Anupam- The Dreamer

If you are asked what does one student need for obtaining good education? The answer would be pretty simple. A willing and keen student, a knowledgeable and righteous teacher, and the right environment. This pretty much sums up the basic tenets of a good education system. Now, apply this to the society. What does a society need for sustainable development? Going by the same analogy, it needs the law-abiding and enlightened people, a welfare-oriented and democratic government, and the right environment for an individual to prosper. Rest all other things can be clubbed more or less into one of these three things.

But, if it is so simple, then why is it that the desired level of development is often elusive? I would not delve into the first two aspects now, rather I would focus on the third aspect i.e. providing the right environment. And here also, I would not go into the specifics of what is the right environment, and how to provide the right environment, rather it would be worthwhile to delve into the thought process behind the strategy to provide right environment to the people by the government of the day.

It is an age old saying that “Governments don’t develop people, people develop themselves when provided the right environment”. That is the heart of the philosophy of developmental politics and the key strategy to ensure that people get the level of development they desire. Let me begin by giving you a simple example. There is a pond or a community forest in a village. The nearby residents are dependent on these two public resources for their basic needs like water, food, energy resource like wood, forest produce etc. So, the role of government should be to encourage the public ownership of these resources and ensure that no one is discriminated in using these. Also, the government can provide right opportunities for skilling of the people, their education in how to better utilize these resources and how to market their local produce etc. Basically, what the government needs to do is to empower people to better manage their own affairs in a just and equitable manner. It is only the community ownership of the pond and forest among the people that makes them sustainable sources of development. If the livelihood of people, their basic necessities are dependent on them, why would they ever pollute their own pond or cut their own forest?

Contrary to this, if the government tries to bring outsiders to manage the pond and forests, the main thing that the outsiders would lack is the “sense of ownership”. They would not feel that they belong to this place. They would consider it just as their job and leave after the office hours. They would not put their best effort, because their interests lie elsewhere. This is why the empowerment of local people assumes greater importance. Educate them, give them basic facilities, give them opportunities, and see how they will come up with beautiful ideas of their own. And those ideas will then be translated into beautiful projects, the planning, execution and sustenance of which will all be owned up by the people.

Take another example. We read news about pollution in the rivers, every now and then. The governments come, they promise to clean the river, and the governments go! But the reality is the pollution does not subside even after so much noise and concern. Among other factors that lead to rise in pollution levels (like rising industrialization, population, etc.etc.), is the core factor of the lack of empowerment of local people or local stakeholders. Till the time, there is a thinking among the people that it is the duty of the government to provide me clean water to drink, bathe and use, there will not be a radical change anywhere. But, if the people and the stakeholders start developing a “sense of ownership” and sense of duty towards their ownselves, then only they would care to do their bit to not pollute or minimize their pollution footprint on the river. The industries should be empowered on how to use wastewater and recycle it for their own use and minimize the wastage. The farmers should be empowered to use minimal fertilizers and chemicals, which would reduce the pollutants running off into the water streams. The people should be empowered to minimize throwing garbage into the rivers and rather do waste segregation at homes, which could then be recycled, reused at community level. The NGOs can be encouraged to educate people in these practices and cultivate a sense of ownership in the local resources. The local government can ensure the participation of every stakeholder through democratic processes and enhance their capacity to take up their own developmental initiatives. The point here is that unless the stakeholders own up their own sense of duty, every exercise that is top-down would eventually result in wastage of money and time. We have often heard of the song “राम तेरी गंगा मैली हो गई पापियों के पाप धोते-धोते….”, because the पापी doesn’t have the sense of ownership over the river Ganga. He is just like “I came, I bathed off my sins and I went away!” But, if the same पापी had to live near the banks of the river, then he would not have polluted it with his/her sins, rather would also do some cleaning up work too.

This is, you see, the fulcrum of sustainable development. People have the audacity, people have the mindset, people have the energy to do what it takes to develop them. The need is just to enlighten them, encourage them and empower them to do what is best for them. No government can do it for the people, the people themselves have to own up the initiatives and contribute their bit. Unless this happens, it will be all limelight and no twilight! Unless this happens, no development, howsoever good it may be intended, can be sustainable and everlasting. Unless people are empowered to take care of their own, and are kept perpetually on the mercy of the government, can there be true development. Neither in the past, nor in the present and never in the future.

I leave you with another analogy. The gardener does not and cannot grow the plant, the plant grows on its own. The gardener just provides the right environment for the plant to grow. It is the inherent strength in the plant that allows it to grow, a power which cannot be undermined or usurped by any other in the world.

Till next time…..