KOCHI: In this country of cynical pessimism and fake optimism that absorbs the need to do anything, P Sainath is a person
who travels in the small territory in between the two-
the territory of ‘hope’. Hope that poverty, hunger and inequality in this country can be controlled and tomorrow can be better.
“Cynical pessimism absorbs the need to do anything as we’ll have a feeling that nothing can be done and fake optimism absorbs the need to do anything as we think that everything is right,” says Sainath, giving the Chavara lecture on ‘Money, Power, Media and Democracy’, organised by the Sacred Heart College, Thevera.
The award-winning journalist who focuses on poverty, social problems, rural affairs and effects of globalisation in India, talked on a range of issues including hyper commercialisation of educational sector, market fundamentalism, poverty, intolerance and the growing inequality in the society.
“India today has grown faster in inequality than anywhere else, compared to South Africa, and Latin American country which are less developed,” he observes.
Sainath, a winner of Ramon Magsaysay Award, points out that between the period 1947-1970 inequality had declined and from the 80’s it started going up again. The choices we made was the reason he added. He also mentioned the poverty in our country, suicides increasing among the farmers and that India comes 135th in human development.
Sainath’s lecture was an eye opener for many youngsters as he explained his observations with facts and figures. To him the Supreme Court’s judgement on Haryana women requiring a minimum education of class 8th to contest in the elections was against the whole idea of democracy. He says this was the sole interest of Haryana’s caste bodies and things got easier with a stamp approval.
He also voiced his disappointment with the state of affairs with the present media, saying the media is “politically free but imprisoned by the profit”.
The author of ‘Everybody Loves a Good Drought’ gave the students something to ponder about. District Collector M G Rajamanickam delivered the presidential address.