It was a week that I spent completely at home. I was on the offline mode regarding XIMB. Hence, I will put down some videos for learning purpose for rural managers.
Rural Development - The Challenge of Livelihood and Poverty
Although there appears to be an enduring concern with India's poor within the policy circle and in public discourse, is this debate leading to new and innovative ideas on how to pull millions of Indians out of grinding poverty? What is the way forward? Should the emphasis be on skills development, agricultural development, microfinance, market access etc? What other models of rural development do we need to examine?
25th September : Attended the class of P T Joseph. I shared answers of personal questions in the public. I disagreed with him about the revealing of private data in public. I am gaining guts each day to face down the powerful and say what needs to be said. And I hope that it should inspire introverts and progressives.
Since, I am selected for first round of summer internship for TERI, I started studying for the interview.
TERI has undertaken an initiative of Lighting a Billion Lives (LaBL) through the use of solar lighting devices. The Campaign aims to bring light into the lives of one billion rural people by replacing the kerosene and paraffin lanterns with solar lighting devices. In terms of physical targets, it translates into 200 000 000 solar lanterns in use, assuming that each solar lantern benefits five members of a family.
"Movements have always begun with the people and not with the government." ---Arnold Schwarzenegger
Learning : The key issue with rural is 'last mile penetration' for companies and government agencies in general opinion. Poor often pay higher prices than wealthier consumers do for lower-quality goods and services because of uncompetitive markets.
Kurushetra work is going with quite good pace. I am understanding the complete game as a part of marketing team.
On personal note, a lot of blessings to Saumaya and Sonam also for their caring nature :)
26th September : RM is champion in overall sports meet. Rupika Singh is a damn good performer in so many games. Gaurav Anand played really good in cricket winning streak! Truly, Rupika, Partha, Krishanu and Mithelesh are all-rounders in RM 2011-2013 batch whom I look up to and get inspiration from.
I learned a distinct fact about Indian society and media today in the classroom: Urban population takes media more credible than their rural counterparts. Mass Media does not initiate the change, it can maximum accelerate the process of change. Villagers always identify themselves within their reference groups while urban have self perception of iconoclast.
The SPIC MACAY Chapter of XIMB organized Western Classical Music Programme : Cello & Classical Guitar performance by Anders Øien & Gustavo Tavares, two of the best classical musicians from Norway.
27th September : Parthsarthy CR got selected for Summer Internship in Sanguine Management Services. TERI interview got postponed even on Tuesday. It was frustrating !
One of the major factors that I like in the development studies : It talks critical about paternalism and dependence. A factor highly overlooked by our mainstream studies ! I observe both pro and cons of RM programme of XIMB. I like XIMB for its nice blend of management and development in comparison to the 'Other' colleges of rural management. Corporate exposure in RM programme can be well marketed as USP for coming years. I don't like XIMB because it highly undermines the potential of the RM programme in comparison to BM programme. Sometimes administration make me feel our batch as the children of a lesser god.
Good News: Association of Indian Universities (AIU) has granted equivalence of MBA for the Rural Management program of XIMB.
28th September :Whenever I write this blog, I get inspired from Milan Kundera, Anne Frank, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn and Julian Assange.
RPLS : Learning brain does not have apartment for the different subjects. It is the mixture of interconnected information that makes sense.
Indian movies are substandard in the nature. It is just like Indian markets that is fond of substandard products. That is true for the people also who falls like products on the criteria of merit. Even people don't like and feel threatened by the exceptional talent or an outlier in their group/society/class. Kudos to Manu Bansal for raising bars in academics and rest of people will definitely suffer in the long run with this fatalistic approach!
AP got selected for Summer Internship in ABRL(Aditya Birla Retail Limited). A coincidence of meeting Sachi madam at CCD :)
A look at the students of Pantnagar university in XIMB confirmed a loyalty and bonding factor amongst themselves. It does not promote outliers but work on the concept of gradual change in coming batches. The tradition of respect and the code of conduct at micro level of observation.
There are lakhs of flood Victims in Orissa and were mass participation in Anna Hazare's movement last month. And we were excluded from each of these movement. It appears quite paradox somewhere in the mind. When the world is changing, do educational institute need to force student becoming apolitical and unconcern in nature. But I have put head down to work alone and not to be influenced by group thinking and mass movements. Today, I am opting out enter into this chaos and struggle. Tomorrow I must must and must return, to do what I can for others.
Few of us in the batch are feeling agitated by some issues over transparency and administrative hurdles. A sher by Faiz Ahmed Faiz to commemorate and summarize what is going inside any institute, country and human society.
ऐ ज़ुल्म के मातों लब खोलो, चुप रहने वालों चुप कब तक,
कुछ हश्र तो इनसे उट्ठेगा, कुछ दूर तो नाले जायेंगे |
29th September : There are two quizzes scheduled today. An average performance in both of them. Rafa was admitted to hospital. His medical report is not a sign of good health.
Only few days have deep impact on the course of a life. September 29th is a remarkable day when lasting memories are made. While riding my bike, the wind flowing through my hair has given me a feeling of ecstasy on the September night.
Sum of capability of our batch in cynical form : Underemployment of sub standard products in the market. Reading capacity of the RM batch is quite low. Best academic institutes create persons with reading capability that gave them a upper hand over their competitors.
