When today came around, we could barely believe that we'd already spent two weeks in India. The trip has been, quote Amy, "an absolute whirlwind," and through its ups and its downs, we've all grown considerably as policy researchers, world travelers, and spicy food connoisseurs (http://now.dartmouth.edu/2013/12/global-policy-students-take-their-studies-to-india/). Nevertheless, as we rushed to pack and eat breakfast before saying goodbye to our Sheraton rooms, we couldn't help but feel homesick.

After driving to the edge of the city through the thickest fog of the season, our first stop of the day was the headquarters of Operation ASHA, a tuberculosis treatment NGO started by Sandeep Ahuja, who himself took this course with Professor Wheelan at the Harris School in 2005-2006 (http://www.opasha.org/). Although Mr. Ahuja was not available to meet with us, we were greeted by enthusiastic staff members, including one recent graduate from UC Berkeley, who gave us a crash course on the status of TB in India and how operation ASHA has made an impact. India's 3.5 million TB patients make up 1/4 of the cases worldwide, yet even with free medication provided by the government, the default rate is around 40% or higher due to accessibility barriers, social stigmas, lack of follow-up, and the belief that one can cease medication early upon feeling better. By pioneering an eCompliance technology on tablets and training local providers (who used to be "quacks"), Operation ASHA has cut regimen noncompliance rates to 3%, greatly reducing the risk of patients developing drug-resistant TB. 

Following the briefing (which was legitimately brief compared to the Swades and SEWA briefings), Professor Wheelan's son CJ acted as a test TB patient to demonstrate how the eCompliance biometric fingerprinting worked. Operation ASHA has tailor-designed the tablet program to maximize efficiency, and there is even a version with images only for illiterate care providers. Then, to the group's surprise, the staff members directed us back to the bus for a trip to a nearby slum's TB center. We were pretty on edge, having just learned that TB gets transmitted from person to person through the air. Nevertheless, everyone braved entering the small clinic to learn about how the TB medication was distributed. On our way out, Professor Wheelan's wife had a photoshoot-with-someone's-child experience; sound familiar?

With our policy report finished, the last two interviews of the trip served the purpose of assessing our understanding of the economic development issues at hand. Attributing every cough on the bus to a potential TB cases, we headed over to the US Embassy in Delhi. At the heavily fortified gates, we became the target of various news photographers camped out there due to the recent arrest of an Indian consular diplomat in NY. Apparently, as we were inside the embassy speaking to three officials from the political affairs, economics, and cultural affairs divisions, a protest was happening at the front gate. Thus, after the meeting, we sneaked out through the embassy's back gate, where our bus had been told to wait. It was unfortunate yet strangely exhilarating that we were smack dab in the middle of an international relations crisis.

The final meeting of the practicum did a fantastic job of wrapping up our analysis of potential economic reforms. At a government building in Delhi, we interviewed the highly esteemed Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman of India's Planning Commission and a key figure in the reforms of the 80s and 90s. With an impeccable British accent, Mr. Ahuluwalia shared his priorities for reform, which included restructuring land use laws, investing in health and education, and fostering local-level initiatives for resource pricing. What surprised us was that, given our interviews across the spectrum of Indian society, we were able to disagree with a few of his points on the grounds that policies on paper do not fully reflect what happens during the implementation and maintenance of the policy. However, it was great to see that the Planning Commission has organized a very conscientious effort to bring change to India for the better; it all depends on whether or not the Indian society can push for achieving the targets of the next 5-year plan.

We ended the trip with a hefty Indian dinner, full of chicken tikka masala, lamb curry, nan, and various other delicious dishes. Each of the students had the honor of receiving a humorous accolade from Professor Wheelan, proving that our positive spirits endured the fumes of burning rubbage and the smells of uncleaned latrines. As we prepared to head to the airport, we said goodbye to Ayushi and Ashneil, who are staying in India for Christmas to visit relatives. We also said goodbye to Professor Wheelan and his family, as they are also staying in India to continue their adventures.

Right before heading to the Delhi airport, we became aware of a delay in the flight, which we misread as 4 hours. Fortunately, the delay was only about half an hour, leaving us plenty of time to catch our transfer in London. Hours and hours later, with several strangely-timed airplane meals and a program malfunction in the customs system, we arrived in Boston-Logan, each heading our separate ways homeward. For the students who flew out again from Boston, the airport security was longer and more tedious than even in India, reminding us that even in the states, there is much to be desired in terms of policy reforms. And so ends a very, very long day (flying back in time), and a very, very wonderful PBPL85 trip to India. 

