*At poverty meet, heated exchanges, no conclusion*
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=216015
*Audience accuses speakers of ignoring realities, says NGOs don't care about
slum dwellers *
*Express News Service*<http://www.expressindia.com/about/feedback.html?mailto=easwaran@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
*Ahmedabad, January 3:* A state-level meeting to work out a strategy on
urban poverty witnessed verbal exchanges between presenters and those
attending. The audience at the meet at Gujarat Vidyapeeth in association
with the Developmental Innovation in Support of Human Action (DISHA),
claimed that ground realities were not being addressed.
While Rajendra Shah of 'Saath' was discussing slum upgradation initiatives,
a participant, who said he was representing Ramapir slums in Vadaj, accused
NGOs of not being interested in the welfare of slum dwellers, but only in
furthering their own agendas. Another person alleged that NGOs had roped-in
only high caste people as their volunteers. This was immediately refuted by
others present.
However, speakers had to admit that there was some substance in the caustic
remarks, but maintained, ''this is not the right forum and time to take up
all that''. Ruffled participants refused to buy into the speakers'
arguments, claiming that such meets had no connection with reality, and were
of little importance beyond academic.
Former academic and social scientist, Dr Ghanshyam Shah said basic flaw with
efforts to alleviate poverty, was addressing issues at the micro and local
level without considering macro issues and government policies, adding that
compassion alone could not help remove poverty. He said that despite efforts
to remove poverty, the ground reality is that problems like untouchability
and anti-minority sentiments still persist. Dean of Faculty of Arts at
Gujarat University, Prof Pradeep Prajapati said by not taking socio-economic
changes into account, government policies only increased poverty. In this
context, he said policies of globalisation, liberalisation and privatisation
had changed the parameters of poverty, since the manifold increase in costs
of nutrition, healthcare and housing, have led to the need to revise the
determinants of poverty.
Shravan Acharya of CEPT said poverty alleviation had gone off track in the
recent past, a situation that needed to be changed. He suggested that
affordable credit in a formal banking system replace the informal financial
market.
Dr Vidyut Joshi and Vice-Chancellor of Gujarat Vidyapeeth, Dr Sudarshan
Aiyengar also addressed the meet. Of the other speakers, Rajendra Joshi of
Saath, and Vijayalaxmi Das of Women's World Banking threw light on the role
of micro-financing and micro-enterprise development in removing poverty,
while Mukesh Kanaskar of All India Institute of Local Self Government,
Mumbai, said local bodies seeking funds under JNNURM should be given
preference for maximum projects, to help remove urban poverty.
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=216015
*Audience accuses speakers of ignoring realities, says NGOs don't care about
slum dwellers *
*Express News Service*<http://www.expressindia.com/about/feedback.html?mailto=easwaran@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
*Ahmedabad, January 3:* A state-level meeting to work out a strategy on
urban poverty witnessed verbal exchanges between presenters and those
attending. The audience at the meet at Gujarat Vidyapeeth in association
with the Developmental Innovation in Support of Human Action (DISHA),
claimed that ground realities were not being addressed.
While Rajendra Shah of 'Saath' was discussing slum upgradation initiatives,
a participant, who said he was representing Ramapir slums in Vadaj, accused
NGOs of not being interested in the welfare of slum dwellers, but only in
furthering their own agendas. Another person alleged that NGOs had roped-in
only high caste people as their volunteers. This was immediately refuted by
others present.
However, speakers had to admit that there was some substance in the caustic
remarks, but maintained, ''this is not the right forum and time to take up
all that''. Ruffled participants refused to buy into the speakers'
arguments, claiming that such meets had no connection with reality, and were
of little importance beyond academic.
Former academic and social scientist, Dr Ghanshyam Shah said basic flaw with
efforts to alleviate poverty, was addressing issues at the micro and local
level without considering macro issues and government policies, adding that
compassion alone could not help remove poverty. He said that despite efforts
to remove poverty, the ground reality is that problems like untouchability
and anti-minority sentiments still persist. Dean of Faculty of Arts at
Gujarat University, Prof Pradeep Prajapati said by not taking socio-economic
changes into account, government policies only increased poverty. In this
context, he said policies of globalisation, liberalisation and privatisation
had changed the parameters of poverty, since the manifold increase in costs
of nutrition, healthcare and housing, have led to the need to revise the
determinants of poverty.
Shravan Acharya of CEPT said poverty alleviation had gone off track in the
recent past, a situation that needed to be changed. He suggested that
affordable credit in a formal banking system replace the informal financial
market.
Dr Vidyut Joshi and Vice-Chancellor of Gujarat Vidyapeeth, Dr Sudarshan
Aiyengar also addressed the meet. Of the other speakers, Rajendra Joshi of
Saath, and Vijayalaxmi Das of Women's World Banking threw light on the role
of micro-financing and micro-enterprise development in removing poverty,
while Mukesh Kanaskar of All India Institute of Local Self Government,
Mumbai, said local bodies seeking funds under JNNURM should be given
preference for maximum projects, to help remove urban poverty.