My First Flight to the U.K

It was my long cherished dream to make a visit to the U.K. Ever since I started my career as a lecturer in English at the University level, I have felt that every English teacher should visit England sometime or other in order to mend their accent and to have an awareness of the social background of the writers whose works they teach. But I never thought that I would ever be able to fulfill my dream. The salary of the teachers at the Higher Education Sector was so meager at that time that it was inadequate even for meeting a man’s basic requirements. So a trip to the U.K. or to any foreign country at that time could only be a wild dream unless a job was secured abroad. But I was not interested in working abroad. I have been teaching at the Higher Secondary, Undergraduate and Post-graduate classes. I have been quite complacent as a teacher though the remuneration was quite meager. “If a person could find a job of his choice, he shouldn’t ask for any other blessing.” I have always felt that the statement is quite true and I had no complaints or regrets though I have joined my colleagues in the joint actions for justice.

It was during those days that I met a great, short-statured man of Kerala, P.N.Panikkar, the founder of the Library Movement in Kerala. When I met him, he was launching a new mission. Though he was the founder of the Library Movement in Kerala and was the Secretary of the Movement for a few decades, he was later ousted from the movement because of the over dose of politics that crept into the movement. It was then that he, with the help of some of his former colleagues launched the new Literacy Movement. The Movement was called Kerala Association for Non Formal Education & Development (KANFED). I was attracted by the ideals of the Movement and I attended a training camp organized by the Movement at Thrippunithura. There I had the chance of getting acquainted with some great social leaders like Sri. P.N.Panikkar, Sri. P.T.Bhaskara Panikkar and the former Central Minister A M Thomas. The movement at that time was in its infancy. The leaders of the movement wanted young men of commitment to join the Movement. Eventually, I was nominated as a member of KANFED Branch of Ernakulam District.

Having become a member of KANFED, I felt that I should do something for the Movement. At that time I was the President of the YMCA, Alwaye. Because of my contacts and influence, the Regional Committee of the YMCAs of Kerala agreed to collaborate with KANFED in conducting a training camp. All the expenses of the camp were met by the YMCA and the resource persons were provided by KANFED. The camp was a grand success. The role I played in the organization of that camp was appreciated and in recognition of my service, I was nominated to the District Executive Committee of KANFED, while its President was A M Thomas, the former Central Minister, a pleasant person of pleasing manners.

Soon after I was inducted as a Member of the District Executive of KANFED, the Secretary of the Executive tendered his resignation for two reasons. One reason was that he was quite old and he found it difficult to run about for the activities of KANFED. The second reason was that KANFED was in its infancy and there were no funds available for any activity. He was advancing funds from his own pocket hoping that the expenses would be reimbursed. When the camp was held at Thrippunithura, he had to borrow lots of money from his personal friends and well wishers. He was promised that the loan would be repaid by the State Committee. The Camp was a great success. But the money, the Secretary had taken as loan was not repaid as it was promised. So the Secretary was at a breaking point financially. At the meeting of the Committee, everybody compelled the Secretary to continue because he was a very sincere and hard working person of great commitment. He was also a veteran activist in the Library Movement. But he pressed his resignation, so a new Secretary had to be found. Many names were proposed. But nobody accepted. Nobody wanted to be the Secretary of an Organization without any funds even to convene a meeting. Finally, the Secretaryship was thrust upon me. I could not resist such a combined and collective compulsion. I thought I shall take it up as a challenge. But I never had to regret. That brought a drastic change in my life. That was a turning point of my life. There started my public life. Till then my activities were mainly confined to academic sphere within the campus of Union Christian College, Alwaye. Now my area of activity got widened. I began to have closer association with important people in various spheres of life. My vision got broadened. I began to be more concerned with the lives of the poor. The beginning was tough. I had lots of humiliating experiences. In Kerala nobody took adult education seriously at that time. Kerala was the most literate state in India and so people thought that literacy was irrelevant to Kerala. But even at that time 40% of the people of Kerala were illiterate, while in the other states of India 70% of the people were illiterate.

As time passed by, we began to be recognized. Our literacy volunteers began to get some petty pocket allowance of Rs.50/- a month. Though the amount was so meager, it was a sign and token of recognition of their sincere services, a matter of prestige for them. They became more active. Those who condemned and ridiculed our activities took up the work we have been doing and tried to be champions of that to make claims for being recognized as the leaders of the cause, and go after seeking awards and rewards. But we remained on the earth, earthy without seeking for awards, while others went after glory and power. I got involved in the activities of various other social organizations like Gandhi Peace Foundation, Toc H, a Peace Movement, Association for Environmental Protection etc. I became an active member of Indian Adult Education Association, Indian University Association for Community Education etc. I was later elected as a member of the National Council of Indian Adult Education Association. I got the opportunity of participating in various National Conferences and Seminars on Community Education.

Indian University Association for Community Education was affiliated to International Community Education Association. The first foreign country I could visit was Kenya and that was to present a paper at the International Conference of International Community Education Association. Dr. Ram Lal Parikh, the then Vice Chancellor of Gujarat Vidyapeeth led the Indian team to the Conference.

