AN EXTRAORDINARY PROFESSIONAL SOCIAL WORKER

Social work in Madras in the 1960s was personality-centred. A professional social worker was considered an oxymoron as social work was viewed as an honorary voluntary social service. Mary Clubwala Jadhav, the legendary social worker and founder of the Madras School of Social Work,decided to recruit social work professionals in the Guild of Service ( GOS ) institutions under her stewardship. MSS Nambudiri, fresh from MSSW, opted a social work career in the GOS despite low salary. It was in 1964 and the position was in Seva Samajam Boys' Home ( SSBH ), an institution for destitute children.

Residential care in dormitories, a carpentry training unit , and a school were the facilities available at SSBH with  low amount of grant from the government. Born into an aristocratic and orthodox Kerala Nambudiri Brahmin family, young Nambudiri preferred to live in the SSBH premises and eat the food served to the children along with them.

Ideologically committed to deinstitutionalisation of child care, Nambudiri facilitated the return of children having at least one parent to their families by arranging income-earning support to their parents and encouraging the children to avail of all the SSBH facilities. For the totally destitute children, self-contained family cottages were set up in a nearby campus.Each family cottage consisted of a maximum of ten children under the care of a housemother who was entrusted with money for monthly expenses in advance. There was neither any uniform for children nor a fixed menu or timing for meals.Approximation to family care was Nambudiri's aim. This transition was fiercely resisted by the traditionalists in the GOS , but SSBH chairman NES Raghavachari ICS (Retired ) solidly supported these changes. In this process Nambudiri  became the Director of SSBH. During the lifetime of Mary Clubwala Jadhav, she had a love-hate relationship with Nambudiri, whom she had treated with dignity.

Nambudiri was passionate about quality education and skill development.General Cariappa School was upgraded into a government-aided higher secondary school and its portals were thrown open to all children from the neighbourhood. As the school's performance record was poor, Nambudiri adopted a three-pronged approach: motivating  teachers with competence- building, remedial inputs for weak students , and fixing accountability  on headmaster and teachers for the performance of students. When schools preferred children with good marks for admission, Nambudiri adopted  the reverse priority,the motto being " lower the scores, better the chance for admission ". Children from poor families, who were deprived of  education either because of dropping out or due to lack of birth certificates, were admitted in a separate TRANSIT SCHOOL with bridge education till they are prepared for admission in mainstream schools. Nambudiri had the support of the Directorate of Education in his efforts. As all well-intentioned actions will lead to good outcomes,General Cariappa school finally registered 100 percent success in the Board examinations.: A fact like a fiction.

A remarkable step towards self-sufficiency of SSBH was made by Nambudiri in converting the carpentry unit into a training-cum-production centre which made quality furniture for the competitiveemploymentemployment market. The unit also supplied packing cases to Ashok Leyland. The profits earned were utilised for providing better services to children, giving benefits to personnel, and creating a corpus fund to sustain SSBH programmes. Besides introducing vocational education in Cariappa School, many training units in different trades were started making the campus into a COMMUNITY COLLEGE.The lives of many children were transformed  through placement in industries, self-employment, and assignments in the middle-east. Many today are leading fairy tale lives.

In association with the child sponsorship agency Plan International, Nambudiri  launched an ambitious family and social development project in many low-income communities. He also raised massive international resources  for many GOS institutions. Ironically his popularity was a threat to many GOS functionaries, and he finally resigned from SSBH after forty years of service, which also marked the decline of SSBH.


Started as a social worker, Nambudiri became an outstanding  SOCIAL ENTREPRENEUR also. An outspoken advocate of child rights, his four decades of service was synonymous with child welfare and skill development of the youth. His contribution, if documented, will be a treatise on the twin themes for posterity.

MSS Nambudiri's illustrious life came to an abrupt end on March 15. Nambudiri and I were intimate friends for 51 years. I will miss him all through the rest of my life. So also the society around us.

A RARE jUDGE AND A GOOD PERSON

Justice K.Chandru retired from Madras High Court on March 8 on completion of 62 years. Many judges are retiring. So what is special about this retirement ? Yes, there is some thing very special.

Justice Chandru broke away from the tradition of a farewell meeting, customary speeches on the virtues(?) of the retiring judge, memento, high tea or dinner, and a photo session. He did not prefer these customary practices . 84 years ago in 1929 a judge of the Madras High Court MGH Jackson did the same.

Justice Chandru set high ethical standards as a judge. On the day he became a permanent judge he declared his assets( November 9,2011 ) He did the same on the day of his retirement. Perhaps the only judge to do so. He discontinued the practice of the red-capped mace bearer accompanying  him as a judge in the portals of the Court. He also did not need the police officer's security support. He advised the advocates to address him as Sir instead of My Lord ; but most did not prefer to do so. On New Year Day and on other festival occasions the gates of his official residence remained closed with a placard on display: " No deities here,so no flowers
                                             No one is hungry here, so no sweets
                                             No one is shivering, so no shawls.
                                             We need only your best wishes."
On the last day in office, he handed over the keys of the official car, wore simple dress , walked to the suburban railway station ,and boarded an electric train to his house.

