Businesses have a large impact on the nourishment of countries and their people. In order for businesses to be successful in their operations, it is important for them to take into account all of their stakeholders – not only as consumers but also as contributors to the business. Thus, inclusive growth – which stems from the belief that there is a direct correlation between business success and the social, environmental and economic prosperity of all communities and countries – plays a very crucial role in business accomplishments.

In line with this, ethical business, social responsibility, and sustainable development are a few more of the intertwined concepts that have been making rounds of the international business sector. The recognition of the importance of inclusive growth in India has led to a larger amount of resources being invested in it. In addition, encouragement from the government in the form of the National Voluntary Guidelines on Social, Environmental and Economic Responsibilities of Business (Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India) is also testament to the importance of inclusive growth in India.

The actual impact created by this increasing investment from business and the government is greatly dependent on two factors: the effectiveness with which inclusive growth activities are carried out, and the stakeholder accountability demonstrated through this process. These dependencies in turn are determined by the levels of transparency maintained and the quality of systems and procedures in place to carry out inclusive growth initiatives.

Worldwide, there are numerous principles, guidelines, standards, certifications, and reporting frameworks which have been designed in order to meet these very needs of increasing transparency and improving the quality of systems and processes of an organization’s sustainability initiatives. Examples are SA 8000, AA1000, ISO 26000, Global Reporting Initiative, etc. The SA 8000 is an auditable certification standard based on international workplace norms. The AA1000 are principles standards which provide a set of principles to frame and structure the way in which organizations understand, govern, administer, implement, evaluate and communicate their accountability. The ISO 26000 is a set of management and leadership guidelines for social responsibility. The Global Reporting Initiative is the world’s leading sustainability reporting mechanism. India’s National Voluntary Guidelines apart from providing guidelines on social, environmental and economic responsibilities of businesses, also provides a reporting framework template for organizations who do not already prepare sustainability reports.

Bearing the above frameworks in mind, it is crucial to remember that inclusive growth involves the collaboration of various stakeholders. This highlights the need to build trust amongst one another in order to truly move forward in the direction of inclusive growth. Building of trust implies that stakeholders must be assured that what a business states is actually what it undertakes. This is where assurance mechanisms and verification of sustainability reporting through third party verifications comes into play.

It is interesting to note that over the past three years (2009, 2010 and 2011), 23, 25 and 18 businesses respectively have reported on their activities using the GRI framework . Sustainability reporting through other mechanisms too has been on the lower scale.

Countries like the United States of America, Spain, and Brazil, are forerunners as far as reporting through GRI is concerned with 127, 117, and 75 reports being submitted in 2011 respectively. For India to retain its competitive advantage and keep pace with the sustainability direction the world is taking, the country needs to pay heed to the fervency with which it implements sustainability reporting and assurance.

• Midday meals cooked by dalits go waste in 40% schools of Shahjehanpur, Badaun and Pilibhit districts of Uttar Pradesh, as teachers do not taste the food and students refuse to eat it since the cooks belong to ‘lower’ caste.June 7, 2011 (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/New-Article/articleshow/8755038.cms)

• Villagers have not allowed a group of SC students to use the school utensils and plates for taking mid day meal (MDM) in a primary school of Balikuda block, Orissa May 2, 2011 (http://www.orissadiary.com/CurrentNews.asp?id=26368)

• The mid-day meal a government primary school in Orissa’s Kendrapara district was stopped with a section of villagers registering their protest allegedly against the meal being cooked by women of a particular caste. MDM was stopped at Sidha Marichani primary school at Sanamarichapalli village in Rajnagar tehsil yesterday. Some members of the Village Education Committee (VEC) made their way to the school kitchen and forced the cooks to stop cooking.Jan 21, 2010 ( http://zeenews.india.com/news597834.html)

• The mid-day meals served in the school were boycotted by upper-caste children as instructed by their parents, as the head cook was a Dalit, April 8, 2011 http://jaibhimkarnataka.org/2011/04/08/untouchability-karnataka-dalits-untouchable/

These media reports reflect the disturbing trend of untouchability raising its ugly head in Mid Day Meal program, one of the most important school feeding cum health programs. However, it was something not totally unexpected. Sociologists and development practitioners had warned during the inception of the program about the possibilities of such issues and that it needed to be handled taking on latent caste issues head on.

