Association for India’s Development August 2007

Delhi Chapter Newsletter

Table of Contents From the Editor’s Desk

From the editors desk 1 August first week of AID Delhi had its
Operational Review meet and a day prior to that there
Project Updates was a great and memorable Mirzafar Award ceremony
Aashayen 2 happened which was organized by Students for Bhopal
AID Gurgaon 2 along with the support from other NGO’s like AID. It
AID Prayas 3 is an alarm to the government saying that the people in
Parichay 4 India are no more a mere watchers of what ever they are
Youth Task Force 4 doing. I saw the event happened was more meaningful
Khoj 4 on the ways of satya aaur ahimsa. To say it in a local
Tara 5 lingo it was “Gandhigiri” there. We were appreciating
Nai Disha 5 our ministers and the government officers for the
activities they’ve did for the country. It was very well
Volunteer Speak – Roshan Jha 5 covered in the media too. We will be sending them
Volunteer Speak – Siddharh Goyal 6 more alarms by doing more such events.

Extraas 6 An Independence Day celebration at various

Articles
Coexisting with Nature - Haripriya
Environment around Us – Dolly
Economic Boom – Difference on the life of
a common man – Vikas Happa
India – Shilpa Singla
The Pretender – Tamseel Hussain
Toon of the Month
Children’s Corner
Photo of the Month - Rupali
Behind the Scene
Publications Team
Information Corner – Selva
Contact us
projects is the event which should be mentioned and
thanks to all the special efforts taken by the volunteers
7 to organize the events at all our projects. The children’s
8 zeal and enthusiasm sends across a message that
tomorrow’s India would be better one where these
8 children will be making changes. “A change making
10 change”.
11
Why are we all here together doing something
12 for the nation? We all are here to create a difference.
How are we going to create a difference? Well there are
13 a lot many answers to this question which is debatable
but I personally mean a difference is what you feel in
14 yourself. Difference is there when you start to feel the
ownership. Difference comes when you take up a
responsibility. We all face problems in our day to day
15 life. Right from the morning one boards a bus, or sits in
his car till the night he comes back to bed. None can say
15 that he was happy to see whatever was happening
around him/her. A few come forward saying that I can
15 make some change, the rest of them debate and the
remaining adjust themselves after blaming others.
Difference comes here when we take up the issue to
find an alternate solution rather than blaming the faults.
So I welcome everyone here who has come forward to
take responsibility and ownership.

