
the conservation of natural resources that sus­ ed, to manage the environment. In rural India, women
tain life on earth. In fact, the widely acclaimed docu­ are primarily responsible for collecting resources
ment “Our common future" brought out by the World from nature. Consequently, they have proportionately
Commission on Environment and Development is ded­ greater knowledge of the status of such resources and
icated to the millions of women worldwide whb are part are affected by the scarcity of natural resources.
of the growing movement for the protection of the liv­
In the picturesque, snow clad Himachal Pradesh,
ing world, environmental health and security and al­ women have been at the forefront of local conserva­
leviation of poverty.
tion initiative. Responding to the scarcity of fodder.
As the developments around the world have shown. women's groups or “Mahila Mandals" have successfully
women participate actively in the protection of the bi­ protected the patches of forests in many parts of the
ological diversity through their many roles and re­ state. For instance, when the tubewell dug up by a ce­
sponsibilities. In the developing countries women tend ment company led to the drying up of the traditional
the fields and grow food to feed their families. Women water resources in Darlaghat, women of the village got
also collect water and fetch firewood, often covering a together to shift the tubewells elsewhere. In the villages
distance of upto six kins. In fact, one of the reasons of Mulbagal taluk in Karnataka women under the ban­
wojnen raise alarm over the depletion of forest stretch­ ner ‘‘’Mahila Okkoota" have launched a campaign to de­
es is because of the fact that the depletion of forests silt the tanks. The Okkoota (unity in the local Kannada
has an adverse impact on water resources and fuel­ language) members go from village to village, talk to
wood availability.
village elders and others and urge them to take steps
It was the determined womenfolk of the Garhwal re­ to improve the tanks.
gion of the Himalayan Uttar Pradesh who had launched
All these go to point out that in the years ahead
a vigorous campaign against the forces of deforesta­ women can play a far more significant role in avert­
tion under the banner of famous Chipko movement in ing ecological degradation through a sustained action
the early 1970s. These women would hug the trees phys­ at the grassroot level.
ically to avoid their feeling by contractors and thus save
The Pioneer
the tree. Significantly, these hill women were well aware
04 April 2000
that their well being was closely tied.up with the con­
servation of the forests. They were also aware that
forests provided more than just timber.
In the poverty stricken Himalayan region, while men
were all too eager to sell the village forests to make
quick money, the women, who struggled all the day in
the field for food and fodder in the hill terrain, were
determined to assert their rights. These women knew
that deforestation would mean the extra burden of walk­
ing still longer distances to collect their days fuel and
omen, by and large, have remained the
fodder. They felt that they should have the primary right
silent sufferers of eve-teasing, roadside
to manage the forests.
assault and other such kinds of harass­
The first major incident took place in Mach 1974 when
ment. In fact, often the men or the culprits do
27 women of Dungri village successfully protected the
not get reprimanded even when a formal com­
local forests from the axes of the contractor. Despite
plain is lodged against them. The fact that vir­
the threat and humiliation, village women struck to their
tually no action is ever taken against the culprits.
guns and did not let the men fell the trees. In 1978,
encourages the anti-social elements to repeat
another group of women resisted attempts to cut trees
their acts. Some women now assert that only pre­
in Bhyunder to meet the fuel needs of the 250,000 odd
ventive vigilance can assure them safety.
pilgrims visiting the famous Badrinath shrine.
Says. Ms Vibha' Parthasarathy, chairperson of
Not only India, in the other parts of the third world
the National Commission for Women (NCW), "A
loo women have recognised the need to protect biodi­
kind of preventive vigilance in society needs to
versity and to restore and recreate it. Wangari Maothai
be established for things to change. Something
founded the Kenyan Green Belt movement involving
that is a social process and not an administra­
80,000 women in the planting of the trees. The
tive one and which is need based, contextual and
Kenyan Green Belt movement also maintains more than
goal-oriented."
1000 nurseries and plantations and also a variety of
Many organisations are now adopting this ap­
trees to provide for human and non human needs.
proach. The NCW, too, in its endeavour to check
Similarly, women in the Borneo Island have been
struggling hard to protect what is left of the rainforests.
this social evil, is launching a project in some
of the women's colleges aimed at creating
The rate of harvesting them is clearly not sustainable
and the rate of species estimation accompanying it is
awareness and aiding the young women with
appalling. For these women, belonging to the lower so­
skills to cope with the problems.
cio-economic strata, ecological degradation and de­
The project due to be launched in mid-2000.
has two modules: awareness building and em­
forestation means a grim ordeal in the form of
drudgery and disaster for their health.
powerment. The module on awareness building
Even in Bangladesh, women continue to play an im­
includes creating legal literacy, media literacy
portant role in the protection of the coastal ecology and
and also literacy on sex and sexuality. Under this
biological diversity. Under the food for work programme
module, the students will also be educated about
women have set up the first line of defence against floods
their rights and receive information regarding

W

A new mantra to
empower women
W

Contd...

CDL Media Clippings 11

Once barren M’shtra wastelands
now produce mangoes
is home to the famed Alphonso tonnes per hactare or more.
1 mango — locally called the
Sunil Kulkarni said, a trans­
SINDHUDURG
'Hapus' — which had its origins porter who has land near devgad,
BARREN rocky hillsides have been !in nearby Goa when it was under from where many of the famed
turning into lush mango orchards Portuguese rule.
Alphonso mangoes come: “I
in a transformation of wastelands
Today the mango fetches lu­ have just started using these
in coastal Maharashtra that bor­ crative prices for local horticultur­ techniques this season. But the
rows from Israeli and Thai tech­ ists, who send them for sale by prospects are already promising."
niques.
the truckload to Mumbai, some
Instead of planting mango trees
“In the next 10 years, many 400 km north of here. Mango’s 10-12 metres apart, as was
areas you see barren now will be potential was realised In this done traditionally, only a fivegreen," said a confident Ajit narrow
coastal
stretch
of metre distance is kept. Orchards
Shirodkar, a Purdue University Maharashtra some 60 years ago. commence yielding in Just four
(US)-educated
pharmaceutical
While commercial production years as against the 8-10 years
technologist who has shifted to and farming started 25-30 years it took earlier to start getting
horticulture and Is currently ex­ ago, the real revolution started
economic returns. This offsets
perimenting with boosting mango only in the past couple of years.
the fairly high initial cultivation
productivity on wastelands in this The dramatic change is being
expenses and allows more people
area.
brought about by a three-pronged to take up mango cultivation.
Slndhudurg district — coastal approach — high density planting,
Using the new techniques,
Maharashtra's southernmost re­ blasting for pit-making in rocky Shirodkar has been able to boost
gion just north of Goa — has areas and improving nurturing productivity of the Alphonso from
some 236,000. hectares which techniques.
3.5 to four tonnes per hectare
could be classified as wasteland.
Productivity Is up 2.5 times. to over double on his own planta­
But for shlrodhkar “there is no More significantly, it is now poss­ tions and hopes to touch 15
such thing as wasteland, but ible to grow mangoes on eroded tonnes gradually.
only wasted land."
hillsides that lacked tree cover
That would still be under oneyThls hilly, balmy coastal region and faced topsoil losses of five fifth of the productivity achieved
India Abroad News Service

Contd...

The college students are only too happy even
health and nutrition and consumer literacy.
The other module of the project encompass­ while they anticipate these workshops. Says
es the empowerment. It includes skills and mea­ Prateek Solanki, a student of Kamala Nehru
sures to build up self confidence among women. College. “Even a co-educational school does not
Further, they will also be taught about man­ prepare one for the conditions outside. With such
agement of time, finances, and such other ac­ a drastic change in environment one does need
tivities which will empower them, not only some help. 1 think the idea of the project is very
against the society but also against their own good and it will equip us with all the necessary
family members. An important part of this mod­ to handle any untoward incident.”
__ ___
Adds Sapna Sunny, a student of St Stephen’s
ule
will______________________
be the training given to handle crisis such
as violence, sexual harassment and dowry that College “1 think the same should be launched in
they might have to face. They will also be given co-educational colleges as well and should not
training in weaponless combat to enable them to be confined to girls colleges. Even boys need to
protect themselves instead of cowering in fear or be educated regarding these matter to make
them more sensitive."
waiting for others to come to their rescue.
Some, however, feel that though the project
Under the programme, camps, festivals, and
theatre and film shows will also be organised is a good one it may not succeed in what it aims
to build up their communication skills and bring to achieve with the kind of problems such
them together facilitating them to discuss their schemes generally generate. Red tapism and bu­
reaucratic involvement, that goes with college
problems and issues.
The project is especially meant for those girls authorities as well, apart form other practical
who for the first time venture out in the world problems may create several hurdles in its way.
Whatever the problems in the future, at least
from the protected environments of their home
and school. It is also for those who realise that the idea put forward is a very good one and if
the mon in their neighbourhood whom they al­ implemented properly will yield definite results.
ways thought of as the ‘bhaiya’ next door has
Neha
suddenly turned into a leaching monster.

Kohli

The Pioneer
04 April 2000

12

in countries like Israel, he pointed
out. Israelis are world leaders
when it comes to best use of
land and water. Thai practices
gave this region the idea of
giving growing mangoes more
access to sunlight, by centre­
cutting of the tree.
“We need not go in for the
Israeli way of doing things. But
even if a farmer gets the idea
that water is precious, and he
must use it Judiciously, then that
is enough. It is better that he
picks up the concept and applies
It in his own way," said Shirodkar.
A small group of farmers has
set up a forum that allows them
to share their knowledge and
popularise innovations. They also
keep aside 5 per cent of their
land for experimental purposes
to encourage further Innovation.
Said Shashikant Muchandi, who
built sugar factories and spinning
mills before opting for horticulture:
“Initially my knowledge was nil.
I was called a fool. People came
and said, 'Do not plant mango
here'. But we got help from the
forum, from manuring to market­
ing. We do not expect anything
from the government Government
people come, visit and go. “I
can now see a bandwagon effect
taking root. Two years back it
was difficult to convince others."
said Shirodkar.
Balkrishna Jamadagnl, who runs
the mulde agri-research station.
said things have changed rad­
ically over the past decade. He
said with its average 37 degrees
Celsius temperature and high
rainfall,
south
coastal
Maharashtra is a 'natural green­
house' ideal for growing of many
crops. “You can not expect
more ideal conditions," he added.
Said Shirodkar: “Much of the
cultivable and not-so-cultlvable
wasteland of the Konkan region
could be brought under mango
cultivation using blasting tech­
niques for pit-making and highdensity plantation."

The Observer
04 April 2000

News You Can Use

Learning

16pm, San Cristobal is deserted.
Not a soul is on the streets of this
mountainous, south-eastern sub­
urb of Bogota (Colombia). People lock
themselves up in their houses
*
isos before
the sun sets. The silence is deafening.
t
Perched at an altitude of over 3,000 .
kJ kJ
JLJLkJ
metres is the suburb called La BeUeza
(“Beauty", an ironic
name for an area
which is the haunt of
drug traffickers and
where the violence is
have already named it “Father
endemic). It is here
Christmas* sledge," but this sledge has
that the‘French NGO,
an unbeatable advantage: it will run
CIELO. set up the first
the whole year round.
toy
library
in
In Colombia, the San Cristobal toy
Colombia, in collabo­
library opened on February 13.1998.
ration
with
the
But only a few months later, the
Colombian Foundation
CIELO coordinator. Qaudia Rodriguez,
Apoyar and the back­
was attacked while buying a big stock
ing, amongst others, of
of toys. She could have given up. but
UNESCO’s Co-Action
was determined to carry on. It proved,
Programme.
she says, that “Colombia has to learn
CIELO draws its life
to win the tug of war against violence.”
blood from the deter­
She is not the only one in this advenmination and partici­
• ture however, and the tiny 30 square
pation of a group of lo­
metro pre-fabricated room has been
cal young people from.
transformed into a resistance base
the area. The idea was
against violence.
to create a harmo­
From the very beginning of the
nious space where
Chilean project. CIELO president,
games can be used to
Patrick Bernard and the head of the
Leach children and
toy library in Santiago, Myriam Salas.
adolescents a set of
started a training programme for su­
codes and behaviour
pervisors working in the library.
patterns that will keep
Myriam, who grew up in a poblacion
violence at bay. The
(slum) in Penaloleii, near Santiago.
kids understand that a toy library can shares her professional experience
help preempt delinquency. Colombia's with her Colombian col leagues — she.
homicide rate is by far the highest in like them, knows the rules of survival
Latin America, at 77 deaths per and the language of exclusion.
100,000 people — way ahead of
Children form a large part of San
Brazil, which has 24 deaths per Cristobal's 600.000 strong popula­
100,000.
tion and they have quickly adapted to
Isabel, 15. is from the San Cristobal the pink-and blue library with its toys
irea: “My elder brother died two and games. And even if most of them
/ears ago. He was just 17. The po- come alone, they meet other children.
ice and the army literally carry out
who are also victims of
dimination campaigns against delinviolence. Gradually.
tuent groups in our area. There are
they learn the rules
several groups like that here. The
taught in the estab­
iroblem is when they move in at night,
lishment, especially
hey don't take the time to identify
how to respect other
hem properly and-distinguish those
children and public
vho belong, to a group, from those who
property — when they
ire simply returning home after a parget a game with 20
y. They shoot at random. That’s how
pieces, they promise to
ny brother died.”
return it with the same
The NGO opened its first toy library
number of pieces. The
n 1996 in Chile. Located in Penalolen,
results are encourag­
•ne of the most underprivileged subing 220 children from
irban areas of Santiago; the capital,
the area used the toy
1 was an immediate success. The comlibrary in the first two
nunity's enthusiasm and creativity
months, and the num­
elped surmount all obstacles and
ber keeps growing.
lake the most of the modest $4,000
In September 1998.
tart-up budget.
two social workers
Later this year, a toy bus will start
who received training
from CIELO opened
game tours”. Filled with toys and
;ames, the bus will travel through
two new toy libraries.
hree areas of Santiago. The children
One in Moriteria, in

I PQQAT1 Q
1

with toy libraries

the Caribbean region
of Colombia, and thn
other in Nobsa, north*
east of Bogota. The
first is situated in a
refugee town, which
houses more than 40,000 displaced
people, victims of violence. CIELO
has also established toy libraries in
Bolivia and Ecuador, and funding Is
now being sought to get them going
in the countries of Central America.
These libraries facilitate the psy­
chological rehabilitation of children
traumatised by violence, providing
“treatment" through games. This ac­
tivity, as old as humanity itself, can
open up new horizons and instill
hope. Playing helps children enter in­
to contact with others, to relax and
sometimes share experiences with
other children or adults, to understand
the importance of the rules and follow
them. It also helps them to vanquish
their fears. It is an essential element
in the emergency education packages
developed by UNESCO for refugee chil­
dren or those living in war zones for
example.
As the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda
once wrote: “a child who does not play
is not a child, but the man who does­
n't play has lost for ever the child who
lived in him and who he will miss ter­
ribly."

Source: UNESCO

The Pioneer
05 April 2000

Self-Employed Women's
Association, essentially a labour
union which organizes women
working in the informal sector.
Mr. Clinton was apparently
interested in listening to
By Our Special Correspondent SEWA’s innovative strategies in
helping poor women mobilize
NEW DELHI, APRIL 4. There may or their meagre resources, skills
may not have been any
and labour for productive uses.
immediate dividends from the
Within days of Mr. Clinton's
U.S. President Mr. Bill Clinton’s return to Washington, Ms.
visit to India last month, the
Chatterjee found herself invited
American President was
to share SEWA’s experience
apparently so impressed with
with the participants at the
one of his interlocutors — Ms. third session of the White
Mirai Chatterjee — that he has House Conference on Economy*.
Invited her to the high-powered the first two are devoted to
White House Conference of
American economy.
Economy, beginning today.
Panel for the third session on
Ms. Chatterjee was one of the international economic divide;
seven “young leaders" who
Mr. James Wolfson, President,
were invited to an idea pow­
World Bank; Professor
wow with Mr. Clinton at Cafe
Amaratya Sen, Nobel laureate,
Royale in Mumbai.
and Ms. Chatterjee; chair: Mr.
Ms. Chatterjee works for the William Jefferson Clinton.

Clinton invites
Indian NGO
to conference

The Hindu
05 April 2000

CDL Media Clippings 13

A slice from a disabled’s life
view. The 28-minute film por­
trays real characters with vari­
NEW DELHI, April 5. —
ous disabilities.
Naresh Sharma, an Arjuna
Dr Imam, who has worked
Award winning shooter, is
with the Institute of Human
denied enrolment in the sports
Behaviour and Allied Sciences
category for a job only because
at Shahdara, says “mechanical”
he
walks
on
crutches.
drugs therapies will not work,
Disability does not pain him as
unless the diagnosis has the
much as society’s “reminder”
understanding of traditional
that he is disabled.
socio-cultural values.
Naresh is just one among
The 28-minute film, which
many who have to suffer
will be screened at Max
humiliation because of their
Mueller Bhavan on 11 April,
handicaps, their brilliant
shows real disabled persons
achievements notwithstanding.
facing the society’s scorn, and
For them, they have had
two fictitious characters por­
enough and no longer want
traying the “constant con­
“categorisation and sympathy”
frontation” between the dis­
as it shakes their confidence.
abled and the society.
The Invisible Minority, a
“I have introduced chess, a
docu-fiction by a psychiatrist*
level-playing game, in an
turned director, Dr Parvez
attempt to draw parity
between a normal person and
Imam, is an attempt to put
the disabled”, says Dr Imam.
across the disabled’s point of
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE

profession has become a **rou?
Piyush Mishra, who repre­
tine-affair” over the years.
sents society in his different
appearances, challenges Salil,
Shivani, another real charac­
ter, who worked with a hotel
a wheelchair bound person to
play chess. As Piyush loses
was refused petty jobs a In ­
game after game, he starts tak­
breaking her legs in an act iing Salil seriously.
dent. Determined, she chose ; »
The game continues
paint and won laurels.
throughout the film, and every­
“Tell me how can you cill
time, Piyush is the loser. In the
her disabled. Disability is mor •
last scene of the film, he is
a mental state than physic;J'.
shown throwing chessboard on
asks Dr Imam.
Salil’s face, says Dr Imam.
Suggesting that the gove>*i:
The film, interspersed with
ment should incorporate so *»..
portrayal of some real charac­
traditional forms of diagnosis in
ters,. tries to strike a balance
primary healthcare systems h?
between fact and fiction. Akhil,
says most of the rituals to treju
who was “written off by the
people in remote villages
doctors in his childhood with
explainable.
down-syndrome”, is now doing
He says, “If the government
a job in a Delhi-based compa­
has to reach out to masses, it
ny.
has to absorb some part, of Hit
Dr Imam says Akhil’s
system, which is ingrined in the
father’s recounts the doctors’
minds of th.- people."
apathy showing how medical

The Statesman
06 April 2000
make water too expensive for the poor. The reality could
not be less truthful. Analysis after analysis has shown
n what seems to be a standard pattern at internation­ that the most crucial problem—availability—cannot be
al get togethers these days, nongovernmental organi­ accomplished if there is insufficient investment in
zations, ministers and economists clashed again at water infrastructure. Generally the public sector and
the recent second world water forum at the Hague in the subsidies are used to effect this investment. However, not
Netherlands. Crudely, the debate could be said to be only have governments found it hard to find that much
about how much water should be defined as a commodi­ money, of the $ 30 to 40 billion governments spend on
ty and how much it should be treated as a fundamental water subsidies each year, the lion’s share goes to the
right. Many NGOs argue that since water is a human ne­ well off. It is a common third world sight, visible from
cessity it cannot be subject to the banality of prices and Calcutta to Caracas, to see upper class housedwellers
markets. This seems like an obvious, humane viewpoint. wasting water because it is free while slum dwellers pay
But it could not be more wrong. There is a simple reason for exorbitant private water tankers. The greatest sinner
water cannot be placed in the same category as freedom is farming. Irrigation represents nearly 70 per cent of
or equality. Its supply is severely limited. Unlike political worldwide water usage. Half the water so allotted goes to
rights, it cannot be provided in infinite quantity to every­ waste and wealthy farmers benefit disproportionately.
one without eventually becoming unavailable to anyone. Combining-pricing wjth-subsidies carefully targeted at
Pricing water sensibly helps stimulate investment in its the poor should be a country’s water goal. Implementing
harvesting, storage and distribution. Pricing also helps such a strategy is best left to the private sector. Rich, poor
restrict wastage by consumers. The worth of water is not and the environment all benefit when the water business
automatically understood by most human users. Its is handled by private players. One reason is costs. It is es­
worth, and why they should not abuse its wealth, is rec­ timated the world must invest about $150 billion a year
ognized by most people only when it comes with a price for 25 years to ensure taps do not run further dry. At pre­
tag. To put it philosophically, rights come with responsi­ sent, a billion people live with water shortage. In 25
bility. And the right to water only makes sense if it years the figure will rise to four billion. Time to dub
water as liquid gold and treat it with as much respect .
means understanding its true economic cost.
The Telegraph
NGO activists argued at the Hague that pricing would

WATERING HOLE

I

06 April 2000

14

News You Can Use

Participatory policing launched
in Andhra Pradesh
By K. Srinivas Reddy
Hyderabad, APRIL 5. Maithri, a pro­
gramme aimed at popularising
the. concept of participatory pol­
icing, was launched here by the
Chief Minister, Mr. N. Chandrababu Naidu in Gundlapochampaly village of Rangareddy district,
about 30 km from here, on
Wednesday. "This programmes
would effectively bridge the gap
between the police and the peo­
ple", the Chief Minister asserted.
Similar programmes were tried
out in different districts in the
past under the names of Praja
Durbars, Peace Committees and
Praja Seva Kendras but once the
district SPs got transferred, they
were shelved.
Realising that such
pro­
grammes were being well-re­
ceived by the people, the
Government has introduced the
Maithri programme which would
be extended all over the State in a
phased manner.
Under the programme, a unit
comprising 50 to 100 people
would be formed in each village
or locality. The Station House Of­
ficer (SHO) of the police station
concerned would identify the
members and nominate them to
the Maithri unit

In the unit, different groups are
formed and entrusted with the
job of assisting the police in spe­
cific jobs of maintenance of law
and order, crime prevention, road
safety, women's issues and other
iroblems.

Each Maithri unit would have a
constable or a Head Constable as
a liaison officer and he, in turn,
would report to the SHO.

The Maithri unit is expected to
discuss problems, identify solu­
tions and implement them on
their own. Only in case of difficul­
ties, the unit would approach the
senior officers.

The Chief Minister, who was in
an expansive mood, spent more
than 90 minutes at (he. meeting
eliciting opinions of the unit
members and questioning them
on how they would react to an
emerging situation in the village.
"Tell me what would you do if
you find someone harassing his
wife for dowry?” he questioned a
woman Maithri member. "We
will convene a meeting and con­
vince the man that asking for
dowry is wrong", a shy but firm
answer came amidst loud cheers
from the 1000-odd gathering
which sat through the meeting
braving scorching sun.
"What if he would not listen to
your advise?". The woman mem­
ber said that she would call the
police in that event.

Another member told the Chief
Minister that his group, which
would prevent crimes, was wellversed in martial arts. "If we
would find any thieves, we will
beat them and hand them over to
the police. I broke the leg of a thief
an year ago and handed him over
to the police", the youngster re­

plied to persistent questions of
Mr. Chandrababu Naidu. The for­
thright answers in dealing with
thieves evoked laughter all
around.
A member of the road safety
unit informed the Chief Minister
that there was lot of vehicular
traffic during evenings and on
Sundays in the village, which is
situated near the recently estab­
lished Apparel Export Park.
"We will have to regulate the
traffic and ensure that vehicles
are cleared. This would reduce
the accidents".
The village, which has a 6,000
population, recorded two dozen
road accidents last year.
A cheerful Mr. Chandrababu
Naidu sought to know from the
villagers whether those selected
for the Maithri units were good
people or not. He repeatedly
asked the gathering to tell him if
there were any bad people in the
selected list.
He cautioned the members not
to use their position to settle their
political scores. "The programme
should be run apolitically and all
the members should be fair, so
that the village would stand as a
role model for the State".
In his elaborate speech, Mr.
Chandrababu Naidu recounted
the programmes initiated by his
Government for an all-round de­
velopment But there were some
people who were bent on creating
trouble and they killed the Panchayat Rtj Minister, A. Madhava
Reddy.

"They are the most confuseci
persons without any ideology
They land themselves in prob
lems and create problems for oth
ers", he remarked obliquei’.
referring to (he naxalitvs.

The problem in Rayalasecm.i
area was entirely different. People
would kill each other for petty
reasons and one would wonde»
whether people in that area weir
living like human beings. Similar
ly. there were politicians who use
(he communal passions for their
survival.
A time has come to put an end
to all these, he added. Mr. Chan
drababu Naidu (old (he villagers
that the Government would train
all die youth so that they could
gel employment in (he Apparel
Export Park. Villagers whose
lands were acquired for (he Park
would be given compensation
immediately.

Unprecedented security ar­
rangements were made for the
Chief Minister's programme. The
sides of the road were ploughed
by (he police in a bid to locate any
landmines planted and Mr. Naidu
flew to the village, hardly 30 km
from Hyderabad, in a helicopter
The Home Minister, Mr. f l)<
vendar Goud, the Roads anti
Buildings Minister, Mr. K. Vijay,i
rama Rao, the DGP, Mr. H. I. Ho­
ra, the district collector Ms. Ram
Kumudini and the SP. Mr. N. \
Surendra Babu spoke on the c
casion.

