A major metropolis in the United States is sinking, and officials are warning residents about the tremendous threats that climate change poses. Watch this to know more.

New York city is sinking the way India's Joshimath did

<p>By:&nbsp;<strong>Andries Bezuidenhout*</strong></p>

<p>What is the ultimate song to celebrate Workers' Day? Many will suggest "The Internationale" which had its roots as a poem written in the aftermath of the Paris Commune in 1871 by Eugène Pottier, a transport worker. Set to music a few years later, it became the anthem for the wider progressive movement.</p>

<p>It served as the Soviet Union’s anthem after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, making it more closely associated with the communist movement.</p>

<p>But I would argue that trumpeter Hugh Masekela's iconic and internationally popular song "Stimela" – the coal train – is perhaps a more appropriate anthem for Workers' Day in southern and Central Africa. The song speaks aboutthe local history and the migrant labour system on the mines.</p>

<p>"Stimela" reminds everyone that South Africa's wealth and infrastructure was built on the back of labour from all over Africa. They were the force that modernised the country. But the song is also internationalist in focus.</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false"><iframe allow="autoplay encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9tmsOJyRR94" width="560"></iframe></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">×</a></div>

<p>Later recordings of the song typically begin with bass rhythms and percussion mimicking the sound of a train on its tracks. Then the instruments retreat to the background and Masekela announces:</p>

<p><em>There is a train that comes from Namibia and Malawi</em></p>

<p><em>there is a train that comes from Zambia and Zimbabwe,</em></p>

<p><em>There is a train that comes from Angola and Mozambique,</em></p>

<p><em>From Lesotho, from Botswana, from Swaziland,</em></p>

<p><em>From all the hinterland of Southern and Central Africa.</em></p>

<p><em>This train carries young and old, African men</em></p>

<p><em>Who are conscripted to come and work on contract</em></p>

<p><em>In the golden mineral mines of Johannesburg</em></p>

<p><em>And its surrounding metropolis, sixteen hours or more a day</em></p>

<p><em>For almost no pay.</em></p>

<p><strong>Early morning commute</strong></p>

<p>Until recently I was responsible for teaching an introductory course in sociology to first-year university students. The auditorium in which I delivered the lectures had a beautiful sound system.</p>

<p>I’d plug in my computer and play music before lectures started. The music served two purposes. I liked to imagine that it allowed students to find some calm after their early morning commute from the city’s periphery on dilapidated trains.</p>

<p>It was also a way to introduce debates about key topics covered in the first year course.</p>

<p>I always started the first lecture of the year with Masekela’s "Stimela" because it was the perfect opening to a conversation about the forces that modernised South Africa.</p>

<p>South Africa's was not a slow, organic growth of industrialisation that characterised the European transition from feudalism to industrial capitalism, the great transformation that gave rise to my discipline of sociology, with Karl Marx as one of its key contributors.</p>

<p>The emergence of modern South Africa was brutal in a different way. It came about as a result of the discovery of diamonds and gold, and the need for cheap labour to extract metals from the seams that ran through the Witwatersrand's rock formations.</p>

<p>This was a story of labour shortages and the intervention of colonial administrations and armies across southern and Central Africa. They dispossessed pastoralists of their land and imposed hut and poll taxes on traditional leaders so that Johannesburg could be supplied with the much needed "Black Gold", as journalist-activist Ruth First described the system.</p>

<p>The song describes what’s on the minds of mining recruits on a steam train as it makes its way to Johannesburg: "They think about their lands, their herds that were taken away from them."</p>

<p>For Masekela, writing "Stimela" must have been, in part, a reflection on his own life. Born in the coal mining area called Witbank, he was raised by his grandmother who made her livelihood from a shebeen (an illegal bar) for mineworkers.</p>

<p><strong>The legacy lives on</strong></p>

<p>Up until the 1970s, when Masekela composed "Stimela" while he was in exile, South African mineworkers typically spent only a few years on the mines, saving up money or buying cattle to return to their lands.</p>

<p>But the 1970s was the time of great change in South Africa’s mining industry.</p>

<p>In 1974, 72 Malawian mineworkers were killed in an airplane crash. A year later, Mozambique became independent. Both Mozambique and Malawi were major suppliers of migrant workers to South African mines and these events put the steady flow of labour at risk.</p>

<p>In the case of Mozambique, the apartheid state was able to strike a deal with the new Mozambican government for the continued supply of labour. But Malawi withdrew permission for the recruitment of workers from their country.</p>

<p>The result was a shift to recruiting more South African workers and the emergence of career mine workers with much longer contracts. This change in the mining labour market eventually led to the founding of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) in 1982.</p>

<p>The successful organisation of workers who were at the heart of South Africa’s economy was one of the most important pillars of resistance against apartheid.</p>

<p>Sadly, the mining industry's contested legacy and its migrant labour system remain challenges in the post-apartheid period. This is evident in a number of ways. The massacre of mineworkers at Marikana in 2012 was a stark reminder of the acute vulnerability and exploitation of workers.</p>

<p>On top of this is the inability of the mining companies and the state to provide many mine workers – now often employed through subcontractors – with decent housing and services. And finally, the issue of land dispossession still haunts the country and remains unresolved.</p>

