India in Transition – Verghese Kurien’s Relevance

It is highly befitting to look back at the deeds of one of the greatest managers of post independent India who is instrumental in touching the lives of more than 15 million farmers and giving more than 200 brands on his 90th birthday (recently celebrated on the 26th of November). He is no other than Verghese Kurien popularly referred to as the ‘milk man of India’ and the ‘architect of Operation Flood’ who made India the largest milk producer in the world from being an importer of milk products.

While the policy makers (government, RBI), economists and industry analysts are grappling with double digit food inflation for significant time, Kurien’s chosen path has lots to offer. When the political parties are divided over allowing FDI in multi brand retailing and its ramifications for the small farmers, retailers etc., what Kurien has delivered on the ground can throw more light. The three tiered Anand pattern of milk cooperative societies have proven that small rural producers can be successfully integrated in agricultural value chain from the farm gate to the consumer doorstep. We can draw lessons about the way production systems like agriculture, agri-allied activities can be organised with no compromise on technology, quality and with simultaneous stress on democratic processes in peoples’ institutions like cooperatives.

Kurien always strongly believed that rural India equally and more urgently needs professional managers and management techniques to incentivize production, create economies of scale and most importantly making the rural producer institutions competitive in the market. Hence, he came out of IIM, Ahmedabad board and gave shape to his dream through Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA). He wanted IRMA to be the best blend of management practices and development orientation.

Management techniques have evolved over a period of time to a great degree of sophistication to suit the complex business realities. It is equally and possibly even more challenging to apply management techniques like Project Management (PERT, CPM), linear programming to operationalise rural livelihood projects. AMUL demonstrated that the best of ‘Sales and Distribution’ techniques, ‘Supply Chain Management’, ‘Branding and Advertising’ strategies can be used to compete and continue to be the largest food products selling entity in India. There is absolutely no problem in allowing FDI in retailing if it can lead to efficient to efficient supply chain and more remunerative prices for the farmers.

Simultaneously and even more urgently, we must work on organizing producer institutions like AMUL to make more and more small farmers part of this process. The transitional phase of Indian economy is marked by sharp reduction in agriculture’s contribution to GDP (around 15% now) with no corresponding decline in the workforce dependent on agriculture (still pegged around 50%). Phrases like ‘Inclusive Growth’ will prove merely rhetorical unless more people become part of the growth bandwagon.

Kurien rightly appreciated the necessity of building such institutions which can stand the reality of cut throat market competition. He says that for every Anand to prosper there must be a market in the form of Mumbai. He had the strong conviction that cooperatives must first become commercially viable and later can take up other activities. Hence, he always maintained that political interests should never guide the functioning of these producer institutions. Even the professional managers working for the cooperatives are mere employees of the farmers who are the real owners. Kurien strongly viewed cooperatives as best means to equalize people across castes and creeds especially the lower sections.

Growing urban centers provide huge opportunities for supply of daily essentials like fruits, vegetables, meat, milk etc. In fact, the galloping food inflation which is proving difficult to tame is largely attributed to changing food habits of our population which is gradually moving towards protein rich diet. Hence supply side constraints in agriculture need to be addressed to improve production which can address inflation. Mission mode orientation that was present when we implemented ‘Operation Flood’ or ‘Green Revolution’ must come back with more intensity.

As Gyanendra sir tells us in the academy, employment elasticity of growth projects must become one of our key concerns. Huge proportion of our working population is only of help when we match, repair and prepare their skillset as per the requirements of the new generation economy. Hence MNREGA, Food Security Act are appreciable only in the short run. They are more like relief projects addressing the immediate concerns of work and food. But, MNREGA must become a livelihood generator with every rupee spent on it giving back the community some degree of livelihood security. Watershed management, horticulture and improved agriculture all can be taken under MNREGA with more livelihood focus.

The sequence of rural development programmes like Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP) in 80s, 90s – Swarna Jayanti Gram Swarojgar Yojana (SGSY) till 2010 – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) now also explain our journey of varying degree of understanding about effectiveness of various poverty alleviation strategies. The time now has come to make the community capable to take charge of its developmental discourse.

We cannot but become more uncomfortable when we read a recent article* written by Amartya Sen and Jean Dreze after the release of this year’s Human Development Report. Though India is doing relatively well in terms of per capita income, it has starting falling behind every other South Asian neighbor (with the partial exception of Pakistan) in terms of social indicators. Is it not criminal on our part that we allow some children go hungry even today (malnutrition rates stand close to 50%)? Why universal immunization is a distant dream and children continue to die out of encephalitis?

