CommunicadoCommunicadoCommunicadoBook of Thoth

A Small Chili canmake a HUGE difference

An Interview withSabriye Tenberken

Winning Articles of ‘Author a change’ contest

Also

Communication Cell, IIFM would like to

thank

Prof. A.K. Srivastava IFS, Director, IIFM,

Dr. Rekha Singhal, Dean, IIFM and

Prof. Prashant Jadhav IFS, Chairperson,

SAAC for giving us the opportunity to

bring out this Magazine

“IIFMCommunicado”, the first ever in the

history of Communication Cell, IIFM.

We also thank the faculty, students, staff

and alumni who took time and effort to

contribute content for the magazine.

Special thanks to Ms. Sabriye Tenberken

and Paul Kronenberg, Co-Founders of

Kanthari International and Ms. Thinlas

Chorol, Founder, LWTC who spared their

time and gave us an interview.

We also thank Mr. KVC Sekhar,

Publication Cell, IIFM for his guidance,

support and timely help.

Acknowledgement

IFMCommunicado

Book of Thoth

2012-13

IIFMCommunicado

Contents

IIFM Communicado: Set to march

Education is key to social transformation. A look into the recent past would give enough evidence that it is the education that has been the breeding cauldron leading to emergence of new technologies, new business model, and new social orders. But a closer look reveals that it is communication that has enabled migration of new ideas and discoveries across the globe, setting off a chain reaction that has spawned a web of information connecting many dots and making a complete picture. As the role of communication gets better appreciation, it is responsibility of each of us, including industries, society and academia, to ensure that we keep devising methods that open novel and better means of communication. Management schools, as a community has been entrusted with the responsibility of grooming the

minds to run institutions in diverse sphere of society. Thus it is our responsibility to communicate effectively

and faster and spread the awareness about the latest multidimensional global trends l, covering diverse

aspects to realize a holistic results.

It is my pleasure to bring the maiden issue of IIFM communicado, a brainchild of IIFMites. While the

students at IIFM have always given their best while engaging in learning and innovating new frontiers in

management sciences, this magazine would pave the way for effective communication and bring forth the

larger picture before the world. Our students are active in diverse fields, and this magazine aims to provide an

effective channel to communicate their learning, inside as well as outside IIFM.

I congratulate and wish the very best to the team who has shown remarkable strength to dream and

realize the dream. This first issue of communication brings to the table some very interesting articles ranging

from experience of young leaders active in bringing new solutions to several social issues, women

entrepreneurs, insightful thoughts about some national challenges, hope to dream, to some interesting article

of social, environmental and technological relevance. The details of BWB School and Ladakhi Women's

Travel will definitely prove to be great source of motivation for any reader to take up social entrepreneurial

venture.

I am confident that this is only the beginning, and going forward this magazine would grow

exponentially drawing on the strengths of our bright and energetic students, and support of brilliant faculty.

The journey begins… Jayashree Dubey Assistant Professor, IIFM

Message from Faculty Advisor

A small chili can make a HUGE difference 1

A window to contemporary challenges: A holistic approach 8

Innovation: will the next ..... 12

Imagine a world without wires & poles! 15

Where conservation meets livelihood 16

Getting back to nature 18

Bridging the gap: A policy to eradicate poverty 20

The essentials of environment and poverty 22

Going down the drain 25

The tribes in forests: A conflict or a synergy? 26

Things falling apart- We have to hold 27

Meet the first woman tourist guide of Ladakh 29

Contents

IIFMCommunicado

Sabriye Tenberken (German) is the co founder of

Kanthari International and Braile Without

Borders (BWB). In 2005 Sabriye was nominated

for the Nobel Peace Price and World Economic Forum,

Davos (WEF) awarded Sabriye, “Young Global

Leader”. Sabriye Tenberken received the Time

magazine Asia's HERO 2004 award. In 2008 Gov. of

China awarded Sabriye as One of 15 most influential

overseas experts over the past 30 years in China.

A small chili canmake a HUGE difference!

An Interview with

Sabriye Tenberken

The Tibetan journey

n eighth grade

Al e s s o n o n

T i b e t ' s

customs, religion, and history

and a subsequent field-trip to a

museum dealing with Tibetan

items, art and artefacts captured

Sabriye's imagination. She

dreamt of visiting Tibet starting a

school for the blind there. To

obtain official approval for

opening a school for the blind in

Tibet she visited China, all alone,

completed an intensive course in

Chinese and then went to Tibet to

realize her dream. She struggled

to explain her mission speaking

in Chinese and Tibetan and faced

many challenges initially as

visiting Tibet requires special

permits, the officials however

granted Sabriye permission when

she assured that her mission was

not political, but only to support

blind people. Sabriye decided to

go directly to Lhasa, the capital of

Tibet. There she discovered that

b l i n d n e s s i s c o n s i d e r e d

p u n i s h m e n t f o r m i s d e e d s

perpetrated in a past life or due to

possession by demons and not as

a medical anomaly. For centuries

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Tibet's blind have been shunned,

vilified, and generally treated as

sub-human. She was surprised to

find that though Tibet has per

capita twice the number of blind

people (1 person in 70) as the

global average, not a single

institution or organization geared

to provide assistance for the

region's blindclearly a result of

th i s deep-sea ted fea r and

opprobrium.

Tibet's main cause of

blindness is its high elevation; at

this altitude the intensity of the

sun's ultraviolet rays causes

damage to the unprotected eye,

but people largely believed on the

r e l i g i o u s e x p l a n a t i o n f o r

blindness. There existed no

program whatsoever in Tibet to

help blind children become

productive citizens. She and three

companions (two Tibetan, one

Israeli), travelled to a number of

remote villages on horseback

spreading the word about her

Brail le system (which she

developed for her own use in

during her Tibetology and to

assess the needs and situation of

blind children. When villagers

saw Sabriye walking, riding a

horse, they refused at first to

believe she was blind. Sabriye

persuaded them that though

blind, their children, too, could

ride horses, read, and write. One

astounded father told her, "The

prospect of your school is like a

dream for us.

In 1997 she met her

future partner in life and project,

Dutch engineer Paul Kronenberg.

Together they founded Braille

Without Borders.

After finding students

for their dream school, running

the school with almost no

external funding was a big

challenge for them. The main

reason people didn't give them

money was that they didn't raise

funds with pity. They believed

that presenting her students as

pitiable simply will further the

prejudice against them. "We've

learned that you'll get funding if

people feel sorry for you, but the

perception of what you are

capable of doing will never

change.”

When new students join

the school, "They say, 'I'm blind!

I can't do that.' But when they see

the other kids working hard and

achieving many tasks, they

change their views." It was a

sense of self-confidence that

Sabriye was planning to instil in

her own students. She aimed to

teach the blind how to integrate

t h e m s e l v e s i n t o t h e i r

communities, how to educate the

sighted in what it means to be

blind. She believed that changes

in the community's perception of

the blind should radiate from the

blind themselves.

In 1990, the school

moved to a house in Lhasa where

it is still located today. Paul and

Sabriye opened the Rehabilitation

and Training Centre for the Blind,

Tibet, in 1998. The children are

taught English, Mandarin,

Tibetan, math, and computer

skills. In addition, they learn

practical skills like making a bed,

cooking, walking with a cane,

and how to use all their senses to

help them get around. After

completing their basic education

s tudents have a choice of

returning to their villages,

continuing in normal school with

sighted children, or training for a

vocation. So far Braille Without

Borders has developed programs

in medical massage (a vocation

Sabriye in BWB School (Photo Paul Kronenberg)C

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reserved in China for blind

people), animal husbandry,

cheese-making, butter and milk

production, baking bread, market

gardening, agriculture, compost

production, knitting, carpet

w e a v i n g a n d k i t c h e n

management. When our children

return to their villages, they know

many new things which their own

families have never learned, new

skills which are highly valued. In

many villages, the families don't

speak Chinese or English; the

returning blind child is able to

translate for them. The student

returns with a new value; for the

first time he/she's seen as useful

and become valued members of

their communities. Sabriye

Ternberken had brought literacy

to the blind people of Tibet which

gave them real empowerment

and graceful living.

Kanthari

“The Battle of Waterloo

was played at the playfield of

Aton” and this is what Kanthari

believes in and delivers.

A kanthari is a plant that

grows wild in every backyard of

Kerala, a small but very spicy

chili that is famous for its

medicinal value. The name

kanthari is given to the social

entrepreneurship institute. In this

institute future kantharis are

being groomed who will create

ethical positive change in the

society.

The kanthari campus is

located on the shores of the

Vellayani lake, in Trivandrum,

Kerala, South of India.

Kanthari is constantly

searching for social visionaries

who have guts to challenge the

status quo and harmful traditions.

The participants are trained in a 7

month intensive leadership

programme.

Since 2009, over 40

social initiatives have been set up

by kantharis the world over, each

of which is making a difference.

Kanthari is widely targeting

people who have overcome

adversity and who are keen to

drive ethical social change.

Kanthari International trains

participants in public speech,

finance, innovative project

planning, management, writing

p r o p o s a l s , f u n d r a i s i n g ,

organizing social marketing

campaigns.

According to Paul and

Sabriye what is most important is

a sense of ownership, motivation,

creativity, talent and passion to

make the world a better place and

strength to be forces of good

r a t h e r t h a n v i c t i m s o f

circumstance.

Participants need to be

22 years of age or o lder.

Nationality, religious or cultural

background, socio-economic

conditions or even educational

background is of no consequence.

The medium of learning is

English, so a working knowledge

of the language is essential. Basic

computer skills are also required.

Kanthari will act as a

catalyst to make their visions

true.

7 Month programme

Kanthari offers a seven

mon th expe r i en t i a l based

learning program for social

change. The course is especially

designed for future kantharis

and cannot be compared with any

postgraduate study.

The Curriculum is “a

Future Kantharis in their convocation (Photo Paul Kronenberg)C

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journey in five acts” and prepares

future Kantharis to start social

projects, create innovative

solutions and initiate movements

and campaigns for ethical social

change. The training equips the

participants to manage small

scale organizat ions , solve

mission critical issues and

communicate effectively to target

aud ience and pub l ic . The

unconventional and unique

course is del ivered to the

participants with instructors

(catalysts) who are experts in the

concerned fields. Participants

have to constantly learn, improve

and show there competence as

they complete each act. As the

going gets tough, the tough gets

going and future kantharis have

to show their mettle and prove

their worth in each stage.

Act 1 - “Tasting the fire”

The participants are

given a firsthand experience on

what it means to be a kanthari

through a first roller-coaster ride

to experience the ups and downs

of real world. Participants have to

implement their social visions in

an imaginative country under

rather difficult but realistic

circumstances. For this, kanthari

International created fictional

w o r l d s w h i c h o f f e r c l e a r

opportunities but also real

pitfalls.

Act 2 “Change for a Change”

Participants put their

l e a rn ing in to p rac t i ce by

supporting local NGOs (in

Kerala), initiatives and social

entrepreneurs in reaching their

goals. This gives them hands on

e x p e r i e n c e i n r e s e a r c h ,

consulting and coaching of local

organisations and advocates,

organization- and community

development, sensitizing the

society for social injustice,

community mobilization and

creating a mind-set change

through campaigns and events.

At the end, together with their

local partners, participants

organize a public exhibition

named “Change for a change”

Act 3 “The wild world”

A six week internship

gives the participant an exposure

to real life situations; therefore, it

is an essential part of the

programme. Internships take

place in an NGO, a social

E n t e r p r i s e o r a c o m p a n y

anywhere in India or Nepal.

