Vol.64, Issue 6
Annual Subscription Rs.480
December 2013
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WHAT’S INSIDE
EDITOR’S LETTER
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Editor’s Letter
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In My Thoughts Family Over Everything Nation Building through Science and Technology Pick of the Month
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WHAT’S INSIDE
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The Lives of Mothers Lights On The Giving Festival Read, Write, Learn Save our Children After the Phailin
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WHAT’S INSIDE
ADVISORY BOARD RID P.T. Prabhakar
RI Dist. 3230
PRIP Rajendra K. Saboo
RI Dist. 3080
PRIP Kalyan Banerjee
RI Dist. 3060
PRID Ashok Mahajan
RI Dist. 3140
PRID Yash Pal Das
RI Dist. 3080
PRID Shekhar Mehta
RI Dist. 3291
DG
Rabi Narayan Nanda
RI Dist. 3262
DG
Radhe Shyam Rathi
RI Dist. 3053
DG
Hari Krishna Chitipothu
RI Dist. 3150
PDG R. Badri Prasad
RI Dist. 3190
PDG Dr. Ashok Kumar Singh
RI Dist. 3261
PDG Ramesh Aggarwal
RI Dist. 3010
Rtn. T.K. Balakrishnan
RI Dist. 3230
COMMITTEES DG Vinod Bansal - Finance Committee DG Deepak Shikarpur - Editorial Committee DG Anil Agarwal - Marketing Committee DG Mohan Mulherkar - Marketing Committee
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ROTARY NEWS ROTARY SAMACHAR Editor Rtn. T.K. Balakrishnan Assistant Editors Jaishree S. Selvi
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Pick of the Month Divine Tryst with Trinity Breaking Fast the Veggie Way
Sub Editor Kiran Zehra
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Send all correspondence and subscriptions to ROTARY NEWS TRUST 3rd Floor, Dugar Towers, 34 Marshalls Road, Egmore, Chennai 600 008, India. Phone : 044 42145666 Fax : 044 28528818 e-mail : rotarynews@rosaonline.org
Very Briefly
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People Say...
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onversation is an exercise of the brain and gossip is a brainless exercise of the tongue. Most of us are guilty of trying to rubbish others. It can be fact or fiction and most often it is fiction. Nothing is too much when it comes to building friendships within a club. Given the difficulty in bringing in new members and predicting the membership figures as on July 1 every year, the smart way to behave is not to try and put others down. The strength of a backlash can be rather unpredictable at times. The application of excellence in relationship building can help the members of the club to stay together. If you had a bank that credited your account each morning with Rs.86,400 with no balance carried from day to day, what would you do? Well, you do have such a bank ... time. Every morning it credits you with 86,400 seconds. Every night it rules off as “lost” whatever you have failed to use toward good purposes. It carries over no balances and allows no overdrafts. You can’t hoard it, save it, store it, loan it or invest it. You can only use it.
EDITOR’S LETTER
Arthur Berry was truly one of the most famous jewel thieves of all times. In his years of crime, he committed as many as 150 burglaries and stole jewels valued $10 million. He was eventually caught, convicted and served 25 years in prison for his crimes. A newspaper reporter found him and interviewed him about his life. After talking about the thrilling episodes of his life, he concluded the interview saying, “Don’t just tell them I robbed this famous person or that bank. You tell them Arthur Berry robbed Arthur Berry. I think I could have made something of my life, but I didn’t.” Wasting time trying to be one up or trying to prove who is stronger is akin to robbing yourself of the precious time when you could have built bridges of friendship. The great Napoleon said, “Think twice before you speak.” He surely knew the mistakes he committed. The purpose of education is to replace an empty mind with an open one. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “For every minute you waste your mind on petty things, you give up sixty seconds of peace of mind.” People with poor self-image love to gossip and keep a topic alive. Mostly they are rumours. Gossip is merely one way of spreading other’s misery in order to make themselves feel good. It just shows that if I can’t do what the other person is doing, I will try to pull him or her down. A gossip monger’s time is consumed by bad news. Eleanor Roosevelt said, “Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events and small minds discuss people.” The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their minds.
Rtn. T.K. Balakrishnan DECEMBER 2013 ROTARY NEWS 11
Reactions
LETTERS FROM READERS
Accolades and more... Your ‘Editor’s Letter’ is really thought provoking. I also liked the ‘Guidelines to Send News.’ DG Deepak Shikarpur RI District 3131 I greatly appreciate the work done by you and your staff in making Rotary News one of the well published news magazines for any voluntary organisation in the world. PDG Rajendra Rai RI District 3190 Please accept my heartiest congratulations for achieving a phenomenal growth for Rotary News. It is a team effort that has created a magazine of highest quality and produced such fantastic results. However, needless to say, your singular contribution to the success story is unquestionable. I feel proud and fortunate to be associated as the Chairman of Rotary News Trust during 2008-09 and working with you and your team was a pleasant experience. PDG Bansi Dhurandhar RI District 3140 There is no doubt that Rotary News which is being brought out by you consistently every month has excellent content and very impressive presentation. Appreciation by our International President speaks about the kind of effort which has gone in
by you. Keep up the good work going. PDG R. Badri Prasad RI District 3190 Membership Development Rotarians from India will be delighted that they are crossing the target set by Rotary International on Regional Membership plan easily. We are also confident that we will be able to catch the membership target of 1,60,000 by 2015 in India. Rtn. Paramesh Dev Choudhury RC Guwahati South RI District 3240 Well Written I congratulate you for bringing out an excellent article on ‘Jai Ho’ which is a scholarship distribution project for underprivileged students to continue their studies. Ms. Selvi has given a superb write-up about the events. Both the design of the article and the title ‘Igniting Hope’ are good. Rtn. S.S. Venkatachalam RC Chennai IT City RI District 3230 First of all I am bound to share with you that your letters inspire me like anything. No words will match to appreciate the contents of your Editorials. Rtn. M.K. Jha RC Rajdhani RI District 3292 Thank you for publishing a very detailed report about
the ‘Church of our Lady of Light’ at Mylapore. I will appreciate if such subjects are included in the Rotary News in future too. Rtn. M.T. Philip RC Trivandrum Suburban RI District 3211 I compliment you for the wonderful and world class quality of monthly magazine brought out under your dynamic leadership. The ‘Editor’s Letter’ is always so impressive. Rtn. N.N.K. Menon RC Kunnamkulam RI District 3201 Informative In the October 2013 issue of Rotary News, all the contents right from the beginning are very informative, very enriching. I am sure this issue alone can make one a true Rotarian. The Editor’s Letter (Rush Hour), the RI President’s Message (In My Thoughts) and the subsequent contents include sufficient materials to explain the Rotary philosophy. Rtn. Ajoy Tunkalia RC Jaipur Heights RI District 3052 September 2013 issue was very interesting and informative, which made me read on and on. Its approach towards younger generation is superb. I just loved it. Rtn. Monalisa RC Bhubaneswar Friends RI District 3262
The editor welcomes brief comments on the contents of the magazine, but reserves the right to edit submissions for style and length. Published letters do not necessarily reflect the views of the editors or the RI leadership, nor do the editors take responsibility for errors of fact that may be expressed by the writers. Only letters that include a verifiable name, address and day and evening phone numbers can be considered for publication. Readers are our source of encouragement. Some of our esteemed patrons share their valuable feedback….