<p>Steam trains no longer crisscross southern Africa. Yet "Stimela" remains as much a song about the present and future aspirations, as it does of the past.</p>

<p><strong>*Andries Bezuidenhout, Professor of Development Studies, University of Fort Hare</strong></p>

<p><em>(This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-best-anthem-for-workers-day-stimela-a-tale-about-apartheids-migrant-labour-system-95794">original article</a>.)</em></p>

<p><em>(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL</em></p>


Hugh Masekela's iconic and internationally popular song "Stimela" – the coal train – is perhaps a more appropriate anthem for Workers' Day in southern and Central Africa

By: Andries Bezuidenhout* What is the ultimate song to celebrate Workers' Day? Many will suggest "The Internationale" which had its roots as a poem written in the aftermath of the Paris Commune in 1871 by Eugène Pottier, a transport worker. Set to music a few years later, it became the anthem for the wider progressive movement. It served as the Soviet Union’s anthem after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, making it more closely associated with the communist movement. But I would argue that trumpeter Hugh Masekela's iconic and internationally popular song "Stimela" – the coal train – is perhaps a more appropriate anthem for Workers' Day in southern and Central Africa. The song speaks aboutthe local history and the migrant labour system on the mines. "Stimela" reminds everyone that South Africa's wealth and infrastructure was built on the back of labour from all over Africa. They were the force that modernised the country. But the song is also internationalist in focus. × Later recordings of the song typically begin with bass rhythms and percussion mimicking the sound of a train on its tracks. Then the instruments retreat to the background and Masekela announces: There is a train that comes from Namibia and Malawi there is a train that comes from Zambia and Zimbabwe, There is a train that comes from Angola and Mozambique, From Lesotho, from Botswana, from Swaziland, From all the hinterland of Southern and Central Africa. This train carries young and old, African men Who are conscripted to come and work on contract In the golden mineral mines of Johannesburg And its surrounding metropolis, sixteen hours or more a day For almost no pay. Early morning commute Until recently I was responsible for teaching an introductory course in sociology to first-year university students. The auditorium in which I delivered the lectures had a beautiful sound system. I’d plug in my computer and play music before lectures started. The music served two purposes. I liked to imagine that it allowed students to find some calm after their early morning commute from the city’s periphery on dilapidated trains. It was also a way to introduce debates about key topics covered in the first year course. I always started the first lecture of the year with Masekela’s "Stimela" because it was the perfect opening to a conversation about the forces that modernised South Africa. South Africa's was not a slow, organic growth of industrialisation that characterised the European transition from feudalism to industrial capitalism, the great transformation that gave rise to my discipline of sociology, with Karl Marx as one of its key contributors. The emergence of modern South Africa was brutal in a different way. It came about as a result of the discovery of diamonds and gold, and the need for cheap labour to extract metals from the seams that ran through the Witwatersrand's rock formations. This was a story of labour shortages and the intervention of colonial administrations and armies across southern and Central Africa. They dispossessed pastoralists of their land and imposed hut and poll taxes on traditional leaders so that Johannesburg could be supplied with the much needed "Black Gold", as journalist-activist Ruth First described the system. The song describes what’s on the minds of mining recruits on a steam train as it makes its way to Johannesburg: "They think about their lands, their herds that were taken away from them." For Masekela, writing "Stimela" must have been, in part, a reflection on his own life. Born in the coal mining area called Witbank, he was raised by his grandmother who made her livelihood from a shebeen (an illegal bar) for mineworkers. The legacy lives on Up until the 1970s, when Masekela composed "Stimela" while he was in exile, South African mineworkers typically spent only a few years on the mines, saving up money or buying cattle to return to their lands. But the 1970s was the time of great change in South Africa’s mining industry. In 1974, 72 Malawian mineworkers were killed in an airplane crash. A year later, Mozambique became independent. Both Mozambique and Malawi were major suppliers of migrant workers to South African mines and these events put the steady flow of labour at risk. In the case of Mozambique, the apartheid state was able to strike a deal with the new Mozambican government for the continued supply of labour. But Malawi withdrew permission for the recruitment of workers from their country. The result was a shift to recruiting more South African workers and the emergence of career mine workers with much longer contracts. This change in the mining labour market eventually led to the founding of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) in 1982. The successful organisation of workers who were at the heart of South Africa’s economy was one of the most important pillars of resistance against apartheid. Sadly, the mining industry's contested legacy and its migrant labour system remain challenges in the post-apartheid period. This is evident in a number of ways. The massacre of mineworkers at Marikana in 2012 was a stark reminder of the acute vulnerability and exploitation of workers. On top of this is the inability of the mining companies and the state to provide many mine workers – now often employed through subcontractors – with decent housing and services. And finally, the issue of land dispossession still haunts the country and remains unresolved. Steam trains no longer crisscross southern Africa. Yet "Stimela" remains as much a song about the present and future aspirations, as it does of the past. *Andries Bezuidenhout, Professor of Development Studies, University of Fort Hare (This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL

Opinion: The best anthem for Labour Day

<p>Environment ministers from about 100 countries gather in Nairobi next week to issue a clarion call against air, land and water pollution blamed for some nine million deaths in 2015.</p>

<p>Ministers under the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) will finalise a global declaration vowing to combat &quot;rampant pollution&quot; as a growing threat to human life, economies and ecosystems.</p>

<p>Seven million of those deaths are caused by car exhaust, factory fumes and indoor cooking, according to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), which hosts the assembly.</p>

<p>Water pollution is the second deadliest type, followed by exposure to toxins and carcinogens in the workplace.</p>

<p>Last month, UNEP said approximately one in six deaths in 2015 were due to pollution, mainly in poor and developing countries.</p>

<p>Almost half of the nine-million death toll came from just two countries - rapidly-industrialising India and China.</p>

<p>The December 4-6 meeting will be the third UNEA, created by world leaders in 2012 to strengthen world efforts to save the environment.</p>

<p>The assembly is the highest-level decision-making forum on environmental issues. All 193 UN states are members.</p>

<p>Nearly 2,500 participants have registered for this year&#39;s gathering, including a host of company CEOs, the heads of other UN agencies, scientists and activists.</p>

<p>The ministers will negotiate the wording for a number of resolutions on specific anti-pollution steps, such as limiting the amount of fish-choking plastic that finds its way into the ocean, and banning the use of toxic lead in paint.</p>

<p>&quot;Our oceans are filling with trash so fast that by 2050 there will be more plastic in the seas than fish,&quot; according to a UNEP statement.</p>

<p>&quot;A global ban on lead in paint is one of several resolutions under discussion at UNEA and, if agreed by ministers, will be a key step in removing an environmental hazard that harms the mental development of 600,000 children every year,&quot; it added.</p>

<p>Other resolutions, still in the draft phase, will aim for stricter air quality control in cities, and to reduce environmental degradation caused by armed conflict.</p>

<p>Pollution, according to the UNEP, is &quot;the biggest human killer bar none.&quot;</p>

<p>&quot;We need to beat pollution before it beats us,&quot; said UNEP head Erik Solheim.</p>

<p>&quot;That means being able to breathe in our cities, keeping dangerous chemicals out of the food chain, and stopping our oceans from being transformed into a plastic soup.&quot;</p>

<p>The assembly must yield a political declaration by Wednesday, entitled &quot;Towards a Pollution-Free Planet&quot;.</p>

<p>It will commit UN member countries to limiting humankind&#39;s soiling of the planet with chemicals, non-biodegradable litter and toxic smoke.</p>

<p>&quot;Nine million people die prematurely every year because of environmental intoxication - this is clearly a moral scandal,&quot; said Joachim Schellnhuber, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.</p>

<p>Aside from outright poisoning, pollution causes an array of deadly ailments such as heart disease, stroke, lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.</p>


The December 4-6 meeting will be the third UNEA, created by world leaders in 2012 to strengthen world efforts to save the environment

Environment ministers from about 100 countries gather in Nairobi next week to issue a clarion call against air, land and water pollution blamed for some nine million deaths in 2015. Ministers under the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) will finalise a global declaration vowing to combat "rampant pollution" as a growing threat to human life, economies and ecosystems. Seven million of those deaths are caused by car exhaust, factory fumes and indoor cooking, according to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), which hosts the assembly. Water pollution is the second deadliest type, followed by exposure to toxins and carcinogens in the workplace. Last month, UNEP said approximately one in six deaths in 2015 were due to pollution, mainly in poor and developing countries. Almost half of the nine-million death toll came from just two countries - rapidly-industrialising India and China. The December 4-6 meeting will be the third UNEA, created by world leaders in 2012 to strengthen world efforts to save the environment. The assembly is the highest-level decision-making forum on environmental issues. All 193 UN states are members. Nearly 2,500 participants have registered for this year's gathering, including a host of company CEOs, the heads of other UN agencies, scientists and activists. The ministers will negotiate the wording for a number of resolutions on specific anti-pollution steps, such as limiting the amount of fish-choking plastic that finds its way into the ocean, and banning the use of toxic lead in paint. "Our oceans are filling with trash so fast that by 2050 there will be more plastic in the seas than fish," according to a UNEP statement. "A global ban on lead in paint is one of several resolutions under discussion at UNEA and, if agreed by ministers, will be a key step in removing an environmental hazard that harms the mental development of 600,000 children every year," it added. Other resolutions, still in the draft phase, will aim for stricter air quality control in cities, and to reduce environmental degradation caused by armed conflict. Pollution, according to the UNEP, is "the biggest human killer bar none." "We need to beat pollution before it beats us," said UNEP head Erik Solheim. "That means being able to breathe in our cities, keeping dangerous chemicals out of the food chain, and stopping our oceans from being transformed into a plastic soup." The assembly must yield a political declaration by Wednesday, entitled "Towards a Pollution-Free Planet". It will commit UN member countries to limiting humankind's soiling of the planet with chemicals, non-biodegradable litter and toxic smoke. "Nine million people die prematurely every year because of environmental intoxication - this is clearly a moral scandal," said Joachim Schellnhuber, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. Aside from outright poisoning, pollution causes an array of deadly ailments such as heart disease, stroke, lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

