Hungry kya?

1900 hours, Marine Lines, Mumbai – The evening skies are filled with the aura of a thousand halogen lamps, un-naturally loud for the environment. Once a place of recreation for cricketers and footballers who discovered their skills; the gymkhana is now in a completely different avatar. Artificial decoration in a pathetic manner attempts to make the place look like a flowerbed in heaven, but one can’t help noticing the flowers dying to wither out in the blasting heat of those very lamps, held on by the gardeners who constantly spray preservative waters on them. And then arrives the most important part of any marriage in India – the food, of course. You think of the cuisine, and it’s right there. The kitchen churns out a global pot pourri of everything ranging from East to West, North to South, domestic, local, international. They have it all, more than the average man can contemplate. You find the lousy class who wants to be the jack of all trades, and one glance at his plate would make you vomit out your lunch. Though he covetously dabbles spoons of the variety, his plate ends half-emptied in the trash can an hour later. The same pot pourri has now lost its delicacy and magic, submerged in the stinking, sloppy contents of the garbage.

In a Virar bound local passing along the adjacent tracks to the gymkhana, a mal-nourished beggar watches the same event. It is one of the countless marriages of the rich and the powerful in this megacity, and they will flamboyantly display their wealth in an event of such caliber. After all, if marriages are made in heaven, why not flaunt them in one of the most expensive grounds in Mumbai? The beggar simply watches. He notices a group of hunger stricken families at the backyard, waiting for the leftovers. He wonders what his family will be able to fetch, back home. At the end of the day, it’s hunger that brings him back to reality. Every passing day is a struggle, every arriving night brings pang of emptiness in his stomach. He has a family of seven to survive, and his children have already starting displaying symptoms of malnutrition. If anything happens to them, he has no choice left. The child will keep crying, as the pangs keep alleviating, until the moment will arrive when the child will decide to quit. Even they realize that crying makes them hungrier, instead of receiving help. Every moment from then onwards is a silent fight, taming their stomachs, swallowing empty gasps of hot, dry air. One day their mother lifts them up, only to look at those cold lifeless eyes staring back at her.   

The Oxford University defines the word hunger as a state of not having enough food to eat, especially when this causes illness or death. Have you EVER experienced hunger at this level, where you feared your very own survival? The World Food Programme estimates that 963 million people in the world are undernourished today. The rest of the numbers are frightening enough, I do not wish to state them here, mainly for two reasons: First, and most important, I believe that statistics are not taken seriously unless they are critically significant to you. And secondly, I have more important points to make here. The issue that I want to raise here is not about the alarmingly large number of people dying every day because of hunger. That’s the end reaction of a chain of events which occurred in the previous eras of human civilization. What I immediately wish is to start eradicating this issue. And this is where all of you come in the picture. Yes, I am talking about YOU. I am personally addressing to each and every one of you who is reading this article. The fact that you visited my blog and reached so far (hopefully, without yawning) makes me realize that I will be able to successfully connect to each and every one of you. Thank you, for coming so far. From this point on, I will guide you in making certain smart choices, which will not only change the way you live and think, but will also extend a helping hand in this global issue. So, what can we do now, you ask?

These are some of the un-conventional ways where YOU can help.

1.      Play games.

2.      Learn better words in the English language. (GRE/GMAT guys, this one is for grabs!)

3.      Take a walk.

Surprised? Well, don’t be. These are some of the un-conventional ways in which you can Make A Difference. Besides, the conventional financial help is always an option, and the United Nations Organization has plenty of great programmes for which you can contribute. Finally, you can also chose to be a more sensitive, civilized citizen in your society and think rationally. Especially when we organize parties, night outs, and marriages. Let’s not lose the original excitement of meeting up for these social causes under the burden of arranging food, quite some of which goes as waste. The problem is not in-sufficient food; the problem is the imbalances in our society which are preventing this food from reaching out to all. None the less, it’s one of the primary necessities of human beings, and we all need to mutually understand this and improve the situation. It’s a massive problem, but an optimistic approach and a bit of change, DOES make a substantial difference over the period of time. Celebrate World Hunger Day this year, on 29^th April 2009. Play a game. Keep walking. Go on, it’s Your world.

If you liked it so far, you’d love to look at this!

http://www.wfp.org/how-to-help

And, if you have ideas of your own which can be of help, do write to this post.

Once again, Thank you. By reading this, YOU have already made a choice. Much power to you!