In My Thoughts
Dear Fellow Rotarians, One winter day, Rotary founder Paul Harris took a walk down a well-kept street just outside Chicago. Watching children sledding down a hillside, he recalled his own boyhood in New England. At that moment, he decided that if he ever were to own a home, it would be on top of that hill on Longwood Drive. In 1912, Harris and his wife, Jean, made that dream a reality. They named their new home Comely Bank, after the street where Jean grew up in Scotland. Over the years, the Harrises hosted Rotary meetings and entertained visiting dignitaries, surrounded by objects they had collected on their travels throughout the world. The trees they planted in their friendship garden still grace the yard. In 1947, Harris died there; Jean sold the home not long afterward and returned to Scotland. The property changed hands twice more before the Paul and Jean Harris Home Foundation purchased it in 2005. Through the efforts of that group, and with the help of the Rotary clubs of Chicago and Naperville, the Harris home has been saved from demolition. Now, it is up to us to protect the home for posterity, as a place for Rotarians to gather in the spirit of friendship and service. The RI Board has agreed to loan $500,000 to the Paul and Jean Harris Home Foundation to assist with the restoration of this irreplaceable piece of Rotary history. A goal of $5 million has been set for the project, to complete the necessary renovations and to provide an endowment fund to allow the property to operate as a museum and historic site. I am committed to the restoration of the Paul and Jean Harris Home and hope you agree that this project is worthy of your support. My wife, Jetta, and I have made a contribution to our Rotary Foundation to establish a donor advised fund to accept contributions from anyone who shares our love of Rotary history, and our desire to preserve Rotary’s past. If you would like to join us, please go to www.rotary.org/daf and click on “How to Contribute.” Include the account name, “Paul Harris Home Preservation,” and number, 474. A gift of any size is welcome, and naming opportunities are available in the home and garden for those who are considering a larger gift. We are excited to have the opportunity to celebrate the spirit of Paul Harris in this special way. Together, we can save his home for generations of Rotarians to come.
Ron D. Burton President, Rotary International
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First Thought Dear Partners in Service, The RI Presidential Conference on New Generations, held on October 5 and 6, 2013, at Chennai was a runaway success. When the conferences were being planned during April/May 2013, I requested RIP Ron Burton to give an opportunity to India, to host one of the five Presidential Conferences in 2013–14. I had promised President Ron that 10,000 Rotaractors will participate in the two day event at Chennai. It required a super human logistical effort to achieve the participation of so many over two days. The dynamic event chair DGE Nazar and DG A.P. Kanna surpassed all expectations by achieving participation of 20,000 Rotaractors and Rotarians. The Rotaractors put up a fantastic show under the inspired leadership of DRR Ramkumar Raju of District 3230. They created two Guinness world records in two days! On October 5, they had 9,000 Rotaractors participating in ‘Hand Formation,’ symbolising change, true to the conference theme, ‘We are the Change.’ President Ron and Jetta were part of this world record! Starting a week before October 6, the Rotaractors collected 8,00,000 books in seven days (world record) and donated them to ‘Change Libraries’ set up in underprivileged schools. President Ron, who symbolically inaugurated one of the Change Libraries in Spencer Plaza, a leading shopping mall in Chennai, was amazed at the fantastic show by the Rotaractors. The TRIO rally on Marina beach, to create awareness on polio eradication, with the participation of 5,000 Rotarians/Rotaractors was a tremendous success, what with President Ron and Jetta leading the rally in a tricycle! The presence of President Ron and Jetta, RI Director Holger Knack and Sussanne throughout the two days, added charm and dignity to the events. December brings with it the winds of change — it is election time — a reminder to us that our term of office in Rotary is fast running out! The ancient Greek poet Homer likened people holding offices to leaves of trees — “The wind blows and one year’s leaves are scattered on the ground, but the trees burst into bud and put on fresh ones when spring comes around.” Every year, come July, over 30,000 club Presidents step down. Over 500 District Governors pass the torch of responsibility to successors. Much of the personnel of RI Committees change. And our worldwide association welcomes a new international President. Our roles may change but the spirit on stage keeps the spark of enthusiasm within us burning, igniting an outburst of brilliant performances. We are all creatures of clocks and calendars, allotted only a relatively short time to play our part on the grand stage of Rotary. We are now at the halfway mark of this Rotary year — a good time to assess goals and reassess strategy, to activate new ideas and reactivate unrealised ones. The Board of Directors, in the October 2013 Board meeting, noted with concern that the July 1, 2013 membership figures were lowest in the last 12 years. To review the membership status, and take corrective action where necessary I, with the help of Rotary Coordinators PDG C. Basker and PDG Ulhas Kolhatkar, conducted a meeting of all serving Governors from Zones 4, 5 and 6A, where concrete decisions to achieve the membership goals were discussed. We need to accept the things we cannot change, the courage to change those that we can and the ability to orchestrate change with action and determination. At our back we hear time’s winged chariot drawing near. In front of us lies the future waiting to be built. The best way of building the future is by confronting the present — courageously and constructively.
Rtn. P.T. Prabhakar RI Director, 2013–15
Regards,
P.T. Prabhakar Director Rotary International (2013–15) DECEMBER 2013 ROTARY NEWS 15
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man was speaking in a seminar on family values and said, “I live in a joint family.” The audience was amazed since in 2013 the concept of joint families in India has nearly disappeared. The speaker hastened and continued, “My wife and I live jointly together!” Today, a husband and wife living together peacefully constitute a family. The concept of nuclear families is here to stay. May be it is good may be it is not. But with the tolerance levels of the sons, sons-in-law, daughters and daughters-in-law going down, there seems to be a valid reason for the elderly to stay separately, that is, if it is affordable. The daily squabbles between the mother-in-law and the daughter-in-law has been the topic for decades in novels and cinemas. True to the script, recently a daughterin-law smashed the head of her mother-in-law with a grinding stone when the old lady was asleep at night. The reason was that both of them used to fight daily over petty issues and on the fateful day the mother-inlaw had abused the girl for spending too much time on the mobile phone talking to her husband in Dubai. This and many more such true instances make us think the need for celebrating a family month. The concept has been lost long ago 18 ROTARY NEWS DECEMBER 2013
in the western world and while the remnants of this culture still linger in the Asian circuit, it is time to really devote some time on the benefits of having a family around you. The whole world is a family. That is what the Hindu scriptures say. Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (Sanskrit: dgwY¡d Hw$Q>wå~H$_⇢ vasudhaiva kutumbakam. “Vasudh,” the earth; “va” = indeed is; and “kutumbakam,” family;) is a Sanskrit phrase that means that the whole world is one single family. Everyone has their own worldview which is quite often different from person to person. Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam means respecting this difference. Contrary to single worldview, Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam says animals, birds, plants, trees and other organisms in the ecosystem have atma and they are part of our family. The concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam is used in a theory presented by Marshall McLuhan as global village. The same concept is to be found in Sangam (300 – 100 BCE) Tamil Purananuru poem as “ ¯ õ x ® F ÷µ, ¯ õ Á ¸ ® ÷P Ï º ” (Yaadhum Oore, Yaavarum Kelir) which means, ‘every country is my own and all the people are my kinsmen.’ By observing a family month we reinforce our faith in the system. No family is perfect. We argue, we fight. We even stop talking to each other at times. But in the end, family is family. The love should always be there. Everyone has a family during each stage of life. But only the lucky ones have the same family in all stages of life! “We are all faced with a series of great opportunities brilliantly disguised as impossible situations,” said a philosopher. Living as a closeknitted family is great opportunity. Those who find it difficult to develop a harmonious family atmosphere will find it hard to understand people from diverse communities and different viewpoints.