When the Air India flight landed at Nairobi, I was quite happy. When I got down at the Airport, I was quite excited. I went to the emigration clearance counter as everybody else who came by that flight did. After getting the emigration clearance, I went to the conveyance belt to collect my baggage. There were a large number of people who came by that flight. They were all there to collect their luggage. It was a long wait for me. Most of the passengers got their luggage and left. Among the Indian delegation most of the members collected the luggage and proceeded to the exit point. Some of them came back and hurried me up. But I cannot go without my luggage. Finally the moving conveyer belt suddenly came to a halt. That meant that there was no more luggage unloaded from the flight. I was quite worried. Filled with anxiety, I looked around. There were just three more left behind like me. We came close to each other. I had little relief to find that I am not the only person who had lost the luggage. One among them was a Professor of Madras University. He seemed to be a person who had travelled a lot. He knew what to do if luggage is lost in the transit. He led us to the office of the Air India. We informed them what had happened. They finally found out that our luggage was, by mistake, sent to a different destination. They promised us to get the luggage back with in a few days’ time. We claimed to get compensation for the inconvenience and problems we are to face having to stay there in a foreign country without even a pair of dress for us to change. The Professor of Madras University seemed to know all the rules regarding that. So he claimed the compensation and we got $ 500 each as compensation. A few days later we got back our luggage.

But for the initial mishap everything else went on smoothly.

I got the opportunity of addressing an international audience. The hall was fully packed. I was addressing men and women of all hues – black, white and brown, fat and thin, bald and hairy, dark and fair. It was for the first time in my life that I was addressing such an audience. My presentation of paper was followed by a large number of questions. I answered them all. I had the satisfaction that I was intelligible to the people of different colours, different climes, different countries with different accents and different speaking styles because questions came from many different quarters – from people of different nations.

When I thought of the intelligibility of accent, I was reminded of a story, a friend of mine told me quite some time back. Two Senior Professors from our College got Scholarships to further their studies at a famous University in the United States. They flew to the city in the United States where the University was situated. As they got out of the airport, one of them asked the first person that came against them;

"Which is the way to Hotel ............... ?"

"I am sorry", said the person, "I couldn't get you. Would you, please, repeat the question."

The Professor repeated the question more loudly and clearly.

"Which is the way to ............... ?"

"Sorry", the person remarked, "I speak no Spanish!"

Another exciting experience of mine at the Conference was that I was called upon to preside over a session on environmental pollution. At that session Ms.Lois Marie Jibbs from the U.S.A., passionately presented the story of her crusade against pollution by industrial affluence. That was the story of her own life, she excitingly and impressively presented. She was the founder of a great Movement called “Citizens’ Clearing House for Hazardous Wastes” started as a single individual’s initiative and grown into a great movement. Now its name has been changed and I do not remember its present name. Her book titled ‘Love Canal – My Story’ tells all about the beginning of the Movement, which grew into a great establishment making a difference in many people’s lives.





Another interesting experience was meeting a Russian delegate called Annetole. He was, most of the time sitting outside the conference hall, smoking. But when his name was called out for presenting his paper, he suddenly appeared and gave an excellent presentation. When I asked some questions, he apologized and told the audience that he knew no English. Then delegates raised the doubt, “How could you make a presentation in English so well?” They asked with surprise. ‘I learnt to present the paper in two weeks by repeating it and learning by heart. I had it on my tape which was repeatedly played and I learned like a parrot. This answer also I learnt by heart expecting such a question. I do not know anything more of English”. What surprised us all was that he could make such an impressive presentation with fifteen days’ practice! As a language teacher, what he said, was of academic interest to me. I was reminded of Bernard Shaw’s play ‘Pygmalion’ where he tells the story of a Professor of Linguistics who transformed an illiterate and uncivilized flower girl speaking local vulgar cockney dialect, into a society lady, speaking refined and sophisticated language, through constant practice.





Towards the end of the session we were taken to a wild animals’ park. There the wild animals live in their natural habitat of a forest. There we were taken in a well-protected van. Here I have visited Zoos where we find animal in cages. But there we were in cages and were being taken round as exhibits before the animals in their natural habitat.



After the end of the conference we had two more days to stay there and we were left for ourselves to have our own programmes. At that time, I was the Chairman of the Ernakulam Sub Region of YMCAs. So before I started I had some correspondences with the YMCA in Nairobi. They had extended an invitation to me. So I along with my friends went to the YMCA in Nairobi and they gave us a grand reception. They took us to some of their community development centers in some remote rural areas. There I had the privilege of addressing to some of the very poor people and it was my first experience of listening to my own speech translated into a local African dialect. That was also a novel experience.



The next country I visited was Malaysia and that was to participate in the First Asian Conference on Community Education. There I presented my paper sharing my experience in the area of Community Education. My presentation was well applauded. That was the time when Kerala State had become totally literate. So I had to answer very many questions regarding the strategies adopted for the Project. I was very actively involved in that project and I was one of the State level resource persons for training the literacy workers at all different levels. So I could answer all the questions raised at the conference. There I had the privilege of spending quite some time with Aryathunge, a great social worker from Sri Lanka, who had won Magsaysay Award. He came there to participate in the conference. He was quite renowned, but very humble and courteous. After the conference, I visited Singapore, extensively and returned enriched and enlightened.