Par t ic ipants wi l l work on

independent projects. This

project can include a campaign

for a social or environmental

cause, a fundraiser for a non-for-

profit organization, a social

initiative within a firm etc.

Act 4 - “Back to spice gardens”

A successful graduation requires

several elements; Overall active

and constructive participation

during the entire course, a

satisfying report of the intern-

host, a clear proposal of the

participant's social initiative, a

realistic budget and a 15 minutes

fiery public presentation. During

graduation week, this so called

“Dream Speech” including a

Q&A session is performed in

front of a panel of international

experts.

Act 5 - “Spice up the world”

This is the launch pad for the

future Kantharis where they have

the opportunity to join a network

of active Alumni, who are

mentored by international world

exper ts . Par t ic ipants wi th

convincing vision, realistic

budgets and clear action plans

will have a chance to apply for

start-up funding from Braille

W i t h o u t B o r d e r s . U p o n

completion of a year of impactful

and effective work in the field

participants can call themselves

as Kanthari.

Being a kanthari means a

lot and the course ensures that a

kanthari delivers for what he/she

is trained for. Be a Kanthari- be

pungent but curative for society.

I n t e r v i e w w i t h S a b r i y e

Tenberken

Q: The name “kanthari” is

meaningful and appropriate.

Who suggested it? Suggest us a

title for the article in which we are

going to write about you and your

work.

A: For a title I would suggest our

slogan “A small chili can make a

HUGE difference.”

For Paul, myself and the kanthari

team it is very important that

kanthari is understood as a

symbol for an ethical social

change agent. Therefore we see a

clear difference between a social

entrepreneur and a kanthari. A

kanthari however has to have all

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talents and has to know about all

m e t h o d s t h a t a s o c i a l

e n t r e p r e n e u r n e e d s t o b e

successful.

But a kanthari needs to have an

e v e n s t r o n g e r i n t r i n s i c

motivation because financial

income is not what drives a

kanthari. A kanthari only feels

rewarded when there is a positive

mindset change in society.

Q: What challenges you faced

when you s tar ted “Brai l le

W i t h o u t B o r d e r s ” a n d

“Kanthar i”? How did you

overcome it?

A:It is always difficult to

convince people of something

that is new. People are generally

reluctant to change. And if

someone has the guts to challenge

the Status Quo, to challenge

harmful traditions, there seems to

be an even stronger resistance.

How many times have I

heard: "you cannot do it because

you are blind, you are a woman,

you are too young." Luckily I

realized early on that these people

normally are not talking about

my limits but rather about their

own limits and this gave me the

strength to look for a team of co-

dreamers. And thus I found Paul

Kronenberg.

Q: Do you think people who

underwent major adversity can

only be driven to make a social

change?

A: it is not that easy. A lot of

people who have gone through

adversity are still traumatised.

And being traumatized can eat up

all your energy to make a

difference. However, those who

have overcome adversity and

who have the energy and the

passion to make a positive

difference will more likely

become successful.

Why? Because they are an

insider. they know the problem in

and out. They understand what it

takes to overcome the problem

and they are in the best position to

find adequate solutions.

Can outsiders, people from the

mainstream be change agents?

It is very difficult to impose a

change to a group you are not part

of. It is always easier to have a

direct personal link to your target

group. And still, yes, there are

passionate change agents who

fight for rights of marginalized

groups, of people they are not

part of. There are people who

have the inner fire and inner spice

to dedicate their life to others.

In kanthari we want to

empower both insiders and

committed outsiders to become

critical thinkers and driven doers,

who make their surroundings a

better place to live in.

Q: Identifying target segment

and reaching them is one of the

crucial business processes of any

enterprise. As an entrepreneur in

social sector, how challenging

you found it, to reach out to target

segment? What are the ways you

are reaching to the target

segment?

A: We are still looking for the

best way to find our future

kantharis. Many people living in

the margins of society don't have

access to internet. Therefore we

are right now depending on

spreading the news through

NGOs, kanthari graduates,

through speeches, social and

local media. Word of mouth of

course plays a role too. And we

are looking for more ideas how to

find good candidates who are

r e a d y t o g o t h r o u g h t h e

application process. Your article

could help with this

Q: According to you, what is

social entrepreneurship?

A: Initially we thought, a social

entrepreneur is a social change

agent who comes up with a lot of

new and revolutionary ideas to

make things happen and to make

this world a better place.

Later we learned that

c o n v e n t i o n a l l y , s o c i a l

entrepreneurship is associated

with business. This doesn't

always relate to the kind of

change agent that we are looking

for, therefore we moved away

from social entrepreneur and

found a new symbol for a

different kind of leader; someone

who is first of all interested in

making a positive difference, a

mindset change. We are looking

for the Gandhis of the future. And

the question is, was Gandhi a

social entrepreneur? I don't think

so. He didn't need or used a

business model for changing the

mindset of his surrounding. He

was an insider, he was part of his

own target group and he has gone

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through the adversities he needed

to create a change.

A proper symbol for this

kind of dedication, for these

intrinsically driven ethical and

critical thinkers who are able to

create new attitudes in society did

not really exist.

Therefore we chose

kanthari, a plant that grows wild

in every backyard of Kerala. It is

one of the spiciest chilis in the

world but it has medicinal values.

It purifies the blood, it serves as a

pain killer, it makes people alert

and awake, it's a taste changer

and it creates a sense of risk,

adventure, going against the

stream.

Our kantharis use different tools

for creating change. Movements,

campaigns, establishing new

s c h o o l s w i t h i n n o v a t i v e

approaches, training centers for

the blind where the blind are not

seen as an object of charity but

understand the center as a spring

board to empower. We do have

i n v e n t o r s , w h o d e v e l o p

technology for marginalized

members of society, and those

who use art and creativity to

create ethical difference. And

y e s , w e a l s o h a v e s o c i a l

entrepreneurs, but only those

who's main focus is social change

and business is only used as a

tool.

Q: BWB trains visually impaired

students and works for their

reintegration in mainstream

society by providing them

education, communication and

vocational training. How do you

train them to get self-confidence,

interest and motivation to live in

dignity and pursue their dreams?

A: The most important step for

blind people to gain confidence is

to let them understand that

blindness doesn't have to be a

disability if we focus on the

possibilities, on the beauty of

blindness. What I learned when I

became blind is, that I was much

more able to concentrate and

focus on what really mattered. I

was not easily distracted by

Hollywood and Bollywood, by

billboards and advertisements.

Also I needed to become

a better communicator, I was

forced to listen and forced to be

clear in my expression. If you are

blind and you are not able to

express yourself you easily

become invisible.

Also as a blind person

you are forced to become a

problem solver. Blind people are

living in a world which is made

for the sighted. And if you want to

exist in a world that is not made

for you, you better invent your

own ways. And last but not least

we are lucky to depend on our

imagination. This is a gift which

we should cherish. Because

i m a g i n a t i o n c a n o n l y b e

disappointed by reality, that's

something sighted people also

experience while reading a book

and later going to a film. A blind

person doesn't see the "reality"

a n d t h e r e f o r e c a n n o t b e

disappointed? If you show a blind

person all these advantages rather

than focuss ing on l imi t s ,

c o n f i d e n c e w i l l c o m e

automatically.

Q: Among those whom you and

your organization has trained,

whom you like? Tell us about the

person and his/her work.

A:It is important to note that

kanthari and Braille without

borders have different target

groups. With Braille without

borders we mainly target blind

children in school age and for

v o ca t i o n a l t r a i n i n g b l i n d

adolescents and adults. But in

kan tha r i we t a rge t soc i a l

visionaries, whether they are

b l ind or d i sab led , o r non

disabled. Important are ethics,

energy and a vision to make this

world a better place.

One of our kantharis is an

albino from Kenya who is

fighting for the right not to be

killed by witch doctors. Another

blind kanthari from Japan has a

mobile library in Thailand to

bring books to children who

otherwise would never have an

opportunity to read. Others are

working with street children in

Sierra Leone, with unemployed

youth in Nigeria, with disabled

people in Meghalaya and so on. I

do like all of our participants as

they are the ones that help

kanthari reach its goal.

Q: In Tibet, most of your work

focuses on empowering and

reintegrating blind children and

peop le . Do you have any

plan/program in future, to

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prevent avoidable blindness

(bl indness due to vi tamin

deficiency, unhygienic living

environment, climactic causes

and cataract)?

A: That's not our purpose. At the

m o m e n t , t h e r e a r e m o r e

organizations who want to

prevent blindness than those who

want to empower the ones that

cannot be cured, so that is

something we focus on.

Q: What is your future plan or

course of action?

A:To help to create more

multipliers through kanthari in

India, in Africa and elsewhere in

this world and to continue to

empower blind children through

Braille without borders.

Q: Anything you would like to

tell/suggest/advice to young

social entrepreneurship aspirants

who are studying management

and are interested in bringing

social change?

A: spend sufficient time in order

to find your passion, follow your

instincts and work closely with

those who are effected by

injustice and don't try to solve the

problems for them but with them

together.

Parasuram K &Aryasilpa Das Adhikari

PGDFM 12- 14, IIFM

Floating Island made up of waste plastic bottles in Kanthari

International campus (Photo Paul Kronenberg)C

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India is a country

which is not only

huge in terms of its

size and population but is blessed

with rich biodiversity, adequate

resources, varied geographical

phys iography and d iverse

cultural wealth with immense

capacity and capability to grow

into a powerful, equitable and at

the same time a vibrant nation.

However the reality at present

juxtaposes a rich flourishing

economy and society together

with extreme poverty, illiteracy,

degrading social values, wanton

destruction of environment and

b iod ivers i ty, an apa the t ic

capitalist corporate system, a

leviathan bureaucracy and a

seemingly immature political

environment. In this article we

shall try to comprehend the

present situation by analysing the

causes and e ffec t s o f the

contemporary problems faced by

India and try to extrapolate the

necessary steps required to either

c o m p l e t e l y e r a d i c a t e t h e

problems or at least mitigate it.

Ea r th a t p r e sen t i s

perhaps the only planet in our

solar system which is capable of

sustaining life and nature has

always been able to maintain a

delicate balance of life. However

the blatant disregard for this

fragile balance by human beings

has resulted in a situation where

we might be responsible for our

planet's destruction together with

all the life that it supports. Thus in

this regard the destruction of

nature by man becomes the most

important priority faced by the

world as well as by India today.

E n v i r o n m e n t a n d

biodiversity are what sustains life

and it is through these fruits of

nature that men as well as all

other living beings are able to

enjoy the pristine joys of life.

Pos t indus t r ia l revolu t ion

resulted in massive pollution and

destruction of nature which is

pushing our planet to the brink of

d i s a s t e r . T h i s w a s f i r s t

epitomised by the chemical and

photochemical smog which

blanketed most industrialised

cities as well as the sudden

“silence of the spring” in our

immediate natural surroundings.

In response there have been a

number of international efforts to

mitigate these problems through

various international forums such

as the Inter Governmental Panel

on Climate Change (IPCC), UN

Environment Programme(UNEP),

UN Framework Convention on

Climate Change(UNFCCC),

Convention of International

T r a d e o n E n d a n g e r e d

Species(CITES), Rio Summit,

Convention on Biodiversity, etc.

