पाउस आला, पाउस आला...

(First Marathi poem, with whatever I knew...) 

(Please Note: The English translation is given below, thank you) 

पाउस आला, पाउस आला, 

झाला बरोबर...

धरती चा छान सुगंध आला बरोबर

पाउस आला, पाउस आला, 

झाला बरोबर...

सगड़ा झूमे, आला बघा उलास चा पर्व 

पाउस आला, पाउस आला, 

झाला बरोबर...

बाल्या बघा कसा खेळतो आनंद वर

पाउस आला, पाउस आला, 

झाला बरोबर...

वृक्षा ला बघा कसा झूमतो बरोबर 

पाउस आला, पाउस आला, 

झाला बरोबर...

शेतकरी चा आला उलास चा पर्व  

पाउस आला, पाउस आला, 

झाला बरोबर...

शेती चा काम अता होइल बरोबर

पाउस आला, पाउस आला, 

झाला बरोबर...

शेतकरी चा आत्महत्या कमी होइल विदर्भा वर

पाउस आला, पाउस आला, 

झाला बरोबर...

सगड़ा झूमे, आला बघा उलास चा पर्व 

--- जोनी 'डी' ---

४ जून २०११ 


Rain comes, rain comes
oh how wonderful it is....
Fragrance of mother earth is oh so wonderful


Rain comes, rain comes
oh how wonderful it is...
Everyone is dancing, here comes the festival of joy

Rain comes, rain comes

oh how wonderful it is...

Look at the children playing so joyful

Rain comes, rain comes

oh how wonderful it is...

Look at the trees swooning with joy

Rain comes, rain comes

oh how wonderful it is...

Festival of joy arrives for the farmers

Rain comes, rain comes

oh how wonderful it is...

Now sowing will begin with joy

Rain comes, rain comes

oh how wonderful it is...

Suicide of farmers will decrease in Vidarbha now

Rain comes, rain comes

oh how wonderful it is...

Everyone is dancing, here comes the festival of joy

Johnny D

TRUE ANGELIC COMMITMENT: MEET THE SECOND BEAUTIFUL ANGEL

The movement is not about me helping the poor suicide farmers’ widows and their children in Vidarbha but it is for all the tiny-tots, who will grow to a future that will not have enough land for cultivation; scarcity of water for drinking and irrigation; less farmers to grow food grains for the ever-increasing population and a life that will be suffocated in the concrete jungle as the wild forest will also have no place in near future and so also mountains, rivers and nature...

Inching forward step-by-step, slowly and steadily to do some concrete things on ground... the long journey ahead are full of many challenges to face, obstacles to overcome and many-many things to unlearn before learning the ground realities to better the lives of the affected families... it is the ever-flowing strong support of the world, that is giving me all the strength to make the future a little better for all the tiny-tots of today. I feel so-so blessed to see all the beautiful angels from every corner of the world coming together under one small umbrella, indeed this journey is a miracle in its own ways!

“The effort to reach out for others is the ultimate blissful emotion any human can really have. I am sure each one of you reading this post will agree with me because each one of us has felt such a blissful state in our lives many a times… these inspiring angels have enliven the state within me and I know they will do a lot when the time comes for them to support the cause.”  - This is what I had written way back in July 2010 about the Second Beautiful Angel. And her angelic commitment to be there when I needed her shows what this beautiful girl is capable of doing for the world with her caring attitude and beautiful soul!

This year, when I approached few people to support me for the Second year, Prerana Sharma assured me that her commitment towards the movement is always there and I should never worry about it. I still remember her words echoing in my ear (when we chatted online) – “Each time she used to tell me that if there is anything I need, she would be there… this assurance surely was very valuable and encouraging for me to get strength to do what I am doing. Once we were chatting and Prerana said, ‘I really wish that my studies finish fast so that I can support the movement both financially as well as with her active part in helping the suicide farmers’ families.’ Wow! I felt a strange indebtedness towards this beautiful young girl for her commitment even when she is just a student. I know for sure that Prerana will do many things in her life to achieve greater heights and will spread joy with her radiance in many-many lives.”

Prerana has just completed her MBA in International Business from Birla Institute of Management Technology, Greater Noida. She has been a source of inspiration for me as she  had been spreading the word about the event – support 4 suicide farmers families – in Facebook among her friends’ circles and has been encouraging me to keep going from strength to strength. She now works for Insta Exhibitions Pvt. Ltd in Bangalore. All I can say to the whole world through this post is, that, we certainly need more beautiful angels like Prerana Sharma, who are committed to support and do well for the society at large with their kind heart... to care for the world we live in, and to build a safe future for the tiny-tots of today... I pray more and more young people like Prerana would try to visualize, how dangerous the future is going to be for the children, to come forward and work for the betterment of lives of everyone and not only the poor... I may not be even there to see all this, but I know, there will be a better chain of people who will take this movement forward with more passion and vigour to see the hard work that we all are putting in today, to safeguard the future of the tiny-tots.