There is something surely to be corrected in our development strategy which seems to have produced certain spectacular success and massive failure at the same time. Kurien during his entire working life walked the talk and showed us way forward. Hopefully, his deeds make more Indians inspired to use the best of modern management techniques, technology for the benefit of greater numbers of our population As Kurien says ‘we must feel inspired and privileged to work where we are required the most and not where we are rewarded the most’.

*(“Putting Growth In Its Place” by Jean Dreze and Amartya Sen in Outlook Magazine dated 14th November, 2011)

Harsh Mander's Lecture on "Justice, Compassion and the Civil Services" on 24th Oct, 2011

I felt so happy to listen to Harsh Mander when he came to Mussoorie to deliver a talk on the topic ‘Justice, Compassion and the Civil Services’. He is a soft spoken person with absolutely no airs about his achievements. He used very simple language, yet, his delivery was very powerful and the message that he conveyed was truly appreciable and relevant for every Indian citizen.

He started by saying that three destructions in the last twenty years (demolition of Berlin wall, the Babri Masjid and the World Trade Center) have greatly altered the way we live and relate to each other in this world. He also felt that there is change in the way we fundamentally look at the role of the state. From being viewed as the protector and benefactor of the disadvantaged sections, the government is now more looked up to facilitate markets and accelerate economic growth. This fundamental change in perceptions about government’s role led to change in public expectations from civil servants as well.

He told that though there is no inherent contradiction between economic growth and human development, the last few years has seen widening divide between ‘India’ and ‘Bharat’. While we can see increasing number of Indian billionaires in Forbes list, there are also the largest numbers of illiterates, malnourished children in India among all the countries. Still, some of these burning issues of deprivation fail to occupy the center stage of political discourse.

Then he went on to dwell in detail about three issues that are close to his heart namely hunger, hate and homelessness. Starting with hunger, he showed short vedios on Musahar and Sahariya tribes and their struggle to get even two square meals a day. They are so desperate for food that they are forced to eat locally available grasses which many a time prove to be poisonous. Harsh Mander told that the toughest lesson that these mothers are forced to teach their children is to manage sleeping with empty stomach.

He told that these tribes adopt survival mechanisms such as psychologically and physically adopting their body to be content with one meal or no meal in a day, eating locally available material like grasses, kernels etc. and forcing their children to take up work to earn few more rupees. Harsh Mander clearly drove home the paradox of coexistence of rotting food grains and starving millions in our modern India. He feels that we seem to have conveniently ignored their desperation while allowing lakhs of crores of corporate tax concessions but delaying to bring out a comprehensive universal food security act. Rather than looking it as a matter of finances, it is our larger moral responsibility to ensure that no one goes hungry in our country.

Then, he discussed the issue of hate i.e. injustices committed in the name of religion during communal disturbances. He showed few interviews of Gujarat riot victims and the deep emotional scars on their minds. He insisted that unless there is active state complicity, no riot can go on beyond few hours. He narrated his personal experience as Assistant Collector when he immediately called upon the army when the collector and S.P. conveniently disappeared from the scene. He went on to stress that riots like in Delhi, Bhagalpur, Gujarat strike right on our firm constitutional belief that all the citizens irrespective of their religion are equal before the law.

He discussed how the law enforcing machinery like the police become active accomplices in these crimes. Firstly, they wantedly withdraw from the scene instead of standing up there for protecting the minorities. Secondly, they let terror reign by falsely putting people behind bars and registering cases against them. The FIRs filed have certain common elements like possible justification for the crime committed (close to eulogy of retribution), anonymous mob as the perpetrator and multiple incidents being clubbed together in one case. There is also systematic denial of criminal justice even later by closing the cases prematurely for want of evidence, filing counter cases to frighten the witnesses, continued detention of people under draconian laws without any trial to weaken the morale of the litigants.

Harsh Mander felt that time has come to make the civil servants responsible for their lapses in checking the loss of valuable life and property. He feels that there is no need of any additional powers as some sincere officers have proven that everything can be controlled with will power and conviction (cited the example of Rahul Sharma in Gujarat who ensured zero loss of lives in his district at the same time). Hence, Harsh Manders supported such Act dealing with communal disturbances which makes it a legal responsibility of the incumbent officer to ensure complete peace. He felt that, ideally it should have been the moral responsibility of the officer and when it does not work, laws become necessary.

