Story came at CNN-IBN which fought and highlighted by PVCHR.Please see :
www.foodjustice.net/.../india-four-year-old-boy-died-from-malnutrition-in-uttar-pradesh
www.wovensouls.com/Travelogue-pages/Weaver-Crises.html
INDIA: Four-year-old boy died from malnutrition in Uttar Pradesh
Khusbuddin died of malnutrition on 6 February 2008. Khusbuddin was four years old and the son of late Mr. Mohammad Matin. Khusbuddin was suffering from Grade IV malnutrition.
ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION – HUNGER ALERT PROGRAMME
Hunger Alert Case: AHRC-HAC-003-2008
25 February 2008
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INDIA: Four-year-old boy died from malnutrition in Uttar Pradesh
ISSUES: Right to food; failure of government health service; corruption; criminal neglect
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Dear friends,
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the case of four-year-old boy, Khusbuddin, who died of acute malnutrition in Harpalpur village of Kashi Vidyapith Block, Varanasi district in Uttar Pradesh state. The AHRC has been informed by the People's Vigilance Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR), a local human rights organisation working in Uttar Pradesh state that Khusbuddin was suffering from Grade IV malnutrition which resulted in his death.
CASE DETAILS:
Khusbuddin died of malnutrition on 6 February 2008. Khusbuddin was four years old and the son of late Mr. Mohammad Matin. Khusbuddin was suffering from Grade IV malnutrition.
Khusbuddin was living with his father Mohammad Matin, mother Jaharun Nisha and elder sister in Mirzapur district. After his father's death, Khusbuddin's family moved to his maternal grand parents' home in Harpalpur village, Kashi Vidyapith Block, Varanasi district.
Khusbuddin was identified to be suffering from Grade IV malnutrition, weighing 6.5 kilogram at the St. Mary's hospital in Kourata. Khusbuddin's mother Jaharun was too poor to get Khusbuddin treated at the private hospital. On 5 December 2007, Jaharun took Khusbuddin to the Primary Health Centre (PHC) of Kanai Sarai in Kashi Vidyapith Block which is about 12 kilometers away from Khusbuddin's house. Jaharun had to walk to the PHC since she could not manage the bus fare.
However, the officer at the PHC did not provide any medical attention for malnourished Khusbuddin saying that there was no medicine at the centre at that time. Neither did Khusbuddin receive any food at the PHC. Jaharun could only give Khusbuddin some water and sugar on that day.
After Khusbuddin's death, Dr. A.K. Sahaye of the PHC and Mr. Manish Srivastava, Block Officer in charge of UNICEF programme visited Khusbuddin's house and tried to obtain Jaharun's signature forcibly on a paper certifying that Khusbuddin did not die of malnutrition and was not ill-treated at the PHC. Since they failed to obtain Jaharun's signature, they asked her neighbour to write her name on the blank paper.
It was reported that the Auxiliary Nursing Mother (ANM) of Anganwadi Centre (child care centre) of Harpalpur village who is supposed to be responsible for the health care of the children has never visited Khusbuddin's house and has denied any support to the family so far. It was also reported that after Khusbuddin's death, the village head Mr. Salim delivered 1000 Indian Rupees (USD 25) to the victim's family under the order by Chief Secretary of Uttar Pradesh. This is the only support Khusbuddin's family has received from the government so far.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Harpalpur village is 9 kilometers away from Varanasi city. The village is predominantly occupied by Muslim handloom weavers. Like other weavers' communities in Uttar Pradesh, many weavers in Harpalpur village also had to leave their profession due to the decline of handloom weaving industry. As of now many of such weaver families are suffering from starvation.
Khusbuddin's father Mohammad was also a weaver. After Mohammad death, Khusbuddin's mother Jaharun has been doing embroidery on dupattas (long scarf). This would earn her about 20 Rupees (USD 0.5) in two day's time. Jaharun finds it difficult to manage the daily food for the family with this income. Khusbuddin's elder sister however is provided mid-day-meal from the primary school where she attends.
Despite the extremely poor living condition of Khusbuddin's family, the red ration card (Antyodaya Anna Yojana Card) was never issued to this family. Khusbuddin did not get any support in order to escape from hunger. The Anganwadi centre, which is the key in delivering the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) is neglecting their work in Harpalpur village. The ICDS targets children aged six years or below.
The health workers of the Anganwadi centre have important and direct roles to prevent the poor children and women from starvation and ailments related to starvation and malnutrition at the village level. All the ICDS services are provided through the Anganwadi workers in an integrated manner to enhance its impact on child care.
Under the ICDS, the Anganwadi workers should visit the village regularly to carryout health check-up for the children. Once they identify a malnourished child, the child has to be registered at the Anganwadi centre in order to provide nutrition and health care for the child until the child's condition is safe. However, like the case of Khusbuddin, the negligence of the Anganwadi staff at Harpalpur village is one of the main reasons that result in starvation deaths in India.
The case of Khusbuddin explains that the negligence of the medical officers at the PHC accelerates not only infant mortality in India but also facilitates corrupt practices to hide data regarding infant mortality. In addition, it is a common practice in India to conceal deaths from starvation as was sought to be done both by the doctor at the PHC and the Block Officer. This fact is noted in the most recent report of the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food. This report was prepared by the Rapporteur immediately after his visit to India.
The AHRC has issued similar cases in the past from India concerning the failure of the public health system. The poor condition of the PHC in Kashi Vidyapith Block also was exposed in previous Hunger Alert HA-012-2007. For more information, please refer to HA-014-2007, HA-015-2007, and UG-006-2007.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the authorities mentioned below expressing your concern in this case. Please urge the authorities in India to investigate the facts concerning this case. The facts that led to Khusbuddin's death have to be brought to light and the people responsible for the death must be punished. Such a letter of concern might prevent further starvation deaths in Uttar Pradesh.
The AHRC is also writing a separate letter to the UN Special rapporteur on the Right to Food calling for an intervention in this case.
To support this appeal, please click here:
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SAMPLE LETTER:
Dear __________,
INDIA: Those responsible for the death of four-year-old Khusbuddin must be punished
Name of victim: Khusbuddin, aged four years, son of late Mr. Mohammad Matin, resident of Harpalpur village, Kashi Vidyapith Administrative Block, Varanasi district, Uttar Pradesh state
Date of incident: 6 February 2008
Place of incident: Harpalpur village, Kashi Vidyapith Administrative Block, Varanasi district, Uttar Pradesh state
I am writing to express my concern regarding the case of Khusbuddin who died from starvation and malnutrition on 6 February 2008. Khusbuddin was suffering from Grade IV malnutrition immediately prior to his death.