The Hindu
06 April 2000

now.
pulp and juice sold on the roadAddressing a Press conference sjde, which has been identified as
here on the eve of the World (he main carriers for typhoid and
Health Day, Mr Bhatt said that the jaundice. The Minister said that
theme adopted for this year's (he people should prepare mango
health campaign would be 'Safe juice and pulp only at home and
blood, Safe life'. The health theme consume them while still fresh.
earlier was 'Safe Motherhood', the it may be mentioned here that in
Rathin Das
control activity.
Minister added.
Gujarat, fresh mangoes are made
Ahmedabad, April 6
Moreover, private blood dona- As Gujarat is prone to water- jnt0 pu|p and stored with sugar
tion camps run in unhygienic con- borne diseases like gastro-enteri- added, thus exposing it to cont am­
IN AN attempt to control the ditions
would
be
stopped, t’s, typhoid and jaundice, especial- Nation within a few days.
spread of AIDS through blood Gujarat's Health Minister Ashok ly . in the summer months, the Prevalence of water-borne disdonations, the Gujarat govern- Bhatt announced here today.
Minister said that preventive mea- eases in Gujarat can be directly
ment has decided to supply HIV Accepting blood from profes- sures would be taken this year.
related to water scarcity.
test kits free to the various volun- sional donors has already been
The Hindustan Times
tary agencies engaged in AIDS banned in the State for some time ,

Free HIV test kits to
voluntary agencies

07 April 2000
CDL Media Clippings 15

Cultivating profits on barren lands
By B S Satish Kumar
PH News Service
BANGALORE. April 7

They are not show masters and
are dressed in a very simple way.
But they are the ones who are
silently making serious efforts to
icvolutionise the concept of
farming in the Indian context.
Yes, these 10 odd lesser-known
farmers from Karnataka, Tamil
Nadu and Andhra Pradesh - who
met at a farm near here recently
to share their innovations under a
joint farm development project
taken up by the Governments of
India and the Netherlands and im­
plemented by voluntary organi­
sation, Agriculture Man Ecology have not only disproved the
common notion that farming is
non- profitable in the cyber-age,
but turned barren & dry lands
highly fertile, surprising even
agricultural scientists.
A team of development jour­
nalists from foreign countries,
which camped with them for two
days, was appreciative of their in­
novative ways which are simple,
but effective.
These farmers have reaped
rich harvests from the barren
lands braving the adverse condi­
tions
through
sustainable
methods like organic farming and
By saying good-bye to chemical
fertilisers. They believe in the
concept that it is possible to get
good yield continuously when

Bellary district has left the lu­
crative job of a bank manager to
practice agriculture. He proudly
says that he. is making a profit of
about Rs 1.65 lakh a year from
two-acre banana garden itself.
while his total income from other
crops
touches
Rs
6
lakh
Interestingly, he planted tissue
culture bananas about four years
ago and has since then been
getting rotational yield every
year.
In yet another case, a young
farmer
Madhusudhan
from
Chikkanayakanahalli taluk of
Tumkur district has set an ex­
ample in the efficient utilisation
of space. He is growing four dif­
One of the groups of progressive farmers sharing their experi­
ferent varieties of crops in rheences at a farm in Doddaballpur. DH photo
same field. Originally a coconut
there is harmony between the trees. 25 butter fruit trees, 100
farm, he has now grown arecan-ui
nature and man and hence coffee saplings, and about 80
trees. While he has helped pepper
practice minimum cultivation.
pepper creepers on them. Besides
climb these trees, he has also
Progressive farmer Narayana there are hundreds of teak and
grown coffee in the space below
Reddy, in whose farm they met, silver oak trees which are being This has helped him increase his
outsmarts even farm scientists managed
through
organic
income four-fold.
when it comes to innovative farm
farming. In fact, Mr Reddy
Mr Ganapathy, a small farmet
practices. The 65-year-old Reddy,
himself is one of the pioneers of from Pudukote district of Tamii
whose state-record of growing organic fanning in India.
Nadu, is practicing integrated
highest quantity of ragi per acre
Speaking to Deccan Herald, Mr
farming in a half-acre stretch ol
in 1973 is yet to be broken, points Reddy noted that he had ploughed
the farm. He has taken up fish
to a quarter-acre stretch in his his land after a long gap of five
rearing in the paddy field in a me
farm at Doddaballapur and confi­ years and that he would not be
thodical way. While his 50 duck>
dently says that he would earn an plouging it for the next five years.
eat the paddy weeds and insects
annual income of about Rs 2 lakh At a time when farmers complain
his small variety of fishes eat thfrom it in a couple of years from
that farming is non-viable, Mr excreta of ducks and some weeds
now.
Reddy challenges that he can
The big fish eat the small ones
This stretch comprises two make profit even from barren
What is atonishing is the svs
15X400 feet strips which run land in Gulbarga district.
tematic way in which he main
through the farm. He has grown
Another farmer Yettinamani of tains the food chain to ensure that
30 coconut trees. 25 arecanut Hagaribommanahalli taluk of ducks did not eat the fish.

Deccan Herald
08 April 2000
village panchayat and the Jagrut
•Gujarat governor the
Nagrik Samiti. Based on preliminary
the court had issued
extends curb on NG0 observations,
prohibitory orders and ordered that

The Times of India News Service

VADODARA: Oasis, a non-govemnient organisation (NGO) based
in Sherkhi village, which had been
asked to stop all its activities for one
year on the ten-acre plot near the
village following objections raised
by the villagers against the alleged
“socially unacceptable activities”,
has got a further extension of six
months from the governor
A ease was filed against Oasis by

all activities on the ten-acre plot
should be stopped. Following this a
writ petition was filed against the
prohibitory orders in the Gujarat
high court which in turn referred the
matter to the state governor
After hearing both sides, some
strong evidence was found that the
activities of the members of Oasis
were socially unacceptable. The
governor, therefore, in his order in­
creased the duration of the pro­
hibitory order for six more months.

The Times of India
09 April 2000
16

News You Can Use

Maneka cracks down
on defaulting NGOs
By Nirmala George

New Delhi, April 7: The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has blacklisted defa­
ulting non-governmental orga­
nisations (NGOs) and initiated
action against those which
have misused government fun­
ds. So far 17 NGOs have been
blacklisted, funding to them
stopped and other related Min­
istries have been alerted
against any funding to these
organisations, said Minister
for Social Justice and Empow­
erment, Maneka Gandhi
Further, the Ministry would
also file FIRs to prosecute
NGOs which may have misap­
propriated funds in the past in
order to recover the funds,
Gandhi told the Conference of
Editors on social sector issues.
In the last two years, fund­
ing for NGOs from the Minis­
try has come under close
scrutiny, and any organisation
where even the slightest doubt
exists about the misuse of fun­
ds, invites immediate stoppage

of funds and further investigation into its functioning.
One of the reasons, the Mini­
ster said why NGOs were able
to get away with misappropria­
tion of funds was because the
rules governing NGO funding
were very complicated.
In* the process, she added
many genuine welfare organis-

The Ministry would
file FIRs to
prosecute NGOs
which have
' misappropriated
funds
ations daunted by the labori­
ous paperwork preferred not
to apply for government fund­
ing. Only those intent on mak­
ing money persisted with the
labrynthine bureaucratic red
tape.
The Ministry has now got its
act together and has simplified
the system of availing govem-

ment funds, Gandhi said. A
book containing information
on resources available for diff­
erent categories of welfare organisations and the documents
required has been brought by
the Ministry.
“Earlier the rules were ’so
complex that those who had
the information and knew the
rules formed a nexus with
those applying for funds’', said
the Minister. In fact, some of
the bureaucrats had applied
for funds in the names of their
wives land other close relati-

vvA/nesaid.

... . - >

* 1 Starting next year, the Minis­
try will send out evaluators to
cBeck the functioning of volun­
tary organisations.
Besides, organisations inter­
ested in applying for governm­
ent funding can now approach
the Ministry directly.
While monitoring and accou­
ntability of voluntary organisa­
tions was being tightened, effo­
rts are also being taken to ens­
ure proper utilisation of funds,
the Minister said. ■

The Indian Express
08 April 2000

mortality in the country is malnu­
trition. According to it, approxi­
mately 35 per cent of poor rural
a cause for serious and urgent households are headed by women.
concern; The major negative
In order to provide food to all
. trends of an urban elitist bias In the members of the family in an
_ medical education and in admin- economic crisis, women often
' istration continue and there adopt a host of different strateg­
seems to be no apparent remedy ies. They go out looking for extra
Qbcarvar Political Bureau
women's to the training and value-orieipta- work and sometimes take on the
resisted
by
tion of doctors.
most menial jobs available in
organisations," points out the
NEW DELHI
The volume expresses concern order to earn a little extrd for
document.
over the expenditure patterns on the basic needs of the family.
A vital document prepared by six
The document was prepared healthcare which are grossly
national organisations of women
It says that the structural
has stated that the family plan­ by the All India Democratic skewed in favour of urban areas. adjustment policies (SAP), intro­
Women
’
s
Association,
India
“
Today,
over
25
per
cent
of
ning strategies in India have
duced in 1991, have worsened
tended to be paternalistic, pre­ Women's Conference,. Centre for the primary health centres are food security, particularly for the
Women’s Development Studies, completely non-functional,’’ the poorest households. These polic­
scriptive and coercive.
/'The family planning pro­ Joint Women’s Programme, Na­ document states. Not only this, ies also led to a sharp decline
Federation of Indian out of 2.5 million cases of TB in the offtake of foodgrain from
grammes not only victimise tional
women, but they do not effectively Women, besides Young Women’s reported annually, five lakh people the PDS despite the fact that
die due to the lack of treatment, the food subsidy bill in India
work. Not only this, the population Christian Association of India.
The document laments that it states.
control programmes have includ­
was not very high as compared
The report states that a major to expenditures in other develop­
ed
introduction
of
harmful the demographic and health pic­
contraceptives which have been ture of the-country still constituted detriment of the morbidity and ing countries like Sri Lanka. Cl

The Observer
10 April 2000

‘Family planning
policies hurt women

CDL Media Clippings 17

Empowered to be proactive
HE men of Bejra village of
Bolepur block were really taken
aback when Tunu and Pratima,
io housewives of the village, repaired
>e handpump that had been lying
vken and unused some time in a
fy. They’re the tubewell caretakers of
ie village. There are hundreds of such
omen mechanics of tubeells and handpumps work- gj
g in a number of villages of ?
iidnapore and 'Birbhum.
’omen in fact are playing a H
.ore important role than £

take the responsibility of maintenance,! cate different types of work in connecP collection of water tariff and creating a' tion to the water project to women”,
fund for upkeep and repairs, and nego- says he.
tiating with the municipality, pan- Councillor Shyamali Ghosh of Ward
11, who took the initiative to form the
chayat and so on.
Tagore Society trained 40 women in women’s committee in the Bolepur
October last year. “We thought it municipality, and Parul Mondal of
wouldn’t be easy for women to do the Ward 10 say “women of the slums are
repair work but they’ve learnt nicely so enthusiastic that we feel sure they
j and are now doing the job quite well”, will run the project smoothly.”
says Asoke Mukheijee, a spokesman of While the project in Bolepur is in
Tagore Society. He says PHED in col-. progress, that in Midnapore is almost
; laboration with KFW will install 976 complete. Unicef and Ramkrishna
tubewells in 114 moujas (out of 170 Mission’s Lok Shiksha Parishad are
moujas) of the Bolepur Block Users’ jointly involved with the* project here.
ten in the drinking water
'■g groups are being formed in nine gram Chandan Sengupta, the Unicef project
ipply project in this area.
panchayat areas, and 485 tubewells officer of water and sanitation, says
It’s only women who really ;
have been installed already. A fund is they have already installed 8000
nderstand the importance also being created from contributions handpumps and tubewells in 54 blocks
* water. Because walking *
of one or two rupees fijom each family. of Midnapore, and involved 16,000
•r miles in the scorching
The women are responsible for main­ women caretakers. Unicef has been
eat and standing for hours
taining the environment around the working from 1991. According to him
i queue to collect water are |
tubewell sites as well,' The water pro­ another 7000 tubewells will be
le daily chores of women in |
ject is connected with a health and installed in the current year. So
idian villages. Yet they
sanitation programme. Mukheijee another 14000 women will take
ave never been involved in 54
informs they’ve been able to involve 59 charge. Sengupta says this is a self­
ny water project. Nor are
sustained decentralised scheme that
per cent of the women’,
ley taken into considers-®
gives a sense of ownership tcs the
This
enthusiasm
is
visible
in
the
oh when tubewells with
urban locality ofBolepur also. Pipeline women, and by converting them into
leir heavy pressure handles
for water supply will be installed in 75 mechanics from mere users, it raises
re installed.
J slums of the Bolepur municipality. their status in the family as well as
Possibly this is the first jit
H Women Interlink Foundation (WIF) society.
me women have been
" selected standpost sites for 223
Aloka Mitra of WIF also feels that
irectly involved in any
pipelines after.consultation with users’ women have been empowered to be
rater project. An Indogroups, and especially with the proactive, which is the most notable
lerman project, it is being financed by
women. Ruma Singh and Saraswati contribution of this project. Hopefully.
ZFW, a German bank, and carried out
Sardar are the secretaries of the this project is just the beginning of
y the Public Health Engineering
women’s committee formed by the many such projects in our country. ■
lepartment of West Bengal. GKW is
Bolepur municipality with the local
he consulting agent. It is practically a
MALA DUTTA ROY
councillor as the head. Saraswati is a
ommunity project where the users
The Statesman
widow with two little children, and
on tribute a certain amount of money
09 April 2000
Ruma is a young girl Both feel that
er month to meet the cost of operation
men can’t really comprehend the probnd maintenance. This is a new
lem of water. And hence' the two
pproach. The other important tiling is
women are eager to do all types ofjobs
he involving of women right from the
to get water near their homes. They
danning stage. There are two aspects
also don’t mind paying for it. In fact
o the project — water supply through
lipelines and deep tubewells or handmost of these poor women are ready to
mmps, and involving the community
contribute whatever amount they can
hrough NGOs. One standpost or tube­
afford to get water within their reach.
veil is installed for 30 families or about
The chairman of the Bolepur munici­
pality, Shyamsunder Konar, holds
.50 people. A water or user committee
s formed comprising five to eight
that women possess more sense of
nembers from these 30 families, and
responsibility than men. “This we have
>ne-third of the members are women.
seen from our earlier experiences.
They even return the money taken as
fwo women from each committee are
loan in time,'which is not too common
aretakers of that particular tubewell
among the men. So we decided to allo>r standpost. This committee has to

r

18

News You Can Use

Orissa project brings hope for poverty-stricken tribals
By Rajaram Satapathy
The Times of India News Service

KEONJHAR: Even before the sun
lights up the cluster of dilapidated
huts, 22-year-old Sarojini sets out
for a grim battle—just to survive. A
tattered dhoti draped over her frail
frame, she rushes to the stream
down the hill to take a bath and
wash her dhoti before the village
wakes up. She stands behind thick
bushes, waiting for her only article
of clothing to dry so that she can
wear it and return home.
Back in her hut, she prepares a
frugal meal of millet for her chil­
dren and then leaves for the forest
to collect something for the next
meal. For Sarojini and thousands of
other Juang tribals of Baragada in
the thick forests of Bansapal block
of this district, this is the daily rou­
tine that keeps them alive. But
death due to starvation, malnutri­
tion and disease isn't far away for
Juang tribals and their population is
dwindling. Spread over nearly 190

villages
of
Keonjhar
and
Dhenkanal districts, the last two
census showed the Juang popula­
tion had declined from 19,751 to
less than 18,000.

Alarmed at this trend, the Centre
has launched a threc-year project
to alleviate the economic condi­
tions of the tribe with the help of
voluntary organisations like the
Centre for Social Development
(CSD), a sister organisation of the
Kalinga Institute of Industrial Tech­
nology (KllT).Thc project was for­
mally launched last week.But given
the popular perception about the
functioning of voluntary organisa­
tions. will the Centre's approach
yield any dividend? Director of
tribal affairs in the ministry of so­
cial justice and empowerment, P.K.
Mohanty, and his counterpart in the
science and technology depart­
ment, CJ. Jhony, however, appear
quite confident. “The present step
has been taken after a careful as­
sessment of the entire scenario and

the ability of the implementing
agency. We are sure it would yield a
fruitful result," they observed citing
the irrigation project being taken
up at Guptaganga village.
Those who doubt such ventures
cannot really be blamed. In 1974,
the Centre had set up the Juang
Development Agency (J DA) to im­
prove their standard of living. The
J DA was entrusted with the 50
most backward villages so that de­
velopment could be achieved in a
planned manner. About Rs 150
crore has been allotted for this de­
velopment in the last two decades,
including about Rs 40 crore by the
J DA alone.The plight of the vil­
lagers, however, tells a different sto­
ry. “The money has only helped of­
ficials, contractors and middlemen
to enrich themselves. The Juangs
continue to be mere exhibits for
politicians and subjects of research
for scholars," says Malay Mohapatra, a social worker.
On an average, 525 of 1,000 Juang

children die before they turn five.
This is one of the highest ever casu
alty figure calculated for any com •
munity in India.The infant mortality
rate (IMR) and death of pregnant
Juang women are equally stagger­
ing, largely due to hunger, malnutn
tion, malaria and other diseases. * 1
lost my 12-year-old daughter Nisi
because I had no money to take her
to the hospital," says Kusa Juang of
Guptaganga village.The words were
echoed by Natukala, the village “dv
huri” (priest), whose 21-year-old son
Bharat died recently.
Almost all Juangs arc landless
and resort to shifting cultivation l<>
grow rice in the foothills that barely
sustain them for two months. While
seasonal fruits like mango and jack fruit help them live for another two
months, the rest of the year they
roam in the jungles, eating wild
roots and leaves. Now that the for
est cover loo is getting depleted.
many Juangs are migrating to ur
ban areas in search of livelihood.

The Times of India
10 April 2000

Ministry to launch
bio-diversity action plan
By Our Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI, April io. The Union Minis­

try of Environment & Forests (MoEF)
is all set to launch a detailed Biodi­
versity Strategy and Action Plan
(BSAP) here tomorrow.
The Union Minister for Environ­
ment & Forests, Mr.T.R.Baalu, is ex­
pected to announce the plan, which
had been made possible following
funding from the Global Environment
Facility (GEF).
The BSAP project envisages assess­
ment and stock taking of bio-diversity
information at State level including
distribution of endemic and endan­
gered species and site-specific threats
and pressures.
A national policy and macrolevel
action strategy on bio-diversity was
earlier prepared by the ministry tak­
ing into account all policies, gaps and
further action needed for conserva­

tion and sustainable use of biological
diversity. However, a need was felt to
prepare a detailed microlevel action
plans at State and regional ievels, ac­
cording to an official spokesman.
Keeping the existing policy as a
base document, the new project em­
phasises on de-centralised State-level
planning besides intensive use of in­
ter-disciplinary working groups to in­
volve all sectors working for
conservation. Once the microlevel ac­
tion plans are executed successfully,
the ministry plans to integrate them
all into a consolidated national action
plan.
The BSAP will be initially launched
for a period of two years at a total cost
of 9,68,200 $ , which will be incurred
by the GEF.
The MoEF is the executing agency
for the project and wants them to be
implemented not only by utilisation
of available infrastructure and funds

but also with augmentation and fur­
ther inputs from domestic and exter­
nal resources.
For implementation of the BSAP
project, a consortium arrangement
between Biotech Consortium India
Ltd and Kalpavriksh, an NGO, has
been worked out.

To oversee the implementation of
the project, a steering committee has
been constituted under the chairman­
ship of Special Secretary, Mr.Vinod
Vaish, in the MoEF.

The Joint Secretary (Environment),
Mr.R.H.Khwaja, is the Member Secre­
tary. The committee also consists of
representatives from Ministeries of
Agriculture, Science & Technology,
Social Justice & Empowerment, De­
partment of Economic Affairs, Plan­
ning Commission and the UNDP. The
committee also has five expert mem­
bers.

The Hindu
11 April 2000
CDL Media Clippings 19

Against the Tide
Do Not Foreclose Big Dam Options

emerged from past experience.
Dams have serious environmental
impacts which need to be systemat­
ically evaluated. However, these
impacts are neither uniform nor
equal. Hence, a single strategy is
not desirable.

. In essence, a flexible and open
approach has to be adopted in as*
rT,HE World Water Forum held discussion paper entitled A place well as their diversity. Other im- sessing future projects, and m a
[ *
HanUe last month at- for dams in the 21st century? This pacts often noticed include land- country like India the human di­
tractcd participants from all over publication was brought out obvi- slides, seismic activities, changes in mensions of this challenge need sc*
the world including government ously in response to a need for an groundwater level, changes in flow rious and sensitive handling. A
—»—
u:—--------—-------*1*—■*— view and impact on downstream hydrol­ clear policy should*be adopted
officials, international bureaucrats,
objective
and1 comprehensive
water resource specialists, NGOs of large dams in general, and iden- ogy in a river. Perhaps, in a highly both by the Centre and the states in
. and corporate executives. The tifymg their benefits and costs.
populated country like India the assessing environmental risks asso­
Indian presence was very visible on
Unfortunately, much of the de- most serious and certainly the most ciated with dams as well as in the
the occasion — and noticeably vo- bate on large dams has become po- visible negative effect of dams lies resettlement and rehabilitation ol
those who are displaced as a result.
Cal — with activists like Medha larised and generalised. Yet, by in the displacement of people.
Patkar and her recently acquired (heir very nature the impacts of
All of this may suggest that we But despite the seriousness of
compatriot, Arundhati Roy. It is Jams are very location specific, and are at the end of the big dam era. problems that have already oc­
reported that much heated debate nee(j (0 be analysed comprehen- Yet, it may be a mistake to fore­ curred with several dams, it would
took place between a minister sively, which is often a very com- close the option of constructing big be shortsighted to
from Gujarat on the one hand and p|ex exercise. Topically, those re- dams
_______
____
________________
for_all
time
to come. Even if adopt a policy that
Medha Patkar and Arundhati Roy sponsible for the construction of one excludes the potential of gen- places a complete ban
on the other.
dams take a narrow and limited erating power from hydro projects, on the construction of
Annasaheb Hazare, who has view of the quantitative benefits in several cases the irrigation bene­ new large dam.
done remarkable work in water achieved in harnessing large vol­ fits themselves could make a com­
The Times of India
harvesting in the village of Rale- umes of water for distribution in ar­ pelling case for dams as possible so­
10 April 2000
gaon Siddhi situated in Maharash­ eas that are deficient and generat­ lutions. If demand for food is to
tra was clearly ill at ease with this ing electricity often at costs that ap­ double by the year 2030, water will
discord between India’s official­ pear financially attractive. Oppo­ have to be used far more efficiently
dom and NGO activists, and he nents are not prepared to accept for agriculture, but this may not
gently suggested that these domes­ that large dams have any benefits eliminate the need for larger areas
tic issues need not be brought to an at all. Undoubtedly, these hardened under irrigation.
international forum. The Forum it- positions have come about as a re­
self was not confined to discussion suit of neglect of a wide range of Humane Dimension
on big dams versus small and solu- impacts apparent in several proHowever, the Food and Agricul­
tions involving river waters, but fo- jects in the past, heightened greatly ture Organisation (FAO) predicts
cused on the looming problem of by impoverishment and loss of that the growth rate of irrigated
water scarcity in several parts of welfare of those displaced.
land in developing countries would
OH News Service
the world, the deprivation of hun­
slow down from the peak of an an­
dreds of millions of people lacking Negative Impact
nual increase of 2.2 per cent in the
NEW DELHI. April 11
access to clean drinking water; the
The Central Board of Secondar
Interestingly, there are several 1970s to 0.8 per cent in the future.
coverage included policy as well as
Education (CBSE), along with th
NG
Os in the developed countries But larger irrigation can also lead
technical issues related to water
to unfavourable impacts on agricul­
United Nations Population Fun
supply and consumption. To that who oppose large dams in the de­ ture. Salinisation and water logging
(UNFPA),
has released a manu;
veloping
world,
even
though
the
' extent a discussion by the Indian
are common problems which have
on training of teachers in adole
participants on the Narmada pro­ earliest examples of large dams are negative impacts not only on agri­
cence education.
ject in an international forum of found predominantly in the devel­
culture but on soil quality in gener­
Titled
“Population
an
this nature, to the exclusion of larg­ oped countries. In the case of India,
al.
In
future,
therefore,
the
impact
Adolescence
Education
er issues of water management, re­ it should be accepted that only
about 12 per cent of the country’s of specific projects on natural re­
Training Package," the manu:
vealed a limited view.
hydropower potential has been sources such as soil, biodiversity
has been designed as part of th
and
forests
would
have
to
be
con
­
exploited, as against 52.3 per
21st Century Dams
ongoing population and dove
sidered
explicitly.
For
too
long
the
cent in Canada, 86.8 per cent in
opment
education project sui
However, attention on large Switzerland, 56.3 per cent in economics of dams has been con­
ported by UNFPA.
dams has increased throughout the Norway, 56.1 per cent in the US fined only to a very narrow assess­
The manual was released ye
ment of project accounting and an
world in recent years, and it was and 68 per cent in Japan.
terday by Dr Michael Vlassoi
against this background that the
There are several negative im­ optimistic assessment of benefits.
UNFPA Representative for Indi
World Bank and the IUCN estab­ pacts of dams which require rigor­
The WWF document comes out
at a function attended by CBS
lished the International Commis­
ous assessment. According to thei with a set of conclusions and recsion on Large Dams (ICOLD) in
Chairman, Mr B P Khan Delw;
WWF international, India lost ani ommendations which are not revoFebruary 1998. The Commission estimated 4,79,000 hectares of for- lutionary in nature, but reinforce
and Consultant with CBSE Prof
was required to carry out a two- est land to various river valley pro- the common sense that has been
S Muley. Although adolescent
year review of (he effectiveness of
education has been introduced i
jects between 1950 and 1975. Dams developed by those concerned with
large dams and develop standards
schools, current courses o
can also lead to changes in chemi- development strategies, which are
and guidelines for advising nations
teachers' education do not offt
cal water quality, sedimentation, consistent with environmental pro­
on future dam-building decisions
them tips on how to handle que
erosion and unfavourable effects tection. In essence, the approach to
and an assessment of alternatives. on fish production, because they be followed in future dam-building
tions related to adolescent healt
Meanwhile, in March 1999 WWF
and sexuality.
block migration of fish resulting in activity in India would have to deal
International published a useful overall loss of quantities of fish as with a number of issues that have
Contd.