There are staunch leftist in the faculty who does not consider market good. Hence, have a quite negative view of the new world. They are not a problem now. The problem of our generation : Persons (in our batch also) who thinks 'Capitalism' as the only way of development. They have no deep analysis and idea of the social welfare, justice, merit and opportunities. They consider 'Merit' as a uni-dimensional tool for the progressive society. Anti protest and positive discrimination policies like reservations appear futile to them. There worldview doesn't consider social factors like social taboos, caste discrimination (now caste assertion) much in the counting. Only through the framework of economic background, they hastily judge everything. Lack of knowledge of social science in students and lack of knowledge of economics in faculty while over-viewing society is apparent as epidemic everywhere. May be my analysis wrong here ! Yet capitalist or communist, most of us are 'western' not 'modern' in the social behaviour.
1st October : It is a start of Dussehra holiday. I am out of XIMB. Hurray !
A good video to enjoy weekend : The 6 killer apps of prosperity: Niall Ferguson on TED.com
18th September - There is complete lack of any participation of student in decding the course structure of Rural Management. Institute like IRMA (Institute of Rural Management) should be named IRDA (Institute of Rural Development); The camouflage of campus placement does not change the mentality of the faculties who push students towards NGO sector. There is call of "bottom-up development" in every rural management programs without being implemented on their own students !
The recording, identifying and acknowledgment of “every casualty of development propaganda” in a rural management programs is an idea whose time has come.
Hope, the rebel voice of mine gets a fruitful result otherwise we all know that the people who produce half a revolution, dig their own grave.
19th September - MEARS : Mischief mongers dig their own grave. Parasite, below poverty line and ungrateful are the words used with full sarcasm by Prof S P Das. But its quite reflection ours lack of clear knowledge.
There is a lot of anger over selection of candidates for Live projects for RMAX (Rural managers' Association of XIMB). Its clear that there is lot of compromise over merit. Few of us have planned to talk to seniors regarding this biased selection process. It is necessary to distinct between participatory and organizational model of RMAX. First round of talks with Shivam failed a general sense of mood of dialouge was initiated. The word 'perception' and 'sop' were
20th September - I don't notice whether it's raining or not today because I was happy for having a coffee on rainy day.I barely managed to finish FR assignment. The task of making a balance sheet of a shop no. 23 of Xavier vendor zone. I understood why no body believes the data given by government.
21st September - There was cancellation of visit to flood zone of mine and Rahul Wahi at the last moment. It was disappointment for me.
In RPLS (Rural Production & Livelihood Systems) class there was a discussion on BAIF and ideas of development by Late Dr. Manibhai Desai. BAIF Development Research Foundation is a professionally managed non-profit Public Trust, established by a noted Gandhian, Late Dr. Manibhai Desai in 1967, to promote sustainable livelihood in Rural India.
I missed the dance deliberately prevailing health reason. I don't know why but I remembered a quite good paper on management.
22nd September - Average performance in FSA test . But a good joint venture study session with AP. Quite an easy and relaxing day.
23rd September - There was discussion on an article of economic times : Teach People to Fish in RPLS lecture. There is good debate in the class itself on the approach to see poor from market or welfare view.
I feel little low on energy as was not selected for 2nd Round of Sanguine Management Services.
24th September - A sleeping and tiring day for me. Two SRM classes back to back were highly boring. The assignment of EQ & Leadership shows my trait towards : Innovative Leadership and Strategic Leadership.
It is also remembered as a day of gift of a special book :)
11th September - OB and RDA exams are over. Hence, there is formal closure of first trimester with few assignments.
There is a difference between fresher and experienced student in the college regarding money. While both of them know how to spend money cautiously, the experienced candidate know how to accumulate money little by little for desired product. A pearl of wisdom from Partha.
12th September - One more installment of fees paid with my hard earned money. Missed SRP presentation due to headache. Demand Draft for 2nd trimester is ready.
A special Talk given by Mr. Anshu Gupta who is the CEO of GOONJ (http://goonj.org/).
A brilliant and inquisitive mind, he studied journalism as well as Advertising & Public Relations from one of the premier Institute in India (Indian Institute of Mass Communication), and then went on to do a Masters in Economics. While still a graduate student in 1991, he traveled to Uttarkashi, North India after a major earthquake. Missing out on his classes, he lived in tents for days and helped in the relief efforts. This was his first real exposure to the problems of rural masses in far off parts of the country, something that shocked his urban sensibilities.
He emphasized on the difference between discarding and donating of clothes. To make clothing a matter of concern for Indians is a big leap forward by him. His emphasis on taboo subject of sanitary napkins in the context of India was heart wrenching. We middle and elite class wait for disaster to help people. Why ? Such a tough question was never asked to me in the life. I was speechless at the end of the talk. He has asked some tough questions from himself. Why can't I ?
14th September - 9-9:30 in the class. Tired and super low on energy level. SRM lecture brushed the concept of paradigm shift and black swan.
15th September - ITM is an interesting. French Fries at Pal Heights are not so good but the com:)
16th September - MEARS and FSA are going out of hand. A team from Wageningen University was in campus on a collaborative project with XIMB. Its focus was on “The System of Rice Intensification as a Socio-Technical Movement in India”
One good video seen today; Economist Yasheng Huang compares China to India, and asks how China's authoritarian rule contributed to its astonishing economic growth -- leading to a big question: Is democracy actually holding India back?
Talk by Ajit Mohapatra, CMD, Kalinga Engineering Ltd. on Leadership. He started with LPG ( Liberalization, Privatization and Globalization) and later moved to non risk taking capability of public sector and bureaucracy. Government Secretariat was termed as grave of all great ideas !
