It was 22nd April, 2008. While I was delivering a lecture about the relevancy of the organization that organized legal aid camp at Ghatal in the district of Paschim Medinipur, a question was raised from the audience as to the relevancy of free legal aid to be provided by the Non-Government organization when the government is making sincere endeavour to promote free legal aid to the persons and or inhabitants of the area who deserve legal assistance.
My immediate response was that in a flood affected area a non-governmental organization distributes food packets, drinking water and medicine to the flood victims eagerly seeking the immediate assistance provided by any entity regardless of its legal status i.e. whether it is a Non-Government or Government organization. It signifies that in a country like ours, relief, aid, assistance to the distressed and denuded denizens are not in abundance and completely disproportionate to our need.
If we can visualize a situation when a house in a community is engulfed with fire, the next door neighbour does not hesitate to provide immediate assistance to put out the fire. It cannot be conceived of that being generous; he or she extended assistance for extinguishing the fire. Then the question arises why he did so. The invariable reply would be out of fear of death.
Historiography postulates that our nation is basically a country of immigrants. Since time immemorial, many ethnic groups having racial, linguistic, cultural, religious diversities have streamed into India. Thus, India is a nation of composite culture having unity in diversity.
Nowadays, it has been established that tribal communities, scheduled Tribes and forest dwellers are the original inhabitants of India. They constitute a minuscule percentage of the Indian population. Due to settlement of immigrants these indigenous communities of India were subjected to oppression, deprivation and exploitation on many counts and thereby they were forced to live in the areas where basic amenities and facilities were not in abundance.
The history of partition of India narrates the saga of displaced denizens of undivided India mainly of two provinces i.e. Punjab and Bengal. Pre-1947 and Post-1947 episodes of partition of India present a gloomier or heart-rending narrative of migration from their original habitat. Immediately after their migration, they were accommodated in different camps in West Bengal and Punjab and subsequent thereto, they were settled and rehabilitated to Andaman Island, the neighbouring states of Bihar and Odisha and then to inhospitable terrains of Dandakaranya, a dense forest in the heart of Odisha and Chhattisgarh and in many parts of West Bengal and Punjab.
In the post-partition era, a socio-economic crisis cropped up resulting in deep-rooted poverty, malnutrition, and waterborne disease. Assistance provided by the central government was not adequate to address the crisis of a large number of displaced communities. Today we are in the 75th year of our independence. In the meantime much water has flown in the Ganges. If we travel different parts of India, it will be crystal clear that the real issues are socio economic translated into terrible poverty, child malnutrition, the massive unemployment, scarcity of medical care, caste oppression, gender discrimination from which most of the Indian population are suffering.
With a view to address those issues, our Central government and the State governments are relentlessly trying to curb these evils by implementing different projects at national and state-level for eradication of poverty, malnutrition and unemployment.
Under the lens of critics, the conduct of our governments cannot be placed beyond reproach as no holistic approach was made to ascertain the real reason underlying these issues which need to be addressed. Any government is impersonal machinery run by fellow countrymen suffering from many vices. The socio-economic problem of a nation cannot be resolved merely by implementation of the scheme or by means of financing the said scheme for amelioration of the different strata of the society.
Poverty and malnutrition of an indigenous community or backward community can be nipped in the bud if the causation of poverty of the said community can be properly ascertained. Unless an in-depth empirical study of that community is conducted to ascertain the reason as to why the said community is poverty stricken, implementation of any scheme would be of no relevance. The community-based study can be conducted by the persons who are well acquainted with the workaday activity of that community and their culture.
Without knowing the basic reason of poverty of a particular community, no endeavour can be made for addressing the real issues. Therefore, there is an enigma in implementing the scheme which appears to be beneficial for the purpose of the indigenous community.
The empirical study on an indigenous community in a sleepy rural hamlet in the district of Malda may not be similar to the study conducted on forest dwelling scheduled tribe in the district of Jhargram and Paschim Medinipur in West Bengal. Similarly, the study of an indigenous community in the district of Malkangiri in Odisha would not be alike. In my view, the study can be undertaken by the local self-government or non-governmental organization working under the said area for years together and particularly who have the scope to assess the issues from the close quarters of the indigenous and backward community.
We, the Indians, are hereditarily endowed with the quality of servicing humanity. In recent times, our service-oriented approach is declining owing to the decadence of our moral values. Service to humanity is a service to self which is unknown in modern India. Our constitutional ethos reminds us to cherish and follow the noble ideas which inspire our national struggle for freedom. It is quite difficult for any government to render adequate amenities to each and every citizen of our country. For achieving the ultimate growth of our nation, it is the need of the hour to contribute our dedicated service to the deserving community whose amelioration or integration with the mainstream of society has become imperative.
There is no doubt that the socio-economic development of indigenous communities and or any backward community entail the balanced growth of a nation where every citizen will equally enjoy the fruits of national growth presenting a society free of poverty, malnutrition, illiteracy and unemployment.
For efficacious implementation of nation building mission, compulsory programmes need to be introduced in school curriculum, professional level, in permanent bureaucratic, judicial and political set up in our country in a manner so that in an organized way, accountability can be fixed upon an institution or an individual for not taking part in the service of humanity which is an integral part of nation building. To preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture, a service oriented approach needs to be instilled in young minds by imparting moral and ethical code of conduct for humanity at an elementary level. By this process, our younger generation will learn how to cherish human dignity for striving towards excellence in all spheres of life.
The author is an advocate of Calcutta High Court. The views expressed in the article are his own.