Justice Chandru was an advocate who argued many cases for the poor clients without any fees. He practised labour law admirably. His Marxist orientation and commitment to human rights made him popular. As a teacher I had the benefit of his professional guidance for no fees. When the students of social work protested against the move of the government to evict the pavement dwelling families on the footpaths of Loyola College without any plan, he along with my colleague Dr Henry D'Souza( now Professor of Social Work at the University of Omaha) filed a petition before the High Court. The arbitrary eviction plan was stayed and they were shifted to an alternative site.

Justice Chandru proposes to devote his time for legal guidance, writing and social welfare. Known as a  "People's Judge " the services of this good person is needed for our society for many, many years, 

WHARTON'S VANITY

It is ridiculous that a US- based business school has arrogated itself the role of an arbiter of global moral standard setting. The big names in business management education including Wharton in the US could not prevent the collapse of American capitalism and the meltdown of the American economy. That much as far as their professional credentials are concerned.

Wharton Business School's India Economic Forum is a student-centric annual conclave with sponsorship from Indian business groups. Impressed with the development of Gujarat as número uno state in India, and the third successive massive electoral mandate, the organisers invited CM Narendra Modi as one of the key speakers. But surprisingly the invitation was withdrawn on grounds of his human rights violations record as presented by a group of academics. The communal violence in Gujarat leading to loss of many lives could have been arguably averted by the state government. In contrast, millions of innocent people including children were killed in Iraq by American and allied forces.These were deliberately planned human rights violations.

The Wharton conclave organisers ought to have heard Narendra Modi and questioned him on all contentious and controversial issues. That is free speech to be upheld by any institution belonging to a civilised society. There will always be detractors on any matter. But by buckling down under pressure by a group of dissenters ( which is their right ) Wharton Business School has lowered its status. What moral authority it has to teach business ethics to its MBA students when the institution lacks elementary ethics in social relations ? 

COMMENDABLE ACTION BY JET AIRWAYS FOR AN AUTISTIC CHILD

Autism or Autism Spectrum BEhaviour Disorder is a developmental disability. It affects the brain's normal development of social and communication skills. It is linked to abnormal biology and chemistry in the brain. Many causes are put forth and the exact causes are still unknown.Research is on . It normally appears in the first three years of life. More boys than girls seem to be autistic.

Autism is characterised by impaired social interaction and communication with others. Hence the autistic child is an unfairly misunderstood child. The autistic child or adult has many talents which should be developed with close observation. They excel in mathematics and research  because of their logical frame of mind. Piano and other musical instruments appeal to them , and they can be taught to be proficient in these. These are some illustrations.

January 12, 2013 is an important day for those with autism because on this day an autistic child Jiyon Ganguly and his therapy dog (Labrador) Sambaa could fly from Kolkata to Mumbai in a JET AIRWAYS flight. It was the first time a person with a neurological disorder was allowed to board a therapy dog in India ,though trained service dogs are permitted to accompany passengers with physical disabilities. Jet Airways has taken a highly praiseworthy step forward  for the well- being of the persons affected with autism.

Around  one in every one hundred persons is estimated to be affected by Autism. Many are deprived of therapy and rehabilitation . Mainstreaming the autistic children in the regular schools is very important. April  12 is AUTISM AWARENESS DAY. The society should support the holistic development of  the autistic section of our population. 

RIGHT TO SCHOOLING BUT NO RIGHT TO LEARN

The RTE Act guarantees right to school enrolment. But learning is an almost impossible goal for many of our children. That is what we understand from the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) of 2012 prepared by Pradham Education Foundation based on a survey across the country. The survey examines learning outcomes in children in the rural areas in the age-group 6-14 years by assessing their ability in reading and arithmetic using simple tests.

Learning levels have been falling over the years and 2012 witnessed an all time low record. Nearly half the 6-7 year olds in the first standard could not read even one letter in any language. Nearly 60% could not read any English alphabet. Children in class 5 who could read a class II text declined from 53.7% in 2010 to 46.8% in 2012.

In 2010 seven out of ten children could solve a two-digit subtraction problem with borrowing. But in 2012 only five out of ten could do so. It is an irony that 2012 was the Year of Mathematics.

Governments spend huge amount of money on education. Yet enrolment in private schools rose from 18.7% in 2006 to 28.3-% in 2012, and it is estimated to reach 50% in the next ten years. The lag between even modest private schools and state- run schools in the quality of teaching is evident. So anxious parents prefer private schools for their children even if it is a financial burden.

State-run schools generally are notorious for  teacher-apathy and low teacher  proficiency. Teacher accountability is a rarity in these schools. Many teachers are reluctant to prepare and teach. Often older children are asked to teach younger children in multi-grade classes. There is nobody to monitor whether children learn anything or not. Children are victimised if parents complain.

ON THE WHOLE  THE SCENARIO OF EDUCATION IN THE COUNTRY IS IN A STATE OF
DISARRAY.