Robin Hood... We need you!!

We need a Robin Hood. Needn’t we?

When Senior Loseley says,” cometh the moment cometh the man”; Robin realises his need and saves the England. As his tales go, he was the man who robbed from rich and distributes amongst poor.  But what will today’s Robin Hood do? Will he rob banks? I heard about many gangsters that did the same in kosi region of Bihar. Or will they sit on fast until death as Baba Ramdev did? Our desi Robin Hood thinks that his fast will force government to make an agreement with Swiss banks (at least he knows the place) and then those private banks will give us money of their clients(if any). For a moment, lets create a hypothetical situation where the government has all the money that they want to carry their developmental programmes. What do you think they will do? As I say it often, the government will come up with a new developmental scheme aimed at painting the outer wall of home when the whole roof is rickety. In other words, government will envisage a new programme which will provide direct financial assistance to the poor. The faults with this kind of approach: first, without going to the root cause of the problem that is illiteracy and unemployment, they give them money to build houses or guarantees them job for hundred days per year. Second, they promote the habit of using crutches by a normal healthy person. I believe reservations and these schemes do not make you able but provide you an easy way to get a position which you are not able of. The correct path to development and progress should pass through the grass roots to top addressing every  questions that needs an answer.

Now, I will introduce you to some real Robin Hoods. Now when it is clear that rich in our era are beyond the limit of 13^th century Robin Hood, let’s see how these Robin Hoods are helping poor. Bihar’s per capita energy consumption is 80 KWh per year which is the least amongst all states. Even the second last state (Assam) has double than Bihar(170 KWh). To appreciate the patience of people there, please note that the national average is 631 KWh. When cities are short of power supply, why would villages get it. Gyanesh Yadav, Ratnesh Yadav and Manoj Sinha cofounded Husk Power System. Their company operates on 100% biomass; more specifically on the discarded husk. They are providing light to 25000 households in more than 250 villages. Of course they charge money for it, but they are creating 7000 local jobs and supporting education for 250 kids in nearby areas. Isn’t this what we expect from a Robin Hood? Farmers are most neglected and more sympathised section of society. I personally feel that they don’t get the required respect. Of lately, I came across an NGO founded by two IIT alumni. Shashank Kumar and Manish Kumar have started a NGO christened ‘Farms n Farmers’ which provides training and specialised suggestion on farming method and farming practices. Their suggestions have helped farmers in increasing their production and income.  

These stories are endless. But the question is how we can make a new story. People are waiting for their Robin Hood.

“cometh the moment; cometh the man…”