UN makes global bid to end 'rampant' pollution

<p><em>&ldquo;Education is the manifestation of perfection already in a man.&rdquo;</em>&nbsp;-Swami Vivekananda</p>

<p>In a world of inequity, education often acts as a means for the less privileged to self-actualise. In an ideal world, all should have access to at least a basic level of education. However, this is far from the reality. Poverty, war, discrimination and many barriers prevent millions from having a good quality of education.</p>

<p>In India, the Right to Education Act (RTE), is a Parliamentary Act enacted on August 4, 2009. The Act mandates free and compulsory education for Indian children between ages 6 and 14 under Article 21a of the Indian Constitution. However, many Indians entitled to this free education are currently not enrolled in school. Many of these children are located in rural communities throughout the country.</p>

<p>Deep in the hinterlands of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, there exists a tribe known as the Korku tribe. Traditionally, the Korku are an agrarian people who have sustained themselves through subsistence farming. However, with the growing industrialisation of the country and the encroachment onto traditional Korku lands by other factions of society, it is becoming difficult for Korkus to sustain their traditional way of life. Currently, many Korku&rsquo;s are facing a large problem with famine.</p>

<p>Adherence to traditional agrarian values drives many Korkus to place a lower value on education as compared to agriculture labour. Therefore, many Korku parents push their children to agrarian labour rather than formal schooling. Consequently, many Korku children are deprived of an education, and many Korku community leaders lack formal education.</p>

<p>Only 43.3 per cent of Madhya Pradesh&rsquo;s Korku children aged 5-14 are enrolled in school. Although all of these students by law are entitled to free education by government mandated public schools, many students are unable to attend school due to being so far behind educational benchmarks for their age. Under Indian law, children not in schools are classified as either &ldquo;out of school children&rdquo;, &ldquo;school drop-outs&rdquo;, or &ldquo;children with no schooling at all&rdquo;. An &ldquo;out of school child&rdquo; is a child aged 7 to 14 who has stopped going to school or irregular in school for 3 to 6 months. Beyond 6 months out of school, a child is considered to have &ldquo;dropped out of school&rdquo;. Consequently, many students need remediation in order to re-enter government and private schools.</p>

<p>In 2016, the Turn Your Concern into Action (TYCIA) foundation initiated a program known as the Asha Kiran program. The Asha Kiran project aims to remediate all three categories of children out of school back into school. The goal of the program is to re-introduce thousands of children, comprised mainly of Korku children, back into the school system. The program has a particular interest in helping children who are encompassed in the following socially disadvantaged groups: Children of inmates, children in conflict with the law, runaway children, children of sex workers, children of migrant workers, victims of child labour malpractices, HIV positive children, children of HIV positive parents, orphans, and other children in need of special care and protection.</p>

<p>In implementing the project, TYCIA has aimed to first identify children aged 7 to 14 in need of service. Second, enrol these children into remediation centres. Third, provide innovative and non-traditional educational tools to children to help them reenter school. Fourth, encourage parents to enter children into formal schooling system. Fifth, mobilise the community to become stakeholders in the Right to Education, or what is formally known as the &ldquo;Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009&rdquo;. Sixth, evaluate the learning ability of the students and remediate students to formal school standards. Seventh, reintroduce students back into government schools. Once children are in government schools, TYCIA evaluates the performance of the students for the first 3 to 6 months of schooling.</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/18622323_1546344358718464_6209671980753414980_n-20171128064215.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
<p>School-aged Korku children in the Asha Kiran program. (Others)</p>
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<p>In its first year of implementation, 2016-2017, the Asha Kiran project worked with approximately 1000 students to bring them to government school readiness. Due to funding constraints, the program was only structured for a one year period. However, the intention was to continue the program beyond one year as funding became available. Although the first year of the school met success with some students, there were structural adjustments that needed to be made to improve implementation.</p>

<p>Primarily, there were problems in providing full remediation to students who missed consecutive years of school. For many students, one year was not enough time to bring children to government school readiness. Consequently, there was a need to extend the amount of time that these particular children studied. As there was only one year of funding, there could be no guaranteed method of ensuring that these children received their necessary funding. Consequently, TYCIA is now restructuring the program to a multi-year format.</p>

<p>In the restructuring of the program, TYCIA is working with all new schools and villages in Madhya Pradesh. However, TYCIA wants to give continued aid for the students of the 2016 cohort. Therefore, TYCIA is now trying to both provide resources for the new program as well as resources to the students of last year&rsquo;s program.</p>

<p>In the Asha Kiran program, I am helping TYCIA in both strategising for the structure of this year&rsquo;s program and helping with reaching out to different donors. As TYCIA is restructuring program, I am helping with refining the details of program implementation. Also, TYCIA recently reached out to a donor in Spain requesting funding for the specific program. I took the lead in creating a concept note proposal detailing our need for this specific donor. The note detailed past accomplishments, current needs, current flaws, and future objectives. We are still waiting on a formal response from the note, but the prospects are looking good.</p>

