Jaipur, Wednesday 6 February 2013
If I had a little money... it's a rich man's world. Any ABBA fans will recognise those lyrics, perhaps. They spring to mind for me here, in Jaipur.
Last night, I was talking to Nitesh, who runs the charity I'm volunteering for, about aid and development in India. We were talking about how difficult it is for charities involved in international development to fundraise abroad. In the UK, the Government recently decided to cut development aid to India, amidst a clamour driven by the right wing. 'Why are we sending money to India, when they've a space programme?' was the cry. 'Surely if India can afford to send people into space - which the UK doesn't do - then they can afford to support their people who live in poverty.'
It all sounds very logical, but the reality on the ground is very different, of course. I'm not sure to what extent the middle and upper classes contribute to alleviating the very visible and extreme poverty around them, but the conclusion I draw from the fact that you can see so many people living in slum conditions is that they don't help enough. Yes, it's true that the Indian government could choose to sort out its domestic issues rather than messing about with a space programme. But will the UK cutting aid to India mean the Indian government will instead divert more of its own money to alleviating poverty? Some chance.
As usual, the people who lose out will be those with the least voice, the poorest people. Here in India, the UK's aid would have been supporting grassroots charities in their work. They'll simply see that money stop and have to scale back the work they do to help the poorest people here.
The charity I'm with here, Shrestha, isn't one of the charities who benefitted from aid from the UK. They have a hard time fundraising. There are just so many small organisations like theirs, working with children living in slums, that they struggle to make people aware they exist. They don't have the marketing might of the larger charities.
Nitesh founded this charity by going into the slum area near here and starting to talk to the people there. He said it took a long time to gain people's trust and convince parents that educating their children would benefit the whole family in the long term. Parents instead would involve their children in helping to make money, understandably. Educating them might mean bringing in a few less rupees today, but it opens up better job opportunities later, which in turn leaves the family in a better position in future years.
Nitesh took me for a walk through the slum and showed me the houses where some of the children I've taught at the school live. There are different types of houses in the slum village - some are made from stone, some from wood, and these seem a bit more solid and permanent. Then there are the ones that seem barely more than plastic sheets pulled over some wooden poles to create shelter. They manage to get some electricity by hooking in to the electricity lines nearby and 'filtering' off a bit! I saw a few houses with TV sets and even a couple of satellite dishes. There are clearly different levels of poverty even within the slum. You can also see this in the condition of the kids at the school, with some better dressed and cleaner than others.
This particular slum has been there for around ten years, and so most of the kids at the school have spent their whole lives there.
In the monsoon season here, around June, it rains every day for about six weeks, despite being a deserty area. Nitesh said that is a difficult time for the kids, because this prolonged rain soaks everything. Sleeping in damp bedding and wearing damp clothes, they generally fall ill. And it's not as though they can afford to buy any medicines.
The wide pathways (you couldn't call them streets) that wind around the slum are sandy mud, covered with litter, with animals wandering around. You pass the odd small shack shop, and water pump. There are kids running around. They all know Nitesh, as do the adults we pass.
We chat to one man, and Nitesh tells me later that he had arranged for a charity eye clinic to come to the slum and treat people - and this man had had treatment (a new lens in one eye). He now needs the other eye done, and Nitesh said the man was seen at the local hospital, where he found out the cost of the treatment he'd had from the roving eye clinic. Nitesh said when the man understood just how expensive it had been, he thanked Nitesh with tears in his eyes for bringing the clinic. He's now waiting for the next time the clinic comes, in order to have the other eye done.
As we walk along, Nitesh tells me about some of the other problems the kids face... poor hygiene (lack of basic soap and toothpaste), poor nutrition (he tells me about one girl at the school who had nothing but chapatis (flat bread) for three days). At one point, a school in Spain had fundraised enough money to pay for a meal for the kids each day for a month. If the charity could raise enough money, they could feed the kids once a day every day - but for now that's an aspiration.