ByRKPACHAURI

CBSE manual
to train teachers
released

20

News You Can Use

Andhra villagers get treatment
through telemedicine
By R. Bhagwan Singh
Aragonda (Andhra Pradesh),
April 12: The Apollo Hospitals
Group has linked this bullock-eartage village in Andhra Pradesh to
its medical specialists across the
country by using “telemedicine.”
This method is the transfer of
medical information and data relat­
ed to diagnosis and treatment of
ailments using electronic commu­
nication networks.
The Union information technolo­
gy minister Pramod Mahajan will
formally inaugurate the hi-tech
facility at the new 50-bed Apollo
Hospital here, built at a cost of Rs
5 crores, to cater to the healthcare
needs of the 4.000 villagers at
Aragonda and another 50,000 in
the surrounding villages.
The hospital has been function­
ing for over a month now and has

already saved a few lives, accord­
ing to Dr Pratap C. Reddy, chair­
man of the Apollo Hospitals Group
which is now Asia’s largest and
world’s seventh largest healthcare
provider.
Dr Reddy chose this remote
Andhra village In Chitoor district,
about 180 km northwest of Chen­
nai, to launch the ambitious hi-tech
healthcare programme as it is his
native village. He used to trek to
school behind a bullock-cart which
carried the books for him and his
cousins. Dr Reddy recalled at a
press conference at the hospital,
while taking pride that he was now
bringing a Union minister by heli­
copter to launch telemedicine “for
the first time in thjs part of the
world.”
Since the majority of Indian pop­
ulation lives in the villages,
telemedicine would be a great

boon in bringing IT to help provid­
ing healthcare in the remotest of
places. Apollo’s project in its sec­
ond phase would connect 125 pri­
mary, 25 secondary and three ter­
tiary centres in the states of Maha­
rashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh,
Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
Phase-UI will connect 2,500 pri­
mary centres, 500 secondary and
100 tertiary centres all over the

EHEEffiEH
country, and attempt to extend the
services to the developing world.
“It will also extend the services
beyond national boundaries to con­
nect international centres of med­
ical excellence with local medical
institutions via telemedicine link,”
Dr Reddy said, adding: “Within
the next 100 days, Apollo will con­
nect all over India and even

abroad.” In telemedicine, the
patient’s records with clinical
information and diagnostic images
are converted into electronic digi­
tal data and sent through telcphone/ISDN/VSAT lines to a med
ical expert located in the tertiary
hospital. This electronic digital
data is converted into its original
medical format for the expert to
analyse and diagnose. The expert
opinion is sent back to the referring
physician/hospital again. All this
happens in a few minutes and at
very little cost.
While the Isro provided the satel­
lite facility. Citadel and GE Wipro
have^xtended support to the ambi­
tious project, the cost of which is
yet to be fully assessed. The invest­
ment in telemedicine could be very
less if the promised pipeline of
gigabytes is established across the
country.
Said Dr Reddy: “Telemedicine
could be more dramatic in an
emergency situation where a
patient in a linked village hospital
is easily managed during the cru­
cial first hour in a multi-trauma sit­
uation.” Two poison cases were
saved during the last couple ol
weeks thanks to linking to the Poi­
son Centre at Chennai Apollo.
To illustrate the enfeitj role thai
the IT facility could play in
medicare. Dr Reddy -presented a
live demonstration in which fiveyear-old Tejesh, bom with multi­
ple heart defects, was scanned by a
team of doctors at Aragonda and
the images were simultaneously
transmitted to a paediatric cardiol­
ogist at Chennai Apollo who after
examining the data, advised an
early surgery. “This boy will soon
be operated at our Chennai hospital
free of cost,” Dr Reddy said.

at removing illiteracy in the re­
mote rural areas of Madhya The Telegraph
Pradesh to get rid of the infamous 12 April 2000
BIMARU
(Bihar,
Madhya
Pradesh, Rqjashtan and Uttar
Pradesh) status, known for illiteracy, poor health services, gender
1 discrimination and alarming rate
ofpopulation growth.
Congress president Sonia
FROM RASHEED KIDWAI
Gandhi was present on the occa­
sion. Suitably impressed with
New Delhi, April 11: In Diggy Digvijay, Sonia urged the Centre
Raja’s Madhya Pradesh, netizens to earmark six per cent of the
can fund a school in Bastar, Guna, Gross Domestic Product for eduBetul or Bilaspur with a paltry cation to remove illiteracy in the
$ 400 a year with a click of the country. “No children can have a
mouse a year and monitor its per- better life without education. By
formance from the US, Europe, not making all children accessible
Australia or South Africa.
to education we are denying them
Netizens, concerned with edu- their basic rights,” Sonia said.
cation in India, can now log in to
According to Digvijay, the
The Asian Age
www.Fundaschool.org. The gov- credit ofFundaschool should go to
Contd...
13 April 2000
eminent scheme is for sponsoring two of his key officers, GopalakrFeedback from the classroom
26,000 Education Guarantee ishna and Amita Sharma.
has shown that topics related to
Scheme (EGS) schools. Every cent Gopalakrishna is the secretary to
sex education were perhaps the
invested would be accounted for the chief minister while Amita is
most uncomfortable part of the
and available on the Net along the project director of the Rajiv
with information about the Gandhi Primary School Mission,
syllabus and teachers were often
school, students, and annual per- which has designed the EGS.
reported to be rushing through
formance. In addition, the sponThe EGS system operates like
these topics.
sor will be the state guest, each this. Primary schools, have local
It was therefore decided that a
time he or she decides to visit the teachers who are accountable to
special training package would be
school
the community; the schools are lodesigned for teachers, who would
Itching to catch up with his cated close to each habitation and
then teach students. In the first
Andhra Pradesh counterpart have been set up on the basis of
phase, CBSE will train 1,200 tecChandrababu Naidu on informa- the demand of the community and
ahers of
Bihar, UP, MP.
tion technology, Digvijay Singh the curriculum has been designed
Rajasthan and Haryana.
today launched the website aimed to be creative and interactive.

Fund schools
in MP with a
mouse-cncK

CDL Media Clippings 21

Lessons in leadership from
Clinton’s visit
courtesy on both

sides.

Even

the

az e l
conc*uct °fthe Prifne Minister of India
N K Singh has revealed a great deal of grace

and maturity. These are the ingredients
WO thousand year back, Hkeb.GhinajM Singapore and Burma^ which make a leader. Although many
Chanakya had mentioned that India represents the largest democracy-, a scribe may be happy^to Imagine
that Clinton gave hell to Pakistan, the
the best leader is one who functioning in the world.
fact Is that even In his visit to
wins a war without fighting a
battle. Clinton precisely did Empathy for Poor and Downtrodden
Pakistan he never behaved discour­
that as he won the hearts of the The intelligent design of the visit, teously with the powers of that country.
people in India without giving much including visit to some of the villages Whatever he had to say It was
immediately on the political and econ­ in Rajasthan and Clinton's whole­ tampered with balance and equanimity.
omic fronts, as many critics had hearted participation in the function
He displayed a great sense of wit
pointed out. Yet, the visit has not only of a women's organisation had a
and
humility in accepting the trans­
been acclaimed all over the world but major impact in transmitting a message
also amongst the masses in India. He of a leader's care for the have-nots. formation which IT revolution has
brought in its wake by narrating in
could have easily won an election for Those who have watched or seen the
the highest political job — such was person of Clinton and his questions his speech at Hyderabad his own
the spell of his personality and the to the women in that organisation in Impressions of terms used, such as
chips for potato chips and discs for
way the visit was conducted!
a village are sure to notice genuine music records. It is a pity that despite
warmth
and
appreciation
of
a
caring
It would be interesting to examine
this some writers in newspapers exag­
the emotional and psychological impact leader and appreciation of self-reliance gerated their own personal experiences
on the people of India and hone amongst rural women in human devel­ of not being able to visit some floors
some lessons in leadership rather opment of a developing country. And of a hotel in most derogatory words
than debating on the most debatable he talked about it not only in India when much more discourtesy and
issues relating to membership of but also after he went back. Despite problems arise out of security of
Security Council, WTO matters, lifting tight security, he could dance .with Indian leaders.
of sanctions and solution of the the village folks and received a shower
Kashmir problem.
of flowers without Black Cats or Mats Appeal
visible signs of any control or security In his speeches and address to the
Adaptation to Change
in the village. Consider the remark of people, Clinton exhibited great charm
The foremost quality of a leader is to Clinton to the village woman: “You and mass appeal without throwing his
understand the strategic awareness
could be elected anywhere in the weight about as world's super power.
and cope to the myriad changes world." It not only indicates his wit The magnetism of a leader depends
taking place in the environment. Clinton
and wisdom but his appreciation of. on how he relates himself to the
has shown great perspicacity and
the confidence in the ability of village people. He went out of his way to
vision In noticing the changing global*
folks and their grace with which they meet and shake hands with the staff
scenario, especially in the East, where dealt with him.
of the hotels where he stayed in
India represents the largest skilled
contrast to our leaders' obsession
and scientifically trained manpower.
with isolation and exclusiveness. No
The fact, which is being repeated Inter-cultural Understanding
doubt, such gestures are bound to
time and again in meetings and When coming to a country with a rich
make him most popular.
cultural
heritage
and
wildlife,
he
en
­
seminars, is that 47 per cent start
Leadership 'is a phenomenon much
sured
that
his
family
no|
only
partici
­
ups In the Silicon Valley are by
discussed and written about in the
Indians. Besides the software, both In pates in Holi function but also visits a
corporate world and in political spheres.
medical as well as In other sectors, wildlife sanctuary. These visits display­
It Is not an outcome of a leader's
ed
his
human
side
and
an
Insight
in
including management, India has a
inaccessibility and showoff of his
number of teachers and practitioners the cultural context of India's multi­
power as is commonly practiced in
today in the United States, In addition, coloured diversity.
our country. It is not the number of
to their noticeable presence In many
Black Cats or cars driving behind a
European countries. If the world of Grace and Courtesy
future Is going to be of knowledge, A leader of the world power need not leader but his personal rapport with
the people and his graceful conduct
then this changing scenario, reflected be
_____
one___
who exhumes arrogance. Everyin The Indian talent, represents a where the speech of Clinton and his which create the phenomenon of a
major change In thb emerging portfolio conduct displayed a great consideration truly democratic leader. These lessons*
need to be honed and practiced by
of stocks and of talent as the most
innovative country whose foundation f°r
people as well as the traditions Indian leaders, including those in the
lies on invention and discovery. India
the country. At no point of time a corporate sector.
is sure to be a more positive and streak' of
* arrogance* or comments
stronger ally, of United States than mentioning his own strength were Implications for Corporate Leader*
many other countries. Added to this is noticed. Even when the Prime Minister The latest researches done on leader­
the fact that despite military rule In could stand to his own position by not ship in the US and reported by Daniel
the neighbourhood and regimented agreeing to sign the CTBT or In other Goleman in the March-April, 2000
rtjpnagement of state in rnaoy countries. matters, there was no* trace of dis- Issue of Harvard Business Review are Contd...

22

News You Can Use

Govt, must finance public health: experts
By Rupa China!
The Times of India News Service

AHMEDABAD: National experts
attending a recent conference here
on health-care financing have regis­
tered the strong plea that the gov­
ernment has a constitutional re­
sponsibility to fund public health
institutions, so that 50 per cent of
the country's poor can access
health care regardless of their abili­
ty to pay.
The participants, having exam­
ined various options of health-care
financing, including charging 'user
fees' in public institutions, commu­
nity health financing schemes and
the role of private health insurance,
said that in the absence of govern­
ment support, these options would
still not cover the needs of the poor.
The five-day conference, focusing
on issues such as health financing,
public-private partnerships, the
quality of health care and health in­
surance, was organised by the Indi­
an Institute of Management,
Ahmedabad, and brought together
a cross-section of more than 100
health experts from across the
country.
According to Abusaleh Shariff,
researcher at the National Council
of Applied Economic Research,
Delhi, the government is currently
spending only Rs 100 per capita per
year as public health expenditure.
While health and family welfare
gets less than one per cent of the
budget, social sector and poverty al­
leviation barely account for ten per
cent of the total. With traditional

systems of social support, such as
private philanthropy, eroding, the
government allocations are far
short of what is required, the ex­
perts said.
Calling for strengthening the
public health system, Mr Shariff
pointed to the paucity of trained
medical and para-medical person­
nel in the rural areas and their un­
due concentration in urban pock­
ets.
Given this situation, the poor
were adopting 'coping strategies’
that focused on diversification of
income through seasonal migra­
tion, which was giving rise to gen­
der-based inequalities, among other
problems.
Demonstrating a model of social
security for the poor, the Gujarat­
based NGO, Sewa, reported on
how 30,000 of its women members
working in the informal sector had
developed their own insurance
pool for the development of mater­
nal benefits, with subsidies from
their trade union wing.
Each woman pays Rs 30 per
year, or Rs 500 in a fixed member­
ship scheme. At the time of deliv­
ery, she receives coverage of up to
Rs 1,200 per year at an institution
of her choice.
The Sewa women have demon­
strated that the very poor are capa­
ble of understanding health insur­
ance, and are willing to purchase it
provided the cost of the premium is
between Rs 90-Rs 111 per year, said
Mirai Chatterjee, a Sewa representative.Other studies of community

financing of health care by Barun
Kanjilal.a researcher from the Indi­
an Instutite of Health Management
Research, Jaipur, show that the
concept has been successful in ho­
mogenous communities that have
organised themselves around milk
cooperatives, weaving societies or
mahila mandals. His findings show
that income-generation schemes
have strengthened sustainable
health programmes. Such efforts do
not, however, meet the total health
needs of the community in the ab­
sence of free public health care.
According to Mr Kanjilal. panchayats also present a flexible op­
tion for promoting community con­
trol of health financing. But he has
added several caveats.
While having a legal status and
providing scope for political and so­
cial control, the institution is vul­
nerable to the dominance of power
groups and misplaced priorities, he
said.
The conference on health insur­
ance saw the convergence of all the
stake-holders—consumers,
providers (medical industry), insur­
ance companies, 'third party' ad­
ministrators (a new breed that pur­
sues payments from insurance com­
panies on behalf of the consumers),
and arepresentative of the Insur­
ance Regulatory Development Au­
thority (IRDA), who is mandated
to protect the interests of con­
sumers.
Today, barely two per cent of In­
dia’s population is covered by the
various government insurance

Contd...

schemes. The recent passage of the
Insurance Regulatory and Devel­
opment Authority Bill, opening
health insurance to private-sector
entry, will force changes that could
increase the cost of health care.
speakers said. The conference to
cused on how private insurance
companies should be regulated by
the IRDA. how the interests of con­
sumers can be protected and how
insurance companies can benefit
the poor.

Consumer activist Manubhai
Shah cited instances of how mal­
practices and short-cuts by insur
ancc companies had become the
norm. The regulatory authorities
must ensure that the unequal terms
of contract dictated by insurance
companies arc fair to policy hold
ers. he said.

Participants also insisted that (he
IRDA'sTarrif Advisory Committee
play a role in controlling the cost of
premiums charged by the insuiancv
companies and in achieving the so
cial objectives of health care The
last referred to making health in
surance accessible to the poor, in
corporating policies on maternal
care, preventive services and cata
stropic illnesses, and the guaran
teed renewal of policies.
Considerable attention was also
given to the Employees Stale Insur­
ance Scheme, emphasising the huge
and under-utilised resources avail­
able with this body, and its failure to
provide quality services to those in­
sured.

The Times of India
11 April 2000

based on 3,871 executives selected greater results achievement. In factfrom a data base of more than ‘authoritative’ term used does not
20,000 executives worldwide. These connote the essence of leadership
researches show that the critical mass and can be better described in terms
of various competencies linked to °f. mission
relation8^ aspects of
emotional intelligence show results.
during his Indian
Six types of leaders identified in this
^X-f'QPfldct apd. interaction
piece of research include coercive,
political, -social
authoritative, affiliative, democratic, anc^ underprivileged ones — showed
pacesetting and coaching. Out of ^rea^ empathy as well as awareness
these, the most favoured style is
,a 6rea^ mission which he has for
authoritative
leadership
creating ^’s coun^ry« No wonder he made an
strongly positive results. It mobilise *mPact 80 much that people believed
people towards a vision with empathy. *n ^IS sure v*c^ory ,n an election to
Similar results have been reported in J*?® *°P P°s* *n lndia if he fights one.
my book: Eastern & Cross-Cultural ™ase lessons need to be absorbed
Management. In fact, authoritative
powerful leaders with humility.
word Is a misnomer and a more apt------- ------------------------------------------- -—
description is mission-oriented leader. _
.
A mission-oriented or relational leader- ® Dr Singh Is International management I DO Observer
ship can direct the organisation towards
presidQnt' De,hl Schoot of 13 April 2000

CDL Media Clippings 23

Citizensjoin hands
to make a difference

Where are funds for

AIDS

By A Staff Reporter

MUMBAI: Citizens’ initiative to set things right got a
"We cannot reprint a book we compiled on the
boost on Sunday with nearly 2,000 people from all over
S INTERNATIONAL agencies pump
crores into India’s health sector amid basis of the telephone calls, which we want lo
Mumbai gathering at Don Bosco school, Matunga, to
fresh reports of alarming increase in the. send out to schools and colleges and another
form joint action groups (JAG).
Residents of each of the 24 civic wards in the city number of AIDS and HIV-infected people to major complaint is that the phone is always
formed a JAG with the aim of jointly identifying and an estimated 3.5 million, several health activists engaged," says Dr Singh.
In India, funds come to NACO, which allo­
tackling local problems with the help of residents’ or­ and NGOs, are miffed with the way funds are
cates the money to the states, who are the mam
ganisations, voluntary institutions such Rotary Clubs, being channelised.
National AIDS Control Organisation functionaries. Very few special projects ate
and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
The JAGs will coordinate with NGOs possessing re­ (NACO), the apex body for funding, as also the directly funded by NACO, while most taken
quired knowledge and reach, e.g. Bombay First, Citi­ state health departments have recently drawn a care of by the states.
The eighth five-year plan allocated an amount
zens’ Forum for Protection of Public Spaces, Dignity flak as activists are calling for more transparen­
of Rs 280 crore for prevention and control of
Foundation, Police-Public Mohalla Committees, cy.
“Even the money that is there seems to be AIDS in India, according to NACO’s annual
YUVA and PRAJA to tackle problems eluding solu­
report. These funds were utilised by issuing two
tion by a ward office/police station. The networking going for all the wrong reasons,” charges Dr Bnsanctions, one for Rs 222.66 crore and another
Singh,-Community
Medicine,
All
India
Institute
will help them pursue matter appropriately with the
of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), which runs the for Rs 45.22 crore for implementing the
right authority and at the right level.
approved scheme.
The JAGs also hope to evolve a democratic process premier medical institute’s AIDS Counselling
An expenditure of around Rs 505 crore till ’
Cell.
to help an elected representative spend his or her an­
The
World Bank Anti-AIDS Project got March 31, 1999 has been incurred to cover the
nual discretionary fund, which varies from Rs 20 lakhs
underway in 1998 following the bank's 84 mil­ total credit US $ 84 million, the report states
for a corporator to Rs 2 crore for an MP. #4
But HIV infection needs a lot of skill and
lion dollar US AIDS control Project, which ran
The formation of the JAGs across the city was the
from 1992-1997. The second phase of the expertise to tackle and states are not equipped
culmination of a long process by the Action for Good
National AIDS Control Programme (NACP) with the expertise to handle the same, allegei
Governance and Networking in India (AGNI), which
received the approval of the Union Cabinet last Gupta. Even application forms which slaws
completed one year of its existence on Sunday.
send out to NGOs are meant for medical insti­
August with an outlay of Rs 1425 crore.
During this time, AGNI has formulated schemes to
“Last year Delhi AIDS Cell Department tutions inquiring on the number of beds avail­
prevent monsoon flooding, organised meet-your-can- spent a few crores of rupees but do we even get able, she says. Of the six-page form with its 20
didate sessions before the state polls and meel-your- an impact of this?” asks anjali Gopalan of Naz columns, only one column asks fop description
MLA sessions after the elections. It also raised 200 Foundation, an NGO.
of the project, she rues adding they are not con­
metric tonnes of clothes and blankets for the Orissa cy­
Conceding that states have been ineffective in cerned with project and form related to HIV
clone victims, supported Khar resident Edwin Britto tackling the disease, NACO Joint Director and nobody is looking into it.
who is fighting the encroachment mafia and of late it Neelam Kapur says, “that is why we have set up
We have to, first of all, understand that it ’js
helped the municipal corporation run skeletal services the State AIDS Society and they are a little not a grant but a huge amount of loan, whifih
during the civic strike.
runs into millions of dollars that the World
more effective than the routine bureaucracy."
“We have come to the conclusion that only citizens
"But we often blame NACO, though states Bank is giving us, says Gopalan noting that the
are for citizens,” Gerson DaCunha of Agni said in his themselves are not equipped, they are not dis­ World Bank is lending us because we have a
introductory remarks.The experiences of the citizens’ tributing funds not inviting NGOs and there­ track record of paying back-and hence all the
associations of Mahim, Andheri East and Breach Can­ fore not spending the money," says Sushma Sen more reason there should be accountability.
dy bore him out.
Gupta, founder Chairperson of Drishtikon, an
What we are trying to say is that the mecha­
“Only when all groups in a locality come together NGO.
nism through which the money is going has
does one see results,” said Dinesh Ahir of Pragat
"If you look at the last 15 years, money given failed so why insist on something that has not
Mahim.The residents in 13 localities in the G-North to . spend is enormous," says Gopalan noting worked, asks Gopalan.
What about NGO's accountability? ”11' there js
ward here have formed Advanced Locality Manage­ there is no accountability.
And in institutes like AIIMS, there are no transparency for NGOs, then there should be
ment teams which are encouraging separation of dry
and wet garbage in households and are adopting pave­ funds to meet even the basic requirements of transparency for people in every sphere." says
running the only counselling centres even as Nalini Sahay, Vice-President of Torch, an NGO.
ments so that they can be free of hawkers.
Transparency is important when funding is
Olive Pereira of the Citizens’ Forum of Andheri patients increase by the day, says Dr Bir Singh.
"We only get a token grant from AIIMS and there, she says noting NGOs must first of all be
East spoke about how they had set a deadline for pro­
run by professionally qualified people and it is
jects in consultation with their MLA, Suresh Shetty. funds remain a big problem," he says.
The centre runs a telephone helpline amongst essential to know what are the qualifications of
The projects include a pedestrian overbridge outside
the railway station at Andheri East, the fencing off of other activities, but there is no infrastructure the people in the organisations.
"But where is the problem?" she asks adding
public spaces, and the provision of a market for And­ for trained personnel and work is carried on by
heri east residents. “We have managed to befriend four only two officials and one telephone, rues there are guidelines within which one has to
write the protocol on a written format.
of the 14 corporators and they have promised us that Singh.
their discretionary funds would be spent in consulta­
The Hindustan Times
tion with the forum.
14 April 2000
K. Ramchandani of the Breach Candy Residents As­
sociation said their greatest achievement was the
“bond that had developed between citizens, adminis­
trators and politicians in D ward”. With ‘consultation
not confrontation’ as their mantra, the residents’ asso­
ciation had managed to solve the traffic problem, the
problem of telephone trenches, and were now moving The Times of India
towards zero garbage with the help of Dignity Dia-