As we grow up, we find that people who are attracted to us because of our pretty face or nice body won’t be by our side forever. But, only the immediate family members, especially our parents, can see how beautiful our heart is and never leave us. People living abroad and working in stressful conditions often say, “Sometimes, all you need is a hug from your family members and all our stress will melt away.” One must never forget the parents who were there for you when nobody else was.
Many times we forget to thank our family members who make our lives so happy in so many ways. Sometimes we forget to tell them how much we really do appreciate them for being an important part of our lives. There are many things that money can’t buy; a family is one of them. Celebrations, especially festivals, make people lonely if they are not with their family. The mad rush to go home for Diwali, Christmas, Pongal, New Year and other religious events
Rushing to go home. DECEMBER 2013
ROTARY NEWS 19
Joy in celebrating with family.
only shows that deep down within most people, there is an yearning to be with members of their family, just to share the joy. Have you not seen children learning something from their grandparents? Be it just cooking or even making a garland of flowers.
During Diwali when crackers and sweets go around amongst the family members, the joy is more abundant than any amount of fireworks display you may organise all for yourself. No doubt any sorrow also becomes insignificant when you can cry on the
Joy of learning from grandma.
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shoulders of your family members. Except in rare cases, family members will always empathise and this sets them apart from friends who may just shed some crocodile tears. Celebrating ‘Family Month’ is a healthy attitude. We all know that healthy attitudes are contagious. But don’t wait to catch it from others. Be the carrier. “If a country is to be corruption free and become a nation of beautiful minds, I strongly feel there are three key societal members who can make a difference. They are the father, the mother and the teacher,” said Abdul Kalam. The relevance of observing a family month can be seen in his words. Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one. If there’s one thing you must learn over the aeons, it’s that you can’t give up on your family, no matter how tempting you make it. Rtn. T.K. Balakrishnan
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Polio still cripples thousands of children around the world. With your help, we can wipe this disease off the face of the earth forever. Visit rotary.org/endpolio to help. END POLIO NOW
We Are
This Close
Rotary
to Ending Polio.
Amitabh Bachchan
POLIOPLUS
Emergency Response to Polio Outbreak Over 20 million children to be vaccinated in Syria and neighbouring countries against polio, say WHO and UNICEF A week after the Middle East declared a polio emergency in the region, mass vaccination against polio and other vaccine-preventable diseases is under way in Syria, its neighbouring countries and beyond. Geneva, New York, 8 November 2013 The largest-ever consolidated immunisation response in the Middle East is under way to stop a polio outbreak, aiming to vaccinate over 20 million children in seven countries and territories repeatedly. Emergency immunisation campaigns in and around Syria to prevent transmission of polio and other preventable diseases have vaccinated more than 6,50,000 children in Syria, including 1,16,000 in the highly-contested northeast Deir-ez-Zor province where the polio outbreak was confirmed a week ago. In a region that had not seen polio for nearly a decade, in the last 12 months poliovirus has been detected in sewage samples from Egypt, Israel, the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The outbreak of paralytic polio among children in Syria has catalysed the current mass response. The first polio outbreak in the country since 1999, it has so far left 10 children paralysed, and poses a risk of paralysis to hundreds of thousands of children across the region. Preliminary evidence indicates that the poliovirus is of Pakistani origin and is similar to the strain detected in Egypt, Israel, the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Dr. Ala Alwan, the World Health Organisation Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean noted, “The Middle East has shown exactly the coordinated leadership needed to combat a deadline virus: a consolidated and sustained assault on a vaccine-preventable disease and an extraordinary commitment to a common purpose.” UNICEF has procured 1.35 billion doses of oral polio vaccine (OPV) to date in 2013 and by the end of the year will have procured up to 1.7 billion doses to meet increased demand. Global supply of OPV was already under constraint with vaccine manufacturers producing at full capacity. The new outbreak in Syria is adding further pressure to the supply but WHO, UNICEF and manufacturers are working to secure sufficient quantities to reach all children. “The polio outbreak in Syria is not just a tragedy for children; it is an urgent alarm — and a crucial opportunity to reach all under-immunised children wherever they are,”
said Peter Crowley, UNICEF’s Chief of Polio. “This should serve as a stark reminder to countries and communities that polio anywhere is a threat to children everywhere.” The unprecedented response to polio virus circulation in the region includes plans for a six-month sustained effort of intense immunisation activity. Equally important is heightened disease surveillance until the global eradication of polio, to find cases which may have been missed in an environment which was until recently polio-free. Multiple mass immunisation efforts are aimed at protecting as many children as possible. Inside Syria, the campaign is targeting 1.6 million children with vaccines against polio, measles, mumps and rubella. In Jordan over 18,800 children under the age of five were vaccinated against polio in a campaign in the past few days targeting all children at Za’atari camp and a nationwide campaign is currently underway to reach 3.5 million people with polio, measles and rubella. In Iraq, a vaccination campaign has started in the west of the country, with another campaign planned in the Kurdistan Region in the coming days. Lebanon’s nationwide campaign begins later this week and Turkey and Egypt by mid-November. Syria’s immunisation rates have plummeted from more than 90 percent before the conflict to currently 68 percent. The seven countries and territories in the consolidated emergency response to the polio outbreak are: Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, the West Bank and Gaza, Syria, Turkey. The polio virus usually infects children in unsanitary conditions through faecal-oral transmission associated with close person to person contact and consumption of food and drink contaminated with faeces. It attacks the nerves and can kill or paralyse, spreading widely and unnoticed before it starts crippling children. For every one case of polio, 200 children can be infected. There is no cure for polio — it can only be prevented through immunisation. Since 1988, vaccination has reduced polio by more than 99 percent worldwide, and the disease is slated for complete eradication. Source: www.unicef.org DECEMBER 2013 ROTARY NEWS 23
You can help to rebuild the schools in
UTTARAKHAND Dear Rotarians, At times a natural disaster strikes without much warning and thus takes with it the lives of several hundred and thousands in its wake leaving behind destroyed and destructed buildings including complete villages and townships.