However the pace at which these

efforts are being taken is far from

satisfactory and there is a need for

individual countries to do more.

India's physical location on the

planet and its massive coastline

exposes it to the dangerous

effects of climate change.

India not only needs to

lobby for strong International

laws on climate change and

biodiversity destruction but also

needs to do more on the domestic

front. We need policies which

will encourage the use of cleaner

fuels, cleaner energy production

and promote the 3Rs i.e. recycle,

reuse, reduce. This can be done

by providing tax benefits to

consumers who buy energy

efficient products, provide

subsidies and government

assistance to those companies

which are working towards

producing cleaner energy like

solar energy, wind, biogas, tidal

energy, etc.

At the same time there

should be strict punishments in

place for those who do not follow

the clean energy policy and for

this a strong decentralised

regulatory regime consisting of

NGOs, government officials,

citizens, environment experts

and other such stakeholders

should be put in place. By

mitigating pollution and climate

A window to contemporary challenges: A holistic approach

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change it will invariably play a

major role in protecting the rich

but fragile biodiversity of India.

On the biodiversity front, India

must emphasize on carrying out

Environment and Social Impact

studies to ensure that any new

major project like mining,

hydropower, manufacturing

plants et al do not compromise

the rights of the people impacted

by such projects as well as protect

the biological diversity in such

areas.

The next agenda which

should be a priority for India is in

the economic front. In the

background of the 1990s Balance

of Payment crisis and under the

watchful eye of the International

Monetary Fund(IMF) India

started the liberalisation of Indian

economy and the subsequent

Privatisation and Globalisation

has resulted in India coming out

of it “Hindu Growth rate”

syndrome and galloping towards

a vibrant economy with strong

macroeconomics fundamentals.

However in order to maintain the

high growth trajectory enjoyed

by India prior to the 2008

subprime crisis, we need to

f u r t h e r s t r e n g t h e n o u r

infrastructure, develop our

domestic market, invest more on

agriculture by promoting a

s u s t a i n a b l e “ E v e r g r e e n

R e v o l u t i o n ” , i n c r e a s i n g

domestic savings which will

promote domestic investments,

bring in more FDI especially in

areas of R&D, development of

infrastructure projects like roads,

railways, bridges, cold storages,

energy, etc. Doing this will help

control inf la t ion which is

grappling India by its throat and

will enable our country to have a

meaningful real growth. There is

also an urgent need of a single

window c lea rance sys tem

c o n s i s t i n g o f t h e m y r i a d

stakeholders so as to clear new

infrastructure projects without

delay in order to enable easy flow

of investments. Agriculture is

another sector which has been

ailing for a long time now. Since

agriculture is mostly a rural

phenomena, the government has

to play an active role by taking up

m u l t i d i m e n s i o n a l

responsibilities. There is a need

to consolidate the landholdings

which at present suffer from

massive land fragmentation and

then try to promote some form of

modified community farming or

commercialised contractual

farming by forming groups of

l i k e m i n d e d f a r m e r s a n d

providing them a venue where it

is possible to avail cheap credit as

well as a market where they can

sell their goods directly so that

they can make maximum profits

by bypassing the middlemen and

thus can make use of the

increased incomes to further

improve their farm productivity

b y i n v e s t i n g o n n e w

technologies.

There is also a need for

India to rethink its policies

regarding subsidies on chemical

fe r t i l izers , pes t ic ides and

electricity to farmers as this has

resulted in the indiscriminate use

of these chemicals as well as

overdrawing of ground water and

thus affecting the environment as

well as reducing the fertility of

the land. To this end some sort of

targeted conditional cash transfer

by making use of India's new

Unique ID “Aadhar” should be

provided along with scientific

institutional support in order to

educate the farmer regarding safe

use of fertilizers and pesticides

through the panchayats.

The next priority should

be to eradicate poverty and

illiteracy. Some may wonder why

Poverty and illiteracy should not

be part of the No.1 agenda; they

may be right in thinking so but in

reality we have to consider the

fact that we cannot meaningfully

eradicate these two twin evils

without a strong economy.

Without adequate resources India

cannot s imply tack le th i s

seemingly impossible task

because of the sheer number of

people involved. Since Corporate

Social Responsibility is still in its

nascent stage in the context of

India, this has resulted in the state

playing an active role in this

arena. India is still a country

where we find people who are

poorer than even the poorest

people living in the sub Saharan

or Sahel region. Illiteracy is still

high and our infant mortality rate

as well as the maternal mortality

ratio is higher as compared to

even countries like Bhutan. This,

compounded with the parochial

traditional cultural values has

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resulted in a number of socio-

economic and cultural problems

like female infanticides, child

marriages, low status of women,

crimes against women, casteism,

c o m m u n a l i s m , t r i b a l i s m ,

discrimination and racism.

Poverty also breeds ignorance

and the Rio Summit 2012 held in

Brazil identified poverty as one

o f t h e m a j o r r e a s o n s f o r

destruction of biodiversity.

India's battle with poverty as well

as illiteracy has been long and

arduous. India has experimented

with a number of policies and

programmes. It started with the

c o m m u n i t y d e v e l o p m e n t

programme introduced in the first

5 year plan which performed

below par, then there were the

v a r i o u s f o o d s e c u r i t y

programmes, wage employment

p r o g r a m s a n d l i v e l i h o o d

programmes started in the late

60s and early 70s. However these

programmes failed due to the lack

o f f u n d a n d i n e f f e c t i v e

implementation. However after

the Liberalisation-Privatisation-

Globalisation (LPG) era, India is

definitely not short of funds and it

has rightly taken up programmes

l ike MNREGA which has

improved the quality of life for

many poor people as it provides

100 days of employment security

in spite of some structural failures

such as leakages and corruption.

Moreover a new Food Security

Bill is being contemplated in the

Parliament which will assure at

l e a s t t w o t h i r d s o f r u r a l

population and one half of urban

population of subsidized food.

However the success of such

massive programmes will depend

on the successful implementation

by providing the required

s u b s i d i e s t o t h e t a rg e t e d

p o p u l a t i o n a n d a v o i d i n g

leakages. The use of Direct Cash

Transfer by using e-banking is

being contemplated to ensure that

leakages are avoided.

The other major issue is

illiteracy and lack of education in

India. This problem of illiteracy

breeds a number of o ther

problems and by effectively

p r o v i d i n g a m e a n i n g f u l

education a number of problems

faced by both rural and urban

India can be avoided. The present

system of education suffers from

a number of deficiencies not only

in terms of quantity but also

quality education. There are

chronic problems in India's

education system which provides

schooling but not education.

Children are being flooded with

theoretical knowledge without

emphasizing on its practical

applicability.

Efforts have been taken

by the National Council of

Education and Research Training

(NCERT) to address this problem

but still not enough is being done.

Moreover the state education

boards are seriously lacking

behind when it comes to reforms.

Indian education system needs a

renaissance of sorts. We need a

system where the teachers are not

only qualified to teach but should

also be competent enough to

actually teach. There is also a

need to stop the segregation of

boys and girls in the class and

allow free interaction between

t h e m s o a s t o c r e a t e a n

environment of equality and

remove artificial barriers that

society may impose. This will

help reduce the large number of

heinous cr imes committed

against women and females in

general. The government's efforts

to promote an inclusive society

through universal pr imary

education should not be a reason

to compromise on the quality of

education. There is also a need to

separate culture from religion in

v i e w o f i n c r e a s i n g

communalisation and promote

secular education by teaching

about all religions practised in

India and emphasizing on the

equality of all religions. In view

of the increasing unemployment

among educated youth we need to

e m p h a s i z e o n v o c a t i o n a l

trainings and the promotion of

skill development.

To promote national

unity efforts should be taken to

possibly introduce some sort of

short visual documentations of

each and every state in India

showing the people, culture,

h i s t o r y , g e o g r a p h y a n d

achievements. This will help

r e m o v e p r e j u d i c e s a n d

stereotyping that plague Indians

in general. Education will also

ensure that pregnant mothers

know about pregnancy and steps

n e e d e d t o e n s u r e a s a f e

childbirth. It is more likely that an

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educated woman will make use of

clinical childbirth as compared to

an uneducated woman and this

will result in lower maternal

mortality ratio as well as lower

child mortality rate. It will also

ensure that the population

explosion is controlled as it has

been found that educated women

have a tendency to have at most 2

children as compared to illiterate

mothers. Education will ensure

that people know about the rights

and duties and thus play an active

role towards contributing to

society. It will also act as a

bulwark towards bureaucratic

apathy and will ensure that

society as well as the state

respects the individual's right to

dignified life as is enshrined in

our Constitution (article 21-Right

to life and personal liberty). It

will make people realise the role

played by nature in our daily

existence and thus people will

naturally start giving importance

to conserving and promoting our

n a t u r a l w i l d l i f e a n d i t s

biodiversity.

If we closely look at all

the issues that are stated in this

article, we find that every issue is

interrelated in some way or the

other. Poverty and illiteracy can

be considered as the fundamental

of all problems and moreover

these two problems are not only

intertwined with each other but

they also complement and

supplement each other. It is also

this poverty and ignorance which

destroys the fragile nature,

demolishes the rich biodiversity,

ruins economies, creates social

problems and unrest which

further strengthens the perpetuity

o f pover ty and i l l i t e racy.

Economies depend on the

resources provided by our planet

through i ts environmental

biodiversity and the loss of this

will result in financial and

economic failures in the near

future. Thus we find that our life

and also of our planet's existence

is linked by an intricate web of

interrelat ionships and this

interrelated system cannot gel

well if one part is malfunctioning

or is absent.

These problems may

give the reader an impression that

such issues can only be tackled by

the government or through some

organisations formed primarily

to handle such issues however

that could not be farther from the

truth. There is a need of a

revolution at an individual level.

It is only through the individual

that change can be brought about.

It could be as simple as respecting

pub l ic p roper ty, avo id ing

littering, paying taxes, switching

off the car engine when idle,

insisting on energy efficient

devices and green products,

following the 3Rs i.e. recycle

reuse and reduce, etc or it could

be something more radical like

g o i n g a g a i n s t p a r o c h i a l

traditional cultural practices,

i n s i s t i n g o n r a t i o n a l i s m ,

humanism and universalism,

enforcing accountability on the

g o v e r n m e n t t h r o u g h

constitutional means, taking a

proactive role to eradicate

poverty and illiteracy on an

individual level, etc. On a macro

level it will be more prudent to

approach these issues in a holistic

manner by looking a t the

individual problems as part of a

single lump problem rather than

sum of individual problems.

Albert Einstein once said that one

cannot solve problems with the

same thoughts that created it and I

believe is an apt statement when

it comes to the contemporary

problems being faced by the

world in general and India in

particular.

11

Mania Maheo PGDFM 11-13 batch, IIFM

IIFMCommunicado

Innovation: Will the next Google come from India within the next twenty years?

nnovation, as defined by the IOxford Advanced Learner's

D i c t i o n a r y , i s t h e

introduction of new things, new

i d e a s o r w a y s o f d o i n g

something. And just to break it up

further, 'new' means 'not existing

before'. Understandably, the

readers are not naive to these

common words in the English

language. But establishing the

apparently commonsensical

premise becomes crucial before

one introduces the follow-up

question: will the next Google

come from India within the next

twenty years? Offering an answer

would subject this writer to

judgement: one would either be

called a pessimist or a wishful

thinker! Circumventing that risk

and staying true to the nature of

his slated profession in business

management, ambivalence in

presenting the case on both sides

would be a reasonable option for

him.