He went on to discuss the third issue i.e. homelessness by showing a small vedio on homeless children in urban areas and how they get addicted to drugs and intoxication. He feels that these homeless people are so easily noticeable in urban areas that it reflects the psychological distance that exists between us and the poor. If heHarsh Mander were to describe the present India from a historical perspective in future, he prefers to refer to it as such time period when the poor people have been exiled from the conscience and consciousness of the mankind.

He quotes a Nobel Laureate saying that the absence of love is not hate but indifference. Indifference is the word that Harsh chooses to describe the present societal response to hunger and homelessness in India. These children who grow separately from their parents become rag pickers, learn to do petty crimes and become stiff in their attitude towards society. Still, he is hopeful that with proper care, these children can catch with their counterparts. In fact, he is striving to start hostel facilities in government school premises to bridge the gap through basic courses initially and finally integrating them in the mainstream.

Harsh Mander then stressed that only such economic growth is acceptable in India when we guarantee a basic minimum floor of rights like right to information, education, employment, food and health facilities etc. These legally enforceable rights show us the future direction which all of us need to follow.

He told that there are very few jobs in the world that give young people such tremendous opportunity to directly affect the lives and livelihoods of marginalized sections as in Indian civil services. He exhorted all of us to bear allegiance to none other than the constitution, the cause of the disadvantaged sections and finally to our conscience. He emphasized that the old concept of political neutrality and mindless execution of political orders has become irrelevant. The civil servants now need to be more imaginative and become the true servants of the unheard and the undermined.

Gopalpur Memories – 29th Oct to 5th Nov, 2011

I got an opportunity to stay in a village after more than 3 years as a part of our Foundation Course Village Visit Programme where all the Officer Trainees are made to experience the grassroots realities for 1 week. I would have been happier had the course authorities selected more backward districts. We were divided into 9 groups and were sent to 9 districts across 4 states (Bijnor, Saharanpur, Bulandshahar districts in U.P., Haridwar, Uddhamsingh Nagar (Pant Nagar) districts in Uttarakhand, Bhiwani and Narnaul districts in Haryana and Sangrur and Mansa districts in Punjab). I got opportunity to stay in Gopalpur village of Bijnor district of UP. Four of my batch mates including me were staying here from 29th October to 5th November 2011. I also enjoyed celebrating my birthday here on 30th Oct walking around sugarcane fields, visiting several households, understanding jiggery making units, bricklins, tubewells, buffaloes and enjoying the sumptuous hospitality of the villagers.

It was indeed memorable to have been in Gopalpur and it added to my list of pleasant village stay experiences earlier. I have vivid memories of my earlier village stays in Surat, Dahod districts of Gujarat in the initial days of IRMA, later 45 days in Ondrajala village of Srikakulam district of A.P. during IRMA fieldwork, Harrapura, Pipalpura and Barra villages in Kesla block of M.P. when I was in PRADAN. Though I did not stay continuously in one village in Jatara, I still remember the countless times I used to sleep in the open air counting stars in those villages where I used to go either to sell poultry birds or monitor brooding of chicks.

Gopalpur – Microcosm of Colourful India

Gopalpur is on the borders of UP and Uttarakhand on the banks of Ganga river. The railway bridge on river Ganga near Balawali is only 2 kms away from the village. The old bridge constructed by the Britishers is still strong while the newly operational bridge has developed some cracks. Famous Ganga mela is held every year here on the full moon day after Diwali which we missed by few days (slated for 11th November). Though Gopalpur is far more developed than my PRADAN villages, it offered me new insights into rural India where I experienced a multi-caste & multi religion village seeing everybody getting mixed up so well. It was heartening to see Muslims, Hindus (Brahmin, Gujjar, Dheemar, Bunkar, Pal, Badhai, Harijan, Valmiki communities) staying together amicably for centuries.

Though different communities mostly stayed together (as I could make out after I drew the social map depicting the settlement pattern), we cannot easily draw an inference about the community by looking at the house. Probably, the strong agricultural base of the village ensured relative equality. But, it was even more heartening to see everybody sitting in others’ houses taking food and talking freely. I realized that the divisive politics taking the help of caste and religion only shatter the reality of one India where everybody mixes together so well. Education and economic opportunities are the real equalizers which must be promoted by the state more intensely.

Rural India in Transition

The village presented me the transitional phase of rural India in several respects. There were 2 government primary schools with full enrollment on paper and absenteeism on the ground in spite of reasonably decent mid day meals. There were also 4 private schools that charge roughly 50-100 Rs. per month per child with considerable attendance. Though the quality of teachers and infrastructure were found lacking in these private schools, the parents prefer to send their male children here while they send their girl children to government school. However, the overall learning skills of the children were very poor everywhere. I kept telling myself that it is a crime and shame of our society to let a child not being able to study and turn out to be a manual unskilled labourer.

