On Sunday, June 23, 2013 at 10:57:08 PM UTC+5:30, AYUSH Adivasi Yuva Shakti wrote: > > > > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > From: *Nitin Lata Waman* <[email protected]> > Date: Wed, Jun 19, 2013 at 4:28 AM > Subject: Fwd: FW: Affirmative entrepreneurship > To: bahujanstudentnetwork <[email protected]>, > sakyagroup yahoogroups <[email protected]>, [email protected], > gdswa <[email protected]> > > > > Dear All, > Greetings! > > Please find the following several articles on Dalit entrepreneur, their > success stories and role of corporate sector. > > > ******************************************************** > Affirmative entrepreneurship > > With large corporates recognising the need for social diversity in their > vendor base, the time is ripe for a Dalit venture capital fund. The launch > of a SEBI-registered venture capital fund (VCF) to exclusively finance > Dalit-owned businesses is recognition of the emergence of an > entrepreneurial class in this historically discriminated community that is > now eyeing opportunities for further growth. The last couple of decades > have seen quite a few Dalits setting up successful businesses in diverse > fields — from construction, transport and hospitals to manufacture of > leather goods, cranes, forgings and industrial helmets. Most of these are > small and medium enterprises that have graduated beyond the stage where > their funding needs can be met through term loans from the National > Scheduled Castes Finance and Development Corporation and the like. It is > this gap that is sought to be bridged through the newly launched fund, > which plans to raise Rs 500 crore for investments in Dalit-promoted > ventures whose capital requirements may typically be in the range of a few > crores. > > The idea of a dedicated VCF for Dalit entrepreneurs is worthwhile for two > reasons. The first is that it promotes the cause of liberal, ‘inclusive > capitalism’. While business in India is no longer the preserve of a few > ‘vaishya’ or traditional mercantile castes, the fact remains that this > widening in the social base of capitalists has not really extended to > communities in the lowest rungs – including those once regarded as > ‘untouchables’. Currently, there is just one listed company whose promoter > happens to be a Dalit. The 1,000-odd members of the Dalit Indian Chamber of > Commerce & Industry, which has initiated and lobbied for the new fund, are > mainly first-generation entrepreneurs with modest turnovers and burning > ambitions. They deserve encouragement, if only for the symbolic value that > the diversity of its capitalists has in sounding the death knell for the > country’s centuries-old caste system. > > That links up with the second reason for having a Dalit-focused VCF. The > basic principle of affirmation action, as opposed to blanket quotas, is > that a conscious attempt is made to identify, reach out and improve the > capabilities of particular sections of society – something that no > government or corporate would bother to do in the normal course. A venture > fund targeted at Dalits can extend the same approach, to identifying > potential entrepreneurs from the community and investing in their projects. > What is necessary, however, is that the fund is professionally managed and > the projects being financed are fundamentally sound. It would also help if > such funding is backed up by marketing support. A big chunk of Dalit > entrepreneurs today are beneficiaries of outsourcing in the post-reform > era, with their products forming part of the supply chains of major > corporates. With the likes of the Tatas and Godrejs even making ‘supplier > diversity’ a part of their vendor development programmes, a Dalit VCF is an > idea whose time has come > > > > *From:* R K Sinha > *Sent:* Friday, June 14, 2013 10:39 AM > *To:* CSR; Team BE > *Cc:* Kudalkar Dinesh S; Talwar V; Sethi Ashok S > *Subject:* Tata Group to invest Rs 1 cr for 33% stake in Dalit enterprise > - TATA GROUP'S STEP TOWARDS AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IN PRIVATE SECTOR. > *Importance:* High > > > > > Tata Group to invest Rs 1 cr for 33% stake in Dalit enterprise > > Cyrus Mistry, chairman of the $100-billion Tata Group, is set to alter the > very discourse on affirmative action in the private sector, by getting into > a full-bodied manufacturing joint venture with an obscure company owned by > a Dalit entrepreneur. The Tata Group > <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Tata-Group> has