G i v e n t h e h e a v y

influence that media plays in the

mindset of modern day India, it

would be apt to accept the often

t o u t e d p a i r i n g b e t w e e n

'innovation' and 'Research and

Development' (or 'R&D', more

colloquially). India spends 0.9%

of its Gross Domestic Product

(GDP) in R&D; and three-fourths

of this spending is done through

t h e p u b l i c s e c t o r . S o

unmistakably, one would look

toward the esteemed institutions

of technology in the country in

investigating the questions on

innovation.

The I ITs (present ly

sixteen in number) are set up

u n d e r t h e I n s t i t u t e s o f

Technology Act, 1961 and were

envisioned by the then Prime

Minister of India, Pt. Jawaharlal

Nehru , to hera ld the new

technological era for independent

India by serving as pioneers in

innovation and learning. Of late,

the very DNA of the set-up has

been questioned and often

criticised, regarding its ability to

fulfil that purpose. To that extent,

a leading news channel recently

interviewed a final year student

(class of 2013) from IIT Delhi on

one of its shows, and indulged in

indiscriminate mud-slinging on

the behest of its 'expert panellist'

who happened to be a young

lawyer!

Having spent a good four

(and fortuitously not more!)

years of his life in one of the older

IITs (it also happens to be India's

oldest engineering college), this

writer can draw heavily from his

understanding of the IIT culture

to investigate the issue and zoom

out from a micro level.

While the intent of

s u p p o r t i n g e c o n o m i c a l l y

underprivileged IITans with

m e r i t - c u m - m e a n s b a s e d

scholarship is noble, its skewed

implementat ion engenders

disillusionment. Many of the

b e n e f i c i a r i e s w i l l h a v e

u n d e r g o n e e x p e n s i v e

programmes at established boot-

camps in Kota and still others

w o u l d f l a u n t t h e i r A p p l e

machines on the very day of

Registration for semester-I!

Forged income certificates by

g u a r d i a n s e n a b l e s u c h

outrageous abuse. The very start

of the undergraduate programme

creates an imbalance in the IIT

ecosystem as wards under this

scheme are licensed to pollute the

very atmosphere levered by this

undue financial support. As the

academic standards that govern

the con t inua t ion o f these

scholarships are fairly lax, the

menace successfully permeates

down the years with repeatedly

forged income declarations.

Clearly, the scheme needs to be

reformed to enable stricter

evaluation of the candidates

benefited under the programme

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and also to establish higher

benchmarks for the maintenance

of this support to its recipient.

Though not directly linked to the

very letter of innovation, such

atmospheric amelioration will

enhance the spirit of innovation.

A n o t h e r a d d i t i o n

towards inclusive growth is the

g o v e r n m e n t ' s p o l i c y o f

reservation which attempts to

benefit traditionally marginalised

c a s t e s . B u t t h i s m o d e o f

affirmative action comes with a

cost: while the burden of a social

stigma has become anachronistic

(thanks to the online revolution

wh ich deems ca s t e -based

castigation mostly 'un-cool'), it

has been replaced by a subtler

manifestation---the cost of

condescension. The development

i s a s unfo r tuna te a s i t i s

misplaced. A case in point being a

course-mate of this essayist who

did two stints at the Google

Summer of Code (GSoC) before

being absorbed in a top-notch

MNC on day 1 of placements

2012, and also happened to

b e l o n g t o t h e a f o r e s a i d

beneficiaries. In a society riddled

with caste discrimination the

taboo cannot be eliminated with a

magical wand. Our surnames

reveal much about our lineage.

But to amend the status quo,

instead of lowering cut-offs for

m a rg i n a l i s e d c a n d i d a t e s ,

additional points could be

awarded to their application

/ en t r ance t e s t s co re s .The

administration will have to

summon courage to risk the

bureaucratic menace that comes

packaged with such a move to

detoxify the IIT-NIT (or any

public college) macrocosm in

favour of a healthier amalga-

mation of perspectives.

Pranav Mistry's TED

talks and his work are a hit with

most IIT graduates. Inspired as

they are, they too look towards

ful f i l l ing thei r innovat ive

aspirations through research

conducted at foreign universities.

Why? Because the perception of

research in India has got more to

do with publishing papers than

winning patents. Even the faculty

at IITs is evaluated for promotion

based on the number of papers

published by them without

o ffe r ing any incen t ive to

classroom teaching. Without

setting their basics right in

engineering, not even the best

minds of the country can hope to

offer path-breaking solutions to

nagging problems of humanity.

Coupled with this phenomenon is

the overall attitude of faculty

towards UG students. It's the PG

students with whom they develop

a greater connect and the

subsequent mentorship. Faced

with this apathy, the UG students,

who are arguably the crème-de-

la-crème of the nation, are forced

to explore foreign shores to study

further. At the same t ime,

industry looks upon them as

ski l led manpower towards

technological acumen but not as a

powerhouse of future innovation.

Redemption lies in building

industry-institute infrastructure.

Shared University Research

(SUR) undertaken by IBM in

2010 in collaboration with IIT

Delhi and IIT Roorkee is an

initiative in the right direction.

More recently, L&T pledged its

commitment to offer hands-on

exposure to students in real

challenges in civil engineering

ou t s ide the i r c l a s s rooms .

Thankfully, the B-schools in

India have come a long way in

developing this relationship with

industry. But the technology

institutes have much ground to

cover. LinkedIn and Facebook

have opened up new worlds to

students; but opportunities

remain stunted in the absence of

r ea l ne twork ing . Whi l e a

Zuckerberg or a Musk can claim

t o h a v e b e e n i n s p i r e d o r

encouraged by an alumnus of

their college through guest

l e c t u r e s a n d i n f o r m a l

interactions, the same cannot be

imagined for Indian students.

Networking beyond online

platforms becomes significant in

evolving canteen 'bakar' (jargon

for discussion) from mere chit-

chat to motivated churning of

ideas.

Industry honchos need to

come forward in bui ld ing

stronger relationships with

students in their formative years

of graduation. Besides offering

internship opportunities, keen

in te res t mus t be t aken in

developing exchanges between

UG students and their PG

counterparts. Through their field

e x p e r i e n c e , P G s t u d e n t s

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complement textbook concepts

with ground realities. Instead of

offering individual roles for

summer projects (or even final

recruitments), companies could

explore possibilities of hiring

teams of students---groups could

be evaluated and recruited based

on their solution to conundrums

requiring inter-disciplinary

approach, which essentially is the

nature of most real life business

problems.

High-tech products are

first launched as luxury items for

the select class. Subsequent

democratisation of the goods

revolutionises social perceptions

and norms. Similarly in this case:

by revamping the pioneering

colleges, the society can hope to

see developments in other

i n s t i t u t i o n s . A s h a s b e e n

e x e m p l i f i e d i n t h e We s t ,

innovation knows no bounds, no

discipl ines and no colour.

Presently, interactions between

l a w - s c h o o l s , b - s c h o o l s ,

engineering institutions and arts'

colleges are limited to cultural

fests. With inputs and incentives

from industrial houses, a more

competitive cross-collegiate

ecosystem can metamorphose

out of the status quo. Sharing

experiences and information on

i n d u s t r y - d r i v e n , o f f l i n e

p l a t f o r m s w i l l b o o s t t h e

temperament of innovation. For

instance, how many students

know the 'what', 'how', 'why' and

'who' about patents in India? To

safeguard nascent sparks from

perishing under the chill of

ignorance, knowledge-sharing

and inst i tut ional isat ion of

innovation become crucial.

Changes don't happen

overnight. But that shouldn't

deter the nation from attempting

to take baby-steps in the right

direction. While the above inputs

are purely concerned with better

s t u d e n t s a n d e d u c a t i o n a l

institutions, it is hoped that the

change will be reflected in

working professionals and

industrial spheres too as these

students assume their new roles.

Subsequently, the changes are

bound to spill over to other

institutions. However, some

room needs to be spared while

evaluating that question on

Google-like innovation: after all,

societal set-ups are vastly

different between the West and

India. While a Zuckerberg or a

Musk could pursue his passion

till realism permits, a typical

Indian innovator would be

expected to monetize her/his

ideational prowess a shade under

thirty, to be able to start a family.

Peer pressure and familial

expectations are still a force

worth reckoning with. Will this

constraint dwindle away against

the greater force of the spirit of

innovation given the changes

mentioned previously? Well, that

remains to be seen in the decades

ahead.

14

Baridhi Malakar

XLRI, Jamshedpur

IIFMCommunicado

e al l know what

Welectricity is! The

technical definition

is the flow of electrons through a

conductor (like a wire) or charges

through the atmosphere (like

lightning). Yes! the one which

flows through long wires across

long poles; at some places we see

machines f i t ted near the

substation of electricity, which

are called the “Transformers”.

But one day while attending a

seminar in a workshop conducted

by IIT Kharagpur , I was stunned

to find out about wireless

e l e c t r i c i t y b y Wi Tr i c i t y

Corporation.

The scientist from the

W i T r i c i t y C o r p o r a t i o n

demonst ra ted the magica l

“wireless electricity” by lighting

a bulb, & I along with eight

hundred people was amazed.

The scientist talked about

“electricity, electromagnetism,

magnetic induction, energy &

power coupling, resonance &

resonant magnetic coupling”. He

talked about this new technology

that, “WiTricity power sources

and capture devices are specially

designed magnetic resonators

that efficiently transfer power

over large distances via the

magnetic near-field. These

proprietary source and device

designs and the electronic

systems that control them support

efficient energy transfer over

distances that are many times the

size of the sources/devices

themselves”(courtesy: WiTricity

Corp.). Lets see some history of

this miracle, this was made

possible by going back to the

time of inventor Nikola Tesla,

who did research on the potential

of wireless transmission. Nikola

Tesla's research on the potential

of wireless transmission was

never completed due to the lack

of funding.

After his death, all his

papers were seized by the FBI,

and taken to Washington, where

they were classified as top secret

(Cheney, 2001). The FBI had

i n t e r v e n e d w i t h t h e

developments because of what

they termed as safety issues.

Currently, developments in

WiTricity are funded by the U.S.

government, research bodies,

l ea rn ing ins t i tu t ions , and

companies. The research by MIT

was funded by the National

Science Foundation, Army

Research Office as well as the

Department of Energy i.e. by two

r e s e a r c h b o d i e s a n d t h e

government. The technology has

a wide range of applications in

the field of consumer electronics

like automatic wireless charging

of mobile electronics (phones,

laptops, game controllers, etc.) in

home, car, office, Wi-Fi hotspots

while devices are in use and

mobile, direct wireless powering

of stationary devices (flat screen

TV's, digital picture frames,

home thea ter accessor ies ,

wireless loud speakers, etc.)

This would eliminate expensive

custom wiring, unsightly cables

and “wall-wart” power supplies,

direct wireless powering of

desktop PC peripherals: wireless

mouse , keyboard , pr in ter,

speakers, display, etc eliminating

d i s p o s a b l e b a t t e r i e s a n d

a w k w a r d c a b l i n g .

In the industries it can be applied

for direct wireless power and

communication interconnections

across rotating and moving

“joints” (robots, packaging

machinery, assembly machinery,

machine tools) eliminating costly

and failure-prone wiring, direct

w i r e l e s s p o w e r a n d

communication interconnections

a t po in t s o f use in ha r sh

environments (drilling, mining,

underwater, etc.)

