"No man is a fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." - Jim Elliot
I personally identify and like to attach with the cause of the underdogs in general. There is a dilemma involved with this choice because by descent, upbringing, education and needs; I am a person belonging to middle class society. I am fond of middle−class comforts (like 3rd AC train compartments),a bit of liberal values and even risk free career aspirations. And now, I have undertaken a job in the OLM (Odisha Livelihood Mission) as a "young professional" (a word designated by World Bank for their fresh joiner) so that my work can directly have a positive impact on the people. I had made a new path in the career by abandoning engineering to work in the rural areas for a brief time. The line that boosted my career jump was- If gamblers start worrying about the odds, they would never gamble.
Our generation has an old mindset of scarcity (money) and risk aversion (career switch). Age is never an issue if you have an enthusiastic spirit. 27 is such an age where I stand on the end of bachelor life chasing wild dreams. I have chosen to change course radically and to start completely all over again from scratch. I am happy that my new job will not be to make people buy things they don't want and don't need.
There was a bit of randomness in allotting work initially but induction training happened at Bhubaneswar office. New joiners will be sent to rural areas for exposure to the organization work style through the trainee-ship segment. I am going to Balasore district for immersion visit of 21 days accompanies with two other new fellows like me. Field experience is not only about preservation as about fortification of the knowledge gained at college.
People travel to the far and remote part of alienated regions. They are just only "guided tourists", who return from turbulent societies only to talk about wonderful scenery and wildlife, instead of the people who live their daily lives in the pain and laughter in those foreign lands. Identity of the people leaving in such a desolated region cannot be reduced to a mere geographical space. It is much more than that: it comprises of the emotional−psychological and historical landscapes. I am not any morally superior or far better than them but only going one level more from being a "development tourist" only this time.
Going off the topic, i am too happy to support and share vision of Jairam Ramesh who publicly proclaimed - Unlearn the garbage taught in professional schools.