PRID Y.P. Das Trustee & Treasurer Rotary Uttarakhand Disaster Relief Trust
Such was the fury of the Himalayan Tsunami in June of 2013 when most of the senior leadership of Rotary in India was at the RI Convention in Lisbon. An immediate appeal was sent out to all the current, past and incoming RI Officers in India to contribute generously for the rehabilitation activity that will be required after such a huge calamity in Uttarakhand and mainly in the districts of Uttarkashi and Rudraprayag which were the worst affected. On return to India, the Rotary senior leaders came together and met with the Government authorities of Uttarakhand to offer assistance in the rebuilding and reconstruction activities. After several rounds of discussions it was concluded that for Rotary to have an impact it would be appropriate to rebuild and reconstruct schools that were washed away by the fury of nature. In order to undertake this project a trust by the name of “ROTARY UTTARAKHAND DISASTER RELIEF TRUST” comprising of the current and past RI General Officers of Rotary in India as trustees was registered in Dehradun, with Past RI President R.K. Saboo as settlor and chairman. Contributions to the Trust are exempt u/s 80 G of the Income Tax Act. The bank account of the Trust was opened with HDFC Bank in Ambala Cantt. and Past RI Director Y.P. Das was requested to serve as treasurer of the trust. A memorandum of understanding was signed with the Government of Uttarakhand on 12th September 2013 for rebuilding and reconstructing 175 schools in the districts of Uttarkashi and Rudraprayag and also for providing school benches and desks for 1,60,000 students. The total estimated cost of Rotary India’s project to rebuild and reconstruct the schools is over Rs.25,00,00,000 (25 crores). This is a big challenge for Rotarians in India, but a challenge that we can undertake and accomplish our promise to the children of Uttarakhand. Many Rotarians and several Rotary Districts have responded very generously for our project to provide hope to the children of Uttarakhand – Have You? I request you and every one of the 1,20,000 Rotarians from India to come forward with their generous support both personally as well as through friends and corporates in Building Hope for the Children. Contributions are to be made in favour of “Rotary Uttarakhand Disaster Relief Trust” and sent to: Y.P. Das, 122 Railway Road, Ambala Cantt. 133 001 Haryana For those who prefer to make their contributions by electronic transfer the details are as below: HDFC Bank Nicholson Road Ambala Cantt. Account No.50200002233402 IFSC Code: HDFC 0000131 We look forward to receive your support. Kind regards.
Y.P. Das Trustee & Treasurer Rotary Uttarakhand Disaster Relief Trust
Each year an internationally eminent person in the science world is invited to address the British scientific community at the Zuckerman Lecture, named after Lord Zuckerman, a distinguished scientist who was at the heart of British science for over 60 years. In 2003, Dr. R.A. Mashelkar, the leading architect of India’s science and technology policies was invited to deliver the Lecture at the Royal Society, London. Transcript of his acclaimed address is reproduced in these pages. (Continued from the previous issue)
Global Funding for Global Public Goods How can global funding for creating global public goods be created? UNDP’s Human Development Report (2001) on ‘Making New Technologies work for Human Development’ provides some striking statistics. It suggests that the developed nations should take seriously the agreed standards for official development assistance of 0.7 percentage of GNP. Doing so in 1999 would have increased the official development assistance from $56 billion to $164 billion. Dedicating just 10 percent of that to technology would have generated more than $16 billion. In 2000, the official debt service payments by developing countries amounted to $78 billion. A swap of just 1.3 percent of this debt service for technology research and development would have raised over $1 billion. A handful of foundations (Welcome Trust, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Rockfeller Foundation, Ford Foundation) have made exemplary commitments to investing in longterm research. World Bank, through 26 ROTARY NEWS DECEMBER 2013
its Industrial Technology Development Programmes (ITDP), over the past twenty years invested over $4 billion in improving the intellectual infrastructure in developing countries such as Korea, India, Philippines, Turkey, Chile, etc. These efforts are laudable but not fully adequate. It is estimated that an input of at least $10 billion per year will be required to push the R & D agenda on public good creation. While we can seek help from around the world, can the developing countries help themselves? In 1999,
the governments of sub-Saharan Africa dedicated $7 billion to military spending. Diverting just 10 percent would have raised $700 million, more than enough to support the HIV/AIDS vaccine research programme. It is not that only the developed world has billionaires. The developing world has these too. In 2000, Brazil had 9 billionaires with a collective worth of $20 billion, India 9 worth $23 billion, Malaysia 5 worth $12 billion, Mexico 13 worth $25 billion, Saudi Arabia 5 worth $41 billion. Foundations set up by such billionaires from the developing world could make important contributions to regionally relevant research agendas. Will they respond to these calls? With its financial, intellectual and research resources, industry could make an invaluable contribution by committing a portion of profits to research on non-commercial products. For instance, in the pharmaceutical industry alone, if the top nine Fortune 500 companies had dedicated just one percent of their profit, to such research in 1999, they would have raised $275 million. In this context, it is
refreshing to see the setting up of Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases (NITD) by the Swiss pharmaceutical company, Novartis in Singapore or that of Astra Zeneca Research Centre by the Swedish pharmaceutical company, Astra Zeneca in Bangalore in India for research in tuberculosis. We need to multiply these efforts several fold.