The health condition also presented a similar picture. While the nearest Government Primary Health Center (PHC) had only few tables and injections to be given, there were 4 quacks (2 Bengalis and 2 retail pharmacists who also offer medical advice) practising in the village. There is huge shortage of government doctors and support staff. I kept wondering about how to ensure effective delivery mechanism when a Village Development Officer (VDO) and Panchayat Secretary has to take care of more than 25 panchayats in a radius of 20-25 kms.

Ensuring Performance without Corruption

Similarly, the local Police chowki had 3 constables who are expected to work for banks in the daytime, do gasti in the evening and do night duty as well in the nearby 18 villages. I am puzzled about ensuring corruption free administration when everybody like the Pradhan with 650 Rs. salary, anganwadi worker with 1500 Rs. salary, PDS dealer with 50 paise per kg. commission, and other employees with no TA & DA (though they keep travelling everyday on official duties) think that it is legitimate to take bribe to cover their costs.

At the same time, making somebody a permanent worker also does not seem to ensure performance on the ground. School teachers with sixth pay commission salaries and sweepers with decent emoluments are the most detested lot in the village for absolute dereliction of their duties. I am yet to find answers about the design structure and incentives needed to ensure performance without corruption.

Way ahead through Diversification

Gopalpur has a rich history in the form of Ganga Glassworks Pvt. Ltd. (a factory that used to manufacture variety of glass products with pristine sand on the riverbed). The factory that was operational in 1923, used to employ around 3000 workers from nearby villages in its heydays. Unfortunately, it got shut down in 1995 due to union – management conflicts. Gopalpur villagers recall how different it was altogether when many were working there along with additional economic activity due to the presence of the factory.

Hence, they kept telling us to press with the collector for the early commissioning of 40 MW NTPC thermal power plant which was surveyed but later on cancelled. The villagers were ready to accept lesser compensation also for the land foregone with the hope of getting few jobs and better power supply in contrast to the present dismal 6 hours a day supply. I realized that even in agriculturally better off villages like Gopalpur, there is excess farm labour who wants to move out given any better opportunity. On one hand, diversification in terms of crops is required to make farming more remunerative and productive. On the other hand, skill building of huge numbers of youth is needed to give such non-farm jobs which can match their aspirations.

Gender Perspective

Looking at the discrimination of women, I realized that gender is a tougher nut to crack than poverty also. Though I experienced purdah system in Bundelkhand, it was starker here. I expected the presence of Pradhan pati. But, I was shocked to see that women ward members never even attend panchayat meetings. They even do not know about the other woman ward members. I was even more disappointed when I noticed in the school that all girls are made to study home science whereas boys study maths after 8th class. I started feeling in Gopalpur that we need to make it our special mission to ensure gender equality in all respects.

Nature’s Fury

I was shocked to see the lateral erosion of Ganga banks that already swept away few villages and continues to threaten many more. When large masses of land were being swept by water within few minutes in front of my eyes, I was wondering about the solutions to such nature’s fury. Government constructed few embankments made of boulders. But, such piecemeal efforts could not withstand the fury of mighty Ganges. Similarly, continuous usage of land without any break led to soil erosion. Water intensive crops such as sugarcane and water sucking plants like poplar and eucalyptus also reduced the groundwater table to alarming levels. We need gar greater imagination to shift to other remunerative and sustainable avenues without endangering present day farm economics.

Sweet Memories

I could not as freely interact with the villagers as when I was in PRADAN. The villagers were directed beforehand to treat the young babus well and our interaction was definitely colored by the expectations and perception of the villagers about Officers. Moreover, the elaborate arrangements made for our stay and the contingent of government staff moving along increased the gap between us and the villagers. However, I could get genuine responses when I went individually to some households in the evening and early morning. I would have loved to eat more number of times in their homes than in the community center where we were staying.

As a whole, the visit only reaffirmed my love for rural India. I feel as if my inner self beats for villages. I continue to derive tremendous energy whenever I interact with poor farmers, children, women there. I cannot finish my account without mentioning about village Pradhan (Bramhapal Singh) whose wisdom, humility and affection made me gain valuable insights into village life. He reinforced my faith in Panchayati Raj Institutions as real vehicles of local self governance in spite of many shortcomings. I look forward to visiting Gopalpur again in few years to see how it evolves and also experience the affection of villagers once again and more often.