I am informed that Khusbuddin was identified to be suffering from Grade IV malnutrition at the St. Mary's hospital, a private hospital in Kourata. I am informed that as Khusbuddin's mother Jaharun Nisha was too poor to manage Khusbuddin's treatment at a private hospital. I am aware that Jaharun tried taking Khusbuddin to the Primary Health Centre (PHC) in Kashi Vidyapith Block on 5 December 2008. However I am concerned to know that Khusbuddin was denied any treatment at the PHC.
I am aware that the PHC is about 12 kilometers away from Khusbuddin's house and Jaharun had to walk that distance to reach the PHC since she could not manage the bus fare. At the PHC Khusbuddin was refused any treatment on the ground that there was no medicine at the centre.
I am also informed that even though Khusbuddin was diagnosed as suffering from Grade IV malnutrition two months prior to his death, until he died Khusbuddin never received any assistance. Both the PHC and the Anganwadi centre at Harpalpur village neglected Khusbuddin. It is a shame that the PHC and the Anganwadi, the two government centers that are mandated to provide all necessary assistance for the poor, particularly the health care of the children of six years or below, neglected Khusbuddin till he died. The neglect of the staff at these centres has resulted in Khusbuddin's death.
I am also informed that after Khusbuddin's death was reported in the local media, Dr. A.K. Sahaye of the PHC and Mr. Manish Srivastava, Block Officer in charge of the UNICEF programme visited Khusbuddin's house. I am concerned to know that instead of assisting the family, the officers tried to forcibly obtain Khusbuddin's mother's signature on a paper certifying that Khusbuddin did not die from malnutrition and was not ill-treated at the PHC. However Jaharun refused to sign. I am informed that the officers obtained the signature of a neighbour in the paper.
I am also aware that Khusbuddin was living with his mother and elder sister and his maternal grandmother after Khusbuddin's father's death. I am informed that Jaharun can only earn about 20 Rupees in about two days which is not sufficient for the family to survive. In spite of this the family is denied a red ration card.
I therefore urge you to immediately investigate this case and to punish those who neglected the condition of Khusbuddin's health that resulted in his death. I also urge you to enquire into the allegation of cover-up of the case by the officials attached to the PHC and the Block Office. I hope that your prompt and sensible actions would help to root-out corruption in the public health services in Uttar Pradesh, which might also help in preventing other deaths from starvation and malnutrition in the state.
Yours sincerely,
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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:
1. The Director
Department of Women Welfare & Child Development,
Government of Uttar Pradesh,
Jawahar Bhawan, Ashok Marg,
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
INDIA
Fax: +91 522 228 6140
2. Ms. Mayawati
Chief Minister
Chief Minister's Secretariat
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
INDIA
Fax: + 91 522 223 0002 / 223 9234
E-mail: csup@up.nic.in
3. Secretary to the Government
Uttar Pradesh State Government
5th Floor – Lal Bahadur Sastri Bhavan
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
INDIA
4. The Secretariat
The Right to Food Campaign – India
C/o, PHRN,
5 A, Jungi House
Shahpur Jat, New Delhi-110049
INDIA
E-mail: righttofood@gmail.com
5. The Regional Director
World Food Programme
Unit No. 2, 7th Floor, Wave Place Building
55 Wireless Road
Lumpini, Patumwan, Bangkok 10330
THAILAND
Fax: +66 2 655 4413
6. The Country Director
World Food Programme
2 Poorvi Marg, Vasant Vihar,
New Delhi 110057
INDIA
Fax: +91 112 615 0019
E-mail: wfp.newdelhi@wfp.org
Thank you.
Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrchk.org)
Sunday, February 14, 2010
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Fact finding report of starvation deaths in Bihar
Case Studies in hunger deaths at Jehanabad and
Nalanda districts in Bihar
Summary of incident in Jehanabad district
Three people died in Rattubigha tola (Dhuriari village) of Ghosi block in Jehanabad district due to acute hunger during 10-14 August, 09. The deceased were Kunti Devi, Charittar Dom, and Janardan Mahto. Two of them belonged to the Dalit communities (one of them Mahadalit), and one to the Extreme Backward Caste (EBC) community.
Incidentally, Jehanabad and Nalanda are among the 26 districts declared drought-hit by the Bihar Government.
Hunger Monitoring Team for Fact Finding Report
Hunger Free Bihar Campaign, organized by several action groups fighting for the constitutional right of "livelihood with dignity", formed a Hunger Monitoring team and visited the villages of Rattubigha in Ghosi block (Jehanabad) and Jhawantola in Nursarai block (Nalanda). The following members were involved in the team:-
1. Mr. Pramod Kumar Singh - State Convener, Hunger Free Bihar Campaign
2. Mr. Mukhtarul Haque – State Convener, Bachpan Bachao Aandolan
3. Mr. Vimal Kant - Janadhikar Manch
4. Ms. Shahina – The Hunger Project
5. Mr. Satyanand – Human Rights Law Network
6. Mr. Shoumojit Banerjee – Correspondent, The Hindu
7. Ms. Anita Kumari, Wada Na Todo Abhiyan (Bihar)
8. Ms. Pramila Kumari, social worker
Fact finding Report
Rattu Bigha is primarily a Maha Dalit hamlet of about 75 households, out of which 51 families are Maha Dalits and while 10 are other Dalit families (Paswan). Majority of dalits and BPL families have stated that govt agencies failed to provide any job to them under NREGS. Most of the villagers in the tola were malnourished and suffered from other hunger-related diseases. According to records extracted from the BDO, the hamlet has a total of 20 Antyoday cards, 53 red cards and 2 Annapurna Yojana card holders. Villagers stated they have not been provided subsidized food grains for the past several months by the PDS dealer Anil Sharma.
A note on two of the victims
Kunti Devi, who died on 10th of August, is survived by her husband Mahendra Paswan and two sons (Lalmohan Paswan and Paras Pasan), both of whom used to live separately from their parents.
Mahendra Paswan has 4 hens and owns a buffalo on contract basis which entitles him to a share of profits from the bovine's produce. He was completely landless and the sole bread earner of his family who had no source of livelihood except his traditional artisan (bamboo basket making).
No Food grains received under Antyoday cards
There is no availability of rations in fair price shop at regular basis. Rations have abruptly been stopped by block supply officer/dealer ever since the order to provide villagers with 25 kilos of food grains on their TPDS and AAY cards (instead of the earlier 35 kg.) was issued by the Government of India.