Lifting the Submerged Part of the Iceberg Let me end the lecture by sharing a recent experiment done by one of our laboratories, namely Central Salt & Marine Research Institute (CSMRI) in Bhavnagar in India. In Kutch in Gujarat, we had a major earthquake. There was no electricity and no drinking water for those poor people in the villages. CSMRI had developed the reverse osmosis technology for drinking water. But to operate, this technology required a pressure of around twenty atmospheres. Without electricity, how would one generate such a pressure? The villages had no electricity but they had bullocks. The scientists made the bullocks go around and using a cleverly designed helical gear system, generated the required pressure to run the reverse osmosis device. A village with around 300 families got the drinking water. The Intermediate Technology Group in Rugby in England was so impressed with this feat that it featured it in the New Scientist issue of 10 May 2003. While applauding this feat, the article said “The device holds a great promise for 1.2 billion people, who lack electricity and clean water, but who have plenty of oxen.” I see both — a good news and a bad news — here. The good news is that the compassionate Indian scientists, touched by the sorry plight of the poor villagers, created an ‘appropriate technology’ by using the odd combination of the motion by bullocks and the high technology of reverse osmosis. The bad news is that the remarks in the New Scientist article implies that we assume that 1.2 billion people in
the world will continue to be without electricity and drinking water! This is not simply acceptable. Continuing with such disparities will cause a global fracture. The substantial disparities between the developing and the developed world are major cause of concern for us today. But they exist within the developing world also. For example, large nations like Brazil and India suffer a national scale poverty, but also hide large sub-regional variations in social and economic fortunes. East and Southeast Asia have huge regional crests and troughs. Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia have not enjoyed the same economic growth as in other East Asian countries. The same situation persists in India. Today we have 50 percent Indian children that go to school, 30 percent of them reach up to 10th standard and 40 percent of them pass. Multiply these percentages and you will find that 6 percent of the children go past the 10th standard — as against 65–70 percent in Korea. Yet India is projected as an emerging IT superpower. Six lakhs software professionals with an average age of around twenty six generated 20 percent of our exports last year. By 2008, they will generate 35 percent of our exports and contribute to 7 percent of our GDP. But 6,00,000 professionals constitute only 0.06 percent of our population. This is a tip of the iceberg. For this tip of the iceberg that is shining, there is a huge part of the submerged iceberg, which constitutes the ‘have nots’ and the ‘underprivileged’ that is in the dark. What worries me is how we are going to lift that iceberg. It is rather strange that I am delivering the 10th Zuckerman Lecture here in London. I belonged to that submerged part of the iceberg in India. I was born in a very poor family. My father died when I was six. My mother, who was uneducated, did menial work to bring me up. I went barefoot till I was twelve. I studied under streetlights. I remember that after my Secondary School
Certificate Examination in 1960, although I had secured 11th rank among 1,35,000 students in the state, I was about to leave the school, because my mother could not fund my college education. And I remember Sir Dorab Tata Trust coming in with a scholarship of 60 rupees per month. They supported me until my graduation. This support was less than one British pound per month. That 60 rupees added so much value to my life but it did not subtract any value from the Tatas. What are the lessons that I draw from my own life? There are three factors that helped me. First, I was given an opportunity to study in a municipal school that was run through Government funding. This education was free. Second, there was the philanthropy of the house of Tatas. This unique publicprivate partnership, if you like, made it possible for Mashelkar to complete his education. Third, as a young man in early thirties, I was invited back to India and given all that I needed to do my research in polymer science and engineering. This invitation was a part of a special initiative by the then Prime Minister to reverse the brain drain. I was given an opportunity to rise to my own potential. But for that one Mashelkar, who is standing here, there are millions of Mashelkars around the developing world, who need to be helped. If they are similarly helped, then they will not remain confined in that submerged part of the iceberg. They will themselves rise to become a part of that shining tip of the iceberg. They will also help lift that submerged part of the iceberg. Ladies and gentlemen, I’d like to conclude by saying that we must do everything to lift this iceberg. Science and technology has that power of lifting that iceberg as I have repeatedly demonstrated in this lecture. We can all do it together and make it into a better tomorrow — not just for a lucky and privileged few but for the entire humanity. (Concluded) DECEMBER 2013
ROTARY NEWS 27
District Wise Contribution Totals to The Rotary Foundation as on October 31, 2013 (in US Dollars)
District Number
APF
2980 3000 3010 3020 3030 3040 3051 3052 3053 3060 3070 3080 3090 3100 3110 3120 3131 3132 3140 3150 3160 3170 3180 3190 3201 3202 3211 3212 3230 3240 3250 3261 3262 3291 India India Total
37,695 6,553 2,47,280 10,230 905 32,988 0 50,000 0 6,938 6,595 6,234 1,135 40,892 35,151 1,000 85,828 21,659 1,99,901 22,857 2,100 19,069 10,406 84,724 3,309 23,664 14,111 3,550 36,242 50,064 3,545 22,143 8,174 9,888
PolioPlus*
Other Restricted
3220
36,377
3271
22,391
3272
12,667
3281 3282
43,629 2,200
India 1,043 0 475 0 283 3,828 0 0 0 21,226 (244) 4,953 0 3,939 0 4,877 0 0 0 9,385 0 (100) 2,555 420 3,085 0 0 7,650 1,305 0 0 0 2,61,275 1,83,000 0 0 1,402 1,100 1,405 16,974 0 0 250 2,223 9 4,030 0 23,275 771 759 205 0 1,099 (500) 0 0 1,624 1,450 1,600 0 2,526 100 0 0 0 0 0 16,050 10,00,000 12,80,668 3,04,639 Sri Lanka 1,071 17,021 Pakistan 0 2,151 Pakistan & Afghanistan 0 2,379 Bangladesh 12,113 (6,869) 0 0
3,074 12,25,168 2,38,38,196
Nepal 0 11,481 12,93,852 3,30,802 1,13,07,819 41,49,999
3292 South Asia Total World Total
11,04,830
* Excludes Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Permanent Fund 6,600 0 51,316 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 741 0 0 62,058 0 0 705 (236) 0 0 1,000 615 23,474 130 1 0 0 0
Total Contributions
1,46,404
45,338 7,028 3,02,707 10,230 22,131 37,697 3,939 54,877 0 16,323 6,495 9,209 4,220 48,542 36,456 1,000 5,30,844 21,659 2,02,403 1,03,294 2,100 21,542 15,150 1,07,763 4,839 23,869 15,710 4,165 62,790 51,794 6,172 22,143 8,174 25,938 10,00,000 28,36,541
0
54,469
3,187
27,729
0
15,046
1,000 0
49,873 2,200
0 1,50,591 57,74,937
14,555 30,00,413 4,50,70,951
Source: RI South Asia Office
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GRAMMAR GURU The president of the association began his address: “My dear males and females, in this august audience…” I saw two males at the bus stop. There are no female engineers in this village. He is the first man nominee for presidentship. There is something odd about the above statements, though they don’t seem to violate any grammar rule. Can you set them right? English is a language rich in synonyms. We can use man, guy, bloke, male or gentleman to refer to the same concept. Similarly ‘women’ has the synonyms: female, lady or girl. However, we can’t use them indiscriminately, as they differ in subtle ways. Man is defined as an adult male person. It is also conventional to use it to refer to the human species including both sexes. And much it grieved my heart to think What Man has made of Man. (Wordsworth) Guy, bloke and fellow are restricted to spoken English. Bloke is more British. A lot of guys who drive like they own the road don’t own the car. A man drove his used car back to the used car dealer’s showroom. “Aren’t you the guy who sold me this car two days ago?” “Yes,” said the dealer. “Well, do me a favour. Tell me about it again. I get so discouraged!” We use the word gentleman as a polite way of talking about a man. A tall gentleman was hurrying down the street when, out of a doorway came another man, also in haste and the two collided with great force. The second man was beside himself with anger and exploded into a fury of abusive
For nearly 100 years, The Rotary Foundation
The Rotary Foundation has
has supported international
vocational exchanges.
language. The tall gentleman took off his hat, smiled in a friendly fashion and pleasantly remarked, “My friend, I don’t know which of us is to blame for this encounter, but I’m in too great a hurry to investigate. If I ran into you, I beg your pardon; if you ran into me, don’t mention it.” And then, with another smile, he walked away. However, I still can’t figure out why the toilets are reserved only for ‘Ladies’ and ‘Gentlemen!’ The synonyms that have been a source of interesting discussion are male and female. According to Longman Essential Activator, male and female are used with specific reference to jobs. As adjectives they describe activities, behaviour or personal qualities typical of each. (E.g.) Male chauvinism, female infanticide. One wonders if it is proper to talk about male nurses or female cricketers. The implication is that some spheres are typical to men and some to women. In the 1980s esteemed authors used to refer to women as females. Jane Austen refers to ‘females of the family’ in Pride and Prejudice. Emily Bronte says: “It opened into the house where two females were already astir.” (Wuthering Heights) Today, however ‘female’ is used to refer to lower animals or scientific facts. Among apes, the females form a small group to defend against attackers. Among mosquitoes, the female of the species is deadlier than the male. Dr. V. Saraswathi, Vice President, English Language Teachers’ Association of India, Reproduced with permission from Education Times, The Times of India, Chennai.
