Elephantine Task

Two stories made it to the headlines today. One is an elephantine saga that has pretty much played out in public space, consuming public money, not to mention time. Shame that it does. The other has been going on for as long as one can remember. A long time. However, it does not take up much of public / media time and space. Only once in a while when a report is published. Shame that it doesn't. Yet, neither has any effect on anyone whatsoever.

208 elephant statues, 2 statues of Mayawati, several elephant door handles, elephant fountains, Mayawati pillars and chakras have to be covered before the UP polls. So they are being draped with pink polythene (neutral colour) since elephant happens to be BSP's symbol. 1.6km of pink polythene. And at a cost of Rs. 1 crore. And this elephantine task has to be completed by 5pm of January 11, 2012 to meet the Election Commission's deadline.

Well that was the first story. The other one is that 42% of India's children are malnourished and stunted. That is around 61 million. That is one in three malnourished child on the planet is an Indian according to the HUNGaMa (Hunger and Malnutrition) report. But here, alas, there is no deadline at all.

Full text of the Prime Minister's Speech on the HUNGaMa Report.

The HUNGaMa Report itself.

I will survive

An astonishing news of a pregnant woman on a train, who went to relieve herself and delivered a premature baby which slipped out down the toilet onto the tracks, survived the fall, the midnight chill and subsequent discovery by linesmen and eventual reunion with her mother. Details here.

A sort of reminder that despite the skewed sex ratio and rampant female foeticide, its not so easy to snuff the little girl child out. She will survive...against all odds.

Let them eat biscuits, then….

MP’s cutting across party lines agreeing about something, in India. Is that possible? Pigs might fly, right? Well actually, the impossible has happened, but not in the way that you or I would have imagined. The Times of India reports that 30 odd MPs from different parties have written to the Ministry of HRD to replace the present hot, cooked meals under the Mid day Meal scheme for primary school students, with – hold your breath - biscuits! (TOI, 31 December, 2007)

The Mid day Meal scheme in India covers 12 crore children in 9.5 lakh schools in the country. Hot meals, locally cooked, supervised and served is aimed at community participation as well as increased enrollment and retention of students in primary schools. What will they eat, if they go to school (and not work for thier lunch and dinner, if lucky) was the basis of launch of this scheme, which was initially launched in Tamil Nadu and later adopted by the Government of India, The ministry of HRD, to cover the rest of the country. More here.

The MDM scheme is currently Rs. 5,000 crores and as the government is looking to expand this scheme to cover 18 crore children, the budget would therefore increase too and heftily. Incidentally, (the paper reports) the argument was very similar to the Mumbai based Biscuit Manufacture Welfare Association (BMWA)’s proposal to the HRD ministry.

The arguments put forth would have been really funny (hilarious in fact), but they had me wiping tears none of which were of mirth. (TOI 31, December 2007)

Samajwadi Party's Rajya Sabha MP Abu Asim Azmi writing,"Biscuits are a healthy, packaged, nutritious product which can cover many shortcomings of the present system followed by the MDM schemes."

"Biscuits are a favourite snack of children and have a higher recall and acceptance among the intended beneficiaries of the MDMs." RPI's Ramdas Athawale

K Natwar Singh "Members of the defence services, state police, administrative personnel, farmers, all classes of professional and labourers continue their biscuit consumption habits nurtured since childhood."

There is hope yet. Many state governments have written to the ministry of HRD opposing biscuit lunch plan. (TOI January 6, 2008).

Some states have relied on the Supreme Court’s 2001 and subsequent orders that prohibit centralized purchase of food for the scheme in order to avoid corruption. It has also been argued that serving hot cooked meals ensures local community participation.

Gujrat’s reply “ Biscuit is a snack which cannot be considered as alternate to hot, cooked meal…moreover the state government prescribes a menu for the MDM scheme according to local tastes and hence biscuits cannot be provided”.

Obviously, K Natwar Singh was talking about the other states and not Gujrat.