Prerana I am really grateful and proud of you for your kind support and help. Thank you, thank you so very much each one of you, all those who have supported so far and all those who will be supporting in the future... this journey is certainly not mine alone dear citizen of the world, it is the journey of the whole world... Sai Baba bless you all always!

Cuidate :)

http://support4suicidefarmersfamilies.blogspot.com/2010/07/inspiring-angels-28th-july-2010-1455.html

..... to be continued.....

THE FIRST BEAUTIFUL ANGEL PREFERS TO REMAIN INVISIBLE FOR THE WORLD

Angels are visibly invisible! – You are right, and you all will be reading this beautiful line again and again in my journey of destiny.

It was in 2001 when I heard the sweet voice over phone for the very first time and then she was invisible for few years... little did I realize then that the sweet voice belonged to one of the TEN BEAUTIFUL ANGELS (for the Second Year June 2011 to May 2012)... exactly a decade later, the beautiful angel lends her kind support & help to become the FIRST ANGEL... TOUCHED! GRATEFUL! SPEECHLESS!

However, I am taking this opportunity to write how this beautiful angel has become the source of encouragement and inspiration for me. After the first call in 2001, we met at one of the star hotels in Bombay for the very first time after three or four years later... as two regular professional, we exchanged our respective views and interacted. The bonding was mutual and after a while we lost touch again... as a bad habit to wish my friends on their birthday, I surprised her and whether we talk or not, year after year, I was always wishing on her birthday... You will not believe dear friends, that true friendship develops between two individual because destiny wants them to be friends... and I am so-so blessed that she has been a great friend to me... friend who knows when to be by the side of another friend... and such strong bonding when we have interacted in person not more than 3 or 4 times in the last 10 years and made less than 15 calls in the decade that we have known each other. Isn’t that an astonishing phenomenon?

When I embarked on this journey of destiny, she wished me luck... last year, just before and during the Dusshera & Durga Puja festivals... there were so many farmers succumbing to suicide that I went into deep depression... depression that made me sceptical about wishing all my friends HAPPY DUSSHERA / PUJA... so even before any of my friends would wish me a happy festival ahead, I messaged everyone to please not wish me because I was going through deep sadness, anguish and helplessness... and wrote the reasons as well... only one friend asked forgiveness for wishing me in advance happy Dusshera... and then I received the most encouraging message from the beautiful angel...

She was there through her messages to uplift my downed spirits, understanding my pain and sorrows that I was going through reading every day 3, 4 or at times 5 to 6 farmers committing suicide during the harvesting season. Those messages are still the source of my inspiration whenever I feel down I read them... When the whole world didn’t cared for my depressing state, she was there guiding me to be strong to face all eventualities of various challenges that I will have to face. I have no words to thank the First Beautiful Angel for being there when I needed her like a true friend... friend who may be invisible all through but visible when another friend is in dire straits.

Remarkable indeed, how some souls touch your life to bring a new meaning about humanity! She requested me that she prefers to remain invisible to the world in this aspect and I respect her privacy and decision and hence there is no name and picture of the FIRST BEAUTIFUL ANGEL. Her yearly contribution arrived well in time yesterday and I can only say one thing... such friends make this life so worth living! I feel blessed because Sai Baba has been very-very kind to send me beautiful angels from nowhere. And the First Beautiful Angel stood by me as any true friend would...

As on date, SEVEN ANGELS have confirmed their yearly contribution, kind support and help for the Second Year (I need THREE more now) for the movement to gain more strength in the Second Year... Thank you, thank you so much all of you beautiful angels... Sai Baba bless you and your family always!

CUIDATE J

.....to be continued..... 

GRATEFUL TO THE TEN GENEROUS BEAUTIFUL ANGELS!

“Angels are visibly invisible!” – Johnny D

This is what I have experienced in my journey of destiny ever since I started the movement... invisible because not everyone can recognise, see or else meet them in person... they are visible to only those whom they wish to help with no conditions attached. Angels are humans like all of us, except their invisibility is what keeps them unique and different from normal humans. I have been truly blessed by Sai Baba to have met so many of them since the last one year... they have entered my life from nowhere, flown from distant land and countries to help, support, encourage, assist and above all trust to see this movement moves forward step by step.