<p>The work done by TYCIA helps hundreds of Korku children in Madhya Pradesh. As the Asha Kiran project moves forward in its development, I look forward to seeing the impact it will have on impoverished children in Madhya Pradesh. As my time as an AIF Clinton Fellow continues, I want to know the benefactors of the Asha Kiran project more intimately, and hopefully, have a positive impact on their lives.</p>

<p>This <a href="http://aif.org/bridging-the-rural-education-gap/" rel="nofollow" target="blank">article</a> was originally published on 27/11/2017 on <a href="http://aif.org/" rel="nofollow" target="blank">American India Foundation</a>.</p>

<p><em>(Disclaimer: The author writes here in a personal capacity).</em></p>


With the growing industrialisation of the country and the encroachment onto traditional Korku lands by other factions of society, it is becoming difficult for Korkus to sustain their traditional way of life

“Education is the manifestation of perfection already in a man.” -Swami Vivekananda In a world of inequity, education often acts as a means for the less privileged to self-actualise. In an ideal world, all should have access to at least a basic level of education. However, this is far from the reality. Poverty, war, discrimination and many barriers prevent millions from having a good quality of education. In India, the Right to Education Act (RTE), is a Parliamentary Act enacted on August 4, 2009. The Act mandates free and compulsory education for Indian children between ages 6 and 14 under Article 21a of the Indian Constitution. However, many Indians entitled to this free education are currently not enrolled in school. Many of these children are located in rural communities throughout the country. Deep in the hinterlands of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, there exists a tribe known as the Korku tribe. Traditionally, the Korku are an agrarian people who have sustained themselves through subsistence farming. However, with the growing industrialisation of the country and the encroachment onto traditional Korku lands by other factions of society, it is becoming difficult for Korkus to sustain their traditional way of life. Currently, many Korku’s are facing a large problem with famine. Adherence to traditional agrarian values drives many Korkus to place a lower value on education as compared to agriculture labour. Therefore, many Korku parents push their children to agrarian labour rather than formal schooling. Consequently, many Korku children are deprived of an education, and many Korku community leaders lack formal education. Only 43.3 per cent of Madhya Pradesh’s Korku children aged 5-14 are enrolled in school. Although all of these students by law are entitled to free education by government mandated public schools, many students are unable to attend school due to being so far behind educational benchmarks for their age. Under Indian law, children not in schools are classified as either “out of school children”, “school drop-outs”, or “children with no schooling at all”. An “out of school child” is a child aged 7 to 14 who has stopped going to school or irregular in school for 3 to 6 months. Beyond 6 months out of school, a child is considered to have “dropped out of school”. Consequently, many students need remediation in order to re-enter government and private schools. In 2016, the Turn Your Concern into Action (TYCIA) foundation initiated a program known as the Asha Kiran program. The Asha Kiran project aims to remediate all three categories of children out of school back into school. The goal of the program is to re-introduce thousands of children, comprised mainly of Korku children, back into the school system. The program has a particular interest in helping children who are encompassed in the following socially disadvantaged groups: Children of inmates, children in conflict with the law, runaway children, children of sex workers, children of migrant workers, victims of child labour malpractices, HIV positive children, children of HIV positive parents, orphans, and other children in need of special care and protection. In implementing the project, TYCIA has aimed to first identify children aged 7 to 14 in need of service. Second, enrol these children into remediation centres. Third, provide innovative and non-traditional educational tools to children to help them reenter school. Fourth, encourage parents to enter children into formal schooling system. Fifth, mobilise the community to become stakeholders in the Right to Education, or what is formally known as the “Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009”. Sixth, evaluate the learning ability of the students and remediate students to formal school standards. Seventh, reintroduce students back into government schools. Once children are in government schools, TYCIA evaluates the performance of the students for the first 3 to 6 months of schooling. School-aged Korku children in the Asha Kiran program. (Others) × In its first year of implementation, 2016-2017, the Asha Kiran project worked with approximately 1000 students to bring them to government school readiness. Due to funding constraints, the program was only structured for a one year period. However, the intention was to continue the program beyond one year as funding became available. Although the first year of the school met success with some students, there were structural adjustments that needed to be made to improve implementation. Primarily, there were problems in providing full remediation to students who missed consecutive years of school. For many students, one year was not enough time to bring children to government school readiness. Consequently, there was a need to extend the amount of time that these particular children studied. As there was only one year of funding, there could be no guaranteed method of ensuring that these children received their necessary funding. Consequently, TYCIA is now restructuring the program to a multi-year format. In the restructuring of the program, TYCIA is working with all new schools and villages in Madhya Pradesh. However, TYCIA wants to give continued aid for the students of the 2016 cohort. Therefore, TYCIA is now trying to both provide resources for the new program as well as resources to the students of last year’s program. In the Asha Kiran program, I am helping TYCIA in both strategising for the structure of this year’s program and helping with reaching out to different donors. As TYCIA is restructuring program, I am helping with refining the details of program implementation. Also, TYCIA recently reached out to a donor in Spain requesting funding for the specific program. I took the lead in creating a concept note proposal detailing our need for this specific donor. The note detailed past accomplishments, current needs, current flaws, and future objectives. We are still waiting on a formal response from the note, but the prospects are looking good. The work done by TYCIA helps hundreds of Korku children in Madhya Pradesh. As the Asha Kiran project moves forward in its development, I look forward to seeing the impact it will have on impoverished children in Madhya Pradesh. As my time as an AIF Clinton Fellow continues, I want to know the benefactors of the Asha Kiran project more intimately, and hopefully, have a positive impact on their lives. This article was originally published on 27/11/2017 on American India Foundation. (Disclaimer: The author writes here in a personal capacity).