Meeting Deep Joshi in Mussoorie on 29th Sept, 2011

I felt immensely happy when I came to know that Deep Joshi came to the academy (LBSNAA) to teach the Phase-IV participants as a part of the in service training programme. I am reminded of my last meeting with him when I and Gunjan went to his home in Gurgaon (in May, 2008) and solicited his advice on my idea of preparing for the civil service examination. He also remembers the same and it is the first thing he told me after I entered his room in Kalindi guest house on 29th September, 2011. He joked that he failed to dissuade me from writing the exam and that I have now become part of the power structure.

He is still very energetic and in fact travelling more extensively than when he was in PRADAN. He told me that he went to Orissa, M.P., CG, JH and few more states in the last month itself as a part of IFAD evaluation team and also being part of other committees and Boards. He is on the Board of IRMA and also participates in several meetings in Delhi as a member of the National Advisory Council (NAC). Interestingly, another NAC member Farah Naqvi, NAC Joint Secretary K Raju and Nikhil Dey of MKSS also came to LBSNAA at the same time.

The most striking thing that fills me after more than two hours of interaction is his strong conviction in participation-centric development process. It reinforced my belief that there are no shortcuts in development journey. Intense grassroots work whereby we engage with the rural poor working on their capabilities can only give lasting solutions. He was telling that without the countless meetings and continuous engagement we have in Kesla with women poultry producers, Kesla Poultry Sahakarita could not have been what it is today. I could easily relate the same with Jatara instantly.

He was enquiring about the training imparted to us at Mussoorie. He commented that I am now undergoing my second probation here (I finished my first in PRADAN when I completed my Apprenticeship for one year). He asked me about any human process labs being used as a part of our training. I also realized that PRADAN is way ahead in these respects (it conducts L-Group sensitivity training, MBTI exercise, Field Guide training etc.) I could sense his pride in PRADAN’s Apprenticeship programme (he agrees that though it is not a comprehensive programme, it is a fairly rigorous one).
I greatly share his conviction in process centric solutions for India’s development problems. He feels that technology can be an aid but not a one stop solution to our society’s ailments such as poverty and inequalities. He greatly believes in working with Panchayats (he disagrees with Dr. Ambedkar in this regard) and patiently building their capabilities. He wants us to go beyond even Gram Sabha and focus on hamlet level planning for programmes like watershed and MNREGA etc. In this regard, he has less belief in technology centric solutions like Unique Identification Number (UID) and feels that these numbers cannot make lasting changes in rural society.

He has great passion for regenerative use of natural resources in place of the present exploitative use of the same. In fact, he heads a sub group of NAC working on making MNREGA more livelihoods centric through Natural Resource Management (NRM). He says that we should encourage the youth to work at the grassroots with PRIs. His idea is to build vibrant PRIs which can take care of NRM, livelihoods, programme implementation, school management and many more. Convergence of programmes is his another concern whereby departments, agencies and programmes shall work together in conjunction.

He urges all of us to realize the fact that India’s rural population will surely be more than the urban population in 2030 and possibly even in 2050. Hence forcible migration of the unskilled labour cannot solve our problems. We must be able to provide decent livelihoods to everybody. Hence, we need to reflect upon the kind of lifestyle that we want to envisage for our rural masses. Lavish and affluent lifestyles destructive to environment need to be replaced by a world view which places mother earth at the center of our development process. Social sector investments in education and health in rural areas can no longer wait. Innovative solutions are expected from everybody in these complex times (Deep gave me the example of JRK Rao, IAS, Collector of Lohardaga in early 1990s when he encouraged Manas to take up lift irrigation schemes).

The time that I spent with Deep was really satisfying (Kabir who designed TRC and other buildings in Kesla was also in Mussoorie and spent time with us). He advised me to be fearless, humble and keep my conviction in people’s capabilities to take charge of their matters. He gave me the examples of Harsh Mander, Appu, Sankaran sir etc. I came out of his room after taking his written comments on my PRADAN’s experience letter cherishing and reliving those 4 years in Kesla and Jatara.

A tribute to my English Teacher

My English teacher who taught me from 5th to 7th classes passed away on 7th July, 2011. He age is above 90 years. His full name is Vemulapalli Venkateshwara Rao. However, he was affectionately called as VVR garu by his colleagues and school management. He was also referred to as Jampani mastaru as he worked as the Head Teacher in Government school in the village Jampani. After he retired from government service, our principal, Madhusudhan Rao garu went to him and requested him to teach at our school in Chilumuru. He taught for more than 20 years even after retirement and I was one of his countless fortunate students to have learnt English alphabets and grammar from him.