To all our faithful blog followers: Happy Holidays!

Delhi is Delicious

Today was an early morning. Train food service workers woke us with drawling but persistent calls for “chai, chai, chai chai” at 6:30 am, leaving us ample time to arrange our luggage before a 7:30 am arrival in New Delhi.  Although the overnight bunks were a tight squeeze, the group mostly slept well and compared the quarters to cozy barracks. (There was one unwelcome insect visitor, but he was expelled early in the night for lacking a formal ticket.)  Thanks again to the coordination of Chetan and his associates, we arrived at the New Delhi executive lounge with ease, where we were able to nab a hot breakfast and showers before a full day of meetings!

Our first stop in was the Social Outreach Foundation, a primary school for underprivileged students from slums in NOIDA.  The teachers welcomed us with hot, flakey puff pastries and tea, and students performed a short show of singing and drumming performances.  Stuffed and entertained, we toured classrooms from kindergarten through fifth standard. We were able to ask students about their lessons, and they had many questions for us about food and weather in the United States. Our visit also included a panel discussion with SOF teachers and a question and answer session with former SOF students who are now pursuing secondary or post-secondary degrees.  Of course, we could not leave without another meal, this time steamed or fried rice patties, spicy vegetable stew, lentils, and more tea and coffee.

Next we headed to the World Bank to meet with Martin Rama, Chief Economist for the South Asia region, and Maria Correia, Sector Manager for Social Development in the South Asia region. The two fielded broad questions about the World Bank’s role to help India’s’ economic growth and social inclusion as well as spoke to specific projects’ successes. The two were extremely knowledgeable and very generous to give us over an hour of their time.

Finally, tired and ready to strip out of our business attire, we arrived at the ITC Sheraton in Delhi.  Were we in for a surprise!  The hotel was our nicest of the trip, with white tiled floors and leather couches in the lobby, and shinny brass-handled staircases that wound up to the second level.  We had a little time before dinner to shower and unwind, then headed to the hotel’s lauded Oriental fusion restaurant to meet Adam Roberts, India correspondent for The Economist. Although many of us were convinced that the endless appetizers were our dinner, there were many more courses to follow: soup, entrées and finally dessert.  Roberts was extremely insightful about issues of Indian politics, reform and corruption, although he had little time to grab bites between our fervent questions! A straw poll among the group as to whom we would vote for Indian Prime Minister was a contentious but rich starting point for the conversation.

After a packed day spent traveling, debriefing and eating, we snuggled into our plush comforters for a very deep sleep.

Live from Ahmedabad

It finally happened: we saw an elephant. Our second day in Ahmedabad was again a busy and productive one, topped off by a great surprise in the morning — the spotting of an Indian elephant crossing traffic amongst whizzing auto rickshaws and hordes of cars and pedestrians.

Our path to the elephant spotting began with our visit with the Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), a trade union that aims to empower poor, self-employed female workers. In the morning, we met with one of the directors of SEWA who took us to a bustling vegetable market where many SEWA members earn a living by selling produce to the thousands of shoppers who visit the busy area every day. The activity and energy of the market was palpable — we passed through merchants organizing piles of fresh coriander, unloading trucks full of deep purple-hued eggplants and setting up shop at stalls surrounding the warehouses. In the middle of all the activity, the SEWA director suddenly began to play a game of guessing my weight near a large vegetable scale. Next thing I knew, I found myself on the scale. The SEWA director seemed to enjoy it, at least. While winding through the market, we found another elephant grazing with his owner and were naturally occupied for the next half hour taking pictures, petting and feeding it. Total elephant count now went up to two in one day — not bad at all! After our visit to the market, we stopped by a SEWA bank branch where we learned the ways that the organization helps to lift marginalized poor women in the informal sector out of poverty. Our meeting with SEWA ended with a presentation on the group’s initiatives and a tasty veg lunch. 

Our afternoon was spent at Mahatma Gandhi’s ashram, known as Sabarmati Ashram. The ashram was one of the residences of Gandhi, who lived here for about 12 years with his wife Kasturba and it was from this base that Gandhi led the influential Dandi march in 1930 that sparked the Indian independence movement. The grounds of the site were extremely peaceful, and I could easily imagine Gandhi finding spiritual inspiration and repose here while watching parrots fly around in the trees and enjoying the breeze from the River Sabarmati nearby. The ashram featured a detailed exhibit of Ghandi’s biography and some of his most impactful and lasting work. Also for anyone who might be visiting the ashram in the future: watch out for the chipmunks. They can be a bit aggressive!

