About a month back, few of my juniors at college approached me trotting happily in high heels. The occasion, I was informed was practice for Miss Fresher event at college and I was chosen as the senior of the day who would tell them what kinds of questions were asked at the contest....experienced after watching Miss Universe pageant for years... I asked one of them if genie granted three of her wishes, what would they be???
Having heard the question a zillion times, she answered, with a wide grin on her face...I would ask him to end corruption...I would ask him to remove poverty...and then she sheepishly that’s it didi, I can’t of anything else that sounds nice enough....
With a wry smile on my face, I told her to think over her answers...which she thought was one of my methods to put in heavy philosophy...she sweetly excused me a good bye trotting away peacefully in her expensive 4 inch heels...leaving a large room of thought for me...
What is poverty??? Who decides that every poor person is sad, filthy and cursing every moment of his life??? And after all, isn’t the concept of poverty very relative in nature???
I then came across this article....it talks about how India cannot come out of clutches of poverty before 2015...
The article says South Asian nations including India would not be able to eradicate poverty and ensure minimum education for all by 2015, according to a new poverty index released in Delhi.
The Basic Capabilities Index (BCI) 2009 has found that South Asia will get 80 points on the index by 2015, 10 points higher than the present value of 70. India has got 68 points in the index, an increase of a meagre four points since 2004.
Giving further information, about where do other countries stand…the article says, the index also tells about the increasing gap in the living standards of the rich and poor in the world. The highest BCI value is 97 for Iran and the lowest is 44 for Chad in Africa, followed by Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Bangladesh and Nepal. “There is an enormous gap in living conditions between the nations with the highest average BCI (north America) and regions with the worst (Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia),” the report said. Bissio said the index can guide policy makers on the social impact of economic growth and the social progress of nations in comparison to that of others.
Today, about 38 per cent of Indians are poor, says Suresh Tendulkar
Poverty lives in every house where basic amenities are met with great difficulty, a place where people are not necessary filthy but wear the same piece of cloth for years…poverty is not constant….it moves with times…poverty still lives in large parts of India….a serious thought needs to be given for removal of its seeds….
After all nothing is impossible.
Sadly, my junior fumbled in the question answer round as she went blank after listening to the question….she got the best dress award though…
I hope my blog readers would give poverty a thought…a serious one….views awaited
awesome bhanu:-}
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