Category: Inspirations

Civil-Society Seshan: A Tribute to Jagdeep Chhokar

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Mr. TN Seshan’s tenure as Election Commissioner (12 December 1990 to 11 December 1996) changed how we Indians viewed elections—he made free and fair polls a public expectation rather than an exception. The revolution he brought about was to enforce the Rules, provisions and systems that already existed, but no EC before him had acted sufficiently on. The Model Code of Conduct for instance, which political parties routinely flouted, with EC looking in the other direction. He cancelled or postponed elections where the MCC was blatantly violated. He took action to drastically reduce booth capturing, and clean up electoral rolls and reduce bogus voting. He made candidates and parties accountable for their campaign spending and took strong action against black money in elections. He strengthened monitoring of polling stations, and deployed paramilitary forces in sensitive areas. He laid the ground for Voter ID cards. He increased transparency by publishing election schedules and guidelines well in advance.

The man who ‘ate politicians for breakfast’ helped strengthen and deepen Indian democracy.

If Mr. Seshan brought about all these changes through rigorously using his given power as a bureaucrat, Jagdeep Chhokar, did it purely from the outside. He co-founded the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) in 1999 along with his colleague Prof Trilochan Sastry and others as an NGO.

ADR’s primary mission is to improve governance and strengthen democracy by bringing transparency and accountability into India’s political and electoral processes. Over the past two decades, it has become one of the most credible civil society voices on issues of electoral reforms, political funding, and the integrity of candidates and parties.

One can see echoes of Mr. Seshan’s work–one of ADR’s most significant contributions has been its role in disclosure of criminal, financial, and educational background of candidates contesting elections. Following a landmark Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by ADR, the Supreme Court of India in 2002 mandated that all candidates must file self-sworn affidavits disclosing their criminal records, assets, liabilities, and educational qualifications. This judgment fundamentally changed the way Indian voters access information about their representatives. Since then, ADR, through its platform MyNeta.info, has been collecting, analyzing, and disseminating this information for every state and national election, enabling citizens to make more informed choices.

ADR has also been active in examining political party funding and expenditure, a highly opaque area of Indian democracy. By studying income tax returns and donation reports of political parties, it has consistently highlighted the growing role of unaccounted money in politics. ADR’s reports show that a large proportion of party funding comes from unknown sources, often via electoral bonds or cash donations, which raises concerns about transparency. These findings have been widely cited in media, parliamentary debates, and reform discussions.

Beyond data disclosure, ADR has worked to strengthen electoral reforms in collaboration with the Election Commission of India (ECI), civil society organizations, and policy experts. Its advocacy has covered areas such as decriminalization of politics, regulation of inner-party democracy, curbing misuse of money and muscle power, and improving voter awareness.

Another major initiative is citizen empowerment through voter education. ADR conducts voter awareness campaigns, disseminates easy-to-understand report cards on candidates, and organizes debates and dialogues to promote ethical voting. It also collaborates with other organizations on programs like the National Election Watch (NEW), a network that monitors elections and promotes democratic accountability.

ADR has been central in challenging the electoral bond scheme in courts. In February 2024, the Supreme Court of India struck down the electoral bond scheme as unconstitutional, ordering disclosure of donor identities, amounts, etc.

In essence, ADR’s work has created a data-driven framework for citizen engagement, holding both candidates and political parties accountable. While challenges remain in implementing deeper reforms, ADR has significantly advanced transparency in Indian democracy and continues to push for systemic change.

Recent Initiatives of ADR

  • ADR has published updated data (as of July 2025) on how parties redeemed electoral bonds from 2018-24, including comparison with State Bank of India RTI responses. Their analyses show that in FY 2022-23, 82.42% of the income from “unknown sources” declared by national political parties came from electoral bonds.
  1. The report also examines the financial disclosures of Registered Unrecognised Political Parties (those registered with the Election Commission but not recognised as state or national parties).  There was a 223% rise in declared income during FY 2022-23 among these parties.
  2. ADR and its network National Election Watch (NEW) analysed the affidavits of 8,337 out of 8,360 candidates in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections
  3. Among findings:
    • Around 20% of all candidates had declared criminal cases; for state party candidates it was ~47%.
    • 46% of the winning MPs declared criminal cases, up from 43% in 2019.

A Friend

For Mamata and me however, he was Jagdeep, husband of colleague and dear friend Kiran. For me, he was also the colleague of my husband, and neighbour for decades.

What I recall very fondly is how caring of older people Jagdeep and Kiran were. Often when my parents were visiting and they knew I was travelling, they would ensure to drop in and chat, and solve any little problem they might have. The affection was mutual. He was a particular favourite of my mother’s who would rush to make rasam if she heard he had a cold.

Jagdeep did his Law when he was teaching at IIM. And he never did well in exams at all, because he did not follow the quarter-baked kunjis from which examiners expected students to mug and regurgitate answers. He would regale us with the regressive and misinterpreted answers that featured in crib-books, and while we laughed, we also worried about what lawyers were learning.

All of us who knew Jagdeep personally will of course miss you. But the whole country will miss you. Thank you for everything you have done for India’s democracy. We know it was your consuming passion and commitment for the last 25 years. And we also know it took an immense amount of courage.

Thank you Jagdeep. RIP.

Wish you all strength, Kiran.

–Meena and Mamata

Also see: Close encouters with Al-Seshan at https://millennialmatriarch464992105.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=1106&action=edit

Dashri and Kasturba: Teacher and Student

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Tribal communities have long inhabited India’s lands, living in close proximity with their natural environment and following their ancestral ways of life, culture and traditions. At the same time these peoples were always considered to be on the fringes of mainstream society; socially and economically exploited,

and deprived of fundamental rights. Dashri Chaudhary was born in one such community in the Vedchhi region of south Gujarat on 3 October 1918. Her father Rumsibhai and mother Ambaben belonged to one of the tribes which were collectively called ‘rani paraj’ or ‘people of the forests’, and later known as ‘adivasis’.

https://www.epw.in/engage/article/dasriben-chaudharys-testimony-struggle

Although traditionally these communities were deprived of education, Dashri’s father as well as her grandfather Jeevanbhai had both received education. This was because the Vedchhi region was then under the Gaekwad rule of Baroda which encouraged compulsory education for all. Jeevanbhai Chaudhari was a school teacher and social reformer. Dashri was brought up in a progressive environment, and studied up to class 4 in the government school in her village.  