After going for a quick coffee break to rest from exploring the ashram, we headed back to Ahmedabad Train Station. With some caffeine in our systems, we braced ourselves for the absolute chaos of the station as we headed to take the Swarna Raj Express overnight to Delhi. With our large (and others extra large) pieces of luggage in tow, we slogged through the station and tried our best to avoid the swarms of loud crowds and suspiciously smelly pathways. By the time we reached our platform, our tour guide Chetan was already sweating bullets and looked a bit stressed at the thought of helping us board the train. Note to Chetan: you rock. By 6 p.m., we were off. And thus was the beginning of a 14-hour journey to our final destination of the trip, Delhi.

Finding NaMo

Today, we embarked on our first and only full day in Ahmedabad, the capital of Gujarat.  Our day was packed with four meetings with politicians, an academic, and a boutique hotel owner. 

After another tasty complimentary buffet breakfast, we headed out on our new coach bus, complete with a new business associate/tour guide.  He attempted to give us (but mostly Rachel) a description of the city around us, which was often incomprehensible through the muffled microphone and language barrier.  We did see some gorgeous temples and government buildings of all styles.

The journey to our first meeting provided a stark contrast to our time in Mumbai.  The roads were smooth and wide, were lined with beautiful trees and gardens, and were largely litter-free.  As Ayushi observed, “I can rest my head on the bus window without getting a concussion.”

We quickly (!) arrived at the state government building for our first meeting.  Here, we were ushered into a “VIP Waiting Room” (making us feel far too important) to wait for Balvantsinh Rajput, the Congress Party Whip and MLA of Sidhpur.  Like a true politician, he arrived 30 minutes late but was patient with our questions.  As we discussed issues surrounding taxes, infrastructure, and corruption, his answers clearly had socialist undertones (as expected from the Congress Party).  His policy priorities focused primarily on wealth redistribution and welfare programs, which differed sharply from the pleas of the business community back in Mumbai.  When asked whether Modi, the chief minister of Gujarat and potential Prime Minister in 2014, was responsible in Gujarat’s success, Rajput gave a firm “no,”; the disagreement between Congress and BJP was evident.

After the meeting, we were sent to the “VIP Dining Room” for a private buffet lunch (thank you Indian tax payers – all 20 million of you).  The cuisine was slightly different, and far spicier, than that found back in Mumbai; we all appreciated the change of flavor.  After eating, we spotted some monkeys on a roof across the street, much to everyone’s enjoyment.  And most importantly, we discovered that we had been invited to Rajput’s son’s wedding reception tomorrow night, which was taking place on the field out behind the government building.  Much to our dismay, we had to pass due to travel constraints.

From there, we headed to our next meeting with Errol D’souza, an economics professor at the acclaimed India Institute of Management.  This served to be one of the more helpful meetings of our trip, as the professor thoughtfully outlined the major problems facing India today.  In his view, our reform should focus on four major areas:  power generation, education reform, tax reform, and judicial reform.  Since judicial cases take an average of 7 to 8 years to complete, D’souza quipped, “You should never get in the hands of two things in India.  You should never get in the hands of a heart surgeon or the judicial system.  In both cases, your chance of living is very low.”

After, we met with a former member of Modi’s cabinet, who served as the Minister of Sewage and Water and the Minister of Health and Drug Administration, among other public roles.  While we didn’t garner much information on the policy front, we did learn that Gujarat has some of the highest blood and organ donations per capita in the entire world! 

Finally, we sped off to meet Abhay Mangaldas, the CEO of The House of Mangaldas Girdhardas, for our last meeting.  The discussion ended up being more social than informative, but was a nice break from the busy day.  The biggest takeaway was the fact that Abhay started the hotel business almost without a hitch, which was far different than Greg’s corruption-filled brew pub experience back in Mumbai.  Gujarat has truly tackled its red tape issues, and Modi’s best accomplishment is that he has simply gotten out of the way.

The meeting was at the House of MG itself, which a stunning, refurbished manor home.  The House of MG is a “heritage hotel” and is entirely decorated and furnished with items from local artisans.  We also spent some time on the rooftop garden, featuring real, green grass and views of the city.  Some of us also found some quaint Christmas gifts at the artisan shop in the lobby. 