In 2013, it still will. Find new ways to support vocational exchange activities with new Rotary Foundation grants. Learn more at www.rotary.org/ futurevision.
ANKLESHWAR UDHAMPUR SAHARANPUR GREATER RAJPURA GREATER MORADABAD MIDTOWN SHAHJAHANPUR VARANASI CENTRAL PANVEL MIDTOWN SOLAPUR NORTH KAMAREDDY ANANTAPUR CENTRAL PANAJI RIVIERA SHIMOGA RIVERSIDE KOTHAMANGALAM TIRUPUR METROPOLIS KOTTAYAM CENTRAL VALLIYOOR CENTRAL MADRAS SOUTH RANIGANJ KODERMA BHUBANESWAR NEW HORIZON CALCUTTA RIDGE KATHMANDU MIDTOWN CHIDAMBARAM MIDTOWN JAMBUKESHWARAM CHANDRAPUR JODHPUR VAPI RIVERSIDE AMRITSAR EAST MOHALI AGRA WEST AHMEDNAGAR PRIYADARSHINI MUMBAI NORTH ISLAND GUNTAKAL QUILON CASHEW CITY MARTHANDAM MARAIMALAI NAGAR KUMBAKONAM SHAKTHI DINDIGUL VIZAG METRO AKOLA GODHRA MIDTOWN DECEMBER 2013 NOKHA BARODA JALANDAR SOUTH ROOPNAGAR RAJPURA GREATER MORADABAD CIVIL LINES HALDWANI VARANASI SUNRISE PUNE SPORTS CITY LONAND DOMBIVLI WEST KAMAREDDY DHONE ANKOLA RURAL KUNDAPURA MIDTOWN COCHIN AIRPORT TIRUPUR COTTON CITY Su Mo TuCOSMOPOLITAN We Th Fr Sa UPTOWN QUILON LOTUS RAJAPALAYAM CENTRAL VELLORE SOUTH DURGAPUR JAMSHEDPUR WEST RAIPUR CALCUTTA BUTWAL SALEM COSMOS THURAIYUR PERUMALMALAI VIJAYAWADA VISIONARY COUPLES NAGPUR SOUTH EAST VISNAGAR GANDEVI RAJOURI FATEHABAD GREATER GANGA BIJNOR BAREILLY SOUTH PUNE KOTHRUD SOLAPUR NORTH POWAI WARANGAL RASIPURAM 1 2 MIDTOWN 3 4GWALIOR 5 VEERANGANA 6 7 TIRUCHIRAPALLI REWARI MAIN ANAKAPALLE JALGAON INDORE MEGHDOOT AHMEDABAD VAPI RIVERSIDE JULLUNDUR DEHRADUN WEST RAJPURA GANGA BIJNOR AGRA HERITAGE VARANASI CENTRAL POONA MIDTOWN MADHA THANE HILLS WARANGAL TADPATRI PANA JI RIVIERA MANGALORE SOUTH BANGALORE SADASHIVANAGAR KOTHAMANGALAM TIRUPUR 9 10 11 12 13 14 INFOCITY GANDHINAGAR QUILON NORTH NAGERCOIL CENTRAL MADRAS CENTRAL AADITHYA 8BURDWAN GREATER GAYA CENTRAL BHUBANESWAR CENTRAL CALCUTTA DHULIKHEL SALEM TEXCITY DINDIGUL VIJAYAWADA CHANDRAPUR CAMBAY LUDHIANA GREATER KARNAL MIDTOWN NABHA BAREILLY CENTRAL BAGALKOT BUTWAL KOMARAPALAYAM PERAMBALUR VUYYURU CHANDRAPUR 16 METRO 17 18BAHRAICH 19 20PUNE 21TILAK ROAD BIKANER BHAVNAGAR UDHAMPUR BHAKRA NANGAL SRI GANGANAGAR KHURJA 15 BAREILLY WAI BOMBAY JUHU BEACH SATTENAPALLI RAICHUR KARW AR BELUR CHANNAPATTANA COCHIN VYPIN ISLANDS TIRUPUR WEST QUILON LOTUS TINNEVELLY VANDAVASI GREATER TEZPUR RANCHI SAMBALPUR WEST CALCUTTA MID SOUTH BUTWAL HOSUR 22 LUDHIANA 23 24 CITY 25 ROORKEE 26 27 RAJPURA 28 PERIYAKULAM RAJAHMUNDRY RIVER CITY AKOLA BIKANER MARUDHARA SURAT EAST PUNE SHIVAJINAGAR MUMBAI GHATKOPAR WARANGAL GUNTAKAL SANGLI KOMARAPALAYAM KARUR ANGELS SONEPAT UPTOWN ICHAPURAM JALGAON GOLD CITY INDORE MEGHDOOT PALANPUR CITY JAIPUR GWALIOR VEERANGANA SHINDKHEDA UDHAMPUR ROOPNAGAR 29 EAST 30 31 RAJPURA MORADABAD CIVIL LINES HALDWANI Compiled by Kiran Zehra BAHRAICH PUNE JALNA CENTRAL BOMBAY MID CITY WARANGAL TADIPATRI HONAVAR SHIRVA PUNGANUR CENTRAL COCHIN VYPIN ISLAND SAKTHINAGAR ALLEPPEY EAST GOLDEN RAMNAD GUWAHATI DAMODAR VALLEY KORBA BHUBANESWAR FRIENDS SALT LAKE METROPOLITAN BUTWAL PONDICHERRY BEACH TOWN PUDUKKOTTAI PALACE CITY BHUSAWAL LUDHIANA NORTH FARIDABAD CENTRAL MATHURA CENTRAL SANGOLA ULHASNAGAR MIDTOWN SALT LAKE CITY AARCH CITY MADRAS MANNARGUDI MADURAI NORTHWEST FARIDABAD MIDTOWN
ick P OF THE MONTH
RC HOSUR RI District 2980 Under its Global Grants project the club in association with RC Alamo, RI District 5160, USA and TRF constructed toilet blocks at Government High School, Nallur Village. The total cost of the project was Rs. 8,00,000.
RC PALLAPATTI RI District 3000 The club donated an R.O water system at Arumugam Academy Matric Higher Secondary School at Karur. The total cost of this project was Rs. 3,50,000. It would help in providing safe drinking water for the staff and the students.