He had special affection towards me and my sister as our family and his family used to stay close by in our school. His wife (mamma garu) used to come to our home regularly and amma also used to reciprocate. When I came to 5th standard after finishing my first 4 years in Government Elementary school, I was yet to start with English alphabets. VVR garu was a hard task master and I was initially so frightened that I used to look for an opportunity to run away from his classes. Amma sensed my fear and conveyed the same to VVR garu. I slowly became comfortable and got 38 marks in 1st unit test. The score improved to 57 in 2nd unit test and to 75 in Quarterly exam. Later, fear about English as well as VVR garu translated into love for both.

VVR garu used to stress on fundamental grammar so much that I still remember him writing active- passive voice, direct-indirect speech on the black board. The countless occasions he explained to us about adjectives, adverbs, tenses of verbs, infinitive etc. made them an inalienable part of my memory. I still remember his sentence that we must write only present tense after do, does, did, will, would, shall, should, can, could, may, might. Now, I may be unknowingly applying all these elementary principles. But for him, my confidence with English grammar would never have been same.

When I went to Hyderabad for graduation and Anand for P.G., my vocabulary was comparatively weak since I could not read many English books in Telugu medium till 10th class. But, my grammar gave me the required comfort. I kept reading Hindu, Frontline though I could not understand many words, kept looking into dictionary umpteen times though the explanation itself baffled me sometimes. Vocabulary is like muscle and tissues which I could gradually add to the strong skeleton that I owe to VVR garu.

My interaction with him never stopped (after 7th class or even later when I left A.P.). Whenever, I used to meet him when I went home, he affectionately used to ask me about my studies, work. I remember one of his sentences for life – “Choudary..be moderate in your habits or whatever you do (be it food, sleep, physical activity). I am able to keep good health in my nineties because I was always moderate in my habits”. He passionately used to tell me that he used to go to court during his school days to listen to lawyers’ arguments to improve his language.

He was so happy to get know about my rank when I met him in Tenali for the last time in December. I am so unfortunate not to have been able to see him before his death. What a noble life is that of teacher who enlightens the minds of so many children? It is a life fully lived and lived for a purpose. I and many of his students may never be able to repay the debt that we owe to him. May his soul rest in peace.

My JATARA visit on 2nd & 3rd July, 2011

I went to Jatara (in Tikamgarh District of M.P.) after 3 years (my last day that I spent there was on 12th June, 2008) for the Annual General Body Meeting (GBM) of the cooperative (Mahila Murgi Utpadak Swayat Sahakarita, Jatara). I was so thrilled to attend such gathering of more than 200 women (from nearby 10 villages) whom I personally I knew before. I was so happy to see the cooperative that I formed, registered, transacted business in the capacity of its CEO for over 2 years is running successfully even now. The cooperative members reared close to 6 lakh broiler chicks in FY – 2010-11, sold close to 700 tonnes of live poultry birds worth over 4.3 crore rupees. The cooperative distributed over 35 lakhs as grower margin to the 221 members.

I am even gladder to see that 150 more women producers are slated to be added under SGSY special project. In terms of infrastructure creation, the cooperative made wonderful strides. It got 25000 Sq. ft. land leased from Industry Department of M.P. Govt. for a period of 30 years. The feed factory which I made operational in a rented premise is now in cooperative’s own building with a bigger grinder, mixer and a generator. All the investment in the feed plant (close to 25 lakhs) came from cooperative’s own funds. I am sure that the cooperative will soon construct its own Office also in near future. When the new producers also start their production in couple of years, I am certainly hopeful that the cooperative will be rearing more than 1 lakh birds per month with annual live weight of over 1000 tonnes worth more than 10 crores.

I was in a doubt for a moment whether I was really there 6 years ago in 2005 struggling to convince the women to take up poultry. It took 6 months to get started with the first batch of 2000 birds then. Now, they sell close to 20000 birds in a week in an area where there was not even a single broiler farm 6 years before. When I experienced the reality myself and saw the happiness on the faces of women, I rejoiced the time that I spent there. All struggle, pain, long hours of work looked so small. In fact, they looked so sweet that I thanked God for giving me such an opportunity to go and work there. I cannot ask anything more than the love that all the staff gave me there and the affection that women showered upon me.

