Bridge the gap between knowing, feeling & doing, says public policy expert
At the ‘Policy Speaks’ Talk Series at IIMB, Dr Anil K. Gupta says country must utilize potential of knowledge-rich but economically poor people for diversified progress
JANUARY 11, 2016: “There are many knowledge-rich people in our country who are categorized as unskilled labour, which is a paradox. Language shapes the habit of thought. There are singers, actors, artists, sculptors, healers, weavers, etc., who by the stroke of language, become unskilled. The public policy maker has no responsibility in differentiating delivery of opportunities for this mass since it has classified them as unskilled. How can people who are so knowledgeable, who are rich in their understanding about society and institutions, who are ready to fight for their rights and beliefs, be classified as unskilled? How do we change the discourse and language in this country?” These questions were put forward by Dr. Anil K. Gupta, faculty member, IIM Ahmedabad, Centre for Management in Agriculture (CMA), during a special talk on ‘Public Policy for Grassroots Frugal Innovations: Lessons for Learners’, which was organized by IIM Bangalore’s Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy & Management (PGPPM), on January 7, 2016, from 6 pm to 7.30 pm. The discussion was part of PGPPM’s ‘Policy Speaks’ series of lectures on public policy.
Under the umbrella of the PGPPM, there are two student-run initiatives, Policy Speak Series and Policy Blog (also called the Policy Collective), that provide opportunities to programme participants to interact with experts in various fields. The objective of the Public Policy Talk Series is to improve policy debate in the country and disseminate information related to policy matters on such a platform.
Dr. Anil Gupta, who is also the Founder, Honey Bee Network and Executive Vice Chair, National Innovation Foundation, said he hoped his talk at IIMB would create new possibilities for society to become more accountable. “A lot of us have autonomy (the freedom to act), but very few have agency (the ability/willingness to exercise that freedom).”
Defining the subsidiary principle and the high command principle of governance, he said: “Subsidiary principle advocates that vision should be taken as close to the point of action as possible. However, the relationship between status and skill may not be direct. How does one resolve this paradox? There are good examples in our country, which show that policies have indeed been enacted in response to emergent problems, by people who have great faith in their own morality and the morality of the society, and make a direct connection, and the direct connection has worked miracles.” Citing the example of Amul, he said that the biggest brand in India is a cooperative brand.
Sharing his take on sound principles of public policy, he said: “In high stress environments, when market and state are weak, people have to be creative and survive through vision. A system of knowledge management is needed, under which people who generate solutions do not remain anonymous. They should be acknowledged unless requested otherwise. Secondly, we collect knowledge but they are not connected. So we need to share local language in a way that they understand. Third, if you generate any wealth out of it, a reasonable share must go back to them.”
According to the expert, many problems remained unsolved because policy makers and stakeholders were in inertia. “You have to actually act to change things. Take everyone seriously, even children, as they can be source of good ideas,” he added.
Bridge the gap between knowing, feeling & doing, says public policy expert
At the ‘Policy Speaks’ Talk Series at IIMB, Dr Anil K. Gupta says country must utilize potential of knowledge-rich but economically poor people for diversified progress
JANUARY 11, 2016: “There are many knowledge-rich people in our country who are categorized as unskilled labour, which is a paradox. Language shapes the habit of thought. There are singers, actors, artists, sculptors, healers, weavers, etc., who by the stroke of language, become unskilled. The public policy maker has no responsibility in differentiating delivery of opportunities for this mass since it has classified them as unskilled. How can people who are so knowledgeable, who are rich in their understanding about society and institutions, who are ready to fight for their rights and beliefs, be classified as unskilled? How do we change the discourse and language in this country?” These questions were put forward by Dr. Anil K. Gupta, faculty member, IIM Ahmedabad, Centre for Management in Agriculture (CMA), during a special talk on ‘Public Policy for Grassroots Frugal Innovations: Lessons for Learners’, which was organized by IIM Bangalore’s Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy & Management (PGPPM), on January 7, 2016, from 6 pm to 7.30 pm. The discussion was part of PGPPM’s ‘Policy Speaks’ series of lectures on public policy.
Under the umbrella of the PGPPM, there are two student-run initiatives, Policy Speak Series and Policy Blog (also called the Policy Collective), that provide opportunities to programme participants to interact with experts in various fields. The objective of the Public Policy Talk Series is to improve policy debate in the country and disseminate information related to policy matters on such a platform.
Dr. Anil Gupta, who is also the Founder, Honey Bee Network and Executive Vice Chair, National Innovation Foundation, said he hoped his talk at IIMB would create new possibilities for society to become more accountable. “A lot of us have autonomy (the freedom to act), but very few have agency (the ability/willingness to exercise that freedom).”
Defining the subsidiary principle and the high command principle of governance, he said: “Subsidiary principle advocates that vision should be taken as close to the point of action as possible. However, the relationship between status and skill may not be direct. How does one resolve this paradox? There are good examples in our country, which show that policies have indeed been enacted in response to emergent problems, by people who have great faith in their own morality and the morality of the society, and make a direct connection, and the direct connection has worked miracles.” Citing the example of Amul, he said that the biggest brand in India is a cooperative brand.
Sharing his take on sound principles of public policy, he said: “In high stress environments, when market and state are weak, people have to be creative and survive through vision. A system of knowledge management is needed, under which people who generate solutions do not remain anonymous. They should be acknowledged unless requested otherwise. Secondly, we collect knowledge but they are not connected. So we need to share local language in a way that they understand. Third, if you generate any wealth out of it, a reasonable share must go back to them.”
According to the expert, many problems remained unsolved because policy makers and stakeholders were in inertia. “You have to actually act to change things. Take everyone seriously, even children, as they can be source of good ideas,” he added.