11 April 2000

24

News You Can Use

CALLING
ALL CHILDREN

The Shishu Vikas Mela will
i also help hone the talents of those
I who top the competitions which
are being held every day Not only
will they be sponsored but put into
heikh Munna and block-printed saris.
creed, have a rfght to recreation. training schools and tutored.
Sukur, boys picked
No, they have not been bought But these kids, can hardly ever' . “Now, you see why we are call­
up from the streets from outside. They have all been have fun,” laments Mullick, eyes ing it a child development fair?”
of Anwar Shah "handmade” by the children at scanning the courtyard full of smiles Mullick. The NGO plans to
Road by develop­ several shelters.
happy, smiling faces.
turn this fair into an annual affair
ment workers and
And they are the ones who
Girls like Ganga, Rinku, Bittu
brought to a shel­ managing the stalls as well. The
. Kalpana, all have tales of
ter a few years ago, are having the fair, after all, belongs to them. So, 'trauma and strife-tp tell. Tales
The excitement is
time of their lives at afair.
they've made the stuff, decorated which have shocked sdme of thebuilding up—Rinki,
Sukur comes running, having the stalls and are now selling their schoolchildren participating in
recognised the "paper didi". His creations to visitors.
Preetl, Jaya are raring
the fair
face lights up with joy as his eye
. Tifteen-year.-Qld.5arbani Dey
Students from A.K. Ghosh
to go to Nicco Park.
catches the dictaphone.
hap always dreamt of "selling” Memorial, Rammohun Mission,
Munna, ‘the self-proclaimed one of her toys. Tod^y, this dream Tollygunge Girls, Adarsh Hindi
But they are sad for
mastaan', is having loads of fun came true, with some help from High and Rajendranath Shiksha
friend Ruksana, who is
someplace else. Sukur soon scam­ nine tiny co-managers of the stall. Sadan are also at the fair. They are
pers off to join him and hisother But the joyous moment is left in­ not competing, but are spending
missing all the fun.
friends at play.
complete. "My father works at a time with kids their age, who’ve
The
16-year-old was
The six-day Snishu Vikas Mela ftirniture shop and my mother is a
lived very different life.
is being held on the premises of maid. I can't expect them to come
forcibly
married off a
And the “raw talent” of the
the Institute of Psychological and from Bansdroni,” says Sarbani,
under-privileged children — all
few days before the
Educational Research (IPER). The tears welling up in her eyes.
too evident as they dance, act and
first such fair — of children and
Cuddling a cute black-and-or- recite their way to prizes and
fair started
for children — has brought 27 ange teddy, soft-spoken Sarbani
plaudits — has surprised many.
NGOs and hundreds of under­ adds; “You know, Didi, I made
The magic and puppet shows put
Though some children are
privileged children together for this... I haven’t studied much. Toy­
up by kids proved such a huge hit hurt at their parents' staying aw­
fun *n* games and some competi­ making is all that I know and so 1
that children from the neighbour­ ay, there’s a lot to cheer about. On
tions as well.
want to take it up as a profession hood almost gatecrashed on Mon­
Poila Baishakh, 150 kids will be
The kids mill about, their con­ when I grow up...”
day and Tuesday.
taken to Nicco Park.
stant chatter punctuated by shrieks.
The six-day fun fest raises a
Says young Rajarshi Aich of
The curtains will come down
The cacophony all but drowns the vital question—that of the under­
A.K. Ghosh: “We had no idea how on the fair with the screening of
gentle voices of Kanika Bandopad- privileged child's right to recre­
hyay and Suchitra Mitra, wafting ation. "Have you noticed that we deprived these children were and Baby's Day Out, Goopee Bagha
also how talented they are. This has Phire Elo and A laddin.
across the courtyard. But Sukur are calling the mela a child devel­
The excitement is building up
and his friends do not really have opment fair and not simply a been a most educative experience
for us.” His classmate, Raka Das, — the trip to Nicco Park is already
much time for Rabindrasangeet. fair?” asks Bijli Mullick, assistant
nods in agreement, “We are enjoy­ the talking point. Rinki, Preeti,
Kaho Na,.. PyarHai is more “our director, IPER.
ing ourselves thouroughly while Jaya are all raring to go. But they
type”, proclaim some of the kids.
“We firmly believe that all chil­
learning about some facts of life.”
are sad for friend Ruksana, who is
dren, irrespective of class and
missing all the fun. The 16-yearothing can dampen the
old was forcibly married off a few
spirit of the kids these
days before the fair started.
days. After all, it's all play
And as the delicious aroma of
and no work — a welcome break
luchi and aloor dum — the after­
from studies for some, from hard
labour for others.
The 11-year-old lives with hisfather and siblings in a slum off Prince noon snack — draws all children,
Instead, the afternoons are Anwar Shah Rood. He has vagye n^mp^fp^bf his mother He still the NGO workers struggle to keep
doen’t know why she left her/diner and all-pf.them, so suddenly, five the noisy kids’ army in line.
spent playing ring-a-ring-a-roses,
The presence of just one stern
‘manning^ the stalls or gorging on
sumffudiiigof^^
‘ "•'• ‘
fried rice and aloo-potoler torkari.
His mornings and evenings are spent at a grocery shop. The lathi-wielding 'didV is just not
The stalls put up by the NGOs
afternoons are devoted to school. He is the lone bread-earner of the enought to stop the little ones
wear a bright, festive look — dot­ family, his alcoholicfather refuses to budge. He is fully aware of his from having what they seldom
have—good, clean fun.
ted with cheerful posters and
responsibilities of feeding thefamily".'
colourful items. There are plenty
He doesn't have a clue about 'child labour laws'. What he does
of soft toys, all very reasonably
know is that he would rather spend allhis time at school, studying and
priced, bandhni handkerchiefs,
playing with hisfriends—with a Hindifilm a week thrown in.
The Telegraph
wax dolls, diyas, craftwork and

N

STORY OF SUKUR

Pallabi Biswas
13 April 2000

CDL Media Clippings 25

TN mill awarded for making
paper without cutting trees
THIS summer some school stu­ globalisation.
What we want is dried and the solid waste
dents in Tamil Nadu are doing is not ossification of culture but recycled as furnace fuel. It is
their homework in ‘eco-friendly* growth of culture'* and the winner today India's most energy-efficient
notebooks that were not made of this year's Mother Teresa mill. It also developed two 15
by cutting down trees. This has award is an example of a corpor- megawatt wind farms in Tiruneiveli
been made possible by the Tamil ation's “unfailing commitment district which has reduced deNadu Newsprint and Paper Ltd to sustainable development,'* pendence on the main power
(TNNPL), which experimented with Singh said.
grid.O
alternative and renewable sources
A paper mill's prime resource
The Observer
of wood pulp to avoid damage is usually wood obtained from
15 April 2000
from deforestation.
deforestation, which has massive
For its effort, TNNPL has been environmental implications that
awarded the 1999 Mother Teresa cannot be easily set right. Wood
award for the corporate citizen is also difficult to bleach and
by the Dr M A M Ramaswamy the resultant effluent cannot be
endowment. The award, instituted easily treated to the required
by the loyola institute of business safety standards.
Experimenting with alternative
administration to mark its 20
years, is given to a professionally and renewable resources, the
managed company with a social TNNPL plant uses sugarcane
vision. The college was establish­ waste or bagasse. It was set up
A newspaper collector
ed to provide “ethic-based man­ in Kagithapuram in Karur district
agement education in the frame- of Tamil Nadu in the early eighties
NAME any English, Hindi or Punjabi newspaper of India and
work of compassion and social with a World Bank aid of $100
he has It. Neatly bound and stacked, SarabJIt Singh's
responsibility."
million. The plant, given an excollection could put to shame many a librarian, Institution
The award is unique because pansion aid of $75 million later,
or even newspaper store. A chronicler of sorts, this deeply
it recognises a model corporate occupies 1,440 acres and pro­
religious social worker has pursued a passion that could be
citizen’s concern for eco-friendly vides employment to 10,000
described as a devotion to the goddess of loaming. For
technology and the uplift of the people in the district.
more than 35 years now, the frail old man has been
disadvantaged in its neighbouring Steam is exchanged for the
collecting all the Hindi, Punjabi and English publications
community.
bagasse acquired from the sugar
available In Amritsar city
An annual turnover of not mills in this cane-growing district.
In pursuit of 'learning*
more than Rs 1,000 crore, quality it is stored in an 800,000-tonne
and his eagerness to
and value addition for share- hillock during the harvesting sea­
‘leam more*. "I ob­
holders are among the criteria son with indigenous technology
served that from the
for selecting the winner. Delivering to prevent degradation. About
newspapers wo not only
the memorial oration on the five tonne of bagasse yield one
get information but we
'human dimensions of develop­ tonne of pulp but it is more
also leam about differ­
ment,* planning commission mem­ easily bleached and the effluent
ent aspects of life,"
ber Montek Singh Ahluwalia said is less toxic.
recalls Singh fondly of
that the award “deep down
The treated effluent, conforming
that day In 1965 when
reflects a perception that the to river water discharge stan­
he Just decided to stack
objective or policy, which should dards, is being given to farmers
newspapers. His twobe ‘humane development,* is in the arid region in the neigh­
room house In Chowk
being missed out." “Economic bourhood. An irrigation society
Farid Is a virtual treasure-trove of Information. There are
development is Just one aspect has been set up by the TNNPL.
regional papers, national dallies, weeklies and magazines of
of development. We have to at a cost of Rs 40 million to
all sorts. Ho Is fondly referred to as SantJI (a holy soul) by
have a holistic approach," he help farmers lift the treated
people In the neighbourhood. Singh's collection boasts of
said, calling for a policy consensus water to the high land.
22 dallies, 30 weeklies, 14 fortnlghtiles and 22 monthlies
on emancipation of the excluded
Facing litigation for letting out
and periodicals. About 25 magazines are also purchased by
groups.
effluents that stagnated, the
him regularly.* Ho spends about Rs 4,000 every month on his
The system must be revamped TNNPL took the help of the
prize collection of the total of Rs 7,500 that he earns as
and structured in such a manner Tamil Nadu Agricultural University
rent on ancestral property.
that “not only the productive to solve the problem at a cost of
The Observer
capacity for private goods must Rs 240 million. This has changed
13 April 2000
expand but public goods must
the face of the rural landscape
also expand," Singh added.
in the neighbourhood, bringing
The strategy must be humane,
undreamt of prosperity to the
gentle, protect the environment local farmers.
and the cultural concerns of
The pith, the non-fibrous com­
society amidst this “process of
ponent of the bagasse residue,

26

News You Can Use

It’s women’s world

‘Developmental
schemes lack proper
implementation’
Nirbal Varg Avas Yojna and PMRY
are found to be of high importance
as minorities are receiving bene-.
MAJORITY of the minority commu­ fits from these programmes. Re­
nity see the developmental pro­ maining programmes have yet to
grammes not to have been so
play their role for the development
beneficial to them thus failing to
of minority community.
uplift their economic conditions.
As per the study, beneficiaries
According to a survey conducted
under IRDP were 61.17 per
by the Giri Institute of Economic cent, TRYSEM 52.27 per cent.
Growth here on employment and PMRY 6.16 per cent and under
income generation for minorities Nirbal Varg Avas Yojna 86.81
(Muslims)
through
various per cent. In Rampur the value of
developmental programmes with financial assistance per person
case study of Rampur district
comes to Rs 13,619 and em­
exposes weakness of various gov­ ployment to about 87 days per
ernment -sponsored programmes
person. Income generated from
and their implementation.
these programmes come to Rs
Rather, the study reveals that 4,543 per person and employ­
beneficiaries of the schemes are ment generated is found higher
the same privileged class in
from
self
employment
in
stead of the deprived section of
trade/business — 210 days.
the society.
Majority of the minority com­
Rampur was selected for the munity wishes to start general.
case study as Muslims happened store, cloth selling, pan selling,
to be the majority of the local tea stall, atta chakki and cycle
population and has been repre­
repairing activities. To start a
sented by a member of the
new activity in rural area require
community always both in the
Rs 32,755 per person. In urban
Lok Sabha and state Assembly.
areas bidi making, zari works,
About 84 per cent of artisans, rickshaw pulling, TV, radio, motor
60 per cent of skilled workers binding are principal source of
and 39 per cent of self employed income. The findings of the study
expressed dissatisfaction over the
underlines general store in rural,
government schemes and their urban
and
self
employed
implementation.
trade/business activity with a
The study says a down world higher employment and Income
market demand, and irregular generating potential. The study
earning for skilled workers and has recommended that these
financial constraints for self-em­ activities need to be encouraged
ployed emerged as principal rea­ for the socio-economic develop­
sons for dissatisfaction.
ment of minorities by adopting
In Rampur 61.76 per cent of
effective policy measures and
males and 38.24 per cent of
concerted efforts need to be
females are found benefitted made to overcome the problems
from Total Literacy Campaign faced by self-employed tradewhile from Non-formal Education
economic activity.
and coaching for competitive
The Observer
examinations only males are
15 April 2000
found benefitted.
From the view point of minorities
schemes like IRDP, TRYSEM,
Pradeep Kapoor
LUCKNOW

WOMEN in a small village in Kerala have been provided a
platform to be trained as masons in a forty day programme.
This is the first effort of its kind in Kerala where women are
being trained in a field which has been man's forte, said Raja,
head of Nedmangdu block, centre of the training programme.
“We have formated a
scheme for giving training
to the womenfolk to gener­
ate employment in the
field of construction work
where usually men are
dominating”, he said.
The idea to train women
as masons Initially came
up in the wake of health
and hygiene problems aris­
ing due to lack of toilets
In many villages. Most
men int the Negumagad
.___
venture but of the village to earn their living. It was then that
women took it upon themselves to bring a change in their lives.
Women are able to learn construction work such as building
toilets in the initial stages and later they will be able to
construct small buildings. This forty day training will enable
them to nurture their skills and hence choose masonry as a
profession. *
'

The Observer
15 April 2000

Now cartoons teach Maths, Geography...
IMAGINE Batman teaching you two plus two. and Superman
crisscrossing the world to spruce up your geography. For the
consolation of hypertense parents whose children stay glued
to favourite cartoons for hours, there Is a whole range of new
Interactive- software for tlny-tots, which has their Idols
- complimenting classroom education Imparted to them. A host
of conceivable comic
characters from Simba,
Aladdin, Casper, Super­
man and Spiderman are
teaching anything from
simple
mathematics,
English pronunciation,
vowels, geography and
history, “School chil­
dren In India are under
severe pressure to do
well In studies. But,
unfortunately the child
does not always want
to learn./ He would

rather spend time playing and having fun. Thus educational
multimedia software Is a solution to this challenge, where
learning Is done through exploration, discovery and adventure,
says Geetanjell Sharma of NUT. “Through our > project LEDA
(loaming through exploration, discovery and adventure), the
child feels he Is playing, and at the same tine he learns,”
she says.

The Observer
15 April 2000

CDL Media Clippings 27

India’s terrible educational
inequality

So he set up world class Indian est among the poorest and socially
Institutes of Technology and Man­ excluded (dalits and tribals).
The immense opportunities creat­
agement while grossly neglecting
ed by globalisation have been seized
primary education.
The outcome is there for all to see. by the well-educated Brahmin. Bui
The Indian debate on inequality has pared with inequality in other de­ India’s highly-educated upper crust the illiterate dalit remains out in the
long focussed on veloping countries.
is world class, and so it has become cold. The Nehruvian educational
income
differ­
Far greater income inequality is the second biggest computer soft­ model has produced horrendous in­
ences, and how evident in Brazil (0.60), South ware exporter in the world. Compa­ equalities, the very opposite of whal
India stacks up Africa (0.59) and Mexico (056), the nies like Infosys and Wipro now the Nehruvian economic model
against
other last of which has been ruled by an have a bigger market value than sev­ strove for. Some silly people blame
countries.
But avowedly socialist government for eral venerable American and this outcome on globalisation. In
now internation­ almost a century. Clearly, India’s British software companies. Over fact, it lies in absurdly bad educa­
al comparisons main problem of inequality is not in 1.5 million Indians have migrated to tional policies.The answer is not to
are available on income but education.
the U.S. and become the richest, stop globalisation, which is largely
educational in­
Had politicians and economists most skilled ethnic group there. At technological and so unstoppable
equality (Lopezz,Thomas and Wang grasped this basic fact five decades the same time, illiteracy in India (38 anyway. The answer is to urgently
1998. Addressing the Education Puz­ ago, India would have been far rich­ per cent in 1997) is far worse than in provide education for the masses so
zle: The Distribution of Education er and more equal today.
African countries like Zimbabwe that they too can clamber aboard
and Economic Reform).These show
(12
percent), Kenya (20 per cent) or the globalisation train.
The issue is presented in even
India in a truly terrible light. Educa-:
The Times of India
starker terms in another research Tanzania (26 per cent), and is deep­
tional inequality is a far more serious paper (Filmer and Pritchett, 1999).
16 April 2000
problem than income inequality.
This looks at the average number
Economists measure inequality
of years of schooling of youngsters
by a yardstick called the gini coeffi­ between the ages of 15 and 19. It
cient, which ranges from 0 (total gives .data for the poorest 40 per
equality) to 1 (total inequality).The
cent and richest 40 per cent of the
researchers have measured the in­
population in different countries.
equality in years of schooling be­
Once again, India stands out as one
tween different income groups.
of the most unequal. The average
They find India has one of the high­
(median) years of schooling is al­
MYSORE:
est gini coefficients in the world.
most zero for the poorest 40 per
RRATIC electric supply and power cuts
The vast majority of developing
cent, but in excess of 10 years for
are no problem to many people in­
countries have less educational in­
the richest 40 per cent.
cluding farmers in and around Mysore
equality than India.
Pakistan has long been pilloried
and the neighbouring districts. Absence of
Take a look at the accompanying
by international experts for neglect­
tables, which give data for selected
electricity does not agitate them absolutely.
ing education. But even Pakistan is
countries. India’s educational gini
They have a wonderful pump that can be
more equal than India in education.
has declined very slowly from 0.76 in
manually operated or driven by domestic an­
Filmcr
and
Pritchett
’
s
data
show
1970 to 0.69 in 1990. By contrast, Ko­
imals to lift water from wells. Manufactured
rea’s educational gini has plummet­ that the gap in median years of
by the Centre for Appropriate Rural
schooling
between
the
richest
and
ed from 051 to 0.22.That is a major
Technology (CART) from locally available ma­
poorest 40 per cent of people in Pak­
terials and skills, the pump can lift even
istan is 9 years, slightly less than In­
Educational inequality
muddy water — a task that may damage an
dia’s 10. Measured by the gini coeffi­
mqinilc^ffiaenfsiSM
electric pump — something more suited to
cient, Pakistan was more unequal
rural context
(0.85) than India (0.76) in 1970. But
India
0.76
Using this pump, water can be obtained
by 1990, Pakistan (0.64) had become
0.69
from an open well, pond and lake. Anybody
more equal than India (0.69).
0.22
Korea
< 0.51
can handle the pump without much strain. A
It is truly ironic that Nehru, who
Pakistan . 0.85
0.64
man can spin the wheel at a speed of 35-40 ro­
set out to create an egalitarian soci­
Alderla ; 0.82;
0.60 : ety, ended up creating one of the
tations per minute lifting 130-150 litres of
Chinaft .0.60
0.42
water from a depth of 10 feet The pump easily
most unequal educational societies
Brazil
0.50
0.39
in the world.The Indian constitu­
works up to a depth of 60 feet
tion pledged to achieve universal
The people of Melukote in Mandya district
Indonesia 0.59
0.41
literacy by 1965, but no politician
were the first to use this machine and since
then CART has sold more than 800 pumps.
reason why Korea has fared better. took that seriously. Nehru wanted
Many more people are rushing to buy one.
Many Indian leftists claim that if to show that the brown man could
only India had enacted the sort .of do as well as the white man.
Good bye, power board!
land reforms that Korea did in the
PM RAGHUNANDAN
income inequaii^^
1950s, greater income equality
Deccan Herald
(gini coefficients)
would have spurred more prosperi­
16 April 2000
India
Korea
ty. However, the second accompa­
nying table suggests that income in­
1970;;.
0.30
0.33
equality in India and Korea has
1992
0.32
0.33*
been roughly of the same order for
* (data are for 1980)
decades, and is very modest com- Source; Lopez, Thomas and Wang 1998

Power be to people!

E

28

News You Can Use

The Agony of Patha
ATHA region, spreading over him.
was started, a lot of money was
Mau and Manlkpur blocks of
The stories of the repression
of wasted by corrupt contractors."
Chirakut
district
and women are even worse. Shakuntia was
The root cause of poverty in Patha
Shankargarh
block
of forced by a policeman to live as his lies In inequalities, corruption and the
Allahabad district, and In a mistress. She had to undergo three misuse of resources. Vasudeva, who
small part of Madhya Pradesh, has abortions. When she refused the fourth edits a small news bulletin from this
been synonymous with the twin menace time, she was pushed out by the area says: “A-grade silica and other
of extreme exploitation of weaker sec­ policeman.
mirror minerals available here can
tions and terror of dacolts. However,
Suakali of Sarhat village first experi­ provide reasonably well-paid employ­
with the intervention of voluntary
enced distress when she was raped, ment to a large number of workers,
organisations, one can feel the winds
but later when she reported it, she but the present pattern of their working
of change.
had to face even more distress at the is to exploit workers including child
The worst sufferers of this highly hand of the same person. The police workers ruthlessly while destroying the
deprived region have been the bonded took her from one place to another for .environment at the same time."
labourers and particularly the Koi tests without caring for her. The
This exploitative system has became
tribals. Apart from numerous massacres culprit..got her husband Ram Pratap . more complex and cruel due to the
that have taken place here periodically, arrested after implicating him in false | activities of several dacoit gangs. The
this is the region, where In the forest legal cases and destroyed the standing ' smuggling in forest produces become
of Shankargarh, the brother of former crop in their field.
easier because of the presence of
Prime Minister Vlshwanath Pratap Singh
dacoits. If landlords cannot unleash
Many other stories of extreme distress
was killed by dacoits.
* repression directly on social activists
But dacoits are not the only terror are buried in the villages and hills of struggling for rights of the weaker
in Patha. Tales of extreme exploitation Patha, but this entire distress is the sections, then dacoits are called to
result of man-made factors. Nature
of weaker sections and bonded labour
terrify them. Thus the feudal exploiters
also abound, often leading to suicide has provided resources to Patha to and the dacoits compliment each
feed all the villagers living here and
by these unfortunate people. For
other.
example, in Helagaon village, the meet the basic needs. But when few
But this does not mean that there
‘master* of two bonded labourers people, out of greed, grab the natural is no ray of hope in this darkness of
Sataiyam and Panda Koi took a loan resources of the village, using it only oppression and terror. Even in these
for their profit and deprive others' of
In their names. Though he used the
extremely difficult conditions some vol­
money, the recovery notice came in access to the same resources, then untary organisations have kept alive
the names Sataiyam and Panda Koi. this becomes the real factor leading the voice of hope.
They were locked up and subjected to to large-scale poverty and hunger.
Rajan Koi of Patha Koi Adhikar
As Gopal Bhai, director of ABSSS
a lot of ill-treatment Their harassment
Manch (Forum for the Rights of Koi
says: “The most important question
ultimately led them to commit suicide.
Tribals of Patha) says, “despite very
is how the resource-base of farmland,
Another bonded labour, Buchaiya, was,
adverse conditions, a growing number
i forests and water is being used."
also driven to suicide as he couldn't1
of Koi youths are coming forward to
pay back the loan.
According to him, Patha having plenty challenge this oppressive system, and
Unfortunate people like Manbharan, of forest resources like anvla, honey, change their life of exploitation and
a Harijan youth of Opncha Dih village mahuwa, chrunji, gum and tendu leaves repression. The struggles for forests,
and a personal acquaintance, have which can provide employment to people land and water are moving ahead. The
been bonded labour for generations. here, the contractor system has led to results can be seen in the improved
And even when due to the help of the exploitation of tribals for several living conditions of hundreds of families.
Jamunihal village of Tikariya Panchayat
some social organisations, they got years.
“There Is also no shortage of is a clear example of these changing
back their land and freedom, they
were still not allowed to cultivate the farmland, but land that should rightly conditions.
land and physically threatened. Buchiya belong to the poor tribal and Harijan
Due to Increased social awareness
often told me that he would desert families has been grabbed by a few and works of voluntary organisations,
the village and he actually deserted it rich and powerful feudals," he rues.
things are indeed changing dramatically
The pastures are plentiful and even as Daddy-Mavaiya says, “most families
one day without leaving any trace of
provide fodder for cattles of other have now got farming plots with
his wherebeing.
When I visited Patha in October places, but lack of opportunities to adequate irrigation facilities. Work is
1999, I had met Matalya Koi of weaker sections and lack of veterinary also going on soil conservation. Where
Markandi Purva village. He, also like care has kept away the local/small there was barren land, how you can
his forefathers, was born to slavery. peasants from realising the potential’ see green fields of paddy."
However, with
a
local voluntary of animal husbandry," he says.
Sitaram Mavaiya adds proudly, “we
Patha has been generally considered
organisation*, Akhil Bhartiya Samaj Seva
have managed to stop the consumption
Sansthaan (ABSSS), he got back his a water scarce area, but Rajabua, of liquor and gambling in this village.
land. Still, the Joy proved to be another social activists says, “the This has been possible only due to
shortlived as he discovered that his water scarcity Is the result of failure our Panchayat which decided about
‘master* had • taken ■a-'loan In'bls to use the available resources properly. this social reform. Most people agree
name -by giving their land, as .security. First the potential of tanks, check voluntarily but a few had to be
ABSSS helped them* save-''their* land dams, and other small-scale efforts
prevailed upon with more difficulty.
but not everybody is as fortunate -as were ignored and later, when this work Almost all children are going to primary Contd...

P

CDL Media Clippings 29

U.N. booklet on AIDS prevention an ‘over-reaction’
By Kalpana Jain
The Times of India News Service
NEW DELHI: A peek into a UN official's vehi­
cle these days, is likely to reveal more than just a
first -aid kit: disposable syringes and needles, life­
saving drugs and fluids like plasma expanders, to
name a few. It is meant to protect UN employees
against AIDS infection, in case of a road acci­
dent.
And to minimise the risk of accidents, UN res­
ident coordinators are being advised to use seat
bells, check drug abuse by drivers, avoid driving
vehicles, and ensure that all motorbike riders
wear helmets.
All the ‘dos and don’ts’ have been put in a 53page special handbook, with a foreword from
Secretary General Kofi Annan, on the AIDS
virus “ravaging the developing world”. Al­
though the HIV situation is grim, with 2.6 mil­
lion deaths reported last year, senior health offi­
cials here consider the UN advisory as an “over­

reaction.” The best prevention against HIV is
avoiding unsafe sex, they say.
The handbook leaves an ordinary reader feel­
ing utterly unprotected against AIDS. For exam­
ple, it advises UN employees against using local­
ly manufactured condoms, where high quality
ones from the private sector are not available.
Described as a “prophylactic that can prevent
AIDS,” the booklet says condoms should be
made available through the UN Population
Fund or the World Health Organisation. Access
should be free, simple and discreet.
As HIV virus is often passed on through cont­
aminated blood, needles or sex with an infected
person, the “protective measures” advise em­
ployees against using anything not approved by
the UN.Thus, the UN medical service has been
asked to provide disposable syringes and nee­
dles to staff travelling in areas where proper
sterilisation of these is not guaranteed. The
stocks should have a certificate in all UN official
languages, explaining why these are being car­

ried, the document says.
The booklet says that all UN staff and their
families should be told where safe blood may be
obtained. For this, the WHO Blood Safety Unit.
in cooperation with the UN Medical Service.
should list reliable and operational blood trans­
fusion centres, and the list should be circulated
at UN headquarters, regional offices and duty
stations.The UN Medical Service should ensure
that blood transfusions are performed only
when absolutely necessary.
It also cautions employees to ensure complete
sterilisation when going for skin-piercing proce­
dures such as ear or body piercing, tattos or
acupuncture, practices common in certain
African as well as Asian countries.
If these are the ways of preventing HIV trans
mjssion, experts here say governments perhap.*
need to update their education material as well.
For what holds good for UN employees, should
hold good for others too, when it comes to pre­
vention of HIV/AIDS.