To the TEN BEAUTIFUL ANGELS, all my gratefulness and gratitude will indeed be less when I think of their generous contribution. Last year, I approached many people (70+), I knew to support me (with Rs. 1000 /- per month support for 12 months), only these TEN ANGELS came forward with no questions asked to lend their strong support for one long year. As the first year period (June 2010 to May 2011) comes to an end, I wish to thank from the bottom of my heart the TEN BEAUTIFUL ANGELS for their invaluable support & kind help... I am truly grateful to each one of them, without which I wouldn't have built a strong base in Vidarbha for the movement... Sai Baba bless you all always!

Mr. G A – Writer-Poet, Kerala

Mr. Prem Nath - Well-known Architect-Designer, Mumbai

Mrs. Well-known Architect-Designer, Mumbai

Mr. Well-known Bollywood Director, Mumbai

Ms. Nausheen Ali Sardar - Well-known Actress

Mrs. Shachi Bhanushali - Housewife, Hyderabad

Mrs. Payal Gidwani Tiwari - Celebrity Yoga Instructor, Mumbai

Mrs. Jyoti Gidwani - Housewife, Mumbai

Ms. Tejal Rajyagor - GiveIndia, Mumbai

Mrs. Supriya Manjunath - Housewife, Mysore

The first year had been a year of learning, unlearning and learning period for me in Vidarbha, a completely unknown territory for me. I came here with the soul intention to do my best to provide a platform for the suicide farmers’ widows and their families along with marginal farmers in coming years. The task is challenging, no doubts about it and a very long one indeed! However, my life is now devoted to do everything possible that destiny wants me to act on... Looking back at my life, I know now all through God had been grooming me all the while so I could finally end up in Vidarbha to do the needful.... I always tell everyone that it is DESTINY who chose me and not otherwise...

The blessings of all the departed souls of the farmers and good wishes from all across the world to keep moving forward a step at a time... I have been fortunate to meet amazing angels in this journey. The search for the Second Year TEN BEAUTIFUL ANGELS is still on... I started to send mails to many people from 17^th of May 2011 and so far, FIVE beautiful angels have confirmed their yearly contribution to support me from June 2011 to May 2012... I need FIVE more angels and I know Sai Baba will send them from nowhere...

Once again, I wish to thank all the Beautiful Angels, who are supporting this movement. This movement is not about me helping the poor farmers’ widows and their children but this movement is for the future of all the tiny-tots, who will grow to have a very dangerous future – future that will not have enough land for cultivation; scarcity of water for drinking and irrigation; less farmers to grow food grains for the ever-increasing population and a life that will be suffocated in the concrete jungle as the wild forest will also have no place in near future...

Whenever I think of the future, not too far though, I shudder at the thought of it! I wonder, what will these tiny-tots do when they will grow to be adults? Think about the dangerous future ahead that is fast approaching with a pace that is faster than the hand of the second on your watch / clock!

WHAT THE FARMERS NEED – PART IX

GOOD MARKETING OF THEIR PRODUCE

With no proper education to their credit, Indian farmers are by far one of the best and are more intelligent than most of educated farmers of the world. They can predict rain perfectly when they see the clouds changing above, have a great knowledge about various ills & benefits of climatic influence on various crops and other agriculture related technicalities... however, not being educated surely have its disadvantages as well. They toil hard in hot sun, heavy rains and cold winters to feed the nation however, what they have always lacked are good marketing skills to sell their produce in the market. All their hard work goes in drain because it is not the farmers who control the market price of the produce but it is the market lobby which has an upper hand to exploit the farmers’ hard work.

Over the years, government policies and strong market lobby have been exploiting Indian farmers or may I say, most of the farmers of the world, to make the farmers depend on these external forces. As we have seen in the previous post how government MSP (Minimum Support Price) plays havoc with farmers with respective cash crops and food grains... Since most of the Indian farmers are not all that rich and educated, they have no option but to give in to the middlemen (of the market lobby) to sell their produce at lower rates most of the time. If the produce is more, the lobby sees to it that they buy the produce at the lowest bid price to match the MSP and when there is shortage, they will entice the farmers with a high price... yes, it is the same law of economics of demand & supply.

When I was running a high-end vegetable supermarket TARKARI in Hyderabad, there was this educated farmer called Maru, who was really intelligent & smart to market his Organic English Vegetables in the most profitable ways to demand high returns because of his quality grown produce. However, he was not greedy and content at the price people were ready to pay what he deemed right for him. Since he was the only farmer who had the expertise to grow Organic vegetables, his rates were never challenged. He was a regular supplier for our shop and I must confess we made good profit too. The end stores always end up making good profits than the farmers... somewhere down the line, this thing should be mutually agreed upon to benefit the farmers as well, so I think and consider. Like, we at TARKARI never hesitated to pay Maru Farm their rates as long as we were making our customers happy. He, as the farmer was happy, we as the end store were happy and customers getting pure Organic vegetables were happy. In such a scenario, everyone is content and happy to get what each one wishes...