As an English teacher, my desire to visit the U.K was still unfulfilled. During those days there was an International Conference on Non Formal Education held in Surat. I participated in the conference. It was there that a new organisation called “Commonwealth Association for Education and Training of the Adults” was formed. Dr. Alen Rogers, the Professor from the University of Reading, gave leadership to the formation of the new organisation. There I was enrolled as one of the founding members of that International Organisation. Under the auspices of that organisation, an International Workshop on Non Formal Education was planned to be held at Nottingham University, U.K and papers were invited from its members. I immediately sent a paper for presentation. Two weeks later I got the message that my paper had been accepted; but because of the paucity of funds the organizers of the workshop would not be able to meet my travelling expenses. I expressed my inability to participate in the conference as I could not afford the travel expense. There was nothing heard from the organizers for some time. After some time, I had the pleasant surprise when I got the message that my travel, stay and food would be taken care of. My joy found no bounds. It was a great dream come true.

I made all preparations for my journey. Those days I had to go to Chennai to get the Visa stamped. There was not even the collection centre to receive applications for Visa here in Cochin. So I went to Chennai. I reached the Office of the British Consulate in the morning, submitted application form. I was asked a few questions and they wanted me to come in the afternoon for collecting the passport with the Visa stamped. That was a time when there wasn’t such wide spread terrorism as it is today. Those days, terrorism was almost confined to Kashmir in India, Belfast in the U.K and Sri Lanka. Those days, there was no international flights from cochin. Now we have an international airport here. Those days there were only domestic flights available from Cochin. So first I had to go to Mumbai. I got my tickets booked upto London and back. I reached Mumbai early enough, met some of my friends there and boarded the Air India flight that took me to Kuwait. That was the time when a section of the Air India Pilots were on strike for hike of salary. But they were operating some flights with the available pilots who did not join the strike. On enquiries we were guaranteed that our flights from Mumbai to Kuwait and Kuwait to London were operating and we did not have to worry at all, so I considered myself fortunate that my flights were not disturbed. But when I landed Kuwait Airport, I got shattered to hear the heart-breaking news that my onward Air India flight had been cancelled as more pilots had joined the strike. If I didn’t get a flight that very day, I wouldn’t be able to reach Nottingham for the International Workshop. That will smash my cherished dream. I along with all the other transit passengers rushed to the Air India Counter. There they seemed to be helpless. On enquiry I found that there was only one flight that day going to London and that was the flight by British Airways. That flight was almost fully booked mainly because of the cancellation of many schedules of Air India flights. I did not know where to go for getting a chance to get into that flight. I was running from pillar to post. Then there was an announcement asking all the transit passengers of the cancelled Air India flight to report at a counter. I rushed to that place full of anxiety and apprehensions. I didn’t know what was going to happen. There was a big crowd, some were weeping; some were crying; some were shouting and some were demanding compensation. Some expressed the fear of losing their jobs if they missed the flight that day.

For me it seemed to be a life and death struggle. If I didn’t get into that flight, my whole purpose of participation in the Conference would be defeated. I pushed myself up along with the crowd. The people never bothered to stand in a line or to behave well; nor could they be controlled without force. On such occasions of crisis, people forget all good manners and courtesy. Then the people lose self-control. Once a noble man was in a shipwreck and as the ship was going down, he snatched a life belt from a woman passenger and put it on himself. He was saved and she was drowned.

With great struggle I reached in front of the counter. There were so many people shouting to capture the attention of one of the officials there. I was also struggling to capture the attention of one of them. Suddenly some one looked at me probably because of my pathetic look. “I am Professor P J Joseph from Union Christian College” I said, “going for a Conference”. At the mention of the name of the College, his face brightened. He took my passport. He noted down something. While returning the passport, he assured me, “If there is only one seat that falls vacant in the flight, you would be given that seat”, saying that he disappeared. He was like an angel before me. Then the comfort and the relief that I experienced was inexplicable. I wanted to thank him from the bottom of my heart. But he wasn’t there to receive my thanks. He was just like an angel that came on duty and left. I thought, probably, he was an old student of Union Christian College; but he didn’t reveal his identity. Was he a messenger of god? I was perplexed. Was it a dream? No, it was a reality too nice to be believed. I went away from the counter with my heart smoothened, devoid of all anxieties and tensions, bought a cup of coffee, sat on a chair relaxed enjoying the coffee which, I felt, had all the flavors of the world. I felt happy, contented and relaxed. But still I had to spend some five hours at the airport for the British Airways flight to arrive. While I was sitting there relaxed, I could hear so many co-passengers, still cursing, shouting, crying and murmuring. About four hours later, there was an announcement that, there were a few seats available in the British Airways flight and a few of the transit passengers could go by that. Then they started calling out the names. I hoped that my name would be called out first. But it was not my name. Then I heard somebody sitting by my side saying that they have certain priorities. For example, unaccompanied children get a priority. Women with small kids unaccompanied by anybody else, old people and sickly people, they all get priorities. I again became anxious. After all these priorities, would my name find a place in the list? I looked for the person who gave me the assurance that I would definitely go by that flight. But he was not to be seen anywhere there, nor did I know his name to make any enquiries about him. Was his promise just a mirage! Just a dream! Every time when a name was being called out, everybody looked up with hope and expectation. When the name was out everyone except the one whose name was called, drooped down desperately again waiting. I waited patiently. Ah! There was my name announced loudly and clearly through the microphone. I jumped up from my seat with excitement. Again I looked for the person who assured to help me, in order to thank him. But he was not to be seen anywhere there. It seemed that like an angel he had melted into the thin air. I could never forget that timely help. My ineffable and unexpressed gratitude would forever remain un-conveyed to that good Samaritan.