1

Most of us think that teaching a child in a
project is all volunteering is. I don’t mean that its not
volunteering but it’s a part of volunteering.
Volunteering is more than that. AID is a great
platform to pool in all your wonderful ideas, creations
and views on finding an alternate solution to a
problem. We encourage volunteer in working with the
projects which is of their interests.
Right to Information is one more wonderful
tool which we have in our hands and we have to use it
to the optimum to have better governance and also to
increase the transparency of it. I request volunteers
and reader whoever facing problem in getting their job
done at government / public offices to come forward
and file RTI. It does wonders. I personally have a lot
of success stories of RTI to write. I made a professor
take his lab class for the entire three hours by filing
RTI. I got my job done in two days after filing RTI
and initially the application was pending for several
months. In case of you having any doubts on how to
file RTI you are welcome to approach us and we can
help you out. Corruption is at all levels and we all
know where it’s happening and why? This is an appeal
for everyone to come forward and question it and stop
it.
I also thank all our donors, supporters,
volunteers and other readers for giving a constant
support towards the activities whatever we’ve been
doing.
-Selva
- Publications Coordinator,
- AID Delhi,
- aid.selva@gmail.com
- 9891358457
2
Project Updates: Aashayen
The project is certainly going great guns after a lot of
streamlining and arrangements that have been made in
the organisation itself, to bring a certain order and
coordination and a lot of stress was given to intra-team
communication this time so that all the volunteers can
work in an amiable environment. The classes that were
taking place only twice a week have been extended to
three days and four classes i.e. single class on Friday and
Saturday and two classes on Sunday that would be
taking place in the afternoon followed by an evening
class.
The whole group has been broken into teams for
efficient functioning into Vocational Training,
Personality Development, Basic Education, Health Care
etc
A community survey was also kick-started a couple of
weeks back and is being pursued by all the volunteers
on a regular basis with enthusiasm so that by the end of
this quarter we are ready with a statistical profile of the
whole community to be able to start long term benefit
programs.
The Independence Day was also celebrated with great
fervour with the kids, which was an attempt to make the
kids aware of the Freedom Struggle of the country and
on friendship day we screened the movie "Finding
Nemo" for the children which they thoroughly enjoyed.
- Sona,
- Coordinator, AID Aashayen
- sona4poochie@gmail.com
Project Updates: AID Gurgaon
The month of August for AID Gurgaon was
again filled with a lot of activities. India is celebrating
her 60th year of Independence and most of us thought
that this independent day should be really special.
We continue to run project Unnati successfully
since the last few months and we continue to identify
new areas/bastis, from where the children can come and
start their elementary education. Although there are a
few drop-outs (which we had expected, as some of the
population we are addressing is mobile and nomadic in
nature) we have children which are quite regular and are
making good progress. On Saturdays, volunteers too
join in to update themselves with the progress of the
kids and participate in the fun activities with children,
which could be either reciting poems or conducting
drawing session or extempore sessions..
 One volunteer Eisha, is a student of Medicine
and is currently on a break, have been visiting the
school on a regular basis and has been personally
monitoring the progress of the children.
The highlight for the month of August was the
Independence Day celebrations. The day was celebrated
with a lot of enthusiasm both by the volunteers and the
children. The volunteers got together on the day and
arranged for a Flag-Hoisting ceremony, followed by the
National Anthem. The event was a huge success; we feel
that it gave the children taste of what independence is
all about. Moreover, the event also helped us create an
awareness of our school in the village.
The clothes collection drive that was initiated
last month is on and we are working with Goonj, an
NGO involved in collection of old clothes from various
places and their distribution in remote parts of the
country.
For the next month we are looking at admitting
3-4 kids to the government school in the vicinity.
However, the month of August also saw a discussion on
sending all or some of the children from Unnati to the
Literacy India School, which is located in a different
part of the city, and has a better facility with a
playground and has an excellent standard of education,
compared to the standards of the government school
we had witnessed. The idea is that a bus from LI
collects the children every day and drops them back
around their bastis. While the pros and cons of this
decision are still being debated, most of us feel that it
would be an excellent idea if we can make this happen.
We are going to meet the parents to discuss the matter
and seek their go ahead.
This month, we also paid a visit to Mobile
Crèches, and it was heartening to note that the children
who were admitted to the nearby government school,
last year are continuing with the support of their parents
and the MC facility has also seen some improvement in
its infrastructure.
The challenges in front of us remain – the need
for more committed volunteers – and implementation
of a formal structure – which we feel will help us in
having more accountability from the volunteers.
- Manish Sharma
- AID Gurgaon,
- manish.ms@gmail.com
3
Project Updates: AID Prayas
This month was quite challenging for Prayas,
We did a lot of brainstorming and we spent good
amount of time to make things brighter but we could
not get the expected amount of success.
AID- Prayas Volunteers celebrated
Independence Day at Nayi Disha Free education
Society, Sector 29, Noida. It was wonderful to see the
success of Nayi Disha. And it inspired us too. We are
facing lot of challenges in conducting regular classes at
government school. The local Village PRADHAN and
school Principal is creating problem to provide a room
in school though we have written permission from
BSA(Basic Siksha Adhikaari.). We have come back from
Govt. School to our old destination i.e. Moonlight
Public School for weekend classes.
Moreover those kids from Naya Bans area who
were coming for regular classes as tuition, we refused
them to come for classes as we were losing our focus on
the neediest kids of the community.
Last weekend the classes were held at moonlight
public school and we are planning to talk to Govt.
officials again for regular classes.
It is still tough for our kids to compete with the
other kids in govt. school, so we have to work on it very
dedicatedly. We are planning to have a parents meet
specially with those parents whose kids have been
admitted in school by us. Parents are not willing to take
responsibility for their own kid's education, and I think
this is our responsibility now to motivate them for their
kid’s education.
I personally feel, this is the period of transition
in Prayas and we are facing lot of challenges but if we
will approach in an organized manner we will definitely
succeed soon.
- Dharshan
Coordinator, AID Prayas
- darshanmehra@gmail.com
- 9818361122