Now, such situation doesn’t happen in the large national, state or city based markets... because a large quantity is involved and a large variety is at stake. However, I strongly feel that it is certainly not difficult to achieve the best possible ways, where in everyone involved to serve the society at large are benefitted... but it is the greed factor which always end up exploiting the poor farmers’ condition... which leads to suicide due to debt trap. Good marketing skills of farmers will lead to a better future but since majority of the farmers in India are poor, they cannot fight the system to change it to their benefits... and yes, government is also to be blamed for not being with the farmers in this respect. If government have stringent laws to benefit the farmers, there will be less farmers’ suicide in India.

The fault also lies with the farmers because they don’t unite to be the force to demand a set price from the market lobby... wherever farmers have united, they have fetched great results. In a village near Medak, Andhra Pradesh, 7 women farmers took over growing sorghum (Jowar) during drought as men farmers had failed miserably to sustain agriculture in the village... within three years of hard work, these women are running an export house by exporting sorghum to European Countries and have written a new chapter in Indian Agriculture... there are many cases like Medak, where women have become more successful than men in terms of farming because they united to become a force with an attitude that – ‘We are better capable than men to feed our family better’...

Whenever I read such achievements, I feel proud of women in villages of India and I salute them from the bottom of my heart. A good marketing skills have to be learned by the farmers within their own villages to take on the might of city market lobby and this change in attitude will fetch good returns to farmers of the world...

... to be continued...

WHAT THE FARMERS NEED – PART VIII

GOOD MSP (Minimum Support Price) FROM THE GOVERNMENT & MARKET LOBBY

The series – “What the Farmers Need” have helped find to an extent a voice among the local leaders and other NGOs in Vidarbha on the issues that I have been raising through the blog... I am glad about this sudden change and to a large extent I am thankful to each one of them for raising the issues of what the farmers actually need to cultivate better and continue farming. The change in attitude is welcoming indeed! More and more people should join in to spread awareness about what will benefit the farmers of, not only the Vidarbha region but also nationwide.

Minimum Support Price – MSP as it is popularly known is usually governed by the State Agriculture Department and is monitored overall by the Agriculture Ministry. MSP is the price that is controlled by the government so that farmers get a suitable price for their produce. However, the fact remains that almost every year the MSP decided by the State Government is never in favour of the farmers. While the farmers toil hard in hot sun, high temperatures and heavy rains... it is the market traders and hoarders who benefit the most because of government policies...

Last year, 2010 – 2011, the cotton harvest was better than previous couple of years because Vidarbha received 25 % excess rainfall... yes, to an extent crops were damaged (which increased the rates further) due to untimely rains but most of the farmers were happy to sell their White Gold to private traders instead of government procurement agencies in Vidarbha. One will be shocked to know that the MSP for cotton was decided at Rs. 3000 / - per quintal... while private traders paid handsomely in the range that many farmers fetched as high as Rs.6500 / - Plus per quintal from the minimum of Rs. 4000 / - onwards. The faulty decision of the State Government to pay peanuts to the farmers saw an adverse effect and farmers flocked towards the private traders to sell their cotton at a much better price. In Gujarat, farmers fetched up to Rs. 7000 /- plus per quintal...

Now, such a phenomenon doesn’t happen for every crop or every year... the reason for the private traders to pay higher price was due to washed out cotton production in all the neighbouring countries (China, Pakistan, Bangladesh & others) which had resulted in shortage in the international market. Quick to gauge the international market trends, the traders were quick to grab hold of all the cotton from farmers... farmers and traders were both happy while the loser State Government just kept watching silently without realizing how the market had driven the price higher than the MSP. During such an instance the farmers will not complain but when the same situation changes in the opposite direction, the farmers will be at heavy losses and then the depression sets in and many succumb to the pressure to end their lives, unable to pay their debts.

When the rainfall is good, the yields are better and then the market collapse because of excess crops... in such cases the MSP plays a major role in saving the farmers’ hard work... however, it is the middlemen, traders and the end stores who benefit the most and not the farmers, who should actually be the real beneficiaries... the faulty government policies have made many farmers and their children to quit farming because if your hard work is not fetching you reward, give me one good reason as to why the farmers should continue farming... it is very easy to blame the farmers for the failure of crops and that they are leaving farming for city jobs... the reality on grounds are stark and if your final produce cannot even fetch your initial investment... any businessman will tell you – “It is simply not worth!”