It is impractical or

impossible to run wires in such

areas, direct wireless power for

wireless sensors and actuators

can be very helpful, eliminating

the need for expensive power

wiring or battery replacement

and disposal, automatic wireless

charging for mobile robots,

automatic guided vehicles,

cordless tools and instruments,

eliminating complex docking

mechanisms, and labor intensive

manual recharging and battery

replacement.

Imagine A world without wires & poles!

Suvendu Gayen

PGDFM (2012-14), IIFM

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IIFMCommunicado

ast year I had a chance to Lvisit the beautiful Tirthan

v a l l e y i n K u l l u ,

Himachal Pradesh, with a bunch

of friends. With the help of a local

tourism entrepreneur, 'Ashish

bhayia' we were able to meet the

Range Forest officer(RFO) for

The Great Himalayan National

Park(GHNP) at Sairopa. The

RFO Mr. Joginder Singh was

very kind to talk to us and also

gave us the opportunity to meet

and talk at length to Mr. Gopal

Krishan, director of BTCA

,Biodivers i ty tour ism and

Community Advancement, an

NGO working for the local

village people in the Ecozone

since 2009.The staff at the park

was preparing for UNESCO

team's scheduled visit in order to

get GHNP listed as a World

Heritage Site.

Mr. Gopal Krishan told

u s t h a t s i n c e t h e l o c a l

communities largely depend on

the forest for their livelihood and

no human activity is allowed in

the core zone, the NGO aims at

generating alternate livelihood

for the people, which it has been

very successful in achieving. The

state government has a very good

mechanism of not just providing

funds but also empowerment of

villagers ,women especially by

extensive involvement and

livelihood generation for them,

t h e m e c h a n i s m i s t h e

Biodivers i ty Conservat ion

Society established in 1999.

The forests are rich in

various medicinal herbs and

other edible and aromatic NTFPs

, that women can be involved in

collection of. Apart from this,

they are involved in managing

nurseries allocated by Forest

Department, vermi-composting

and organic farming. Eco-

tourism is another source of

livelihood for both males and

females. The likes of 'Ashish

bhayia' are doing good business

through the concept of 'home

stay', these homes and kitchens

are periodically inspected by the

tourism department and medical

officers.

More than 150 men are

employed as guides and some as

porters and cooks for the tourists

visiting the park after properly

training them. The cooks receive

Rs 450 per day and the porters

receive Rs 350 per day and have a

weight limit of 25 kg.There are

57 SHGs involving 567 women,

with each SHG assigned 1 ha area

to manage the medicinal plants.

The BTCA members undertook

verbal surveys through the PRA

approach to find the level of

dependence of households on

natural resources and level of

poverty and based on that

included the women in the SHGs.

These women are engaged in

various jobs like plantations of

medicinal plants like Texas

bacata by National Medicinal

Plant Board. Each SHG member

has a vermicompost pit allocated

to her, which are sold to local

farmers, orchard owners and

even agriculture department. The

income from this goes to the

woman who is assigned the pit.

Another a l t e rna te income

generating attempt is engaging

women in handloom. They knit

beautiful socks, scarves and

shawls which are sold in the

nearby markets. They are also

trained for basket making from

b a m b o o . T h e N G O s e n d s

application for work opportunity

for women under MGNREGA as

well.

Training

All the people whether

women in SHGs or men working

as guides or porters are properly

trained. BTCA periodically

organises training, workshops

like seed treatment camps, first-

aid courses, giving information

about heat strokes, fractures,

burns etc.The training is what

leads to a value addition in the

process of collecting the NTFPs

from the forest or interacting with

the tourists and makes the local

people understand ecotourism.

Before BTCA the same activities

and efforts could not fetch good

prices. For instance , 'rajmah'

obtained from the forest were

sold at very cheap prices and

sometime could not even be sold.

The same goes for other aromatic

a n d m e d i c i n a l h e r b s , t h e

collection methods were not

efficient leading to not so good

Where conservation meets livelihood

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quality of the produce. This scene

changed after BTCA came to

their rescue.

When asked about the

change that has taken place in

their lives one of the very pretty

SHG members , Dhanwanti

(leader of a group of around 10

women) told how they feel

empowered and how the work

they do is fruitful now. The

success of BTCA in generating

livelihood has been able to fetch

them respect and support of their

husbands and of the rest of the

people in the village. She also

mentioned how BTCA was

different from the previous

NGO(Sahara ) in t e rms of

participation of the community.

BTCA is more decentralized and

women feel informed and aware

of the working and contribute to

the decision making of the work

to be undertaken and responsibilities

in their monthly meetings.

There is a Souvenir hut at

the Sairopa office selling some of

the herbs that are sold to nearby

markets like Manali (2 shops),

Aut (1 shop), Jhidi (2 shops) etc.

The herbs include herbal tea,

soyabean, Rhododendron Juice,

Rhodo and other jams, apricot oil

and herbal spices like fern, pothi,

chora and the list goes on.

It was amazing to see,

first hand, the potential of the

forest in livelihood generation

changing so many lives and how

conservation of natural resource

and development can be made to

co-exist.

Rupinder Kaur BakhshiPGDFM 12- 14, IIFM

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Getting back to nature

What to do if you find

yourself stuck in a

crack in the ground

underneath a giant boulder you

can ' t move . Now imagine

someone appearing all of a

sudden, lending you a helping

hand in this moment of crisis.

What a relief you will get, how

much you will praise that godly

figure.

WSOS, a pioneer in

rescue activities all over India

makes wild animals feel the

sameway when they are stuck

somewhere. Here rescue not only

means freeing one from its pain,

pain that is inflicted by human

b e i n g s f o r t h e i r o w n

interest.They have a whole

rescue program under which

equal importance is given to their

owners in o rde r to avo id

recidivism and provide this

committee a source of living.

Under this rescue program, a

sustainable solution, a boy from

family who is willing to work is

employed as a worker in WSOS.

Apart from this they are provided

with Rs. 50,000 to help them start

a business of their own and they

are not left behind. . They earn

more money than they did by

exploiting the bears, and they

have legal occupations that let

them hold their heads high .The

family is being tracked all the

time in order to provide them any

sort of help which will prevent

them from moving back to same

occupation. Examples may

include kalandar committee who

are known all over India for their

dancing bears, Sapera (Snake

Charmer) Community and

circus that illegally use many

wildlife.

Being established in

1995 wi th the purpose of

eradicating the illegal and brutal

practice of Dancing Bears, they

are now proud owner of 635 bears

(all over India). Their work is

open for any wildlife, be it

elephants, leopards, tiger, lion or

any reptiles.They are not only

involved in rescuing these

animals but they also take care of

rehabilitation of people who were

anyhow linked up with these

wildlife. They even run a sister

organization(Friendicoes) doing

the same work for domestic

animals: dogs, cats, cows etc.

The main focus and most

important achievement, if we can

say, of WSOS are in field of

dancing sloth bears. It's a practice

that is in existence for more than

400 years, a nomadic tribe

kalandars are into this occupation

since emperors in the Mughal era.

Over the centuries, this practice

transitioned from being an

entertainment just for emperors

to whole set of villagers and

t o u r i s t s w h o p a i d f o r i t .

.WSOS has been able to rescue

and rehabilitate hundreds of

bears with cooperation from GOI

and help from their partner

organizations-partnership with

International Animal Rescue in

the UK, One Voice France,

Humane Society Australia &

FTB, Australia to cut the bears

free and stop the dance. And it is

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Photo Credits: Sprih Harsh

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their hardwork and dedication

that from being more than 1200

dancing bears in 2002 they

vanished in December 2009,

when they believe that they

capture the last of dancing bear.

These rescued bears They are

now living peacefully in our

sanctuaries across India, a life

where they'll never again have to

endure cruelty, submission or

pain We are fortunate enough to

have one of its active members,

Ms. Prerna Sharma among us.

And it was only because of her

that I got a chance of visiting

WSOS rescue center in Van Vihar

National Park(VVNP), Bhopal,

which is third Bear Rescue

Centre in Central India and is

now home to 17 ex-dancing

bears. Currently their rescue

centre homes 25 adult bears and 1

cub.

As per laws of Central

Zoo Authority (CZA), rescue

center has to be established inside

any national park and so the

location of wsos Bhopal is inside

Van ViharNat which one can visit

only after entering into the

prohibited area for aam aadmi. So

you get an extra benefit of

watching wildlife from the other

side, the most beautiful side.

WSOS Bhopal has 7 full time

workers plus one doctor. Some of

these wonderful people are with

this organization for the past 8

years. Some of these themselves

belonged to kalandar committee

once but now have come forward

to help these animals, who they

once, for earning their livelihood,

unknowingly tortured. So they

have turned from choreographer

who made them dance into one

who is now busy in improving

their life. You can see their

dedication and loyalty, love

towards animal through the way

they behave with them and more

importantly the response that

they receive from these wild

creatures.

Who can believe that a

lion, leopard or bear (considered

to be more ferocious than others)

can be a friend to a human, can

respond and show his affection in

the best possible way he can.

It's not only love that this

organization provide to these

animals, there is a whole other

departments catering to their

different needs food, health,

enrichment (wherein these

an imals a re g iven cer ta in

activities to make themselves

b u s y i n t h e i r l i v e s ) .

No one likes seeing any caged

animal. But the case of these

animals of WSOS are very

different. They had experienced

all sorts of pain in their life and all

they need is love, true care. So

even though the first impression

you get is again that of being

caged, the reality is they are free

from their suffering and they are

not alone in their life, they have a

whole set of people just dedicated

towards betterment of their lives.

This WSOS works on a motive

'Getting back to nature which

works towards providing wild

creatures the similar environment

related to their natural habitat in

best possible manner they can. So

all of us who can relate to this

motive or need that someone to

help rescue an animal, you know

whom to call.

Sprih HarshPGDFM 12- 14, IIFM

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Photo Credits: Sprih Harsh

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second generation resident

A

of a slum in Nazafgarh on

the outskirts of Delhi,

Ahmad appears listless as he stares at

the grungy street sitting behind the

display shelf in his shop. His one

room shop which reeks from a

pungent uncovered drain across the

street also doubles up as a house to a

family of nine including Ahmad and

a swarm of flies. He wonders if his

days will ever change for the better.

Ahmad is one amongst the 1.29

billion people on the face of the

globe including the 400 million in

India who are categorised as poor.

The term “Poverty” in the most basic

sense refers to an inability of people

to meet the basic requirements of

food, shelter, clothing and health. According to the World

Bank, the definition of poverty could

also include “low levels of health

and education, poor access to clean

water and sanitation, inadequate

physical security, lack of voice, and

insufficient capacity and opportunity

to better one's life.” As per the World

Bank in 2008, the numbers are as

high as 22% of developing world's

population who live on less than $

1.25 a day. The depth of poverty has

been considerably reduced in the

past as hundreds of millions of

people have been lifted out of

poverty. The World Bank estimates

establish that nearly 663 million

people have moved above poverty

line between 1981 and 2008. The

overa l l pover ty ra tes in the

developing countries have fallen

from 46% in 1990 to 27% in 2005.