The Times of India
14 April 2000

Nayia village ‘nets’ first place with information kiosks
The Times of India News Service
JAIPUR: Nayla, a village about 22 km from the Pink
City which U.S. President Bill Clinton visited recently,
and the first village of the state with an information
kiosk has now opened the floodgates for the informa­
tion technology. Chief minister Ashok Gehlot will
launch the state's IT policy on Saturday.
Apart from several unique features of its own, the pol­
icy has taken the best features of other states, IT policies
and provisions of the national IT plan to attract industry
to the state. “One special feature of the policy is to take
IT education to rural and semi-rural areas through ac­

tive private sector participation.This will help raise em­
ployment opportunities,” said Rohit Singh, director-IT.

“As part of promoting and strengthening IT infrastruc­
ture, the state has given IT the status of industry. Special
incentives will be given to pioneering companies to start
operations in the state,” said D.C. Samant, chairman of
Rajasthan Industrial Investment Corporation.The Rajnidhi information kiosk project is part of the state gov­
ernment's vision of governance aimed at using IT, espe­
cially Internet, to replace traditional form of governance
and its accompanying deficiencies with a modem, more
transparent and responsive service delivery system.

The Times of India
15 April 2000

Contd...
school where they are taught property. minor forest produce; primary education,
and' women's self-help •groups."
The teacher makes a lot of effort.”
For this dramatic changes, people
This message of change against
thank voluntary groups like ABSSS. heavy odds in very difficult conditions
Kallu Prasad says that most of this is emanating from not just Jumunlhal
success Is the result of the efforts of but from several other village and
the ABSSS. This voluntary organisation hamlets of Paths as well. The terror at
has worked steadily on several fronts several levels has not ended yet, but
in this village (as well as several there has been enough signs, of hope
neighbouring villages) In the area of for the long oppressed people to
identification and distribution of land, weave dreams of a new life free from
improving the terms of collection 'of oppression.

Bharat Dogra
The Observer
15 April 2000

30

100 schools to
be named
‘Smart schools'
Coimbatore, April 15: The Cen­
tre is considering to declare 100
schools in the country as “smart
schools,” with an emphasis on
computer education, A N Maheswari, chairperson of National
Council for Teachers* Education
said on Saturday.
On a pilot basis, one school in
each state would be selected as
“smart school.” based on its per­
formance and infrastructural facil­
ities, Ms Maheshwari said in an
interaction session at a symposium
on “challenges for teachers educa­
tion in the new millennium*'
organised
at
Avinashilingam
deemed university here.
According to the proposal 32
Kendriya Vidyalayas, 32 Navoday a schools and 36 private
schools would be declared as
“smart schools,” Ms Mahcswari
said, adding that the school x
should conform to the parameter^
set by the council.
A sum of Rs 25 crore had been
earmarked for the purpose and Rs
25 lakh would be provided to each

The Asian Age
16 April 2000 cation,, he said. (JPTI)

News You Can Use
of filling a void in their lives, caused by absent
spouses or siblings working abroad. “No pain
no gain,” the two concede. Sometimes they
pretend it is they who have left their husbands
to strike it out on their own. Stringing jasmine
with the sturdy, dependable banana fibre
accords them the luxury of transcending the
Rs.
1.5
lakh.
ASMINE that adorns a woman's hair and
mental borders. Empowerment, like charity.
Although women dominate the scene there .
finds a place in the pooja room is hardly the
begins at home; in the backyard, to be precise.
are some tasks that men do. The agents are all
item to revolutionise the fledgling
And then, there are men like Freddie, who
men,
and
it
is
they
who
move
the
attes
to
the
floriculture industry. The long, tapering
apparently had no job to speak of. or others
auction
centre,
and
take
care
of
the
petals of the Mangalore mallige whose scent
who could leave behind their jobs in the Gulf
transportation once the price is fixed.
mingles with the gentle sea-breeze in coastal
when it suited them and come home to
Why are men preferred to act as auction
Karnataka, belong more to novellas set in rural
unemployment. For the trusty wives of
agents? The women call this delegation of
Karnataka of the Fifties.
Shankarapura can be relied upon to provide for
work. Many young men who failed to make it
In Shankarapura. a tiny village off the
them. Flower-power or women’s
overseas return home and take up this
highway between Mangalore and Udupi. with good
'
empowerment - the names do not matter. The
work.
Besides,
the
women
can
maintain
their
a population of 5.000. the flower bears
jasmine women show the way. ■
gardens
and
balance
the
accounts.
“
It
is
our
testimony to the enterprise of its women.
The author is a fellow of the National
Shankarapura springs up quite suddenly, not show, and the men respect that." says Carmina
Foundation for India and this article is part of the
Quadris.
the
only
woman
who
once
long after we turn off the highway. 10 km
fellowship series.
short of Udupi. We pass sprawling old houses, participated in the daily auction, but who gave
it
up
when
she
began
keeping
indifferent
the last vestiges of the typical Udupi dwellings.
ALLADIJAYASRI.
health.
All houses have gardens and backyards.
The Hindu
At
noon,
the
oldest
agent.
Maurice
Martis,
Most of the men are likely to be away, making
young Andrew Mendonca, and a few others
16 April 2000
their pile in the Gulf, or in the U.S., or in
gather under the banyan tree and assess the
Mumbai. How the “Gulf widow" turned a
day's
collection.
The
rate
Is
fixed
after
jasmine entrepreneur, a trade with a daily
considering the position that day. The daily
turnover of Rs. 1.5 lakh during the peak
rate of jasmine in Shankarapura is quoted in
period, is the story of the Shankarapura
the dailies.
phenomenon.
Flower-power has a vast reach.
Even before the exodus of men from
Consignments are sent to Udupi. Kundapura.
Shankarapura began, the jasmine enterprise
was a woman’s show. The day begins early in Mangalore, and Kasargode and Kallikote.
From Mangalore's Bajpai airport, it is off to
most homes, as the women go out into the
The Times of India News Service
gardens at dawn, picking out the buds sighted Mumbai and then out of the country.
Most of the time, Shankarapura meets the
the evening before. Soon all the jasmine is
NEW YORK: Heroes can be found in some un­
picked, and the rest of the household, by now annual requirement of jasmine. Many gardens
likely places. TIME magazine found one in a vil­
grow the less popular orange coloured
awake, joins in stringing them.
lage in Tamil Nadu. She is 32-year-old Nirmala
Shankarapura women have made jasmine kanakamhara and jaji alongside, but the money
Palsmay who heads the Village Health Nurse As
stringing into a fine art. Generations of them is in jasmine.
Picking and stringing the Howers takes up all
sociation in the state.
have been doing it in this place. Jasmine is
strung in a similar fashion in every house. As morning, since the attes have to reach the
For her work in advocating family planning
many as 800 flowers placed alternately, stalk auction centre before noon. Evenings see
choices in India, Nirmala has been named one ol
watering,
weeding,
spraying
insecticides
and
up and down, form a length called a chendu.
TIME'S “Heroes for the Planet.”There are seven
When four chendus each folded six limes over. tending.
others to be named in the magazine's first-ever
are packed and tied with banana fibre, one atte> Nearly all the players in the jasmine
global special edition,“How to Save the Earth *
enterprise belong to the Konkani-speaking
of jasmine is ready to be taken to the mallige
The edition will hit newsstands worldwide for one
Christian community. The brahmin families
katte or the auction yard on the main street.
month starting April 19 in advance of Earth Dav
are more into growing coconut, areca, banana,
Auction agents, mostly men. have their
which is on April 22.
mango and other fruits on larger holdings. If
shops here. The jasmine growers do not sell
It is workers like Nirmala who have given India
jasmine is the livelihood for, some families, for
directly to consumers. Sometimes an
more humane and effective family planning
some women like Molly Corda, a Gulf widow
entrepreneur brings in just a solitary atte.
choices. She told her superiors that birth-rate tar
When demand overtakes supply, a single atte who lives with her children, it is a hobby.
“Summanc” is the philosophy that drives
gets made mothers distrust nurses and resist the
can fetch Rs. 360 or Rs. 400. And unlike the
policy — and that nurses would gladly forego
flower markets of Bangalore or Mysore, where Corda. “What can I achieve just sitting
sterilisation bonuses if allowed to do their jobs
jasmine is sold loose, Mangalore Mallige is sold around?
Old Michael Martis, who says that jasmine
without government interference. “The state's
only in the form of a chendu.
cultivation in the village was fairly established
population growth rate has dropped from 1.5 per
Before noon, most of the stringing is done,
60 years ago remembers the time when a
cent in 1991 to 1 per cent in 1999 — compared
and the “auction centre", a ramshackle table
under a banyan tree on the main street is ready chendu sold for two annas. Seventy-three-yearwith 1.8 per cent for India as a whole,” according
old Maurice Martis, in the business for over 50
for auction. Attes these days have begun
to TIME.
coming in from neighbouring villages as well. years, speaks of the time when there was no
Nirmala complains that men don't concern
bridge
over
the
Gurupura
river.
“
Agents
used
Bus drivers drop precious loads while plying
themselves with choices of birth control:‘•Family
to
cycle
to
Mulki,
Mangalore
to
deliver
the
past. Youth wheel in a few bundles on bicycles.
planning is a social responsibility.” she says, "but
Little girls and old women bring in the odd atte flowers. Agent Andrew Mendonca pitches in.
everything is targeted to women. You can’t really
or two. Entries are made in the account book “My grandfather was in the business, making
call it family planning until the whole family is
for every atte received, against the person who him a third generation jasmine agent.”
involved.”
And If you care to ask Corda and Quadris gave it in. The grower collects her money a
no
longer
coy
when
curious
journalists
ask
The Times of India
week later.
questions, or when cameras pan their gardens
The commission that the agents earn on
17 April 2000
and pry into their lives demanding answers every atte is Rs. 2. The rest of the money goes to
there
is
nothing
more
empowering
for
a
the grower, irrespective of the fluctuation in
woman than to sit cross-legged on the jagli.
rates. When the demand peaks during the
^J^ddin^seasoiMhedaily turnover can touch stringing jasmines, and earning without
leaving their homes. Even if It is their only way

Flower power
J

She gives time,
meaning to nursing

CDL Media Clippings 31

Commonwealth lauds India’s
role in women empowerment
Kumkum Chadha
New Delhi, April 16
VEN WHILE political par­
ties here battle over
whether or not the Women's
Reservation Bill should be passed
in Parliament, the Commonwealth
Plan of Action on Gender and
Development specifically mentions
India among those countries where
strategic actions have been taken
to increase the critical mass of
women in decision making.
In the Secretary General's report
to be presented at the sixth confer­
ence of Commonwealth Ministers
Responsible for Women's Affairs
beginning tomorrow, the 84th
Constitutional Amendment finds a
mention under "good practices".
As against this, India does not
figure among the ten top reporting
countries on Women's participa­
tion in the National Executive or
Cabinet, and Parliament. While
New Zealand tops the list with 30
per cent of women in its National
Parliament or Assembly, United
Kingdom is the lowest ranking in
the list with 18 per cent women
representation. India, on its part,
had only 7.8 per cent women rep­
resentatives in Parliament last
year. The representation in the
Cabinet was a mere 8.57 per cent
as against The Gambia's 30.8 per
cent - the highest in the top ten and Antigua and Barbuda with
17.6 per cent.
In the context of the local
Government's, however, India
ranks third in the series with 33.5
per cent representation of women.
Its record is bettered by Seychelles
with a 54 per cent and Uganda
with 40.8 per cent women repre­
sentation.
The report also mentions India's

E

"committed
and
systematic
approach" to mainstreaming gen­
der in areas such as education,
health, rural and urban develop­
ment as well as community devel­
opment. The "substantial out­
comes", listed in the report,
include the Women's Component
Plan to ensure that no less than 30
per cent of the funds and benefits
flow from other development sec­
tors to women; an integrated
approach to empower women
through effective use of financial,
physical and human resources in
both women specific and general
programmes and dissemination
and enforcement of guidelines on
sexual harassment. While noting
that economic empowerment of
women and the availability of
alternative employment are seen
as "viable strategies" to be looked
at by Governments in their search
for ways to end violence against
women, many countries are linking
the exploitation of women and
children to national programmes
on economic development, poverty
alleviation and employment cre­
ation. India, the report records,
has taken measures which include
the provision of alternative, gender
sensitive employment for the reha­
bilitation of sex workers and their
children and the voluntary sector
has initiatives to end the cycle of
the commercial sexual exploitation
of children.
Even while India has to ensure
effective action to its seemingly
impressive fact-sheet, the report
underlines the need for implemen­
tation of effective gender equality
policies and programmes which
"must go beyond words to action at
policy, planning and operational
levels". Political commitment, it
further points out, is critical cou­

pled with resource availability to
National Women's Machinery's
(NWM's). According to the report
in 1999, all but six countries have
had some constraints placed on
their capacity and ability to imple­
ment the national women or gen­
der policy. In many countries "tight
constraints on either human or
financial capacity" and lack of
technical training and resources
have resulted in lower perfor­
mance levels: "NWMs and their
parents Ministries receive less than
05 per cent of the national bud­
get," the report states adding that
most NWMs budgets represent
only a fraction of that of their
Ministry's overall allocation rang­
ing between 0.2 per cent and 1.46
per cent. India is also mentioned as
one of the six countries which are
analysing the gender impact on
national budgets.
The report, however, notes with
concern the "significant lack of
progress" for the majority of coun­
tries in strengthening the capacity
of their NWMs since 1996 espe­
cially in the areas of strategic co­
ordination and monitoring of pro­
grammes or advocacy and policy
advice roles: "Factors such as low
public awareness of gender issues,
strong traditional practices and
values, the caste system, religion
and lack of co-operation from key
stakeholders as well as under rep­
resentation of women in decision
making positions have compound­
ed the difficulties" the report
notes. It points out that 88 per cent
of the NWMs have a "continuing
need" for training in gender issues.
More than 45 member countries
of the Commonwealth will attend
the three-day conference which
will deliberate on all aspects of
gender.

Light music to
create awareness
on AIDS
By Our Staff Reporter
CHENNAI, APRIL 15. All a WHICH IS*

campaign to prevent and coninil
HIV infection will be spread
through light music piogi.iininv*
the Health Minister. Mi. \roii
Veerasamy announced on Indav
Releasing two audio c.issciies
with messages on road safety and
health the Minister said that the
music programmes would hr
sponsored by the Stale AIDS cell
and organised in ail (he districts.
Commenting on the cassettes.
he said, as autorickshaw drivers
themselves have penned and lent
their voices, it would definitely
have an impact among the driv
ers. This gains significance as
studies reveal that lorry drivers
were vulnerable to the disease.
The Minister, said it was appro­
priate to give the task of conduct
ing music programmes to Mr
Shankar Ganesh who had scored
the music for the present audio
cassettes without any monetary
benefit. The Minister also re­
leased a souvenir brought out by
the owners of driving schools in
Central Chennai. While the City

Police Commissioner Mr. P. Kali*
muthu received the first cassette.
the J CP (Traffic) Mr. R. Svkar re
ceived the first copy of the souvv

nir.
The RTO (Central) Mr. R. Chau
dran who was. instrumental m
bringing out the cassettes said

they also proposed to produce a
documentary' film with the songs
to spread the message of road
safety.

The Hindu
16 April 2000

The Hindustan Times
17 April 2000

‘Deaf vulnerable to sexual abuse’
Mumbai, April 16: Lack of com- ness raising material that had been of the conceptual framework need- drawal experienced by the deal
munication and absence of sex —
J —
*•»- the —
j—
* non­ ed -a*-------- explore
. .
e*easy targets
7 -for sexual
prepared
with
needs
of
to —
understand, discuss,
makes them

education have made the deaf in verbal, non-hearing populations in and analyse certain issues of sexu- abuse as their helplessness and
India
vulnerable
to
sexual mind. As a result available infor­ al health. Many ol them had tenu- inability to communicate is well
exploitation and abuse both within mation was not likely to be effec­ ous understanding of the concept known to family members, the

their family and outside, according tive to bring out a change in behav­ of blood relationships. In a ques- study said.
to Project Signpost, a research iour patterns of the high-risk deaf tionnaire-based‘survey of the deaf
When abuse takes place within
study conducted in India.
group.
several of them believed that incest the fAmily it may increase a deaf
The study conducted by research The study chronicles tragic inci- was “alright” while many named
per/on’s loneliness but more than
scholars attached to the project, Ms dents of. the exploitation" of the close relatives, servants and chauftMt it deepens themistrust and fear
Shilpa Patil and Mr Y.C. Gopinath, deaf. Low levels of education, feurs as offenders, the study says. that the person feels for the hearing
says, there was virtually no infor- undeveloped social skills and lack The sense of isolation and withmation on sexual health and aware- of communication rob Indians deaf

32

_________

Contd...

News You Can Use

India catching up on its literacy rate
Apratlm Mukarjl

New Delhi, April 16

INDIA IS finally catching up in
one of its weakest social sectors of
development - literacy. It is now
predicted with a fair amount of
confidence that the literacy rate
will touch 75 per cent by 2005
against the previous target date of
2011. The figure is 62 per cent.
Despite the enormous handicap
of a fast growing population, India
has moved up in the international
literacy chart by overtaking Egypt,
Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and
Uganda. In its immediate neigh­
bourhood, it is far ahead of
Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal.
However, it is way behind Bhutan,
Maldives and Sri Lanka.
Literacy levels are growing at an
annual rate of nearly two per cent.

If this rate is maintained, India
should reach a literacy level
between 66 and 86 per cent by
2001. Assuming, however, that full
literacy for India means the "sus­
tainable threshold level" of 75 per
cent, the country should achieve it
between 2004 and 2005.
The most literate part of India
today is the Andaman and Nicobar
islands where the literacy rate is 97
per cent. Lakshadweep is a close
second at 96 percent.
Kerala is no longer the most lit­
erate state. Its literacy rate is 93
per cent, behind Mizoram's at 95
per cent, which now tops the list.
Tamil Nadu has risen from 63 per
cent in 1991 to 70 per cent in 1997.
The figures were in the annual
report of the Department of
Elementary
Education
and
Literacy and the Department of

Secondary Education and Higher
Education of the Ministry of
Human Resource Development.
But the pleasant surprise is the
progress shown by the traditional
laggards - the Hindi heartland of
Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar
and Madhya Pradesh.
Between
1991
and
1997,
Rajasthan has improved its literacy
rate from 38.55 per cent to 55 per
cent, Uttar Pradesh from 41.6 per
cent to 56 per cent, Bihar from
38.5 per cent to 49 per cent and
Madhya Pradesh from 44.2 per
cent to 56 per cent.
Sikkim at 79 per cent, Assam at
75 per cent, Maharashtra at 74 per
cent, WB at 72 per cent and
Gujarat at 68 p.c. continue to be
high achievers among the States.
Much of the confidence in
achieving a creditable progress in

spreading literacy stems from the
obviously encouraging results of
the literacy drive among women.
The annual report refers to a study
undertaken in Dumka district of
Bihar which reveals that the eco­
nomic impact of literacy is proving
to be significant.
The Dumka campaign demon­
strates how adult education has
helped women take charge of their
lives. The literate women have
formed a group called "Jago
Behna" (Awake Sisters) seeking to
sensitise fellow-women to the need
of collective action against social
evils and for greater participation
in economic activities.
The women have set up a "Didi
Bank" (Sister Bank) which pro­
motes thrift. They have also
learned to maintain and repair
handpumps.

The Hindustan Times
17 April 2000

A green library
he government has decided patent claims worldwide for non- guange would be done by an
to conserve 90 important original inventions based on var- expert committee comprising scimedicinal plants on a pri- ious use of Indian medicinal entists, IT experts and traditionority basis and will set up a plants, Mashelkar said at a con- al medicine practitioners, the
Traditional Knowledge Digital ference on Indian systems ofCSIR chief said. CSIR is also a
Library (TKDL) to protect India's medicine, jointly organised by part of the project. The task force
ancient
knowledge,
R
A the health ministry and the also recommended creation of a
Mashelkar, Director General of Confederation of Indian Industry medicinal plants board for sus­
Council
of Scientific
and (CH) here.
tainable cultivation of medicinal
Industrial Research (CSIR) said,
At the same time, the national plants and to ensure quality of
reports PTL TKDL, once set up, will help ayurvedic products.
Ninety patent offices all over the world
The current international
med icinal receive digitised data on India's market of herbal medicine is
plants which ancient knowledge.
worth 60 billion US dollars per
are attracting
It would not only help avoid year and is growing at an annual
maximum grant of patents to foreign com­ rate of seven per cent.
global attrac­ panies and individuals but also
India at present exports
tion
have assist in bringing out India's tra­ herbal products worth Rs 446.3
been identi­ ditional knowledge to the world crore which .can be raised to Rs
fied by a gov- as TKDL would be accessible on 3000 crore-by 2005 if proper meas­
ermental task the internet, Mashelkar said.
ures are taken, according to the
’ force that sub­
TKDL also aims at reducing task force report.
mitted
its loss of traditional knowledge,
Mashelkar said innovative
report recent­ preserved by individuals for cen­ packaging, aggresive marketing,
ly, Mashelkar turies, Mashelkar said.
standardisation and networking
said.
The library will be created of laboratories are needed to
The
task from documents available in lan- improve India's export of herbal
force on con­ guages like Hindi, Urdu, Sanskrit products.
servation and and Persian. Documents like
Deccan Herald
•ustainable use of medicinal "Bharat Bhaisjya Ratnakar”,
18 April 2000
plants was set up in January this "Charak Samhita", "Sushruta
year
by
the
Planning Samhita","Sarangadhar
Commission with an objective to Samhita” and "Astrang Hridaya”
protect India's medicinal plant would be used to collect the
reserves and traditional knowl- information.
edge.
Data collection, digitisation,
The plants have been identi­ organisation and retrieval of doc­
fied keeping in view the rise in uments irrespective of the lan-

T

Contd...
world. The deaf are endangered by
their ignorance and low levels of
awareness as also by (heir friendly.
affection seeking temperament that
makes them prone to high-risk
behaviour with little forethought or
attention to the consequences.
Already marginalised by deaf­
ness, they are doubly discriminated
when they become infected by
HIV too. Absence of an Indian
sign language is also a problem
while evolving a curriculum on
sexual health and HIV/AIDS

(PT1)

The Asian Age
17 April 2000

CDL Media Clippings 33

Women self-help scheme to be extended
By Our Special Correspondent
chennai, April 17. A major project

for empowerment of poor rural
women in Tamil Nadu through
the formation of self-help groups
(SHG), would be extended to
town panchayats and municipal
areas from this year.

Announcing this in the As­
sembly today, the Social Welfare
Minister, Mrs. S. P. Sarkuna Pandian said the project so far had
helped evolve 25,000 women
SHGs throughout Tamil Nadu,
commanding a total membership
of 4.5 lakh rural women.

The SHGs established at the vil­
lage level under this scheme, re­
named
“Annai
Bangaru
Ammaiyar Ninaivu Mahalir Thittam’, has so far generated a sav­
ings corpus of Rs. 35 crores, the
Minister said replying to the de­
bate on the demands for grants
for her Department. The percent­

age of scheduled tribe women
members in the SHGs had risen
from 21 per cent in 1998 to 43 per
cent now.
Stating that the expansion of
the
women’s
development
scheme would require stronger
NGO support than in the past,
Mrs. Sarkuna Pandian said the
Government was considering to
set up an Authority to facilitate
identification of NGOs and
strengthening the voluntarist eth­
os and movement.
The Government also proposed
to establish an autonomous re­
source centre, ("Maanila Thondu
Niruvanangal Mattrum Thannarvu Thondargal Aadhara Maiyam”) to coordinate the activities
of the NGOs State-wide among
others, the Minister disclosed.
Family counselling centres will
be set up in four more places this
year, at Nagapattinam, Theni, Tirunelveli and Ramanathapuram,

she said, adding, the annual ex­
penditure limit for each of these
centres was being raised from Rs.
79,000 to Rs. 85,000.
I he monthly assistance to
teachers of special schools im­
parting training to various types
of handicapped people was being
raised from Rs. 300 to Rs. 400,
Mrs. Sarkuna Pandian further an­
nounced.
The monetary incentive to nor­
mal persons marrying disabled
persons will be raised from Rs.
5,000 to Rs. 7,000 this year, the
Minister said. This would include
a cash payment of Rs. 2,000 and
National Savings Certificates for
Rs. 5,000.
Intending to further expand the
project of offering grants-in- aid
to NGOs which come forward to
set up 'shelter homes’ for mental­
ly retarded girls above the age of
14, Mrs. Sarkuna Pandian said
three more districts of Kancheep-

uram, Kanyakumari and Coimba­
tore were proposed to be covered
from this year. Presently six such
homes have been set up by NG(K
in Madurai, Salem, Tuticorin, Sivaganga, Thanjavur and Vellore.

The State Government’s giant
component of loans sanctioned
by nationalised hanks for the <•«•«>nomic rehabilitation of the hand
icapped will he doubled hi lb.
2,000 from this financial year, tin
Minister said, adding, the nuinh< i
of beneficiaries
under ibi*
scheme was also being faisid
from 800 to 1000 per year.
With regard to the marriage as­
sistance schemes, Mrs. Sarkuna
Pandian said the Government
would ensure that (he income
certificate of the families ol
would-be brides was given u*
them through their respective
schools itself.