The Market Lobby is also so strong that they control the price when the produce is harvested according to demand... if the crops are in plenty, the market lobby buys at a cheaper rate and when the produce is in short supply, the rates get higher as it happened in case of cotton mentioned above. MSP should be so calculated that irrespective of the produce, the farmers should benefit rather than the traders and end stores, who sell the produce at much-much higher rates that a farmer really gets... so the MSP should be decided to benefit the farmers and not kill them... however, it never really happens...

... to be continued...

MUCH NEEDED BREAK!

Having explored Rajasthan and Gujarat to meet some of the most amazing achievers in the first 20 days of April... I headed towards Bombay and took the much needed break to unwind my mind more than my body... I really needed this break badly because my mind, ever since, I started the movement has been on a continuous roller coaster ride thinking all the time about what next?

The state of depression, the unending worries, the helplessness for not being able to save the lives of poor farmers who succumb to suicide (a continuous process in Vidarbha and many parts of India), the worry of when the Trust Registration will get over, when the fund raising activities can be started and when the units of widows will start functioning... all these and many more... not forgetting my personal life has been in shambles, losing friends because of the movement and of course making amazing new friends.... my mind really needed the break!

So, I locked myself at my friend’s place and didn’t even go out anywhere for 20 days... I was completely cut off from the world physically even though I kept updating picture albums of my trip to Barefoot College Tilonia, Rajasthan and Mitticool Man Shri Manshukh Bhai Prajapati’s work and kept changing my status but not as actively as I usually do... I even didn’t make calls to friends or received calls from friends during these 20 days... all I did was, watch some movies, cook, eat and sleep... the rejuvenation was indeed great but the summer heat in Vidarbha is simply terrible this year...

When I went home in Yavatmal (the Naigaonkar family who adopted me)... it was boiling hot!!! The heat wave was simply extraordinary and the soaring temperature, well, the less said is better... the heat is very severe but now that I am finally back in Wardha, the work will have to start, be it the high temperatures, heat, rain or cold winter... I am so happy, to be back home!!!

I will be writing in my new posts all that I had experienced in Rajasthan and Gujarat to tell you about the extraordinary beautiful people I met and interacted with, stories that will inspire many, knowledge that I had learned a great deal from each one of them and that will help many... I am glad I made this amazing trip to explore a complete new world! At home, I was welcomed  by  cobwebs and layers of dust... took hours to clean but I am so happy to be at home! 

BAREFOOT COLLEGE TILONIA, RAJASTHAN

Please check out the picture album in Facebook... with brief story about each achiever from the amazing college, where "The Teacher is the Learner and The Learner, The Teacher." Shri Bunker Roy's small beautiful world!

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150179289203451.309595.676413450

UNE FILLE TRES EXTRAORDINAIRE!

From Barefoot College Tilonia, Rajasthan my next stop was in Gujarat to explore the amazing 80-year-old Shri Premji Bhai Patel from Upleta (the man responsible to change the ground water table of the region from salty to sweet), the Mitti Cool Man Shri Manshukh Bhai Prajapati from Wankaner village and interaction with some farmers from villages in Rajkot (to understand the progress and agriculture related problems)... and I owe my humble gratefulness to one friend for making my stay in Gujarat worthwhile, memorable and simply blissful...

We became friends on Facebook and initially used to interact with comments on status, reading poems and once in a while through messages... how she became part of my destiny is truly mystifying to even me as I often wonder... she is an amazing writer-poet and has been actively supporting the movement from an early date, even when we hardly knew each other... Amrita Vardarajan works for Raman Development Consultants Pvt. Ltd in Ahmedabad... she was there at the station to receive me with her infectious smile...

Amrita enjoying the birthday cake...

She was very helpful during my trip and it is because of her that I got to meet the Mitti Cool Man from Rajkot... always ready to help her needy friends Amrita got the phone number from her contacts to help me out... her selfless act has surely impressed me many times during our interaction over phone since last couple of months... she was there when depression took a toll on me and I was all alone... her pep talk, reasoning and teachings about life surely made me wonder how she has grown in life at such a young age... she was always there with her phone calls whenever she read my status which reflected my depressing state during my journey... friends like Amrita is really rare to find and I feel so-so blessed for her presence in my destiny.