Opinion: Poverty, famine and a tribe's quest for better life

<p>A few weeks back the prime minister <a href="http://www.firstpost.com/politics/narendra-modi-says-people-in-karnataka-do-not-want-to-wait-for-poll-says-they-are-anxious-to-join-race-for-development-4182893.html" rel="nofollow" target="blank">stirred up controversy</a> in Karnataka by observing that the people of the state were &ldquo;anxious to join the race for development.&rdquo; With elections imminent in Gujarat and round the corner in Karnataka, the implication is of course obvious. The prime minister&rsquo;s economic appeal rest to a large extent on his claim to have achieved above average outcomes in his native state.</p>

<p>Much has been written both in favour of and against the &ldquo;Gujarat model.&rdquo; Many observers have criticised it, focusing on the state&rsquo;s less than convincing record on social protection, welfare outcomes, and of course, ensuring rights of Muslims and other minorities.</p>

<p>In a <a href="https://scroll.in/article/855027/gujarat-model-the-gleam-of-states-high-growth-numbers-hides-dark-reality-of-poverty-inequality" rel="nofollow" target="blank">recent article</a> well-known economist, Maitreesh Ghatak evaluated Gujarat&rsquo;s performance on various economic indicators and found it to be middling to the&nbsp;poor performer on many. Others have pointed out that the state has historically been advanced both industrially and commercially with cities such as Surat and Ahmedabad topping the list. So it is not clear what Modi&rsquo;s contribution has been to its relative success vis-a-vis other states.</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="row">
<div class="article-blockquote">
<div class="col-sm-10 col-sm-offset-1 blockquote-content quoteshare">
<blockquote>
<h5>Gujarat should be taken to be a role model, particularly for southern states that have managed to post high rates of growth while being more socially inclusive than many northern states.</h5>
</blockquote>
</div>

<div class="col-sm-1 blockquote-content">
<div class="share-blockquote"><a class="twitter popup" href="http://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Gujarat should be taken to be a role model, particularly for southern states that have managed to post high rates of growth while being more socially inclusive than many northern states." target="_blank"><i class="fa fa-share">&nbsp;</i></a></div>
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqquoteclosemark">&times;</a></div>
</div>
</div>

<p>In any case, development is a multifaceted process and it is always possible to pick indicators that make the point we wish to make. In the new &ldquo;competitive federal&rdquo; framework, wherein development is a &ldquo;race&rdquo; and states are encouraged to market themselves to foreign and domestic investors, this practice has become even more prevalent.</p>

<p>Modi and his supporters are very good at this game. And as befits a race, this year&rsquo;s Economic Survey documented that in the post-reform period there have been <a href="http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/in-india-diverging-incomes-despite-equalising-forces/article17336738.ece" rel="nofollow" target="blank">strong divergences across Indian states</a>. There is a clear sense in which globalisation has been pulling us apart rather than bringing us together. It has been the opposite in China.</p>

<p>So while Gujarat does perform better than many other states as well as better than the national average on some indicators, it is not clear that it should be taken to be a role model, particularly for southern states that have managed to post high rates of growth while being more socially inclusive than many northern states. In some ways, the incidental pre-poll comparison with Karnataka is instructive to evaluate further since both states are comparable in terms of population and basic health and education outcomes, as well as State Gross Domestic Product (SDP).</p>

<p>As per the latest available data from the Economic Survey, Gujarat has a state domestic product just about 6 per cent higher than Karnataka. The states are tied in terms of life expectancy (69 years) but Karnataka fares much better on infant mortality statistics (28 versus 33). While recent data are not available on poverty, as of 2011 Gujarat substantially outperformed Karnataka on this score (16.6 per cent versus 20.9 per cent).</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="row">
<div class="article-blockquote">
<div class="col-sm-10 col-sm-offset-1 blockquote-content quoteshare">
<blockquote>
<h5>Poverty in Gujarat is also substantially less than the national average of 21.9 per cent. In contrast, Gujarat fares much worse in terms of the sex ratio</h5>
</blockquote>
</div>

<div class="col-sm-1 blockquote-content">
<div class="share-blockquote"><a class="twitter popup" href="http://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Poverty in Gujarat is also substantially less than the national average of 21.9 per cent. In contrast, Gujarat fares much worse in terms of the sex ratio " target="_blank"><i class="fa fa-share">&nbsp;</i></a></div>
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqquoteclosemark">&times;</a></div>
</div>
</div>

<p>Poverty in Gujarat is also substantially less than the national average of 21.9 per cent. In contrast, Gujarat fares much worse in terms of the sex ratio (919:1000 as opposed to Karnataka&rsquo;s 973) and worse even than India as a whole (943:1000). Another indicator of the low status of women in the state is the female labour force participation rate (LFPR), or the percentage of women, 15 years and older, who participate in paid work.</p>

