Blue Skies

09 August 2010

21:26

The sky is beautifully clear and blue with not a shadow of peril. Within the span of five seconds a drop or two of precipitation may patter one’s head. He or she may take two seconds to glance up and process the stimulus of a light gray cloud that surly materialized the instant that eyes captured the dreary wisps. Count it: one-one-thousand, two-one-thousand, three-one-thousand. What was previously faint drizzle becomes a full throttle faucet with a seemingly endless reservoir. The time elapsed from tranquil conditions to thoroughly drenched existence is no more than 10 seconds. This defines the rainfall temper of Bangalore.

There was a week on zero rain, which was welcomed by all. Even at present, the weather has been favorable during the days with sunshine and warmth; however, for three consecutive days, the moment I have stepped off the bus at the stop nearest to the Hostel, showers have plagued my short trek. They come about instantly and are staggeringly forceful. For three days, I have forgotten my umbrella and have suffered the consequences. Tomorrow, perhaps, I’ll be wiser and remember to grab it.

Today was a perfectly unproductive day at the office, but it was also relaxing and comfortable. It was one of those days where although nothing grand was being accomplished, I was wholly content being right where I was and doing what little I was doing.

I read the Sunday and Monday newspapers. I washed and snapped a pound of green beans. I unsheathed three roses of garlic. I shuffled around some computer equipment. I browsed through some savings records. I read a few chapters in my fictional novel. I sat. I walked. I twiddled my thumbs, etc. This was the common meter for everyone in the office today. The ground floor is still under construction. Men were mounting conduit and running electrical wire. The girls were text messaging each other via their cell phones. Someone was humming a popular Hindi tune. The weather was pleasant .

John was also present. Usually when he is at the office, he is engrossed in his laptop or talking on three cell phones at once in a multitude of six languages (an impressive-yet confusing-demonstration); however, today, he too seemed unoccupied. With only one week left in India, questions seeking to escape my skull, and a number of unfinished conversations that accumulated over the last several weeks, I took advantage of the day’s idleness to have a meeting with John. It proved to be an informative discussion.

Our conversation that was left incomplete on Saturday dealt with the issues of gender roles and the fact that all of the newly constructed houses for Indian urban poor are in the names of the head woman of the household. This is polar opposite of tradition. The primary reason for not allowing the men of the household possess the rights to the accommodation is that they have a tendency to mortgage them to indulge their addictions to drugs, alcohol, etc. Also they are notorious for evicting their wives and children to the streets and permitting their other relatives to occupy the space. Women see their new homes as a haven and are significantly less willing to surrender or sell them. Instead, they are inclined to unify with other women in their colony to make responsible, utilitarian decisions.

During John’s meeting with the Austin Town colony leaders on Saturday, it was apparent that all of the leaders were female, minus on man (who I learned later was only used for his literacy skills). John explained that he promotes female leadership in the colonies with which he is associated for the same reasons that the Indian Government and Housing Ministry require women to be registered as head of household. He admits that women’s gossip can destroy a community, but having individuals that are motivated and passionate about improving their lives so that their children can grow up in safety and comfort and become functional members of society is favorable. The biggest obstacle is establishing community and convincing the colonists that SPARC is not trying to cheat them or take advantage of their desperate situation but rather are honestly offering them the opportunity to escape their fates as paupers with very little expense to them.

John and I also spoke about how the Bangalore office maintains its financial stability and where it gets its money. For most of the 72 field offices in India associated the Federation and Mahila Milan, the funding comes through SPARC via grants from major donors such as the Rockefeller Foundation, the Ford Foundation, World Bank, the Bill Gates Fund, etc; however, such is not the preferred system here. John’s goal is for the Bangalore branch to be self-sustainable and have the ability to expand without taking away from other programs.

The primary income of our office is earned through the production of the biometric identification cards. A fee per card is charged to the Karnataka Slum Clearance Board. We take the effort to register all of the individuals and even print up these identification cards. It is a very timely and labor intensive process, and we sell our time, labor and product to the Slum Board.

More so, the office building in which we are situated is considered a government property, so no rent is required. Our space is free of charge. John also has a revolving account with 150, 000-200,000 rupees in it. The interest collected annually goes towards maintenance on the building. Mponey is the ‘biggest headache’ and is always a hot topic of concern, but the Office is surviving and even growing.