She has been very encouraging and supportive ever since I have known her... and meeting her for the very first time, I felt as if we knew each other since long... no hang ups, no strangeness and we connected as long lost friends... she even told her boss Shri Rajendra Jani about my visit, who expressed his desire to meet me... so I was invited at her office... well, words are truly not enough to describe the small beautiful world Shri Rajendra Jani had created over the years... I was amazed to see how beautiful an organization can be when everyone is treated as family members... the lunch at Raman’s office was an experience of a lifetime... blissful, full of fun and the joy of sharing with everyone... I had a lengthy session with the boss and we were both happy to know about each other...

The birthday party...

I also interacted with most of the staff at Amrita’s office and it was a pleasure to share information about each other and then I was invited to join in the surprise birthday party of one of the staff Kishore Bhai... oh the enjoyment we all had during our trip and party surely will remain with me for many-many years... to be accepted by the whole staff with so much love was indeed an awesome feeling! Everybody treated me as if I was one among the staff and for this I wish to thank each one at Raman Development Consultants Pvt. Ltd. And a special big thank you to Amrita for making my trip so-so memorable and worth...

Some souls are truly extraordinary and I am lucky to be in touch and blessed by beautiful souls like Amrita Vardarajan, Shri Rajendra Jani and all the staff of Raman Development Consultants Pvt. Ltd... Apart from meeting few farmers, Shri Premji Bhai Patel & Shri Manshukh Bhai Prajapati, my Gujarat trip exploration was so-so special because I met the rare friend Amrita... Sai Baba bless you always Amrita and keep up the good work always!

Thank you Facebook for giving me such a rare precious friend!

THE LAST DAY AT BAREFOOT COLLEGE TILONIA (14th April 2011)

Saying ‘goodbye’ is one of the most difficult jobs when you have been surrounded by genuine love from every single individual that constitutes the beautiful small world of Barefoot College Tilonia, the world that exists parallel to the big world... Deep down while I am glad to make so many friends and gurus during our week long stay... somewhere in one of the corners of my heart, today, I am feeling sad for tomorrow morning we will be leaving Barefoot College... and I am sure to miss all the beautiful people that I have interacted with – smiling, laughing, learning, teaching, sharing, giving, grasping, wishing and above all to feel the power of humanity in true sense with all of them... YES, this beautiful small world very much exists in our big bad world of greed... I know I will have to come back again and again here during the course of my life...

YET, I am sad deep down and I am touched when I told that we are leaving tomorrow early morning... everyone had only one loving request – “Phir zaroor aana (do come for sure again)” – their eyes sad and their smile magical touching the hearts to the deepest abyss... and so much blessings for the work in Vidarbha even though many of them don’t even know exactly where Vidarbha is... they don’t even know about the farmers’ widows that I am working with but deep from their hearts their blessings are unmatched and I feel so much strengthened from within and I know if these women can do it, widows of Vidarbha can definitely do it too!

I have indeed become rich in many aspects after watching carefully the will to work hard with contentment, no greed, everyone helping one another working in unison and everyone confidently saying that they have not gone to school because of various reasons, poverty being one of the major reasons... however, their zeal to explore and master the unknown territory with the help and guidance of Shri Bunker Roy that YES, WE CAN AND WE WILL DO IT COME WHAT MAY... HARD WORK CAN ACHIEVE BIG RESULTS TO SOLVE THE BIG PROBLEMS LOOK LIKE SMALL EVERYDAY AFFAIR!

Is it magical? Well, the hard work of every single individual to trust the vision of Shri Bunker Roy and work sincerely towards that goal... that is how Barefoot College was born almost 39 years ago and their journey have seen various twists and turns, dedication and devotion, trust and hope, zeal and passion, hard work and no substitute... well... Sandipta Dhar... you certainly are the beautiful destiny child of this great Indian nation for sending me to this small beautiful world, which has been irrigated and cultivated with so much of love and affection that it is difficult for people to leave so easily... yes... I am sad to leave Barefoot College Tilonia but I have to...

There will be a series of some amazing individual that I shall be introducing to the world in my posts soon... and I am very confident that it will definitely open the eyes of many from all over the world... And lastly, I wish to say to Shri Bunker Roy Sir... grateful to be blessed by Smt. Aruna Royji and you! There are many dark villages that will be illuminated because of your sincere efforts in coming years worldwide!!! And yes, I shall put in my best efforts to see many dark villages of Vidarbha see illuminated nights where children can read and families can enjoy to live a beautiful life!