Project Updates: Parichay
• Rakhi stall at STM and TCS: Parichay registered
a sale of Rs. 9482/- at STM and Rs. 2402/- at
TCS, NSPZ.
We celebrated Independence Day along with
visitors from Tribal Fusion. A team from Tribal
Fusion distributed bags to all kids at Parichay.
They also donated an electronic weighing
machine.
• To accommodate the growing activities at
Parichay, we have taken up a new room on rent.
Electric fittings are yet to be done. We would
need a fan and a tube light for the room.
• Another thoughtful gesture by Naval. Rakhis
and other products worth Rs. 1000/- were sold
because of his initiative at Conexant.
• Raminder has made an excellent effort at
templatizing kids profile in the form of an Excel
sheet. We hope this would help us capture
kids profile in greater detail
New volunteers: Two new volunteers from Miranda
House visited Parichay recently. We hope to have a
long association with them in our activities.
Dormant Volunteers: Puneeta, Pow, Navneet
Active Volunteers: Omnipresent Selva, Naval,
Raminder (IIT), Shashank.
- Puneeta
- Coordinator, Parichay
- chughpuneeta@yahoo.com
Project Updates: Youth Task Force
In the month of August no more new RTI’s
have been filed. It has been decided that the follow up
of the earlier RTI’s with the road would be done.
Documentation work done. Also an RTI on finding out
the rules and regulations of filing TSR complaints has
been done.
Few people have done research on the
conditions of MCD schools at various places of Delhi.
Initially 6 of the MCD schools have been chosen and
RTI’s have been filed. We are planning to file more
RTI’s after getting report from the initial ones.
4
Our Volunteers by now might have collected
samples for test and it will be analyzed soon with the
help of experts. More sample collection will be done
in the upcoming inspections. YTF t-shirts designs are
given for printing and soon they will be available..
- Selva
- Youth Task Force, AID Delhi
- aid.selva@gmail.com
- 9211467341
Project Updates: Khoj
Regular Classes at all of our 5 centers going as
usual and apart from the regular classes this month saw
some unique events with Khoj. We all celebrated our
Independence Day along with the children by flying
kites with them. Our long search for an office came to
an end and we have got our office at Munirka. Mrs.
Sangeeta gave a donation of Rs.20000/- to get us a
computer and we’ve now got a computer at our office.
Documentation work has started with the pace. We are
also planning to start craft activity soon at Bhikhaji
Center.
Shanti didi have conducted two workshops for
children on adolescent issue and the beneficiaries now
are Ber Sarai Children. We will be conducting the
workshop soon for our other center children also. We
have a problem of teaching the children at the park in
our Ber Sarai Center but now talks with IIT Delhi have
given us hope that we will soon get a place inside the
IIT hostel premises to teach the children.
A volunteer have agreed to take Taikwando
classes with the children as a part of developing self
defence for them. We also have started to take a survey
on all the Delhi roads to find out how many such
children exist in Delhi and to soon start some program
for them. Our volunteers are all geared up for that.
-Selva
- Khoj, AID Delhi,
- aid.selva@gmail.com
- 9211467341
 Project Update : Tara
TARA: In the month of August, TARA
celebrated Independence Day. The celebration began
with a tribute to the martyrs of the nation, followed by
flag hoisting. Children from two different slum
communities took part in the various events such as
music, singing, story telling and poem recitation. Later
that week, TARA participated in the annual function of
jamia’s engineering department to raise funds, visited
GOONJ and collected clothes, toys and satchels. On
25th eleven of our children were honored by the Rotary
club of Delhi Capitol with a scholarship of 1000 rupees
each after which they were taken on a short excursion
to the India Gate. On Sunday morning the children
played a cricket match with a high level of zeal. On 27th
three more children got admittance in the MCD School,
Sarai Jullena. The next day we celebrated Raksha
Bandhan beginning with a tulsi pooja and Arti followed
by distribution of Prasad and tying of a variety of
colorful rakhis. The day ended with distribution of
laddoos.
On the last day of the month Sonu, Halli, Archana and
Noni who had undergone our training for just one
month but were doing well also got admitted to
standard II and standard I respectively. At the end of
eleven months TARA has been successful in opening
the portals of formal school for eighteen of its children.
Many more are heading towards the same direction and
are extremely enthusiastic about it.
- Pavneet Kohli
- Tara.
Project Update : Nai Disha
Independence Day was celebrated with
full zeal at Nai Disha. Children had put in tremendous
effort to prepare for the event. Volunteers had helped
these kids to prepare the dance program. A snacks party
was also organized for these kids.
Currently Grammar and computer classes are
going on. Since the computers are not functional, hence
computer theory classes are being conducted. These
computers need to be repaired as practical classes will
lead to better understanding. And Nai Disha also needs
more volunteers to carry out their job in a better way.
-Rajat Maheshwari,
Coordinator, Nai Disha..
- rajat.maheshwari@st.com
- 9810994596
5
Volunteer Speak : Roshan Jha
In India kites can be seen maneuvering in the
sky every year on 15th August celebrating our
