Poverty in India: A little TV tonight? Your shelter or mine?

My heart went out to them as I thought of their desperate situation. I wanted to help them, through some kind of a sponsor a child program, but the problem of world hunger seemed so large that I didn't know what to do. Poverty in India is so widespread, that it seemed impossible to help them out in a lasting way. They only stopped when a shopkeeper shooed them away. Although, I was relieved, it broke my heart watching him treat these homeless children as one might a stray dog.

The following letter, while lighthearted in tone, underscores the enormity of the problem of poverty in India. Hundreds of thousands of homeless children live with their families on the sides of India's roads. It makes me grateful for a roof over my head, but I wonder if there isn't more we can to to help reduce world hunger. Click here to help.

Date: Wednesday 9/24/2003 12:18:13 PM

Subject: Poverty in India. A little TV tonight? Your shelter or mine?

By far the most entertaining thing about India is the traffic. (You have probably already discerned this from my blogs since many of them revolve around this activity.) Every ride is an adventure, and going places is always an exotic journey. I have tried to do other things in the car, like study Hindi or do work related things, but it is of no use. The commute time is far too interesting for me to concentrate on anything else.

To help you understand the fascination about commuting in India, let me give this analogy. There is a large homeless population in India. People's entire lives are going on right beside the road. (Literally beside the road: as I have noticed large fields with no homeless people in them, while grassy strips that flank the roadways are teeming with India’s impoverished, I conclude that the large fields must be privately owned and that the places beside the road are public lands.)

Imagine, if you will, what would happen if you took the walls off all the houses in your local neighborhood and drove through the neighborhood. What would you see? People cooking dinner, flossing their teeth, watching TV, scolding their children, beating their dogs. The possibilities are endless. This is India's daily commute.

I travel home around midnight every night and you would think that there would be little to see at this hour, but even then there are amazing sights. The cover of night unveils a picture of poverty in India that is difficult to imagine. The poorest of the poor repose beside the road. Some have make-shift shelters made of tarps or cardboard, but many prefer to slumber outside with only night wrapped over them.

One homeless clan, for example has ten or twelve cots parallel parked along the street under the light of a bright street lamp. Petite, bone-slender bodies one or two to a cot lie under an assorted collection of blankets with black haired heads pointing toward the street. It is hard to pick them out in the dark, but thousands of homeless children lie beside India's roads.

Less affluent family clans spread blankets on cement sidewalks. Neither the roar of trucks, nor the din of horns (although there are fewer horns at night) seems to disturb their slumbers.

By far the most surprising sight spotted on one of my nightly commutes was a large color TV. Seen through the open end of the inverted V of a family tarp, figures flickered on a television screen. Don't ask me what they plug it into, or what kind of channel line up they receive. What do the neighbors say? "The Kumar's just got a color TV, should we go over and watch a little TV?" What happens during the Monsoon? Surely, it must get a little wet...

It was an odd sight to see. Who would imagine such a thing? The accompanying reflections about homelessness and poverty in India are far more disturbing ... A roof over your head, a bed instead of cement, a color TV that doesn’t get rained on, these are blessings indeed.

As I reflect on the pictures on this page and the face that they put on poverty in India, it makes me want to do something. Would you help me improve the lives of the poorest of the poor? The poverty I saw in India was heart-wrenching.

How can you help?

It has been several years since I visited India, and the images of poverty rattle uncomfortably in my mind. I live half way around the world, yet I ask myself: How could I help? I hope you ask yourself questions like this from time to time too.

Would you donate the cost of a bottle of water to help alleviate poverty?

I've picked a charity that I know well. They have zero overhead--all operating expenses are paid from a different fund--so I know that all the money donated goes where it is needed. Among other projects, they are striving to make clean water accessible to people in developing nations. Your donation will help where it is needed most.

Why is clean water important?

I've chosen to support Latter-day Saint Charities clean water project. They explain:

"The World Health Organization reports that more than a billion people lack sanitary drinking water. Clean water is essential to proper hygiene and disease prevention. Each year more than three million people--mostly children--die from diseases related to poor hygiene and unclean water sources.

"Lack of water robs many poor villages of productive workers. Studies show that, where clean water is not readily available, children do not attend school regularly, and more people need medical attention, straining already limited health resources in the community. Many people, old and young, spend several hours per day simply fetching water."

A bottle of water where I live costs $1.47. Please consider donating that amount (or an amount that fits your budget).

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