There are many studies that point towards the influence of the caste system on children, especially Dalit children, in their pursuit of education. The UN Special Rapporteur on the right to education had noted “teachers have been known to declare that Dalit pupils ‘cannot learn unless they are beaten’”. Noted journalist, Sainath, reported that in Rajasthan, children of the Balmiki (traditionally scavengers) caste, “are made to sit on their own mats, often outside the room or at the door”. (Cited in Nambissan and Sedwal 2002). http://www.hurights.or.jp/archives/pdf/asia-s-ed/v10/15Education%20of%20Ex-Untouchables,%20Dalits.pdf.

Addressing these issues are critical towards the achievement of a society that is trying to unshackle itself from its past and embrace somewhat alien but cherished value of equity.

How do you think that the issue of caste impacting MDM should be handled ?

Going by strictly economic measures, India is a successful growth story- impressive growth rates insulated by the economic downturn. Impressive Foreign investment, rising average incomes, that have doubled since the mid-1980s. IT driven industries employing a large work force with companies like Infosys and Wipro at the forefront of a knowdege based economy. What is this, if not a success story for globalization?

The dampener comes when we start looking at the quality of life of the people. Poverty continues to haunt as people continue lack livelihood choices, the country has the highest children under nourishment figures in the world, girl child continue to be discriminated against. In fact, it seems that the India describes in the para one has nothing in common with the India we are talking about here. They are just two different world with nothing in common.

Fundamentally, the problem is that the much applauded economic growth has been built on a exclusive and narrow base. Unless the deep-rooted inequalities– in access to and opportunities for health, nutrition, education, employment are addressed, India and Bharat will remain two countries with different realities and no meeting point. For India, development and social progress will require more than sustained economic growth brought about by globalization. It will need deep and undivided attention to inequalities and broadening the platform for greater inclusion of the disadvantaged sections.

• Ban predetermination sex determination of fetus- banned
• Take Action against those using Ultra Sound Machines for fetal sex determination- rules in place, quite a few of the guilty brought to justice
• Rope in religious institutions to spread the message of equity between sexes- tried in many placed
• Educate the people about the ‘sin’ of sex selective abortion- programs undertaken
• Incentive for the parents of the girl children- in place.

It seems that when it comes to arresting the declining sex ratio, we are simply running out of ideas. Even the programs for women’s education does not seem to have had the desired impact-with desire for small families getting construed into desire for small families but with boys (as it said- minimum one boy and maximum one girl). While this is not to undermine the positives of women’s education, it just points out to the futility of external interventions. Whatever we try out, the results only show decline and further decline in the child sex ratio. In some places where it has shown improvement are usually those that came under the scanner for very low rates and have been under strict supervision. In some places, curb on foeticide has meant gruesome infanticide. Perhaps the lesson is to address the issue in people’s psyche. It will certainly be complex, long-term and riddled with contradictions, but given that external actions are just not working, rather than inhibiting access to medical facilities (that will further compromise the well-being of the women), we need to think of other ways to address the issue pertaining to low status of women.

The anti- corruption movement has led to a whole range of debates around the meaning and implications of the term civil society- its form, content and actors. Civil society is a term used in debates in the west which greatly valued non-state players. It evolved as a space and platform for non-state and apolitical associations, thus a category that was born out of negation. It is also pertinent to ask who or what exactly is ‘civil society’ in a democracy if the entire system is that of elected representation. The simplistic answer—formations outside state institutions. However, as a society, do we value some civil society groups more than others?