The Hindu
18 April 2000

ICCW on the look-out for foster
parents for Orissa orphans
By Radha Sharma
The Times of India News Service

AHMEDABAD: If your heart
weeps for the thousands of children
orphaned in the Orissa cyclone,
here is a chance to give them some
familial warmth.The Indian Coun­
cil for Child Welfare (ICCW) has
devised a unique programme to en­
courage foster families to adopt
children orphaned in Orissa and
other similar natural disasters.
Children are the worst-affected
community in any natural disaster.
Last year’s cyclone left more than
60,000 children without a mother or
father, with nearly 50 per cent of
them losing both parents.
“Of course, the government, with
the help of voluntary agencies, has
tried to help such children by creat­
ing shelter homes and SOS villages,
but society also needs to contribute.
And what better way than to pro­
vide an orphan with a set of new
parents,” says convenor, ICCW

34

(west zone), Dr Sukhdev Joshi.
The project developed by ICCW
is simple. Couples can volunteer for
adofftion of such orphan children,
and the ICCW will in turn pay Rs
400 for sharing the expenses in­
curred for bringing up the child.
Couples who are unable to adopt
the child but nevertheless desire to
do something for the needy chil­
dren can sponsor a child by paying
an annual sum of Rs 6,000.
“We are planning to kick-start
the project by arranging family care
for 100 children orphaned in the
Orissa cyclone through foster par­
ents. Once the feasibility of the pro­
ject is confirmed, we will try to cov­
er as many children as possible,”
said Mr Joshi.
Throwing light on the modus
operandi, Mr Joshi said the ICCW
will appoint a social worker for
each block to assess the number of
needy children and prospective fos­
ter parents in the region in order to

facilitate the smooth operation of
the project. Meanwhile, once the
child is adopted, respective workers
will make repeated follow-ups so as
to ensure that the child is being
brought up well.
Mr Joshi said the ICCW does not
wish to restrict the project to cy­
clone-affected victims alone. “HIV/
AIDS is posing a major threat with
as many as one crore children likely
to lose their parents to the deadly
disease in the near future. ICCW
plans to gear up to meet the chal­
lenge from now only,” says Mr
Joshi.

The Times of India
19 April 2000

News You Can Use

Children waiting for
revolution

hildren in urban slums have moral and material abandonment". Delhi.
three common problems_ex- Above all the Article (45) declares
The urban slum children like those
ploitation of labour, sexual abuse that “the state must endeavour to in Yamuna Pushta seek education
and abandonment. All these prob- provide free and compulsory educa- and other basic necessities to mitilems of children are complex and tion for all children till the age of 14 gate their black future. The non-foroverlap in many cases.
years’’.
mal education programmes run by
Most children suffer from poor
Technically, the slum children arc NGOs will undertake including extrahealth.Their health is affected due to the members of an alienated society, curricular activities, diversity in
dirty and dangerous work, lack of Generally they develop a negative at- learning activity and with a provision
proper food and nutrition and un- titude towards life which is reflect- of games and sports and related
hygienic environment. Educational ed in their participation in petty crime equipment plays and skits and spefacilities — both formal and non- and illegal activities in formative cial attention Is given to girls in this
formal education — do not exist for years of life in large numbers.
area. Part- time courses and vorathem. Socio-culturally too they don’t
Take one of Delhi's largest slums, tional job oriented courses have
grow.
Yamuna Pushta. This slum, situated be6n started in the slums.
Due to lack of opportunity for on the wasteland of Yamuna river in
Objective and value free education
healthy socialisation and education Delhi with a population of about 1.60 can be helpful to change the faulty
during the formative years of life, lakh has nearly 8000 neglected chil- pattern of behaviour to the children.
these children become alienated dren living in deplorable conditions. Renowned American educationist
from the mainstream. The lack of ed- Circumstances forces these children Jonathan Cozol says in his famous
ucational opportunities breeds illit- to work at the tender age of 5-6 book, Children of the revolution.
eracy and mars their intellectual de- years. A large proportion of inhabi- *TiII we won’t correlate education
velopment.
tants of this slum are living below the with the basic essential human needs
The Constitution of India has en- poverty line and in inhuman condi- like food, shelter and health care, we
shrined special provisions for the tions.
can not think to make it a revolution .
case, protection, prevention of ex- These children are engaged in
Until all the slum children of
ploitation as well as moral and ma-.begging, rag picking and many are Pushta are educated the slum will
terial abandonment of children, involved in petty crimes. Some are never grow out of its poverty.
Article (24) lays down that “no child domestic servants and acrobats.
A IF P '*dd
below the age of 14 years shall be The parents of these children are
-c* « rdlZCC
employed to work in any hazardous rickshaw pullers, pickpockets.
The Pioneer
employment”.
thieves, drug addicts or prostitutes.
4 q ADrii 2000
Further Article 39(F) proclaims. They have migrated from West
“childhood and youth are protected Bengal, Bihar, Rajasthan, Uttar
against exploitation and against Pradesh and the adjacent states of

C

Freedom at last! self-help group
rescues bonded labourers
Sushanta Talukdar

BURGUR (Erode, TN): The story of
bondage was writ large on her face. Six
years back Chinmady’s father Madheya,
just before his death, had told her to try if
she could release the two tamarind trees
that he had .mortgaged to a moneylender
20 years back for Rs 3,500.
A mother of three children, Chinmady,
who was deserted by her husband 10 years
back, could never dream of freeing the
family of this bondage and had to suffer
the same mental agony like many other
downtrodden families of Thallamalai atop
Burgur hills of Erode district in Tamil
Nadu.
The moneylender used to take the yield

of the two trees as interest on the loan
while a helpless Chinmady sweated in
someone else’s field. But a determined
Chinmady decided to fight back with the
support of the members of her Manjal
Karai Maruemmu Mahlir Sangham — a
women self-help group (SHG) formed way
back in 1991 at the initiative of Mysore
Resettlement
Development Agency
(MYRADA). She started sparing more
amount of the hard earned money in her
savings account with the group.
In 1995, she was given a loan of Rs 3,500
by her group to release the trees. Initially,
the moneylender refused but finally gave
in as he. realised that Chinmady was not
alone. As decided by the SHG, Chinmady
pledged both the trees to the group and

started paying back the loan amount in
monthly instalments.
Within two years, she returned the entire
loan amount to the group and for past
three years Chinmady has been earning on
an average Rs 6,000 a year.A triumphant
Chinmady did not look back. She also paid
back Rs 10,000 to the Anthiur branch of
the Canara Bank to release the gold orna­
ments which were mortgaged by her moth­
er.
“I paid back the entire amount to the
bank with the money earned from the trees
to release the gold ornaments which were
mortgaged by my mother at the time of my
marriage. I am happy today that my moth­
er could feel the freedom from the age-old
bondage before she died last year,” Chin- Contd

CDL Media Clippings 35

‘Blue’ revolution booms
in green Haryana now

nady said with a choking voice. Tears
oiled down her cheeks as she was narratng her story of bondage as hundreds of vilagers were making a beeline to the Ban*
ieswara temple atop the Burgur hills while Sudhir Kalla
he gold ornaments that she was wearing
CHANDIGARH: In Haryana,
vere telling the success story.
There are many poor villagers like Chin- green revolution is passe, blue rev­
uady. Each tamarind tree fetches Rs 1,500 olution is in. The state, once known
:o 3,500 which is a substantial amount for for its ghee and milk, today boasts
downtrodden families like that of Chin- of producing over 32,000 tonnes of
mady. But moneylenders were exploiting fish, every year, against just 600
them. In 1994,the federation of the SHGs tonnes produced at the time of its
in the area discussed the issue and decided inception in 1966.
What is more creditable is that
to release the trees by utilising the money
Haryana produces 4,193 kg of fish
from the common fund.
"The SHGs gave loans to release the per hectare per year against the na­
tional average of 2,187 kg per
trees, which were then pledged to the
respective group till the member cleared hectare. At present, over 7,000
he loan.The group would auction the trees hectare water area is under fish cul­
ill then to derive an income from the ture against only 60 hectare water
area in 1966.
trees,” said P. Alagesan, project officer of
Though the fish seed production
Ihalavady project of MYRADA which
in the state has increased tremen­
rovers the Bargur sector.
dously, the fisheries department
Do the moneylenders, come back. They
has to rely on other sources for the
do with an offer of leasing out the trees on procurement of quality fish seed.
yearly basis for a sum to be* mutually Production and distribution of
decided. But Chinmady and other poor vil­
quality fish seed in an optimum
lagers like her who have freed their fami­ quantity is a pre-requisite for sus­
lies from bondage, will not. Because they taining and increasing fish produc­
have a strong peoples, institution — the tion.
SHG —Tor meeting their need.
Currently, 84 fish farmers are en­
The Times of India gaged in fish seed production and
rearing of spawn for commercial
19 April 2000
supply. Besides, as many as five
Chinese circular hatcheries with
the production level of 200 lakh
fish seed a year have also been set
The Times of India up in the private sector.
Utilisation of sewerage water for
19 April 2000

fish fanning is on the priority list of
the state fisheries department. It
has already constructed a sewer­
age-fed fish farm at Bhiwani and
plans to set up such farms in other
districts also.
Besides, the department has ap­
pealed to the Indian Council for
Agriculture Research (ICAR) to
evolve some suitable technology
that may assist in utilising saline
water for fish farming. More than
28,000 square km area has saline
water which is not suitable for fish
that is being cultured here at pre­
sent.
Experts feel that once the state
starts utilising saline water for fish
culture, it would give renewed
boost to fish production.
. What is worrying the experts is
the increasing pollution and de­
creasing water levels in natural
water bodies which are. the tradi­
tional sources of fish. The fish pro­
duction from these sources has
been reducing gradually.
On the request of the state fish­
eries department, ICAR has set up
a research centre at Kamal to
find ways and means to augment
fishery in the natural water bodies
such as river Yamuna, Ghaggar,
Tangri, Markanda and their tribu­
taries.
In addition, with the evolvement

of fish farming technology, village
ponds are being used for fish cul­
ture in a big way.
There is more than 10,000
hectare village pond area of which
2,000 hectares is perennial and the
remaining 8,000 hectares is season­
al.
These village ponds play an im­
portant role in re-charging of sub­
soil water.
Fish farming is picking up even ir
the foothills of Shivalik Range?
where the uneven land is beinj
converted into ponds.
A general complaint of fish farm­
ers is that they pay higher watei
and electricity rates for fish farming
which is more or less part of theii
regular agricultural activities.
However, the state fisheries de
partment provides technical know
how to those engaged in fish farm
ing by conducting special training
programmes and five-day refreshe
courses. Stipend is also given to the
trainees.
In addition, the state govemmen
has set up a training-cum-researcl
centre under the World Bank pro
gramme for the benefit of fisl
farmers. With the assistance of th«
central government, three fish mar
kets have been constructed a
Faridabad, Panipat and Yamunana
gar.

Kottayam s ladies with the lamp’
KOTTAYAM: The Red Cross in twos of his neighbourhood, which
Kottayam district makes Florence gradually
encouraged
other
Nightingales out of poor girls. For strangers to turn to him.
13 years, the society-trained nurses
The society girls are generally
have been helping the sick and the from poor families who cannot
old, and in turn, earning a regular otherwise hope for a decent earn­
income themselves.
ing thanks to lack of professional
There are about 24,000 such training. But three months of in­
nurses today. The result: scores of house training by the Red Cross,
people from all over the country including treating the sick, gives
flock to the Red Cross office in the them the confidence and skill for
hope they’ll be cared and looked the job.
after.
What makes the endeavour of
The society’s .mission began Red Cross Kottayam different
when secretary K.T. Ouseph lost an from similar services now mush­
old friend because the latter-had no rooming everywhere is the strict
one to look up to. Ouseph began discipline that ensures near-total
with lending a hand to the ones and safety of its inmates. The rules

36

make it clear that the home nurse
is not a domestic servant and she
will attend to the patient only. She
will not cook, wash clothes or shop.
She will also not attend to male pa­
tients below 70 years of age.

society’s 13-year history probably
because we take care not to pro­
vide a nurse unless we are satisfied
the case is genuine.” And no less
important is the fact that the soci­
ety does not deduct even a rupee
from the girls’ earning. The regis­
"Nurses will be sent only if a lady tration fee fdeen from the relatives
relative of the patient comes, iden­ is the only um the society claims
tify herself and take the nurse with for itself.
her. No nurse shall attend a patient
One such nurse, Rajamma, is just
for more than three months,” says
21 and has already served for six
the rule book.
months an epileptic patient al
Ouseph says "our strength is the Dindikal, Tamil Nadu. “I faced no
discipline. These girls are of mar­ ill-treatment so far,” she says
riageable age and we do not want
The Times of India
them to be ill-treated. Sexual ha­
rassment hasn't been heard in the
19 April 2000

News You Can Use
and maintaining-the ecological
balance at B.R. Hills. “We have
already seen that this integrated
approach has worked well. All we
need to do now is formalise it with
involvement of non-governmental
organisations, the forest depart­
ment, locals and research work­
ers,** he said.
The national consultation has
Ashoka Trust for Research in
Ecology and the environment and also recommended that wildlife
the forest department has success­ habitat integrity be' maintained,
fully convened sustainable har­ commercial and industrial threats
vesting of forest produce into a to protected areas be checked.
profitable industry. “Our experi­ tourism and pilgrimages to such
ence with the Soliga tribe in B.R. areas be environmentally and cul­
Hills and the efficiency with turally sensitive, the rights of
which produce like honey and indigenous people be recognised,
medicinal plants were harvested internally aided projects be given
and sold using a participatory mar­ preference over externally aided
keting model has encouraged us to ones, the Wildlife Act. be amend­
institutionalise the experiment,** ed, joint forest management plans
give greater importance to wildlife
Dr Sudarshan.
conservation, natural eco-systems
Dr Kamaljit Bawa of Atree said
outside the protected, areas be
the proposal to be placed before
maintained by local communities
Mr Chakrabarti will involve the and an information base on con­
use of scientific techniques of sus­ servation and ecological issues be
tainable harvesting forest produce maintained. ■ • ..
’

Experts plan model of
BR Hills experiment
By Our Correspondent
Bangalore,
April
18:
Conservationists including envi­
ronmentalist H. Sudarshan will
met principal chief conservator of
forests S.K. Chakrabarti on
Tuesday to develop an institution­
alised joint forest management
plan at B.R. Hills. The plan, which
has been successfully implement­
ed on an informal basis in the
wildlife sanctuary, will include
active interaction between the for­
est department, locals and conser­
vationists.
According to Dr Sudarshan, the
plan emerged out of a three-day

national consultation on wildlife
conservation and peoples liveli­
hood rights at the Biligiri
Rangaswamy Temple Wildlife
Sanctuary.
“Since the plan will be the first
of its kind, we do not have a deft-

SPOTLIGHT
nite model, but have worked out
rough modalities. The strongest
thing we have going is the success
of the informal experiment at B.R.
Hills,'*
Dr
Sudarshan
said.
Collaborative work at the sanctu­
ary between the Vivekananda
Girijana Kalyana Kendra, the

The Asian Age
19 April 2000

yrs likely as
‘Wired’ Siddapur now 14minimum
age
part of global village for employment
The Times of India News Service

HYDERABAD: “We are proud
owners of a computer which has an
Internet connection,” was the mes­
sage that residents of Siddapur vil­
lage dropped into the mailbox of
andirect@ap.mcjn on Sunday.
It was Siddapur’s way of telling
the IT-sawy chief minister N.
Chandrababu Naidu that it had just
earned the distinction of being the
first village in the state to get wired.
Siddapur is in Nandipet mandal of
Nizamabad district.
The excitement was palpable as
residents gathered around the vil­
lage’s only computer in the gram
panchayat office on Sunday. They
realised that Siddapur had now be­
came a part of the global village.
Pride lay in the fact that it was their
decision — taken at a gram sabha
about two months ago — to get a
computer, and their own idea to
contribute Rs 50,000 for the pur­
chase.
A Nizamabad-based computer
firm ATS Computer Services of­
fered a free Net connection to the
gram panchayat and even trained
the clerk there in computer appli­
cations.

Labour and Employment Mum
Lal said in a written reply.
Inter-ministerial consultation
has been completed on the pro­
posed legislation and the relevant
bill would be drafted shortly, the
NEW DELHI, April 19 (UNI)
minister said. .
Fifteen years ago, it was a differ­
The Centre proposes to enact leg­
The number of job seekers reg­
ent story. Facing submersion from
islation fixing 14 years as the istered with employment ex­
the backwaters of the Godavari be­
minimum age for employment in change till ‘the end of 1999 was
cause of the Sriramsagar project,
all occupations, “excluding agri­ placed at 40.37 million, against
many of Siddapur’s 1,200 residents
culture in family and small 40.08 million and 39.13 million by
barely had a roof over their heads.
holdings producing for own con­ the end of the previous years.
Repeated pleas to the govern­ sumption”, the Lok Sabha was in­
West Bengal topped the list
ment went unheeded. Balakonda
formed during question hour with 5.6 million, followed by
Congress MLA K.R. Suresh Reddy
today.
Tamil Nadu with 4.36 million.
claims it was his representation in
However, for employment and
THE DISABLED: The number
1994 that facilitated the payment of
work which is likely to jeopardize of handicapped persons ap
compensation.
the health, safety or morals of proaching employment exchanges
The villagers then began rebuild­ young persons, the minimum age
was on the rise in the last years.
ing their lives and their homes.
would be 18, Minister of State for Mr Muni Lal said.
“Now it is a planned village with
Deccan Herald
roads and 350 houses that do not
face nature’s fury,” he says. Many
20 April 2000
residents here, like the rest of the
district, have relatives working in
the Gulf. “Now that they can send
e-mails to their relatives.”
•The Government will involve 400 new Non Governmental
But getting wired will really be
Organisations (NGOs) in the second phase of the National
beneficial "only when the Naidu
Aids Control Programme (NACP) for its effective implemnegovernment delivers on its promise
tation, according to a health ministry official, reports PTI
of putting commodity prices on the
from New Delhi. By the end of this year, 600 NGOs will par
Net. In that case, villagers won’t get
ticipate in the programme, J V R Prasad rao, head of the
cheated as happens now.
National Aids Control Organisation (NACO) said at the
The youth will perhaps benefit
NAtional Convention of NGOS.
the most. “Many saw a computer
for the first time and this might in- The Times of India
Deccan Herald
spire them to become tomorrow’s
A
21 April 2000
IT moghuls,” hopes Reddy.
' ° April 2000

NGOs in Aids scheme

CDL Media Clippings 37

Cfef Seattle
SPEAKING

spit upon the ground, they spit upon themselves.
One thing we know which the. white man may one day discover; our

God is the same God. You may think now that you own Him as you
wish to?own our land; but you cannot.. The earth is precious to Him.

and to harm the earth is to heap contempt on its creator.
'The whites too shall pass; perhaps sooner than all other tribes.

Contaminate your bed and you will one night suffocate in your own
waste. But in your perishing you will shine brightly fired by the strength of

EARTH DAY is just two days away. Today we voice concern for the the God who brought you to this land and for some, special purpose gave

environment. But perhaps one of the most profound and beautiful teata­ you dominion over this land and over the red man. That destiny is a mys­
ments on the subject was written over 150 years ago — by an tery to us, for we do not understand when the buffalo are ail slaughtered

'the wild horses are tamed, the secret comers of the forest heavy with the

American Indian, Chief Seattle.

Here are extracts from a letter he wrote to the President of the United scent of many men and the view of the ripe hills blotted by talking wires.
States in reply to an offer to purchase a large tract of his tribe's land.

Where Is the thicket? Gone. Where is the eagle? Gone.
The end of living and the beginning of survival."

HI IOW can you buy or sell the
Msky, the warmth of the land?

The idea is strange to us. If we do
not own the freshness of the air and
the sparkle of the water, how can

you buy them?
We are part of the eartb and it is
part of us. The perfumed flowers
are our sisters; the deer, the horse,

the great eagle, these are our broth­

ers. The rocky crests, the juices in
the meadows, the body heat of the
pony, and man — all belong to the same family. The shining water that
moves in the streams is not Just water, but the blood of our ancestors. If
we sell you land, you must teach your children that it is sacred...

We know that the white man does not understand our ways. One por­

tion bf land is the same to him as the next, for he is a stranger who

comes in the night and takes from the land whatever he needs. The

earth is... his enemy, and when he has conquered it, he moves on...
He-treats his mother, the earth, and his brother, the sky, as things to be

bought plundered, sold like sheep or bright beads. His appetite will

devour the earth and leave behind only a desert.
I do not know. Our ways are different than your ways. The. sight of
your cities phins the eyes of the red man. There is* no quiet place in the

white man's cities, No place to hear the unfurling of leaves in spring or
the rustle of the* insect's wings. The clatter only seems to insult the
ars. And what is there to life if a man cannot hear the lonely cry of the
whippoorwill or the arguments of the frogs around the pond at night?...
The Indian prefers the soft sound of the wind darting over the face of
a pond and the smell of the wind itself, cleaned by a midday fain, or

scented with pinoo pine...
We will consider your offer to buy our land. If we decide to accept, I
will make one condition — the white man must treat the beasts of this
land as his brothers. I am a savage and do not understand any other

way. I have seen a thousand rotting buffaloes on the prairie, left by the
white man who shot them from a passing train. I am a savage and do

not understand how the smoking iron horse can be made more impor­

tant than the buffalo that we kill only to stay alive.

What is man without the beasts? If all the beasts were gone, man
would die from a great loneliness of the spirit. For whatever happens to

the beasts, serin happens to man. Ail things are connected.
Teach your children that we have taught our children that the earth is

pur mother. Whatever befalls the earth befalls the sons of earth. If nron

38

The States ma
20 April 2000

Karnataka tops
list in misusing
welfare funds

In Haryana, two organisations
misappropriated funds while jn
Assam, Orissa, Madhya Pradesji
KARNATAKA topped the list of and Maharashtra one each was
those
social
and voluntary found responsible for misutilising
organisations which ’misutilised’ funds. Overall, Rs 92,01,541
funds to the tune of Rs 52 lakh, sanctioned to these organisations
released to them by the govern­ during 1995-96. Of this, Rs
ment for various development 52,03,088 were released to theip
and welfare programmes during until the date of blacklisting. ,•
last five years, barring 1997-98
In Karnataka, these social
and 1998-99. During these two organisations were sanctioned Rs
years, no misutilisation of funds 48,52,600 for the year 199qwas reported. According to a list 96, however, only Rs 29,99,42;8
provided by Union minister for were sanctioned to them till
rural development
Sunderlal blacklisitng. No action was taken
Patwa to the Rajya Sabha in his against two such organisation ip
written answer to an unstarred Karnataka.
question, the Council for Ad­
The voluntary organisations qf
vancement of People's Action Bihar
were
sanctioned
Rs
and Rural Technology (CAPART), 11,73,015 during 1995-96. TUI
which sanctions funds to these blacklisting, an amount of Rs
organisations, has taken action 7,87,215 was released to them.
or initiated action against as
During 1996-97, total amoult
many
as
52
of
these sanctioned to such organisations
organisations.
was to. the tune of Rs
Most of these organisations 1,01,28,818. Of this, a sum fif
(13 in number), which misutiiised Rs 48,43,505 was released to
the funds, were Karnataka-based. them till the time of blacklisting.
Karnataka was followed by Bihar, No action was taken against
where 10 such organisations three (one each in Bihar,
were listed for misutilising funds Nagaland and West Bengal)
during the same period.
organisation as no funds were
Uttar Pradesh, with six such relased to it till the date qf
NGOs, was follwed by Rajashtan blacklisting. During 1999-2000,
where
five
organisations only Rs 1,14,35,230 were sanc­
misutilised the funds. In West tioned for the social organisations,
Bengal and Manipur, three each however, only Rs 90,63,663 were
such organisations were found released
to
them
tip
responsible for misutilising funds. blacklisting.z The Observer
Observer Political Bureau
NEW DELHI

22 April 2000

News You Can Use

HOUGH it is some years
now telephone lines in
his village were Installed,
Sarpanch
Chand
of
ChandoliRoop
village
In

T

Haryana has yet to hear from
the authorities about his applica­
tion he sent three years ago for
a connection.
Cashing on the plight of people
like Roop Chand, private cellular
operators are now targetting the
rural customer to bring modem
communication to the doorstep
of every villager. Companies like
Escotel, Koshika and Tata Cell
are now eyeing the villages as a
promising area.
Targetting about 2000 villages
in the states of Haryana, Uttar
Pradesh and Kerala, Escotel which
recently launched the ‘Grameen
Phone Project*, says the project
with Its highly subsidised calling
charges and cost of mobile
handsets emphasises more on
welfare than revenue generation.
"Under the new telecom policy,
the government has laid down a
target of one village telephone
for every village, but a lot of
villages do not have any means
of communicating wjth the outside
world," says Manoj Kohli, Chief
"Executive Officer, Escotel.
Can Indian villages repeat the
story of Bangladesh where the
Grameen banks came forward to
fund
the
highly
successful
Grameen cell phones?
“The rural customers are today
a ripe area for cellular phone
companies. In a village, one
does not make a local call,
villagers walk across to talk and
they need communication for
long distance calls, which is
ideal for mobile phones," says T
V Ramachandran, executive di­
rector, Cellular Operator Associ­
ation of India (COAI).
For the villager, the cell phone
is important for the purpose of
receiving calls from relatives from
abroad or anywhere outside, for
keeping a tab on market rates
and taking the agricultural pro­
duce to the market, he says.
In Bangladesh, women are em­
powered as a result of the
Grameen cell phone out of which
they earn a margin by running
across houses to give messages.