Since June 2008, not a single family has received regular supply of food grains under their Yellow (Antyoday) cards, which entails the villagers to buy rice at Rs.2 and wheat at Rs.3 per kilo. The coupons continue to remain with the villagers, but the dealer claims "shortage of food grains" and keeping the shop closed for most of the time. This has been attested by villagers/ TPDS/AAY card holders eg- like Amrit Manjhi (food coupen no. 5546), Vim Manjhi (5560) and Moti Manjhi (5556). Their AAY cards that have no delivery entry since last year.
Charitter Dom's AAY card and coupons were available with him. Despite he was deprived from subsidized food grains by the dealer. His food coupon no. 15938 for June '08 till May '09 and coupon no. 16133 from June '09 till August 2010 and onwards- continue to remain with his kin as a sordid souvenir of his desperate condition.
His son Ajay Dom, who is living separately from the family, holds a TPDS card (No. 0016133), but he never lifted ration from under the PDS.
Now, among BPL families, an AAY card holder is considered to be poorer than a TPDS card holder.
The question here arises that how has the father been issued with an AAY card, while the son gets a TPDS card? Are the authorities implying that the son is better off than the father, even though both are members of the same family?
Dom's dependant wife was given one quintal food grain (wheat & rice) and also 1500/- for his funeral on 14.08.09.
In the case of Kunti Devi, she was not given ration even after producing Antyodaya Ration Card. Moreover the card was confiscated by the BDO, Rakesh Ranjan , ust two days after her death.
Supreme Court order of 2 May, 2003
PDS control order 2001 defines "diversion" as "unauthorized movement or delivery of essential commodities released from central godowns but not reaching the intended beneficiaries under the Public Distribution System".
Accordingly, to prohibit this diversion, the SC on May 2, 2003 directed the states to cancel the FPS license of those dealers who do not keep their shops open throughout the month during the stipulated period, fail to provide grain to TPDS and AAY cardholders strictly at BPL and AAY rates and no higher rates, make false entries in the BPL/AAY cards and engage in black-marketing.
No workday entries in NREGA job cards
One of the deceased, Charittar Dom's NREGA job card reads thus: card no. 0079, issued 2.02.2006, workday entries: 0. So, Charitra Dom dies jobless on an 10th August despite his job card being issued in February,6, more than three winters ago. While Charitra Dom was fortunate enough to be issued with a job card, Kunti Devi (who died on the 11th august) and Janardhan Mahto alias Janardan Singh), who died on the 13th, were bereft of one.
According to Santosh Paswan, he has applied for a Job card in 2008, but has not received it as yet. Other people like Vim Manjhi, Amrit Manjhi, Sanjeevan Manjhi, Banwari Manjhi, Ganga Manjhi, Mohan Manjhi, Birju Manjhi, Jamun Manjhi, Sajan Manjhi, Surendra Manjhi, Salendra Manjhi, Upendra Manjhi, Arjun Manjhi, Sanjeet Manjhi, Jitendra Manjhi, Koushlendra Paswan, Bhushan Paswan, Navlesh Paswan, Jugeshwar Paswan, Baleshwar Paswan, Nagina Paswan and Udresh Paswan and others have said that Rs.30 was taken from them to get their photos clicked.
In reality, it is the Government of India that bears expenses for the photographs.
Sanctioned relief amount under Indira Awas Yojana not given
Apart from Charittar Dom, none of the deceased were ever availed of the benefits under the Indira Awas (Shelter) Yojna. According to Dom's wife, Ex- mukhiya Arvind kumar, instead of the expected Rs 35,000 under the scheme, gave only Rs 10,000 which was spent on Bricks (5000 pieces). As a result, the bricks continue to lie in Dom's hut till this day. No action was taken against the Ex- Mukhiya Arvind kumar by BDO.
Moreover, there is no entry in his passbook (no.4290), issued by a local Punjab National Bank branch of his having ever received the 10,000 rupees.
Earlier, about 4 years ago when six houses were gutted and all sufferers were assured to get Indira Awas by the government, but not a single home is ready as of today under IAY. None of sufferers have been given money till date, while 6,000 bricks and 12 bags of cements were supplied through contractor instead of the proper channels.
It was also observed that no money has given to the mason for the half – built houses as yet.
So, the sufferer has effectively been saddled with the mason's debt as well.
Flaws in Mid-day Meal Scheme
It was observed that the MDM scheme was virtually dysfunctional in the village. Food is only served for about 8-10 days a month. Moreover, the cook, Bimal Devi, has been dismissed for speaking up against the school administration.
According to her, she was pressurized by headmaster to procure firewood from the students, and was dismissed when she refused to do so.
Widespread prevalence of untouchability
During the visit, it was observed that untouchability was rife in Rattu Bigha. In a violation of MDM norms, there is no evidence is a dalit cook to serve the school children under MDM. Instead, a non-dalit cook has been appointed.
Benefits under Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) not granted
The village Aanganwadi remains open for barely 6-7 days a month. A meager ration of one kilo rice, usually aldulterated with pulses, is served to pregnant women and children. In reality, the authorities are supposed to provide the women and children with more rations than the aforementioned figure, while the rice and pulses are mint to be distributed separately.
Benefits under National Old Age Pension Scheme (NOAPS) not granted
Jhapas Manjhi (age 65 yrs), Nathun Manjhi, Hari charan Manjhi (age 73 yrs) and Sugiya Devi(70yrs) W/o- Materan Manjhi are still deprived from the benefit of NOAPS although all of them are Mahadalits.
Immediate relief not granted on time
Under the Kabir Antyeshti Yojana, family members of the deceased are entitled to Rs. 1500 for performing their last rites. The mukhia / panchayat secretary is supposed to hand over this amount to the kin of the deceased immediately after the death of the person. But in Rattu Bigha, the mukhia or BDO, Rakesh Ranjan, had not done so until 16.08.09, and that too only when our hunger monitoring team reached the village. No dependant of any of the deceased has been given the Rs 10,000 benefit under NFBS as of 27.08.09.
Meanwhile, the BDO and other block officials quickly went on a form-filling drive, catching hold of villagers and filling forms under various schemes.
Claims of Government authorities
Sub divisional magistrate, Ramesh Kumar Sharma, denied that the people had died of starvation, and cited illness as the cause.
He said that "There was absolutely no question of their dying due to starvation as we have allotted a quintal of food grains to every panchayat in the district specifically to meet such emergencies."
But the villagers have stated that the deceased, despite holding BPL and Antoday AnnaYojana cards, did not receive rations during the previous several months.
Rakesh Ranjan, block development officer of Ghosi Block, said that if the villagers had been "deprived of government allotted food grains, then it was likely they had died due to starvation".
As of 22nd August BDO said that he has already dispatched the submitted forms of NFBS by the dependents of deceased to the respective authority for the benefit of Rs 10,000 each. State govt officials expressed before media persons that measures have been taken by the state government to provide Rs 1.26 crore for food grains to below poverty line (BPL) families.