In the meanwhile her father and grandfather were coming under Gandhi’s influence. They began to organize the local adivasi community to oppose the socio-economic exploitation by the British as well as the local moneylenders. They started an organization named Kaliparaj Parishad for the upliftment of their community. The organization started taking shape in 1905 with the convening of the Raniparaj convention where the issues of exploitation of adivasis and social and educational reforms were discussed. The women formed bhajan mandalis, and travelled from village to village singing songs inviting people to join the satyagraha movement.

After Gandhiji’s return to India from South Africa in 1915, Dashri’s grandfather invited him to attend the convention but he could not do so at that time. However Kasturba came in 1923, the first non-adivasi woman to attend. Gandhiji himself attended the next convention in 1924. Dashri was then six years old. Her family had already adopted the khadi movement. Little Dashri was keen that she should also welcome Gandhiji with a garland of handspun khadi thread. The story goes that Gandhi picked up the little girl who was wearing gold bangles and anklets. He told her “Child, we are slaves. We cannot wear jewellry.” The six year old immediately took off the ornaments, and never again in her life, wore any again.

Dashri completed class four in Vedchhi and joined class 5 in the government girls’ school in Valod. However responding to Gandhi’s call to boycott government school education, she left the school.

She moved to Ranipara Kanya Vidyalaya a nationalist school (Rashtriya Shala) imparting basic education, started by Kasturba, Mithiben Petit and others in Pune town in Mandvi district. Kasturba was there at the time. Dashri barely completed one year here when the school was shut down. All the students got involved with the freedom movement which was gaining momentum in the light of the Dandi March in 1930 which sparked a nationwide Civil Disobedience Movement. Dashri was an active participant. She and her friends picketed liquor shops, they protested against the British policy of prohibiting tribals from producing and selling toddy which was locally brewed. 

On 26 January 1933, she was arrested while picketing a shop that sold foreign cloth. She was only 14 years old. She was tried. When asked what work she did, she replied “To free India”.  She was asked if she knew the consequences of such activity, she replied “Yes, I know. If I die I will be called a martyr”. The magistrate is believed to have commented “This is girl is dangerous.”

Dashri was sentenced to one year in Yervada jail. Kasturba was already imprisoned there. She was surprised to see the young student who had been in the Rashtriya Shala. “How you have grown, and now you are in jail”, she said. The two became close. Dashri spent the year in jail doing all the manual tasks that the prisoners were assigned. Kasturba usually requested fellow prisoners to write letters for her, as she herself could not do so. During the time when they were in jail, Kasturba requested the young Dashri to teach her how to read and write. Dashri herself had only completed primary school and here she took on the role of teacher. In the time that they had free from the arduous prison tasks, the young teacher and elder student attentively worked with the slate and chalk, learning Gujarati letters and moving ahead. It is believed that Dashri successfully taught her student in four months! The first letter Kasturba wrote was to Gandhiji who was delighted. He wrote to Kasturba ‘Tell this girl that “you could do what I could not!”

After her release Dashri continued with her studies at Gujarat Vidyapith. She also learnt music from Pandit Narayan More, and learnt to play several instruments. As the Quit India movement gained momentum in 1942, she once again gave up her studies and joined. She added spirit to the protests and processions with her powerful singing of patriotic songs.

She was arrested once again, and sentenced to a year’s imprisonment. After her release, in 1944 she married a fellow satyagrahi Kanjibhai Chaudhary. She continued to be actively engaged with the activities at Vedchhi ashram.

After Independence she resumed her interrupted studies, completing her Matric and Primary Teachers Course. She started a school for children of very backward communities and continued to contribute to the field of education. She was not interested in getting into politics. She herself never gave up learning, and was always active in social causes. She lived in Vedchhi, where one of Gandhi’s close associate Jugatram Dave established an Ashram dedicated to upliftment of the adivasis in the socially and economically backward area through constructive work and education. 

Dashriben passed away in 2013 at the age of 95 years. A long life dedicated entirely to the cause of the nation.   

–Mamata

Nature’s Libraries: Where the Wild Data Lives

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National Librarian’s Day is celebrated on August 12th every year to commemorate the birth anniversary of Dr. S.R. Ranganathan, the “Father of Library Science in India”.

When we say “library,” most people imagine rows of books, a quiet reading room, and perhaps a stern librarian at the desk. But in the language of library science, a “library” is defined less by its shelves and more by its functions — acquiring, organising, preserving, and making knowledge accessible.

By that definition, the world is full of libraries that hold no books at all. Some store bird calls. Others archive satellite images. Some collect DNA sequences. In fact, they are not physical spaces at all. Many are vast online repositories where scientists and citizens alike can deposit, discover, and use data.

On this Librarians’ Day, let’s explore how these nature and biodiversity depositories perform the same core functions as traditional libraries — only their collections are wild, living, and often invisible to the naked eye.

Acquisition: Gathering the Wild

Libraries begin by collecting materials. In biodiversity repositories, this might mean researchers uploading recordings to Macaulay Library (Cornell Lab of Ornithology) or Xeno-canto, which crowdsource bird calls from around the world.

  • Example: iNaturalist “acquires” photographs and species observations from millions of contributors.
  • Example: GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility) harvests species occurrence data from institutions and citizen scientists alike.

Just as a public library acquires books from publishers and donors, these nature libraries acquire data from field biologists, monitoring equipment, and enthusiastic amateurs.

Organisation: Making Sense of the Collection

Without organisation, a library is just a warehouse. And hence the focus on developing classification systems. Dr. S.R. Ranganathan primarily used and developed the Colon Classification (CC) system. The Dewey Decimal system is the widely prevalent one used in most libraries across the world.

Biodiversity data portals however are based on the Linnaean system of classification and organize living organisms based on evolutionary relationships. This involves classifying organisms into hierarchical groups like kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species. This is.

  •  Example: BOLD (Barcode of Life Data System) and GenBank organise genetic sequences by species, geography, and collection method.
  • Example: ITIS (Integrated Taxonomic Information System) standardises names so scientists worldwide speak the same language.

The result? You can search for a frog by its Latin name, its genetic barcode, or the location where it was found — just like you can search for a book by title, author, or subject.

