The doctor had already diagnosed the malady. He knows the remedy also. Unfortunately, he is reluctant to prescribe the medicine and that is baffling to say the least. He has been entrusted with the duty of alleviating the miseries of all especially the malnourished millions and the 
middle-class. His sympathy as well as the empathy are with those at higher echelons of the society. Incredible and incomprehensible!
A renowned economist, a man of honesty and integrity, uncorrupt, a statesman honoured and respected by all. However he pays a lot of lip- service to the sufferings of those languishing at the bottom of the society.
He knows his predicaments and dilemmas also. He knows he is only a half-Minister. Also he knows the other half is in Washington.
In 1991 Sardar ManMohan Singh was appointed as the Finance Minister of India under the leadership of late PM P.V. Narasimha Rao. Rao was looking earnestly for a competent Finance Minister, if possible a renowned economist to don the mantle of prestigious post of Finance Minister and he promptly fished out the most deserving ManMohan Singhji.
Indian economy was in shambles. To wriggle out of a pathetic quagmire, you may recall, our gold reserves had to be hypothecated and physically transferred to England (Such was India’s credit worthiness then before the World) to bail out our economy. Former young-Turk the late S,Chandrashekhar was the PM and Yashwant Sinha, BJP Leader was the Finance Minister then.
After assuming charge our then Finance Minister ManMohan Singh in his budget speech before the Parliament, dwelt on the then economic scenario prevailing in our nation. The most striking one was about the flaws of heartless consumerism and also the need for uplifting the neglected sections of agriculturists and our backwardness in the areas of education and health. Let me quote his words- “A vast number of people in our country live on the edges of a subsistence economy. We need credible programmes of direct government intervention focusing on the needs of these people. We have the responsibility to provide them with quality social services such as education, health, safe drinking water and roads. In the same way, the development of capital and technology intensive sectors, characterized by long gestation periods, such as transport and communications and energy will need to be planned with much greater care than ever before.”
“In highlighting the significance of reform, my purpose is not to give a fillip to mindless and heartless consumerism we have borrowed from the affluent societies of the West. My objection to the consumerist phenomenon is two-fold. First, we cannot afford it. In a society where we lack drinking water, education, health, shelter and other basic necessities, it would be tragic if our productive resources were to be devoted largely to the satisfaction of the needs of a small minority.”( Courtesy: Frontline Dated November 7 2008- an article by Era Sezhiyan)
Contrary to what he had assured while addressing the honourable members of Parliament, he backed out of his promises to the down-trodden and the middle-class who even now find it very difficult to make both ends meet. Our education standards have fallen down, poverty, malnutrition and diseases are on the rise, infrastructure development in doldrums, in short all his promises went astray. The gentleman who minced no words in deploring heartless consumerism found himself on the wrong track. Consumerism flourished like anything, the haves became more and more richer and the have-nots became more and more poorer. Stock Markets boomed and the corporates became fat cats and even now as the Prime Minister of India, his whole attention and anxiety are in the welfare of the Corporate Dadas due to the financial melt down across the globe. ( otherwise they may starve to death!) One week ago, he even took the opportunity to convene a meeting of Corporate tycoons of CII, FICCI, Assocham and other Corporate groups and found time to console them who found themselves in “dire straits” owing to the enormous losses suffered by them in the global melt-down. As Prakash Karat, the CPI(M) General Secretary pointed out, our economist PM didn’t care to hold a meeting with our farmers’ representatives who feed the millions of Indians. Neither did he feel like discussing the recent financial turmoil with our trade union leaders.
Our only comfort and also relief is that our doctor has already diagnosed the disease, but is hesitant to take the remedial action. May be the doctor is testing our patience and our staying power. A big “hurrah” to him.
middle-class. His sympathy as well as the empathy are with those at higher echelons of the society. Incredible and incomprehensible!A renowned economist, a man of honesty and integrity, uncorrupt, a statesman honoured and respected by all. However he pays a lot of lip- service to the sufferings of those languishing at the bottom of the society.
He knows his predicaments and dilemmas also. He knows he is only a half-Minister. Also he knows the other half is in Washington.
In 1991 Sardar ManMohan Singh was appointed as the Finance Minister of India under the leadership of late PM P.V. Narasimha Rao. Rao was looking earnestly for a competent Finance Minister, if possible a renowned economist to don the mantle of prestigious post of Finance Minister and he promptly fished out the most deserving ManMohan Singhji.