The newly appointed District Magistrate Palika Sahni said that stern action would be taken against middlemen. She confirmed that the dealer had been absconding and she had already instructed the SDM to camp in the village. The DM said that as the food grains allotment last year was inadequate, many villagers were still left with their food coupons. Efforts were being made to identify the gaps and villagers were now being given food grains on priority.(But the statement related distribution of food grains among villagers was not found correct by the fact finding team, only deceased families got one quintal of food grains after the death of three villagers.
Summary of incident in Jhawantola village in Nursarai block of Nalanda district
Phulmati Devi, aged 40 years, and her one year infant Sugan, died of hunger at Jhawantola village in Nursarai block of Nalanda district on 12th August,09. The deceased belonged to the Musahar caste of Maha Dalit community and was a farm labourer.
Fact Finding Report
There are 35 Maha Dalit Musahar families and 40 Dalit (Paswan) families residing in this tiny village Jhawantola in Nursarai block of Nalanda district.
The Despite being 'yellow-card' holders, Maha Dalit families in the village were out of work for months and were not provided rations. Her mother in law, named -- -- – was also died of the same cause on 11/07/09.
For his mother's funeral, Shrawan Kumar (husband of Phulmanti Devi), was not given any monetary relief by the administration.He was given a sum of Rs. 3000/- during death of his wife and child.
The Rs 10,000/- due under National Family Benefit Scheme has been given to him on 14th August by the block officials.
However, he has still not benefited under Indira Aawas Yojana.
The local administration, in order to escape its accountability, has suddenly issued a job card to Shrawan Manjhi just after the death of his wife and child showing the date of issuance as 05.05.09. The card has no entry of any of the workdays and payments made.
His Father, however, has been getting old age pension of Rs 200/month under NOAPS.
Benefits under National Old Age Pension Scheme (NOAPS) not granted
Ramdev Manjhi (75 yrs), widow Surji Devi (74 yrs), Chandra Kalo Devi (74 yrs), Ganauri Manjhi (70 yrs) still continue to be deprived of the benefits under NOAPS.
At the spot, villagers also came up to us and said that they were being systematically deprived of the benefits of different social security schemes that they are entitled for such as Disabled pension, old age pension, widow pension, the benefits of NFBS and Janani Suraksha yojna and several others.
Villagers also revealed that the dealer Fakhruddin continues to engage in hoarding rice, an activity to which the Mukhiya, Saeed Ahmad, turns a blind eye to.
Conclusions
As is evident from the study, hunger death incidents in remote interiors are usually slurred over, unheard of and blatantly ignored across the state.
Intentions and actions continue to be wildly divorced in the Bihar administration, as the victims continue to suffer in silence owing to stark apathy shown by local government authorities. Their problems are further compounded due to caste equations, which continue to raise their ugly head in these hamlets.
Why is it that the government fails to interlink the problem of hunger with starvation, malnutrition and disease?
Why is it that that the failure of the service delivery mechanism is usually found to be the main cause of the problem?
Will hunger wait till this backlog is belatedly filled by providing villagers with rations only after deaths have occurred?
There is a great need to raise awareness, sensitize government officials, strengthen the service delivery mechanism and ensure prompt action on poverty-related issues like food/social security and employment guarantee schemes in the state.
The Hunger Free Bihar Campaign thus strives to cut through this thick fog of bureaucratic apathy, while bringing the plight of these people to public eyes.
Documented by: Shahina, Vimalkant, Soumen, Satyanand, Shoumojit and Pramod
For comments and further enquiries write to:
Pramod Kumar Singh
State Convenor
Hunger Free Bihar Campign
Director, Vidyasagar Samajik Suraksha Seva Evam Shodh Sansthan
A-22, R D Tower, New Punaichak, Patna – 800023, Bihar ( INDIA)
Tele/ Fax - 0612-2281197, 09431419356,
Email – hungerfreebiharcampaign@gmail.com,
WNTA,Bihar< pat_wnta@dataone.in>
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Keine Tränen für die gewöhnlichen Leute?
Keine Tränen für die gewöhnlichen Leute?
Artikel aus der Times of India vom 19. Oktober 2008
Autor: Neelam Raj
Es ist beinahe Mittag in Belwa, einem kleinen Dorf im Bezirk Varanasi in dem nordindischen Bundesstaat Uttar Pradesh, als die Frauen des Dorfes sich versammeln, um das Essen vorzubereiten. Doch dieses ist in Windeseile fertig. Ein wenig Brot und Salzwasser. Eintunken....und die hungrigen Kinder schlingen ihr erstes – und letztes – Tagesmahl hinunter.
„Abends werden sie wieder weinen aber eine kleine Ohrfeige oder zwei wird sie ruhigstellen,“ sagt Laxmina, Frau eines Ziegelbrenners und dreifache Mutter. Ihr Gesicht ist vollkommen ausdruckslos, ihre Stimme jedoch verrät ihre Verzweiflung. Jene Monate sind die schlimmsten in Belwa. Wenn die Ziegelöfen im Juli geschlossen werden und dies auch bis Oktober bleiben, beginnt in dem kleinen Dorf der Überlebenskampf der Musahars, jener, die Indiens niedrigster Kaste angehören. Es sind ihre Kinder, die am meisten darunter leiden. Gesundheitsuntersuchungen der Einwohner Belwas durch das People’s Vigilance Committee for Human Rights, eine Organisation, die in der Region arbeitet, ergab, dass mehr als 80% der Kinder des Dorfes unterernährt sind.
„Im letzten Jahr sind die Nahrungsmittelpreise rapide gestiegen, die Höhe der Einkommen jedoch nicht. Es ist unmöglich, die Kinder bei guter Gesundheit zu erhalten, wenn sie sich lediglich von Brot ernähren, ganz ohne Milch und Gemüse,“ sagt Lenin Raghuvanshi, ein Aktivist der PVCHR. Aufgeblähte Bäuche und unterentwickelte Extremitäten sind jedoch nicht nur im östlichen Uttar Pradesh die traurige Realität.
Folgende Statistiken geben Auskunft über den Allgemeinzustand Indiens:
• Laut einem UN-Report leiden in Indien 4 von 10 Kindern an Unterernährung.
• Indien belegt den 66. Rang von 88 Ländern im Global Hunger Index 2008. Der Bericht trägt zutage, dass es in Indien mehr Hungernde gibt – mehr als 200 Millionen – als in jedem anderen Land.