Preservation: Guarding the Record

One of a library’s noblest duties is preservation — ensuring the information remains available for future generations. In biodiversity repositories, this may involve:

  • Storing acoustic recordings (bat calls, whale songs) in durable digital formats.
  • Archiving satellite imagery in systems like NASA Earthdata and Global Forest Watch for long-term environmental monitoring.
  • Keeping herbarium records in Tropicos and long-term forest data in ForestGEO.

Like rare manuscripts in acid-free folders, these data are preserved against loss, decay, and obsolescence.

Access: Opening the Doors

Libraries thrive when they are accessible. Many biodiversity repositories are open access — anyone can explore them. And importantly, contribute to them.

  • eBird lets birdwatchers view migration patterns and personal checklists.
  • FishBase offers species profiles for students, fishers, and marine scientists alike.
  • OBIS (Ocean Biogeographic Information System) gives marine biologists open access to ocean species occurrence data.
  • Merlin helps users identify birds by their calls.

Some repositories, like Wildlife Insights or certain ethnobotanical databases, may have restricted access for sensitive data — similar to a library’s rare books section.

Dissemination: Spreading Knowledge

A library doesn’t just keep information — it shares it. Biodiversity repositories publish datasets for conservation planning, scientific research, and education.

  • Movebank shares animal movement data for migration studies.
  • TRY Plant Trait Database supports climate change modelling.
  • The Digital Himalaya Project disseminates ethnographic and ecological knowledge, bridging science and tradition.

Why These Libraries Matter

By meeting the same functional standards as a traditional library — acquisition, organisation, preservation, access, and dissemination — biodiversity depositories are not just “like” libraries, they are libraries. Their collections may be recordings instead of novels, or genetic codes instead of encyclopaedias, but the principles are identical.

In a time of rapid environmental change, these libraries are our collective memory-keepers for life on Earth. They store the songs of rare birds, the paths of migrating whales, the genetic fingerprints of endangered plants, and the traditional wisdom of communities who have lived with nature for centuries.

So this Librarians’ Day, remember: the guardians of knowledge are not only in buildings with books. They are also in digital sound archives, genetic databases, satellite imagery vaults, and underwater biodiversity surveys. Wherever knowledge is collected, cared for, and shared — there, you will find a library. Dr. Ranganathan, I am sure,  would have been excited to explore the new realms of libraries and library science!

–Meena

There are a wide range of data depositories and libraries related to nature and biodiversity across different domains—ranging from sounds (like bat and bird calls) to genetics, species observations, satellite imagery, and more. Here is a list of some of these depositories, which Chat GPT has been kind enough to put together!

🦇 Acoustic and Sound Libraries

  1. Bat Call Library – Region-specific databases like EchoBank or ChiroVox.
  2. Macaulay Library (Cornell Lab of Ornithology) – Massive archive of bird sounds, videos, and photos.
  3. Xeno-canto – Open-access database of bird calls and songs from across the world.
  4. AmphibiaWeb – Includes some amphibian vocalization data.
  5. BLB (British Library Sound Archive – Wildlife Section) – Historical and contemporary recordings of animals.

🌍 Species Observations and Biodiversity Portals

  1. GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility) – Gigantic open-access database of species occurrence data from around the world.
  2. iNaturalist – Crowdsourced species observations with photos, locations, and identification support.
  3. India Biodiversity Portal – India-specific citizen science portal on biodiversity with species pages, maps, and observations.
  4. eBird – Global birdwatching database with detailed observation checklists and trends.
  5. OBIS (Ocean Biogeographic Information System) – Marine species occurrence data.

🧬 Genetics and Taxonomy

  1. BOLD (Barcode of Life Data System) – DNA barcoding records of species.
  2. GenBank – Nucleotide sequences, often used for genetic identification of species.
  3. Encyclopedia of Life (EOL) – Species information including taxonomy, distribution, and media.
  4. ITIS (Integrated Taxonomic Information System) – Authoritative taxonomic info, mainly for North America.

🛰️ Remote Sensing and Environmental Data

  1. MODIS / NASA Earthdata – Satellite data on vegetation, land cover, fires, etc.
  2. Global Forest Watch – Forest cover, loss, and gain data based on satellite imagery.
  3. NOAA Climate Data Records – Atmospheric, oceanic, and climate-related datasets.

🐾 Camera Trap and Movement Data

  1. Movebank – Open-access database for animal movement (GPS collar) data.
  2. Wildlife Insights – Global camera trap image database, AI-assisted.
  3. PanTHERIA – Ecological and life-history data of mammals.

🌿 Botanical and Ecological Datasets

  1. TRY Plant Trait Database – Global plant trait data.
  2. Tropicos (Missouri Botanical Garden) – Botanical information with herbarium specimen records.
  3. ForestGEO (Smithsonian) – Long-term forest monitoring data across the globe.

🌊 Marine and Aquatic Life

  1. FishBase – Comprehensive fish species database.
  2. SeaLifeBase – Same as FishBase but for all non-fish aquatic life.
  3. Reef Life Survey – Citizen science marine biodiversity data.

📚 Literature and Traditional Knowledge

  1. Digital Himalaya Project – Ethnographic and ecological archives.
  2. Ethnobotanical Database – Plant use in indigenous and traditional medicine.

PIC: wildlifedata.org/

Feisty Freedom Fighter: Aruna Asaf Ali

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“Do or Die. We shall either free India or die in the attempt,” Mahatma Gandhi told fellow leaders of the movement for India’s independence on 8 August 1942. These words launched the Quit India movement. Although Gandhi and many other leaders were arrested within hours of his speech, with the expectation that without their leadership the resistance movement would be rudderless, the effect was the opposite. Thousands of Indians, young and old, heeded this call and plunged into the movement, each contributing in their own way.

The sweeping movement continued to gain strength in many forms, culminating in India becoming an independent nation on 15 August 1947. Even today, after almost eight decades there are as many stories as there were people then, about how every Indian played his or her part in this movement.

One of the women who picked up the mantle of leadership in the vacuum left by the arrests following Gandhi’s speech on 8 August was Aruna Asaf Ali who went on to play a significant part in Indian politics, even after Independence.

Aruna Ganguly was born on 16 July 1909 in a liberal upper class Bengali family which had migrated to the United Provinces (now Uttar Pradesh). After graduating from a missionary school and college Aruna started working as a teacher at Calcutta’s Gokhale Memorial School. It was here that she met Asaf Ali, a progressive barrister. Despite family opposition on grounds of differences in age and religion, Aruna married him in 1928. Her family practically ostracised her. 

Asaf Ali was a prominent member of the Indian National Congress, and Aruna too soon began to meet and mingle with many nationalist leaders of the day. It was natural that she became actively engaged in the ongoing freedom struggle. Two years after her marriage, she was jailed during the Salt Satyagraha. Her popularity and leadership qualities were already emerging. Apprehensive about this, the colonial authorities did not release her when other political prisoners were released in 1931. They did not anticipate that her detention would raise a great public outcry; and that all the women prisoners would refuse to be released unless Aruna was released. It took Gandhiji’s personal intervention to secure her release.

The following year Aruna was again arrested and imprisoned in Tihar jail. Here too she led a hunger strike to protest against the treatment to political prisoners. She was moved to solitary confinement in Ambala jail.

By the time Gandhiji gave his Quit India call, Aruna had already been active in the movement for over a decade. The country-wide crackdown against nationalist leaders in 1942 left a leadership vacuum which could have aborted the momentum. Aruna stepped in; she presided over the rest of the Indian National Congress (INC) session, and on 9 August she rushed forward and unfurled the flag of Independence at Gowalia Tank Maidan in Bombay. News of this flag-hoisting spread like wildfire. Aruna and a group of INC workers went underground. The British government posted a reward for her capture but she successfully evaded arrest for three years. Her property was seized and sold.

Even in hiding, Aruna continued to contribute to the movement through use of underground radio, pamphlets, and the Congress’s monthly magazine Inquilab. During this period she was unwell and became frail. When other Congress leaders came out of prison, Aruna refused to come out of hiding and give herself up. Gandhiji wrote her a personal note expressing concern about her frail health and urging her to surrender and use the prize money offered by the British for the cause of Harijans. Aruna respectfully declined to do so. Gandhi always had great respect for Aruna’s personal bravery, but did not always approve of her tactics. She had a strong independent streak and high ideals.

Aruna finally came out of hiding in 1947 and returned to active political life. She was elected president of the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee. However she quit the Congress party in 1948 and joined the Socialist Party, and later became a member of the Communist Party of India. She went on to leave this in 1956, but she retained her leftist leanings and spent the rest of her life in fighting for causes of the unprivileged, underrepresented, and exploited sections of society. She supported with revolutionary zeal the upliftment of women through education and better health care. Her politics was always more a matter of the heart than the head. Her frail physique belied her incredible inner strength. 

Aruna was elected Delhi’s first woman mayor in 1958, and led the way for major civic reforms. But unable to handle the petty politicking, she resigned. She never again contested elections or took up a government post. She passed away in 1996 at the age of 87 years. Till the end of her life she lived in a one-bedroom apartment. She continued to mobilise support for social reforms, working for the rights of women, the poor and downtrodden. She actively helmed the Patriot newspaper and weekly magazine Link. She was awarded the International Lenin Peace Prize in 1964. She was honoured with the Padma Vibhushan in 1992, and posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna in 1997.

Aruna Asaf Ali, frail but feisty, was one of Gandhiji’s Women Warriors, part of an inspiring band of women from all walks of life who fought not only for the freedom of their country, but equally for the rights of its women to live as free, fearless, and empowered citizens of India. 

–Mamata

DESIGN GURU ASHOKE CHATTERJEE: A TRIBUTE ON HIS 90TH BIRTDHAY        

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Ashoke Chatterjee (AC) does not like to be called ‘design guru’. But it is really not possible to come up with a better title for this piece on him. For though not a designer, his influence on design and design education in India has been immense. After all, he was Executive Director of India’s first and leading design school, the National Institute of Design (NID) from 1975 to 1985; a Senior Faculty Advisor for Design Management and Communication from 1985-1995, and Distinguished Fellow at NID from 1995 till his retirement in 2001.

AC played a critical role in conceptualizing the meaning of design in the Indian context. In 1977, he brought together UNIDO and International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (ICSID) members, designers, design-educators and others from across the world to the NID campus at Ahmedabad for a 2-day symposium. The meeting ended with the historic Ahmedabad Declaration which embodies the value of humanism in design. The core of the statement affirms:

  • ‘Its firm conviction that design can be a powerful force for the improvement of the quality of life in the developing world;
  • Its firm belief that designers must have a clear understanding of the values of their own societies and of what constitutes a standard of life for their own people;
  • That design in the developing world must be committed to a search for local answers to local needs, utilising indigenous skills, materials and traditions while absorbing the extraordinary power that science and technology can make available to it;
  • That designers in every part of the world must work to evolve a new value system which dissolves the disastrous divisions between the worlds of waste and want, preserves the identity of peoples and attends the priority areas of need for the vast majority of mankind’.

AC has lived this spirit and has helped designers and design-students across the country imbibe this spirit. He made it a fundamental principle of design education that students needed to understand that design is not restricted to contributing to business profits but also includes contribution made to the livelihoods of artisans, farmers, and the marginalized; and that designers must grapple with social issues. He was one of the early votaries of sustainability and brought this understanding to the education of designers.

As AC is always the first to aver, he is not a designer. He went to Woodstock School, after which he took an Economics degree at St Stephens College, New Delhi. Following this, he did his MBA at Miami University in Ohio, USA. He was with the International Monetary Fund in Washington DC, where he worked as a communications specialist, the Indian Tourism Development Corporation etc., before finding his home in NID and Ahmedabad.  He has advised, and advises, several national and international agencies including INTACH, Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (Geneva), the Gujarat Ecology Commission, the Government of Rajasthan Department of Health.  He served for many years as honorary president of the Crafts Council of India.

We have had the good fortune to regularly interact with AC over the decades. He was a not-infrequent visitor to the Centre for Environment Education where we worked for many decades, and each occasion brought its laughter, learning and a warm sense of having a caring mentor. He has been on the Governing Council (GC) of CEE from the early years, and as a local GC member, was invited for brainstorming, meetings, events, certificate-distributions and what have you—and if he did not have any prior commitments, he would attend.  He generously served on the advisory committee of several large projects that CEE was involved in, and brought his wisdom to bear not only on the content and design, but also on stakeholder management. As programme leaders, we would often be called into the GC meetings to make presentations on our projects; the butterflies in our tummies would settle when we met his twinkling eye, and he nodded ever-so-slightly to us. And after the presentation, he would sometimes pass us a little chit saying that we had done a good job. That truly made our day!

Ashoke Chatterjee played a key role in the National Drinking Water Mission, which in the late 1980s was tasked with ‘providing safe drinking water to all villages, assisting local communities to maintain sources of drinking water in good condition, and for specific attention for water supply to scheduled caste and scheduled tribe communities.’ AC prepared a road map on the communications aspect of this initiative, without which the gains could neither have been attained nor sustained. He worked closely with CEE in developing communication and education on fluorosis, a disease endemic to large parts of Gujarat.

With all his commitments, AC writes too. Dances of the Golden Hall on the art of Shanta Rao, and Rising, on empowerment efforts among deprived communities in rural Gujarat, are among his well-known books. His latest work (with Harji Malik), in English and Hindi, is titled Learning Together at Jawaja and chronicles the 50-year journey of the Jawaja project.

There is never a meeting with AC when we don’t come away feeling enriched—both as professionals and as human beings.

THE RURAL UNIVERSITY, JAWAJA

One of the criticisms against academic institutions is that they are far removed from every day realities and seldom contribute in solving real-life challenges. The Jawaja project undertaken by IIM Ahmedabad in partnership with the National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad is an early exception. Ashoke Chatterjee was a key part of this.

It was in 1975 that Ravi Matthai, IIM-A’s legendary first fulltime director, set out on a journey to see how corporate management principles could be used to solve the major problem facing India–poverty. Ravi Matthai had stepped down as Director in 1972, and could now devote time to such a project.

The decision was taken to work in Jawaja, a drought-prone district of Rajasthan, consisting of about 200 villages and a population of 80,000. There seemed very little scope for development there, given the arid landscape and lack of water and other physical resources. But Prof Ravi Matthai had a different perspective, because he saw people as the biggest resource.

As the project team understood the area better, they found that the area had a 300-year tradition of leather-craft. The communities there were also skilled at weaving. And so the project decided to build on these skills to develop sustainable livelihoods for the communities there. Prof Matthai roped in NID to join hands with IIM-A, to work on livelihoods and empowerment of the communities in Jawaja. Thus along with Ashoke Chatterjee, his counterpart in NID, he started the journey which involved many faculty from both institutes.

The idea was to connect traditional artisans with contemporary disciplines of management and design, and knowledge institutions which had this knowhow. There were some important basic principles underpinning the effort. The first and foremost was that the relationship was one of mutual respect and learning—after all, even as the communities learnt new skills, the faculty of the institutions were learning how their knowledge could be put to use in solving social problems. Another important aspect was to see how much of the value chain could be controlled by the artisans and communities themselves, so that their incomes could be enhanced. The idea was to innovate and design new products which would have new markets, so that the traditional value chains could be broken and the craftspeople could play a greater role in more areas. The focus was also on working in groups, to give greater resilience and strength to the efforts.

The process was, by design, a gradual one, moving from basic products which did not need very high quality craftsmanship, such as leather school bags and woven floor mats, to higher value ones like office supplies, trendier bags, and high-end furnishings.

The challenges were, of course, many. Apart from the need to design new products which would use the old skills, technologies and equipment, another major concern was quality control.

To quote Ashoke Chatterjee on the subject: The Jawaja project was one experiment which integrated many aspects of craft: heritage, culture, social structure, design vocabulary and NID’s design inheritance. But it was not a craft project; it was development defined as self-reliance for those who have been the most dependent in our society. Ravi Matthai explained self-reliance thus: Can people do something for themselves tomorrow that others are doing for them today and they should be released of that dependence? Ultimately, Jawaja taught us that the whole is about people and you have to attend to people first and last or else nothing you do will be sustained.

The depth of AC’s understanding of craft traditions in India, and his humanity are reflected when he says: Jawaja provided a benchmark in crafts: first focus on and understand the community before we intervene in crafts. Who are the people? What are their earnings? What are their aspirations? What is in it for them? Before we start giving people lectures about their ancient traditions, ask what’s in it for them to stay in the tradition? In the case of Jawaja, many of the heritage problems for leather workers were things they wanted to run away from. Their caste elders told them they must not be identified as leather workers; they must have some other identity. When they stopped flaying animals they were left stranded without an identity. We often look at tradition and heredity as some exquisite artefact, but for them it was centuries-old discrimination.

The Jawaja project was an educational experiment-in-action based on the idea that development activities must be a vehicle for learning. The enduring success of the bold experiment is seen even today at several levels.

The first was the creation of self-reliant institution of crafts people–the Artisans’ Alliance of Jawaja and its associations. These started to manage all links of the value chain in Jawaja, from raw material procurement, finances, bank dealings, design and technology know how, and marketing processes. These are active even today, and continue to innovate, produce and market products which are highly valued.

The second is the impact of the project on the larger development scene. It was the learning from running this grassroots education and empowerment project that the idea of setting up a specialized institution for education in rural management came up, and the Institute of Rural Management (IRMA), Anand, was born. This was given shape by Prof Ravi Matthai and two other professors who had been with IIM-A—Dr Kamla Chowdhry and Dr.Michael Halse.

The Jawaja experiment’s widespread legacy is that it influenced development sector thinking on how to approach community-based livelihood interventions in a spirit of mutual respect and learning.

–Meena

From: Inspirations: Individuals and Institutions That Defined India’s Sustainability Journey. Mamata Panday, Meena Raghunathan.Bookwell Publications. 2025.

See also: The Jawaja Project https://millennialmatriarch464992105.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=3624&action=edit

Pic: NID site

Under the Same Moon

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July 20 is a day with special significance for humanity. It is Moon Day—it commemorates the day humans first set foot on the Moon in 1969—a moment that changed forever human imagination, and our relationship to the rest of the universe.

For many of us, the Moon is far more than a historic rock in the sky. It has always fascinated us. It is companion, compass, calendar, and comfort.  It’s poetic, scientific, spiritual, and personal. Whether it is its influence on tides or moods or menstrual cycles—there’s no denying its pull on our lives. It is a part of folklore—in India, a part of the family, with the moon referred to as Chanda mama.

India is writing its own Moon story, with the first manned flight planned for 2027. Grp. Captain Shukla’s sojourn at the International Space Station is part of this preparation. But we have chalked up some notches already:

  • In 2008, Chandrayaan-1 confirmed the presence of water molecules on the Moon—yes, our lunar scout found signs of water where many others hadn’t.
  • Chandrayaan-2 in 2019 didn’t land as planned, but gave us valuable data.
  • And then came Chandrayaan-3 in 2023 when India became the first country to successfully land near the Moon’s south pole—a scientific and symbolic triumph.

This is India’s contemporary moon-story. Here is a beautiful ancient one.

The Rabbit in the Moon: A Buddhist Tale

One of the most enduring tales about the moon is of the rabbit in the Moon, a story rooted in Buddhist Jataka tradition and echoed across generations.

Long ago, the story goes, a kind and gentle rabbit lived in the forest. One day, Lord Indra came down disguised as a hungry old man, asking for food. The rabbit, seeing he had nothing else to offer, jumped into the fire to offer himself as a meal. Touched by this ultimate act of generosity, Indra rescued the rabbit and immortalised him on the Moon—his shape etched forever in the lunar light.

Even today, if you look closely on a clear full moon night, you can make out the shape of a rabbit crouched gently on the surface. Some say he’s still keeping watch. Some say he’s a reminder of kindness and quiet courage.

So on the July 20th, look up at the moon, wonder at its beauty, and ponder the words of some wise people:

“Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.”

—Buddha

“Don’t tell me the sky is the limit when there are footprints on the moon.”

—Paul Brandt

“The moon is the first milestone on the road to the stars.”

—Arthur C. Clarke

“Always remember we are under the same sky, looking at the same moon.”

—Maxine Lee

“The moon does not fight. It attacks no one. It does not worry. It does not try to crush others. It keeps to its course, but by its very nature, it gently influences. What other body could pull an entire ocean from shore to shore? The moon is faithful to its nature and its power is never diminished.”
― Deng Ming-Dao

–Meena

Next week, some more explorations related to the moon.

Pic: nasa.gov/mission/apollo-11/

Compassion is the Answer: Dalai Lama

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We live in a world that is war-worn, strife-torn, and increasingly becoming inured to the constant barrage of news and images that depict the most deplorable facets of human nature and behavior. Amidst such a depressing state of affairs, we feel helpless and downhearted; we fear that we have already reached a tipping point from where there is no way of turning back, where we seem to be hurtling towards a future which, in a sense, has no future.

There are so few today in the world who can instil a ray of light, a light that can help us navigate the seemingly impenetrable darkness that engulfs us.  In this fog of gloom and doom we yearn for some words of wisdom, a glimmer of hope, a Sherpa who can guide us through.

Who better can we turn to than His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who has dedicated his life to the cause of peace, love and compassion? As we recently celebrated the 90th birthday of this remarkable human being, it would be fitting to share some of this thoughts on love and compassion as guiding lights.

Some of my friends have told me that, while love and compassion are marvellous and good, they are not really very relevant. Our world, they say, is not a place where such beliefs have much influence or power. They claim that anger and hatred are so much a part of human nature that humanity will always be dominated by them. I do not agree.

All sentient beings, not only human beings, but birds and animals too, want to live in peace. Amongst all these beings, humans are probably the most mischievous. We have a marvellous intelligence, but sometimes it is misdirected by negative emotions. Predators such as lions and tigers have claws and fangs that equip them to hunt, kill and eat meat. However, they only prey on other animals when they need food. Human beings, on the other hand, cause trouble even when there is no justification.

Can we change this? I believe we can, because it is our essential nature to be compassionate. From the moment we’re born our mother takes care of us. Without this care we would not survive. This experience is our first opportunity to learn that compassion is the root of all happiness. However, this natural appreciation of compassion seems to fade once we go to school. We need to be reminded that good health and a peaceful state of mind are founded on love and compassion.

How can we start? We should begin by removing the greatest hindrances to compassion: anger and hatred. As we all know, these are extremely powerful emotions and they can overwhelm our entire mind. Nevertheless, they can be controlled. If, however, they are not, these negative emotions will plague us – with no extra effort on their part! – and impede our quest for the happiness of a loving mind.
 
So as a start, it is useful to investigate whether or not anger is of value. Sometimes, when we are discouraged by a difficult situation, anger does seem helpful, appearing to bring with it more energy, confidence and determination.
 
Here, though, we must examine our mental state carefully. While it is true that anger brings extra energy, if we explore the nature of this energy, we discover that it is blind: we cannot be sure whether its result will be positive or negative. This is because anger eclipses the best part of our brain: its rationality. So the energy of anger is almost always unreliable. It can cause an immense amount of destructive, unfortunate behaviour. Moreover, if anger increases to the extreme, one becomes like a mad person, acting in ways that are as damaging to oneself as they are to others.

It is possible, however, to develop an equally forceful but far more controlled energy with which to handle difficult situations.
 
This controlled energy comes not only from a compassionate attitude, but also from reason and patience. These are the most powerful antidotes to anger. Unfortunately, many people misjudge these qualities as signs of weakness. I believe the opposite to be true: that they are the true signs of inner strength. Compassion is by nature gentle, peaceful and soft, but it is very powerful. It is those who easily lose their patience who are insecure and unstable. Thus, to me, the arousal of anger is a direct sign of weakness.

So anger and hatred are always harmful, and unless we train our minds and work to reduce their negative force, they will continue to disturb us and disrupt our attempts to develop a calm mind. Anger and hatred are our real enemies. These are the forces we most need to confront and defeat, not the temporary enemies who appear intermittently throughout life.

And who creates such opportunities? Not our friends, of course, but our enemies. They are the ones who give us the most trouble, so if we truly wish to learn, we should consider enemies to be our best teacher!

 For a person who cherishes compassion and love, the practice of tolerance is essential, and for that, an enemy is indispensable. So we should feel grateful to our enemies, for it is they who can best help us develop a tranquil mind! Also, it is often the case in both personal and public life, that with a change in circumstances, enemies become friends.

You should realize that even though your opponents appear to be harming you, in the end, their destructive activity will damage only themselves. In order to check your own selfish impulse to retaliate, you should recall your desire to practice compassion and assume responsibility for helping prevent the other person from suffering the consequences of his or her acts.

