by Anuradha Bakshi | Sep 3, 2007 | girl child
The baby factory that was exposed in another now famous sting operation looked like a horror movie. Young minor girls from poor states brought to Delhi and then made to produce babies that were then sold! The reason for this is two-fold: the abject poverty on one hand and the draconian adoption laws on the other. This makes a heady cocktail for greedy predators always looking for a quick buck.
The fabricated baby was thus sold for a mere 10 000 Rs. The new parents even got a birth certificate with their names as parents making the deal as perfect as possible. Wonder how much the poor natural mother got after every one had taken its pound of flesh. And wonder what becomes of her after she produced one or x babies.
So many questions come to mind when one hears about this terrible tale. But the ones that linger on are those that touch the girl. Motherhood is sacred to every woman, no matter how poor she is and no one has the right to rob or appropriate itself this experience . The nine months one carries a child in one’s womb establish a bond that is almost visceral. The young girl who set out on a journey of hope could not have imagined in her wildest nightmare that this is the price she would be asked to pay for a better life.
The perpetrators of such a crime should be punished in the most draconian way possible but knowing our legal system that will not be so.
by Anuradha Bakshi | Sep 2, 2007 | Uncategorized
I would like to share two small almost negligible incidents that happened yesterday.
While showing the project to a visitor we stopped by our tiny Govindpuri primary centre. The room was so tiny that some of us remained outside where a bunch of young lads sat loitering. One of them wearing a bright red shirt seemed to be their leader. I asked him what he did and the answer was almost thrown my way: I just hand around. I persisted in my queries and this was what transpired. This young boy – about 15 or so – had dropped out of school in class V because according to him there was no teaching as teachers did not bother to teach. He then got a job but left it as the pay was not regular, and now he was looking for another one, just any kind of job would do.
Later in the day I went to the Greater Kailash M block market looking for some hairpins and rubber bands, ware usually sold by enterprising young men on the pavement in front of the shops. I, of course, had forgotten about the recent cleaning drive that had ensured the disappearance of all such stalls that had been there for as long as one remembered, sometimes passing from father to sons one had seen grow. The once bustling market looked strangely devoid of its soul. Refusing to give up I walked along around the market, knowing in my heart that I would find the elusive ware I sought. And then, as I was almost about to give up, I saw one of the familiar faces tucked in a shop doorway with a few trinkets on the ground. I approached him and asked him if he had the things I needed. He smiled and asked me to wait a minute and dashed to his car parked across the street and fished out the things I sought. He told me that all stalls had been cleared but he hoped that things would change soon.
I had once written a post about a young boy selling guide books in front of an exam centre and marvelled at the spirit of enterprise displayed by young Indians. It is sad to see that the new sealing and other suddenly discovered laws are hitting at the livelihood of the poor. Young people like the boy in the red shirt who dropped out of school not because of lack of ability or desire but because of abysmal teaching could easily find employment in the very small shops or road eateries that will be soon closed.
I am one to respect laws. But laws have to be applied from day one and not be circumvented for years by shady means and then resurrected to suit newfound interests. One cannot forget that between the two time has elapsed and realities changed.
by Anuradha Bakshi | Sep 1, 2007 | Uncategorized
The recent imbroglio over the issuing of degrees to students of India’s prime medical school is a tragic reminder of the prevailing state of affairs in this country. The drama recently enacted on the streets and in front of cameras had shades of both Kafka and Marx (Groucho of course)!
To any sane mind the one and only requisite for issuance of a degree would and should be successful completion of examinations. Well that is not quite so in a land named India. here this simple administrative formality becomes a complicated saga of ego clashes and almost childlike behaviour. I will not sign the degree if it has the signature of that person says one protagonist, while another quips: the other person will not sign. All this while students who have toiled hard against many odds wait in mute and horrified silence.
Then one the silence becomes deafening they take to the streets, strike and get the media attention which seems to have become one of the only ways to get things done. But it does not prove adequate as ultimately the Courts have to intervene and rap on the knuckles of all concerned. But the stubborn kids will not relent and the final outcome is a burlesque one: two degrees for one person signed by different people.
This is the sad state of affairs in our land where institutions have been hijacked by politicians and bureaucrats; where the judiciary has to be solicited at the drop of a hat to resolve petty problems; where innocents are held to ransom while over sized ego clash in infantile ways.