• Laut neuester Schätzungen der Weltbank beherbergt Indien ein Drittel der weltweit unter der Armutsgrenze lebenden. Basierend auf der aktuell gesetzten Armutsschwelle – 1,25 US-Dollar pro Tag – ist eine Steigerung der Anzahl in Armut lebender Menschen in Indien von 421 Millionen im Jahr 1981 auf 456 Millionen im Jahr 2005 zu verzeichnen.
• Indien liegt laut Human Development Index derzeit auf Rang 128 von 177 Ländern. Dieser Index richtet sich nach dem BIP eines Landes und darüber hinaus nach dem Stand der Entwicklung über die Indikatoren Lebenserwartung, Alphabetisierungsrate und Lebensstandard.
Verloren diese alarmierenden Zahlen nun an Bedeutung als man eine Steigerung des BIP feststellen konnte? Wurden in Zeiten des Wirtschaftsbooms Indiens – möglicherweise bewusst – die düsteren Zustände vergessen? Man führe sich nur Aravind Adiga’s Geschichte eines Rikschafahrers zu Gemüte, um sich die harten Fakten hinter der Fiktion in Erinnerung zu rufen. Im Verlauf der Geschichte verlässt er die „Dunkelheit“ des ländlichen Indiens und zieht in das „Licht“ des urbanen Gurgaon. Inmitten der Call Centres, der 360,000,004 Gottheiten, der Einkaufzentren und der lähmenden Verkehrsstaus ist der Protagonist des Buches mit dem modernen Indien konfrontiert.
„The cars of the rich go like dark eggs down the roads of Delhi. Every now and then an egg will crack open and a woman's hand, dazzling with gold bangles, stretches out of an open window, flings an empty mineral water bottle onto the road and then the window goes up, and the egg is resealed.''
Die trostlose Realität findet in dieser Welt keinen Platz. „Ungleichheit und Ungerechtigkeit haben uns immer schon umgeben,“ meint Menschenrechtsaktivist Harsh Mander. „Aber der Unterschied zur heutigen Zeit ist, dass es nicht einmal mehr Empörung hervorrufen zu scheint. Es besorgt uns nicht, dass die Hälfte der Kinder Indiens noch immer unterernährt ist, oder dass 200 Millionen Menschen jede Nacht hungrig zu Bett gehen; dass der Zugang zu qualitativ hochwertiger Bildung immer noch abhängig ist von den Finanzen und dem sozialen Rang der Familie, in die man hineingeboren wird; dass tausende Kinder bitterkalte Winternächte auf schmutzigen Gehsteigen unter freiem Himmel verbringen; dass ein Krankheitsfall im Haushalt die permanente Verarmung der ganzen Familie bedeuten kann; dass Frauen am härtesten Arbeiten, aber den geringsten Verdienst erzielen; und dass Dalits und andere Minderheiten nicht nur den Gefahren der Deprivation ausgesetzt sind, sondern auch jenen des organisierten Hasses. Es scheint, als hätten wir im Kollektiv beschlossen, jene in Armut lebenden Menschen sogar aus unserem Gewissen und unserem Bewusstsein zu verbannen.“
Auf der anderen Seite wird der verschwenderische Lebensstil der Reichen gefeiert. „Es ist kein Wunder, dass die soziale Unzufriedenheit wächst. Im Grunde ist die einzige Überraschung die geringe Anwendung von Gewalt um uns,“ sagt Satish Deshpande, Professor der Soziologie and der Wirtschaftsschule Delhi.
Wird es immer so bleiben? „Die Unabhängigkeit Indiens besteht nun seit 60 Jahren und die Ungeduld wächst,“ hebt Deshpande hervor. Letzten Endes ist das Lesen über Indiens chronische Entwicklungsdefizite eine Sache, damit zu leben eine gänzlich andere.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Support to Ashoka fellow John in Maharastra
Dear Lenin,
I hope the following note will satisfy you.It is 12 .20 midnight.I have 12 cases tomorrow.All attrocity cases.Very crucial decisions.I have to prepare for it.
Requesting support for the land rights of indigenous people and dalits (people from lower-castes) in Puntamba, Maharashtra, India
I would like to have your kind attention to the ongoing atrocities against 200 landless families of indigenous people and dalits in Puntamba, Maharshtra , India perpetrated by the local landlords and the police officials. In 1994, these families came together under the banner of Bhumi Hukka Andolan (BHA, meaning ‘land rights movement’) and are demanding the Government of Maharashtra to regularize their land which they have been cultivating for the last three decades.
The Indegenous Tribal and dalit communities are facing various abuses by the local landlords. In 2001, when BHA led a peaceful rally to protest against police inaction in a case of molestation of a indigenous girl by a local landlord, the police indiscriminately fired at the tribals and dalits. 2 leaders of BHA were shot dead in that police firing and many others were seriously injured.
The officials of Maharashtra Government are repeatedly destroying the huts and crops of the indigenous people and dalits, that too without prior notice. In 2003 alone around 200 huts were destroyed.When the affected tribals and dalits approached the local police station, they refused to register the complaint.
The indigenous people and dalits in this area have been cultivating the land for more than 30 years. The land is officially under the custody of the Maharashtra State Farming Corporation (MSFC).This land was given to MSFC on lease by the Government of Maharashtra. This land was acquired by the Government of Maharashtra as surplus land under land ceiling laws. MSFC could not cultivate the land and was left fallow for almost three decades. Neither was the land distributed to the landless people as per the objectives of the Ceiling Act which was passed in 1961
In 1994, the Government of Maharashtra decided to dissolve MSFC and give part of the land to the former owners of the land and the rest to multinational seed companies. BHA started the struggle against this move as indigenous people and dalits are entitled to the regularization of the land under the Maharashtra Government resolution of 1990, which allows for the regularization of encroachments made on a fallow land. As the land occupied by indigenous people and dalits is government fallow land as per government records, its occupants are entitled to obtain regularization under this resolution of 1990.
In 2001, the Bombay High Court gave an order in a writ petition filed by BHA directing the government authorities to expedite the inquiry regarding the encroachments made by the indigenous people and dalits on government waste land and that the present occupants of the land not be relocated till the case is finally disposed off. The government authorities are very slow in implementing the court order and this is a deliberate act to harass the poor indigenous people and dalits.
Now there are a large number of land-related cases pending in various courts and most indigenous people and dalits have to visit the courts on a regular basis. There are cases against indigenous and dalits and there are also cases filed by them against the MSFC officials for committing atrocities on them. The burden on tribals and dalits has increased enormously due to these prolonged cases. This has resulted in huge burden on indigenous people and dalits in terms of terms of financial, social and psychological costs
An additional problem faced by the landless tribals is the frequent demolition of their crops and huts.This makes them highly insecure.Loose their livelihood because if they manage to cultivate the crops they will not starve.Moreover,if their huts and crops are destroyed they are forced to migrate to brick kilns and for sugar cane cutting.This affects the education of their children. There are around 500 families who have occupied such lands though now only around 200 families are actively involved in the struggle
In light of all these, we earnestly request you to report these incidents and to demand the Maharashtra government to take following steps immediately:
1) To order an independent and impartial inquiry about the violence against tribals and dalits and take appropriate action to punish the guilty.