So far I have been discussing mainly the mental benefits of compassion, but it contributes to good physical health as well, According to my personal experience, mental stability and physical well-being are directly related. Without question, anger and agitation make us more susceptible to illness. On the other hand, if the mind is tranquil and occupied with positive thoughts, the body will not easily fall prey to disease.

I believe that at every level of society – familial, tribal, national and international – the key to a happier and more successful world is the growth of compassion. We do not need to become religious, nor do we need to believe in an ideology. All that is necessary is for each of us to develop our good human qualities.

Ultimately, humanity is one and this small planet is our only home. If we are to protect this home of ours, each of us needs to experience a vivid sense of universal altruism. It is only this feeling that can remove the self-centred motives that cause people to deceive and misuse one another.

Much has been written about the Dalai Lama in the past few days. His birthday on 6 June is designated as the Universal Day of Compassion. What better reminder than his own words, of how compassion can be a universal guiding light. With all heartfelt wishes that we continue to be blessed by his wisdom and love for many more years to come.

Excerpts from https://www.dalailama.com/messages/compassion-and-human-values/compassion

–Mamata

Libraries Take Wing

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How often we randomly pick up a feather as we walk along. And wonder which bird it could belong to.

A feather library is where we can turn to for help in such a situation. These are digital or physical collections of bird feathers, used for research and education. They are an invaluable resource for understanding bird species, identifying feathers, and gathering data on bird health and natural history. These libraries are important tools for the study and conservation of bird species, offering insights into bird morphology and helping in the identification of feathers found in the wild.

There are not too many across the world. Some of the established ones include:

1. The Feather Atlas created by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is a comprehensive image database of North American birds and covers about 438 species. It can be browsed by bird order, family, or species. It has an open identification tool in which one can fill in details about feather patterns, colors, size, and position, which can help you identify the bird your feather belongs to.

2.Featherbase (Germany) has been created by a working group of German feather-scientists and other collectors worldwide who have come together and contributed their personal collections. It holds close to 8000 specimens from over 1,000 bird species, with a focus on European and African birds. The collection includes high-resolution images and detailed anatomical information, and has supporeted studies in forensics, conservation, and biodiversity monitoring. It is rigorously classified and offers options of various languages so that birders from across the world can use it.

3. Found Feathers (iNaturalist Project) is a citizen science initiative where users contribute observations of feathers they find. The project encourages the collection of feather length and placement data, enhancing the database’s utility for researchers and birders. There are over 2,00,000 observations from across the world.

Special among these is India’s Feather Library. This pioneering initiative is the first of its kind in India and the world, dedicated to documenting, identifying, and studying the flight feathers of Indian birds. It is the passion project of architect Esha Munshi, a dedicated bird watcher who has seen over 1500 bird species across the world, and veterinarian Sherwin Everett who works in a bird hospital in Ahmedabad. They have created the library with the aim of having all feather-related data under one roof, fostering collaboration and advancing the collective understanding of Indian birds. In the short span of time since inception on Nov 15, 2021, 135 species have been documented.

The process is rigorous. They collect feather specimens from dead birds at rescue centres to establish a primary database of bird species. They then make detailed notes on the flight feathers, taking into account the number of Primaries, Secondaries, Tertials (Wing Feathers), and Rectrices (Tail Feathers), along with basic details such as overall length, bill length and width, leg lengths, etc. Then they stretch out one wing and fan the tail in both dorsal and ventral views to document the exact number of feathers, unique characteristics, colour, pattern, and size etc. The physical collection is housed at the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS) in Bangalore.

The database is open to all and provides easy access.

Kudos to the dedication and passion of people like Esha and Sherwin who through their efforts help support avian research, conservation efforts, and educational outreach. And make a better world.

Happy Environment Day!

–Meena

Growing Older With Ruskin Bond

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Photo source: https://www.bookedforlife.in

Ruskin Bond celebrated his 91st birthday on 19 May. One of India’s most well-known writers, Ruskin Bond has spent over seven decades as a prolific author, delighting readers of all ages with his simple, beautiful and ‘from the heart’ words. When many put down their tools of trade when they reach “retirement age”, Ruskin Bond celebrates every day of each advancing year with reminiscences, observations of life around him, and above all gratitude for the magic of Nature.

As he puts it: For writers, the nice thing about growing old is that it gives us more to write about—all those years of love, friendship, adventure, achievements, a changing country, a changing world, changing ways of life, history in the making. There may have been dull moments, but most of the time, something was happening—and things continue to happen today.

Many people who have been touched and inspired by Ruskin Bond’s writing have shared their memories. I feel that this is also my opportunity to pay my small tribute.

I was introduced to Ruskin Bond over three decades ago by Uncle Ken and Rusty. These were the characters in the first books that I translated. I was invited by the National Book Trust to translate two of Ruskin’s books into Gujarati. Having neither read him, nor having translated before this, but game for trying something new, I embarked on the project. I so enjoyed the madcap adventures of the eccentric Uncle Ken and the restless school boy Rusty, not just for the stories but for the simple style of writing and the lovely use of language. As a translator it was a challenge to try to retain the spirit and the form in another language.

Following this introduction I continued to follow Ruskin Bond on his wanderings and meanderings through his essays and columns. Here was someone who was not only sensitive to, and entranced by every minute detail of nature, but one who could share this evocatively through words. As an environmental educator who was trying to communicate the wonders of the world around us, and sensitize children to the intricate but fragile web of life, it was inspiring, and humbling to see how effortlessly Ruskin Bond could do just that.

Moving on, as the years went by, one could find new nuances and meaning in his words; words that also reflected the passage of time, both as it affected a human being, but also the environment of which we are all a part. With the passing years, Ruskin Bond’s prolific writing reflects his life journey.

It is the journey that fascinates him, the spirit of wandering and exploring that leads him, and the childlike joy of discovery that makes every step exciting. The adventure is not in the arriving, it’s the on-the-way experience. It is not the expected; it’s the surprise. You are not choosing what you will see in the world, but giving the world an even chance to see you.

Ruskin Bond reminds us that the journey will be much enriched when we use all our senses to the fullest. Sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch. He highlights how each one is capable of giving us joy.

The eyes are our windows to the world, the great wide beautiful world that there is for all of us to marvel at—the skies, wandering clouds, mountains, forests, rivers, the sea; the moon, the stars, the rising sun—all the wonder of creation. The eyes see it all.  

