HOUSING FOR THE POOR
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editricon HOUSING FOR THE POOR

Harsh Mander is one of the few bureaucrats in our country with a large heart. I regulary read his meaningful articles on rural and urban poverty -urban poverty is an innovation of our planners- in  The Hindu. His articlestouch your soul and infact reflect the need to rethink on our entire planning process which has been a farce. In one of his articles recently he had written about the need to provide basic and affordable healthcare facilities to the urban poor. Our National Rural Health Mission has been a bonanza for swindlers and politicians. Our people have no shame in stealing money.Officials in Health ministry connive with avaricious contractors to swindle huge sums ofmoney from outlays which hardly reach the intended beneficiaries. Even the much touted Aadhar could be defeated in future by this unscrupulous nexus.

Urban areas are waiting to explode with exodus of rural population continuing unabated. All of our Metros have millions of people without proper housingand most of them are migrantworkers who spend their nights inpavements with their familities exposed to all health hazards and anti social acts. Home Minister blame the rise in crime graph to  migrant population only to beat a hasty retreat claiming himself to be also a migrant to Delhi. But he was stating the obvious. Thosewho come to Metroes in search of non existent opportunities end up after deep frustrations as anti social elements. None of our planners  thought about the role ofthe state to provide basic amenities to this migrant population. After 60 years of independence  National Advisory council chaired by a compassionate woman Sonia Gandhi has spoken the need about providing housing for urban poor. IT has suggested all urban municipalities to provide shelter for the large majority of migrant workers- a space of their own to sleep, rest and comfort. If Premadasa could provide cheap and affordable housing to his people in SriLanka why not the so called economic power house and emergingmarket India provide to her people.This should be the national priority. But I suspect that with people like Dr Manmohan Singh and Dr.Ahuluwalia at the helm of affairs who expressed their inability to even fund a much watered down Food Security Bill.the pet scheme of Sonia will ever be implemented.

I salute this woman from Italy who had chosen tobe an Indian for the maternal care she had shown on her people. She ranks equal among other equally eminent  foreigners like Dr.Annie Besant, Mother Terasa who also showered all their motherly love on our poor people.

I remember the verses in Devi Mahatmiyam-an invocation to Goddess Parvati the consort of Lord Shiva.

Ya Devi Sarva Boodeshu, Matru roopena Samstita,

Namastatyai,Namastatyai, Namstatyai Namo Namah

I salute you thee mother who manifests in every living being in the form ofmother.

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