What is more worthwhile in life than going to such unfortunate places (in terms of geography – poor soil quality, deficient rainfall, remoteness, oppressive feudal structure, poor education & health facilities and what not) and promote viable commercial activities which can stand the test of market reality? What is more heartening than 200 tribal and dalit women sitting together to discuss the financial position of their cooperative & make future expansion plans? It becomes even more stupendous when we look at in the background of the societal reality there where women cannot unveil in front of an outsider nor can they go out on their own to transact financial matters. Such commercial activity makes even bigger statement when we look it in the context of a district with no single notable operational industry.
The GBM was so lively with so many women gathering at one place with songs, local slogans and many lighter moments (like garlanding one another). I got completely immersed spending time with women from various villages recounting the countless visits, meetings that I was part of either for shed construction, production or marketing. I passed on the mike to them and gave opportunity to express their concerns, register their grievances. The women really enjoyed speaking with the mike and I could sense increased confidence in their communication. Everybody was asking about my health (whether my reduced weight is due to any ill-health or not getting sufficient roti in time), my marriage, my parents etc. Everybody wants to see me as Tikamgarh collector, come more often to Jatara and address their concerns. My eyes were filled with tears several times during the AGM out of so much of happiness.

After the AGM was over, the supervisors and staff members came to me recalling those days when producing poultry birds and selling them looked very arduous. Though it is not so easy even now, experiences over 5 years increased the comfort level of everyone. Poultry being an intense commercial activity dealing with livestock offers tremendous challenge for the CEO of the cooperative to develop as a person who can do troubleshooting anytime anywhere. I can recall several such challenging situations like delay in the arrival of chicks’ vehicle, refusal of labour to unload maize or poultry feed, vehicle being caught by police on the way, some disease detected and the hurry to sell all the birds quickly and many more. But the variety is added by the problems related to trust deficit in the villages convincing the producers that accounts are transparent.

The next day, I woke up at 6 and straightaway went to see as many villages as possible. I was greeted with so much of love that I had to stop and have a talk with everyone. I did informal meetings everywhere, had food in one producer’s poultry shed and came back to Jatara only in the evening in a hurry to catch the train at Jhansi which I could do miraculously in the last 2 minutes. The turnaround in Ghatia, Pathara villages is the most memorable experience this time. I was always guilty when I went to Delhi that I could not streamline production in these two villages. Now, they are producing so well that the Best Producer of the cooperative award went to Ladkunwar bai from Pathara. All the producers from Jarua took Rabo bank loan, constructed a second shed and are now eager to construct a third shed as well. Dhaniram took some memorable pictures during my interaction in villages that I will cherish for long.

I saw Venky’s chicks when they arrived from Indore and could feel their innocence when I took them into my hands. I stopped eating non-veg after I left Jatara 3 years ago as an example of self-restraint. But, my love for poultry as a viable activity for the rural poor has only increased manifold since then. I am sure that poultry apart from providing some vital supplementary income has imparted lot many crucial lessons to the tribal women. They can now appreciate hygiene better, understand the role of prophylactic measures, vaccination, bio-security which they can very well apply in their own lives.

I met so many children of producers and was asking them about their studies. I was also enquiring whether any of them could get any job after I left. Unfortunately, the quality of education there does not give them the confidence to compete and get good jobs. I kept telling the producers that I want to see their children doing jobs like me. I must ensure quality education to the children wherever I get an opportunity to work. It needs lot more imagination than rearing poultry and is more rewarding for the families.

Dhaniram and Nandkishore were telling me that I did not change at all in 3 years in terms of my approach and attitude. I wish that I will never change in terms of my enthusiasm to work in Jatara like places. Nothing is else is more fulfilling than creating 20 more such institutions in different districts and states. I wish God gives me all the energy to do so. It is great to see that Deka, Mridu, Jagannath and others are dedicatedly working for poultry. I wish there are many more like them. Can we encourage more people to take up the challenge of rural livelihoods’ creation? I wish I find some answers that will lead to outcomes.

INSPIRATION write up on PRADAN

My journey began 9 years ago in June, 2002 when I joined Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA), Anad, Gujarat to pursue Post Graduate Diploma in Rural Management (PGDRM). IRMA offered me a perfect management course with rural orientation and exposure (loads of case studies about rural cooperatives and producer organizations). At the time of campus placements in April, 2004, I chose to join an NGO called Professional Assistance for Development Action (PRADAN) being excited about various rural livelihood activities that they portrayed to us in placement presentations.

PRADAN is a Non Governmental Organization (NGO) registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. It was started in 1983 by two inspired individuals namely Vijay Mahajan and Deep Joshi who had the noble objective of giving professional support to the NGOs so that they can deliver their objectives better. Later, PRADAN got into direct project implementation mode and presently works in 8 states in central and eastern India.