over 2000 villages in UP and
Haryana will eventually benefit,"
he says. For Naresh Pawar, farmer
at phandoli village the nearest
STD booth from his fields is six
km. “I have to call up the
market to find out the rates of
the crops and also to find out if
there are any holidays, which is
why the cell phone is handy to
us, otherwise I end up taking the
whole produce only to find the
market closed sometimes."
Connectivity and easy accessibility are on
Similarly, there are a few others
in his village who are endorsing
the cards with the cellphone in rural areas the advent of the slick cell
phone. When some of our villagers
go the town or cities for some
major operations, this is the
easiest way to pass messages,
says Shyam Lal, the village shop­
keeper ‘and proud owner of a
cellphone, who plans to attach
philanthropic activities to it like
passing messages and so on.
Besides, instant connectivity
and easy accessibility are other
attractive packages, which comes
with it, says Shyam Lal.
However, issues like cost remain
unresolved. "For a PCO, under
the dot service structure, one
pays about Rs 8 per minute and
Rs 2 service charge for a 100
to 200 km band but what we
pay with the mobile phone is Rs
4.50 plus Rs 1.25 plus Rs 3
compared to the DoT structure.
The moment it goes to 200 km
band, DoT charge-is Rs 15.60
but the* charge on the mobile
phone does not change", says
The same is true of those in 1200 villages in UP (West) and
Vivek Chandel, deputy general
India as cell phones augment a 450 in Haryana are being covered manager, marketing, Escotel.
source of income in the villages, by Escotel," says Kohli noting
The advantage is beyond that,
that there exists a potential in
says Ramachandran.
So how does the Grameen terms of covering these villages he says noting that there is
phone work? In September 1998, and providing one telephone con­ reliability even on prime time
Escotel introduced prepaid ser­ nection as a PCO per village, when DoT lines are congested.
Here the' village operator also
vices under the brand name V- says Kohli.
The airtime charges are Rs benefits as he makes Rs 3 to
Tel which was launched in
Haryana and Kerala in May 1999. 4.50 per minute for incoming Rs 5 per call (depending on
local conditions) as service
Under the. scheme, each of and outgoing calls, says Kohli.
the villages that are covered by
The package would be offered charge, says Chandel.
The operator will charge from
a district would be offered a on the recommendation of the
handset package with a V-Tel village mukh/ya/sarpanch with the customer making call on this
card at a subsidised package preference to the handicapped, phone Rs 3 to Rs 5 per call as
price of Rs 5565 with a talktime ex-servicemen, war widows and service charge plus amount indi­
of Rs 750 in Haryana and other unemployed needy persons cated by the account balance
inquiry on V-Tel.
subsidised packaged price of Rs to launch this service.
An enticing offer, but is the
"Our
project
began
four
5450 with a talktime of Rs 750
in Uttar Pradesh.
months ago and over 300 rural customer listening? t>(PTI)
“The concept is based on the Grameen phones already have
Lalaram Indira
fact that presently more than been installed, he says adding

‘Bharat’ To
Go Cellular

The Observer
22 April 2000

CDL Media Clippings 39

Water, water
ERE is a story to lap up for all those thirst­
ing for good developmental news. It is a
report from Dewas, a low-profile town near
the capital of the hardly high-tech Madhya
Pradesh, about a wonder of a water conservation
mission, and it makes two noteworthy revela­
tions. It shows what an individual agent of devel­
opment can do about the distress of a droughtprone area, and what India can do about one of its
perennial problems. Collector M. Mohan Rao is no
mere rain-maker; his has been the rarer miracle
of meeting the problem, to which a merciful mon­
soon was supposed to be the only solution, with a

H

simple but scientific solution backed by popular
initiative and mobilisation. Dewas is today a pic­
ture of water-harvesting structures on building
roofs, all raised during a one-year drive, which
testify really to the success of a groundwater-tapping and conservation programme. Funded large­
ly by public contributions and carried forward
with near-complete public participatiorii the pilot
scheme under a ‘groundwater recharge mission’
has proved a pioneering experiment, inviting sim­
ilar other efforts in the neighbourhood. Clearly,
the example cries out for emulation elsewhere in
the state and the country as well. The objective of
the programme - effective management and utili­
sation of groundwater resources - is to tackle an
intractable issue which has impeded develop­
ment Other similar issues that escape solution
range from recurring droughts over large parts of
the country to inter-state river disputes. There
are many a dust-gathering expert study urging
adoption and expansion of dry farming as the ideal remedy to both these afflictions.
It is not as if science alone can achieve the
objective or the community as a whole can be
counted upon to cooperate in every case. The task
has called for a tough will even in the MP town,
and it has been displayed by a Rao determined to
regulate use of groundwater resources and their
reckless exploitation by the richer sections of the
community. The task, enlarged manifold for the
country as a whole, will call for a proportionately
tougher political will. Easy optimism on this
score is not encouraged by the country’s experi­
ence of the political clout of the affluent farmers’
lobby prevailing over public interests, including

those of agriculture.
Illustratively, the National Bank of-Agricul­
tural Research and Development has, for long
years,-been.frying to persuade states, particular­
ly the drouglit-prone ones, to legislate for some

regulation of groundwater tapping - and trying
in vain. It is common knowledge that free or
heavily subsidised power5 for farmers has only
increased the extent of the scarce water
resources’ inexcusably inefficient use, but the
consideration has not compelled any serious
contemplation of even' steps short of the
NABARD’s suggestion. Attempts at-introduction
of drip and sprinkler farming, water-saving tech­

40

niques known to have helped a desert bloom in
Israel, have never taken off. Industries have
been extremely reluctant to encourage such ini­
tiatives and innovations in sectors of farming
that feed them, with the sugar industry and sug­
arcane farming providing a striking instance. If
the right lessons are drawn from it, Dewas can
lead to a much bigger success story.

The Indian Express
19 April 2000

AIDS booklet leads to
controversy in Almora
Sunita Aron
Lucknow, April 22
AIDS AUR Hum, a 35-page book­
let published by the voluntary
organisation Sahyog, has ignited
passions in the hill district of
Almora, and is now threatening to
kick off a major controversy in
both Lucknow and Delhi.
Though women activists insist
that their report focused on the
possibilities of AIDS spreading in
the Uttrakhand region, the
Almora police officials insist that it
“contained obscene language and
material”.
Dumb-founded by the unwar­
ranted “police excesses”, angry
social organisations in Almora,
Delhi and Lucknow are preparing
for a massive demonstration
besides rushing their delegations
to Almora.
< Office bearers of VAMA and
UPVHA met in Lucknow today
and condemned police action.
They demanded the immediate
release of arrested volunteers.
Yesterday, the police arrested. 11
prominent volunteers of Sahyog,
sealed their Almora office and
confiscated copies of the contro­
versial booklet AidsAur Hum.
“Nfe fail to understand the objec­
tion of both the political parties
and police six months after the
booklet had been distributed to

other NGOs engaged in women
and health programmes, besides
the five villages covered in the
study,” said Namita Rawat, an
activist associated with the
Panchayati Raj wing of Sahyog.
“It contains nothing vulgar. Only
we have used the local dialect to
effectively convey our message.
After all we have been working in
this area since 1992,” said Neelam
on telephone from Almora.
According to Sahyog secretary
Jashodhara Dasgupta, who too was
rounded up by the police yester­
day, some local youths attacked
their head office at Pokharkhali at
about three in the afternoon.
They stormed into the secretary’s
room, hurled abuses at her and
smashed the windows. They also
attacked staff member Surendra
Dhapola.
An hour later, the secretary who
along with another activist, Sunita
was detained at Mahila thana.
Before being sent to the jail she
has alleged that “an hour later
senior police officials came to the
office and sealed it after seizing
the remaining copies of the book­
let”. They also charged them of
publishing obscene and unsubstan­
tiated information.
According to the secretary, a
mob also attacked their field office
at Jageshwar, 35 kms from
Almora.

The Hindustan Times
23 April 2000

News You Can Use
Tara bittergourd. Konkan
[g Harita
ridge
gourd.
cucumber.
ig Sheetal
Konkan
KirtichilH.
Bhushan
dohchos beans, and the
Konkan Ruchira drumstick.
Each year, the institution dis­
tributes
about
1.5
million
seedlings of mango, cashew, co­
conut. chikoo and spices to
farmers of the Konkan and other
parts of Maharashtra. "We will
certainly help farmers from
neighbouring areas of the Konkan
(as coastal western India is called)
too. Our doors are open. If they
come, we will guide them," says
Dr Balkrishna M Jamadagni, the
officer incharge.
Since coastal Karnataka shares
so much in common with this pari
of Konkan region, the youth as
well as farmers of the State could
make full use of the services of the
•
argicultural university.
Youth interested in pursuing a
career in farming could contact
Konkan
Krishi
Vidyapeeth.
Dapoli,
Ratnagiri
district.
Maharashtra, Pin 415 712. Email:
kkv.dapoli@mailcity.com.

HE Konkan region, which forestry. It also offers research on (Ratnaand Sindhu, named after
forms part of Maharashtra agronomy, breeding, field-crop Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg dis­
coastline, stretches all the protection, forage crop, and horti­ tricts respectively). It’s new
way from southern Gujarat coast culture crops.
cashew varieties include VI, V2,
to the northern tip of Goa. Close
In addition it conducts re­ V3, V4, V5, V6 and V7 - all named
to Karnataka, this region is search on animal husbandry, after Vengurla, the town outside
working to boost agricultural ac- rubber plantation, tissue culture, Goa. One of its new coconut vari­
tivites by building up the right agri-engineering and post-harvest
eties ® based on Goa’s
kind of skills among its young technology. The university's work
famed Benaulim coconut
includes seed-production, nursery
people.
- is called Pratap, after a
With colleges of agriculture activities and extension activities.
former agricultural sci­
and
fisheries,
agricultural For those interested in a career in
entist. An arecanut va­
farming, the agricultural schools
schools, research sta- -----riety
is
named
of this university also offer
tions and a wide
Srivardhani, after the
courses.
The
diploma-level
network of scientists
coastal village which is a
in
Agronomy,
courses
are
and institutions, ef­
for
arecanut
haven
Horticulture, Animal Husbandry,
forts are underway to
growing. Its claimed
Seed Production and Nursery
boost
agricultural
produce is 2.5 kg per
Activities.
The
agricultural
skills in the entire
palm.
schools are located at Roha and
region.
All
these
Likewise,
it
has
Lanja.
schools and colleges
worked on new varieties
The university also runs a
come under the umin kokum or binna
Fisheries College in Ratnagiri.
• brella of Konkan
(Konkan Amruta), cin­
This institution offers graduate
Krishi Vidyapeeth or
namon (Konkan Tej) and
and post-graduate level education
Konkan Agricultural
nutmeg
(Konkan
and research in fisheries. A part
University. Keeping in
Sugandha). Some of the
of this university is the Bombay
mind all the specific
vegetable crop varieties
Veterinary College in Mumbai.
agricultural problems
it has selected are the
This institution offers graduate
of the Kokan region,
Sonali tomato, Sweta
and post-graduate level education
the university aims to
snake gourd, Konkan
in veterinary science. It conducts
promote research, edresearch and extension activities
ucation and extension
in veterinary, poultry, animal
activities of agri­
husbandry and forages.
culture.
The agricultural university
This agricultural
also has a number large of re­
university has activ­
search stations in various parts of
ities along the Konkan
coastal Maharashtra. There are,
coastline.
SaroJ Nagi
in total, 19 research stations. In
Southernmost
of
New Delhi, April 21
Sindhudurg district, adjoining
Konkan is the district
Goa,
there
are
six
such
stations
at
of Sindhudurg. It lies
SEVERAL
GAPING
holes
Vengurla,
Rameshwar,
just north of Goa and
remain in the National Aids
Phondaghat, Mulde and Nileli.
above it is Ratnagiri.
Control Programme (NACP). And
these were identified by none
Further to the north is the district Mumbai also has a research
other than some of the NGOs
of Raigad, which lies just outside station called the Taraporevala
involved in HIV/AIDS control
Biological
Research
Mumbai. Northernmost in the Marine
activities. A one-day convention of
Konkan is the district of Thane, Station, while Ratnagiri has the
the NGOs here highlighted that
Biological
Research
which lies north of Mumbai. In all Marine
the high-visibility HIV/AIDS cam­
these districts, the agricultural Station.
paign in urban areas stood in stark
Over the years, the university
university has various outposts,
contrast to the slow and inade­
spreading skills and offering new has been working on a 'crop im­
quate action in rural and remote
technologies to farmers and youth provement programme'. Crops
regions.
interested in the field. Despite the like rice, groundnut, ragi (finger­
With nearly 80 per cent of the
problems associated with gov­ millet), lablab bean, cowpea,
country's population living in the
ernment organisations, this one horsegram, and arhar have been
rural areas, much more remains to
has been able to make a difference worked on.
be done at HIV/AIDS awareness.
The
Konkan
Krishi
to the lives of farmers and youth
The HIV/AIDS project which was
Vidyapeeth has released a total of
around it.
launched in 1992 entered its sec­
The university's headquarters 18 high yielding varieties of rice,
ond phase in 1999 with an estimat­
which
can
grow
in
between
90
to
is situated in Dapoli, in Ratnagiri
ed 3.5 million people afflicted by
150
days.
It
’
s
latest
rice
variety,
district. Located over 189 hectares
AIDS in the country.
of land, it offers graduate and Sahyadri, claims to be able to
The NACO is now planning to
post-graduate level education in produce 7 tonnes per hectare.
It has also released new variagriculture, horticulture and
eties of the Alphonso mango,

T

Deccan Herald
23 April 2000

Lacunae, in AIDS
control programme
extend its family health awareness
campaign to the entire country
with a programme from June I to
15, said NACO project director
JVR Prasada Rao.. To be observed
as AIDS awareness period, it
would be followed by a similar
drive every six months, he said.
While a review of the second
phase of the programme showed
that it has undergone a rapid
expansion in the last six months,
Mr Rao said he intended to give it
a further boost by trying to involve
as many as 600 NGOs from the
present 220 by the .end of the year
for a sustained partnership of at
least three to four years.
Increased NGO participation is
the only way to ensure greater
involvement of people to imple­
ment strategies like targetted
intervention for high risk groups,
care and support of AIDS patients
and health awareness campaigns
successfully, he said.

The Hindustan Times
22 April 2000,

CDL Media Clippings 41

In drought-affected India
what can IT do?

of the Ulfa, has not been fully revealed.
The apprehension is that the politician*
contractor nexus that became' con­
cerned by Ghosh's experiments that
HE concern of Parliament with like Bihar. The accounts of Sainath could protect people against floods at
the cricket scandal when it reveal an insight into the nature of very low cost, had bribed the Ulfa to
should actually be shocked to endemic poverty in our country. For bump him off as his presence would
learn about several farmers in several politicians it Is politically prof- affect their annual milking of the
Andhra committing suicide un- itable to keep the poo/ in perpetual public treasury in the name of flood
der the pressure of indebtedness in poverty. Flood or drought, the misery relief. In Rajashtan the efforts of
the wake of crop failure and drought, of the people translates itself into fat several NGOs to unravel the truth
should be shocking. Drought and contracts for ‘relief works, out of behind the employment generation'
drinking water scarcity in the states which only a trickle reaches the really programmes did not get any support
of Rajasthan and Gujarat have reached poor. The Star TV's reporter caught at political level. Why go that far?
scandalous proportion. This is not many people working at relief sites Right in Delhi a four-day exhibition
adequately reflected in the issues getting a paltry Rs five as daily wage
Parliament right now discusses.
but the politician back in Ahmedabad and symposium on environment and
There are other frustrations thatwas Insisting to the channel that they water had organised display of several
the media headlines are blaring out. are f>*ven the minim wage prescribed environment-friendly technologies and
One favourite»is the Nasdaq and by *aw- 'n Rajasthan, repeated cam- water conservation measures. How
Sensex crash of the infotech shares. Pa'£n by NGOs had exposed some many MPs visited this exhibition held
Almost half the market cap has been two years back, the huge racket in last week?
Prof Partha S Dasgupta, who has
wiped out of these shares over the wbich the records showed payment of
done special studies on the nature of
last three weeks. And more is expected, minimum wages while the reality was poverty, environmental degradation and
This is happening despite the impres- that not even half the money reached population, in an article in the Scientific
sive performance of the IT firms like the people. Influential local leaders American in 1995 had delved deep
HCL, NUT, Satyam Infoway, Infosys, and their mentors in state capitals
into the endemic nature of the poverty
Hughes, VisualSoft in the first one or should be singing with My Fair Lady:
cycle. Why is poverty so endemic in
two quarters of their financial year. “All I want is a drought somewhere,
countries like India? It is mainly due
“HCL net up 144 per cent", Hughes Loverly, Loverly..... "
to the prevalence of ■subsistence econprofit increases 157 per cent" say
the headlines in one newspaper on, Year after year in states after omies. “The rural folk eke out a
the same day that saw the bottom1states, floods or droughts entail enor- living" points out Prof Dasgupta, “by
mous expenditure in relief works. No using products gleaned from plants
falling out of technology stocks.
one in Parliament seems to ask the and animals. Much labour is needed
As if in response to the regret following simple question: ' Why is it even for simple tasks. In addition,
Rajesh Pilot has expressed, some
that despite spending so much money, poor rural households do not have
media members have decided to put
there is as yet no scientifically credible access to modern sources of domestic
the people's suffering in drought’ works that could harvest rain water, energy or tap water. In semi-arid and
affected areas as the lead stories for
. increase groundwater recharge, protect arid regions the water supply may not
the next few days. The Indian Express
’ tanks and bunds that hundreds of even be nearby. Nor is fuelwood at
among the newspapers, and the Star
hand when forests recede".
News among TV channels, begin with( years ago formed a chain across the
In such a situation inefficient pro­
!
country
and
helped
preserve
water,
the focus on the human suffering in
duction methods, malnutrition, and
increase
moisture
in
the
air,
raise
villages of Rajasthan and Gujarat
’ greenery and in return reduce impact declining resources form a closely
where a drop of drinking water is
knit vicious cycle of increasing depri­
' of floods and famines?"
standing between life and slow death.
vation, rising population and failing
The widespread tragedy of farmers ini Grassroots work of honest people
resources that inbreed and perpetuate
Mehaboobnagar district of Andhra pre- like Annasaheb Hazare in Maharashtra,
poverty. This is the story in Kalhandi
ferring suicide to the shame of seeing Tarun Bharat group in Rajasthan and in Orissa, or Palmau in Bihar and in
their land attached by creditors is Sanjay Ghosh in Assam had shown
much of the rural hinterland of the
now daily stuff in the news media, how the vicious cycle of poverty,
poorer states of the country.
even if it is not in Parliament
environmental degradation and human
A multi-disciplinary approach could
Why is this contrast? Parliament desperation, could be broken and the make some dent into this vicious
that should be the barometer of virtuous cycle of prosperity spun out cycle. Local energy solutions, maternity
people's problems is less concerned of what appeared to be hopeless and child care services and imparting
with drought and death of farmers; as condition. Why is it that these experi- of new skills of higher productivity
Pilot bemoans, the media that is ments are not replicated? Instead the could and have achieved some result.
supposed to cater to the affluent, is 'relief work' involve nothing more But the topdown development pro­
leading news stories with the people's than digging at one place and filling
grammes are mired in corruption
problems at the grassroots 'Ibvbl.
'’at another while year after year floods leaving schools without teachers, hos­
Journalist P Sainath wrote»after, <a anc^ droughts alternate and death pitals without doctors and medicines,
year spent in research and site visit, an^ destruction follow with no respite. and village telephones defective. Some
how politicians love drought in some The mystery behind the killing of' dramatic results have been achieved Contd..
of the problem states of the country Sanjay Ghosh in Assam at the hands.

T

42

News You Can Use

Illiterate Orissa villagers show
the might of woman power
By Rajaram Satapathy
The Times of India News Service

BHUBANESWAR: Debrapalli is
just a few hours drive from the dis­
trict headquarters town of Anugul.
But for Janak Sahoo, Surya Bali
Budyak and Sanjukta Chanda, all
illiterates, life had never moved be­
yond scouting for wild leaves and
roots in the deep forests around
and the meandering hills across the
village.
But life has changed beyond
recognition for the trio today. The
daily search for succour to fill the
stomachs of their hungry children
have changed to attending confer­
ences, workshops and village meet­
ings. Janak, Surya Bali and Sanjuk­
ta are not the only women who.
have changed their fortunes them­
selves.
The transformation has come for
the entire Debrapalli village, and
for that matter to hundreds of
poverty- stricken villages in Orissa.
All this is courtesy a special project
initiated by the Union government.The novel programme was
primarily *’ aimed at involving
women to set up cooperative soci­
eties for dairy development to im­
prove their economic conditions
and empower them socially. Rs 20
crore was sanctioned for the pur­
pose and the Orissa Milk Federa­
tion (OMFED),a state government
undertaking, was entrusted the task
of implementing it.

“The scheme has achieved phe­
nomenal success. We could not ini­
tially believe that the women
would welcome it so overwhelm­
ingly. It is not just a few coopera­
tive societies being run by women,
but the project has turned into a
mass
movement,’’
remarked
OMFED
managing
director
Suresh Mohapatra.
In the male-dominated society,
women were a neglected lot al­
though they had the major responsi­
bility of running their homes. Al­
though they would do the bulk of
the work, they were never allowed
to participate in the decision-mak­
ing process. But the dairy project has
changed it all by putting women in
the forefront of the decision- mak­
ing process, everything—from rear­
ing of cows to selling milk to receiv­
ing money. This has given a boost to
the self-confidence of women in rur­
al areas, who once depended on
their men for everything in life.
Mr Mohapatra pointed out that
of the nearly 1,400 cooperative so­
cieties under OMFED, 500 were
being run exclusively by women,
with the total membership exceed­
ing 40,000. “There was a time when
none of these women had any mon­
ey to spend. But today, they are not
only running their families but are
lending money to others too,’’ he
said, adding that in several villages
women had become so conscious of
their rights that they had become

functionaries in local the panchayat
bodies and were spearheading anti­
liquor movements in their areas.

Besides, he said, it had been
found that societies run by women
were free of groupism and politick­
ing. The office-bearers were nomi­
nated rather than elected and their
earning falls between Rs 7 crore
and Rs 8 crore per annum.
With a view to enlightening them,
groups of members from these soci­
eties are regularly taken to.Gujarat
to see the Anand experiment there.
“It has been a wonderful experi­
ence for these women who had
never crossed their village bound­
aries,” he observed.
According to Mr Mohapatra, al­
most 300 such societies were locat­
ed in the coastal region. “But the
October 29 super cyclone could
not do much damage, although
nearly 15,000 of the estimated two
lakh crossbred cows were killed.
Since then, things have improved a
lot. A grant of Rs 11 crore has
since been arranged and efforts
are on to re- build the infrastruc­
ture and provide about 5,000
crossbred cows to the beneficia­
ries. In a way, the women’s soci­
eties are instrumental in ensuring
a high profit for OMFED,” he
pointed out, adding that plans
were on to expand the women
dairy project to other areas.

Charity, not earnings, matter most: Gardi
By A Staff Reporter
MUMBAI: For the past 35 years, he has been helping
the needy. Even at the age of 85, his
ardour for social work has not
waned. A staunch follower of Jain­
ism, Dipchand Gardi continues to
help the needy. His aim is to make
the world a better place to live in for
as many underprivileged people as
possible.
Mr Gardi practised law for 30
years before he retired in 1975 to
D. Gardi
work full-time for the poor. He has
donated lakhs of rupees for charitable causes, but he
has preferred to stay away from the limelight. He has
also declined to accept awards “because there is some­
one more deserving than me. I do not perform charity
to gain publicity. I believe that charity should be cou­
pled with modesty”, he told this newspaper.
But word of his munificence has spread far and wide.
He receives letters from persons living as far away as
Assam, Bengal and Tamil Nadu who seek assistance.

Contd...
where grassroots organisations or im
tiatives have intervened, like the schoc
on demand programme of Madhyi
Pradesh Chief Minister Dlgvijay Singf
With the MPs funds cannot thes<
servants of the people start grassroot
initiatives to conserve water, deepei
the rivers, construct high ground fo
flood protection, etc?
Instead of denouncing high technoi
ogy as unsuitable for Indian rura
areas, it would be better If thi
benefits of high technology are utilise!
fully. Hydrological studies, for instance
hayg pointed out that in Bihar one o
the rhain reasons for annual floods I;
the blocking of the mouth of th<
tributaries of the Ganga by silt. Dredg
ing of these mouths could reduci
floods and, of course there has to bi
a sustained watershed developmien
to back it up and; prevent furthe
silting. To help solve the probfertf o
water availability on a countryvAdi
basis, Isro had used remote sensing
techniques to map undergrounc
acquafers first in 18 drought prone
districts and subsequently in 12C
districts. How many governments have
made use of the knowledge that Isre
has uncovered? I am told that engineer:
are not willing to work on sue!
unglamorous projects like ground wate
recharge when large projects like
dams are more interesting.
Ultimately high technology can onlj
show you the path to prosperity; i
cannot spoon feed you. If our polio
makers truly and sincerely want poverty
to end, high technology from space
from ground and through informatior
technology has the solution. The ques
tion is: Do the policy makers reall)
want the poverty to go?

He has established several trusts and more than 500 in­
stitutions, including schools, ashrams, hostels, health
centres, technical schools and homes for the aged in
different parts of the countiy.
He regards the beneficiaries of his generosity as his
gurus since they give him the opportunity to serve god.
Born in a village near Rajkot,Mr Gardi came to Mum­
The Observer
bai at the age of 18. As a barrister, he had an excellent
practice. But he continues to live a life of simplicity. He
24 April 2000
doesn’t buy new shoes, but gets the old ones repaired.
“If I can spend the money thus saved in getting a child
admitted to a school, why should I spend it on new
shoes?” he asks.
Mr Gardi says that it takes a lot of courage to hear
people’s problems all through the year. He recalls the
instance of an old and ailing man who had lost his leg
and had three school-going daughters and an asthmat­
ic and diabetic wife to support. “Il is so depressing at
times,” he admits.“But I should be courageous if I have
to give strength to others.”
He wants his children to follow in his footsteps. “I do The Times of India
not ask them how much they earn, but how much they 25 April 2000
donate ” he says.____________________

Rajendra Prabhu

CDL Media Clippings 43

Attack on NGO criticised
By Our Special Correspondent
new DELHI, APRIL 24. A large num­

ber of organisations and social ac­
tivists have protested the reported
attack on some leading members
of Sahayog, an NGO, by a mob in
Almora, Uttar Pradesh, on April
20.
In a statement, representatives
of nearly 40 voluntary bodies, de­
manded action against those re­
sponsible for the attack saying the
incident had created a sense of
insecurity among NGOs working
in the area.
The Sahayog had been working
on issues related to health, panchayati raj and women's empo­
werment in the Uttarakhand
region for over a decade, and
what happened on April 20 was
unprecedented. Members of Sa­
hayog were attacked by a mob
and later arrested. Its founder
members, Ms. Jashodara Dasgupta and Dr. Abhijeet Das, were at­
tacked in their office in Almora,
and simultaneously a group of
trainees who had come to attend
a Sahayog training programme
were "gheraoed, abused and ha­
rassed for several hours".
"The group included two

mothers and their children who
were locked up in the field office
of Sahayog for several hours. Two
activists of Sahayog, Sunita and
Dinesh, were abused and beaten
by the crowd in the presence of
the police and tahsildar and the
attacks were followed by the ar­
rest of Sahayog activists by the
police," the statement said.
The mob, it pointed out, was
protesting against a Sahayog pub­
lication Aids Aur Hum (Aids and
us), parts of which were found to
be offensive by some people. The
signatories to the statement con­
ceded that greater care should
have been taken while drafting
the publication but emphasised
that there was "no malafide in­
tent on the part of the authors as
they sought to quote the intervie­
wees verbatim".
The signatories included the
Voluntary Health Association of
India, National Alliance for Peo­
ple’s Movement, Johar Jharkand,
Naga People’s Movement for Hu­
man Rights, Committee of Con­
cerned Citizens (Hyderabad),
Setu (Ahmedabad), Nocer India
(Kerala), RRDS (Andhra Pradesh)
and several Delhi- based wom­
en’s and human rights bodies.

