This is a recurring, frequently updated post, containing a (relevant but not necessarily new) subset of happenings in my life. Read PAGE 2 for the full set. You may also be interested in checking this out.
Turned a year wiser!
May 4th was my 26th birthday. As many of you know, I am not big on birthday bashes. But, that didn’t deter my spirits one bit. The best aspect of the day, perhaps, was the surprise edibles cooked by Seju. Speaking of her, the occasion provided a perfect excuse to reflect on the cheeriness and energy she has brought to my life over the last half year [I can't love you enough, baby]. The afternoon was spent delivering twenty blankets to selected elderly in our maid’s slums. In the evening, we chose to hang by the Ulsoor lake, which turned out to be a place good for nothing, other than jogging.
Car Free Day (aka Go Cycle)
Cyclists of from all over Bangalore ganged up and rode around MG road to spread awareness about climate ch
ange: i) how we can live merrily without a car ii) how cycling is a workable mode of transport. There is no shame in cycling or taking buses/trains. Several CEOs bike to work daily. Many people, who can afford other means, commute by buses. Yes, there is some pain involved, but that’s well worth the environmental gain of the future generations. Besides, cycling’s health gains are well documented. Nonetheless, if you must burn fuel, prefer a two wheeler over a car. And if you must own a car, choose an electric or a higher-mileage one, and minimize its usage.
Community Computing Center (C Cube)
Since March, some of us, AIDers, have been involved in running a computer center for some economically backward slum kids, near IBM, on the Bannerghatta road. For most of them, this was the first time they were exposed to a PC they can operate. So, we have just been doing basics thus far – identifying various computer components, getting familiar with the OS, using painting software, among other things. [More]
Ahmedabad ‘Chali’ Tution Center (ACTC)
This
project took off sooner than envisaged. A tuition center for the not-so-privileged kids in Maninagar, Ahmedabad has now been operational since Jan end. Currently, we help kids from standard 5-7 with their difficulties in Maths, Science and English, 8 hours a week. We intend to commence exercises on “critical thinking” or “values inculcation” shortly, looking to help the young ones grow up into thinking and responsible citizens.
A protest against human trafficking
I and Sejal were there at the Gandhi statue, MG road to show solidarity with those who suffer through the deplorable act of buying and selling human beings - mainly for sexual exploitation. In a stirring report, UNICEF claims that over a million children are forced into this sex trade every year! Anyways, the least we men can do is never to buy sex - break the demand.
A festival of a different kind
Attended an NGO exhibition cum fair called Namma Jatre and wrote an article on it for a news portal called Citizen Matters. I ain’t proud to reveal that I bought some stuff from there on borrowed money :). Not that I am a compulsive shopper. Just wanted to assist the NGOs through my purchase.
An ‘agricultural’ day out
Some of us, AIDers, went on a farming outing on a recent Sunday. We spent nearly the whole day on a couple of farms well alway from the city, learning and discussing about the role of sustainable organic agriculture [employing cost-effective techniques that make use of locally available substances like cow dung as opposed to chemical fertilizers] in alleviating the agrarian crisis in the country. Prasanna also briefed us about their proposed financial model in which they want the farmers to share a part of the profit with their agricultural laborers, with a view to putting in place some incentive for the laborers to do productive work.
Justice for the survivors of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy
This, along with ensuring no more Bhopals, is the goal of Students for Bhopal (Sfb), a global group. I have been trying to form a Bangalore cell of Sfb, along with a bunch of young enthusiasts. The way ahead looks a bit grim unless we beef up the manpower. Having said that, it was pleasing to be part of the children’s day protest, organized by the college youth. [Details on the Bhopal campaign with links]
Metric Mela!
Our AID team organized this event wherein kids ran the show for adults who were the target beneficiaries. The idea was to hold a fun-filled event, focused around estimating various measurements (weight, height, volume, time). Click here for a small report on the event, developed by Satish Sundaram. Here is metric mela on the front page of newspaper Bangalore Mirror.