Independence Day. The very same day someone asked
me why I fly kites? What I get flying a kite? Does flying
a kite in anyway symbolize freedom?
I replied - "Flying a kite on Independence Day
certainly have some great causes behind it! On
Independence Day sky becomes the battlefield
simulator. When I fly kite I look myself as a freedom
fighter. When I fly kite I see all other kites confined
with strings as 'prisoners'. I struggle hard to emancipate
them and when I cut other kites apart from their
attached strings I feel like I am on cloud number nine.
Infact, I don't even care about my pain when I shed
blood flying my kite. I feel it is the negligible amount of
sacrifice I have made.
When other kites get cut and loop freely
wobbling in air I honorably run after to touch and
collect them since they have also played a part in this
freedom struggle.
All these leaves me with feelings that resembles
the very same that of chacha Nehru, Gandhiji, Subhas
Chandra Bose and like many other freedom fighters
who felt the enthusiasm on 15th August 1947.
But when my own kite cuts down I suddenly
feel a bit gloomy thinking I could have helped few more
to get freedom.
“Kites really invoke my patriotism”
- Roshan Jha,
- YTF, AID Delhi
- roshan_nerd@yahoo.co.in
Roshan Jha is an active volunteer with AID Delhi’s
and Josh initiative Youth Task Force. He has been
filing RTI’s on various PWD roads and is also eagerly
anticipating his reports. He also writes a lot of
articles. He is a computer science engineering
student.
 Volunteer Speak : Siddharth Goyal
This is India
Does the title of the article remind you of
something familiar? Well it would not if you have not
seen the latest Leo Di Caprio starrer ‘BLOOD
DIAMOND’. As the lady at the AID Operations
Review Meet at IIT Delhi said” I couldn’t help drawing
parallels between the situation in parts of our very own
‘Democratic’ country and the state of affairs in some
African country ruled by warlords with the blessings of
the West”. We like to call ourselves civilised and
cultured, the situation in the state of Chhatisgarh,
however, tells a different story altogether.
Chhatisgarh is a victim of the naxalite
movement, a movement which aims to surround New
Delhi one day with the red army. In the name of
protecting the rights of the adivasis, the naxalite outfits
recruit and train them to carry out militant operations in
various parts of the state and kill the very people, whose
right they claim to protect. To counter this menace, an
initiative was taken up under the leadership of Mr.
Mahendra Karma, the member of the legislative
assemble and leader of opposition in the state’s
legislative assembly, in the year 2005.
This was christened “Salwa Judum” and later it
got the blessings of the state (a rare example of the BJP
and the Congress co-operating with each other). Alas,
the modus operandi of Salwa Judum was so flawed that
the adivasis now faced the dilemma of choosing either
the state sponsored organisation, which aimed to wipe
out the naxalite terrorism or the naxalites which claim to
fight for the cause of the adivasis.
The Salwa Judum recruited people
including children and called them Special Police
Officers. Instead of imparting basic education to them,
they were trained for combat, so that they could protect
themselves against the naxalites. The situation grew
from bad to worse, when the state started recruiting
people forcibly, something which the naxalites had
already been doing. The adivasis, who were earlier
victims of the naxalites now also became the victims of
the state sponsored Salwa Judum. There are reports that
the Salwa Judum activists have raped and murdered
their own people. What is worse is the fact that a victim
of the naxalites receives compensation from the state
but the victim of Salwa Judum receives zilch from the
state.
6
In situations like these, one cannot help but
wonder if big industrial houses too are a part of this
arrangement as Chhatisgarh is a state rich in minerals
such as gold and diamond, which are buried in the land
owned by the tribals. The tribals are now dispossessed
from their lands by the state and are made to live like
animals in camps. I do not oppose the entry of the
industrial houses in the state. However, every human
life is more precious than any rock. If the industrial
houses are involved in this set up, I hope that they
adopt a little sensitive attitude towards the tribal people
and place man over material for a change!
- Siddharth Goyal
- AID Delhi
- sidgoyal1@gmail.com
Siddharth Goyal is a third year computer science
student at NSIT, Dwaraka. He writes a lot of article
apart from volunteering with Khoj.
Extraas
- AID Delhi Calendars 2008 design and price
have been finalized and it would be circulated
soon. We need volunteers to circulate it widely
to their respective HR’s and take the order as
soon as possible.
- AID India conference would be held in Orissa
this year during December. Keep yourself
available for the same.
- AID Delhi street play team to perform its first
play at Tara in the coming weeks.
- AID Delhi’s CSR team is looking for a
coordinator to spearhead its initiative.
- AID Delhi is looking for a fulltime who can
manage administration of projects, over all
administration, volunteer coordination,
following of meal a month, coordinating fund
raising, conducting regular meetings and also
documenting the activities going on at Delhi.
- AID Delhi T-shirts are available at the price of
Rs.150/-. For getting one please write to
aid.selva@gmail.com .