Speaking of aspirations, the charity has a wishlist.
1-Clothes (winter and summer) for 30 to 35 kids aged from 4 to 17
A winter pullover is about 350 rupees (about 4 UK pounds) 35*350=12,250 rupees
A summer t-shirt and jeans for boys and frock for girls is about 300 rupees 35*300 = 10,500 rupees.
2-School bags-40 bags, with each one costing around 250 rupees so 40*250 =10,000 rupees
3-Soap for washing their hands (40 bars for one month, so 40*30 = 1200 rupees for one month
4-Toothbrush (40 for three month) 40*25 = 1000 rupees for three months
5-Toothpaste (40 for three month) 40*65 = 2600 rupees for three months
6-Educational games (1000 rupees a quarter
7-Educational books, notebooks, pencils, sharpeners, erasers, books to teach the children moral values =15000 rupees for one year.
8-Tables for the students to work at (14 desks between 35 students) 900*14 = 12600 rupees
9-Two wardrobes for storage: 8000*2 = 16000 rupees
10-Medical supplies for the school's first-aid kit = 3500 rupees a quarter
11-A television = 20,500 rupees
12-Emergency lighting (power cuts are common) -1500*2 lights = 3000 rupees
13-School rent 4400 rupees for one month (at the moment, it's paid by another organisation, but they're not sure whether this will continue beyond the summer)
14-Two computer tables 4500*2 = 9000 rupees
It must be extremely frustrating for Nitesh not to be able to provide these basics for the children. As well as seeking funding from other organisations, he also sells some silver jewellery which he buys, and some handicrafts made by people who live within the slum.
Then there's sponsorship - the charity has found sponsors for seven children currently. For about 160 British pounds a year (about 13 pounds a month), Nitesh can send a child to a local private school, buy them a uniform, bag, books, etc. For the majority, who don't have sponsors, their only option is to come to Nitesh's school. Although the local government school is free, you have to have a uniform to go there, which means it's impossible for most of the slum children. On top of this, some of the children who did go to the government school hadn't a good experience there and their parents took them out of it.
So, that's life for Shrestha, the charity. Here's their website for more information:
About Shrestha
If I had a little money... it's a rich man's world. Any ABBA fans will recognise those lyrics, perhaps. They spring to mind for me here, in Jaipur.
Last night, I was talking to Nitesh, who runs the charity I'm volunteering for, about aid and development in India. We were talking about how difficult it is for charities involved in international development to fundraise abroad. In the UK, the Government recently decided to cut development aid to India, amidst a clamour driven by the right wing. 'Why are we sending money to India, when they've a space programme?' was the cry. 'Surely if India can afford to send people into space - which the UK doesn't do - then they can afford to support their people who live in poverty.'
It all sounds very logical, but the reality on the ground is very different, of course. I'm not sure to what extent the middle and upper classes contribute to alleviating the very visible and extreme poverty around them, but the conclusion I draw from the fact that you can see so many people living in slum conditions is that they don't help enough. Yes, it's true that the Indian government could choose to sort out its domestic issues rather than messing about with a space programme. But will the UK cutting aid to India mean the Indian government will instead divert more of its own money to alleviating poverty? Some chance.
As usual, the people who lose out will be those with the least voice, the poorest people. Here in India, the UK's aid would have been supporting grassroots charities in their work. They'll simply see that money stop and have to scale back the work they do to help the poorest people here.
 |
| Everyone looking happy about the oranges we brought today for them |
The charity I'm with here, Shrestha, isn't one of the charities who benefitted from aid from the UK. They have a hard time fundraising. There are just so many small organisations like theirs, working with children living in slums, that they struggle to make people aware they exist. They don't have the marketing might of the larger charities.
 |
| Time for games inside the Shrestha school room - this one involves getting under a cloth tent and others try to pull you out from the outside. The last one to stay under the canopy is the winner. A great lark! |
Nitesh took me for a walk through the slum and showed me the houses where some of the children I've taught at the school live. There are different types of houses in the slum village - some are made from stone, some from wood, and these seem a bit more solid and permanent. Then there are the ones that seem barely more than plastic sheets pulled over some wooden poles to create shelter. They manage to get some electricity by hooking in to the electricity lines nearby and 'filtering' off a bit! I saw a few houses with TV sets and even a couple of satellite dishes. There are clearly different levels of poverty even within the slum. You can also see this in the condition of the kids at the school, with some better dressed and cleaner than others.
