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When
we read the above lines we were amazed. The reasons were several.
We had just returned from a trip to Dhule Nandurbag and Baramati,
both districts of Maharashtra. The journey there was an eye opener.
We traveled through vast completely barren, dry, dusty lands. It
was a scene out of a western movie. No sign of any life or greenery
of any sorts. Barren, dry, desolate. Several parts of Maharashtra
are witnessing a severe drought. There are ranches where cattle
are kept and government funds are spent feeding the cattle, because
farmers do not have the fodder or water to look after the cattle.
Whilst traveling to Baramati we saw rows and rows of bullock carts
with large plastic bins making there way to a 14x12 feet tank to
get water. It was an uncomfortable sight, and we wondered at what
kind of communities were we as a society building.
Something
is wrong. With all the progress that the state of Maharashtra has
made, there still are villages with no water to drink and have to
be serviced through water tankers. Across India, unemployment reigns
supreme in our villages and pollution reigns supreme in our cities.
Whilst traveling in the rickshaws to meetings in Mumbai, we looked
up to take a look at the sky. It was not there. All we saw was a
smoky grey haze, where was the sky ? What are we doing - About population,
pollution, water, environment, children, women, cleanliness…what
kind of communities are we building ?
Some
NGOs such as the one that works at Sadahna Village are doing their
bit. Sadhana Village and the World Center For Creative Learning
Foundation focuses on helping the mentally challenged express themselves
and initiate a healing process, through therapies that use music,
dance and drama. In one of his therapy sessions, Xavier a resident
at Sadhana Village wrote the above poem. Strikingly relevant we
thought to ourselves.
At
United Way we work with NGOs that work in the areas of education,
children, women and civic issues, with an aim to make this world
a brighter place, a world where perhaps one day we can see a good
sky, good rain and new trees grow once again.
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