Meghalaya, “State Government prefers the cooked midday meal as it is in line with Supreme Court direction. Also, a meal is more filling and “healthful” than biscuits. Maybe Samajwadi Party's Rajya Sabha MP Abu Asim Azmi was talking about a different biscuit.

Pondicherry provides more than the prescribed levels of nutrients through a mixed menu and therefore rejects biscuits.

AP takes the medical route saying biscuits have disproportionately high percentage of sugar and daily consumption of biscuits is likely to expose the children to risk of juvenile diabetes.

Remember what happened to a certain lady who said, “If there is no bread, let them eat cake?”…well we live in more “civilzed” times and therefore, make the proponents of biscuits for lunch eat, well, biscuits – their just desserts.

Run Buddhia Run

On Tuesday 5th of May, 2006, Buddhia ran 65 kms from Puri to Bhubaneswar in 7.02 hours. All the news channels were full of Buddhia and with reason. He is four and a half years old.

When his father, a beggar, died, his mother sold him for 800 Rupees to a hawker. But he was rescued by his coach. He runs 50kms twice daily. And has run from Bhubaneswar to Puri more than once before. The CRPF who sponsored this last run, wants to adopt him.

He is the new “wonder child”. Now, which bit of this statement should I wonder at? That 4 year old Buddhia ran from Puri to Bhubaneswar? Or that it took him only 7.02 hours? Or he ran in the blistering summer heat of Orissa? Or that he is the youngest marathon runner in the world? Or that he made it to the Limca book of records? Or at all of these put together?

I am sure his coach is taking good care of him. But to me, childhood (and Buddhia is a child) is for other things. He probably is made of sterner stuff. But having seen the talent in him, he should be given a chance at a normal paced childhood, keeping the training for an age more acceptable. Four and a half means he is not in Class I.

I am wondering. But not in awe. I am wondering at the sadness of it all.

A million Rajithas

There was this horrendous story on a news channel on 23rd November: Ill treatment of a domestic help by her employers. This domestic help was a girl, Rajitha, not more than 10. Thin emaciated, with burn marks all over her body ... her arms, legs, back, and a fresh wound on her stomach, earned that very day. Her fault: She was a little late in warming the milk for the employer's baby.

Her screams had been fortuitously heard by a child activist who happened to be passing by. She got suspicious, so heart wrenching, so agonized, the screams were. After hours of knocking on the door and ringing the bell, did they and the world get to see Rajita and her plight. The look on her face on being taken out of the employer's grasp was not of relief. She still looked very unsure, frightened. She simply couldnot trust anybody. And with good reason. Seeing the burn marks on her body, this must not have been the first time she must have screamed. And yet, the neighbours had been mute onlookers for the 6 months that she had been in Hyderabad.

Here too, in Gurgaon, I have seen many families with several little children as domestic help. Once at a local restaurant, while a family gorged themselves at a table, a little boy of maybe 7 or 8, difficult to guess since their growth is stunted due to chronic malnutrition, waiting (not even seated), next to the table, patiently. Occasional, he would walk the couple's crying baby in his tiny, not yet adult arms. The couple went on calmly consuming great quantities of food.

Yet another day, I met a couple in our very building, coming up the elevator with their tot and her minder ... another little girl, barely 7. This 7 year old girl, was well dressed and looked well fed, but she was so adult like, so responsibly, gently preventing her guard, the baby from clutching onto the various buttons in the elevator. No time for her ofcourse, to indulge in simple childish pleasures.

The only good thing to come out of this sordid incident, is possibly highlight the plight of thousands, maybe millions
of children in so many houses in India. Domestic labour. Hyderabad alone, according to the news report has 47,000 children working as domestic laborers. God knows how many there are, through out the country.

There are laws to put an end to such things and maybe, India will get its act together to make sure, legislation is in place to end domestic labour and their ill treatment.