made an > in-principle decision to pick up one-third equity in Delhi-based Chandan & > Chandan Industries, a company incorporated to manufacture industrial > helmets. > > > Nand Kishore Chandan > <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Kishore-Chandan>, a Dalit > entrepreneur, will hold the remaining two-thirds in the company. The > investment was personally cleared by Mistry, say sources close to the deal. > The Tatas are also exploring the possibility of floating a section 25 (not > for profit) company under the Companies Act to channelise more investments > into several other Dalit-owned enterprises. Tata group companies could pool > monies into this special entity. > > Confirming this, an executive from Tata Group's PR agency said Tata > companies are coming together to help Dalit entrepreneurs trying to start > businesses. "This is history in the making, and most importantly, a giant > step in moving from patronage to partnership," says Chandra Bhan Prasad > <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Chandra-Bhan-Prasad>, > commentator on Dalit issues and mentor, Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce > <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Dalit-Indian-Chamber-of-Commerce> > and Industry (DICCI). > > Over the past few years, Cyrus' predecessor Ratan Tata > <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Ratan-Tata> and former > director of Tata Sons, JJ Irani, have infused the conglomerate with a > degree of enthusiasm and commitment to the Dalit cause. Apart from > investing in Dalit enterprises, the Tata Affirmative Action Programme > <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Tata-Affirmative-Action-Programme> > also works on employment, employability, and education programmes for > Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities. > > DICCI Chairman Milind Kamble > <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Milind-Kamble> said the > investments were the culmination of over eight months of negotiations > steered by B Muthuraman, vice-chairman, Tata Steel > <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tata-steel-ltd/stocks/companyid-12902.cms>BSE > > 3.06 % > <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tata-steel-ltd/stocks/companyid-12902.cms>, > > and chair of the TAAP. > > Clearly overawed, Chandan, an electrical engineering diploma holder and a > veteran in plastics moulding, could only mumble homilies about being > 'delighted and overwhelmed' by the prospect of working with the Tata group. > The new venture, which is in the process of setting up its factory in > Ghaziabad, has already received its first tranche of orders for over 50,000 > helmets from a clutch of group companies including Tata Steel, Tata Motors > <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tata-motors-ltd/stocks/companyid-12934.cms>BSE > > 3.39 % > <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tata-motors-ltd/stocks/companyid-12934.cms>, > > Tata Housing, and Tata Projects. > > It is not yet clear how the investment from the Tatas would come about. > Initially it was believed Tata Capital > <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Tata-Capital> would be in the > thick of it, but now, according to DICCI sources, there is talk about > creation of a special purpose entity. This move by the Tata Group is indeed > a shot in the arm for the concept of 'supplier diversity' within the > affirmative action space. > > Supplier diversity is the trend among large corporations to seek out, > handhold, and buy products and services from entrepreneurs belonging to > under-privileged and minority sections. It can be voluntary or mandated by > the government. In the US, African American, women and other minority-owned > companies have benefited a great deal by its proliferation. > > The Tatas have added sheen to the concept by not only promising to buy but > also investing in such companies. This is in keeping with Ratan > > [image: Tata Affirmative Action Programme: Tata Group to invest in a Dalit > venture Chandan & Chandan Industries] > > Tata's take on social upliftment. He always underlined "the importance of > facilitating integration through affirmative action programmes rather than > just giving easy entitlements." He was among the few industrialists to > express solidarity and visit the Mumbai DICCI Expo held in December 2011 > along with Adi Godrej > <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Adi-Godrej> of the Godrej > group and Farhad Forbes of the Pune-based Forbes Marshall group. A host of > senior executives from the Tata group visited and held talks with Dalit > entrepreneurs at the Expo. > > Cyrus Mistry <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Cyrus-Mistry>, on > his part, at an in-house Affirmative Action Programme Assessors meet last > year maintained 'the momentum should continue.' In fact, it was Cyrus who > personally conveyed to Milind Kamble his sanction for the project when he > happened to bump into the latter at the 25th anniversary celebrations of > Sebi in Mumbai recently. > > NK Chandan started his career as a shop floor employee in 1990 and by > 2001, on the strength of the considerable expertise he had acquired, was > inducted as a partner in the plastic moulding company he worked for. The > company did well by manufacturing plastic spares for photo copying > machines. In 2012 he bought out the partners, acquired the plant spread > over 1200 sq metres in Ghaziabad for Rs 1.82 crore, and also renamed the > company. "Except for my house, I sold off all my assets and scraped out all > my savings to start afresh," says Chandan. He wanted to get into > manufacture of urea bags as the volume demand was high, though margins were > low. It then struck him that industrial helmets would be a safer bet. > > As DICCI's Delhi chapter head, he had been mobilising support for Dalit > entrepreneurs and this brought him into close proximity with large > corporates, including Bombay House. This eventually coalesced into a deal > with the Tatas. The helmet manufacturing project is estimated at Rs 3.05 > crore, of which Chandan's contribution is Rs 2.05 crore and the Tatas > contribution around Rs 1 crore. The installed capacity is around 3 lakh > helmets per annum. > > This initiative in supplier diversity comes at a time when things are > beginning to look up for Dalit entrepreneurs. Finance Minister P > Chidambaram <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/P-Chidambaram>, > last Thursday, formally launched the DICCI SME Fund, for investment in > companies promoted by SCs. SIDBI has already committed Rs 10 crore to the > fund and the finance minister has promised to ask other financial > institutions to pitch in. It also comes at a time when the central > government is in the process of rolling out a 4 per cent quota in public > procurement by government departments and public sector enterprises. While > this opportunity is around Rs 46,000 crore, it will be a while before > government departments gets it act together. > > However, it is the private sector potential that can really trigger > change, quickly, as seen by the Tata initiative. Even in the US, it's the > private sector, through the Billion Dollar Club, that is providing heft to > the supplier diversity concept. Each of the 18 member companies of the Club > buy at least $1 billion worth of products or services from Black American, > women, Hispanics and other minorities annually. Members include Ford > Motors, IBM, P&G, Walmart, Toyota, Boeing, and Johnson & Johnson. > > > > *From:* R K Sinha > *Sent:* Friday, June 14, 2013 6:28 AM > *To:* CSR; Team BE > *Cc:* Kudalkar Dinesh S; Talwar V; Sethi Ashok S > *Subject:* 'Capitalism is changing caste much faster than any human > being. Dalits should look at capitalism as a crusader against caste' > > > > *'Capitalism is changing caste much faster than any human being. Dalits > should look at capitalism as a crusader against caste' * > > *In this Walk the Talk with The Indian Express Editor-in-Chief Shekhar > Gupta, Milind Kamble, founder of the Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce and > Industry (DICCI), and Chandra Bhan Prasad, its mentor, say “the nation > should know Dalits are not only takers, they are givers”* > > I am at Nariman Point, the heart of corporate, super rich India. At a time > when the talk is of inclusive growth, my guests today are two faces of > genuinely inclusive growth in India: Milind Kamble, founder of Dalit Indian > Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DICCI), and Chandra Bhan Prasad, its > mentor. Two Dalit leaders, who don't claim to be victims, who don't claim > victimhood, and who don’t ask for doles, reservations, favours, no > complaints. So, are you oddballs? Are you trying to change the script? > > CHANDRA BHAN PRASAD: This has been the Dalit tradition—Ambedkar rose on > his own, so did Guru Ravidas. There are thousands of such examples in > history where Dalits have