RC SONEPAT UPTOWN RI District 3010 The Rotarians filled the lives of 100 mentally retarded children with the sound of music by donating a music system to the inmates of Rhuchi, a school for the mentally retarded. This gift of music would refresh the mind of these children. 30 ROTARY NEWS DECEMBER 2013
TRAL GALAM ZON RSIDE CITY DA ITY ITY OWN EVI AM API DHA UPUR CITY ER APUR ROAD EST UR UNE AM NAGAR ITY AGAR WAL TRAL OWN
RC VUYYURU RI District 3020 Note books were distributed to nearly 2,500 students studying in 10 Government schools in the district. The project which cost Rs.1,50,000 would enhance interest in children to pursue education and pave way for a bright future.
RC AKOLA RI District 3030 The Rotarians visited a school for the speech and hearing impaired children and distributed illustrated story books to help them read through pictures.
RC BHOPAL SHAHPURA RI District 3040 A career guidance seminar was organised by the club for the benefit of higher secondary class students of Kamla Nehru School. This workshop would help the children get a clear picture about the course they could pursue for higher studies.
RC DEESA RI District 3051 Under their ongoing project on child health and care, the club completed a successful one month diagnostic programme for 1,000 primary school children. The project took care of children who were anaemic and had iron and vitamin A deficiency. DECEMBER 2013
ROTARY NEWS 31
RC UDAIPUR RI District 3052 A bone and joint check-up camp was organised by the club. Tricycles were donated to the physically challenged people to enable them to move about independently.
RC BIKANER RI District 3053 The Rotarians together donated Rs.3,00,000 towards the Rotary Uttarakhand Relief Fund created by RI District 3080. This monetary help would be a blessing for the victims of the Uttarakhand flood.
RC DHULE RI District 3060 The residential school for the deaf and dumb received a facelift when the Rotarians inaugurated the new residential block. The school at Kusumba town is home for children with disabilities and will now be able to house 30 more inmates.
RC JALANDHAR WEST RI District 3070 The club in association with Canadian Global Eye Sight organised an eye camp at Bhabiana village. Around 360 patients were examined. Intraocular lenses were implanted successfully for the needy at Arora Eye Hospital, Jalandhar. 32 ROTARY NEWS DECEMBER 2013
RC SAHARANPUR CONTINENTAL RI District 3080 The Rotarians organised a medical camp to treat cleft lip/cleft palate deformities in children. This is an ongoing project of the club since the last 5 years and more than 250 children have been cured of the defect so far.
RC RAJPURA GREATER RI District 3090 The club in its ongoing project trains girls for the tailoring vocation. This would help them to be economically independent. Certificates and sewing machines were distributed to the trainees at the end of the course.
RI District 3100 The Rotary clubs of the District conducted a drawing competition for students on the theme: End Polio Now. About 300 students participated. The event brought awareness about polio eradication and Rotary’s role in it among the children.
RC KANPUR GAURAV RI District 3110 The club along with Rotaract Club of Kanpur Gaurav conducted cultural competitions on various themes for school children. The event helped in creating awareness about our culture and traditions among the children. DECEMBER 2013
ROTARY NEWS 33
RC GHAZIPUR RI District 3120 The club donated food and other essential items to the people of Mohammedabad village that was badly affected by the floods recently. This service gave much relief for the flood victims who had lost their property in the floods.
RC YAVAT RI District 3131 A computer lab and Rotary Distance Education Programme (RDEP) was established by the club at Vidya Vikas Mandir, Yavat. This project would give the best technology-supported quality education to the children studying in the school.
RC JALNA CENTRAL RI District 3132 A mega health camp was conducted by the club at Gondegaon village near Jalna. The camp included heart, skin, dental, orthopaedic, diabetes, haemoglobin and gynaecology routines and it benefitted 385 villagers.
RC MUMBAI LAKERS RI District 3140 The club organised a rally to create awareness about the ill effects of drugs. Street plays were performed to create awareness. Drug prevention and education was also part of the agenda of this rally. 34 ROTARY NEWS DECEMBER 2013
RC KAMAREDDY RI District 3150 Children of the ZPHS Gidda School were given dictionaries to help them learn and understand English better. The motive behind this project was to spread literacy.
RC PRODDATUR RI District 3160 The club organised a free Dental Camp in a remote village, Kallum. The camp treated 60 patients for tooth ailments. The patients were also educated on the importance of dental health.
RC ICHALKARANJI CENTRAL RI District 3170 The Rotarians organised a muscular dystrophy camp for two days in the city to provide medical relief for patients affected with the disorder. Over 200 patients benefitted from the camp.
RC MADIKERI RI District 3180 A career guidance workshop was conducted by the club at the Government Junior College, Madikeri for 375 students from seven schools. The workshop focused on helping the children to realise their potential and choosing the right career. DECEMBER 2013
ROTARY NEWS 35
Motherhood HELENA WIERZBICKI
36 ROTARY NEWS DECEMBER 2013
M
others play a fundamental role in every culture. But depending on where a mom and baby live, they have a different chance of living or dying, suffering or thriving. In sub-Saharan Africa, 1 in 39 women will die of pregnancy-related complications, and 1 in 9 children will die before age five. (In developed countries, the likelihood drops to 1 in 4,700 women and 1 in 167 children.) Globally, 19,000 mothers will lose a child every day. The Rotary Foundation is working to improve maternal and child health around the world. We look at the experiences of new mothers in eight countries.
Mama Doula
CYNTHIA LANGFORD
DECEMBER 2013
ROTARY NEWS 37
VITAL STATISTICS Lifetime risk of dying during pregnancy or childbirth: 1 in 32 Under-five mortality rate: 101.1 per 1,000 Births attended by skilled health personnel: 24 percent Maternity leave: 90 days, 100 percent paid Gross national income per capita: US $1,140
A
FGHANISTAN
When researchers assessed the health situation in Afghanistan in early 2002, the country had been at war for 22 years. Whole villages had been destroyed, vast areas were covered in land mines, and a large proportion of health and other professionals had fled under Taliban rule. Only 24 percent of hospitals provided caesarean sections, and 40 percent of health facilities had no female medical workers. The highest maternal mortality rate ever recorded globally — 6,507 per 1,00,000 — was in Ragh, Badakhshan, where the 10-day walk to the nearest hospital has proved deadly for many women facing obstructed labour. Even after a decade of donor-funded health projects, maternal mortality rates have barely budged.
* 38 ROTARY NEWS DECEMBER 2013
B
otswana In Botswana, which has one of the
highest HIV/AIDS rates in the world, mothers with the disease have long been warned not to nurse. Among breastfed babies in sub-Saharan Africa, 30 percent of mother-to-child HIV transmissions happen during breastfeeding, 20 percent occur during pregnancy, and 50 percent during labour and delivery. But a decade-long programme in this upper-middle-income country to provide free formula has backfired. Shortages, unsanitary conditions and dirty water used in preparing the formula have left babies vulnerable to other, more immediate killers, such as diarrhoea and malnutrition. Researchers recently discovered antiretrovirals that lower the risk of HIV transmission during pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding to less than 1 percent. But many mothers are still afraid to nurse because formula feeding is the only guaranteed way to prevent transmission.
