Table of Contents (pp. ix-xi) Save Cite this Item ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS (pp. xi-xii) R Balasubramaniam Save Cite this Item FOREWORD FOREWORD (pp. xiii-xvi) M N Venkatachaliah Dr. R Balasubramaniam or Balu, a physician by qualification and a humanist by instinct, lives a unique life in our times. He keeps his pace to a different drummer and has an instinctive discrimination of what true human development is and what masquerades as one. Having spent a good part of his life living and working in remote tribal colonies, he is able to appreciate and bring forth grassroots perspectives about development, while also having sound understanding of the dimensions of policy making from the point of view of a top level bureaucrat. The world of policy making itself is... Save Cite this Item PREFACE PREFACE (pp. xvii-xxii) R Balasubramaniam Save Cite this Item Understanding development Defining development and its path Defining development and its path (pp. 25-28) Sahebganj is a district in the central-eastern state of Jharkhand bordering West Bengal. It was part of the Santhal Parganas¹ and is mostly inhabited by indigenous tribals. It is the only district in Jharkhand through which the river Ganga flows. During the British Raj², most of the Englishmen lived around the railway station and hence the town and the district got to be known as Sahebganj or the ‘place of the Sahebs³’. More than a decade ago, I had the opportunity of traveling through the scenic Rajmahal hills located in this district. I was on an assignment for the World... Save Cite this Item Who defines development? Who defines development? (pp. 29-32) It was 1988. It had been little more than a year since I had started a new chapter in my life amidst the indigenous tribal communities in a hamlet named Brahmagiri, adjoining the Bandipur National Park in the southern Indian district of Mysuru. We had just started a dispensary and I used to spend most of my mornings at the clinic, while the afternoons were reserved for visiting the nearby tribal colonies for interacting and getting to know the people and their contexts better. I was on one such visit to Rajapura tribal colony and was talking to the women... Save Cite this Item “Will I get my firewood?” and other questions “Will I get my firewood?” and other questions (pp. 33-37) This is an incident that goes back to the mid-nineties. An elderly woman, more than seventy years old at that time was among the many men and women of a forest based tribal community who were interacting with the Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF), officer-in-charge of Nagarhole National Park⁴. These people were about to be displaced from their forests where they had been living for countless generations and their lives were about to be changed forever. The officer was making an attempt to understand the needs of this community, the major challenges they were likely to face and find ways... Save Cite this Item Development with dignity Development with dignity (pp. 38-41) Jadiya belongs to the Jenukuruba tribal community, who lived not far from Hosahalli, a place where a residential school exclusively for forest based tribal children of Heggadadevanakote Taluk of Mysuru district has been established and presently provides education to more than four hundred children every year. Back in 1988, it was a small set-up with just twenty eight students and run by a small but extremely committed group of people. We had just managed to fence some five acres of land given to us for the campus by the government and wanted to take advantage of an extended monsoon that... Save Cite this Item Measuring development Measuring development (pp. 42-46) When I first came to the forests of Heggadadevanakote in Mysuru district of South India in the 1980s, I began running a small dispensary with the intention of serving the indigenous population of that area. Medicine was all that I had learned and my focus, along with those who supported the initiative at that time, was on providing medical care. Obstetrics was one of my favorite subjects, and it was only natural that I paid greater attention to maternal health and mortality. Public health knowledge and practice of the time had established maternal mortality to be an important indicator of... Save Cite this Item Innovation in the development sector Innovation in the development sector (pp. 47-53) A few years ago, ‘innovation’ seemed to be the buzzword going around. In early 2011, the Karnataka Knowledge Commission had invited me to a meeting for the formation of the State Innovation Council. At around the same time, the Tata group, one of India’s largest business conglomerates had invited me to speak at ‘Innovista’ – a meeting of all their companies in the southern region to celebrate the successes of their innovations and reflect upon the failures. I was also invited by the Karnataka Chapter of the Confederation of Indian Industry to present my views at an event in Bengaluru where... Save Cite this Item Voices from the grassroots level An identity for Akkamma