Noted journalist P Sainath has noted in a recent article in The Hindu, “February 2011 saw one of the largest rallies staged in Delhi in years. Lakhs of workers from nine central trade unions — including the Congress party’s INTUC — hit the streets to protest against rising food prices and unemployment. This was many times bigger than the very modest numbers at Anna Hazare’s fast and larger than Ramdev’s rollicking ‘yoga camp.’ These were workers and unions not linked to the state. Not market-driven. Not corporate-funded. And expressing clearly the interests and values of their members. In fact, fitting some classic definitions of ‘civil society.’ The rally was covered by the BBC, Reuters and AFP but was mostly invisible in mainstream Indian media except when attacked for creating traffic jams.” http://www.hindu.com/2011/06/17/stories/2011061755131000.htm

It is indeed important to dwell on these issues perhaps. On what constitutes civil society or civil societies and how does one locate oneself in the entire gamut of associations. How do these associations become more or less important? Is it a function of what appeals to us as members of a privileged group? Also, if all the politicians express their solidarity with the anti-graft movement, who is fighting against whom in this mask dance. It also raises pertinent questions about the imagery of civil society- retired bureaucrats, English speaking journalists, NGO activists. Is there a common meeting ground for all these with the people who are not so prominent but would like a voice to their issues and demands- like for example, the unorganized sector workers?

As noted RTI activists Aruna Roy and Nikhil Dey articulate in an article on the issue, “….the greater duty is to bring onboard and consider the amorphous views of civil society. Complex democratic societies do not come with binary perspectives of state and civil society. This plurality must be recognized to go beyond artificial consensus and engage in meaningful public discourse”. (http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?277048). However, as the debate continues, it must be ensured that the war of words do no divert attention from the mobilization around the issue of corruption.

What do you think civil society means in the Indian context?

A district-wise study of the sex ration trend in India derived from comparing census results from 2011 and 2001 hints that that sex selective abortion in making inroads into hitherto untouched communities. Child Sex Ration, measured as the number of girls in the age group of 0 to 6 years per 1000 boys, has declined in 431 districts. The North Eastern States like Manipur and Nagaland with their matriarchal society that were considered to be gender equitable have shown decline in the child sex ratio – In Nagaland, the ratio has dropped from 964 to 944 and in Manipur from 957 to 934.Disturbingly, in the 75 districts where the tribal population comprises 50 percent or more of the population, Child Sex Ratio has declined over the decade in 52 districts. However, despite the decline the sex ratio is in the range of 950, which is much above the national average (Times of India, June 3). The trend has been most shocking in Jammu and Kashmir where the decadal fall has been radical with districts like Pulwama , Badgam and Kupwara showing a decline in the range of - 167 to -173 over the last decade. However, it is felt that this trend is more apparent because the 2001 census was not carried out in the most robust fashion in the districts because of wide spread militancy then and the picture that is emerging now is much closer to reality.

Unfortunately, the same medical facilities and infrastructure that are so useful for monitoring fetal development and for protecting the well-being of the women by creating facilities for safe abortion are misused for sex selective abortions. Areas that have increasing coverage of Ultra Sound Scanning are those that have reported declining sex ratio.

In a drastic measure, the union heath ministry has amended the rules pertaining to Pre-Natal Diagnostic Technique (PNDT) and decided that all unregistered ultrasound machines and scanners that can facilitate sex determination will be seized and those providing the service would be liable to a fine of Rs 10,000 and face imprisonment for a maximum period of three years. The idea is to give more teeth to the existing rule that lets off the guilty with a paltry fine. However, one wonders if the revised rules are robust enough.