Indian economy was in shambles. To wriggle out of a pathetic quagmire, you may recall, our gold reserves had to be hypothecated and physically transferred to England (Such was India’s credit worthiness then before the World) to bail out our economy. Former young-Turk the late S,Chandrashekhar was the PM and Yashwant Sinha, BJP Leader was the Finance Minister then.
After assuming charge our then Finance Minister ManMohan Singh in his budget speech before the Parliament, dwelt on the then economic scenario prevailing in our nation. The most striking one was about the flaws of heartless consumerism and also the need for uplifting the neglected sections of agriculturists and our backwardness in the areas of education and health. Let me quote his words- “A vast number of people in our country live on the edges of a subsistence economy. We need credible programmes of direct government intervention focusing on the needs of these people. We have the responsibility to provide them with quality social services such as education, health, safe drinking water and roads. In the same way, the development of capital and technology intensive sectors, characterized by long gestation periods, such as transport and communications and energy will need to be planned with much greater care than ever before.”
“In highlighting the significance of reform, my purpose is not to give a fillip to mindless and heartless consumerism we have borrowed from the affluent societies of the West. My objection to the consumerist phenomenon is two-fold. First, we cannot afford it. In a society where we lack drinking water, education, health, shelter and other basic necessities, it would be tragic if our productive resources were to be devoted largely to the satisfaction of the needs of a small minority.”( Courtesy: Frontline Dated November 7 2008- an article by Era Sezhiyan)
Contrary to what he had assured while addressing the honourable members of Parliament, he backed out of his promises to the down-trodden and the middle-class who even now find it very difficult to make both ends meet. Our education standards have fallen down, poverty, malnutrition and diseases are on the rise, infrastructure development in doldrums, in short all his promises went astray. The gentleman who minced no words in deploring heartless consumerism found himself on the wrong track. Consumerism flourished like anything, the haves became more and more richer and the have-nots became more and more poorer. Stock Markets boomed and the corporates became fat cats and even now as the Prime Minister of India, his whole attention and anxiety are in the welfare of the Corporate Dadas due to the financial melt down across the globe. ( otherwise they may starve to death!) One week ago, he even took the opportunity to convene a meeting of Corporate tycoons of CII, FICCI, Assocham and other Corporate groups and found time to console them who found themselves in “dire straits” owing to the enormous losses suffered by them in the global melt-down. As Prakash Karat, the CPI(M) General Secretary pointed out, our economist PM didn’t care to hold a meeting with our farmers’ representatives who feed the millions of Indians. Neither did he feel like discussing the recent financial turmoil with our trade union leaders.
Our only comfort and also relief is that our doctor has already diagnosed the disease, but is hesitant to take the remedial action. May be the doctor is testing our patience and our staying power. A big “hurrah” to him.
About Right To Elementary Education
Sixty two years have elapsed since we attained independence. But enlightenment seems to have dawned upon our ruling elite in recent times. But,I feel sometimes this enlightenment had already dawned upon them but unfortunately “selective amnesia” is their problem.
Two weeks ago the government decided to introduce a Right of children to Free and Elementary Education (RTE) bill in the current session of Parliament.
What is quite puzzling is that it took more than six decades to enter in to the heads of our ruling elite the importance of providing compulsory elementary education to hapless children of our nation. Nearly fifty percent of our children are illiterate. Most of them toiling day-in and day-out under the menacing eyes of small-scale industrialists earning a meagre sum to fend for themselves. In the process they are cruelly assaulted and forcibly thrown in to prison-like dinghy rooms without feeding them for days. Others are street children begging and crawling before the laymen to earn for their daily subsistence. Drug abusers are galore among them and also the victims of paedophiles. These children have also colourful dreams of their future, they also aspire to be literate, one day hold on to responsible positions in the government or other reputed firms. Social activists like Harsh Mander are doing a lot for these children by educating them, providing food, clothes and shelter to them while government turn a deaf ear to their pathetic wails.
One question nagging me after going through the report of the decision to introduce the Right to Free Elementary education to children in the current session of the Parliament is- will the enactment of this law be able to put in to practice so easily at a moment when majority of our impoverished children are groping in the dark to earn for their daily sustenance. Their parents are also helpless and are in dire straits and it is not because of their apathy that they are not sending their kids to the schools. They also keep colourful dreams of their children emerging with flying colours in future. Even after enrolment in schools after spending one or two weeks in schools many of them drop out of their institutions due to lack of food and other essential needs like clothes, slates and pencil. They go back to begging or hard labour for a pittance. How can we blame these children or their parents who are also struggling for existence.