EXPLORING BAREFOOT COLLEGE IN TILONIA, RAJASTHAN

Sandipta Dhar came in the journey of my destiny as a divine intervention, all the way from USA... we connected on Facebook and after a brief introduction through mails, started exchanging ideas and knowledge about each other’s life... and needless to say even before I said anything to her, she was part of the movement in her own ways... her inquisitiveness made her to ask a number of questions about ‘support 4 suicide farmers families’ and was surprised when I replied all of them... and soon, she started informing about various things and one of the most important pieces of information was the Barefoot College established by Shri Bunker Roy in Tilonia, Rajasthan... with a simple request that I should explore to strengthen the movement in Vidarbha...

Honestly, like millions of Indians, even I had never heard about the Barefoot College but online I got the required links and I was very-very amazed to read everything about how the small movement which started way back in the early 70s would shape up into one of the most amazing colleges of India, where no degrees are given and where the teacher is the learner and the learner is the teacher... with a simple idea that teach the villagers how to earn a living in whatever best possible way and change is bound to happen... the movement has spread its action of imparting knowledge and training villagers in more than 26 countries and in as many as 14 states and 200 villages of India.

The journey to Jaipur was amazing with my Brazilian co-worker Sherlene Lopes and lovely locals of Rajasthani families as company in train... it is our first visit to Rajasthan and I must confess Jaipur looked so familiar like all other cities look... heavy traffic, multi-storied buildings, malls, branded shops, swanky offices, education institutes and what not... similar as it is in every big cities in today’s modern times...deep down I was sad because earlier every city had its local flavour and identity... the only thing while travelling by bus was that some ancient architecture stood tall among the modern creations... so you know you are in Rajasthan... Sandipta I am truly-truly grateful to you for introducing me to the Barefoot College.

After a nice lunch near the railway station, we boarded the bus for Tilonia... meanwhile I was in regular touch with Shri Ram Karanji about where we have reached... once we reached near Pattan, he told he was sending a vehicle to pick us up... the journey with Vishramji, the driver (associated since last 15 years with the college) was making me feel so-so lucky... really I have no words to describe how I was feeling from within... from Bombay to Vidarbha and now all the way to a small village of Rajasthan Tilonia... SPEECHLESS! As I was enjoying the breeze, I was excited and looking forward to meet Shri Ram Karanji... Shri Bhanwarji (in administration since last 25 years) met us and it was lovely to hear everything about the college... and after a little while, the meeting with Shri Ram Karanji was simply an occasion of joy... he talked to us about the history of the movement with so much passion... we truly feel blessed to be under his spell... yes, it is difficult to feel otherwise according to me...

After the brief meeting, we watched a short film about Barefoot College and how the movement changed lives of the villagers... and then it was time for dinner... self-service, and lovely home food is an enchanting experience that I recommend every Indian to visit the college to learn so many beautiful things of life... and yes, one of the first person we met after reaching the college was Kareena.... a beautiful village girl, a student of standard two, smiling and sipping tea...our first friend in Tilonia... almost everyone wishes everyone with no bias or prejudice and it was so-so lovely to see smiling faces wishing us and when they were reciprocated... our first day has been a great experience and there is this new energy in me like the solar energy, which electrifies the whole college... as I am writing this piece lovely breeze is blowing, sound of dry leaves along with folk songs at the background sung by villagers are making this night to remember forever with amazing insights from this beautiful institution... tomorrow will be a lovely day to start meeting and learning from all the Barefoot engineers, scholars, technicians and interesting and amazing achievers of beautiful India!

Sandipta... I am so glad to be here today... Sai Baba bless you always!

WHAT THE FARMERS NEED – PART – VII

ALTERNATIVE EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES:

In the series that I started about “What the Farmers Need” – the next requirement is one of the major aspects that have been overlooked by the government policies and many local bodies. However, there are many dedicated individuals, who have played a major role in providing farmers and farmers’ families with additional alternative employment opportunities.

Farming as we all know is seasonal where irrigation facilities are not available and in majority of regions of the nation farmers have been dependent totally on the rain God or monsoon... as we had discussed earlier about the lack of irrigation facilities in rural scenario. So Farmers are busy in farms only for couple of months, in some cases 4 to 5 months except where irrigation facilities are available, like Punjab and Haryana, farming is a yearly activity. Now, Indian farmers have been farming only for couple of months to remain idle with no work in maximum months... this lay off results in no extra income but expenses of farmers’ families remain constant. If there are equal seasonal alternative employment opportunities for the farmers, the farmers can earn enough money to save for the next season of farming, thereby saving them to get into the debt trap.