These numbers undoubtedly reflect an

encouraging opportunity in complete

alleviation of poverty through an

effective collaboration between

various stakeholders. What could be

the most important strategies to be

adopted towards realizing the vision

of a world without poverty? Given

the significantly high proportion of

rural poor and a high dependence of

people living in rural areas on

agriculture as source of their

livelihoods, it would be safe to

assume that a sustainable growth in

agriculture will have a higher impact

on poverty alleviation when compared

with an equal growth in other

sectors. This has been clearly

demonstrated in sub-Saharan Africa

where a percentage growth in

agriculture has been shown to have

thrice the effect of a percentage

growth in other sectors, on poverty

reduction. A substantial reduction in

China's poverty levels from 53% to

8% between 1981 and 2001 was also

in large part due to a rapid growth in

agriculture. An effective policy

towards poverty alleviation should

not only comprise of measures to

create an environment conducive for

faster growth in agriculture but

should also focus on creating an

improved non- farm economy by

ensuring a better accessibility to

markets, improved credit support to

farmers, an increased research

towards enhancing agricultural

productivity and reducing farmer's

vulnerability to unforeseen risks or

environmental hazards. Healthcare is one among

the most effective ways of fighting

poverty. It has been established

through empirical research that

households con ta in ing more

unhealthy individuals are more

likely to be poor than households

that containing fewer unhealthy

individuals. Thus, a comprehensive

healthcare program with a universal

access that includes preventive

drugs, immunization and control of

communicable diseases should be

the cornerstone of any effective

poverty eradication strategy. A case in point could be the

Seguro Popular program in Mexico

which provides universal coverage

of health insurance and has been

vastly successful in reducing

healthcare expenditures, raising the

utilization of healthcare facilities and

improving the health status of the

people. Educa t ion a s sumes a

critical role in alleviation of poverty.

A comprehensive education policy

which ensures a good quality

education for all the children-

especially the girls can decisively

alter the landscape of poverty

alleviation. In addition to increased

economic opportunities leading to an

improvement in the living standards

of communities, such a policy would

a l s o e n s u r e w o m e n b e t t e r

employment opportunities which in

turn would accelerate poverty

reduction. A World Bank report

released in August 2012 reveals that

growing participation of women in

the labor force in Latin America and

t h e C a r i b b e a n c o n t r i b u t e d

subs tan t i a l ly to the pover ty

reduction in the region. The report argues for “labor

market policies that focus on

expanding vocational and skills

training for women as well as

providing job intermediat ion

services to help women engage in

non-traditional jobs and find better

emp loymen t oppo r tun i t i e s ” .

A combination of macroeconomic

policies which encourage private

investment- tax exemption, low-cost

loans, improved law and order

situation, favorable land acquisition

policies etc. serve as a catalyst to a

Bridging the gap: A policy to eradicate poverty

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IIFMCommunicado

higher economic growth leading to

more jobs for the unemployed. The

economic reforms introduced in

China in 1978 have led to more than

200 million people being lifted out of

poverty between 1978 and 1995.

India's economic reforms that began

in 1991 are considered to be vastly

responsible for a reduction in

extreme poverty level in rural India

from 94% in 1985 to 6% in 2005. However, the challenges

like non-equitable distribution of

benefits arising out of growth are to

be effectively dealt with while

ensuring sustained economic

growth.Developing entrepreneurship

among poor through an increased

access to microfinance has proven to

be an effective and powerful tool for

poverty reduction but its impact has

been severe ly l imi ted by an

insufficient penetration among the

poor strata of the society. An easy

access to credit can be an effective

complement but can't substitute a

policy towards creating, sustaining and

enhancing livelihoods for the poor. Ahmad has a future beyond

the cringe, and so do the roughly

over-a-billion across the orb. True

compassion is more than flinging a

coin to a poor; it is not haphazard and

superficial. It comes to see that an

edifice that produces poverty needs

restructuring. Our successes in the

past indicate that the target of

complete alleviation of poverty is

not insurmountable. However, it will

take an urgent alignment of efforts,

resources and competencies of all

stakeholders towards a common

solution-focused approach.

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Way and the Third World: Poverty

Reduction and Social Inclusion in the Rise

of 'Inclusive' Liberalism: Review of

International and Political Economy, Vol.

11, No. 2, pp. 387-4232. World Development Report (2008)

Agriculture for Development Policy Brief:

The World Bank3. Singer, A (2006) Business Strategy and

Poverty Alleviation: Journal of Business

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Lambote, M. (2000) Community Targeting

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Environmental Management: Policy

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91-11610. The effect of Women's economic power

in Latin America and Caribbean: The

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Halving Global Poverty :The Journal Of

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pp. 3-2212. Dollar, D. and Kraay, A. (2002) Growth

is Good for the Poor: Journal of

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20513. Godlonton, S. And Keswell, M. (2004)

The Impact of Health on Poverty:

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Family Survey: Working Paper of Centre

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of Cape Town14. O'Boyle, E. (1999) Toward an Improved

Definition of Poverty: Review of Social

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pp.704-71016. Morduch, J. And Haley B. (2002)

Analysis of Effects of Microfinance on

Poverty Reductio: NYU Wagner Working

Paper No. 101417. Be inhocker E . , Fa r re l l , D . and

Zainulbhai A. (2007) Tackling the growth

of India's middle class: The McKinsey

Quarterly18. Selden, M. (1999) Poverty Alleviation,

Inequality and Welfare in Rural China:

Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 34,

No. 45, pp. 3183-319019. Datt, G. (1999) Has Poverty declined

since Economic Reforms? Statistical

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Weekly, Vol. 34, No. 50, pp-3516-351820. Berg, S. Poverty and Educat ion

:International Academy of Education and

International Institute for Educational

Planning21. Toye, J. (2007) Poverty Reduction:

Development in Practice, Vol.17, No. 4/5, pp-505-510

22. Gakidou E, Lozano R, González-Pier E, Abbott-Klafter J, Barofsky JT, Bryson-Cahn C, et al., et al. (2006) Assessing the effect of the 2001-06 Mexican health reform: an interim report card: Lancet; 368: 1920-35 doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(06)69568-8 17126725 pmid:

23. Ellis, G. (1984) The Dimensions of Poverty: Social Indicators Research, Vol. 15, No. 3, pp. 229-253

24. Yapa L . (1996) Wha t causes Poverty? A Postmodern View: Annals of Association of American Geographers, Vol.86, No. 4, pp. 707-728

25. Silverstein S. (2005) What is Poverty?: Human Rights, Vol. 32, No. 3, pp-22-23

26. Bus iness and Pover ty : BCG Perspectives (1968)

27. Kempner R. (2012) Learning from Microfinance's Woes: Harvard Business Review Blog Network

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29. A quote by Martin Luther King

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If we surrendered to earth's intelligence we could rise up rooted, like trees.

-Rainer Maria Rilke

nvironment and poverty Ea r e i n t e r l i n k e d a n d conflicting at t imes.

There are numerous instances where environmental degradation leads to poverty and vice versa. To understand this lets consider mining in India or in any other country of the world for that matter. Most of the mineral rich countries or regions of the world have poor economic growth, Professor Richard Auty called it the resource curse thesis to explain how such countries or regions are unable to use the wealth generated from natural resources to achieve economic growth and ironically, have lower economic growth than areas which are not abundant in natural resources. India has a huge tribal population, most of which lives in the 'resource cursed' areas, due to which their fate gets inter-twined with that of the natural r e sou rces . The re fo re , t he overexploitation of natural resources not only leads to environmental degradation but also renders the tribals, socially and economically vulnerable.Conversely, there are regions where there are cases of tribals degrading the forests for their livelihood, sometimes by way of shifting cultivation or indulging in illegal activities inside the forest areas like, illicit felling by collaborating with the timber mafias of a particular region , among other things. Now here we

should remember that it's not fair to blame them , since had there been minerals detected in the same areas, the governments would have made ways for c learances for large scale deforestation of the same forests, and then digging out the earth or blasting i t away, dreamily claiming to restore them after the eternal mining leases get over.The debate of coexistence of man and nature versus exclusion of one from the other is very complicated.

"Therefore, co-existence of the poor and nature, as the means of conservation of forests or natural resources should not be ruled out completely nor should it be radically considered as the ultimate answer"

I n s t e a d w e s h o u l d rationally try to understand that such issues are subjective to different regions. There are numerous stories around the world where some tribes have d e v e l o p e d s o p h i s t i c a t e d mechanisms for co-existing with the nature. So what is required here is, to segregate the instances of success and failure and try to replicate the success where the various deciding factors are similar, the deciding factors being geographical, social, economic and not to mention ecological. I t i s i m p o r t a n t t o understand at this point that, poverty alleviation will not come as a side-effect of environmental conservation, because relationship be tween envi ronment and

poverty is very complex. In other words, accomplishing one may not always lead to that of the other. In fact, they may conflict each other and difficult trade-offs might be required between the two (Bucknall, Kraus, & Pillai, 2000). Poverty alleviation has to be incorporated in the process of sustainable development .For developing countries low carbon development strategies are necessary to achieve sustainable development (Torres, 2012). It is inevitable to mention climate change and its impact on the poor while talking about low carbon development. It's a no brainer that climate change will have the worst impacts on the poor of the world. Therefore, climate change adaptation and mitigation plans need to focus on poverty. The agricultural economies need to work out ways to transform their agriculture into sustainable agriculture. That would require gradual shift from conventional agr icu l ture to sus ta inable agriculture. M i n i n g a n d t h e Development Myth-Analysing Araku valley, Andhra PradeshAraku valley is one of the less c o m m e r c i a l i s e d t o u r i s t destinations in Andhra Pradesh, noted for its coffee plantation, inhabited by some tribes. India's first tribal growers' organic coffee brand was launched here in 2007.The premium organic Araku Emerald Brand has international buyers. Thousands of tribals from areas around engage in the coffee plantation in the region. Unfortunately the

The essentials of environment and poverty

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region is rich in bauxite as well. Once the controversial mining starts around 1400 ha of coffee plantations in the valley would get affected (Suchitra, 2012). The valley has lush green forests, streams, waterfalls and the famous borra caves, which are considered the deepest in the country and are lined with stalactites and stalagmites and are just 3 km from the mining site in the Ananthgiri hills. At least six rivers across the hills may dry up as a consequence. The ecosystem is sensitive and environmentalists have been pressing for converting the area into a biosphere reserve (Suchitra, 2012). The mining of the region, like in all other cases, is trying to sell dreams of employment, development of the tribals, but it would turn the farmers of the area into labourers. In such a case even an efficient implementation of rehabilitation and restoration can't be good enough, how are the tribals going to get the coffee plantations back after relocation.The social and environmental cost in cases like these is enormous and therefore a cumulative impact assessment is important and trade-off between economic growth at one side and huge environmental degradation on the other side has to be made. Not to mention, the inadequacy of such an economic growth to address poverty alleviation. "Even if we claim, that the profits of such an economic activity would reach 'some section of poor somewhere', still that benefit can't offset , let alone out do, the economic and social damage to the area affected."Climate change and Poor

P o v e r t y m a k e s t h e impacts of any misfortune, natural or anthropogenic, much graver. Climate change being no different, poses serious challenges to developing economies. The recent report 'Turn down the heat' prepared for the World Bank by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), highlights the dire consequences of the cur ren t emiss ion p ledges . According to the report all regions would suffer, while some more than others, but poor will suffer the most. However, the target of keeping the rise below 2°C is achievable if we move towards a strict Low carbon development. But again the low carbon development won't naturally bring along poverty alleviation (Torres, 2012). The poor have to be explicitly included in the process.Significance of Forests in this ProcessForests have a major role to play to acknowledge the two above mentioned interdependent yet often segregated aspects of adaptation and mitigation of climate change. Consider Suderbans, it is one of the most sensitive areas attributing to the geographical limitation, faces all kinds of risks the climate change can pose. The risks being- the frequent flooding leading to biodiversity loss, salinisation of ground water, submerging of coastal villages and climate refugees. Climate refugees being the least thought about risk of all, in spite of the fact that India can be one of the countries with highest number of climate refugees (Mukherji, 2012). If

