Vol 9 Issue 1 ●
Regn. no. MAHENG/2004/15104
Jan-Feb 2012
“In the end one has to reject it all and not learn but unlearn, not to know how to do but how not to do and always face doing” www.ngoconnect.org
A ‘SHAKTI’ PROJECT
- Jerzy Grotowski
I n d i a ’ s Fi r s t N G O N e w s ta b l o i d CONNECTiNG
The blame game
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f you have no one to blame, and you cant blame the weather, culture, tradition blame it on the NGO! Unable to believe that people can actually protest against thier policies, the UPA government decided that the protesters are paid to protest. As that’s actually what our politicians been doing all these years- paying people to attend rallies. And now their mindset refuses to believe the truth. That People are aware now, that they realise that they have been exploited all these 60 years by the same people who swore to serve them; that they do not need to be paid to protest for their rights. But rather than re-think or reconsider their own private compulsions of greed and indifference to the national interest, the UPA government decided that the NGOs, which have got together to help the villagers understand what nuclear means, must be getting funds from abroad to fund them. According to a report in the ToI the government is scrutinizing the working of 77 NGOs, following a crackdown of four NGOs for “allegedly fanning protests against the Kudankulam nuclear plant. The Trustee of one of these NGOs has threatened to file a defamation case against the Prime Minister’s Office, and the Opposition is demanding proof. Notwithstanding, the Tamil NAdu police repatriated a German supporter because they found pamphlets in his bag. Who else would carry these pamphlets except a supporter? Is it a crime to carry pamphlets criticising a government policy? The government is getting jittery...they have even blamed the social networking sites for encouraging anti-national (read anitgovernment) matter put there by fedup citisens. And threatened to censor them!! They forget Gandhiji did not have to get foreign funds nor did he have the internet to start a movement. This attitude follows the line of Moral policing- and from Bangalore
comes the latest gaffe in the series: the views of a former head of the department of women’s studies, Bangalore University, currently serving on the university’s committee to deal with sexual harassment:”I’m against women wearing obscene clothes. With such clothes, they tempt men and that’s why they get raped... Women look pretty when they are well-covered. Many women lecturers in BU wear salwars and jeans. What respect can they expect from boys? Only a sari with long-sleeve blouses invokes respect...” Well, well. Let’s blame the parents now, and Western influence and the clothing manufacturers. When you can’t accept responsibility, when you fail to do your duty, when you are guilty, Blame it on someone else!!!!--Rima Kashyap
From not-profit to for-profit
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ax compulsions have forced some NGOs to float for-profit companies. They are discovering many merits in the switch. When Budget 2008 ended tax waivers for charities that did commercial activity worth over Rs. 25 lakh a year, it hurt hundreds of charitable entities like Impulse- a Shillong-based NGO which helps rural artisans in north-eastern states by marketing wares worth Rs. 40-50 lakh to mainstream suppliers.
business and leave the management to the farmer group as it directly benefits the community,” says Thekaekara. Before Thekaekara handed over the cooperative to the farmers, his team at ACCORD spent Rs. 2 lakh and invested time in handholding them. The main challenge was setting up a sound accounting process. Unlike that of an NGO, with all cash transactions, a business needs more structured processes”.
Impulse had two choices. One, wind up its commercial activity and retain tax benefits, hurting marginal communities dependent on it. Two, spin off commercial activities into a for-profit company. It chose the latter. The crossover from charity to profitability seemed to be an unlikely path for NGOs like Impulse to take, but it is paying off. It is helping them realise that profitability and serving society need not be mutually exclusive. Instead, forprofit management structures can extract greater social returns for every rupee invested. It also helps social projects scale up faster.
As more NGOs cross over into the for-profit realm, smaller ones with commercial activities will merge with bigger entities. “We will see some M&A activity in this sector,” says Dhaval Udani, CEO of GiveIndia, an organisation channeling donor funds to NGOs. “Now, more than ever, charitable organisations need alternative ways to raise funds,” adds Noshir Dadrawala, CEO, Center for Advancement of Philanthropy, who advices trust and foundations on legal aspects.
