Our education system contributes in a big way in turning people away from entrepreneurship. Doing business is not actively encouraged as a way of life in many families either. Rather business is looked at least by some as a way of making money at the expense of another. Which is not true for a good business.
Depending on the formal education system to teach a villager on the business infrastructure is useless. We could educate the youth of the villages on how to make a living by doing business. For some it come naturally. For the others it need to be shown. Fears of lack of capital kills one too many entrepreneurs. But if one does not know the avenues of finances possible great lives get nipped at the bud. Information is power.
In America, kids run lemonade stands in summer. They take part in many other entrepreneurial activities through out their childhood. These and the iconic glory of a capitalist society paves seeds of a business mind.
The disparity is even greater in Indian Villages. So any entrepreneurship based village development program we implement in the coming Years, should have an additional investment budget item for Educating a potential entrepreneur. Results can wait. But the hopes are great!.
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Exposure to Villages in India
Our villages in India need more exposure. I am confident that there are thousands of innovations going on - mainly because of the basic need - and they say necessity is the mother of invention! Just a Google search will tell us how innovative are our villages - starting from basic medicine to sophisticated psychology issues! Look at this - http://www.sristi.org/anilg/
I found this very interesting link some time back when I was searching for this topic: http://www.rediff.com/money/2006/aug/25spec.htm
Lot of these innovations and inventions tie naturally with the cycles of nature – be it related to conservation of water or related to medicine. In my view, it was unfortunate that we had it in our culture to say greed is not good! Let us accept this – little greed is good. Everything is bad when it is too much, isn’t it? So is greed.
http://www.sristi.org/cms/files/Transforming%20Indian%20villages%20through%20innovations,%2021%20Oct%2005.doc
I had earlier discussed we need capsules of capitalism in our villages to boost them. These are the avenues where there is a scope for unconventional investments. Exposure, venture capital help, education on IPR can make our villages pretty rich!
I found this very interesting link some time back when I was searching for this topic: http://www.rediff.com/money/2006/aug/25spec.htm
Lot of these innovations and inventions tie naturally with the cycles of nature – be it related to conservation of water or related to medicine. In my view, it was unfortunate that we had it in our culture to say greed is not good! Let us accept this – little greed is good. Everything is bad when it is too much, isn’t it? So is greed.
http://www.sristi.org/cms/files/Transforming%20Indian%20villages%20through%20innovations,%2021%20Oct%2005.doc
I had earlier discussed we need capsules of capitalism in our villages to boost them. These are the avenues where there is a scope for unconventional investments. Exposure, venture capital help, education on IPR can make our villages pretty rich!
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Terrorism and us continued...
Let me follow on to Girish's thoughts on terrorism.
I'll start with the age of cliché that one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter. I believe so too. I do not have any reference to the old British New Papers. But at least some monarchical press could have stamped Gandhi and Nehru at some level as mindless terrorists. We know for a fact that Bhagat Singh and Azad heard the exact same names. Fidel Castro was one for both United States and the Cuban Government.
What rights do India have to criticize US invading Iraq?. Our short term memory forgets Sri Lanka and Maldives, let alone Bangladesh where we masterminded a coup.
What is termed as terrorism is caused by fundamental level conflicts between humans. In places where jurisdiction is powerful and just, humans will turn to the system to correct a wrong doing. Unfortunately the wrongs and rights of this world are all relative. For a father with a hungry child at his home, stealing a loaf of bread may be the only solution at times. I know I am over simplifying. Bear with me on this please. The justice frame work in our current world ends at the maximum at the state level. The international court of Justice is not a powerful organization.
Many south Indian states have fierce water disputes. Not many go around blowing up each others dams. But they approach the courts. However the Kashmir referendum will never be heard in an Indian court or in a Pakistan court since the respective states will not give a damn. What will happen then?, Some people will feel the powerlessness when faced with an unjust System. Could this feeling be the root cause of turbulence usually termed terrorism?