stood up and risen on their own. So there is > nothing unusual about us. What has happened during the past 50 or 60 years > is that the state’s welfare measures or methods or reservations got > slightly misunderstood and also slightly misused by the “victims”. > > Did it work well for the victims or not? > > CBP: It worked well, but it has outlived its potential and power, now > something else has to happen. > > Milindji, you are charting a new course. You are organising Dalit > entrepreneurs in this Dalit Chamber. Is there really a large enough number > of Dalit entrepreneurs in India? > > MILIND KAMBLE: Yes, there are. If I quote from the Census carried out by > the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), 10 per cent of > MSMEs registered with the Government of India are Dalit-owned, which is > about 1,64,000 across the country. Most of us fall within the ambit of > MSMEs, there are a few who have grown into large enterprises. That is the > situation. > > Who are the largest? Tell me about a few. > > MK: The largest enterprise that is part of our Chamber is of Rajesh > Saraiya, who is from Sitapur district in Uttar Pradesh. He is currently > based in Ukraine and his companies are registered in London, Ukraine and > six other countries. He has a presence in Mumbai too. He is the biggest > Dalit entrepreneur whose businesses have a turnover of Rs 2,000 crore. > > That is almost half a billion dollars. Tell me about him. > > CBP: He went to Russia on a scholarship to study engineering. When the > Soviet Union collapsed, he did odd jobs to continue his education and after > completing it, joined (Laxmi Niwas) Mittal’s steel company as a translator. > He figured out the tricks of the trade and started dealing with steel, > first with the Tatas. Today, he is worth over $400 million, owns four > Mercedes Benz cars and is only in his forties. Then there is Kalpana Saroj > who worked for Rs 5 a day in Mumbai in 1975 and today she owns Kamani > Tubes. > > I believe the silencer in the Tata Nano is produced by a Dalit > entrepreneur. > > MK: Yes, indeed. Not just the silencer, there are other parts as well. The > perception that the country has about our community that... > > ...they are victims, the prey. > > MK: There is a view that Dalits are the jamaais (sons-in-law) of the > government. This is not true. As you said, there is (a Dalit entrepreneur) > who makes silencers for the Nano, one Sushil Kumar in Ghaziabad supplies > (motorcycle) stands to Hero, in Pune there is one Gokul Gaikwad who > supplies parts for Tata Indigo, in Sangli there is Sadamate Industries > which supplies parts to Forbes Marshall, to Bajaj. > > CBP: Bajaj Pulsar has three parts supplied by Dalits. If they stop > supplies to Bajaj, Hero, Honda, Tata Motors... > > ...the companies will close down. > > CBP: No. The vehicles will stop running for want of parts. > > MK: This way, we need to change perceptions. > > You wish to change the story of > > victimhood. > > MK: Yes. Many have emerged from their circumstances and established > businesses. > > CBP: In Uttar Pradesh alone, 50 big hospitals are being run by Dalit > doctors. Some of them were manual labourers in their childhood, during > their high school and intermediate days. > > The fact is, these Dalits became doctors because of reservations. > > CBP: Yes. > > So we cannot undermine the value of affirmative action. > > CBP: Certainly. Affirmative action has given Dalits a launch pad. A launch > pad is a launch pad. You need that to take off. Ambedkar gave you the > launch pad. Now don’t run on the launch pad, take off. > > So are you saying economic reforms and globalisation have been positive > developments for Dalits? > > MK: We welcome it. It has been a very positive development in India’s > economic growth story. Earlier, there were only few companies that used to > make cars, two-wheelers and spares, because only they had the licence. As > the licence raj was dismantled, new players entered the market. The > existing firms had their vendor-base fixed, and the dealings used to happen > only with them. As new players entered, there was a need for new vendors, > new suppliers, a new supply chain and that is how more entrepreneurs got an > opportunity. > > CBP: Also, earlier there was a notion of one product under one roof. > Because of economic reforms, globalisation, you can’t produce everything > under one roof. You will have to outsource work. Most of the Dalit > entrepreneurs of today are beneficiaries of