2) To take immediate steps to resolve the land disputes by regularizing the land of tribals and dalits as per the Maharashtra Agricultural Land (Ceiling of Holdings) Act 1961.
3) To stop all the demolitions unless the tribals who have settled possession of the government waste lands are resettled as per the international standards on eviction.
We sincerely request your support for this struggle by the landless tribals and dalits for their land rights.
john
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Transforming Lives in Varanasi by “Bringing the Capital Market Home to the People”
On March 14th, 2008, the Prime Minister of India pledged $18 million worth of assistance to the impoverished silk weavers of Varanasi. This was part of a larger package of initiatives designed to address the working conditions and living standards of long-neglected workers who provide products and services of both economic value and cultural importance for India. This recognition of the needs and the value of the weavers of Varanasi originated in the work and innovative thinking of two Ashoka Fellows collaborating together for change, Darin Gunesekera and Lenin Raghuvanshi.
Two Remarkable Fellows
Darin and Lenin are social innovators that normally would never have met. Darin is a Yale-educated Sri Lankan economist whose belief in the market had led him to assist the poor of Columbo in acquiring the wealth necessary to participate in the financial marketplace. Lenin is a locally educated Indian human rights activist whose belief in social justice had led him to employ protest, advocacy and information campaigns to change attitudes and behaviors affecting India’s Dalits and other severely disadvantaged citizens. What they shared was an abiding interest in empowering and enfranchising the less fortunate of their respective cities. What brought them together was being Ashoka Fellows. And what they achieved together can serve as an example of international collaboration that enables individuals who have made a difference in their communities to benefit poor people worldwide.
Lenin became an Ashoka Fellow in 2001 some five years after starting a human rights membership organization called the People’s Vigilance Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR). PVCHR, which now consists of 50 thousand members, joined together people of diverse backgrounds to promote basic human dignity and equality over caste in Indian society. Though caste discrimination was officially outlawed by the national government decades ago, the practice of unjustly abusing and discriminating against Dalits (formerly known as “Untouchables”) had continued with employers, police forces, and local governments. One of the roles of the PVCHR was to bring this reality to light and inform the public and officials that these injustices were indeed against Indian law. For example, the PVCHR had the distinction of prompting the National Human Rights Commission to award the highest amount in compensation to a Dalit survivor of extreme torture by his upper-caste employer as well as to put 42 police officers behind bars for torturing Dalits and Other backward caste people. PVCHR also championed the rights of impoverished Muslim communities who were being similarly treated.
The highly diverse PVCHR members played many different roles in getting their messages across including taking part in rallies, demonstrations and campaigns coordinated and publicized by the central PVCHR committee. Also among the members were 3 thousand former torture victims who PVCHR helped as well as famous poets and intellectuals that were well known in Uttar Pradesh. Lenin also broadened the scope of PVCHR by working with 40 other human rights groups, such as India Centre for Human Rights and Law, Human Rights Lawyer’s Network, People’s Commission against Assault on Minorities, and NAFRE People’s Movement.
Darin is the founder of the social entrepreneur organization, Wiros Lokh Institute (WLI) in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He became an Ashoka Fellow in 2003, after successfully setting up the Colombo Stock Exchange and Securities Council (and serving as its Secretary General), serving as a Commissioner of the Sri Lanka Board of Investment, advising and helping modernize the Nairobi Stock Exchange, and then bringing his capital markets knowledge to bear on Colombo’s housing situation. He originated a concept of sustainable slum and shanty dweller re-housing using capital markets tools, which has enabled 670 families to obtain hygienic housing in Sri Lanka. The following is a description of how it worked:
Darin started what he called his New Idea, i.e. to start a housing stock exchange market, a variant of modern stock exchanges, where the poorest inner-city slum and shanty dwellers could value or trade their main item of wealth, which was the land they occupied, in favor of receiving superior housing and services as well as asset ownership. Darin believed that when people buy homes of a design and type they want, paying from their own assets, they will improve those neighborhoods and be proud of their homes.
In Colombo, the poorest or shanty and slum dwellers occupied 2.18 perches (find easily understood conversion of a perch of land) of ground land per household. A modern middle class apartment occupied slightly over one half perch. So the home trade of the New Idea would release city lands. Secondly, the slum and shanty dwellers constituted over half the city population and occupied central inner zones that had valuable city access. So liberating these lands would yield considerable financial value. As the city was of low density and there was a housing shortage of over 25% nationwide, a planned scheme spreading from nodes or neighborhoods of redevelopment could be seen as clearly beneficial. Utility sale income and municipal rates collections would also increase.
However, realizing an idea like this requires significant buy-in and cooperation from the local housing authority. So the second step for Darin was to take the bureaucratic risk in his own name and form a group under the Authority to implement the new idea. The new organization outsourced the Authority using its own personnel only to do this task. Darin then trained the personnel to convert from welfare officers to social marketers of the New Idea.
The details of the strategy were to photograph every household in a community or land plot who volunteered for the scheme and gain their agreement in principle to the exchange scheme. Then developers were invited to bid to construct the new building. The slum and shanty dwellers first voted on what design they would like. Developers were helped to meet and discuss designs with the people. A secret price ceiling for the developers to bid within was adopted but this could be guessed, as it had to be well below the value of land released by the scheme. The people voted and chose a design. Then they came to the trading floor one household at a time to trade the vacant possession of their home for a home in the new building. Each household got one and it was related to the size of home they gave up and its locality. The people voluntarily signed up for the home they desired.
After construction, the homes were given with full title to the new residents and the released lands made available for up-market regeneration. The new building, which has 675 apartments, has been in occupation for over a year and the show of its residents’ feelings is called “transforming lives”.
Birth of a Collaboration
Darin was interested in finding a partner in India to expand and replicate his housing stock market idea. After going through the Ashoka Fellow profiles, he contacted the North India Representative and expressed an interest in learning more about Lenin’s work. The Representative decided to cover the cost of Darin’s travel to Varanasi in February 2004. The first meeting proved extremely fruitful and the Fellows planned to collaborate to bring Darin’s project to Varanasi. They decided to call it “Bringing the Capital Market Home to the People.” Together they produced a proposal for Ashoka to fund the initial stages of their collaboration including a visit by Lenin to Columbo. This proposal was well received and approved already by April 2004.