Article : Coexisting with Nature
Haripriya
Lai Haraoba or “merry making of the Gods” is a
post harvest summer festival celebrated with fervor
throughout the Manipur valley. The most integral part is
the Maiba/ Maibis’ (priests and priestesses) rituals to
honour the deity of the forest known as Umang
Lai/Lairenbi. Patches of forests known as ‘Umang Lai
Khubams’ - sacred groves of Manipur dotes the various
localities in the valley. In traditional Meitei belief systems,
sacred groves are cultural cornerstones and every village
needs to include an ‘Umang Lai Khubam’ which ideally
should be bordering the village, becoming abodes of
deities who then exerts their divine powers and protects
resident villagers from evil.
Maibi Jagoi –dance of the priestess is a part of
indispensable rituals of Lai Haraoba. The Maibis dress
in austere white possibly to signify the ritual purity of
the occasion. The dance depicts the beginning of
creation by supreme God Atiya Shidaba. The narration
initially traverses the cosmos and ends up spanning the
chronological history of man, re-living the ways of life
of the past. A Pre-Hindu dance form untouched by
Vaishnavism unlike most other Manipuri dance forms, it
retains an animistic spirit that’s rooted to this earth.
Such animistic belief systems were spread out all across
North Eastern states at one point of time. Historical
research points towards erosion of such systems with
entry of colonialism and Christianity. Rapid shrinkage of
sacred groves especially in Meghalaya and Nagaland are
well known examples. However, Manipur remained an
abode of pantheism. Even conversion of the Manipuri
king in the 17th Century to Vaishanivism (an issue that
remains contentious even today), didn’t radically alter
the cultural milieu though the idea of purity and
impurity did creep in, questioning existent food habits
and practices. However the largely eco centric
vaishnavite belief system overlapped with that of the
extant animistic one. This resulted in retention of many
local customs and practices that forge the Meitei
identity.
Close to 364 sacred groves exist in Manipur
today. Apart from being treasure troves of local
biodiversity they are also an integral part of the cultural
and ecological landscape of Manipur. The totems and
taboos that administer the worship of sacred groves
also ensure protection of species within..
7 necessarily those of the organisations.
Each of the 7 salai (clan) that make up the Meitei
race are governed by a set of rules that bans consumption
or use of specific plant and animal species. All clans are
banned from felling trees on Friday as it is believed that
Gods take rest on them on that day. Similarly in the
month of Mera (September/October) eating of fish is
taboo for vaishnav meitei’s as Krishna is supposed to take
the very form. Eating of snails (Brotia costula) is govern
with various taboos the story of which dates back to chahi
taret khundakpa (seven years of displacement/devastation)
when aftermath of war with Burma there was an exodus
to neighbouring kingdoms and hills had the people
carrying sack loads of snails for sustenance. Prudent
harvesting practices are observed to promote its
conservation. Snails are collected before thunder and
lightning, and the collection always proceeds from
downstream towards upstream, as such practices are
believed to prevent collection of gravid females.
Numerous practices such as these are excellent examples
of humanity’s co existence with nature.Such practice not
only fosters a reciprocal man – nature relationship, but
also extends to clans and races. A rich history of cultural
events showcases the brotherhood that existed between
the valley and hill people, unlike today. Popular folktale
narrates a story of two brothers who parted in search of
livelihoods, elder went to the hills and younger, the valley.
Both discovered what they were looking for and stayed
back. The cultural festival of Mera (September/October)
Wayungba is an observance of that very relationship.
Meiteis in the valley erects a bamboo pole in the courtyard
with a lamp at the top and keeps it there for a month. The
belief goes that, the lamp is an indication to the elder
brother in the hills that all is well and that the younger
sibling is safe and alive.
Things fall apart. The meitei world is no longer
an island of autochthonous eco-centric culture. Many
feel that the knowledge behind cultural practices is
dying out. In this part of the world, as in so many other
places, culture is intrinsically linked to biodiversity.
When one goes, so will the other. Many think that a
monochromatic amorphous North East may help foster
unity. But it’s this cultural polychrome that makes the
seven sisters so enchanting. And it seems that respect
for one’s own culture as well as others may be a way out
of conflict.
- Haripriya
- priya.soibam@gmail.com
Soibam Haripriya works with Public Health Resource
Network in New Delhi. She is a member of the
Control Arms Foundation of India. The views and
opinions expressed in this article are hers and not
 Article : Environment around Us
Dolly
Environment refers to the conditions in a place
that influence the behaviour and development of people
& things. As per the popular belief Environment is
synonymous with nature, whereas a matter of fact there
are zillions of environments that play fairly enigmatic
roles like our working environment, home environment,
learning environment & so forth. Let's give them a once
over.
Natural environment
Today, cry of Nature can easily be heard. All
forms of nature (water, land, air) emanate our barbarity
towards them. For long Nature has been a victim of our
ignorance but not any more, because now it's our turn
to pay for our deeds, if we don't put a full stop to our
uncivilized practices in the form of deforestation,
nuclear tests, pollution, wars etc then nature is also
prepared to avenge its harm by hazards like global
warming, floods, droughts etc. Everybody knows what
should be done but forgets that it should be done.
Before it's too late to do anything about it at all, let's
make some small changes by saving water (not wasting
something is a saving itself), not using plastic bags,
preferring public transport as much as possible, keeping
our surroundings clean & creating awareness about the
same so we can be proud of our existence as most
rational & civilized species on earth.
Other Environments [Working/ Home/ Learning]
Contrary to Natural environment which after an extent
is beyond the confines of human control these
environments are the sheer reflection of our personality
& life. How many times you've felt that you are a
complete different person at work, home or any other
place? A simple idea of going to a place, meeting a
person makes us down or elated & that's what shows
the environment of that place. If you find it difficult to
draw maximum level of contentment from your
surroundings then you need to make some changes in
that as soon as possible. As far as working environment
is concerned, first you need to ask yourself if what you
are doing is what you want. Do you enjoy your work?
How do you feel when you are at your work place?
What do think about your boss, colleagues, clients, etc.,
same with home, learning & others.
8
Questions are endless so are answers, so
find out where your life lies?
'Yesterday' decides our 'Today'. 'Today' decides our
'Tomorrow'. There is no ideal environment or place, we
need to understand our needs & create one for
ourselves & once we've created it we should keep on
making some amendments. After all monotony is such a
dull word!
Our environment is a reflection of ours. What do you
reflect?
- Dolly Sharma
- AID Aashayen, AID Delhi
- dollysharma99@gmail.com
Dolly is a volunteer with AID Aashayen. She is
teaching children there for a couple of months by now
and she is working as a consultant. She also pens
down a few things at her free time.
Article : Economic Boom – Difference on
the life of a common man
Vikas Happa
In economics, the term boom and bust refers to
the movement of an economy through economic
cycles due to the changes in aggregate demand.
During booms, there is a high level of aggregate
demand, the inflation increases, unemployment falls,
and growth in national income accelerates. This may
be too technical for the common man. So here a nexus
has to be evolved between economics and the so to
say humanomics. A sober analysis indicates that India
is continuing to do well. After growing at about 3.5
percent a year, between 1991 and 2005, it expanded at
an average rate of about 6 percent. For the past three
years it has been growing at about 8 percent. There is
no question about it - the Indian economy is in the
midst of a boom. According to the Central Statistical
Organization’s (CSO) national accounts statistics,
between 1999-2000 and 2006-07, the gross domestic
product (GDP) in constant prices increased at an
average annual rate of nearly 7 percent.
When India awoke from its slumber in 1991 it
undertook some major economic reforms and started
growing strongly. It went straight to developing a big,
export-oriented services sector.
The New Economic Policy consisted of all those policy
measures and steps adopted and implemented by the
Govt. of India which were aimed at:-
1-increasing efficiency of various economic sectors.
2-introducing competitive spirit in the economy
3-removing bureaucratic control and procedural
impediments.
All the above aimed steps subsequently targeted
reducing fiscal deficit, ushering liberalization and
encouraging inflow of foreign capital. But what had the
common man, a PhD of humanomics in store for himself
excepting this jargon, was the priceless question. India
Shining was a political slogan referring to the overall
feeling of economic optimism in India.The BJP led
govt. spent an estimated $20 million of govt. funds on
national television advertisements and newspaper ads
featuring India shining slogan. This slogan drew
criticism from various columnists and political critics of
the ruling National Democratic Alliance government for
glossing over a variety of social problems, including
poverty and social inequality. The question was that for
who was India-SHINING and from who was India
SHY-ING. Were not the more than 20 million neurons
of the Indian MP’S sufficient to prioritize and channels
$20 million for a mere slogan?.
"But it is almost as if the light is shining so brightly that you do
not notice the darkness," said Arundhati Roy.
The robustness in India’s economy combined with the
advantage of its size , means that it is a country that now
the global players cannot ignore. The driving factor of
the economic boom in words of Mr. Kamal Narang is
the result of corporate sector’s increasing savings and
investments. But where is the common man featuring in
this profit led boom? The following points may compel
us to rethink.
1-In 1999 under-5 child mortality (that is, the number of
deaths before age 5 per 1000 children) was 144 in
Bangladesh, 128 in Pakistan and 123 in India. In 2001
the numbers were Bangladesh 77, India 93, and Pakistan
109.
2-As far as school enrolment of girls as a percentage of
boys go, the figure for Bangladesh is an exemplary
103%, whereas for India it is 78 and for Pakistan 61.
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3-Despite the trappings of Westernization in major
cities, a literacy rate of just 61 percent and high infant
mortality rates betray the reality of India's status as an
emerging nation
4-Though overall poverty levels are falling at the rate of
around one percent per year, that figure is hardly
keeping pace with the high levels of economic growth
reported in the business pages of India's newspapers
5-The category of Mixed Income shows a declining
trend in income share and over the period in question
(1999-2000& 2006-2007), the share fell by around 8%.
This is significant because this includes all the self
employed, who have been growing as a proportion of
the employed and who now account for half the
workforce in India, according to NSS.
We can say that this is a profit led boom driven by
increasing inequality not only between different
categories of producers. The private corporate sector is
the greatest beneficiary and now also the greatest
contributor to the boom. But the non corporate
producers and petty self employed producers of goods
and services are clearly not gaining in relative terms and
in some cases may be worse off absolutely. This allows
us to relate the macroeconomic and national accounts
data to the evidence from the employment surveys of
falling shares and worsening conditions of wage
employment over this period. It also allows us to
understand why the theme of “two India’s ” is so
persistent and plausible.
For India to be politically able, to keep making the
reforms necessary to sustain its rate of growth, it must
produce tangible economic benefits to every social
strata. It has to figure out objectively that who all
belong to the bracketed category of the common man
because it is not possible to define it in precise terms.
The age-old convention of the rich becoming richer and the
poor becoming poorer should be faded . The knowledge
intensive sector should strive to be the mass employer
of the low skilled labor class. The phenomenon of dual
economy in our country (modern and the traditional
economy) will always pose a challenge before the policy
makers. Which policy will benefit which economy
without disturbing the booming trend in the other?
On one hand, we have the IT industries booming with
great international deal being signed and on the other
we have Nandigram and farmer suicides in Maharashtra
and many other agricultural states in India. As of the
impact of economic boom on the consumer is
concerned it is very subjective in a country like INDIA,
where so much inequality persists. For the Indian
government to spend as much as it does - on subsidies
and the bureaucracy - and then to wonder why the
economy is not growing faster is like my father's
youngest sister who in her old age lamented to me, "I
don't know why I keep such poor health - I eat only
sweets."
Passing the 60 years of independence, someone on the
TV said “ The Horoscope of India reads that India is a
potential global economic power ” but till the potential
is not fully realized and the benefits don’t percolate to
the grassroots, what we would have would be the
horrorscope of India
- Vikas Happa
- AID Prayas, AID Delhi
- vikasravihappa@yahoo.co.in
Vikas is a new volunteer with AID and he is right
now volunteering at Prayas. Vikas has done his
graduation and is now an aspirant of GMAT. He also
have lots of interest towards Bhopal issues and have
written so many articles on it.
Article : India : Shilpa Singla
"If there is one place on the face of the earth where
all the dreams of living men have found a home
from the earliest days when man began the dream
of existence, it is INDIA." -Romain Rolland,
French Scholar
She is known for her rich culture and traditions
all over the world. Her nature is astonishing. Her
mountains provide us minerals and various resources,
her rivers provide us with food, energy, transportation
routes, and her jungles provide us with medicines, fruits,
nuts and habitat to her wildlife. She is the largest
producer of milk, cashew nuts, coconuts, tea, ginger,
turmeric and black pepper and also has the largest cattle
population in the world. She is the biggest secular and
the largest democratic country. She looks confidently
towards the future and enjoys the deserved importance
and influence in the world. She is INDIA.
- . 10
Today after completing sixty years of independence,
Indians have brought fame and glory to their country in
various fields. They are excelling in sports, writing,
studies, science, business, information technology,
medicine, space technology, engineering, nuclear energy,
industries, entertainment etc. These are enough reasons
to celebrate all achievements and accomplishments of
the country. But since her Independence, India has seen
certain failures as well, which need urgent attention.
There is still widespread undernourishment and
child malnutrition at a large scale. There has been
shocking neglecting of elementary education in India. A
quarter of the population and almost half the women
are still illiterate. The average life expectancy in India is
below 64, which is extremely low and infant mortality
rate is 58 per 1,000 live births. Banned but rampant
practices such as dowry still exist on a large scale. Evil
discrimination on basis of gender continues in many
parts of our society leading to infanticide. Over ten
million girls have been killed by their parents in the past
20 years, either before they were born or immediately
after. We must step up and take the burden of all
social evils on our shoulders. We need to understand
the problems prevailing in our country and contribute
our time and energy to solve them. We need to motivate
our family, friends, neighbors and colleagues to join us
and make a difference in the society. Many NGOs and
social workers are helping to the best level of their
ability to improve the needy and weaker sections of our
society. We can join them to bring a difference in lives
of the less fortunate. Despite of all the current
problems, India has seen major development in
different sectors in the past sixty years. Indians are
considered successful in various fields and set a tough
competition for the rest of the world. Only we, as
citizens of the nation can make a difference and bring
more glory to our country. Let’s be proud of being
part of the richest cultural nation, let’s be proud of
being called an Indian..
- Shilpa Singla
- shilpa.singla@gmail.com
Shilpa is an AID volunteer who has passion towards
writing. She is also a part of AID Delhi Calendar
2008 team and have helped a lot with her inputs in
selecting the photos for the calendar et al., She is
currently working with IBM.

