Of late, there has been much discussion on NGOs.
Some of the things we can surmise are that it seems that around 70% of the NGOs working in India are suspect. Many of these NGOs have great websites and solicit funds - usually from foreign countries. They undertake a project or two, but their ultimate mission is not that lofty.
Having said that, we must also understand that there are a few really great ones. NGOs that really work, are difficult to find, and we approach them with some trepidation. But we are generally assured by personal visits by some NRAs. The ones that we can readily attest to are NGOs like RVC and Ashadeep. Trust is an important in these things. Without throwing caution to the winds, we ought to be able make good value judgements on genuine NGOs. Being absolutely cautious in our approach to each and every NGO will really tantamount in NOT being able to help even the good ones out there.
Some of the problems that we see around Assam that these NGOs work are long-term, and have definitely fallen thru the cracks. Without the help of genuine NGOs, whole sections of people would be without any material support.
Thinking of NGOs and the possibility that some of them may have a 'hidden agenda' makes one thinks about organizations like Mother Theresa's Sisters of Charity. While it may be true that SOC, being a Christian organization, may have wanted to convert people they help to Christianity, the services they rendered over the years far outweigh any perceived ill-intentions.
My argument would be in the case of Mother Theresa's organization is, so what, if some were converted.The bottomline is that the organization made a huge difference in lives that mainstream religions/Govt. agencies took for granted. The same goes for so many other such organizations, like some Hindu based ashrams that are doing wonderful. If it takes a bit of religious zeal to help people in need, so be it. It is better than NOT doing anything.
Social workers like Sanjay Ghosh or Ravindranath are the ones who are silently working to make things better. Most such people, I beleive, are not aware of political, state or geographical boundraries in their quest to better the livlihoods of people. So, it would be nice if more people just gave them any support they can, and let them do their thing.
--Ram
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