In a recent post I expressed some outrage at the fact that the UN equated living in Delhi to living in Geneva.There are reasons for this anomaly which are likely to be political and financial and which might be corrected in the not too distant future and at least for that due process can be engaged. There are a lot of people here working for the UN and for them and their families the going can be very tough but never as tough as what we see every day.
I attended a concert last night called Make Noise for the MDGs
For those of you who are unfamiliar with UN speak these are the famous Millenium Development Goals when a large number of members of the UN pledged to End Poverty by 2015. This is an effort to remind people, states and stakeholders to strive to attain these goals.
2015 everyone, is frighteningly round the corner.
The concert was held at the Purana Qila. The backdrop was magical, the musicians were wonderful, Bollywood was present as UN ambassadors and lots of UN dignitaries and Indians connected to the UN.
We applauded the speeches and the commitments and loved the music.We made noise but is that enough ?
The reality is stark and different.
On Monday leaders from all over the world will be in New York to attend the MDG Meeting. India will undoubtedly have a large delegation going there but reports in today's neswpaper would suggest that it is far from being anywhere near its goals. So the hardship continues not only for all the members of the UN whose mission it is try to move towards these goals but for the people on the ground who daily are being affronted by the hike in prices, the lack of sanitation, the lack of health services and the "cleaning up exercise" going on before our very eyes of all the dhabas, slums and makeshift accomodation of the poor in case the CWG delegates see the real India.
End Poverty Now -
A pie in the sky ?
Diverted because of the CWG ?
When will it be the reality that India will want to show and not hide?
