Of poverty and corruption

I have been silent for a long time - not for dearth of material or ideas to write on but from sheer laziness and at times hectic traveling. Here are some quick thoughts on some "things" that have been "bothering" me. Towards the end of the year, I was home early one evening when wife and son happened to be out. The only person home was our live-in help who has been with us for over five years. She had been trying to get in touch with her brother-in-law in a village in West Bengal (not very far from Kharagpur - for those who may not know, Kharagpur, or KGP as it is referred to by many, is home to the oldest and the biggest IIT in the country) to get some news of her parents. The b-i-l had a cell phone and was thus, accessible. But that evening she had been frustrated in her attempts to contact him and I told her to ring him up on my cell phone, which she did.

As I reclined, surfing channels for the lack of anything better to do, I heard snatches of her conversation with her b-i-l. B-i-l was asking her to send some money to her parents. She almost blew her top since five/ six months back when she had gone home, she had given her mother Rs5,000. She asked her b-i-l how could her mother have spent Rs5,000 in only five months! I felt miserable at the thought. Rarely has the feeling of bliss on reaching home early so rudely been shattered. Rs5,000 - we probably spend out on one evening's meal in most upmarket restaurants in Mumbai. In this village where her parents stay (a few hours from KGP), there is still no power. In the district headquarters, an uncle of hers lost his life recently because while he was in emergency ward, the 12-16 hour power cuts made sure that modern medicine did not stand a chance. Life is unfair; but that in today's world lives are lost, in a country that is aspiring to be among the world's best, because of lack of bare minimum basic necessities somehow makes a mockery of many of our tall claims.

This is also the same country where an industrialist recently gifted his wife an Airbus 319 on her 44th birthday. While India indeed is shining for a lot of people (including yours truly) and there is a lot to celebrate about, somehow there is a large cross-section of the population which cannot even start to aspire to get out of the grinding vicious cycle of poverty, corruption and darkness that envelope their lives. That brings me to my second story. My driver had saved up Rs100,000 to buy a second room where he stays (his is a family of four people - self, wife, one son and one daughter). The other day he told me that he will not be able to buy the dream second room for quite some time. The story goes something like this - his sister's son is an ITI trained carpenter. Recently he secured a state government job in Mumbai; but before giving him his appointment letter the state government official in-charge demanded Rs150,000 as bribe. The family had no choice but to pool in all their savings to ensure that the young boy received his appointment letter and had a shot at breaking out of the vicious cycle.

My driver told me that the young boy will be drawing his second salary of Rs8,000 in a few days time. The bribe he had to pay was over one and half year's of salary of the boy. I do not know how but somewhere the "system" or society has to become more sensitive and sensitized. Otherwise what is the use of India prospering? Some of us may be able to gift diamonds to our better halves, some will gift aircrafts, some of us may be just satisfied with old fashioned gifts like flowers, books and cards, but how does a greater part of India prosper, how do the have-not's not feel like not-wanted in their own country?

Of poverty and extremism

It was about 5-6 years back. A routine office work had taken my friend to Jhargram, 190kms from Kolkata and on the main line from Kolkata to Tatanagar (Jamshedpur) on South Eastern railway. Travelers on the Kolkata-Tatanagar route know that Jhargram is where adivasi's get into the train and are a familiar sight with their bundles of cut wood. Often one sees youngsters going to Kolkata to take some exams for government jobs. My friend (let me call him Ani) was working in the IT department of a government owned company. By nature Ani was a friendly and gregarious person. On his visits to Jhargram, he would be put up in the Rajbaari (translates to "King's palace"), where even today one can get a room for Rs550 per night and have a retinue of 5 servants waiting on you.

During this visit, Ani had seen newspaper items about Naxal presence in Jhargram and some associated killings in the region. He asked a local district officer, an adivasi by origin and a very hard working fellow about Naxals. "Babu, do you want to see one of the training camps?", was the response of Murmu. Ani was not only keen at the prospect but also excited. He extended his stay by a day and both of them headed into the jungles the next day.

Deep in the jungles in Salboni (most of the journey was undertaken in a car), inside a hut Ani came face to face with 5-6 young girls. His guess is they were aged anywhere between 12-19 years. His initial questions on why they were not in school etc was met with hostile looks till Murmu (who was also acting as the interpreter) explained to them that the "babu meant no harm". Murmu then asked the girls to get some tea for the babu and that broke the proverbial ice.

After tea, Ani was shown cache of arms used for training, which was kept in a metal trunk underneath a bed. It had arms ranging from small daggers to country made pistols and rifles. As the visit came to an end, Ani proffered the girls two Rs100 notes. While they were obviously happy at this unforeseen bounty, there was something that was bothering them. Murmu clarified, "Babu, what will they do with hundred rupee notes here. Nobody will be able to change it for them. In the villages deep inside the jungle, people have not seen or used notes of such high denomination." Ani then gave whatever money he had in small denominations much to the happiness of the girls and left.

On the way back, Ani asked Murmu, "Are you involved with them?" Murmu replied, "I am not involved with them now. But I have seen the abject poverty and exploitation at close hand. These tribal people are honest people. So from time to time I give them any useful information I may have about police raids etc." Murmu had friends in the police department and used to get information about impending police raids. Similarly he tips off the local newspapers and journalists as well when there is a story to be told.

Throughout the return journey to Kolkata, Ani could not forget the images of the girls who did not know what to do with hundred rupee notes since it was too large a denomination for them. He had spent over five times that money for his two nights in Jhargram Rajbaari. He often thinks about it even today when he reads about the rising Naxal presence in the country. He is not surprised. Given the linkages and infiltration within the administration, the abject poverty and exploitation, the Naxals will always find willing recruits to join them in their deathly dance of violence and retribution. Another form of exploitation? Who knows?

(Note: The events mentioned above are true and based on my discussions with Ani (name changed).)