An identity for Akkamma (pp. 57-60) Akkamma sounded agitated on the phone. She wanted to know why she had to go through the process of being identified and declared as ‘Akkamma’ at a place remote from her village and by someone who didn’t know her at all. She had evidently never faced a situation where she had to prove who she was. It took a while for Poshini, who had received her call, to calm her down and understand the problem. Akkamma belongs to the Jenukuruba⁷ community from Bavikere tribal colony and has been an active member of the women’s selfhelp group, the initiation of which... Save Cite this Item Leadership lessons from Kempaiah Leadership lessons from Kempaiah (pp. 61-63) Leadership is indeed a much used and abused term. In a workshop on leadership that I was conducting, I recollect asking participants how many of them wanted to be a leader and how many wanted to be managers. Every one of them, without an exception wanted to be a leader. Each one of us have our own interpretation of leadership and there are thousands of books on leadership written and published around the world every year. I have always believed that leadership is innate to every individual and one only needs to manifest it appropriately. One has to call upon... Save Cite this Item Learning from first generation school-goers Learning from first generation school-goers (pp. 64-67) The school, located in Hosahalli that today educates more than four hundred forest-based tribal children every year had its beginnings in a makeshift arrangement in a cowshed in a hamlet named Brahmagiri in 1988. The first batch of the ‘school’ had twenty eight children and the experience of running a school and interacting with the children and their communities had more lessons than any textbook could provide. None of us who started the school had any notable semblance of a background or experience in the education sector. We started a center for learning nevertheless, on the back of unbridled enthusiasm... Save Cite this Item The spirit of partnership The spirit of partnership (pp. 68-71) Of the many extraordinary people I have met in my life and have been supported by, Thimmiah stands apart for the kind of values he lived by and the kind of lessons I have learned from him. I had first met Thimmiah, a Jenukuruba tribal in 1987 when our organization had been allotted five acres of land in a remote hamlet called Hosahalli to build a school exclusively for children of forest based tribes. When we were looking for somebody to watch over the land before the school was built, I found that Thimmiah out of his own conviction had... Save Cite this Item Can you truly empower me? Can you truly empower me? (pp. 72-75) It was early 1992. We were toying with the idea of getting the tribal women in Heggadadevanakote organized and forming small groups for them. The intent was to just get them together and talk about issues important for them. Later on in 1993 after Mamatha¹² joined us, we expanded on the agenda to include micro-credit and savings. I had no exposure to any issues concerning women and was using the opportunity just to stay connected and talk. The topics of discussion usually revolved around their health, their children, their husbands’ drinking problems, or the issues they faced with the forest... Save Cite this Item A lesson in self-reliance A lesson in self-reliance (pp. 76-79) Medhi is a Bettakuruba¹⁴ tribal woman whose life revolved around collecting bamboo from the forest. Bamboo was everything to her and her family. They would eat tender bamboo shoots, use bamboo for constructing their houses, and make different household articles out of bamboo and sell them to the local farmer. Bamboo was also used on special occasions such as for ‘calling their spirits’ or to make loud noises to drive marauding elephants away. Medhi had a small patch of agricultural land of around two acres, and along with her husband and three children, she lived a very contented life. Medhi’s... Save Cite this Item Women, leadership and democracy Women, leadership and democracy (pp. 80-85) In the struggle for rehabilitation of displaced tribal communities in Heggadadevanakote Taluk of Mysuru district, I had come across many indigenous friends, both men and women who gave so much of themselves. Few women however matched Madamma, wife of Mudalimadiah, an elder chieftain of the Kadukuruba tribe, in tenacity and humility. Madamma was a pillar of strength during the entire process and could indeed be described as a ‘queen mother’ as she carried herself majestically, yet being extremely humble and very conscious of her indigenous roots. For years, she has been visiting the school for tribal children regularly and trying... Save Cite this Item Governance, democracy and citizenship What does ‘good governance’ mean to people? What does ‘good governance’ mean to people? (pp. 89-93) When Mr. Siddaramaiah was sworn in as the twenty second Chief Minister of the state of Karnataka in May 2013, he immediately announced that his government would strive to be transparent and provide good governance along with a corruption-free administration to the people of Karnataka. This may seem like a customary declaration that any head of state would make upon assuming office, but for the people of Karnataka, who had for several years seen nothing but large scale political turmoil and mal-administration, even a nothing-out-of-the-ordinary announcement that brought attention to governance was a positive sign. However, good governance itself may... Save Cite this Item Empowered engagement versus enforced engagement Empowered engagement versus enforced engagement (pp. 94-101) Community participation is no longer a buzzword in development. Decades ago, it was considered to be an innovative feature, one that NGOs spoke and wrote about in their project proposals for the consideration of grant making agencies. Over time, there has been a greater understanding of the power and potential of this paradigm, and now community involvement is an integral part of programs in the development sector. The government too has followed suit and has been providing legitimate space for different forms of community engagement in many programs. The 73rd and 74th amendments to the Constitution of India paved way... Save Cite this Item Renegotiating citizenship Renegotiating citizenship (pp. 102-106) In the month of October 2014, police personnel in the city of Delhi suffered a series of unrelated assaults. In different incidents one police constable was gunned down fatally, two others were fired at, and the Assistant Commissioner of Police himself was assaulted by three persons that included a juvenile and a woman in an incident of road rage. Around the same time, there were protests by the general public against legitimate actions of the police in Mysuru city when they tried to enforce traffic discipline. In nearby Mandya, a woman Deputy Superintendent of Police was nearly run over by... Save Cite this Item Where everyone is a victim Where everyone is a victim (pp. 107-110) In 2010, I was appointed by the Lokayukta, Karnataka to investigate allegations of corruption and mal-administration in the Public Distribution System (PDS) in the state. While the investigation unearthed large scale leakages and corruption that was making a severe dent in the state’s exchequer, the experience has been one of immense learning for me. I traveled the length and breadth of the state and met hundreds of people and was convinced that ‘corruption’ leaves everyone feeling like a victim. The owner of the retail unit of the PDS or the Fair Price Shop (FPS) lamented that he needed to keep... Save Cite this Item A social transformation led by India’s Prime Minister A social transformation led by India’s Prime Minister (pp. 111-117) One hundred days after Narendra Modi became the fifteenth Prime Minister of India and likewise, a year after that, both the print and electronic media were abuzz with their own views on how the government has fared and how the government needs to run. The by-lineAchhe Din Aanewale Hain(the good days are coming) used by the Bharatiya Janata Party in its successful election campaign of 2014 invoked plenty of references in television debates that critiqued the government’s performance. The line itself means different things to different people depending on who is using it. One needs to appreciate that... Save Cite this Item Information indeed is power – people and their right to information A walk for information, a walk for power A walk for information, a walk for power (pp. 121-123) ‘Information is power’, especially in the context of rural India. In our experience of more than thirty years in the development sector, we have repeatedly seen that people who are able to access information and process it effectively for their use are the ones who get out of poverty more easily, while the others are merely condemned to cope with it. Disparities and inequalities have grown in the past decade, but some of the flagship social security and poverty alleviation schemes of the government have also provided opportunities, which when effectively utilized could transform the lives of individuals and communities.... Save Cite this Item A revelation of contradictions and hope A revelation of contradictions and hope (pp. 124-126) The fact that millions of people in the country are deprived of basic amenities is routinely deliberated upon in meetings and conferences by governmental as well as non-governmental agencies. However, an understanding of what it means to actually live without toilet facilities or access to water and a deeper appreciation of grassroots realities can only be had through experience. We can then realize that lack of drinking water and sanitation, children out of school or inadequate nourishment are not mere statistics to be quoted in meetings, but serious life issues for the people in the villages. The fourth morning into... Save Cite this Item Blending with the villages and their issues – some reflections Blending with the villages and their issues – some reflections (pp. 127-131) Normally, campaigns like the one we undertook have one central message to be disseminated among the people. It is also natural that the team focuses on that message and constantly seeks ways of delivering it more effectively. However, in our walk for community awareness on the Right to Information Act and other tools of socio-economic empowerment, we chose to blend ourselves with the villages we walked through or stayed in, and also understand the issues and local contexts better. This was often spontaneous, but helped us communicate with the people in a contextually relevant manner. Starting from Saragur in Heggadadevanakote,... Save Cite this Item Ningamani, the citizen Ningamani, the citizen (pp. 132-134) The word citizen is often attributed to an anonymous non-descript individual whose identity is merged among a mass of people. Citizen’s movements, and for that matter many other campaigns driven by organizations and individuals that comprise ‘civil society’, rarely have narratives that go beyond equating citizens to this anonymous non-descript individuals. What happens when we give a name, a background and a description to this citizen whose rights, welfare or development are supposed to be the premise of the whole movement itself? How do we discover whether the movement has meant anything to the individual citizen in the long run?... Save Cite this Item The cities and the villages The cities and the villages (pp. 135-137) Very often, we complain that our villages lag behind cities in terms of development because of the lack of amenities and facilities that are supposed to make the quality of life better. There is an aspiration among the village youth to migrate to the cities to make a living and partake of the fruits of development. Our month long walk of four hundred and twenty kilometers to build awareness on Right to Information Act among the larger community gave us a glimpse of many differences between our cities and our villages. These were differences, not just of infrastructure and facilities,... Save Cite this Item The culmination, the new beginning The culmination, the new beginning (pp. 138-139) The day had finally arrived. In one month, we had come quite a distance, both figuratively and physically. The walk of nearly four hundred and twenty kilometers had not left us as exhausted as I had initially presumed. It had been an arduous journey, but the support of the people along the way had helped keep us energetic and in high spirits. It had also been a journey of self-discovery. The simple lifestyle, absence of television and newspapers, lack of basic facilities, interactions with thousands of people had all taught us so much. Most importantly, they had reinforced our faith... Save Cite this Item Beyond the campaign Beyond the campaign (pp. 140-143) No campaign can change the world overnight and it is unwise to have such expectations despite the energy and euphoria generated. At the same time, one must not feel let down by what may seem as a dip in enthusiasm after a campaign as eventful and inspiring as theJaagruthi Yathre. SVYM’s campaign to spread awareness about RTI Act and other developments that were intended to better the lives of millions had concluded, but the commitment to the campaign’s goals remained. The purpose of any campaign is to act as a force that triggers change, no matter how painstakingly slow... Save Cite this Item Citizen engagement and the fight against corruption The reality of corruption The reality of corruption (pp. 147-151) Sometime in early 2014, an elderly woman called me from Bengaluru asking for help in saving her small plot of land and a house bequeathed to her by her late husband. She told me that a few people had been pestering her for many months and asking her to sell off her property to them, which she did not want to do. She was living on a road close to the new international airport on the outskirts of Bengaluru and the real estate value in that area had escalated significantly. It was evident that the pestering had gradually turned into... Save Cite this Item Understanding corruption, and what it takes to fight it Understanding corruption, and what it takes to fight it (pp. 152-157) Corruption is often deemed to be one of the greatest impediments to development. Whether it is collusive corruption, where the parties involved are willful participants who collude and short-circuit the system through their corrupt act, or whether it is coercive corruption, where there is a distinct victim, it is the nation’s progress that is hindered. And when corruption becomes a systemic issue and begins to be recognized as a cultural rather than a behavioral phenomenon, finding an appropriate response either from the state or its people is that much more complex. While media attention that some of the ‘high-profile’ scams... Save Cite this Item A nation rises against corruption A nation rises against corruption (pp. 158-162) Over the last couple of decades and more, stories of corruption and scams have become a common feature in the news both nationally and internationally. In India, corruption scandals of all kinds and