Once having made contact and secured funding from Ashoka, Darin and Lenin solidified their collaboration with Lenin’s first visit to Columbo in May 2004. This was a pivotal starting point for what would become the Varanasi Weavers Trust. Lenin brought with him the Authorities’ Master Plan for Varanasi and District map. In consequent discussions, Darin went on to unravel the meaning of these documents and their relevance to the planned action for Varanasi. As for Lenin, the most important need was to understand the context of Sri Lanka and Colombo city vis-à-vis Darin’s work so as to get a picture of its relevance to Varanasi.
As they worked together and planned for those 10 days, it became clear that a program in Varanasi lacked many fallbacks and safety nets that were available to Darin in Sri Lanka owing to his ability to reach all the levels of Government, the largest banks and the leading professionals in the relevant areas. The system of development and of urban housing in Varanasi, and in India generally, differed from Colombo considerably and thus the methodology would have to differ. Most importantly, Darin’s work in Columbo (which the Varanasi program would be partly modeled upon) was applied, in its time, to a situation with iron clad promises of financial returns owing to the very high level of land value in the specific inner city area chosen. In Varanasi, this did not apply and Varanasi did not have a liquid market for assets, credit or loans. For these reasons, Varanasi needed a long-term commitment.
The final result of the trip was that Darin and Lenin decided to join forces in Varanasi and in Colombo and advance projects both places. They exchanged signed letters authorized by their organizations appointing each other to their organizations. They decided on strategies and actions in Colombo and in Varanasi and these constituted a long-term commitment.
For Colombo, Lenin would help drive several WLI projects. He assisted Abheypala De Silva of WLI in convening the WLI’s first action in the human rights area. A campaign for “Globalization of Sensitivities” was launched by way of a “Colombo Declaration” with signatures by WLI and PVCHR as starters. This appeared in the Sri Lankan press.
For Varanasi, it was clear that for a building program to occur involving Lenin’s resources and network, a negotiation with the existing people base of PVCHR would be needed. It was also necessary to show these stakeholders how the program would advance the economic interests of the Varanasi communities. Lenin and Darin consulted experts in Sri Lanka available to Darin before firming on the plan. This resulted in the drafting of a letter to the Authorities in Varanasi District that was delivered upon Lenin’s return to Varanasi. This effectively started the planning negotiations. Lenin then organized and held conventions of the weaving community to create support for the program.
It is also worth noting here that the Colombo meetings between Darin and Lenin did not take place alone. Chandrika Gunesekera, Darin’s co-worker and wife, was present at all meetings with Darin and some of the tour meetings. Having more experience in housing programs, she was able to create a greater explanatory framework so that Lenin could understand the Colombo situation. She was also crucial in bringing divergent lines of thought together. The resultant program of action owes a lot to her intervention. Lenin was also able to benefit from tours with R Pathirana and Kumara Wijeysinghe who work with Darin and WLI.
The Weavers Trust
In the decade leading up to Lenin and Darin’s first meeting, Varanasi had been growing rapidly due to its role as a transportation hub, its agricultural and industrial development and the increase of visitors to its cultural attractions. It was in order to address these growth factors, that the Master Plan for the District (the one that Lenin brought with him to Colombo) was conceived by the Varanasi Authorities. This plan included the relocation of populations away from the crowded city center for the creation of new commercial zones. This crowded city center included the neighborhoods inhabited by the impoverished silk weavers that Lenin intended to assist. Hence, Darin and Lenin saw their opportunity to harmonize the needs of the weavers with the realities of urban planning.
Another circumstance driving the need for solutions for the weavers was the onslaught of market pressures threatening their livelihoods. Though Varanasi had traditionally had the best name in saris in India, it had more recently acquired domestic rivals (i.e. the power loom and industrialized systems of sari producers in other parts of India), had seen some of its master craftsmen lured away to Nepal and China to develop new industries there, and had seen significant cost increases in inputs due to tariff changes on imported raw materials. Thus Darin and Lenin’s plan undertook the multiple challenges of addressing housing reform, social justice, protection of livelihoods and cultural heritage preservation!
After considering various options for structuring their project and for applying Darin’s Colombo project solutions to Varanasi, they came up with the idea of a creating a Trust for the Varanasi weavers, the purpose of which was to act as a cooperative for their work and also as custodian of their property. The idea was to have the weavers pledge the land they lived on to the Trust and accept certificates stating their new beneficial rights under the Trust. The only beneficiaries of the Trust would be these certificate owners. Later in the process certificate owners would also be permitted to enter through cash investment. All of the rights, beneficial interests and responsibilities would be defined fully in the Trust Deed and explained to all.
Thus, the Mission of the Varanasi Weavers Trust (VWT) would be to reach the following objectives:
• Improve and bring to modern development the Varanasi Sari Industry
• Re-house in decent housing the workers and the poor registered as residents of Varanasi
• Enable the craftsmen to become artists in the weaving of silks or skilled workers of the weaving industry
• Establish the Rights of Varanasi Weavers vis-à-vis their homes, workplaces and the economics of their trade or work activity
• Establish share financing or equity financing of the weaving industry through the Trust’s Certificate financing on stock exchange lines
• Develop business specialization and competitive trade in this industry.
The sequence of milestones for setting up and creating the Varanasi Weavers Trust and moving it to self sustained operation would be the following: Trust set up, project team set-up, registration of weavers and their families, registration of lands, registration of workplaces, acquisition of appropriate IT systems, creation of a VWT Center for exchanges, development of a pilot program for weavers, implementation of the pilot program, and then expansion to other weavers beyond pilot group. Darin and Lenin envisaged this entire process as taking five to seven years, and both of them were fully aware of the obstacles and challenges they might face in its implementation. What was needed was a serious effort to create and secure support of all kinds for the program from state and national authorities.
How to Get the Right Kinds of Attention
In the time between those early planning stages and the final success of recognition and funding from the National Government, Lenin and Darin promoted their agenda using their respective strengths. Darin conducted economic analyses of what the silk weavers needed to thrive, made use of his extensive capital markets expertise to plan the Trust, and used his entrepreneurial zeal to persuade high-level government officials to buy into the innovations that the VWT would offer. Lenin in turn, engaged in what he called his “sandwich strategy”, i.e. to mobilize resources from the bottom-up and the top-down socially speaking. He also used his expertise in the creation of bargaining power by identifying issues, ideas and goals that could be bargained over with officials. The idea being that he would show them what they could get in return for helping his causes.