<p>To Karnataka&rsquo;s 32.7 per cent and the national average of 23.7 per cent, Gujarat has a female LFPR of a mere 19.2 per cent, one of the lowest in the country. If a high level of women&rsquo;s participation in paid market work is taken to be a sign of a mature economy, then Gujarat has much scope for improvement and is in no position to lecture Karnataka.</p>

<p>All in all the Gujarat experience is very much a mixed bag. But the most important way in which it is not that different from Karnataka or indeed the rest of the country is in the extent of what economists call &ldquo;structural transformation&rdquo;, or a shift in value-added as well as the workforce from agriculture to manufacturing and services.</p>

<p>Here, conforming to their respective images as industry- and service-led economies respectively, a substantially higher proportion of Gujarat&rsquo;s state domestic product is account for by industry (40 per cent) compared to Karnataka (25 per cent) and reverse is true for services (Karnataka - 56 per cent, Gujarat - 34 per cent).</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="row">
<div class="article-blockquote">
<div class="col-sm-10 col-sm-offset-1 blockquote-content quoteshare">
<blockquote>
<h5>The Labour Bureau data reveal that the high level of industrialisation in the state has not really benefited the majority of the workforce.</h5>
</blockquote>
</div>

<div class="col-sm-1 blockquote-content">
<div class="share-blockquote"><a class="twitter popup" href="http://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=The Labour Bureau data reveal that the high level of industrialisation in the state has not really benefited the majority of the workforce." target="_blank"><i class="fa fa-share">&nbsp;</i></a></div>
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqquoteclosemark">&times;</a></div>
</div>
</div>

<p>However, and this is the key, these numbers do not match up with what is happening to the workers in either state. In both states, nearly half of the workforce is still in agriculture, indicating that development has not delivered the desired outcome in either place and indeed in India as a whole. One might say that it is unfair to expect Gujarat to buck what is clearly a national trend. But then again the Gujarat model rhetoric is one of Gujarati exceptionalism.</p>

<p>The Labour Bureau data reveal that the high level of industrialisation in the state has not really benefited the majority of the workforce. 55 per cent of the workforce is still self-employed and a mere 16 per cent earns a regular wage or salary. Nearly, 78 per cent of households reported not a single regular wage or salary earner (compared to 75 per cent for Karnataka and 77 per cent for India).</p>

<p>Even in urban areas of Gujarat 64 per cent of households do not have a regular wage or salary earner (compared to 59&nbsp; for Karnataka and 62.1 per cent for India). One response to this might be that Gujarat is known for its entrepreneurial culture and so an absence of salary earners is not a big concern. Unfortunately, 57 per cent of households still earn&nbsp;INR 10,000 or less per month either through self-employment or wage income. This is similar to Karnataka (59 per cent).</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="row">
<div class="article-blockquote">
<div class="col-sm-10 col-sm-offset-1 blockquote-content quoteshare">
<blockquote>
<h5>One indicator of development on which Gujarat does outperform both Karnataka and India as whole is the percentage of jobs that come with a written contract.</h5>
</blockquote>
</div>

<div class="col-sm-1 blockquote-content">
<div class="share-blockquote"><a class="twitter popup" href="http://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=One indicator of development on which Gujarat does outperform both Karnataka and India as whole is the percentage of jobs that come with a written contract." target="_blank"><i class="fa fa-share">&nbsp;</i></a></div>
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqquoteclosemark">&times;</a></div>
</div>
</div>

<p>Even in terms of jobs that provide benefits like pension, healthcare etc., Gujarat is not very different from the national average and if anything a little below it (47 per cent as opposed to 50 per cent). Though on this score it vastly outperforms Karnataka (28 per cent). One indicator of development on which Gujarat does outperform both Karnataka and India as a whole is the percentage of jobs that come with a written contract, 30 per cent as opposed to 20 per cent.</p>

<p>In summary, Gujarat enjoys a status as a relatively well-off, industrial state and has been so for decades. But so are many other states, including Karnataka. And where it really matters, pulling workers out of low productivity occupations into higher productivity ones and raising their incomes substantially, Gujarat fails as do most other states.</p>

<p>Disclaimer:&nbsp;<i>The author writes here in a personal capacity.&nbsp;</i></p>


Gujarat is a relatively well-off, industrial state but suffers from poor sex ratio and a low participation of women in the paid workforce.