scales continue to be reported in the media and the general public has had little respite from either being exposed to stories of corruption or being in situations where one has to indulge in a corrupt act themselves. Whether it was how teachers were recruited in government schools and colleges or how telecom spectrum was allocated, whether it was scams in housing, food-grains, fodder and defense deals... Save Cite this Item From the streets of Mysuru From the streets of Mysuru (pp. 163-168) A day after India celebrated its 64th Independence Day, news broke out that the veteran crusader against corruption, Anna Hazare was arrested by the police and no reason was given for this action. A few reports came in that he had been placed under preventive custody, but what was clear was that the government had bungled its response to the hunger strike that Anna was due to begin. Along with him, at least two hundred and fifty other campaigners against corruption were also detained and it was widely felt that the crackdown bore resemblances to the crackdown of the mid-seventies... Save Cite this Item The political dimensions of the campaign The political dimensions of the campaign (pp. 169-175) The entire campaign against corruption in India marked by the series of protests in the years 2011 and 2012 offer important lessons for us as citizens demanding a corruption-free nation and society. The campaign had seen an unprecedented level of participation from people who had rarely taken to the streets in protest. However, the campaign itself had gone through a cycle of enchantment and disenchantment in the minds of the public in the subsequent months. On the third of August 2012, Anna Hazare and his team called off their indefinite fast that was organized for voicing inaction of the government... Save Cite this Item Citizen engagement towards making democracy work What is the will of the people? What is the will of the people? (pp. 179-182) Between 2004 and 2013, the state of Karnataka had witnessed enormous political turmoil. The single largest political party that had emerged from the 2004 Assembly Elections was kept out of power by a coalition of other parties that formed the government. In the middle of its term, one of the partners of the coalition broke away to join hands with the other larger party and stake claim to form the government, and this arrangement broke again due to political differences. Political bickering reached a nadir by the time the state went into elections again in 2008. Following this, there was... Save Cite this Item The onus is on the voter The onus is on the voter (pp. 183-186) In March 2013, elections to the Urban Local Bodies (City Municipal Corporations) in the state of Karnataka were held. The Mysuru City Corporation elections were a closely contested affair and had their fair share of drama. Campaigning for the elections was not as noisy as before and did not end up defacing the city with flex hoardings all around, thanks to new rules and restrictions on campaigning. There were more door-to-door campaigns and people moved around in large groups canvassing for their candidates. I met one such group and was talking to one of the ladies who was part of... Save Cite this Item Making Democracy Work – The premise Making Democracy Work – The premise (pp. 187-190) This was a question a middle-class homemaker asked our team that was carrying out a door-to-door campaign trying to reach out to the people and urge them to vote responsibly and refrain from being influenced by ‘bribes’ offered by candidates contesting in the elections. Our team faced many other questions as well and at times, it was quite a challenging experience to find responses to such questions in a way that could be reasoned with those who posed them. We had decided early in our campaign that our focus would be on the issue of voter-bribing and responsible voting. All... Save Cite this Item A people’s view of free and fair elections A people’s view of free and fair elections (pp. 191-194) Personally, the ‘Making Democracy Work’ campaign was very educative for me. I had the opportunity to travel around the entire district of Mysuru and meet young people, students, members of self-help groups, farmers, software engineers, factory workers and housewives. We wanted to reach out to every citizen and get them to participate responsibly in the elections and make democracy work. We saw mixed reactions from people. There was hope, aspiration, demand for change, a feeling of helplessness and sometimes a resigned acceptance of the morass to which our political set-up had sunk. The kind of questions that people asked reflected... Save Cite this Item Making the right choice Making the right choice (pp. 195-198) The announcement of any election naturally creates an air of expectation. For the ordinary citizens, it is an opportunity to make a statement either in favor of or against the incumbent. For the politically ambitious, it is an opportunity to ascend their career ladders. For the political parties it is a time to make their calculations and