outsourcing. > > Outsourcing of manufacturing. > > CBP: Yes. Along with globalisation came Adam Smith to challenge Manu. So > that’s why for the first time, money has become bigger than caste. > > So markets have become bigger than caste, bigger than Marx. > > Yes. Bigger than caste, bigger than Marx, bigger than everybody because in > this marketplace, only your ability is respected. > > Chandra Bhanji, you say that money has challenged caste and Marx, and you > spent your youth as a gun-toting Naxalite. > > CBP: Yes...I think I was a fool. > > You were an actual Naxalite, a part of the underground. Tell us that > story. > > CBP: I was a young man then, studying in JNU and I thought we must change > India. Then, somebody said the gun is the best thing to overthrow the > system, and I said I will be part of it. > > And JNU is a place where the CPM is considered a dangerous right-wing > party. > > CBP: Yes...and I went in the field and saw violence is no way to change > society. It is now outdated to have a view that a weapon or a people’s army > can overthrow the present regime and trigger a revolution. So I got > disillusioned and I thought everybody makes mistakes, and I too made a > mistake. > > You came back from there and made a complete turnaround? > > CBP: Yes. Earlier, I completely went by ideas and thoughts that I was > told. Later, I started thinking and saw changes. When I saw a Dalit in > Bahadurgarh manufacturing cranes with a polytechnic training, I thought > India is changing. When I saw a Dalit in Khurja running the biggest sweet > shop and people buying sweets from him, while knowing he is Dalit, I > thought India is changing. Now Dalits in several parts of India are running > good restaurants. People are eating there. So I thought India is changing. > So I thought let us go with the change. > > Milindji, you came to the city, to Pune, started your venture. Were people > still reminding you of your caste? Or were they ignoring your caste? > > MK: In Maharashtra, your surname often gives away your caste. Look at my > name: Milind Kamble. Kamble is a known Dalit surname. In the business I > work in, construction... > > ...you have a turnover of Rs 80 crore. > > MK: Yes, across all the businesses I am engaged in...So in the > construction sector, over 80 per cent of the labour force belongs to > Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. The work involves hard labour, which > is possible only by us, which is why, we did not see discrimination. > > ...And you were an engineer, an added qualification. > > MK: Yes. > > Let me put this metaphorically. If market is a better equaliser than Marx, > is the market a better equaliser than Mayawati? > > CBP: Most certainly. So far, we held a belief that only an individual can > liberate society. Now we see that there is an economic process, that > capitalism is changing caste much faster than any human being. Therefore, > in capitalism versus caste, there is a battle going on and Dalits should > look at capitalism as a crusader against caste. > > ...As a force multiplier. > > CBP: Yes. Dalits don’t succeed in villages. Dalits don’t succeed in > traditional trades where you have a wide gadda and a white pillow. That’s > why we say bring in FDI in retail and destroy this traditional system where > Dalits can’t even step in. > > This caste-denominated monopoly over money and over transactional > benefits... > > CBP: Yes. That is why I say, what man failed to do, capitalism is doing. > Let us go with capitalism that is changing caste faster than your reforms. > > Milindji, you speak of empowerment and that June 6, the day on which we > are recording this, is going to be a turning point in the history of Dalit > evolution. Why do you say so? > > MK: Today, we are launching our own venture capital fund of Rs 500 crore > and it will be an alternative fund registered with SEBI. This is India’s > first social impact fund that will cater exclusively to enterprises run by > Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. We, the entrepreneurs from the > community, are endeavouring to make a mark on the business landscape—and > many are making a mark. Today is a day when we are making a mark on the > country’s capital markets. > > Your slogan is, Dalits should become job givers, not job seekers. > > MK: Yes. > > CBP: And every follower of Bhimrao Ambedkar should become job givers, not > job seekers. > > Tell me, how did the two of you meet? Chandrabhanji is from a backward > region in Uttar