But what is frightening is, this is human behavior. Of educated, well off people. Those who without any qualms whatsoever, in cold blood torture helpless, innocent children; And those, who are mute, unhearing spectators. Can we change human behaviour with a few laws? It can be suppressed but not eliminated. Despite the threat of the death penalty, rape happens. God knows how many Rajithas there are, crying, with no one to hear them cry.

The joys of going to a 'camp'

(I am currently staying with a friend T, in Delhi.)


Dia, T's 6 year old was driving everyone crazy with incessant chatter about her forthcoming 'Camp'. The minute she saw me (after nearly a year), she screamed "Su aunty, I am going to a camp", and proceeded to name a string of places she possibly couldn't see in a day's time and be back home by 8pm! The 'camp' incidentally was a day trip to a farm and a bird sanctuary.

She went on and on about things she had to take to the camp. "Mamma, when are you going to buy my things for the camp?", she asked a zillion times before T read the camp notice and told her that children were not supposed to bring any food. (This is really funny coming from Dia who seems to be on a perpetual hunger strike!).

Soon she was back with "Mamma, when are you going to buy me snacks to take to the camp? I can take snacks, can't I?" and without waiting for an answer, came up with a big list of things to buy - chips, chocolates, cola, toffees and not only for her but for her 4 year old brother as well. His camp was a day later. Finally, someone took her to buy her 'snacks' which she proudly carried around in a plastic bag. This brought T some respite.

Next morning, she came up with a new one. "Mamma which bag shall I take to the camp?" She went on and on. Poor T. Sunday was her only day off from work and she was loathe to rise early. She held Dia off as long as she could with pleas of "in 10 minutes" while Dia danced around alternately shouting 'camp' and 'bag'!

Some one stood on a stool and brought down a variety of bags kept in an cupboard. She rejected each one saying "this one is too small" or "this one is too big" or "not this one, its a suitcase" or "this one's not mine" etc. Finally, she selected the usual back pack she took to school each day and put her precious snacks into it and carried it around.

"Are you excited about the camp", I asked her. (Such stupid questions adults ask). She shrugged her shoulders as if to say its no big deal. And then added sagely "If I don't go, then the 400/- will be wasted and so I must, don't you think?"!!!

Dia had to report at 6am at her school, monday morning. She got up, dressed and drank her milk (a real ordeal for her ma on normal days) in no time and left for the camp.

Tiku, whose camp was on the following day, too was excited about his, but not very vocal about it. He was content to occasionally go through his 'snacks' and try to eat some of it and had to be told that he would have nothing left for the camp.

The house seemed so silent and empty that morning, after Dia had gone to camp, Tiku to school and T, to work. But that silence ended when a tearful Tiku returned from school with tears in his eyes. "Su aunty, (he said in his adorable raspy voice), "Camp cancelled. Teacher said so" and without waiting for my reaction ran to his grandmother and then to the bathroom where his grandfather was taking a bath. He beat his little fists on the door till his grandfather stuck his head out to receive the tragic news.

In his distress, he bacame what he rarely is: extremely quiet. There was little we could do to console him. It was grandfather who finally saved the day by reading the second notice. "It says postponed and not cancelled. It means it will happen later". Tiku smiled, wiped his tears and cycled away madly in celebration, round and round the flat. He would not eat his snacks and agreed only when his grandparents promised to buy him more for his camp!

Dia was picked up at 8pm from her school by T. She was very chirpy but strangely silent about her camp. In between eating and complaining about the itching on her waist, she fell asleep. The tight band of her track suit which she wore all day made her mid riff all itchy. She had blisters on her heels as T discovered when she took off Dia's shoes who was fast asleep by then.

This morning, Dia had a day off. I asked her how the camp went.
"Not good. We went to a farm where we had to sit quietly. Then we went to a bird sanctuary where there were no bird. Then back to school and ma came to take me home", she dissmissed the 72 hours of pre-camp excitement and 14 hours of camp in a couple of sentences!!