Professor Norman Myers is to be believed the number would be 250 million for the world by 2050.Not to mention the social implications of migration of poor refugees to nearby urban slums. Mangrove forests of the Suderbans provided a bio-shield for tsunami protection acting as live sea walls more effective than concrete walls. If cyclones and flood disasters history of the region is to be followed, the least affected areas have been those with dense mangrove forests and those where mangroves were replaced with paddy fields or shrimp farming, have been badly hit. Mangroves are said to have greater biomass (used in carbon sequestration calculations) than o ther aquat ic ecosys tems.Consider the Central India, or the North-Eastern Region (NER), they are other badly affected areas from climate change attributing to economic and geographical factors. They are being considered as potential hubs of REDD+ projects, since they have most of the forest cover of the country but most of the poor and primitive tribes also. REDD+ can be a boon to the poor if implemented well, by ways of involving community through Joint Forest Management or by cooperatives and village level committees. Fortunately the major poverty ridden areas hold the key to the whole climate change puzzle. It is fortunate because this indicates that the community involvement and inclusion in the low carbon or sustainable development process is not an impossible dream.S u s t a i n a b l e A g r i c u l t u r e ,

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IIFMCommunicado

Environment and the PoorTrying to withstand the huge pressure of food requirement from all over the country, Punjab, the cradle of green revolution in 1960s and 1970s, has been on the path of heavy synthetic fertilizers and chemical pesticides.The amount of synthetic fertilizers on every hectare of the agricultural land is much higher than the national average. This seems natural considering the amount of production, but it does not come without the health hazards and environmental degradation.There have been a number of reports of cancer pat ients c l a i m i n g t h e p r e s e n c e o f pesticides in their blood samples .A large number of people board the infamous cancer train to Bikaner every day, hoping to get cured. The fertilizer subsidy in Punjab is also significantly higher than the national average. The high subsidies promote non-judicious use of chemicals, adversely affecting the soil, water and health of people whether cul t iva t ing or consuming. A " lot of farmers realizing the risks of the synthetically obtained food, cultivate food for t h e i r o w n c o n s u m p t i o n organically while still using chemical fertilizers and pesticides for the market." It is not economically viable for them to discontinue the use of the chemicals. It is important to mention the stubble burning that caught the world attention due to images released by NASA, in which Punjab appears to be on fire. The burning of paddy straw is banned due to its obvious negative effects on the

environment. The process also results in some GHG emissions. There have been solutions like selling the straw off to brick kilns, but these are limited and also farmers don't find it profitable enough. There have been other solutions proposed by agricultural scientist like using the straw as mulch. Very recently, Punjab Biomass Power Ltd. has offered to buy the paddy straw for power generation and plants have been setup. Punjab is not the only example the story is similar at other places. A study funded by the West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB) and titled “A study of synthetic chemical inputs in cultivation and its impacts on the local environment, biodiversity and human health in West Bengal” indicates the use of some banned pes t ic ide in West Bengal . Farmers get influenced by the local dealers to use more and more pesticide, resulting in overdose. The heavy use has been found to affect local fish and bird population as per the study (Bera, 2012) .Rev i s i t ing the l ink between the environment and p o v e r t y , i f w e c o n s i d e r marginalised farmers, it's not economically feasible for them to go for intensive fertilizers and conventional irrigation methods anyhow the less in t rus ive methods of sustainable organic farming can revive the fate of thousands of such farmers.Though it holds the potential of being the ultimate answer, but even if we try to be reasonable, acknowledging the complications of such a switch in a country like India, still there is immense scope of making the poor and small

farmers benefit from it. There are var ious NGOs and people working on the sustainable irrigation and water harvesting, natural farming, seed conservation, chemical free kitchen farming, urban kitchen gardening, Inter-cropping system and training workshops for farmers. The organisat ions l ike- Madhu Ramakrishnan's Kerala Jaiva Karshika Samiti in Kerala, Umender Dutt's Kheti Virasat Mission in Punjab, Vandana Shiva ' s Navdanya a re the repositories of the success stories about the organic way. The ability to acknowledge the relationship between the environmental problems and poverty comes with the propensity to cull out the answers to the two problems from the relationship itself. For, as Rainer Maria Rilke if we said, surrendered to earth's intelligence we could rise up rooted, like trees.References(n.d.). Retrieved from

http://info.worldbank.org/etools/docs/library/36

496/PovertyEnvironment.pdf

Bera, S. (2012, November 3). Toxic Punch:

heavy use of pesticides depleting local fish and

bird populations. Down To Earth .

Brown, D. (2013, January 7). Retrieved

January 20, 2013, from ourworld.unu.edu:

http://ourworld.unu.edu/en/guyana-hits-

paydirt-on-low-carbon-development-path/

Bucknall, J., Kraus, C., & Pillai, P. (2000,

April). Retrieved January 2013, from

www.worldbank.org:

http://info.worldbank.org/etools/docs/library/36

496/PovertyEnvironment.pdf

Mukherji, R. (2012, January). Nowhere to Go.

ECO-Earth Care Optimised .

Suchitra, M. (2012, January 31). Cheated for

Bauxite. Down To Earth .

Torres, M. (2012, Apri-May). Retrieved January

2013, from www.mapsprogramme.org:

http://www.mapsprogramme.org/wp-

content/uploads/WWF_LCDS_May2012_Metho

dologies_Marta-Torres.pdf

24

Rupinder Kaur BakhshiPGDFM 12- 14, IIFM

IIFMCommunicado

Slums may well be breeding

grounds of crime, but middle

class suburbs are incubators of

apathy and delirium.

-Cyril Connolly

uch was prophesized Mthat after the huge

success of “Slumdog

Millionaire” – the Hollywood

picture by the acclaimed director

Danny Boyle , the government

will finally awaken to the

pathetic conditions that the

Dharavi citizens have been

subjected to, which speaks of

stark social inequity. However as

soon as all the buzz around the

movie and its Oscar nominations

had settled down, so also the dust

around the slum and its citizens,

enveloping them again in their

life of abject indifference in one

o f I n d i a ' s r i c h e s t c i t i e s .

According to UNICEF's annual

State of the World's Children

report, the city of dreams has

topped the list of cities that are

home to the maximum slum

dwellers in India.

T h e c i t i z e n s a r e

classified as ecological refugees,

having forced to move out from

native villages due to lack of

ownership of some tangible

property or having their means of

livelihood marginalized owing to

shift in consumption trends.

These villagers often carry with

them romantic aspirations of a

life devoid of suffering.

Unfortunately, the ever

hungry and depraved cities sap

out all these notions to leave them

naked on the pavements where

they wriggle to the sewers and

railway tracks to find solace in a

dingy piece of land. They

ultimately settle on conditions

much deplorable than what they

had left for.

So what leads to this

burgeoning slum problem? Is it

the failed policies of government

w i t h t h e i r m u c h t o u t e d

c o m m i t m e n t t o r e m o v i n g

pover ty? I s i t t he deep ly

ingrained social and caste

prejudices which prohibit these

refugees to start a life afresh in a

different community? Are the

slum dwellers the spill over of an

entrenched capitalist society?

It's difficult to imagine

things turning the corner when

the wealthy and powerful live

within their gated neighborhoods,

shielded from the impoverished

realities of their country. Any

hope for housing reforms are

s imply out of reach when

politicians don't know how

people really live. Nevertheless,

"slum dwellers" is a convenient

term to describe the inhabitants

living on the pariah edge of

society. It's a pejorative term to

many that exudes stereotypes and

stained images of the people and

their standards of living.

They say that 98% of the

wealth is in the hands of the 2% of

the population. There is a

dissonance between private

owner sh ip and co l l ec t i ve

responsibility. An expedient

response by politicians always

cites the consequence of chance,

or virtue of these people. It is the

consequence of an unjust system,

of a government turning a blind

eye to the miseries of the

population who are too poor to

qualify in their petty vote-bank

politics, of a society whose moral

compass has gone askew.

Having witnessed many

promises gone down the drain, no

pun intended, has the critical time

finally not arrived for the

governments to shift their focus

f r o m w a r s o n m a n - m a d e

boundaries and pay attention to

man- made problems?

Going down the drain

Surbhi Verma

IIM K

25

IIFMCommunicado

There is a charm in the

woodlands and the dense

forests lined up with sal

trees which attract people from

the cities. During one of my visits

to Dudhwa National Park in Uttar

Pradesh, I happened to venture

into the village inhabited by the

Tharus, the tribal population of

the region. These tribes had

originally migrated to the region

from Nepal and have been living

here since their forefather's time.

This visit made me change my

perception about the relation

between the human and forests. I

came to understand that man and

forests mutually synergize with

each other rather than assuming

conflicting positions. The Tharu

ladies collected wood and grazed

the animals while the Tharu men

practiced shifting cultivation.

Their folk songs glorified the

animals of the forest , the

traditions made them worship the

trees and their festivals included

pledging the protection of the

forests. Away from the cities

where man is always accused of

deforestation, this tribe of less

than 500 people was doing their

bit to live sustainably and in

harmony with the nature.

After learning this lesson

which falsified the popular belief,

I went on to explore another

forest- this time of different kind-

grasslands. I went on to explore

the grasslands of the Gir National

Park located in the Sasan district

of Gujarat. The abode of the

mighty Asiatic lion has another

co-inhabitant - the Masai tribe.

The migrants from Africa came to

the coast of Gujarat ages ago and

have co-existed with lions in the

grasslands of the Gir. The tribals

are essentially 'maal-dharis' who

herd milch animals for their

livelihood.

The way ahead:

These tribes face dual

challenges in terms of their future

existence. Firstly the stricter

government regulations make the

forests inaccessible to these

forest-dwellers and force them

out of the forests. Secondly, as

their population grows they will

no longer be able to depend on

primary sources like agriculture

and animal rearing.

There is an urgent need

to supplement their existing

sources of income. One of the

ways in which the Fores t

Department is helping these

tribal is through absorbing them

into Forest Department services.

It was heartening to know that

some of the forest guides that

accompany tourists on safaris

were the Tharu tribals. They

proved to be better guides than

their counterparts since they have

grown up in the very same jungle

and have been closely associated

with the fauna and flora of the

forests. The Forest Department

has engaged them in their

services. It has proven to be a

win-win situation for both. The

salaries supplement their existing

income from livelihood and they

realize the need to conserve

forests as their livelihoods now

depend on the tourists which are

attracted towards forests. The

Forest Department on the other

hand is benefitted greatly by their

expertise.

Though the Forest Right

Act 2006 contains provisions to

safeguard the rights of the tribes

dwelling in the forests, the

government needs to put in place

schemes to incentivize these tribes

to work for the conservation

activities. Also there is a need to

use the skills of these people in

fields like herbal medicine

research and study of animal

behavior. Only a concerted effort

by all the stakeholders will ensure

a bright and sustainable future for

the tribal and the forests.

The tribes in forests: A conflict or a synergy?