Mother and Child RAIN RIRIN
*
B B
VITAL STATISTICS Lifetime risk of dying during pregnancy or childbirth: 1 in 220 Under-five mortality rate: 25.9 per 1,000 Births attended by skilled health personnel: 95 percent Babies exclusively breastfed in the first six months: 20 percent Gross national income per capita: US $14,550
RAZIL In some private hospitals in Brazil, the caesarean section rate is so high that doctors can’t remember the last time a patient had a vaginal birth. The country on the whole has a 36 percent C-section rate, with the rates in private hospitals as high as 80 to 90 percent. C-sections can be lifesaving interventions, as in cases of obstructed labour or foetal distress. While there’s no ideal percentage, the World Health Organisation suggests that C-section rates higher than 15 percent may mean that mothers and babies are facing unnecessary risks associated with major surgery. (Recent studies also have suggested that babies born by C-section may be at higher risk for asthma, obesity, diabetes and impaired brain development.) Some doctors in Brazil push women to choose C-sections because they make scheduling easier, and many women view the surgery as a status symbol.
VITAL STATISTICS Lifetime risk of dying during pregnancy or childbirth: 1 in 910 Under-five mortality rate: 15.6 per 1,000 Babies exclusively breastfed in the first six months: 40 percent Maternity leave: 120 days, 100 percent paid Gross national income per capita: US $11,420
* DECEMBER 2013
ROTARY NEWS 39
VITAL STATISTICS Lifetime risk of dying during pregnancy or childbirth: 1 in 150 Under-five mortality rate: 42.5 per 1,000 Births attended by skilled health personnel: 71 percent Maternity leave: 90 days, 50 percent paid Gross national income per capita: US $2,230
C
AMBODIA As recently as 10 years ago, new mothers in Cambodia traditionally stayed in a small room in a bed over coals, layered with clothes and drinking a wine-and-herb concoction to help them keep warm — a practice known as ang pleung, or roasting. They didn’t breastfeed during this time; the colostrum, the antibody-rich first milk, was discarded, and babies were fed sugar water while their mothers recovered from childbirth. Today, 65 percent of women breastfeed within an hour after birth, and 88.8 percent nurse within 24 hours. The turnaround is the result of a decade of breastfeeding promotion, including a media campaign, health worker training, and “mother support groups,” which provide information to expectant and new moms. Between 2000 and 2010, the proportion of babies exclusively breastfed during the first six months jumped from 11 percent to 74 percent.
40 ROTARY NEWS DECEMBER 2013
F
INLAND Mothers-to-be in Finland receive a gift from their government: baby clothes, diapers, bath supplies and bedding, all packaged in a decorative box with a mattress meant to become baby’s first bed. (Notably missing: bottles and pacifiers, as a way to increase the country’s low breastfeeding rates.) But there’s a caveat: To get the box, the expectant mothers have to seek prenatal medical care before their fourth month of pregnancy. The programme started in the 1930s, when Finland was still a poor country where 65 per 1,000 babies under age one died each year. (Today, its infant mortality rate is 3.38 per 1,000.) Finland views the box as a symbol of the importance and equality of all the nation’s children.
Cherish 52 ELISABETH MURRAY WELSH
I
NDIA The first 24 hours of a baby’s life are the most dangerous in nearly every country of the world. Nearly one-third of firstday deaths happen in India, where 3,09,000 babies each year do not survive the day they are born. Income and geographic disparities play a role. In the state of Kerala, which has a child mortality rate to rival more developed countries such as Turkey and Venezuela, trained health workers attend 99 percent of births; in Jharkhand state, which has a child mortality rate similar to Ethiopia’s, untrained midwives attend nearly half of births. In 2011, the Indian government launched a programme to give all women access to hospital deliveries and to provide transportation from home to hospital and back. This past May, it released a new roadmap to improve newborn survival rates.
VITAL STATISTICS Lifetime risk of dying during pregnancy or childbirth: 1 in 12,200 Under-five mortality rate: 2.9 per 1,000 Babies exclusively breastfed in the first six months: 1 percent Maternity leave: 18 weeks, 70 percent paid Gross national income per capita: US $37,670 VITAL STATISTICS Lifetime risk of dying during pregnancy or childbirth: 1 in 170 Under-five mortality rate: 61.3 per 1,000 Babies exclusively breastfed in the first six months: 46 percent Maternity leave: 12 weeks, 100 percent paid Gross national income per capita: US $3,590
DECEMBER 2013
ROTARY NEWS 41
VITAL STATISTICS Lifetime risk of dying during pregnancy or childbirth: 1 in 54 Under-five mortality rate: 54.1 per 1,000 Births attended by skilled health personnel: 69 percent Maternity leave: 12 weeks, 100 percent paid Gross national income per capita: US $1,270
R
WANDA In Rwanda,women are fined for skipping prenatal care or giving birth at home, and doctors are financially rewarded for providing high-quality treatment. More than 90 percent of Rwandans are enrolled in the country’s national health insurance programme, which covers 90 percent of treatment costs, including ambulance transfers for expectant mothers facing complicated deliveries. The fines and access to proper care, on top of a successful public education campaign, helped increase the percentage of women giving birth at health facilities from 28 percent in 2005 to 69 percent in 2010. At the same time, the maternal mortality rate plummeted from 550 to 340 per 1,00,000. Child mortality rates also have fallen, from 1 in 5 children dying before age five in 1999 to 1 in 20 in 2011, a bright spot in sub-Saharan Africa.
* 42 ROTARY NEWS DECEMBER 2013
Determination CATHERINE LINK
U
NITED STATES Although the United States spends more money on health care than any other country, it is placed 30th on the 2013 Save the Children Mothers’ Index, which ranks nations according to maternal well-being. The U.S. maternal mortality rate doubled from 1987 to 2006. (Some of this increase reflects better reporting.) Only five countries in the developed world have a higher rate than the United States: Albania, Latvia, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine. The disparity is even greater for African American women — in New York City, the maternal mortality rate for black women is 83.6 per 1,00,000, worse than the rate in North Korea. Among developed countries, the United States is the only one without laws mandating some form of paid leave for women after they give birth, and it has the least favourable environment for mothers who want to breastfeed. An increase in breastfeeding rates could prevent 911 infant deaths annually in the country. It also could save the U.S. economy an estimated $13 billion each year in costs associated with diseases that could be prevented by nursing.
VITAL STATISTICS Lifetime risk of dying during pregnancy or childbirth: 1 in 2,400 Under-five mortality rate: 7.5 per 1,000 Babies exclusively breastfed in the first six months: 16.4 percent Maternity leave: 12 weeks, unpaid Gross national income per capita: US $48,820
By Diana Schoberg Reproduced from The Rotarian DECEMBER 2013
ROTARY NEWS 43