It is really unfortunate that more than six decades after independence, many girls do not seem to enjoy the most basic of human rights, the right to life. For these girls all that is written in the Constitution about a non discriminatory society and all the rules and laws that have been fashioned based on these ideals are dead letters. This is perhaps because patriarchy has been so deeply entrenched in the Indian society and these rules and laws are seen as having an ‘imported’ flavor that do not match with the social realities of life. Thus the tendencies are towards subverting these laws or ‘getting around’ these nuisances. Rules and regulations are important and they should be enforced. However, we really have to think about a change from ‘within’, in the domain of people’s mindset. That is a huge challenge. Perhaps that is THE challenge that we have to deal with first and foremost.

Do you think that the new rules will arrest the cases of sex selective abortion?

The basic premise of the various ICT projects have been that such projects can create access to information that would enable people to bypass the often opaque administrative machinery. As a next step, it was anticipated that people will be empowered to access such things as birth certificates, land records, income certificates, that otherwise took them many days of back and forth in the Panchayat and block offices. Ultimately, it was envisaged that ICT through e governance would enable more transparency in the conduct of the governance.

However, major questions are being asked about the sustainability and impact of such projects.

In their two year study of 300 rural tele-centres across India, Kiri and Menon (2006) find that in order to be sustainable, most centres are run like cyber-cafes, gaming booths or computer education centres. Most rural tele-centres try to finance themselves by adding services, such as photocopying, data entry, desktop publishing, digital photography and printing.

Talk about ICT some of the key words that crop up are ‘relevant information’, ‘needs-based’, and most importantly ‘community participation’. However, it is important to deconstruct what these mean and how the operate at the ground level. It is then perhaps one can better assess if the projects can satisfactorily meet the informational needs and gaps. In fact the term participation has been such widely used (and abused) that it is time to revisit and explicitly state what participation means and constitutes? How can it be undertaken?

In her case study ‘Our Voices’, a telecentre – in this case a community radio and IT centre - in asouth Indian village, Savita Bailur discusses a project that aimed to be participatory. It had everthing a ‘participator’ project should have- involved the local community (particularly women) in the running of the centre, had programs on ‘relevant information’ had forums where villagers could interact. However, findings from her ethnographic study on that even though the project is contextual (for example, it disseminates local information in an audio rather than written format) and participatory (for example, it conducted a Participatory Rural Appraisal and has a management committee drawn from the community), it faces a number of challenges that demonstrates that community participation in rural information systems projects is very complex. (http://www.ifipwg94.org.br/fullpapers/R0010-1.pdf)

In general, our experience with various ICT projects point towards the question: is the participation we talk about in ICT a ‘planner-centred’ participation? A design when we already have a blue-print for which we look for an efficient mechanism for delivering at the village level? Is there adequate engagement with the people to know what kind of information is required and what kind of delivery mechanism can work best? Even when it is about introducing technology based ideas to what extent do engage in human capital development to ensure that the tools can be used b the masses? These are some questions that need to be answered before we can talk about participation in ICT projects.

Do we need to deconstruct the notion of ‘participation’ for ICT projects?

The “ICT for development” mantra is now more than a decade old. However, the idea continues to excite due to its projected potential towards achieving significant developmental outcome. Allocation of resources for adoption of technological innovation that contribute to development is an undisputable need. However, it is being increasingly understood that such investment needs to be better informed to be as useful as projected for the end users.

To begin with, however stimulating, the IC in itself is putting together of some tools that have no meaning till the time they are effectively used by the people. Experiences demonstrate that ICT are for communities and not just for selected individuals and the ICT adoption processes, while identifying change agents and leaders should be aimed at looking at ways to empower the people to use it.

Most of the services offered by myriad projects can be classified into three major categories: 1)Informational services that disseminate generic information (as opposed to customized , such as as agricultural practices, schemes, weather forecasts, etc. 2) Transactional services that involve an exchange of specific (or customized) information services or funds between two or more parties using the ICT infrastructure. Examples include e-commerce and email.3) eGovernance services that refer to services that involve local, state, or national government. Providing land records, submitting complaints to local officials, etc are examples.