look for the most winnable candidate within their ranks, or even outside. And for a whole lot of people, elections are a way of making a quick buck by running an assortment of errands for a party or a candidate ranging from organizing... Save Cite this Item Shoring up the decaying political discourse Shoring up the decaying political discourse (pp. 199-203) As the dates for the Lok Sabha polls in 2014 got nearer, the decibel levels of the ongoing political discourse were getting shriller, but with issues of very little national significance. None of the parties or the key individual players seemed to be drawing the attention of the electorate to matters of collective national good. The little noise that one person or party was making regarding corruption, crony capitalism and dynastic politics got drowned in the party’s own theatrics and television antics. While one expected political rallies and public speeches to provide opportunities to communicate the key messages reflecting the... Save Cite this Item The role of the manifesto The role of the manifesto (pp. 204-207) A manifesto is a public declaration of intent, motives and positions of an individual or a group in general, and in the context of elections that of an independent candidate or a political party. It is also a promise to the people at large, on the basis of which an individual or a political party seeks power to represent those people. Though it may serve to reflect the ideology of the political unit, a manifesto may be deemed apropos only if it reflects the real will and aspirations of people, aligns with the spirit of the Constitution and remains relevant... Save Cite this Item Perspectives on policy Valuing life Valuing life (pp. 211-214) Bomma, a Jenukuruba, lived in Vodeyarahallimala tribal colony on the fringes of Bandipur forest in Mysuru district with his wife and three little children. He did not have a regular income and his worry each day was about finding some employment locally in order to keep the hearth in his little hut burning. His wife Chinnamma took care of the children, but was additionally burdened with his drinking habits and the entire family survived with nothing more than a hand to mouth existence. Being landless, they depended on the nearby forests for their sustenance. It was a Tuesday and seemed... Save Cite this Item Malnutrition – a national shame Malnutrition – a national shame (pp. 215-218) In 2012, a report was released by the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the state of childhood malnutrition in India, which prompted him to declare malnutrition as a ‘national shame’. The report mentioned that 42 percent of children in India below five years are malnourished. There are reports from other credible agencies as well that put the figure closer to between 52 and 54 percent. The statistic itself may astound or baffle someone in the world of academics, policy or development economics, but what does it mean to an average Indian? As I mull over these figures, I recollect... Save Cite this Item FDI in retail – a death knell for Rathnamma FDI in retail – a death knell for Rathnamma (pp. 219-225) Every morning Rathnamma sat on the footpath³⁹ outside my house in Mysuru selling greens and vegetables. She came at around eight am on most days and went about her business that lasted not more than two to three hours. Her everyday enterprise had drawn my attention and I was curious to know more about the transactions of her business; how much she could possibly earn each day and how she made her ends meet. One day I decided to talk to her and understand all that I wanted. From our conversation, I learned that Rathnamma would borrow 500 rupees every... Save Cite this Item Fighting poverty through the Right to Education Act Fighting poverty through the Right to Education Act (pp. 226-229) A few years back, I was traveling through the villages of Nanjangud Taluk of Mysuru district. I met a man named Kempaiah, who was close to sixty years at that time. He sounded depressed and alone, and was coughing continuously. I learned that it had been a few weeks since his wife and children had temporarily moved to the neighboring district of Kodagu, and were employed in a coffee estate there. This was inevitable, he reckoned, as they could each earn nearly five hundred rupees every day over there. That was an amount he could only dream about earning in... Save Cite this Item Overcoming a poor understanding of poverty Overcoming a poor understanding of poverty (pp. 230-234) It was sometime in 2010 that I met Ramaiah in Bengaluru. He lived with his wife, three children and elderly mother on the outskirts of the city. His life was very simple and revolved only around ensuring food on the table for his family. Every morning he would set out to the city and find work at one of the many construction sites. He was paid by the day and had no other form of security. His son was fifteen years old and had dropped out of school to join him as a helper. They usually worked at least twenty... Save Cite this Item What does financial inclusion include? What does financial inclusion include? (pp. 235-239) Many years ago, I was traveling to Bengaluru to attend a meeting convened by the state government at Vidhana Soudha, the seat of Karnataka’s State Legislature. It was to be a busy day for me with a long list of things that I needed to do on that day and was feeling rushed. I stopped at a wayside eatery to get myself a cup of coffee. I reached out for my wallet to pay for it only to realize it wasn’t there in my pocket. It took me a few minutes to gather my wits and sheepishly approach the cashier... Save Cite this Item An unending movement The inception within The inception within (pp. 243-246) It was February 1984. I was in the third year of my pursuit of becoming a medical doctor in a medical school in Mysuru. Krishna Rajendra Hospital, a district level public hospital attached to this medical school, served as the ground for much of our practical clinical experience before we graduated. I had just passed my pre-clinical exams and had begun clinical rotations in Internal Medicine. The experience of entering a hospital and examining patients was still fresh. As part of our training, we attended bedside clinics in designated wards of the hospital. One of the patients I regularly saw... Save Cite this Item The growth of a movement The growth of a movement (pp. 247-252) Our small, inexperienced, student-led organization began its work in the villages close to the city of Mysuru in an attempt to provide ethical, rational and cost-effective health care to rural India. Eventually, we moved to work with the indigenous tribal communities of the district and started functioning from Brahmagiri, a tribal hamlet located about eighty kilometers from the heart of the city. Though we were driven by high idealism, our knowledge and competencies were limited to the field of medicine. Everything that we did, right from registering our organization to living and working with the tribal communities taught us new... Save Cite this Item A battle for human rights A battle for human rights (pp. 253-258) There are five anthropologically distinct indigenous tribes who have been living in Heggadadevanakote Taluk of Mysuru District in Southern India for centuries. Categorized as ‘Scheduled Tribes’, these people are known to have an anthropological history of more than five thousand years. The three major groups are the Jenukurubas, Kadukurubas (locally known as Bettakurubas) and Yeravas while the Bunde Soligas and Paniyas constitute two other smaller groups. Their traditions, cultural values and lifestyles are born out of the context in which they have lived for centuries and encompass their food practices, hunting and food gathering methods, agricultural practices, health issues, learning... Save Cite this Item A grassroots initiative for policy research and advocacy A grassroots initiative for policy research and advocacy (pp. 259-263) The year 2009 marked twenty five years of relentless work at the grassroots for an organization which had grown from being just an inspired dream in my mind to a six hundred strong team of mostly young and committed individuals taking charge of various institutions within its fold. The trials and tribulations faced in the initial years to even survive had given way to stability and institutionalization of processes and activities. We not only had presence in different parts of the state of Karnataka, but also had national recognition and presence in the United States of America and the United... Save Cite this Item Making advocacy a community movement Making advocacy a community movement (pp. 264-269) Primary Health Centers (PHC), run by the government, are the backbone of the healthcare delivery system in rural India. A majority of the healthcare programs and services introduced by the government are delivered through these centers among which, reproductive and child health services are given high priority. To address the high rate of maternal and infant mortality, thrust is placed on ensuring that women opt for maternity services in institutions rather than deliver at home. Towards this, the state has created PHCs that function round the clock (24 x 7), so that communities can access them any time they need.... Save Cite this Item EPILOGUE: CITIZEN ENGAGEMENT – EXEMPLARS AND REALITIES EPILOGUE: CITIZEN ENGAGEMENT – EXEMPLARS AND REALITIES (pp. 270-276) Mudalimadiah is a very senior and respected chieftain of the Kadukuruba tribal community. Though I have known him since 1987, we became close only after 1996 when we had started our engagement with the National Human Rights Commission on the issue of displacement and rehabilitation of the tribals in Heggadadevanakote. It was a time when the tension between the forest department and the tribal communities was quite palpable, and even small incidents could potentially turn into explosive situations. The callous and insensitive attitudes of the forest department and the police were making the tribals increasingly restive as the struggle for... Save Cite this Item GLOSSARY GLOSSARY (pp. 277-281)