Uma has written an interesting story “Fighting over Eggs” in her blog two days ago that really touched me.
A short while back they were fighting over eggs in the state of Karnataka in southern India. The government had had the idea of serving boiled eggs to school children as part of a nourishment programme….
A really great idea, don’t you think? Especially since, as Uma writes, the state has surplus eggs. But the thing turned ugly, that is – political.
The opposition party, (the “BJP”) insisted that instead of serving eggs to school children, the government include milk or fruit in the supplementary programme
I mean, why not supplement eggs with milk or fruit? Why instead? It must be political, very much so, because then…
Officials from the Women and Child Department and several prominent figures from literary world suggested that the children be asked what they preferred…
Great idea – sorry, I can’t spare myself a cynical remark here – instead of giving the children eggs and milk and fruit, ask them questions: make a questionaire, send out people, produce a lot of paper – that is: don’t gve them a choice in reality (“Miss, is it okay to just eat the eggs today?…”), give them one in name only.
So what came of it? Uma writes:
No milk, no fruit and no eggs for the children.
So I’m gonna do the little thing that I can do about it: I’m gonna write an open letter to
PMO (Office of the Prime Minister of India)
New Delhi 110011
India
Dear Dr. Manmohan Singh,
Through a blog entry on zaadz.com I have heard of the plans of the government of Karnataka to provide the schoolchildren there with eggs as supplemental food.
I have also read that due to political infighting this plan has not come to fruition even though the state of Karnataka could – as I hear it has a surplus of eggs – quite easily do so.
I’m not well versed in the political realities in your magnificent country but I would think that if you, as the Prime Minister, would encourage the government of Karnataka to leave the political fighting behind for the sake of the children and their education, then these children and many people of this world who are concerned about the future generations will be very thankfull to you indeed.
Yours truthfully,
Mushin J. Schilling