The power to fix their problems lies in the hands of slum dwellers themselves. They need not look to the government or anyone else
Nobody understands the plight of the hapless slum dweller more than Jockin Arputham, 63. Arputham was born in Kolar, Karnataka of Tamilian parents. He did not complete high school and moved to Mumbai when he was eighteen. He fought for the cause of fellow slum dwellers who were facing eviction. In 1969, he formed the Bombay Slum Dwellers Federation, which he expanded in 1974 to make it the National Slum Dwellers Federation (NSDF).
In 1985, Arputham linked his federation with the Society for the Promotion of Area Resource Centers (SPARC). In 2000, he won the Ramon Magsaysay award for his work in the area of community building and helping the urban poor.
Today, the biggest challenge is shelter, in which the United Nations (UN) has failed. I think the major issue for the world is this. Latin America, Africa, etc have a need for shelter; and in India the issue is very big because we are a big country with a large population. But all over the world, all the political leaders have failed; maybe because it is not in their control. I myself lived on a pavement after migrating to Bombay. It was a big shock to me.
It is also a fact that 70 percent people here do not have access to a toilet. And a toilet does not require a huge budget. My other concern is, can we try to see how open-defecation-
free the country can be? My organisations, National Slum Dwellers Federation and Slum Dwellers International, built $500 million worth of toilets. The next important issue is shelter. I am working with the poorest of poor. In my concept I accept slum as an option.
Therefore, I developed a mechanism as I started working in India. I started working in my slum, then in the neighbouring slum, then I worked in the city, and now internationally. Then we formed Slum Dwellers International and now we work in 38 countries and there are a lot of countries in the pipeline. Very simply, it is about not putting the onus on the government or anybody else, but putting the onus on the people. You have to do it, and you have to feel you can do it, only then is it possible. You cannot continuously expect that somebody else will do everything for you. That is my concept. And it is happening.
(This story appears in the 04 June, 2010 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)