Article: The Pretender
Tamseel
If we take a walk back to our so called path of
‘development’. It would all seem so prominent and
definite; like a metaphorical journey through time where
we forget everything that used to exist and force our
ships to sail through destiny for our new found aim –
growth. Isn’t this cause for our recent product called
‘India Shining’?
Well I do admit my pride for my country’s worldly
success.
It’s a success story worth mentioning.
A sudden hike in the share market. A sudden intrusion
of giant mergers. Economically our heroes, our brands
have been successful. Employment opportunities are on
a rise (Finally all the workers / employees get a chance
to choose and decide). BPO invasion changed
everything, our culture, our society, our health, our cost,
our knowledge and our kids.
Isn’t it true, this new plight called neo – colonialism has
a profound effect on our land?
Isn’t it true, the inevitable conflict between neo-
colonialism and neo – modernism is just not seamless
enough?
Yes we have progressed, reached new boundaries.
Although our land is loosing its fertility both
agriculturally and humanly but we still are progressing.
The thin line on the Sensex chart has proved us right,
but what has it done to the good old Indans? Are we all
benefiting equally? Is the price hike justified?
These questions are unanswerable and unattended.
Many have realized the importance of the word
‘knowledge’ and how much of an effect it has on the
word ‘success’. The beggars look cheerful now, at least
some of them. Technologically we have moved ahead
into space. All this and more defines our trip to present
success.
Am I being too much of an optimist?
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India – the preserver, the pretender, the dominated. It’s
still a colony being blackmailed and threatened by the
new laws of interaction. Trying to cope up with the
changing trends and lifestyles it has made its mark.
Although our co partners corruption and treachery
haven’t left us , because if they leave us we would come
to a standstill. Our goals will be subdued by a slow
motion system where all are treated equal and not
according to their pockets or welfares.
Am I still being too much of an optimist?
In the midst of our colossal trip to marginal success
The class struggle has rejuvenated in a silent tone of
peace.
Some believe there is certainty that defines our
country’s success, for some its uncertain if they will
survive till India deeply shines.
For instance traditional Indian retailership (banyagiri) has
gone for a six and is personified by ‘open economy’,
although candid yet resourceful.
The past 5 years have been debauched and speedy, it’s
incorrect if we call ourselves tamed and prepared for the
forthcoming pit stop. But its correct if we wish to
experience the hardships to cross that pit stop.
The reason this article is titled ‘the Pretender’ is because
of the country’s hidden loop holes. Where and what
does it stand for? Who is benefiting out of its stand?
Are we pretending to be developing rapidly or have we
forgotten our roots.
These questions will always remain where they are right
now. This article will get transferred to the archives. But
what will remain fresh and mutable will be our success.
Our self explainable class contends and our newly
constructed mono marvels.
- Tamseel Hussain
- AID Delhi,
- tamseel.hussain@gmail.com
Tamseel Hussain is a volunteer who is doing his
political science from Bhagat Singh. He is extremely
interested in writing articles. He is also involved in
re-writing the website content of AID Delhi along
with his friend Joe Sebastian.
 Toon of the Month