Pradesh—Azamgarh—and Milindji is from Maharashtra. > > CBP: I went to him and saw that he had formed DICCI and is uniting Dalit > entrepreneurs nationwide. His interest was that there should be business > advocacy among Dalits. I have only one interest: to survey Dalit > entrepreneurs and calculate the tax they pay the government and show that > the taxes they pay are far greater than the money the government spends on > the welfare of the Dalits. I asked him, can I join you? And I joined him. > > When I heard you say that—as I also have my mind conditioned by > stereotypes—I thought you were about to say that all the tax Dalit > entrepreneurs pay the government, should be spent back on Dalits. > > CBP: We are saying that Dalit entrepreneurs are giving more in taxes to > the state than what the state is spending on Dalits. We want to prove this. > I am not a businessman, I am a writer. That’s how we came together. Our > interests match. The nation should know that Dalits are not only takers, > they are givers. > > Did people laugh at you when you started this (DICCI)? > > MK: Yes. When we began this, people felt that he is out of his mind. What > is this SC/ST chamber of commerce and industry? Can there be anything like > that? Can people from our community become businessmen? This was the > mindset then and people laughed at me. During the period 2003-2005, we > formed DICCI. In 2010, we organised our first trade fair in Pune. It was > then that we got the attention of the media and word spread nation-wide > that Dalit entrepreneurs have formed a forum. Last year, we organised a > trade fair in Mumbai, at the Bandra-Kurla Complex. > > For non-Mumbaikars, BKC is the new banking district of India. > > MK: Yes. We organised a trade fair in which 150 Dalit businessmen from all > over the country exhibited. Adi Godrej was present at the inauguration and > among the visitors were Ratan Tata, Sushilkumar Shinde and Sharad Pawar and > many others. After that, those who laughed at me and doubted my endeavour, > even the Dalit entrepreneurs who used to hide their caste until then, when > they saw that DICCI had forged an alliance with Corporate India—50 > corporates came there—the hesitation ended and today it has become a > platform throughout the country. There are DICCI chapters in 17 states, and > our membership has swelled to 3,000. > > Chandra Bhanji, you are a traveller, an analyst, a writer, a scholar. Do > you see Dalits and even tribals changing as you go through the countryside? > > CBP: Yes, the biggest change that has occurred and which I thought would > never happen in this country—that food sources have become common for > Dalits and upper castes. Earlier, Dalits mainly ate millets... > > ...what is called coarse grain > > CBP: That was a low social marker—this is Dalit food or cattle feed. Now > Dalits and upper castes and OBCs have common sources of food—wheat and > rice. And jeans and T-shirts have become new weapons of emancipation. I see > in villages Dalit youth sporting jeans and T-shirts. Something is happening > in the countryside. Dressing well, eating well. They are also migrating > from the countryside to cities like Mumbai and Aurangabad and Ahmedabad and > elsewhere. Something new is going to happen in a month or two. A big Indian > company is going to form a joint venture with a Dalit entrepreneur to > produce a common product. This will shake the old consciousness. This would > show how India is integrating, how a new process has started. > > ...And how capitalism is achieving what Marx and Mayawati could not? > > CBP: Yes. Capitalism cannot survive without finishing feudalism and > destroying caste. It is in the interest of capitalism to destroy caste, and > that is happening, whether we like it or not. > > You keep saying that the ideological mentor of DICCI is Montek Singh > Ahluwalia. That will alarm > ...
-- सर्व शिक्षित/अशिक्षित बेरोजगार आदिवासी तरुण तरुणी साठी "स्थानिक आदिवासी बेरोजगार मेळावा" (१४/०४/२०१५ सकाळी १० वाजता) स्थळ कासा, तालुका डहाणू, जिल्हा पालघर. संपर्क | 9960 879 780 | 9272 275 794 | 9158 171 137 | www.jago.adiyuva.in (share with your friends) Learn More about AYUSH online at : http://www.adiyuva.in/2013/10/ayush.html --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "AYUSH | adivasi yuva shakti" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/adiyuva. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/adiyuva/f907af33-2215-405d-aef5-4b37290c4f95%40googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