This particular slum has been there for around ten years, and so most of the kids at the school have spent their whole lives there.
 |
| The kids outside the Shrestha school, with Gabi, the other volunteer |
The wide pathways (you couldn't call them streets) that wind around the slum are sandy mud, covered with litter, with animals wandering around. You pass the odd small shack shop, and water pump. There are kids running around. They all know Nitesh, as do the adults we pass.
We chat to one man, and Nitesh tells me later that he had arranged for a charity eye clinic to come to the slum and treat people - and this man had had treatment (a new lens in one eye). He now needs the other eye done, and Nitesh said the man was seen at the local hospital, where he found out the cost of the treatment he'd had from the roving eye clinic. Nitesh said when the man understood just how expensive it had been, he thanked Nitesh with tears in his eyes for bringing the clinic. He's now waiting for the next time the clinic comes, in order to have the other eye done.
As we walk along, Nitesh tells me about some of the other problems the kids face... poor hygiene (lack of basic soap and toothpaste), poor nutrition (he tells me about one girl at the school who had nothing but chapatis (flat bread) for three days). At one point, a school in Spain had fundraised enough money to pay for a meal for the kids each day for a month. If the charity could raise enough money, they could feed the kids once a day every day - but for now that's an aspiration.
Speaking of aspirations, the charity has a wishlist.
1-Clothes (winter and summer) for 30 to 35 kids aged from 4 to 17
A winter pullover is about 350 rupees (about 4 UK pounds) 35*350=12,250 rupees
A summer t-shirt and jeans for boys and frock for girls is about 300 rupees 35*300 = 10,500 rupees.
2-School bags-40 bags, with each one costing around 250 rupees so 40*250 =10,000 rupees
3-Soap for washing their hands (40 bars for one month, so 40*30 = 1200 rupees for one month
4-Toothbrush (40 for three month) 40*25 = 1000 rupees for three months
5-Toothpaste (40 for three month) 40*65 = 2600 rupees for three months
6-Educational games (1000 rupees a quarter
7-Educational books, notebooks, pencils, sharpeners, erasers, books to teach the children moral values =15000 rupees for one year.
8-Tables for the students to work at (14 desks between 35 students) 900*14 = 12600 rupees
9-Two wardrobes for storage: 8000*2 = 16000 rupees
10-Medical supplies for the school's first-aid kit = 3500 rupees a quarter
11-A television = 20,500 rupees
12-Emergency lighting (power cuts are common) -1500*2 lights = 3000 rupees
13-School rent 4400 rupees for one month (at the moment, it's paid by another organisation, but they're not sure whether this will continue beyond the summer)
14-Two computer tables 4500*2 = 9000 rupees
It must be extremely frustrating for Nitesh not to be able to provide these basics for the children. As well as seeking funding from other organisations, he also sells some silver jewellery which he buys, and some handicrafts made by people who live within the slum.
Then there's sponsorship - the charity has found sponsors for seven children currently. For about 160 British pounds a year (about 13 pounds a month), Nitesh can send a child to a local private school, buy them a uniform, bag, books, etc. For the majority, who don't have sponsors, their only option is to come to Nitesh's school. Although the local government school is free, you have to have a uniform to go there, which means it's impossible for most of the slum children. On top of this, some of the children who did go to the government school hadn't a good experience there and their parents took them out of it.
So, that's life for Shrestha, the charity. Here's their website for more information:
About Shrestha
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