Thus I reached London well in advance for the Conference. There at the airport I met a few Indian friends proceeding to Nottingham. I joined them and reached the Nottingham University where a very nice accommodation was arranged for my stay. Thus a great and long cherished dream of mine came true. I have read about a little bird’s first flight into the vast sky which is nervous, but thrilling. My first flight to the U.K was not different.



After participating effectively in the Workshop held at Nottingham, a workshop well attended by important persons from different parts of the world, I travelled extensively in the U.K. I visited various monuments and places of historic importance. Towards the end of my visit, my friend took me to a wedding that was held at a very ancient Church at Chichester. There in that Church I could see the Chalice from which Queen Elizabeth I of 16th Century used to receive holy communion, preserved as a museum piece. As I reached there quite early, I went round to see the place. Walking, I reached a place called Bosham, which was very close to Chichester. That was quite a village. I went to a place that protruded into the water. I went to the tip of the protruding strip of land and climbed on a big piece of rock. Standing there I looked around. I had an extensive view of the places around. Then someone told me that, this was the place where, more than two thousand years ago, the famous Roman Emperor Julius Caesar stood and proudly declared, “Vini, Vidi, Vici”, “I came, saw and conquered”. At that time my mind was also filled with the pride and joy of a conqueror who had conquered the inaccessible!

കര്‍മ്മ കാണ്ഡത്തിന്‍റെ സ്മൃതിരേഖകള്‍

Article appeared in the Sunday Supplement of "Deepika" dated May 9, 1999

OBITUARY - "മാധവിക്കുട്ടി"

Recollections on the sad demise of Kamala Das ( "Madhavikutty") the renowned poet in English and famous writer in Malayalam, written soon after her death on May 30, 2009 and published in 'Malayalam Varika' dated June 12, 2009, a Malayalam Monthly published by 'Indian Express' Group





അനര്‍ഗ്ഗളമായൊഴുകുന്ന സ്നേഹധാരയായിരുന്ന മാധവിക്കുട്ടി. അവരുടെ നിശ്‌ചലമായ ശരീരത്തിലേക്ക് നോക്കിയപ്പോള്‍ ആ സ്നേഹ സ്രോതസ്സ് വറ്റിപ്പോയല്ലോ എന്ന ചിന്ത എന്നെ സ്ഥബ്‌ധനാക്കി. ഏറെ വര്‍ഷങ്ങളുടെ ദൈര്‍ഘ്യവും ദൃഡതയും ഞങ്ങളുടെ ബന്ധത്തിനുണ്‍ട്. പരിസ്ഥിതിയോടുള്ള പ്രേമമാണ്‌ ഞങ്ങളെ അടുപ്പിച്ചത്. ഞങ്ങള്‍ പരിചയപ്പെടുമ്പോള്‍ ദാസേട്ടനുണ്‍ടായിരുന്നു. മാധവിക്കുട്ടിക്ക് താങ്ങും തണലുമായി. അന്നവര്‍ തിരുവനന്തപുരത്തായിരുന്നു താമസം.

ആലുവായില്‍ പരിസ്ഥിതി സംരക്ഷണസമിതിയുടെ വിപുലമായ ഒരു സമ്മേളനത്തില്‍ പ്രസംഗിക്കുവാന്‍ ഞാന്‍ മാധവിക്കുട്ടിയെ ക്ഷണിച്ചു. അവരെ ഒരു നോക്കു കാണുവാനും ശ്രവിക്കുവാനുമായി വലിയ ജനക്കൂട്ടം; അലുവ ടൌണ്‍ ഹോള്‍ നിറഞ്ഞു കവിഞ്ഞു. പലരും ഉദ്വേഗത്തോടുകൂടി എന്നോടു ചോദിച്ചു, "അവര്‍ വരുമോ?" പലരും പറഞ്ഞു, പലപ്പോഴും യോഗങ്ങള്‍ക്ക് അവര്‍ എത്താറില്ല. ആ വാക്കുകള്‍ ഞങ്ങളുടെ മനസ്സില്‍ ഭീതി ഉളവാക്കി. മീറ്റിംഗ് വൈകീട്ട് 5 മണിക്കായിരുന്നു. 4.50 ആയപ്പോള്‍ അതാ ഒരംബാസിഡര്‍ കാര്‍ വന്നു നിന്നു. അതില്‍ നിന്നും കറുത്ത കണ്ണട ധരിച്ച്, ഒരു വിശറി കയ്യില്‍ ചലിപ്പിച്ചുകൊണ്‍ട്, അതാ, മാധവിക്കുട്ടി നാടകീയമായി വന്നിറങ്ങുന്നു. തിരുവനന്തപുരത്തുനിന്നും ഈ ഒരു പരിപാടിക്കുവേണ്‍ടിമാത്രം വന്നതായിരുന്നു അവര്‍. പിന്നീട് ഞാന്‍ ആലുവ യുണിയന്‍ ക്രിസ്ത്യന്‍ കോളേജിലെ ഇംഗ്ലീഷ് വിഭാഗം മേധാവിയായിരുന്നപ്പോള്‍, എത്രയോ തവണ അവര്‍, ആ കോളേജില്‍ വന്ന് എന്‍റെ വിദ്യാര്‍ത്ഥികളുമായി സംവദിച്ചിട്ടുണ്‍ട്. ഞാന്‍ എവിടെ യോഗത്തിനു വിളിച്ചാലും, പല അസൌകര്യങ്ങളും മാറ്റിവെച്ച് മാധവിക്കുട്ടി എത്തുമായിരുന്നു. അങ്ങിനെ അതൊരു ആത്മബന്ധമായി വളരുകയായിരുന്നു.

With 'Madhavikutty' (Kamala Das) and Jayatha Mahapathra, the Indian poet in English from Orissa

എന്‍റെ ആലുവയിലെ വസതിയില്‍ ദാസേട്ടനോടൊത്ത് അവര്‍ എത്രയോ തവണ വന്നിരിക്കുന്നു. എന്‍റെ ഭാര്യ തയ്യാറാക്കുന്ന കൊക്കോ ചോക്ലേറ്റ് ദാസേട്ടനും മാധവിക്കുട്ടിക്കും ഏറെ പ്രിയങ്കരമായിരുന്നു. ദാസേട്ടന്‍ അപ്പോള്‍ പ്രമേഹരോഗിയായിരുന്നു. ആഗ്രഹങ്ങള്‍ക്ക് കടിഞ്ഞാണിട്ടിട്ടുള്ള ജീവിതം ദുസ്സഹമാണെന്നു പറഞ്ഞ്, ദാസേട്ടനെ ചോക്ലേറ്റ് കഴിക്കുവാന്‍ അവര്‍ പ്രേരിപ്പിക്കുമായിരുന്നു. എന്‍റെ വസതിയില്‍ ഏറെ സമയം സൌഹൃദം പങ്കിട്ട് ദാസേട്ടനും മാധവിക്കുട്ടിയും ചിലവഴിക്കുമിയിരുന്നു. ആ സന്ദര്‍ശനങ്ങളെ അനുസ്മരിച്ചുകൊണ്‍ട് എന്‍റെ ഒരു പുസ്തകത്തില്‍ ആമുഖമായി മാധവിക്കുട്ടി എഴുതി. "പ്രൊഫസര്‍ പി.ജെ.ജോസഫ് അറിയപ്പെട്ട അധ്യാപകനാണ്‌, സ്നേഹിക്കപ്പെടുന്ന ഒരു ഗുരുവും. അദ്ദേഹം വിനയാന്വിതനായി തന്‍റെ അഭിപ്രായങ്ങള്‍ പ്രകടിപ്പിക്കുമ്പോള്‍, അവ കേള്‍ക്കുവാനും ഗ്രഹിക്കുവനും ശിഷ്യഗണം മാത്രമല്ല, മിത്രങ്ങളായ സ്രോതാക്കളും ജാഗ്രത കാണിക്കാറുണ്‍ട്.

ആലുവായിലുള്ള സെമിനരിയുടെ സമീപം സ്ഥിതി ചെയ്യുന്ന അദ്ദേഹത്തിന്‍റെ വസതിയില്‍ ഞാനും എന്‍റെ ഭര്‍ത്താവും സന്ദര്‍ശകരായി എത്താറുണ്‍ടായിരുന്നു. സൌമ്യമായ ആ വ്യക്തിത്വത്തെ ഞങ്ങള്‍ മാനിച്ചു. മറ്റു പണ്ഡിതന്‍മാരെപ്പോലെ തങ്ങളുടെ വിഞ്ജാനസമ്പാദ്യത്തെ പറ്റി അഹന്തയോടെ അവതരിപ്പിക്കുവാന്‍ പ്രൊഫസര്‍ ജോസഫ് ഒരിക്കലും തുനിഞ്ഞില്ല. 'പുന്‍ചിരിക്കുന്ന ജോസഫ്' എന്നാണ്‌ എന്‍റെ ഭര്‍ത്താവ് പലപ്പോഴും അദ്ദേഹത്തെ വിശേഷിപ്പിച്ചത്."

അവരിത്രയും എന്നെക്കുറിച്ച് എഴുതിയത് എന്‍റെ മഹത്വം കൊണ്‍ടാണെന്ന് ചിന്തിക്കുവാനുള്ള മൌഡ്യം എനിക്കില്ല. അത് എന്നോടു കാണിച്ച അകമഴിഞ്ഞ ഔദാര്യത്തിന്‍റേയും വാത്‌സല്യത്തിന്‍റേയും പ്രതിഫലനമായേ ഞാന്‍ കാണുന്നുള്ളു.

വാനംബാടിക്കു പിറന്ന മാന്‍പേട

വിദേശികളായ അതിഥികള്‍ അവരെ കാണുവാന്‍ വരുമ്പോള്‍ എന്നേയും അവര്‍ അവരുടെ വീട്ടീലേക്ക് ക്ഷണിക്കാറുണ്‍ട്. ആവരിലൊരാളാണ്‌ മേരി വൈസ് ബോര്‍ഡ്. അവര്‍ മാധവിക്കുട്ടിയുടെ ഒരു ജീവചരിത്രം എഴുതുന്നുണ്ടായിരുന്നു. (From Montreal to Malabar) മോണ്‍ട്രിയയില്‍ നിന്നും മലബാറിലേക്ക് എന്നാ‍ണ് ആ പുസ്തകത്തിന് പേരിട്ടിരുന്നത്. അതിന്‍റെ ആദ്യ ഭാഗങ്ങള്‍ ഞാനുമായി ചര്‍ച്ച ചെയ്തിട്ടുണ്‍ട്. പിന്നീട് അതിന്‌ എന്തു സംഭവിച്ചു എന്നെന്നിക്കറിയില്ല.

With 'Madhavikutty' (Kamala Das) and Mary Wisebord, the Canadian writer and a biographer of Kamala Das.

അവരെ സന്ദര്‍ശിക്കാറുണ്ടായിരുന്ന ഒരു വിദേശ വനിത, ഏതാനും ദിവസം അവരോടൊത്ത് കഴിഞ്ഞശേഷം തിരിച്ചുപോകുന്ന വഴി, ഡല്‍ഹിയില്‍ വെച്ചു, അവര്‍ കണ്‍ടുമുട്ടി പരിചയപ്പെട്ട ഒരാളുമായി കിടക്ക പങ്കിട്ട വിവരം കത്തിലൂടെ മാധവിക്കുട്ടി അറിഞ്ഞപ്പോള്‍ അവര്‍ എന്‍റെ മുമ്പില്‍ ഏറെ ധാര്‍മ്മികരോഷം കൊണ്‍ടു. അധര്‍മ്മത്തോടും അനീതിയോടും പ്രതികരിക്കുമ്പോള്‍ അവര്‍ നിഷ്ക്കളങ്കമായി പൊട്ടിത്തെറിക്കാറുണ്‍ടായിരുന്നു.

ജീവിതത്തില്‍ അവര്‍ക്ക് നേരിടേണ്‍ടിവന്ന ദുര്‍ഘട ഘട്ടങ്ങളില്‍ അവര്‍ ഏറെ നേരം എന്നോടൊത്ത് ചിലവഴിച്ചിട്ടുണ്‍ട്. എന്‍റെ സാന്ത്വനവാക്കുകളില്‍ അവര്‍ സമാധാനം കണ്‍ടെത്തുന്നപോലെ എനിക്ക് തോന്നിയിട്ടുണ്‍ട്.

ദാസേട്ടന്‍റെ മരണമാണ്‌ അവരെ തളര്‍ത്തിക്കളഞ്ഞ ഒരു വലിയ ആഘാതം. താന്‍ അനാഥയായതുപോലെ അവര്‍ക്കനുഭവപ്പെട്ടു. സ്നേഹിക്കാന്‍ മാത്രമറിയുന്ന അവരെ പലരും, സ്നേഹം നടിച്ച് വഞ്ചിട്ടുള്ള സംഭവങ്ങള്‍, അവരുടെ മനസ്സിന്റെ ഉണങ്ങാത്ത വ്രണങ്ങളായി മാറി.

കാണുന്നവരെയെല്ലാം സ്നേഹിക്കുകയും വിശ്വസിക്കുകയും ചെയ്യുന്നത് അവരുടെ ഒരു ദൌര്‍ബല്യമായിരുന്നു. കപടമായ ലോകത്ത്, എല്ലാവരേയും, എല്ലാറ്റിനേയും സ്നേഹിക്കുന്ന ഒരു നിര്‍മ്മല മനസ്സുണ്‍ടായതാണ്‌ അവരുടെ വേദന. ഒരു കൊച്ചു കുട്ടിയുടെ നിഷ്ക്കളങ്ക മനസ്സായിരുന്നു അവരുടേത്. കേള്‍ക്കുന്നതെന്തും അവര്‍ വിശ്വസിക്കുമായിരുന്നു. അതുകൊണ്‍ടുകൂടിയാകണം ഒരു മതത്തിലും ഒതുങ്ങിക്കൂടുവാന്‍ അവര്‍ക്ക് കഴിഞ്ഞില്ല. "വാനംബാടിക്കു പിറന്ന മാന്‍പേട" എന്ന വിശേഷണം അന്വര്‍ഥമാണോ എന്നു ഞാന്‍ സംശയിച്ചിട്ടുണ്‍ട്.

ആ സ്നേഹപ്രവാഹം നിശ്‌ചലമായിരിക്കുന്നു; ആ സ്നേഹസ്രോതസ്സ് വറ്റിപ്പോയിരിക്കുന്നു, അവരെ സ്നേഹിച്ചിരുന്നവരെയൊക്കെ തീരാദു:ഖത്തിലാഴ്ത്തിക്കൊണ്‍ട്. അവരുടെ അന്ത്യത്തിന്‌ ഒരു മാസം മുംബ് ഞാന്‍, മകന്‍ ജയസൂര്യയെ ഫോണില്‍ വിളിച്ച് രോഗവിവരങ്ങള്‍ തിരക്കി. ജയസുര്യ ഫോണ്‍ മാധവിക്കുട്ടിക്ക് കൈമാറി. ആവര്‍ തന്‍റെ രോഗത്തെകുറിച്ച് സംസാരിച്ചു. പക്ഷെ, അവരുടെ ശബ്‌ദം ദുര്‍ബ്ബലമായിരുന്നു. നീര്‍മാതളത്തിന്‍റെ സുഗന്ധം നമുക്കന്യമാകുകയാണോ എന്നു ഞാന്‍ ഭയപ്പെട്ടു. ആ ശബ്‌ദം ഇന്നു നിലച്ചിരിക്കുന്നു. ടെന്നിസണ്‍ എന്ന ആംഗ്ലേയ കവി തന്‍റെ ആത്മസുഹൃത്തിന്‍റെ മരണത്തെക്കുറിച്ചെഴുതുന്ന വിലാപകാവ്യത്തില്‍ പറയുന്നു,

"And what to me remains of good ?

..........................................................
And unto me no second friend."

with Madhavikutty

'എനിക്ക് ഈ ലോകത്തില്‍ നന്‍മയായെന്തുണ്‍ട്? എനിക്കു ഇതുപൊലൊരു സുഹൃത്തുണ്‍ടാവുകയില്ല.' എനിക്കും ജീവിതത്തില്‍ ഇതുപോലൊരു നന്‍മയുടെ പ്രതീകവും സ്നേഹത്തിന്‍റെ ഉറവിടവുമായൊരു സുഹൃത്തുണ്‍ടാകില്ല എന്നത് എന്നെ അസ്വസ്ഥനാക്കുന്നു.

Baby a baby while a baby

Report that appeared in the 'The Hindu' on 17th Oct. 2000

THE SAGA OF SALVATION OF A SLUM

[First published under a different title 'Education for the Development of Slum Dwellers' in 'Convergence' dated November 4, 1991, published from Toronto, Canada]

In 1972 when Paulo Freire visited India, he came to Bombay, and after spending the night there, he proceeded to Bangalore, leaving his hotel at 4’O clock in the morning. He vividly describes what he saw on the street of Bombay. “I could not recognize the street where thousands of people were sleeping. I was seeing people, people, people sleeping on the road and I asked myself, ‘what is the hope for them who have been born in the street, who have played as children in the street, who have run about in the street, who grew up in the street, who dreamt in the street, who worked in the street and who died in the street – what is the use of literacy for them? To live in a house is one of the fundamental rights of human beings – to have a place to rest.”

As the Secretary of the Ernakulam District Committee of the Kerala Association for Non Formal Education and Development, I have been able to organize hundreds of Community Education Centres at different parts of the Ernakulam District. I have had close associations with many of those centres. But the work I was able to do among the slum dwellers at Alwaye is quite memorable. My association with the slum dwellers started with the attempt of starting a community education centre at the slum of Alwaye with the help of my students.

Just imagine the horrors of the semi-starved semi-clad, impoverished, unfortunate people living on the sides of the streets in small thatched huts huddled together in a slum. During our literacy work, we had the experience of witnessing the devastating agony of the people dwelling in the slum of the little town of Alwaye.

The slum is situated near the river Periyar on the low lying land owned by the Government on both sides of a busy National Highway. There were more than a hundred incredibly small thatched huts under horrifyingly unhygienic conditions. These people came there from different parts of the State of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Most of them were beggars. Many of them were physically handicapped, unable to work for their livelihood. Some were prostitutes. They resorted to prostitution as the last means of finding a livelihood. There were some among these people, suffering from some dreadful diseases. Quite a few of them were cancer patients; some of them were tubercular patients. Some of them were lepers. It was a heterogeneous group of people believing in different religions.

All of them had some unhappy and disgraceful antecedent. It may be an inter-religious or inter-caste marriage, which made them outcasts in the conservative society of the rural area to which they belonged. In some cases it was some accident, which made them handicapped and unable to work for their livelihood. In the absence of social security measures, such people are compelled to beg for their livelihood. But they never wanted to be beggars in their own hometown. So they came to this distant place of Alwaye. In some cases it is a grave crime they had committed which made them to run away to live in obscurity, for the fear of punishment. In the case of some it was an elopement as the parents of the couple were opposed to the marriage. It is unemployment which drove some of the villagers to come to town of Alwaye in search of employment. They found a shelter in the slum. Pre-marital pregnancy has driven some women to this town for the fear of disgrace as they are looked down at as outcasts in Indian Society. Many such different reasons have brought the people of different circumstances and temperament together to dwell in Alwaye. Providently they found the low-lying vacant government – owned land at Alwaye. They occupied the land illegally putting up huts there. Though they were illegal occupants, they sold out portions of the illegally possessed area to those who came there later on. Within a short time the whole area was filled with huts, without even a breathing space in between and the place began to be known as “Beggars’ colony”. Most of the people were illiterates. Their small single room huts were closely huddled together that no family could have any privacy. They had no lavatory facilities. They excrete in public places polluting the area with foul smell and causing health hazards to themselves and others. The people quite often quarrel themselves using foul language, frequently resorting to violence. In the evenings, these people, if they are able to earn enough, get drunk to drown their sorrows and they make their dwelling place a noisy hell. The low-lying area where they lived gets flooded during the rainy seasons. Then the people had to run about seeking shelter with their belongings packed up in bundles. On the whole their life was quite miserable.

The people of Alwaye look down at these slum dwellers with utmost contempt. So they were a set of unfortunate desperate poor people for whom living was a bitter struggle. These people are considered social outcasts. The other people do not freely mingle with them. They are looked down at as beggars, prostitutes, thieves and anti-social elements. There are some among them who earned their livelihood by hard manual labour. A few among them earn their livelihood by showing physical feats at public places during festival seasons and collecting money from the onlookers. Most of them waste their earning on drugs and drinks and live a very poor life. Though there are schools near by, many of them do not send their children to schools. They send them to work in some small-scale industries or to serve as domestic servants in rich families. Though child-labour is prohibited by law, such laws are seldom enforced.

There were 105 families there and nearly 700 members in these families. Among these, about 300 were adults and other were children. Because of the hardships of life the people there were embittered towards the society. The society had been cruel to them. So out of bitterness and despair, quite a few of them indulge in antisocial activities.

It is not easy for social workers to have access to this community. They looked at everybody with suspicion. They thought that the entire world is turned against them to exploit them. They thought that the social workers come to them with some vested interests to exploit them. Only one or two militant political parties had some influence or hold on them because they used to protect them when the police came to evict them from the place or tease them for some reason or other. Under such circumstances, a work for the rehabilitation and development was a Herculean task.

To begin with, we had some disappointments. We realized that we had to approach this community in a very tactful manner. So at first with the help of the services of the students of a nearby institution, the youth of this community was organised. A club of the youth of the place was organised under the name ‘Friends Club’. A shed was put up in the place, as a meeting place for the youth. Then we found another problem. It was only then that we realized that the manual workers of the slum never wanted their children to mingle with the children of the beggars and prostitutes. Even among the poor there was class discrimination. The children of the beggars and prostitutes were being humiliated when they come to the club. We organised games and competitions for the members of the club and the children. Prizes were given to the winners. More opportunities were created for the children to mingle with one another. In our presence the children of both the groups began to mingle freely with one another. Then we, with the help of social service organizations, held free medical aid camps, which were a felt need of the area as most of the inhabitants were victims of serious diseases. Later we started tuition centres for the children and community education centres for the adults. Thus gradually we were able to win the confidence and goodwill of the people. We soon realized that unless their living conditions change, the people will never develop self-respect. So our next attempt was to get the people rehabilitated in better conditions. We gave memorandums to all the authorities concerned. But it was of no use. Then we organised public meetings and got write-ups published in the newspapers.

Copy of newspaper report about Alwaye Slum that appeared in Indian Express

SLUM DWELLERS SEEK SALVATION



The sore of Alwaye – the Thottakkattukara slum
Alwaye Feb. 7

The thottakkattukara slum dwellers are misery personified, moving instances of death-in life, sheltering themselves from ravages of weather in small thatched huts on both sides of the National Highway.

Social service organizations have been submitting memoranda regarding this to the Municipal Chairman, the local MLA, the Speaker and the Ministers concerned. But their pleas, like the slum dwellers prayers to Gods, have fallen on deaf ears.

Cardinal Joseph Parekkattil had given a five-acre plot of land to the government for the rehabilitation of the homeless and he had requested the District Collector to set apart 3.5 acres of that plot for the rehabilitation of 105 families rotting in Thottakkattukara slums. And the Collector had decided to give three and a half acres for the purpose. But the construction of a building for a family will cost about Rs.8000 and therein lies the problem.

A public meeting held at Thottakkattukara slum the other day has appealed to the municipality and the GCDA to share the burden. The meeting elected an action committee to expedite the rehabilitation proceedings. But is the officials who hold the key to initiating the woes of slum dwellers. The question is: Will they?

It is through persistent efforts and repeated representations of long fifteen years that we were able to make the government to take a decision to allot some land for these people to build houses. But the people were not prepared to shift to any distant place as they were accustomed to the town life depending on the people of the town for their livelihood. Finally, we were able to make the Government to allot small plots of land to each family in a village called Chunangumvely close to the town. The lethargic, indifferent and unsympathetic (or even hostile) attitude of some of the bureaucrats was quite disheartening and discouraging.

The next problem that confronted us was how to make money for the housing. During that time the Government launched a housing scheme for the poor. It is a scheme for building small houses for the weaker sections of the society. More than half the expense will be met by the Government through grant and loan. The rest is to be met by a sponsoring social service agency. A small share is to be met by the beneficiaries. The Little Flower Congregation of the Catholic Church (who under the leadership of Dr. Paul Karimathy were engaged in the rehabilitation programme right from the beginning) sponsored the project. So the construction of the houses for all the families started. Even then there were problems. Some of the local political groups and local political leaders had some vested interest in not getting the people shifted to the new site. They created lots of problems and obstructions. At one stage they were even able to turn the beneficiaries against the sponsors. Solving such problems and overcoming such difficulties were an uphill task. But finally through patient and preserving efforts we were able to overcome all the difficulties. The construction of the houses was completed. The people were excited to see the new small beautiful houses built for them. The day of shifting to the new houses was a festive day for all. The Minister for Housing inaugurated the Housing Project. Arrangements were made for water and power supply to the housing site. “The Sisters of Destitute” took up the leadership to construct a building and start a Nursery for the children. They started a Feeding Centre also for the children and the mothers.



Beneficiaries and guests at the inaugural function

Once when the slum dwellers became owners of their own houses, that brought about a great change in their attitude towards life. They are no longer disappointed, embittered, destitute engaged in antisocial activities. They themselves take leadership in starting tuition centres for their children and community education centres for the adults.

A Community Centre has been built there. It is now a delight and excitement for us to see the people living in happier and hygienic surroundings. Now the people have come to know about the welfare programmes of the Government which they could not avail themselves of, earlier, as they were the unauthorized encroachers of the Government owned land. Many of them who were beggars, now lead a decent life by availing themselves of the benefits of the welfare programmes. Now they take keen interest in sending their children to schools. We were surprised to see the happy transformation that the change of circumstances could bring about in people. The environment can make or mar the physical and mental make up of man.