Ten years after toying with several ICT based projects , the crucial learning is that the tools are not used by the people the way they were anticipated to -usage is sparse compared to potential, suggesting problems with awareness, infrastructure, or content. A study titled “Enabling ICT for rural India”, undertaken by the Asia-Pacific Research Center, Stanford University, a detailed appraisal of nine ICT projects implemented across India. The most successful project in terms of number of users per day turned out to be Belaundur that provides e governance in the form of tax collection records 200 users per day against a target population of 30,000. While AP online offering utility services like bill payments recorded about 75 users per day against a target population of 15,000, Gyandoot offering e governance service like land records recorded only 10 users against a target of 25,000 and ITC e-choupal offering Agricultural/ veterinary services recorded 25 against a target population of 2,500. (Available at http://iis-db.stanford.edu/pubs/20972/ICT_full_Oct05.pdf).

The challenges abound: from lack of awareness of the people about the range of services offered, to various misperception about possible use, from the location of the centres (often inside people’s houses with barriers to entry for women or those from ‘lower’ castes ), from flaws in design to inabilities to digitize content to make them available over a e-medium. However, there are quite a few success stories as well. Rather than rejecting ICT, it is time when we learn from our mistakes to make the projects more oriented towards the end users.

Is the ICT dream over?

•  About 5,460,000 results on google if one searches Anna Hazare + facebook
• 4,680,000 results on google if one searches Anna Hazare + twitter

“The public movement against corruption initiated by Anna Hazare has become a rage among netizens. The Facebook page created by the group has registered over 40,000 followers in one day, while more than seven lakh people from across the country have pledged support to the cause through mobile phone registration. The response from youngsters in particular is enormous”- (Sourcehttp://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-04-07/delhi/29391719_1_anna-hazare-facebook-page-facebook-and-twitter)

No longer did we have to give example of social networking in Iran or Egypt. We had our won event and our own moments. From day 1 of the anti-graft movement led by Anna Hazare support has poured in for the cause and social networking sites like twitter and facebook were the most popular platforms. Not just the issue as an emotive one but more serious users circulated copies of the proposed Jan Lokpal Bill to be read and understood. Photos taken by assorted mobile phones and blackberries were all over the place giving the issue a huge reach.

It helped to have the ‘India Against Corruption’ page as it replied to queries. There were seven hundred thousand (and counting) missed call to a number to illustrate ‘support’. Several articles were put up an people searched internet for more information about Hazare the person and the details of the cause he was espousing. So many pages were created on Hazare on the Facebook — mostly by individuals with no direct connection just to spread the word and reach out to their ‘friends.’ It was unbelievable, the seriousness of the event actually overshadowed euphoria over the cricket world cup victory. Twitter and Facebook, took the movement from Jantar Mantar to the blackberries, laptops and desktops all over the place.

Of course, despite their seemingly huge numbers in absolutes, only a small percentage of India has access to internet based social networking. Of course, one can challenge the sustainability of such emotional response, the effectiveness of rather impulsive reaction- but there is no denying that when it comes to spreading the word –the social networking sites can play a huge role. Given that the basic tenets of democracy are still working in India (as in there are no restrictions on the use of internet and such sites) allows easy access and the young are especially hooked on to these, it is a potent instrument that uses information in a rather significant way and transform the magnitude of events from a localized to a globalized way in a very short span of time.

Can facebook and twitter be the faces of social change in India?

The process for the formulation of the XII Plan has been initiated with a tentative target to achieve a growth of about 9-9.5 per cent during the five-year period 2012-17 in GDP (Gross Domestic Product).

This time around, the planning commission has tried its hand at making the planning process participatory. Specifically, it has initiated a consultative process that has not only involved institutions like FICCI and NABARD, but also the Civil Society Organization. In addition, to reach out to the people it has set up a website where people can give their suggestions and opinion on important issues pertaining to planning.

The planning commission has identified ten Strategy Challenges: