Empowering the poor is not that is but it is slow but possible process

I have been handling most challenging and complex social development arena since 1980.

At Sodhana-a grass root NGO in AP (1980-89)

1) Making the public institutions function efficiently and effectively for the development of the rural poor.
2) Fighting the corruption and insensitive bureaucracy that are primarily responsible for the plight of the rural poor.
3) Organizing the Rural Poor for Power to face responsibly, collectively, non-violently the feudal structures, oppressive and exploitative systems.

At Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII) Ahemdabad, Bangalore, Hyderabad Lucknow: (1990-2002)

4) To work for sensitization and institutionalization the strategy of livelihoods promotion among the rural poor utilizing the “Entrepreneurship Development(ED) Process ” in NGO Sector as a movement”
5) To influence the policies and programmes for ED movement for sustainable livelihoods of the Rural Poor.
6) To facilitate the attitudinal change among the rural youth for entrepreneurial behavior leading to top performance and self reliance.

At Vision 2020: The Right to Sight –India of WHO and IAPB: (2003-07) –New Delhi

7) To facilitate true spirit of partnership in the movement of Right to Sight.
8) To build a national Alliance from the scratch to lead the movement of Right to Sight.
9) To mobilize resources and positive public opinion among all key stake-holders including the policy makers to facilitate the movement of Right to Sight at the national level.
10) To encounter the resistance of ‘status quo partners’ (with in the movement against avoidable blindness) to the Inclusive participation from the grass root contributors.

All that has been possible because

1) I was born and brought up in Telangana rural area of AP State which is well known for feudal oppression, exploitation and apathy. I took a conscious decision to change my self into a development activist, catalytic agent / facilitator and went on to study my masters in Kerala in social work and then had under gone 14 month long Development training in the NGO sector in Bangalore. (1978-79)

2) I started my Change Agent career with Sodhana in AP in a totally different (socially, culturally, politically, geographically, economically, psychologically) location in coastal Andhra Pradesh and continued to lead the movement of Social Justice there for a decade.
I was significantly responsible for tangible and intangible changes in various aspects in rural poor of the region.

3) After a decade I thought of having exposure to different development approaches at national level and joined EDII in Ahmedabad and worked in different parts of India starting from South, East, and North and to the West.

I am happy that I could facilitate remarkable change at all levels, in all locations and of all spectrum of the Rural Entrepreneurship Development (RED) movement that among the poorest I had handled in the NGO sector in rural areas.

Significantly I was made the CEO of State level unit of Entrepreneurship Development Institute in AP to lead the RED movement for the poor . Fortunately I had the opportunity of being located in Bangalore, Lucknow and Hyderabad on the same mission during my tenure with EDII.

4) At Vision 2020:

I was given a simple ‘concept’ of Vision 2020: the Right to Sight to build a top National Institution to lead the movement of Right to Sight in alignment with Global movement and i did justice with lot of self denial and commitment to the concpet of social Justice at the grass roots .
In a way I have been continuously learning from different experiences of Change process by revitalising and contributing efficiently to the development agenda that I had committed my self to.