We all retired early after the busy day.  Tomorrow, we’re meeting with the Self Employed Women’s Association in the morning, will play tourist at Gandhi’s Ashram in the afternoon, and will then head off to the overnight train in the evening.

On To Ahmedabad

After a last breakfast at the Taj President, we met with Rohan and Sameer Bulchandani. The two brothers gave us a description of the challenges and opportunities successful Indian businessmen encounter. Rohan began his own outsourcing service company after facing difficulties in manufacturing. Following his passion in computers and discovering a more favorable tax environment, he began building his business. Sameer continued to build his company that specializes in the distribution of hardware to the aerospace industry.

Both have faced roadblocks with constantly changing tax rates, a lack of infrastructure, low quality education, and corruption. Yet, they have persevered.  Rohan’s company provides a 6 month long training course to educate workers. Sameer has had to become more adaptable to work with government regulation. The brothers concluded the meeting with a discussion of how they see the upcoming elections impacting their businesses.

After the meeting, we stashed away the Mentos that had been placed at our seats, packed our bags, and headed to the train station. There, we said goodbye to our amazing assistant tour guide Sam and bus driver who had gotten us through the trickiest turns and tightest spaces in Mumbai and the village. Upon boarding the train, we realized that our suitcases were way too big to fit in the allotted compartments. Luckily, Chetan was able to place them all in the back of our railcar.

Just as we settled in, other passengers began to board the train. One family decided to paparazzi Don and take a picture of him with their child. Perhaps they recognized him from his child stardom days, or maybe they confused him for Rahul Gandhi, as others have. The second exciting event of the ride came when we stopped at the next station. Ten young men hopped on the train and started walking up and down the aisles shouting out the various foods they were carrying on them. The cardboard boxes strapped to their shoulders were filled with water, mango juice, Lays potato chips, tea, Indian salty snacks, wafers and other Indian foods. Because we didn’t have enough time to eat lunch before the train ride (well, besides our stashed Mentos), we were some of the best customers.

We continued our journey, trying to entertain ourselves with sleep, staring out the window, and working on our memo, slightly jealous of Joe who had prepared well for the journey with two seasons of The Sopranos loaded on his iPad. While staring out the windows, we were surprised as we stopped in Surat, Gujarat just around sunset. The dinner cooking fires had filled the sky with a gray haze. Shacks and garbage lined the train track lines as we approached the station. As we continued to Ahmedabad, the streets became cleaner and we could see lights in the distance.

We arrived at the train station in Ahmedabad tired and hungry. After meeting our new assistant guide, we left the station. We forgot all about how tired and hungry we were as we tried to dodge auto rickshaws and cars to get to the bus. Thirty minutes later, we arrived at the hotel where we called it a night.

The Long Road Home

We wake up bright and early, some of us as early as 5am. This is what happens when you go to bed right after dinner. After a light breakfast of poha, a traditional dish of yellow rice and spices, we head to another village to learn about their local governance structures. After another intriguing session of Q&A with the villagers we visit a nearby Hindu temple. The view from the temple is gorgeous.

Once we are back at Kasar Malai, we say our goodbyes to our hosts and the people at the Swades Foundation who made our visit possible.  We embark on a long and bumpy bus ride back to Mumbai. Once we make our way into the outskirts of Mumbai, we stop at a mall for dinner. We spot the familiar golden arches of McDonald’s and we feast on Maharaja Macs and extremely spicy chicken sandwiches. “Watching Mean Girls and eating at Mickey D’s in the past 24 hours – India baby!” exclaimed Don “Rahul Gandhi” Casler (aka “Dandhi”).

A short bus ride later we arrive at the Takshashila Dance Academy for a demonstration of classical Indian dance. The head dance instructor gives us an extensive hour-long lecture on rhythm and different meters which none of us really comprehend. She follows up her lecture by having her students demonstrate the many different types of gaits, walks and spins involved in this particular dance discipline. Finally, we get to the actual performance! Five girls perform an enactment of the Ramayana. The fight scenes are the best. Most of the time, it is hard to tell what’s going on. Thankfully, though, none of us had to do any dancing. After the dance performance, the girls begin serving us food. Most of us are still stuffed from our earlier visit to McDonald’s but we do our best to not be rude. After our second dinner we make our trip back to the Taj. The hot shower feels amazing.