Are Gandhian tools of civil resistance relevant today? The recent breakthrough that Anna Hazare had with the Indian Parliament through a persistent non-violent social pressure has brought the issue of civil resistance, or protest and corruption at the centre of national attention. A large number of protesters, I feel, were agitated more by the opposition…
Grassroot Innovations: New Opportunities for Indoâ€German Cooperation? Last few years have seen the rise of several new and dynamic paradigms in innovation management, e.g. the “Bottom of the Pyramid” (BOP) or “Frugal Innovations”. These seek to motivate firms to develop affordable and goodâ€quality products for rural and/or poor customers especially in developing economies. Such ideas,…
why should centralization of arena of protest be so vital in a society which we want to be governed by decenetralised polity? why should even arena of social protest be centralised, this is not what gandhi taught us, he said we could burn pyre of bought ( not looted) foreign made clothes outside your house…
Educational Experiments for inclusion and excellence When Kesar Singh Rathr reached his first posting at Akha dungri about twenty years ago, there was no school building. He used to teach in the houses of the local community members. Many kids would come without bath or even proper clothes on. He would cut their hairs, nails…
Educational Experiments for inclusion and excellence When Kesar Singh Rathr reached his first posting at Akha dungri about twenty years ago, there was no school building. He used to teach in the houses of the local community members. Many kids would come without bath or even proper clothes on. He would cut their hairs, nails…
Innovations for inflation control: agriculture When prices of agricultural commodities increased by more than sixty per cent in the last few years, pressure on consumer prices was expected. It is alright for agricultural minister to say that to pay farmers well, society should bear the inflationary burden, but that is not a very responsible attitude towards…
Grassroots innovation challenges A large number of grassroots innovations and traditional knowledge practices have been scouted through the Honey Bee Network. And yet, many everyday life problems still remain unresolved. The list below gives an idea of some such unsolved problems which are in need of urgent solution. We have to parameterise the problems,…
SOUTH AFRICA: Intellectual property rights failing Sharon Dell 17 July 2011 Issue: 18 South Africa\’s current intellectual property rights regime is failing to support the national system of innovation and is actively disadvantaging local inventors while facilitating exploitation by foreign interests, according to new research to be published in the September edition of the South African…
Why persist with neglect: polytechnic colleges deserve more attention I mentioned last week how small towns were producing big innovations, how small institutions were producing big minds and even bigger hearts. Concern for social needs whether of small industry or informal sector is not found universally among all social, professional or educational segments. But those…
Small town, big mind One of the most important characteristic features of innovation eco system emerging in India is that lot of good ideas are found in small institutions in small towns. The connect between the real life problem and the pursuit of their solution seems quite high in such places. In Gujarat, the cooperation…