Shashank Patodia, JBIMS

A Family in a forest village

26

IIFMCommunicado

Wh i l e w o r k i n g i n

I n d i a ' s l a r g e s t

i n f o r m a t i o n

technology company I had the

opportunity of interacting with

some of the young talents from

IITs and important business

schools. I found them singularly

committed to job excellence,

marke t ing maneuvers and

brilliance in motivating the

young talent pool at their

command. In off-days they visit

malls, restaurants, go for site

scenes and enjoy lavish parties.

In retrospect when I reflected

upon this life style I found how a

vast majority of young talent pool

(future of nation!) limited with a

desire to go for still higher

p a c k a g e s a n d s u p e r f i c i a l

pleasures completely being

unconcerned/oblivious of the

vast sea of ailing and struggling

humanity outside their posh

corporate world. The picture is

almost similar with respect to

other blue collared job holders

both in government sectors and

core companies. And this class is

supposed to be cerebral part of

that would oversee and steer the

balanced and composite growth

of the state! In fine tuning our

education system, where did we

err so that we got living robots

instead of social thinkers and

what did we miss?

In one of his essays

“Higher education and its future-

Information is not knowledge

and information technologist are

not guardians of society” Shri

H.P.Das Ex- Deputy Comptroller

and Auditor General of India,

attributes the fault-line to social

ph i losophy de f i c i t in our

education system. He argues, If

education fails to create a social

philosophy and models itself

around economics only, how can

one expect social commitments

and responsibility from erudite

citizenry? He traces reasons for

absence of social philosophy to

our over-indulgence on applied

s c i e n c e a n d i n f o r m a t i o n

technology that is taken for sure

to provide employment security,

comfort and convenience to

mankind. But if science and

technology dictates man to live as

per their design, then the

innovative man who built this

civilization will meet its slow

death and civilization in the

process will come to an end.

Without man or with dead man

what civilization can be planned

by scientist and technologist?

Where would conscience come to

sc ience for jud ic ious and

equitable distributions of its

inventions and services among

society if there are no liberal Arts

or Humanities? And the domain

of liberal Arts/Humanities has

been lef t to whom……the

mediocre and below average who

are left out after the applied

science and IT have absorbed the

best to their fold?

A n d f r o m t h e s e

searching questions to have an

a n s w e r w e m u s t l i b e r a t e

Things falling apart- We have to hold

27

Eye on Education (Photo credits : Rahul Singh Jadav)

IIFMCommunicado

ourselves from the tide and

tyranny of the present education

system. The developed countries

have already taken steps in this

direction. In the book “The post

modern condition, an inquiry in

to the state of knowledge” the

French philosopher had strongly

pleaded for a multidimensional

alternative education system. The

communist China has been fast

recasting its education policies as

is evident in the essay “In new

school of thought in China”

published in Time Magazine

which inter-alia mentions:

Science and engineering is

not the only thing. If we have to

survive with dignity in confronting

world competition, the next

generation students of China have

to be armed with liberal Art degrees

to face the onslaught of future.

Any nation for its growth

needs creativity which humanities

can provide. The management

power of machines can never be

more powerful than human brain.

Material management is essential

to expedite thought but it cannot

replace thought. Economic growth

and contentment are basic

requirements but are not everything.

Conscience, sympathy, and

r i g h t e o u s n e s s a n d o t h e r

important aspects for social

cohesion we need social thinkers

and if the system fails to create

them, the economists , the

Information technologists, and

the managers will fail to provide

the art of living to mankind and

the society will be dehumanised.

How right was T.S. Eliot

when he said “Wisdom is lost in

knowledge and knowledge is lost

in information” in a barren world

and Mathew Arnold when he said

“Things fall apart, centre cannot

hold, mere anarchy is let loose

upon the world”- we cannot allow

things falling apart….. we have to

hold for our survival.

Aryasilpa Das AdhikariPGDFM, 12-14, IIFM

28

IIFMCommunicado

Ladakhi Women's Travel

Company, is a travel

a g e n c y o w n e d a n d

operated by Ladakhi women.

Founded by Thinlas Chorol,

Ladakh's most experienced

female guide, this agency

provides trekkers, travellers and

tourists with female guides and

porters. They organise treks and

homestays as well as cultural and

scenic sightseeing tours.

Their aim is to encourage

the women of Ladakh to show

the i r ab i l i t i e s and sk i l l s ,

particularly in the more remote

areas. Through homestays they

give the women in the villages a

chance to meet new people and

new cultures.

Whether you are going

on a multi-day trek or sightseeing

tour, you can experience a

homestay. A homestay means that

you are staying in a real Ladakhi

home in the villages you pass on

your journey. These homes are

always run by the women, while

the men are out earning the

family's income. By using the

homestay system, they help the

women to achieve the same status

as the men. It also encourages

people to remain in their villages

instead of seeking employment in

the cities. Homestays are also the

mos t eco- f r i end ly way to

discover Ladakh as the system

puts a lot less pressure on natural

resources, since the need for

ponies and donkeys is not as

great. Ponies and donkeys are

necessary if you are camping and

cooking out, but they tend to eat

the limited grass available,

depriving local wildlife and

domestic animals of their food

supply.

In addition to helping

women by means of homestays,

this agency employs only women

for organizing and running our

treks and tours, a policy which

serves as a unique example to all

women in Ladakh and we are as

yet the only agency using only

female guides. They believe in

providing quality and good

service. Thier most senior guide

and founder is one of the few

L a d a k h i s t o c o m p l e t e a

c o m p r e h e n s i v e c o u r s e i n

wilderness skills and leadership

a t t h e N a t i o n a l O u t d o o r

Leadersh ip School , and a

mountaineering course at the

Nehru Institute of Mountaineering.

Interview with Thinlas Chorol :

Q : What made you to start your

own business?

A: After working as a trekking

guide, I came to know that there

are very limited opportunities for

women in this field even if there

are many women who are

interested. I started my business

to create opportunity for the

Ladakhi women especially those

who are interested to work.

Q :For a woman, being an

e n t r e p r e n e u r i s a v e r y

challenging task and you have

made your presence felt in an

industry which is predominantly

male-dominated. What peculiar

Meet the first womantourist guide of Ladakh

First Women run Travel Company in Ladakh (Photo credits : LWTC )

29

IIFMCommunicado

challenges you faced, just

because you were a woman and

how did you handle it?

A:There are not any special

challenges. Ladakhis are actually

not opposed to gender equality.

Some of them did not hire me just

because I was a woman, but

nobody tried to stop me (directly

or indirectly) either.

Q :When you started your

business what were the main

obstacles you faced?

A:2009, the year in which I

started, coincided with the

recession. Very few tourist

visited Ladakh that year which

had direct impact on the income.

It also took long time to get the

registration done by tourism

department. I had to make

multiple visits to the registration

office before the officials came to

my o ff i ce to approve the

registration.

Q :Home s tay” i s a new,

attractive and unique service in

your bus iness . So tour i s t

satisfaction depends on the host

home and the quality of service

provided there. How are you

managing and maintaining

standardisation and uniformity of

service in the host homes?

A:I agree, it is difficult to

maintain standardisation and

uniformity of service in the host

homes. Based on the feedback

from the clients, and we are

trying to improve the services

provided by the homestay owner.

For example, we had complains

about the lunches in some areas.

We spoke to the owners and

asked them to provide proper

lunches keeping in mind the

energy and water requirements of

h i k e r s . S i m i l a r l y w e a r e

constantly improving other

homestay services so that tourist

satisfaction is attained.

Q :You have been a tourist guide

for a very long time in Ladakh

region. What kind of ecological

and climatic changes you are

observing in this region?

A:There are lots of plastics and

garbage around the camping sites

and there are no proper toilets.

Weather in Ladakh is getting

highly unpredictable day by day.

It is extreme cold in winters and

extreme hot in summer. The

glaciers melt which increases the

water-level in the rivers causing

damage to the nearby fields and

houses. Last summer there was

such an incidence of flood in

Markh Valley which is a popular

trekking destination for tourist.

For example, there was cloud

burst in 2010 in Leh and many

people died. Many houses were

washed away and causing severe

damage to the fragile ecosystem

and environment.

Q :In an article in Earth Care

Optimised, there was a report

30

IIFMCommunicado

mentioning the increasing tourist

inflow to Ladakh, particularly

after Aamir Khan shot the climax

of his blockbuster movie“3

Idiots” in the sandbars of

Pangong Tso .Tourists are willing

to camp just next to lake &

w e t l a n d s a n d h e n c e a r e

d i s t u r b i n g t h e h a b i t a t o f

migratory birds. Similarly noise

from the vehicles is disturbing

the natural habitat. As a tourist

guide how are you convincing

your customers to go for green

tourism?

A:Yes! It is truth that numbers of

domestic tourists has increased

b e c a u s e o f t h e s u p e r - h i t

Bollywood movie. Many of the

domestic tourists are coming in

their own cars and bikes which

causes more accident in Leh,

disturbing the bird habitat.

We try our best to minimise these

impacts on the environment. We

suggest our clients to drink filter

water or boiled water instead of

buying plastic water.

Many jeep drivers are driving off

road. We are trying to use eco-

taxi which will drive only on the

properly designed and constructed

road.

Q :What opportunities you are

finding for young entrepreneurs

in Ladakh and surrounding trans-

Himalayan region other than

tourism?

A:Generally Ladakh have very

l i m i t e d j o b o p p o r t u n i t y,

especially for the youth. There

many fruits in Ladakh, so there

are possibilities to make jam and

juice out of it. But this should be

s u p p o r t e d b y p r o p e r

infrastructural set-ups, and

marketing mechanism.

Q :You and your organization

have been playing a key role in

m a k i n g t h e l o c a l w o m e n

empowered, both financially and

socially. How do you see

yourself being empowered and

the change you find in yourself as

a novice in the business and now

as an amateur in the industry?

A:I have worked as guide for

many years, and I became more

confident and many clients have

encouraged me to start my

business.

Q :Anything specifically you

would like to advice/suggest to

the young generation.

A:Ladakh is a very fragile land.

Due to increase of number of

tourist and moderation, it is

important for Ladakhi to take

responsible to protect our beauty

l a n d s c a p e f o r t h e f u t u r e

generation.

Parasuram KPGDFM 12- 14, IIFM

31

IIFMCommunicado

Magazine Team :

PFM (2011-2013 batch) Kapil Patil Vaibhav Shinde

Communication cell coordinator Saurav Kumar (PGDFM 12-14)

Executive EditorParasuram K (PGDFM 12-14)

EditorsAryasilpa Das Adhikari (PGDFM 12-14)

Rupinder Kaur Bakhshi(PGDFM 12-14)

Members (PGDFM 12-14)

Bhavesh KatrodiaGarvita GautamNiharika MHaridwar Prasad ChaurasiyaNupur MarotiSprih HarshSushant AgarvalBudh PrakashDeepak GoyalGeetanjali KumariPragati MandloiRana PoojariSharin MathewAbhishek Roy

Communication Cell, SAAC Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal

communicationcell@iifm.ac. inwww.iifmcommunicado.in

Photo Credits :

Cover PageBhaskar Dutta (The Academy of Photo Art, Karnataka)

Page 16Sushant Agarwal(PGDFM 12-14, IIFM)

Page 15Saravanakumar Thangavelu(Chennai, Tamil Nadu)

Last PagePrajesh Dutta (Madison, W.B.)