Before I begin, here are some basic details to orient you. India is organized into states. States are organized into districts. Districts are organized into sub districts. And, sub districts are organized into Blocks. Blocks are organized into villages and towns. Larger cities and towns fit into the districts. Either the central government or the state government passes laws and implements them through a large bureaucracy that extends all the way down to the village councils – panchyates. India has a series of laws that are supposed to guarantee a dignified life. Poor people are entitled to a ration of grain, sugar, kerosene and cooking oil in allotments according to their ration card, which is based on their degree of poverty. This is the law. When there are problems with the process, people are supposed to go to their government officials for help. However, the reality is these government officials withhold rations, distribute them at inflated prices, or request a bribe. Jess and I are helping villagers enforce the law and fight corruption by filing complaints and holding officials accountable. As part of our effort, we try to enlist these local government officials in the hope that they will do the right thing and do their jobs within the law. Perhaps you remember Mr. Dome? Today we met Mr. Chapel, sub district director. We wanted to invite him to attend our legal literacy camp tomorrow. He wanted to lecture us about how selfish and lazy poor people are.
Mr. Chapel is probably fifty, with straight thick hair more salt than pepper, and a broad fleshy face. He looks young, except for the bags under his eyes. He has brown eyes that look like dark little lakes below his shiny hair. Chapel is probably about six feet tall, with a perfect pot-belly, but otherwise, slim, except for his face. He sits behind a very large fake mahogany desk, finished smooth on top, but coarse particle board underneath. Cheap. But, not bad for a civil servant. We exchanged introductions and sat down.
Conversation was easy and free, in Hindi, but it did not take long for the Chapel to show his stripes. It is funny how you can understand complaining and plaintiveness in other languages. N.N., from IRRAD, and a villager who has turned into a sort of rural lawyer, were explaining our program to Chapel. With a kingly wave of his hand, Chapel began to teach us about our folly.
“These people are lazy. They don’t understand, and they don’t want to understand. 90% of the district is bad. What about the 10%? We count 90% as 100%. Better that you focus your efforts on the children instead of the 80 and 90 year olds. They, the old people, will never learn. They will never change their minds. They like the way things are. I am a good public servant. I do not take bribes. But everyone around me takes bribes. Now I am under investigation but they will see that I am not corrupt. You will see. You should do something else. Maybe in America something like this could work. But here, in India, it will take 500 years.”
Our man from the village, a model of what happens when you trust people with information said, look at me. I am not lazy. I learned and now I am helping other people to do good work. Chapel said, I am not talking about one man. I am talking about the majority. 90%.
Then, Chapel turns to Jessica and I and asks us in Hindi how we find India. We were close to guessing his question, but he asks us again in English. I say, it’s great! We love it. He asks us what is different about India compared to America. I tell him, what strikes us the most is the lack of will power. We hear all the time that a thing can’t be done. We hear all the time that some group of people will never learn. That they cannot be taught, and it is useless to even try. Often we hear this, not from ordinary people but from people in power. We hear “it can’t be done” from the people with the ability to make it happen. We think that these things can be done but the people in power, the people who say it will take 500 years to change, don’t really want it to change because they like the way things are.
My heart was pounding. I was nervous and angry. The room was silent for probably a minute. Chapel turned from me and asked Jess what she thought of India. She began to follow up on my indictment, but Chapel interrupted her, asking what she thought of India, and not about the government. He asked about the heat. Jess said she could take the heat and India was fine. After another minute of awkward silence, we all agreed that the meeting was over. As we got up to leave, Chapel said to me in Hindi, I was later told, you are just visiting here. You are not really working.
India has a serious problem with corruption. We met two government officials today, both under investigation. Both still sit in their offices. Civil servants, practically speaking, cannot be removed from their post once they make “tenure”. The newspapers are filled with stories about two huge government scams and we have heard nothing from the Prime Minister. We were told just today that people who try to change things are in serious danger from organized crime. We hear about poor people paying bribes. Chapel was described to us as “King”. And, soon he will be the district director, with more power, and the same bad attitude.
We tell villagers that the government is their government. They own it. It works for them. Their taxes pay for their ration and Chapel’s salary. They do not need to pay bribes. We tell them, they do need to complain. They do need to vote. They do need to organize. They do need to participate.
It was not lost on Jess and I that we could tell many Americans the same thing. I have. Americans complain a lot about our bureaucracy. But, our bureaucrats are not like some these guys. Most of our people do not take bribes. They do not withhold services. When they do, we are outraged and we punish them. It’s perverse and sad, but sometimes you just have to see how bad it can be to understand how good things really are.
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