Lenin immediately organized the weavers through a non-political union called Varanasi Silk Weavers, and as part of the bottom-up half of his strategy, he mobilized this union’s 5,000 members to protest, demonstrate, and sign petitions promoting the project and the Weaver’s Trust along with many of the 50,000 members of Lenin’s PVCHR organization). With these sorts of numbers, they were bound to get noticed.
On the top-down part of Lenin’s strategy, he targeted famous entertainment people, regional Asian human rights notables, and national political leaders. For example, in the period 2005-2006, he interacted with Bollywood star Farooq Shaikh, who convinced leaders of other trade unions to join the movement and the case was shown on India’s NDTV (Flight of weavers in Varanasi)
Darin on his side was interacting with high-level officials including one member of the Planning Commission of India that he met personally in November of 2006 and discussed the VWT with him at that time. He later followed that meeting up with a letter informing that same Planning Commission member of a seminar/ meeting held in Varanasi in April 2007 where the leaders of the weavers had finally fully agreed to join such the Trust as it had been planned by Darin and Lenin.
Thus, in the period 2006-2007, Lenin and Darin were engaging in multiple initiatives designed to get high-profile attention and retain it. It worked so well that articles were published about the Varanasi weavers in The Washington Post, by Reuters News Service, and the International Herald Tribune.
One very important initiative was when Lenin went to the Asian Human Rights Commission in Hong Kong, which is led by Ashoka Fellow Basil Fernando, and got his help in lobbying the Indian government regarding the Varanasi weavers. This resulted in the December 2007 release by The Asian Human Rights Commission of an open letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh signed by 20 residents of Varanasi who were seeking immediate action to help tuberculosis patients. The following is an excerpt from the letter:
Mr. Mohmoodul Hassan, son of Mohammad Hassan, residing at Lohta village, Varanasi district, has been suffering from tuberculosis for the past 22 years. Mohmoodul was diagnosed as having tuberculosis by the Banaras Hindu University Hospital in Varanasi.
Mohmoodul is a handloom weaver. Because of abject poverty and the lack of a proper income due to the decline of the handloom weaving industry in Uttar Pradesh, particularly in Varanasi, Mohmoodul’s family is finding it hard to make both ends meet. The family has hardly anything to eat. The entire family is suffering from starvation and resultant malnourishment….Mohmoodul and his family are not alone….In fact, an estimated 70% of the weavers in Varanasi suffer from tuberculosis. Despite the existence of some governmental agencies with sufficient resources, whose specific mandate is to assist tuberculosis patients and to provide treatment, none of them has received any kind of assistance from these agencies.
The doctors in government clinics and hospitals only provide medication for a short period, sometimes for only two days, and then tell their patients to obtain further medication from private medical shops. There have also been situations in which patients diagnosed as having tuberculosis by private doctors were later told by government hospitals that they are not infected with tuberculosis, with a view to denying them treatment.
The right to health is a fundamental right. So far the State or the Central government has not devised any credible plans to identify those weavers who need assistance for health security in Uttar Pradesh. An officer from the State Handloom Department, who participated in a people’s tribunal, jointly organized by the People’s Vigilance Committee on Human Rights, Action Aid International – India, Bunkar Dastakar Adhikar Manch and the Asian Human Rights Commission on 18 December 2007, informed the tribunal and the public that the Handloom Department has no mechanism to identify weavers who are in need of assistance….
This was published widely and covered and on blogs and newspapers in India.
Lastly, Lenin contacted the General Secretary of India’s Congress Party, Rahul Gandhi (son of Sonia Gandhi) who then brought the plight of the malnutrition children up in national political discourses. Lenin knew that with elections coming up the following year there would be a good chance of making this issue get even more attention than it otherwise would.
All of these initiatives eventually grabbed the attention of the Planning Commission of India to a sufficient degree that it held a very large event to explore the problem as well as the requests for assistance. Lenin says that because of the pressure at the grassroots and the pressure from the global advocacy, the Varanasi weavers were put on the agendas of both the Planning Commission and the Indian PM and that is what ultimately led to the success of having the Prime Minister make his remarkable pledge of assistance and funding upon visiting Varanasi in March of this year.
The Value to You
The reason why this story should be important to other Ashoka Fellows as well as social entrepreneurs of all kinds is the way that its cross-border, cross-cultural cooperation actually worked in very tangible ways. And Lenin and Darin did not only come from different places and different cultures, but they were individuals with differing temperaments and probably even political beliefs. This seems to have actually benefited their effort. Theirs was a collaboration outside of the normal models for sustainable development. They embraced the challenge, gave it their all, and it worked well. ‘Anyone else want to try this?
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Ripple effect of voice of weavers in Varanasi
Mrs. Shruti Nagvanshi founder of People's Vigilance Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR) write story on the condition of weavers in my news http://www.mynews.in/fullstory.aspx?storyid=2949 with the help of student of Master of Social work (MSW) previous year student from Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith Varanasi. Student's collects information from weavers dominated area under the guidance of her. On 13th March, 2008 Convener of People's Vigilance Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR) Dr. Lenin used the article of Shruti on www.mynews.in and send petition to Ms. Sayeda Hameed member of Planning Commission, National Human Rights Commission and Delhi Prime Minister officer, to all those people who are standing with the weavers to help them like Mr. Bijo Francis South Asia Desk officer Asian Human Rights Commission is continuously releasing appeal on the condition of weavers to bring national and international pressure on the Government to make change in the policy. On 4th April, 2008 this petition was placed before the Commission.
On 17th April, 2008 National Human Rights Commission takes a quick action and send letter to District Magistrate of Varanasi as well as chief Secretary of UP and copied to Principal Secretary of Government of Uttar Pradesh and Dr. Lenin Convener of PVCHR.
The order is written in same language as used by National Human Rights Commission-
Transmit to the D.M, Varanasi and the Chief Secretary, Government of Uttar Pradesh, for appropriate enquiry and action at his end with a report to this Commission within 4 weeks on the steps taken. It is requested that an Action taken Report be sent to the Commission within 4 weeks from the date of receipt of this letter. When the real sensitivity of any struggling community who are struggling for the identity of their livelihood is published we can see the ripple effect.
This type of result can be seen if we amplify the uncensorship voice in the gallery of policy makers. PVCHR and Bunkar Dastakar Adhikar Manch (BDAM) are continuously struggling to raise voice of weavers which can echoes in the ears of policy makers.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Maalnutrition in wever's families
http://www.newkerala.com/one.php?action=fullnews&id=59976
http://www.dailyindia.com/show/239876.php/Malnutrition-grips-handloom-labourers-children-in-Varanasi
Above mentioned is the case of malnutrition in families of weavers.PVCHR is supporting them with the help of Car House Foundation,Sweden.But what is Government is doing?
Leninwww.pvchr.org