The Indian Express
26 April 2000

The Hindu
25 April 2000

Innovative modules on
public health developed
Observer Political Bureau
NEW DELHI

INNOVATIVE health-care modules
— aimed at fulfilling the man­
agement information heeds of
the district and primary health
care centres by synergising the
compulsions of public health train­
ing and health management train­
ing — has been jointly developed
by the Mahatma Gandhi Institute
of Medical Sciences, Sevagram,
and the Aga Khan Foundation.

Entitled as the ‘Healthcare
Management Advancement Pro­
gramme (MAP) modules,* these
have been split up into five
units, with each module designed
to help managers collect, process

44

and interpret information for a
different management purpose.
The first of these is the
‘Information Needs Assessment
and Documentation’ module which
helps managers to identify the
information needs, set priorities
and determine which Health MAP
module Is likely to be most
useful for the specific local con­
ditions".
The other modules are as
follows: ‘The Health Planning
and Project Management* module
has been designed for enabling
managers to collect the effect
and impact data fqr a proper
assessment of the coverage levels
and health status in one particular
region.

‘The Planning and Assessing
Health Workers Activities’ module,
meanwhile, helps in eliciting spe­
cific output information to deter­
mine who is and who is not
receiving needed health services
and products.
The module for ‘Assessing
Quality* of Services and Manage­
ment*
concerns
itself
with
‘‘process data" for enabling
supervisors to assess the quality
of service and management ser­
vices. The last of these modules
has been designed to provide
‘Cost and Sustainability Analysis*
for assisting managers to examine
and explain how resources were
used to provide and. support
services.

The Observer
24 April 2000

News You Can Use

Women pradhans resent being used as dummies
By Radhika D Srlvastava
The Times of India News Service

NEW DELHI: Kamini Devi, a
pradhan from Alwar district in Ra­
jasthan is a frustrated woman.Till
1996, all she knew was how to draw
water from the well, cook and feed
her family. Later, the panchayat
head's post was reserved for a
woman and Kamini was fielded
from the district.
The victory brought along with it
a whole hag of troubles.Though ed­
ucated only till class three, she
knew she could take decisions for
the welfare of the villages which
came under her. But, according to
her, she was kept out of the deci­
sion-making process. It was made
clear to her that she was just a prop

and the show would be run by the
male members of the panchayat,
some belonging to her family.
Being the pradhan, she was keen
to attend gram sabha meetings.
And of course, no meeting could be
organised without notifying her of­
ficially. So, she used to be notified,
and told that the next meeting
would be in a place eight miles
away from her home at 8 p.m. in the
night. This was enough to ensure
her absence.
“I am disheartened. I am a
woman and nobody wants to in­
volve me. And the male members
of my family support those who are
trying to keep me out. I know
where to have a tube well,” she told
the audience at the Constitution

Club on TUesday afternoon.
Around 260 elected women rep­
resentatives from various panchayats and zilla parishads all over the
country were in the capital to cele­
brate “Women's Political Empow­
erment Day' on April 24 and 25.
Though they spoke of problems
particular to their states, all of them
agreed on one point — men did not
like women pradhans and did not
allow them to work independently.
Tventy-one-year-old Savithri is
the pradhan of a village in Karnata­
ka. Being the youngest in the area
to occupy the post, she had to put
up with a lot of opposition. The
worst came when her husband gave
her a choice of either continuing to
be his wife or carry on as pradhan.

Savithri chose the latter, and her
husband divorced her.

The group of pradhans and pan­
chayat members from Haryana
sounded most helpless. “We have
many factors working against us
Men are comparatively more edu­
cated and therefore they feel the)
know what is good for us. But I can
tell them where to have a tube well
as it is women who get water,” said
Kiran Bala, a pradhan from Sirsa
district. Social norms also add to her
problems. Since her father-in-law is
a member of the panchayat. she is
never able to attend the meetings of
the gram sabha. “In our caste we
follow a strict system of purdah and
I have never sat face to face with my
father-in-law,” she said.

The Times of India
27 April 2000

apply to teachers of humanities
Lack of sight does and
social sciences, who use the
sparingly. “From invigilanot dampen their board
tion to examining papers I do
everything a normal teacher
zeal to teach
does. I have even caught people
The Times of India News Service

cheating during exams,” says
CALCUTTA: The West Bengal another blind teacher.
government might be hostile to
The Times of India
visually handicapped applicants
26 April 2000
interested in teaching careers,
but a few such teachers have
been successfully carrying out
their duties in different schools
across the state.
Debabrata Chakraborty, a
blind teacher, has taught in sev­
eral government and non-govemment schools for nearly 18
years. Chakraborty, a Ph.D. in
history
from
Jadavpur
University, has just been trans­
Washington
ferred to Barasat Government
The World Bank has approved
School. He has had stints in
five new development projects in
Ramakrishna
Vivekananda
India involving a total loan of
Mission, Taki Government
S743.68 million following a prior
School
and
Barrackpur
promise by the US not to oppose
Government High School.
them as an exception to the eco­
Mr Chakraborty says he has
nomic sanctions it had slapped on
not faced any problems at
New Delhi to protest its May 1998
school. “What the School
nuclear tests.
Service Commission says about
The projects cleared at the
the inability of the blind to teach
Bank’s board meeting yesterday
is absolutely false. Of course, we
included three of the Uttar
do have a handicap, but there are
Pradesh government -- fiscal re­
ways and means to overcome it,”
form and public sector restruc­
he says. On the complaint that
turing, power sector restructuring
blind teachers are unable to
and health systems development.
maintain discipline, he says he
The other two are the central gov­
usually appoints a student to
ernment’s immunisation strength­
report any indiscipline in class­
rooms. In fact, principal of
Barrackpur Government High
School Pabitra Adhikary is quite
satisfied with Chakraborty.
Another grouse is that blind
teachers cannot do boardwork.
But he says that it does not

IBRD okays $700-m aid
for 5 Indian projects
ening project and Rajasthan’s
district poverty initiatives project.
Four of these five projects fall
in the category of basic human
needs which the US had already
exempted from the sanctions.
The fifth — Uttar Pradesh's pow­
er sector restructuring project —
could have attracted sanctions.
Official sources here maintain
that there is no formal change, as
such, in the US sanction policy in
pursuance of which it has been
objecting to World Bank funding
for India's infrastructural projects.
This has resulted in stalling four
projects involving $1.6 billion in
the past two years.
However, they indicate that the

US may adopt a more liberal al­
titude towards the long-pending
projects for the development of in­
frastructure without which India
cannot sustain its intended high­
er growth path of over 7 per cent
World Bank president James
Wolfensohn had assured finance
minister Yashwanl Sinha that hi*
would present the long-stalled
projects before the board lor
consideration.
The bank granted a loan of
$100.48 million from its conces­
sionary lending facility, the
International Development
Association (IDA), for Rajasthan s
district poverty initiatives
project.

The Telegraph
26 April 2000

CDL Media Clippings 45

lions without enough to eat coexisting as well ask labourers to dig up holes and
with surplus stocks. Surely, to use a then fill them up!
cliche,“this does not make much sense.”
n the other hand, if primacy is
How can India be producing too
given to the creation of durable
much food when we cannot provide even
assets, then the projects which
one square meal a day to roughly one will be chosen cannot be very labour in­
third of the population? Amartya Sen tensive. So, for any given volume of non­
would refer to his theory of entitlements food resources which the government is
and point out that the poor have very low willing or able to deploy in the rural
entitlements. Put in every day language, works programmes, only a small labour
the poor who do not get enough to eat are force can be employed. This will in turn
ne of the more important simply unable to pay for the food that
imply that only a small fraction of the
changes announced by the they so desperately want or need. They
excess food stocks can be liquidated in
finance minister, Yashwant are priced out of the market since they
rural works programmes, given the
Sinha, in this year’s rather do not have the incomes or purchasing
overall scarcity of non-food resources
lacklustre budget was the power with which to back their demand
with the government
restructured prices in the public distrib­ for food. So our total production of food
Another possibility is to allow Indian
ution system. The main feature of the today is too large relative to the market
farmers to export food. The usual argu­
new price structure which has become demand for food.
ment against removal of export restric­
effective from April is that consumers
There has been a fair amount of dis­ tions on food grains is that this will lead
with incomes above the poverty line will cussion about ways in which the excess
to an unduly large increase in domestic
have to pay the “economic cost” in­ food stocks can be delivered to the poor.
prices. Given the huge stocks available
curred by the government in supplying There are problems with the “obvious”
the foodgrains. The subsidy will thus be solution of lowering the price of food with the FCI, even a substantially gener­
restricted to those with incomes below grains sold through the public distribu- ous export ceiling will have had a negli­
gible effect on domestic prices. Typical­
the poverty line. The allocation of food­ ’. tion system to the poor and increasing
ly, Indian governments have been undu­
grains to those below the poverty line their quota even further.
ly cautious in stipulating fairly conserv­
has also been doubled.
First, the overwhelming majority of ative export ceilings
However, one of the ironies of the the poor are outside the ambit of the
But it is debatable whether even a
public distribution system is that the public distribution system. So, this will
generous export ceiling would generate
system is distributionally neutral. In only ensure delivery of food to a relative­
a sufficient increase in demand. What is
other words, its customers are spread ly small number of the poor.
more likely is that farmers would be
more or less uniformly across all income
Second, even if there is a sudden able to export only the superior qualities
classes, although its essential purpose is * drop in food production causing the ex­
of food grains. Hence, there would still
to provide food security to the more vul­ cess stocks to disappear, no government
be overproduction of all other qualities
nerable sections of society. This means will find it politically feasible to reverse
of food grains.
the bulk of its consumers actually have the reduction in the price or increase in
The only proper long term solution is
incomes above the poverty line.
the quota of food supplied to the poor. to increase the incomes of the poor. Our
Thus, the increase in the rationed Hence, an action taken as a short-term
quota for consumers below the poverty corrective measure can become a prob­ current level of food production will be
just about adequate once the poor can
line will probably have only a negligible lem in the long-term.
back up their demand with purchasing
effect on the total offtake from the public .
Another possibility which has also power.
distribution system.
• found favour in some quarters is to
In the short run, the government
It is quite likely that the net effect of channel a much larger volume of food
must reverse its policy of caving in to
the restructured prices may actually be grains in ruial works programmes. The
the demands of the farm lobby and as­
a reduction in offtake. This is because essential idea is to employ workers in
suring farmers high procurement or
the relatively poor may not be able to the creation of rural infrastructure,
guaranteed prices. The procurement
take full advantage of the increase in using the excess food stocks to pay work­
price today is way above the market
their rationed quota because they may ers in kind. Rural works schemes of this
price. A lower guaranteed price would
be constrained by their low levels of in­ kind have often been touted as ideal anti­
force farmers to allocate land in line
come — many of them do not have poverty programmes because they are
with market demands, leading to diver­
enough income to purchase the addi­ said to incorporate a degree of target- silication in favour'of high value prod
tional quantities of food grains. On the ing. This is because only the poor and UCfs
other hand, consumers above the pover­ needy will agree to work in such pro- “TTri the short run, a smaller area of
ty line will in all probability respond to grammes in view of the inadequate re- I iland would be devoted to food grains.
the increased PDS prices by diverting numeration..
1 A more prosperous agriculture
their demand to the free market.
’ Unfortunately, this solution also has would result in larger employment and
some fundamental problems. If the increased incomes in the hands of the
he possibility that offtake from the• main purpose of such schemes is to pro- poor. An increase in incomes of the poor
PDS may actually decline has’ vide additional employment or simply to and hence in .their demand for food
caused a lot of eyebrows to be use up the excess food stocks, then the grains would provide farmers the incen­
raised in pained surprise. From all ac­ projects which can be carried out must tive to reallocate their land so as to encounts, the Food Corporation of India is be highly labour-intensive. This places a
able them to supply the right quantity of
today holding on to more stocks of grain constraint on the kind of infrastructure’ food. Thus, the short term solution will
than can be possibly consumed in the < or assets which can be created. Typicalactually merge with the long term
near future. Successive years of bounti- ly,
| these
these will
will be
be assets
assets which
which are
are not
not par
par-­ solution.
ful harvests have ensured the warehous- ticularly durable — roads which are
es of the FCI are overfull. Food prices washed away during the first monsoon
will almost certainly remain stable even belng a good example. This obviously
The Telegraph
if the next couple of harvests are rela- • implies a waste of the non-labour inputs
28 April 2000
tive disasters. So we have hungry mil- used up in the programmes. One might

Food for
thought

BHASKARDUTTA

46

News You Can Use

Jungle-age to cyber-age

rom straight out of their up to fight for their rights ana
abodes in the depths of the save them from victimisation. In reached a flashpoint when the tbe Van Gtqjars was as tough as
it was daunting on account of
thick forests in the Shivalik fact, the thrust of the RLEK spon­ latter were stopped from entering
the park area on their nomadic lifestyle and habi
ranges of north west India, the sored literacy programme has
return from their tation deep inside the forests. As
sprightly children of the nomadic been on equipping the members
summer grounds in such, Kaushal hit upon the idea
pastoral community of Van of Van Gujjar nomads with voca­
the upper reaches of of imparting education right at
Gujjars are having ftm learning tional skills that could go along
the
Himalayas. the doorsteps of the tribe mem
the ABC of computers as part of way in making the community
However, the Van hers. Towards this end,.a forest
their innovative education pro­ self reliant in its true sense.
Gujjars were deter­ academy of sorts was created
gramme being run by the Dehra
As it is, continuing education
mined not to give into with the support of 350 highly
Dun based NGO (Non Govt and post- literacy programme
the machinations of motivated volunteer teachers
Organisation) Rural Litigation now on Van Gujjar settlements
the RNP authorities, who were trained and deployed
and Entitlement Kendra (RLEK). deep inside the forests of
and move into the in batches in the Van Gujjar set­
At the ultra-modern and well- Shivalik ranges not only faciliinhospitable marshy tlements. These dedicated "litera­
equipped schools meant exclu­ tates them in accessing academic
area of Ppathri where cy missionaries" chose to give up
sively for the children of margin­ learning but also provide them
a resettlement colony the comfort of their homes and
alised Van Gpjjars--at Mohand opportunities for upgrading their
hadbeen built for hearths and live in the modest
and Daula Thappar in Uttar dairy skills and enviornmenta)
them. For that would forest dwellings of the communi­
Pradesh-computer training and knowledge . Further, it would
have meant certain ty.- Living and moving with the
videography form a part of the also make them aware of their
death to their distinc­ nomadic Van Gujjars was an
curriculum. The children of Van health and sanitary situation.
tive way of life. Not exciting experience for them.
Gujjars in their traditional dress, This five year long programme is
The most important part of
willing to be blackcomplete with the colourful expected to become sustainable
the
Van this literacy campaign was
mailed.
and
dexterously
patterned through the increased income of
Gujjars pitched their designing the primers called
Krishna cap are having a verita­ the community through innova­
along
the Naya Safar (New Journey) which
tents
ble brush with cyber age. What's tive programmes that are an inte­
periphery of the park had to take into account the
more, sometime last
year gral part of the project. Some of
and put up in the area vocabulary, experience and phys­
Andrew Raw, an English teacher the salient features of this con­
together with their ical enviomment of the comrfrom Great Britain taught these tinuing education and post-litera­
buffaloes. Since the nunity. These primers aimed at
children how to speak, read and cy programme include providing
intention of creating imparting functional skills than
write without going through the reading materials in the form of RNP spread over an area of 825 just providing library knowledge*.
hassles of familiaris­
books, newspapers and periodi­ sq.km across the four westernI
Normally classes were held
ing with "unscientific
cals, imparting legal and health districts of Uttar Pradesh was-under the shade of tress in the
grammer".
education and providing training made public in 1983, Van .Gujjars' Van Gujjar dwellings.The tim
According to Avadesh
in dairy production and bee - have been under great presssure ings of the classes were fine­
Kaushal, Chairperson
keeping. Thanks to the literacy to move out of the park area.
tuned to the needs of the commu­
of RLEK children of
programme launched by RLEK
For the good luck of the much nity. To prevent recidivism, the
this nomadic commu­
way back in late 1993, today as harried
nomads,
Avadesh teachers trekked up and down
nity are being exposed
many as 29,000 Van Gujjar, men, Kaushal threw his lot behind during their annual migrations
to computers, videog­
women and children have their struggle to live in their for­ with their pupils and stayed with
raphy and other gadg­
become literate. Literacy has est homes of centuries. Soon, the them in the highland pastures
ets of modern technol­
brought in a remarkable change movement took on a radical during the summer months. This
ogy so as to prepare
in the perception and attitude of shape and RNP authorities were way, more than 20,000 Van Gujjar
them for a challenging
the community that had all along left with no other choice but to adults were turned literate. The
been under the dark shadow of allow the Van Gujjars a passage development
future ahead. Kaushal
of
innovative
ignorance
and
illiteracy.. into the park.
is clear in his percep­
primers and the involvment of
tion that the children
Since the virile and colourful
During the course of his asso­ the dedicated volunteer teachera
Van Gujjars had their dwellings ciation with Van Gujjars, were found to be instrumental
of Van Gujjar tribe
in the depths of the forests and Kaushal realised that It was igno- for the unqualified success of
should
not
be
eked out their living by selling rance and illiteracy which made this unique adult literacy prodeprived of the oppor­
buffalo milk, they had for long this unspoilt community vulnera-.gramme.
tunities held out by
remained aloof from the main­ ble to all sorts of machinations
the
all
pervasive
It was the confidence instilled
stream society.
cyber age.
and manipulations by the in by the literacy programme
Moreover, * their nomadic civilised society around. And that led Van Gujjar elders to urge
The innovative and
lifestyle put hurdles in the way of hence it was felt that it was vital RLEK to educate their chil­
challenging literacy
educating them in the conven­ for the Van Gujjars to acquire dren.Th is led RLEK to launch a
programme for Van
Gujjars launched by
tional sense. The involvement of the 3R's to change their percep­ formal education programme for
RLEK has won for it
RLEK in the literacy campaign tions, broaden their mental hori­ the children of Van Gujjars. Th«‘
the
prestigeous
for Van Gujjars had a rather dra­ zons and ultimately turn them Van Gujjar schools at Mohand
UNESCO literacy award. Right matic beginning. Way back in into a confident and self reliant and Daula Thappar today imparl
from the outset. RLEK has been September 1992, the simmering community. At the same time, he three R's to more than 200 chil­
clear in its perception that litera­ conflict between the authorities wanted literacy to empower Van dren of the community. These
cy is the key to opening up of of the Rajaji National Park Gujjars against blackmailing schools are a part of a proposed
the minds of the marginalised (RNP)-the winter abode of Van from traders and middlemen.
chain of such schools meant to
and exploited community to gear Gujjars-and the community
BJBu^ttjwthy^l^fedugtin&

Contd...^
CDL Media Clippings 47
mmbmb

90 million
children In India: ILO £ssaz
THERE are at least .90 million, She said that child labour fwma| systems of education in
working children in the age was often justified In the name:a rehabilitation drive.
group of five to 14 years in of poverty. Yet, children who
Some of the worst abuses of
India, according to the Interna- start working at a very young chiid (abour inc|Ude slavery
tlonal Labour Organisation (ILO). age
tend
to . become
and trafficking Of children
ILO director Mary Johnson told unempower^, v. yijtqrtfp,
for forced labour, debt bondage,
a United Nations inter-agency skilled0dul|sttD4S,ppr^tu.atlng.rBCnjJtrnent fof armed conflict.
media workshop on the ‘Worst poverty. Unless -tljeref pas an prostitution, use of children in
Forms of Child Labour* that expansion of schooling, the M|ega| actlvltjes like pornograsome
non-governmental vicious cycle would not be
drug trafficking and danorganisations (NGOs) put the broken and efforts to eliminate garous vocations that com pro­
number of working children at .child labour or eradicate poverty i^iise the health, safety or morals
over 100 million, while the
not make a dent, she of cWWwb the workshop was
government places the figure,aaW- McSweeney noted that toW McSweeney urged India
at 11.28 million going by the many poor had internalised a t0 rali£ the iL0 convention
1991 census. "No society o®Hef that education had no vyhiQh a|ready had
Stiffed
can afford to build its economy;ra,evance to their lives. To
^3 countries and applied to
on the back of working children,” I change this, there has to be a children under 18 and required
UN coordinator In India, Brenda aocial mobilisation to convince tbe rotifying states to take
Gael McSweeney, said, and the poor of the value of educa- action t0
lbJt and eliminate
sought the media’s help to tl0n for their children, she
worst forms of labour. Z
raise public awareness on child addad* Johnson said that the
_
nhean/ar
labour and mobilise action to ,nd,an government Itself had in
1 ne uoserver
rehabilitate the children.
1998-99 identified that about
29 April 2000

Contd...
cater to the needs of Van Guijar
children spread thinly across the
forest stretches of Shivaliks
An informal literacy pro­
gramme on the lines of the adult
literacy programme has boon
launched to benefit poor chii
dren. In this case the teachers
stay with the community to
impart three R’s to the children
through about 200 educational
centres. About three hundred
Van Gujjar children derive bene­
fit from this literacy scheme.

RADHAKRISHNA RAO
Deccan Herald
30 April 2000

INDIAN HYPOCRISY
Obscenity is a convenient excuse
HE arrest of two social workers in Almora on a charge of
obscenity showcases yet again the hypocrisy that is deeply
rooted in the Indian psyche. AIDS is a serious problem not
just in the US, but increasingly in India as well. Refusal to
recognise this could stymie efforts to prevent it from spread­
ing. In any case, it is usually NG.Os or private agencies who
are generally in the forefront of the campaign against AIDS.
The near hysterical reaction of local citizens and the police’s
precipitate arrest of social workers reputed to be doing good
work in the region arises form a stubborn refusal to face the
facts which is so typical. There is an implicit, and mistaken,
notion that Western societies are prone to uncontrolled
promiscuity. This is contrasted to “traditional” Indian society
in which sexual activity is channelled through the marriage,
because sexual activity is seen to be fundamentally for procre­
ation. The attitude is a legacy of colonially transmitted
Victorian mores, and prevalent more among the middle class.
This hypocrisy does no one any good. Especially in the con­
text of the campaign against AIDS. Work is being done in big
cities, especially among prostitutes. That again is the result of
stereotyping. We have to realise that small towns and villages
are equally vulnerable. Victimising social workers is not the
way forward. What’ is especially disturbing is that the police
should act on the basis of random reactions. The Deepa Mehta
parallel is striking. The recent incident is not just about AIDS,
it is also about intolerance. The Indian (especially Hindu)
civilisation al ethos is supposedly characterised by tolerance.
This is untrue. Intolerance and illiberalism are fundamental
characteristics of the Indian social ethos. And that is because
India has rejected modernity.
The Statesman

T

28 April 2000
48

11 NGO members
arrested in Almora
HT Correspondent
Nainital, April 26

leven members of an
Almora-based
NGO,
Sahyog, have been arrested
for projecting an allegedly distort­
ed and wrong image of sex life in
the Kumaon hills in their report on
the possibilities of AIDS in
Uttarakhand. Five of them were,
however, released on bail on
Tuesday.
Secretary of the organisation Dr
Abhijeet Das and his wife, Mrs
Yashodhara Das, who is also the
convenor, are among those arrest­
ed. This study has been done under
the lucrative though controversial
McArthur Fellowships in the US.
District Magistrate of Almora Dr
D. K. Varma has banned all the
activities of the members for two
months, even the circulation of the

E

report has been banned.
Certain objectionable comments
made in the said report, especially
those made on the women, invited
widespread condemnation.
An irate mob in Almora attacked
the Sahyog office and damaged ii
But for the timely intervention of
the police Things could remain
under control.
Several social and students
organisations, including the UKD,
have branding the Sahyog report
as an attack on the vanity and
pride of the hills.
Five of the 11 arrested membeis
have been released on bail; The
convenor and secretary of the soci­
ety, however, are still behind bars
Officials from several NGOs in
Delhi and Lucknow have reported­
ly reached the district headquar­
ters to lobby for the release of the
Sahyog members still behind bai.

The Hindustan Times
27 April 2000

Communication for Development and Learning (CDL)
is a Bangalore-based non-profit voluntary organisation
working to integrate communication more effectively into
the development process. Realising the importance of
working closely with the mainstream media, CDL works
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CDL also undertakes:
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This issue of News You Can Use has been compiled from

The Observer

The Hindu

The Times of India

The New Indian Express

The Hindustan Times

Deccan Herald

The Pioneer

The Asian Age

The Statesman •

The Telegraph

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