Shanta amma’s missing daughter
Shanta amma lives in a hut near my (previous) rented house (Q: How do I know her? A: She was one of the people I had distributed blankets to, on my b’day). The land, where her hut is set up, belongs to a contractor, who, in return for the land, has amma’s 13 year old daughter working as a maid in his house (for years). One evening, the contractor folks sent the kid to buy them something from a nearby shop. This was the last she was sighted, when I (accidentally) came to know about this matter. Amma had already lodged an FIR by then. We were all set for a TOI ad (The filthy costs of the ad world were quite a revelation for me), to be followed by one in a free, local TV channel, when the girl made an appearance herself, more than a week after going missing. It turned out that she had been hijacked into an auto that evening, to a place where she was made to work as a maid in wretched conditions . She wasn’t the only child undergoing this misery, she revealed. Thank heavens she managed to escape. Hope the police uncovers the whole racket with her help and the other kids get liberated soon. Sadly, on the very next day of the child’s momentous homecoming, she was back to “work” at the contractor’s. I didn’t even ask Shanta amma why she sent the girl again. With no husband to support and three other kids to raise, she can ill-afford to go land-less i.e. home-less (She fears she will be chucked out of the land the moment she refuses to the contractor). Post this incident, I curse my life a little less.
A day on a ‘fast’ lane
Oct 2, 2007: It was my maiden fast (taking in just water in the 24 hours was my first time; I may have done ‘convenient’ fasts before :) ). No, it wasn’t intended at coaxing the gods to get me a good life partner (I have relived that burden of the Gods by making that choice myself). Thanks to AID, it was a fast for a cause - farmers’ suicides. It served its purpose of creating awareness in my vicinity to a reasonably satisfactory degree. The fact that it was on Gandhi jayanti made it all the more special for me as MKG has long been a source of inspiration to me. Ruchi (sister) and Sejal (GF) made the fast even more memorable by joining in themselves.
Minimum wages for textile and garment workers
I hadn’t been on too many such protests before so it was good to be part of this although my contribution was close to zero. Given that a lot of the stuff they make is sold by MNCs in the west and the rest that stays in India too is prized quite high, their demand of 200 Rs. per day seems perfectly justified.It is also of serious concern that several workers have died because of over-time and poor working conditions (in one word, exploitation). Wishing them justice quick and smooth.
A rare physical combat I got into
I was traveling to Hyderabad in a sleeper coach of the Indian railways. It must have been 8 pm-ish when this man in his late 30s, sitting in the neighboring compartment (same coach), showed why he is the villain of this story. The maniac (read the villain) ordered soup from a vendor (an about 16 years old boy) and the poor kid mistakenly spilled a couple of drops of it on the floor. The drops were lying on the corridor and were adequately far from where our prince was seated. But the jerk fumed at the boy, verbally assaulted him before forcing him to find a paper napkin to clean up those drops of soup. The kid started shivering, struggling to cope up with the humiliation as anyone would. I had just about sized up the matter by then and that’s when the merciless moron, discontent with the cleanliness, ordered a repeat act. I had had more than enough and I stepped in. I asked him in a reasonably polite way why he was behaving in such an inhumane way to the boy. His fragile ego got out of hands and he started abusing me, verbally. I kept my cool for a bit until the abuse got out of limits and I retorted with “do you have a problem with your wife?”. The very next nanosecond, I wished I could bend time and erase the “wify” remark. Not to be. The man lost it further and after a handful of minutes, caught my collar and pushed me. By then, people intervened and we were both seated in our respective places. I caught my breath back, told the vendor boy (who had gone entirely out of focus) to put this issue behind him, spent five minutes chalking out the next plan of action and then, got up in search of the TC. The first thing I said to him upon catching him was: “I need help, I have been physically assaulted!”. He and all those who heard and understood this, came rushing after me to my compartment. By then, I had gathered substantial support and there was a big crowd that had assembled near the ‘venue’. My USP was simple: I have undergone a physical attack and I wanna lodge a police complaint! After a fair bit of exchange of words between a lot of old and new characters, there was an appeal for an apology which I rejected forthright as I wanted to keep the pressure on the culprit, even further. Finally, I let him go as my objective, by then, had been met. I wanted to teach him (and all like-minded others) a lesson whereby this sorta treatment is never dished out to any innocent, helpless person, ever again. The prolonged humiliation in front of his wife and kid had served that purpose.
My first vehicle!
Inspired by a presentation on global warming (thanks to HP), I have been riding a pollution-free bicycle to my work place (and everywhere else I can) everyday, since 05-July-2007. [More with a picture]