I believe so; since mercenaries cannot have passion, and without passion one cannot tie a bomb around ones waist and blow up ones own body. Once the passion for the cause is created there will be vultures who wants to make money off that passion. May it be by selling arms to fighters in Afghan mountains or by finding a market for their only crop opium. The short sightedness of actions creates Frankenstein out of commoners. This brings us to the topic of state supported disruptive actions by factions.
The world we live in always had differences of opinion at the highest levels. If viewed at a macro level these differences may sound more childish than those by the first graders fighting over the right to sit in a particular seat. In my opinion there are no near term solution for what we now call as terrorism, Civil war and Wars. Inherent human nature craves for certain rights. Right or wrong, the perception when translated to a wide group of people the opinion, becomes more powerful than what is the right thing to do. Political interventions is a very powerful tool. I believe in democracy and I believe that democracy calls for the prevalence of the opinion of the majority. However hard it may be opinion of an informed population should be heard. Those voices matter irrespective of where they are voiced: Kashmir, West Bank or in Jakarta. Problems should be acknowledged and addressed. State should not under estimate the power of mass will, after all mass will is a democracy.
At the grassroots level a solution will be to engage the youth in activities that earns respect and money. An idle mind almost always is a workshop for the omnipresent devil. Let those vultures be at bay, empower the youth with economic independence. Entrepreneurs create jobs. Jobs keep people busy and happy. Jobs bring in money and harmony. Harmony fosters family relationships. And such a society has a lower chance of getting attacked from the inside.
I'll start with the age of cliché that one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter. I believe so too. I do not have any reference to the old British New Papers. But at least some monarchical press could have stamped Gandhi and Nehru at some level as mindless terrorists. We know for a fact that Bhagat Singh and Azad heard the exact same names. Fidel Castro was one for both United States and the Cuban Government.
What rights do India have to criticize US invading Iraq?. Our short term memory forgets Sri Lanka and Maldives, let alone Bangladesh where we masterminded a coup.
What is termed as terrorism is caused by fundamental level conflicts between humans. In places where jurisdiction is powerful and just, humans will turn to the system to correct a wrong doing. Unfortunately the wrongs and rights of this world are all relative. For a father with a hungry child at his home, stealing a loaf of bread may be the only solution at times. I know I am over simplifying. Bear with me on this please. The justice frame work in our current world ends at the maximum at the state level. The international court of Justice is not a powerful organization.
Many south Indian states have fierce water disputes. Not many go around blowing up each others dams. But they approach the courts. However the Kashmir referendum will never be heard in an Indian court or in a Pakistan court since the respective states will not give a damn. What will happen then?, Some people will feel the powerlessness when faced with an unjust System. Could this feeling be the root cause of turbulence usually termed terrorism?
I believe so; since mercenaries cannot have passion, and without passion one cannot tie a bomb around ones waist and blow up ones own body. Once the passion for the cause is created there will be vultures who wants to make money off that passion. May it be by selling arms to fighters in Afghan mountains or by finding a market for their only crop opium. The short sightedness of actions creates Frankenstein out of commoners. This brings us to the topic of state supported disruptive actions by factions.
The world we live in always had differences of opinion at the highest levels. If viewed at a macro level these differences may sound more childish than those by the first graders fighting over the right to sit in a particular seat. In my opinion there are no near term solution for what we now call as terrorism, Civil war and Wars. Inherent human nature craves for certain rights. Right or wrong, the perception when translated to a wide group of people the opinion, becomes more powerful than what is the right thing to do. Political interventions is a very powerful tool. I believe in democracy and I believe that democracy calls for the prevalence of the opinion of the majority. However hard it may be opinion of an informed population should be heard. Those voices matter irrespective of where they are voiced: Kashmir, West Bank or in Jakarta. Problems should be acknowledged and addressed. State should not under estimate the power of mass will, after all mass will is a democracy.
At the grassroots level a solution will be to engage the youth in activities that earns respect and money. An idle mind almost always is a workshop for the omnipresent devil. Let those vultures be at bay, empower the youth with economic independence. Entrepreneurs create jobs. Jobs keep people busy and happy. Jobs bring in money and harmony. Harmony fosters family relationships. And such a society has a lower chance of getting attacked from the inside.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)