It helped that Hasina Kharbhih, Impulse’s 40-year-old, founder came with a management background. “Our mindset has to change from grant-based thinking to business,” she says. This means more pressure on artisans to perform, on stricter timelines. It also means better systems, scalability and a capacity to help a larger number of poor artisans. “When we were working on grants, we could help the artisans along and let them take their time. But it is a business now and we cannot run a loss,” she adds. Sharper management is not only helping profitability, but more importantly, it is helping artisans earn more. Earlier, artisans making household products like curtains, bedcovers and fruit baskets would get Rs. 3000-4,000 a month. Now, their income has increased 50%. Exim Bank approached Impulse when the latter wanted to spin off its social business. “We will give them a soft loan, including a portion of grant, to help them scale up and boost their exports,” says Monica Khullar of Exim Bank’s Grassroots initiative and development department. In Tamil Nadu’s Gudalur district, Stan Thekaekara, who founded the non-profit ACCORD to mobilise the adivasi (tribal) population of the Nilgiri Hills, recently moved the entire business out of the books of the NGO to set up Tea Leaf Marketing Corporation (TLMC). This commercial venture takes ‘fair trade’ a step ahead by forming a cooperative of consumers, producers and investors. TLMC collects leaves from adivasi farmers and sells them collectively in the market. The farmer group now manages the marketing aspect. ”Our intention, unlike other NGOs, was always to spin it off as a
The ministry had cancelled tax breaks for NGOs with commercial activities to curb profiteering in the social sector. “There are many organisations that register as nonprofits to avoid taxes,” says Udani. But NGOs argue the good shouldn’t be punished with the bad. ”We want to petition the government on this before the budget and we hope the Finance Bill will make the required changes,” says Sanjay Patra, executive director of Financial Management Service Foundation. “In other countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh, NGOs are asked to keep two separate books of accounts: one for commercial activity and the other for nonprofit,” he adds. The government may or may not pay heed, but NGOs would do well to learn the lessons from the crossover.
The Anti-corruption movement Quo Vadis? Delhi: “The India Against Corruption (IAC) movement is at a critical juncture – some say it is at crossroads, some say it is searching for direction, some say it has lost its way. … the movement’s objective and direction is absolutely clear and it is slowly and steadily inching its way forward. The key attributes of the movement, goal, rationale, passion, motivation, direction, are intact and if anything are getting strengthened by the day. At the outset, we should celebrate the outstanding success of this movement. Whereas on one hand, iit awakened the political class from deep slumber to address the issue of corruption, on the other it made the people aware of their rights and responsibilities. The movement iinstilled a sense of urgency in our political leadership to deliver to the people of India a strong anticorruption law. It is time for the next round where we have to
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You idiot! when I say freedom, I mean freedom of the market, not of Humanbeings!!!
accomplish the objective of enactment of a STRONG Lokpal. The first task is to build a strong organization of committed and dedicated volunteers who will not only support the movement but constantly work on expanding the support base. The second relates to setting up of an effective and efficient communication system among the volunteer base. – (excerpts from a talk by Arvind Kejriwal)
Any citizen entitled to move Green panel The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has held that any citizen can approach it for protection of the environment, regardless of whether the person is directly affected by adevelopmental project or whether s/he is a resident of the affected area. The tribunal has said that it may not be proper to reject an application on the ground that the applicant is not a resident of the area or not directly affected. The NGT ruling came in response to a plea by three environmentalists challenging the environment clearance given for deforestation of 80.5 hectares of government forest land for construction of a hydroelectric dam across river Alaknanda in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand. Dismissing the government’s plea that petitioners were not directly affected by the project, the bench said the persons living in the vicinity of the proposed project may not know about its intrinsic scientific details and effects or any disaster it may cause. Therefore, the bench noted, the concept of ‘person aggrieved’ should be liberal in environment related cases. The NGT also rejected the government’s contention that they have cleared the project after a proper scientific study. The NGT, which was established by the NGT Act of 2010, is dedicated to adjudicating environmental issues.
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Of citizencandidates Mumbai: Makrand Narvekar was lone citizens’ candidate to taste victory out of the 70-odd citizens’ candidates who contested the civic polls this year. Interestingly, the candidate is from a ward known for its low voter turnout. Makrand Narvekar, a lawyer who contested as an Independent, beat the competition by a comfortable margin of 1,293 votes to win the election in ward 227, defeating the MNS and the Congress. ”In a Congress stronghold what worked for us was that we could bring together the residents who form that part of the electorate that political parties have ignored for a long time,” Narvekar, who was backed by My Dream Colaba, a citizens’ group working n the area for three years. “The verdict speaks of the anger and the dissatisfaction of the people of Colaba with the system.” However, none of the candidates supported by citizens’ candidates platforms such as Mumbai 227, Mumbai Nagrik Manch and Mumbai Nagrik Satta were elected and activists and candidates from these platforms blamed the defeat on the lukewarm voter turnout. Adolf D’Souza of Mumbai Nagriksatta, the first citizens’ candidate to be elected— in 2007-feels, ” People are not ready for this.” None of the 55 candidates supported by Mumbai 227, or 3 of Mumbai Nagrik Manch won. Akalpita Paranjpe, spokeswoman of Mumbai 227, said citizens’ candidates groups need to think of a better strategy to spread awareness of the concept. James John, an activist from AGNI, said the presence of multiple citizens’ candidates platforms confused the voters further as to which one was better. But the parties are now wary of citizen candidates.
Nostalgia can boost donations London: An international research team set out to research whether nostalgia increases donor intentions and tangible donations to charity— and whether it is a good idea to incorporate nostalgia in charity appeals. In five studies, the researchers found that nostalgia can indeed boost charity. Measuring participants responses toward
earthquake victims or underprivileged children; volunteerism and donations, the researchers found that”recent empirical findings”… see that “nostalgia is a predominantly positive emotion”. (Source: Journal of Consumer Research)