Some
Food for Thought on World Food Day - Oct 16, 2022
Poverty Paradox - Indian Currents Oct 17, 2022
The Lord's prayer is to 'give us today the food we need' (bread is an alien item for us, and what Jesus meant too was food - hence substituting the traditional term bread. as almost all Indian language translations have done). It is also an invitation to live in the present - in today! This spirit of a need-based-divine-economy was not altogether new. Proverbs had prayed: “Give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread” (Proverbs 30:8). It is a prayer for food security, and primary concern for humans - air usually taken for granted; and water also assumed to be available. But water-security has indeed become a major threat along with food security, with more than 800 millions lacking safe drinking water.
It is
said in humour that the only permitted pleasures for a sannyasi (in
Christian tradition), would be those above the throat - though today, that too
could mean many things, what was typically implied was the pleasures of the
palate. I am afraid, in the Hindu tradition, even this aspect had very
limited scope.
Whereas,
in Christian tradition of sannyasa, usually termed 'consecrated
life' (or more commonly referred to as 'religious life' among the Christians),
had many aspects of abstinence, fasting etc., still there used to be feasts
every now and then, that accommodated indulgence of the palate with gratitude
to the Creator for the good things of life.
So I
must confess, like great many people, food is one among those topping my list
of enjoyments. Eating together in fellowship, is indeed an energizing
experience. I am secretly comforted to observe that Jesus was someone who
sensed that with his life-style that showed the importance of enjoying food
with gratitude, he was likely to be termed a glutton! He relished and promoted
fellowship meals. Some of his greatest teachings occurred across such
fellowship tables. He even prepared a meal ready for them, after their
tiring fishing encounter in Galilee. But he was concerned when people didn't
have food. And he addressed this primary concern of all beings, not just
in the beautiful prayer he taught, but actually ensuring food for his exhausted
and hungry followers.
And
world food day is more about securing food for all, than enjoying food.
Ideally, the entire world should be able to have enough, safe and relishable
food. But far from it, there are millions in the modern, proud, progressive,
prosperous, affluent world who are literally starving, dying from malnutrition
and dying from having no food.
Then
comes the shocking revelation of Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2022 by Concern
Worldwide (Irish) and Welt Hunger Hilfe (German), two international voluntary
organisations, placing India on 107th position among the 121 nations listed,
indicating a serious 'hunger' situation in India. First impressions response
from my end, as someone involved in social sector to some extent, someone who
has travelled all over the country, is that this appears mistaken, if not
exaggerated. To our impressions, India should be faring far better on
these parameters than Pakistan or Nepal.
The
four criteria by which the GHI is evolved is 1) Undernourishment 2) Child
wastage 3) Child stunting 4) Infant Mortality. The Government of
India have protested and have questioned its validity and reliability. In
this respect, I feel the government statistics are to be considered a starting
point, though validity checking measures could be employed against them. I am seriously
doubtful if this has been done by those behind the index. With the largest
network reaching out to children and women called Integrated Child Development
Service Scheme, which makes provision for almost all children requiring food in
all parts of the country, I still am unable to grapple with the report indicating
'hunger status' of India at a serious level - serious as per the standards set.
(It should indeed be a matter of seriousness if there is involuntary
hunger on account of food deprivation or inadequacy for anyone anywhere in the
country).
Besides
the nation wide ICDS network, with 2 paid and trained staff to reach out to
every 1000 population, the employment guarantee scheme (MGNREGS) founded
on the principle of entitlements related to right to life and livelihood, is
yet another revolutionary initiative by the state, flaws in implementation of
both the programme notwithstanding. This finding or allegation by a global
agency is indeed a matter of shame for all of us Indians. What is the source of
their data to cross check with the criteria they have set, is a very important
question that remains to be addressed.
We are
all very sure that India has sufficient resources to feed all its mouths as
things stand now. Either it is a matter of missing links through corruption or
lack of information at the level of the needy that is causing the problems, if
any. But here the role of individual citizens and households becomes very
significant - It has to be a duty of every citizen to ensure that there is no
one around oneself who is having no food to eat. The right platform would be
the local self government with each locality being represented by a local
person who is supposed to know the small population s/he represents and ought
to be ever-ready to present their issues on all available
platforms.
From a
sustainability perspective, today our focus is to ensure that maximum families
take up the responsibility to 'grow food' (SDG 12 responsible production) to
move towards the great goal of 'no hunger' (SDG 2) by 2030. Besides this,
there should be voluntary initiatives (like Organic Kerala Charitable Trust,
Kochi of which I am proudly part of), focusing on identifying and preserving
the food bio-diversity of localities, which can be contributing towards
addressing the issue of food security at the local levels. If we take the
example of Keralam, the immense potential of agro-forestry with food producing
trees, with jack tree in the lead and very many tubers requring minimum inputs
are to be very strongly promoted. Taal, Takara (local greens
sprouting in rains), chempu, chena (yams), chakka (jackfruit),
maanga (mango), thenga (coconut), kappa (tapioca) etc. -
locally available, seasonal conventional food crops of Keralam can be rich
resources to rethink our food habits and take one step towards creating locally
sustainable self-reliant communities.
Finally,
world food day, is definitely also about food production - and the producers of
food - who tend the earth, and create miracle from the earth season after
season on which the human world survive. A day to remember with gratitude
the farming community, and the divine engagement they are in. A day to
reinforce the honour and dignity due to their fundamental work in the work in
any given economy. And also a day to promote a Christian culture of in the
spirit of ‘till and keep’ (Gen. 2:15).
I hope
the local Christian communities will wake up to the 21st century
divine call to be stewards of our common home and of our ‘brothers and
sisters’, as pointed out by Pope Francis through his encyclicals ‘Laudato Si’
and ‘Fratelli Tutti’.
P.S. As I concluded this anna vicharam (food thought) on the 17th of October, it struck me that it was the feast of St. Ignatius, bishop of Antioch, Syria, who was attained martyrdom under Trajan around 107 AD. On his impending death, he wrote to the church of Rome about bread: "I am God’s wheat, and I am to be ground by the teeth of wild beasts, so that I may become the pure bread of Christ.” He is said to have been killed by wild beasts in the Colosseum. In the English circles his spirit is retained by a famous offertory hymn, 'United in one body with Jesus Christ the Lord...'
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