Medha to youth: Don’t lose faith

BANGALORE: Her words reinforced their faith, her zest urged them into action. St Joseph’s College of Arts and Science was highly charged on Sunday as students and India Against Corruption volunteers listened to social activist and Narmada Bachao Andolan leader Medha Patkar: she asked them to be optimistic about the Jan Lokpal bill being tabled during Parliament’s winter session. “Hold mass programmes in the city and across the state. Write thousands of letters to the Parliamentary Standing Committee. Start campaigning in schools, colleges and railway stations so that people can voice their queries and send them to the government. Surely, they will take notice of all this,” Patkar said. The encouraging words came while IAC volunteers doubted if Parliament would pass the bill this time. “Please don’t wait till the core committee arrives at a consensus or be demotivated when a difference of opinion arises. Such things happen. Only dialogues can help mitigate efforts of political parties to break up the Anna Hazare team,” she advised. The activist suggested that students hold massive signature campaigns, meet local leaders, office-bearers of political parties and engage them in dialogue. Local NREGA scamMedha said if the NREGA scam wouldn’t have been unearthed in Uttar Pradesh, then it would have spread to other states. “Find out if there is an NREGA scam in your own state,” she said. “Many people file RTIs but after they get replies they should take them to the next level. Form groups and spread out to collect grievances,” she told the young IAC volunteers who listened with rapt attention. Land acquisition bill“We met Union rural development minister Jairam Ramesh and discussed how the bill should have been drafted. We are asking whether plans have been made keeping in mind people’s consensus who are losing land, and providing them with feasible means of livelihood,” Medha said.