News: AID Delhi celebrates Independence day at all of its projects along
with the children.

- Toon : Kalindi Sharma,

- Coordinator, AID Aashayen,
- sona4poochie@gmail.com

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 Children’s Corner

From this time we have decided to incorporate some of the work done by our children of
various projects which we do. We have a lot of things to display and they will flow in from
the next newsletter. Here is a trailor for it.

Vocational training classes have been started back at AID Aashayen by Kalindi and she is
right now involved in teaching embroidery with the children. Here is just a sample piece
made by the children Pinky, Pooja, Yogesh and Kranti. They are very keen in learning such
activities and they are quick to grab whatever we say and perform it. Hope to have more
such work for display latter. You can also put in your ideas and write to us what are all the
other activities we can do with the children.

- Kalindi, Selva
- AID Aashayen, AID Delih
- aid.selva@gmail.com

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 Photo of the Month: Rupali Dhaundiyal

Project: Unnati
Photographer: Rupali Dhaundiyal
Description: These are children of construction workers at the basti that AID Gurgaon chapter has been
working with.We went to talk to the parents of these children to ask them to send their kids to school as part of
our Unnati Project and found them smiling for us.

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 Behind the Scene Information Corner: Selva

We have been introducing new volunteers and active

volunteers in the volunteer profile section. But we never
thought of introducing the people who are really putting
in their efforts to bring such a wonderful newsletter on
time. We take this opportunity to introduce the
publication team which strives in making a better
version every time.
Garui Mittal:
Gauri Mittal is editing for AID Delhi’s
newsletter for more than a year by now. She is working
with ST microelectronics and does major part of the
editing of the newsletter. She is one person we can
always rely on.
Puneeta Chugh:
Puneeta needs no introduction. Her work talks a
lot than her. She is the chief editor of our team. Her
micromanagement of the articles and editing has helped
us to get some quality newsletters in the past and we will
be getting more in the future too.
Kunal Mahajan:
This IIT Delhi Chemical Engineer is now
working with E-Value Serve, and has been with us for
about one year by now. He is one who always delivers
on time.
Pallavi Tyagi:
The newest of all our editors but smart too.
After her entry we’ve got a new look to team and
workload is shared. Her tips to editing article have
helped me a lot while writing the editorial. She is also
managing AID Gurgaon’s work and she works for E-
Value Serve.
We all travel by air frequently these days after getting
cheaper tickets. Initially when Air Deccan came to the
market they released tickets for just Rs.500/- and taxes
they charged for the ticket was Rs.221/-.But within a
span of two years we find the Fuel Surcharges coming
up more than a flight ticket. Have we ever thought of
what is a fuel surcharge? How is this calculated? Is it a
tax? Why it is not added to the ticket price? What are
the tax implications? Is someone evading tax? Is there a
scope of rigging this? What are the international
practices?
To know more on it please visit
http://elcric.blogspot.com/2007/08/fuel-
surcharge.html#links
AID Delhi is also planning to file RTI’s on asking about
it. Interested volunteers may please write back to me at
aid.selva@gmail.com .
There is an opportunity for any volunteers interested in
Environment cell to attend the course on Urban Water
Management conducted by Center for Science and
Environment. The course is on 24th to 27th September
and the last date for sending application is on 12th
September. So rush and file your application. More
details available at CSE website.
http://www.cseindia.org/misc/rwh_coursesept07.htm

Feedback: aid.delhi@gmail.com Web: http://delhi.aidindia.org Phone: +91-9213797167

Send your Cheques drawn in favour of “AID-India” Publications Team
to Coordinator: Selva
Selva Ganapathy.R Editors: Selva, Puneeta, Gauri, Pallavi, Charu, Kunal
Department of Chemical Engineering, Designers: Selva, Arvinder, Saurabh
Indian Institute of Technology, Website/Email version of the newsletter: Anirban
Delhi - 110016
Hauz Khas

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