India lives at two levels. Urban India is enthusiastically chasing a mirage that Western style consumerism holds the key to happiness. But nearly 70 per cent Indians still live in villages or small towns where contentment, and living within one’s means, is still the prevalent traditional mantra. What is best option for an average person with limited means? The debate goes on…
Many people in big “rich” Western consumeristic societies have now begun to tear their hair as the big bubble seems about to burst. Says The Times of London: “Almost 600,000 people (in Britain) will be unable to refinance their debts this year after finding their usual lines of credit cut off, forcing them to go bust or sign expensive ‘bankruptcy-lite’ agreements.
“About one million Britons are struggling with £25 billion of unsecured borrowings that they cannot repay – ‘problem debt’ averaging £25,000 each – according to a report by TDX Group, which provides detailed debt-collection information to banks. TDX said that last year 400,000 people remortgaged or applied for new credit cards or personal loans to pay off old loans.
“A further 300,000 people took more dramatic options to escape their debts, such as bankruptcy, debt management plans or individual voluntary agreements (IVAs). IVAs are called bankruptcy-lite because they involve the creditor, usually a bank, accepting a reduced sum to be paid off over a set period. Debt management plans are a higher-risk, unregulated form of IVA.”
And then there is the prospect of looming unemployment…click here…
Asks a reader of The Times: “Whilst every bankruptcy or IVA is a personal story, there is a bigger question for society to ask: What are the social implications for a society that has grown fat and complacent on unfettered consumerism?
“Could it be strikes, lawlessness and general disorder in our neighbourhoods. We have a whole generation that have never had to be content with less and able to value things by saving for them.” — Steve Marchant, Broadhempston, UK
Point worth considering…
Swaraaj Chauhan describes his two-decade-long stint as a full-time journalist as eventful, purposeful, and full of joy and excitement. In 1993 he could foresee a different work culture appearing on the horizon, and decided to devote full time to teaching journalism (also, partly, with a desire to give back to the community from where he had enriched himself so much.)
Alongside, he worked for about a year in 1993 for the US State Department’s SPAN magazine, a nearly five-decade-old art and culture monthly magazine promoting US-India relations. It gave him an excellent opportunity to learn about things American, plus the pleasure of playing tennis in the lavish American embassy compound in the heart of New Delhi.
In !995 he joined WWF-India as a full-time media and environment education consultant and worked there for five years travelling a great deal, including to Husum in Germany as a part of the international team to formulate WWF’s Eco-tourism policy.
He taught journalism to honors students in a college affiliated to the University of Delhi, as also at the prestigious Indian Institute of Mass Communication where he lectured on “Development Journalism” to mid-career journalists/Information officers from the SAARC, African, East European and Latin American countries, for eight years.
In 2004 the BBC World Service Trust (BBC WST) selected him as a Trainer/Mentor for India under a European Union project. In 2008/09 He completed another European Union-funded project for the BBC WST related to Disaster Management and media coverage in two eastern States in India — West Bengal and Orissa.
Last year, he spent a couple of months in Australia and enjoyed trekking, and also taught for a while at the University of South Australia.
Recently, he was appointed as a Member of the Board of Studies at Chitkara University in Chandigarh, a beautiful city in North India designed by the famous Swiss/French architect Le Corbusier. He also teaches undergraduate and postgraduate students there.
He loves trekking, especially in the hills, and never misses an opportunity to play a game of tennis. The Western and Indian classical music are always within his reach for instant relaxation.
And last, but not least, is his firm belief in the power of the positive thought to heal oneself and others.