And we hear too. We hear the sounds of nature—the wind, the rain, the sound of birds. We hear the voices of our friends, our loved ones. We hear great music. There is so much to hear and enjoy.

And we smell. The fragrance of roses, of jasmine; of gardens, of wildflowers, the mountain air, the sea breeze. We smell good food—appetizing odours! We eat what smells good.

The sense of taste—we take it for granted, but life wouldn’t be much fun without it. If everything tasted the same from chocolates to fish and chips, we would take no interest in our food and would fade away due to lack of nourishment.  Our taste buds keep us going, make life worth living!

And then there’s touch. The touch of a loving hand, the feel of things, good things—your clothes, your books, your intimate belongings, your own flesh. Cold and warmth, pain and pleasure are felt by our sensitive systems. The sense of touch is felt in our brains, and it is there that all happiness resides.

Value those five senses of yours. The more you use them, the better you will be able to appreciate your life and all that the world has to offer.

Ruskin Bond reminds us to value ourselves, our time and everything from the tiniest to the largest that weaves the web of life. His words are an island of calm in turbulent seas. He does not paint the world as perfect, but urges us to look for the rays of sunshine amidst the dark clouds: The human race is destructive by nature, only too ready to go to war or to pollute and do away with seas, rivers, forests, and our natural inheritance; but now and then along comes someone who can create something beautiful, meaningful—a great painting, a piece of music, a work of literature or philosophy, something that survives the conflicts  and injustices that are the main features of human civilization, past and present. But in the darkness there is a gleam of light, and we can turn away from the ugly to appreciate the beautiful.

Simple words that have continued to offer solace, hope, and a quiet joy as I have grown older with Ruskin Bond over the decades.

Happy Birthday Ruskin Bond. As you remind us: Don’t wait for your birthday. Make today your birthday.

(Excerpts from The Golden Years: The Many Joys of Living a Good Long Life. Ruskin Bond 2023)

–Mamata

WAR AND PEACE: BERTRAND RUSSELL

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The media has been bringing to our homes never-ending images of different parts of the world which are in the throes of war. The world is on the brink of what could well be the third world war. At some level people are becoming dangerously inured to the horrors through the never-ending barrage of images and reports that have almost become a part of daily sights and sounds. This in itself is frightening; are we accepting that violence (and its consequences) are an inescapable part of life? And while the world is led by egoistic power-hungry leaders, there is a rapidly declining number of people who feel helpless, even hopeless at the situation as it spirals towards a possibly irrevocable conclusion. Amidst the clamour of belligerent war cries, are some who lament that there are, today, so few voices of reason to remind the world of the precipitous path that we seem to be treading.

What does war achieve? And why do we need to seek peace?

Questions that have been asked since millennia. And answered in different ways in different periods of history. Perhaps one of the most pertinent answers came over a century ago, at a time when the sparks of what became the First World War were just beginning to fan the fire that would rage for the next four years. This was an essay titled The Ethics of War, written by Bertrand Russell in 1915. This was first published in the International Journal of Ethics 25, in January 1915.   

Bertrand Russell is considered as one of the greatest philosophers of the twentieth century. He was actively engaged in numerous social and political issues controversies of his time. A mathematician, educator, social critic, pacifist and political activist, Russell authored over 70 books and thousands of essays and letters addressing a wide range of subjects. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1950 in “recognition of his varied and significant writings in which he champions humanitarian ideals and freedom of thought. Bertrand Russell died in 1970 at the age of 97. Till the end of his life he supported free thought in religion and morals, he opposed war, nationalism and political persecution.

Bertrand Russell’s thoughts on all of the above are beautifully articulated in the essay The Ethics of War. Here are some excerpts:

The question whether war is ever justified, and if so under what circumstances, is one which has been forcing itself upon the attention of all thoughtful men. On this question I find myself in the somewhat painful position of holding that no single one of the combatants is justified in the present war, while not taking the extreme Tolstoyan view that war is under all circumstances a crime. Opinions on such a subject as war are the outcome of feeling rather than of thought: given a man’s emotional temperament, his convictions, both on war in general and on any particular war which may occur during his lifetime, can be predicted with tolerable certainty. The arguments used will be mere reinforcements to convictions otherwise reached. The fundamental facts in this as in all ethical questions are feelings; all that thought can do is to clarify and systematize the expressions of those feelings, and it is such clarifying and systematizing of my own feelings that I wish to attempt in the present article. 

At the beginning of a war each nation, under the influence of what is called patriotism, believes that its own victory is both certain and of great importance to mankind. By concentrating attention upon the supposed advantages of victory of our own side, we become more or less blind to the evils inseparable from war and equally certain whichever side may ultimately prove victorious. Yet so long as these are not fully realized, it is impossible to judge justly whether a war is or is not likely to be beneficial to the human race. Although the theme is trite, it is necessary therefore to briefly remind ourselves what the evils of war really are.

To begin with the most obvious evil: large numbers of young men, the most courageous and the most physically fit in their respective nations, are killed, bringing great sorrow to their friends, loss to the community and gain only to themselves. Many others are maimed for life, some go mad, and others become nervous wrecks. Of those who survive many will be brutalized and morally degraded by the fierce business of killing, which however much it may be a soldier’s duty, must shock and often destroy more humane instincts.

The evils which war produces outside the area of military operations are perhaps even more serious, for though less intense they are far more widespread. …The extent and consequences of the economic injury inflicted by war are much greater than is usually realized. …Thus war, and the fear of war, has a double-effect in retarding social progress: it diminishes the resources available for improving the condition of the wage-earning classes, and it distracts men’s minds from the need and possibility of general improvement by persuading them that the way to better themselves is to injure their comrades in some other country.

Of all the evils of war the greatest, in my opinion, is the purely spiritual evil: the hatred, the injustice, the repudiation of truth, the artificial conflict, where if once the blindness of atavistic instincts and sinister influence of anti-social interests, such as those of armaments with their subservient press, could be overcome, it would seem that there is a real consonance of interest and essential identity of human nature, and every reason to replace hatred by love.

It has been over a century since this impassioned plea by Bertrand Russell. Much has changed since then, but much remains the same. Let us remind ourselves of the futility of mindless violence. Let us Give Peace a Chance.

–Mamata