A few weeks back the prime minister stirred up controversy in Karnataka by observing that the people of the state were “anxious to join the race for development.” With elections imminent in Gujarat and round the corner in Karnataka, the implication is of course obvious. The prime minister’s economic appeal rest to a large extent on his claim to have achieved above average outcomes in his native state. Much has been written both in favour of and against the “Gujarat model.” Many observers have criticised it, focusing on the state’s less than convincing record on social protection, welfare outcomes, and of course, ensuring rights of Muslims and other minorities. In a recent article well-known economist, Maitreesh Ghatak evaluated Gujarat’s performance on various economic indicators and found it to be middling to the poor performer on many. Others have pointed out that the state has historically been advanced both industrially and commercially with cities such as Surat and Ahmedabad topping the list. So it is not clear what Modi’s contribution has been to its relative success vis-a-vis other states. Gujarat should be taken to be a role model, particularly for southern states that have managed to post high rates of growth while being more socially inclusive than many northern states. × In any case, development is a multifaceted process and it is always possible to pick indicators that make the point we wish to make. In the new “competitive federal” framework, wherein development is a “race” and states are encouraged to market themselves to foreign and domestic investors, this practice has become even more prevalent. Modi and his supporters are very good at this game. And as befits a race, this year’s Economic Survey documented that in the post-reform period there have been strong divergences across Indian states. There is a clear sense in which globalisation has been pulling us apart rather than bringing us together. It has been the opposite in China. So while Gujarat does perform better than many other states as well as better than the national average on some indicators, it is not clear that it should be taken to be a role model, particularly for southern states that have managed to post high rates of growth while being more socially inclusive than many northern states. In some ways, the incidental pre-poll comparison with Karnataka is instructive to evaluate further since both states are comparable in terms of population and basic health and education outcomes, as well as State Gross Domestic Product (SDP). As per the latest available data from the Economic Survey, Gujarat has a state domestic product just about 6 per cent higher than Karnataka. The states are tied in terms of life expectancy (69 years) but Karnataka fares much better on infant mortality statistics (28 versus 33). While recent data are not available on poverty, as of 2011 Gujarat substantially outperformed Karnataka on this score (16.6 per cent versus 20.9 per cent). Poverty in Gujarat is also substantially less than the national average of 21.9 per cent. In contrast, Gujarat fares much worse in terms of the sex ratio × Poverty in Gujarat is also substantially less than the national average of 21.9 per cent. In contrast, Gujarat fares much worse in terms of the sex ratio (919:1000 as opposed to Karnataka’s 973) and worse even than India as a whole (943:1000). Another indicator of the low status of women in the state is the female labour force participation rate (LFPR), or the percentage of women, 15 years and older, who participate in paid work. To Karnataka’s 32.7 per cent and the national average of 23.7 per cent, Gujarat has a female LFPR of a mere 19.2 per cent, one of the lowest in the country. If a high level of women’s participation in paid market work is taken to be a sign of a mature economy, then Gujarat has much scope for improvement and is in no position to lecture Karnataka. All in all the Gujarat experience is very much a mixed bag. But the most important way in which it is not that different from Karnataka or indeed the rest of the country is in the extent of what economists call “structural transformation”, or a shift in value-added as well as the workforce from agriculture to manufacturing and services. Here, conforming to their respective images as industry- and service-led economies respectively, a substantially higher proportion of Gujarat’s state domestic product is account for by industry (40 per cent) compared to Karnataka (25 per cent) and reverse is true for services (Karnataka - 56 per cent, Gujarat - 34 per cent). The Labour Bureau data reveal that the high level of industrialisation in the state has not really benefited the majority of the workforce. × However, and this is the key, these numbers do not match up with what is happening to the workers in either state. In both states, nearly half of the workforce is still in agriculture, indicating that development has not delivered the desired outcome in either place and indeed in India as a whole. One might say that it is unfair to expect Gujarat to buck what is clearly a national trend. But then again the Gujarat model rhetoric is one of Gujarati exceptionalism. The Labour Bureau data reveal that the high level of industrialisation in the state has not really benefited the majority of the workforce. 55 per cent of the workforce is still self-employed and a mere 16 per cent earns a regular wage or salary. Nearly, 78 per cent of households reported not a single regular wage or salary earner (compared to 75 per cent for Karnataka and 77 per cent for India). Even in urban areas of Gujarat 64 per cent of households do not have a regular wage or salary earner (compared to 59 for Karnataka and 62.1 per cent for India). One response to this might be that Gujarat is known for its entrepreneurial culture and so an absence of salary earners is not a big concern. Unfortunately, 57 per cent of households still earn INR 10,000 or less per month either through self-employment or wage income. This is similar to Karnataka (59 per cent). One indicator of development on which Gujarat does outperform both Karnataka and India as whole is the percentage of jobs that come with a written contract. × Even in terms of jobs that provide benefits like pension, healthcare etc., Gujarat is not very different from the national average and if anything a little below it (47 per cent as opposed to 50 per cent). Though on this score it vastly outperforms Karnataka (28 per cent). One indicator of development on which Gujarat does outperform both Karnataka and India as a whole is the percentage of jobs that come with a written contract, 30 per cent as opposed to 20 per cent. In summary, Gujarat enjoys a status as a relatively well-off, industrial state and has been so for decades. But so are many other states, including Karnataka. And where it really matters, pulling workers out of low productivity occupations into higher productivity ones and raising their incomes substantially, Gujarat fails as do most other states. Disclaimer: The author writes here in a personal capacity.

Opinion: Deconstructing development in Gujarat

industrialisation

Industrialisation, News on Industrialisation, stories on Industrialisation, articles on Industrialisation, Industrialisation stories at Wion, Industrialisation news, Industrialisation latest news