It was said that to prevent drop-outs, the government introduced mid-day meal scheme. A nice idea, if implemented judiciously and also sincerely. But the implementation of this scheme is done in a haphazard manner, the micronutrients and other nutritious food items are diverted by those people who are entrusted with the proper implementation, no auditing taking place and even the attendance of the children are not taken on a daily basis. Corruption is ruling the roost everywhere and those deserving the most are left in the lurch.
Add to this is in the remote corners of India’s rural areas, there are not enough teachers to teach the young ones and there are only two or three- they are most often on leave. Children come to study and after finding the school empty they leave their studies and opt for their past activities.
Due to lack of servants to prepare the mid-day meals at most schools the teachers themselves engage in the duty of servants and the ultimate sufferers are the students because teachers don’t get enough time to enlighten the students.
If things are going on like these, how is it possible for the government to enact the compulsory elementary education to the teeming millions of our impoverished children.
Our doctor ought to keep his eyes wide open and must have the political will, sympathy and empathy to address these basic necessities at the earliest. Now that his friend is almost out of office, (who the people of India love deeply), the general elections round the corner and globalization and liberalization ebbing he can for the moment heave a sigh of relief and proceed with renewed vigour in full capacity…
Sixty two years have elapsed since we attained independence. But enlightenment seems to have dawned upon our ruling elite in recent times. But,I feel sometimes this enlightenment had already dawned upon them but unfortunately “selective amnesia” is their problem.
Two weeks ago the government decided to introduce a Right of children to Free and Elementary Education (RTE) bill in the current session of Parliament.
What is quite puzzling is that it took more than six decades to enter in to the heads of our ruling elite the importance of providing compulsory elementary education to hapless children of our nation. Nearly fifty percent of our children are illiterate. Most of them toiling day-in and day-out under the menacing eyes of small-scale industrialists earning a meagre sum to fend for themselves. In the process they are cruelly assaulted and forcibly thrown in to prison-like dinghy rooms without feeding them for days. Others are street children begging and crawling before the laymen to earn for their daily subsistence. Drug abusers are galore among them and also the victims of paedophiles. These children have also colourful dreams of their future, they also aspire to be literate, one day hold on to responsible positions in the government or other reputed firms. Social activists like Harsh Mander are doing a lot for these children by educating them, providing food, clothes and shelter to them while government turn a deaf ear to their pathetic wails.
One question nagging me after going through the report of the decision to introduce the Right to Free Elementary education to children in the current session of the Parliament is- will the enactment of this law be able to put in to practice so easily at a moment when majority of our impoverished children are groping in the dark to earn for their daily sustenance. Their parents are also helpless and are in dire straits and it is not because of their apathy that they are not sending their kids to the schools. They also keep colourful dreams of their children emerging with flying colours in future. Even after enrolment in schools after spending one or two weeks in schools many of them drop out of their institutions due to lack of food and other essential needs like clothes, slates and pencil. They go back to begging or hard labour for a pittance. How can we blame these children or their parents who are also struggling for existence.
It was said that to prevent drop-outs, the government introduced mid-day meal scheme. A nice idea, if implemented judiciously and also sincerely. But the implementation of this scheme is done in a haphazard manner, the micronutrients and other nutritious food items are diverted by those people who are entrusted with the proper implementation, no auditing taking place and even the attendance of the children are not taken on a daily basis. Corruption is ruling the roost everywhere and those deserving the most are left in the lurch.
Add to this is in the remote corners of India’s rural areas, there are not enough teachers to teach the young ones and there are only two or three- they are most often on leave. Children come to study and after finding the school empty they leave their studies and opt for their past activities.
Due to lack of servants to prepare the mid-day meals at most schools the teachers themselves engage in the duty of servants and the ultimate sufferers are the students because teachers don’t get enough time to enlighten the students.
If things are going on like these, how is it possible for the government to enact the compulsory elementary education to the teeming millions of our impoverished children.
Our doctor ought to keep his eyes wide open and must have the political will, sympathy and empathy to address these basic necessities at the earliest. Now that his friend is almost out of office, (who the people of India love deeply), the general elections round the corner and globalization and liberalization ebbing he can for the moment heave a sigh of relief and proceed with renewed vigour in full capacity…
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