Regions where in alternative employment opportunities are available, farmers’ suicide have been recorded less or almost nil... however, farmers’ suicide is a very complex issue as many on ground would confess and there are number of factors that affect the community. Villages where in alternative employment opportunities are aplenty are leading prosperous lives as compared to the interior rural regions. Alternative employment opportunities provide family with extra income throughout the year and that sustain the farmers’ families to lead a better and self reliant lives. A village in Yavatmal named Naigoan (Bk) have not seen a single farmers’ suicide in its history... and farmers are very prosperous in the village for the simple fact that maximum villagers have found additional work in the nearby WCL... I have interacted with many farmers there, including a 75 year-old farmer, who worked as a bonded labour in Sarpanch’s house for three odd decades and later with his savings of life, proudly bought 2 acre land to continue farming even at this age.

Such dedication and devotion of such individuals are an inspiration for other farmers to emulate but such inspirational stories never make it to the main stream media... yes, when there are suicide, the issue is highlighted as farm crisis... if Vidarbha has seen maximum farmers’ suicide in the last two and a half decades’ period... there are multiple reasons for it... all the irrigation water has been diverted to major industries and Thermal Power Projects, so one wonders, how do the farmers manage to irrigate their fields... Rain God plays an important role... after all Indian farmers have been living their lives Bhagwan Bharose (on God’s mercy). Employment opportunities should be created in village itself, one that will connect the activities with profit-making initiative and urban centres benefitting from it. That way, the interdependency will create more job opportunities and also bring in more money to flow from the urban to rural belts. However, such things are a rare phenomenon and instead, everyone is looking to exploit the poor farmers and extracting the last penny from them... instead of teaching them saving, the villagers are taught to take more loans and spend on lavish things that is not the basic requirements for villagers.

I do hope more and more people should come forward to establish rural units that will bring in the required change to provide more employment opportunities to safeguard farmers’ community from leaving farming and migrating to cities... farmers should live in villages for their own benefits and for the benefit of the nation. Will the government adopt such provisions to better the lives of the community... well, my guess is as wild as yours...

... to be continued...

WHAT THE FARMERS NEED – PART – VI

AVAILABILITY OF CHEAP LABOUR:

One of the major requirements for every farmer is availability of cheap labour for removing weeds from the fields and during harvesting season... no wonder, cheap labour has become a distant dream for poor farmers while the rich ones can afford to spend much... the increasing wage in labour for field work increases the initial investment of a farmer, thereby reducing the margin of profits... but this one aspect cannot be overlooked or avoided in spite of all the modern inventions and discoveries.

How can the farmer really overcome this phenomenon to earn more from his hard work? In the earlier days of farming, in most of the villages farming was a collective effort, which enhanced the profit of every farmer. With globalization and shortage of employment opportunities, most of the villagers started migrating to cities to earn their livelihood leaving farming to those who dare not leave their villages... the city life, good money for labour jobs and a good saving were and are the main attraction that villagers find difficult to resist.... and yes, one cannot blame them also because in the ever increasing prices of every essential items or be it education of children or else health care... everything needs money today. The shortage of manpower in villages resulted directly on increase of labour wages even in villages... the demand and supply theory... and if weeds removing and harvesting are not done in time, the farmer loses more money... so, labours started their higher demands to encash the shortage and farmers have no option but to succumb as the years progressed. I don’t say increase in labour was or is a bad thing... after all every human has the right to earn more to better one’s standard of living.

Availability of cheap labour has become a distant dream in most of the agricultural regions of the nation and world all over... however, if villagers stand united, they can overcome this crisis in a much better way as collective one force... in fact, there are various cases of some great success story where in villagers have united to solve this crisis to benefit every single farmer of the particular village. United we stand, divided we fall – this simple old adage stands true even today in modern times, yet, we humans because of our greed and ego, forego to suffer simple theory to achieve better results. Since weeding and harvesting are seasonal activities, getting labour at the particular time becomes difficult... and the shortage results in increase in wages...

Agriculture in India is perhaps one of the most disorganized sectors and policy makers have never paid any attention on what the farmers need actually... all the policy makers are concerned about is – the cash crops – so they can make their money, let the farmers die, who really cares! Before the decades of the 90s and 00s... one had not heard of farmers’ suicide as a phenomenal agriculture crisis... so what has changed in these two decades’ time? The effect of globalization and with MNCs entering the sector, farmers have lost all their heritage and practice, which made the farmers’ community self reliant... earlier, every farmer used to grow food for themselves and the extra grains were sold in the market... nowadays, they grow cash crops and then the money they get are again lost in buying food at a higher prices from the market... so both ways, the farmers lose money to fill the coffers of the rich...

The farmers’ community should be taught collective efforts, which will reduce their initial investment but then... the system in villages are so very complex and the crisis of cheap labour is going to escalate further as the years will go on... with migration towards cities continuing...

.... to be continued...