PRADAN recruits university-educated youth and grooms them to do grassroots work. Its Vision is to enable rural communities to live a life of dignity. It has the Mission of impacting livelihoods to enable rural communities. I worked in PRDAN for little over 4 years from May 1st , 2004 to May 23rd 2008 in Kesla (Hoshangabad district) and Jatara (Tikamgarh district) in Madhya Pradesh. I was engaged in promotion of rural livelihoods as a part of the PRADAN field teams. When I look back at my work in PRADAN, I realize that it has greatly influenced my personality and inspired me to prepare for Civil Services and go back to work in some of the poorest and remote districts.

At PRADAN, we were engaged in promoting Self Help Groups (SHGs) of women as instruments of savings and credit. SHGs are seen by PRADAN as the initial entry point to gain foothold in the village and later use it as a platform to link the poor women with the mainstream institutions like banks and government. After the initial micro finance activity, PRADAN promoted locally relevant livelihood activities taking into consideration the diversity of the family contexts and the local resources.
The various activities promoted by PRADAN include forest based livelihoods like tasar sericulture, lac cultivation, siali leaf plate making etc., Natural Resource Management activities (agriculture, horticulture, lift irrigation schemes, watershed treatment etc.), livestock based activities like dairy, goatery etc. and micro enterprise development that included mushroom cultivation and broiler poultry cultivation etc. As a PRADAN professional, I was expected to play the role of a facilitator to mobilize finances for the SHGs from the mainstream banks and government.

I am inspired by PRADAN because it gives space for Community Based Organisations (CBOs) like SHGs, cooperatives and producer organisations etc. It has the vision of developing local capabilities so that the local community takes the activity forward even after PRADAN team leaves the area. Hence, PRADAN constantly works on introducing systems to sustain the livelihoods like training the villagers as para-veterinarians, accountants, technicians to support rural livelihood projects.

I am also inspired by PRDAN’s working philosophy of choosing to work with the poorest and marginalized sections in remote areas. It takes the family as the unit of intervention and moreover puts women members at the center stage of development. The idea of treating the poor people as responsible citizens with full potential and not as beneficiaries or clients greatly inspires me. In PRADAN, we had the custom of sitting along with the village women in a circle on the ground. PRADAN really combines the professional approach to work with the right amount of empathy for the poor people. As told by our Ex Executive Director, Deep Joshi, “Development work needs to have both head and the heart. If all of us have bleeding hearts, it may not work. If we have only heads, they we may dictate such solutions which may not touch the human chord”.

PRADAN’s culture also greatly inspires me for its informality and non-founder centeredness. It is a decentralized collegial body with space for second generation leaders. There is space for expressing our views in the team meetings, consultative forum meetings and even elsewhere. Everybody is so approachable and friendly that hierarchy never seems to hinder any work. All of us used to call Deep Joshi affectionately as Deep and our team leader Madhu Khetan as Madhu etc. Professional ethos of the organization are deeply inspiring like deciding upon the targets with due consultation, conducting various personality development workshops like L-group, MBTI typology, systemic practice of Field Guides to nurture and guide young entrants etc. Integrity at the work place is the non-negotiable value and PRADAN always maintained highest standards of transparency and accountability. We had the custom of not touching any cash related to community in the villages or elsewhere.

When I look back at my work in PRADAN working in such remote areas struggling with language, riding bike on non-existent roads, adjusting with the food and timings etc., I realize that this experience has made me a more adjusting personality ready to take up any challenge elsewhere. It really gave me the self-confidence that I can do trouble shooting whenever needed. However, I could not spend much time with my family and friends who started treating me as Non Resident Andhrite. However, the challenge of gaining the trust of the tribals before initiating the activity and later successfully managing the activity, taking the local administration along etc. made me so engrossed and excited that I never complained about anything. On one side, there was the feeling of getting outdated when compared with friends working in cities. However, on the other side, the excitement of reaching out to more number of families made me glued to the work.

When I look back at the work that I did, I strongly feel that there are few intellectual challenges which are more worthy than addressing rural poverty. As Deep Joshi says, our villages require our intellect and professional talent. Development work is as challenging and complex as remote sensing or high science or nuclear physics. PRADAN wants to prove that development work is equally challenging and rewarding. The work at PRADAN has made me sensitive to the need to work at the grassroots. Even in my new job, I look forward to working in those underdeveloped districts in whatever capacity I can.