National
There should be banks to serve the poor, says Muhammad Yunus
Kolkata, Jan 22 (IANS) Nobel laureate and micro-finance founder Muhammad Yunus on Monday termed the existing banking model as “banks for the rich” and suggested there should be banks for the poor to boost the economic status of people.
“… The banks that exist today, how do you describe them? If our model of Grameen Bank (in Bangladesh) is called the bank for the poor, they should be called the bank for the rich,” Yunus said during a session on his new book “World of Three Zeroes” at the Tata Steel Kolkata Literary Meet here.
“The traditional banks naturally do not lend money to the poor. But sometimes either because of the government or because of the politics, they are forced to do so. There should be banks for the poor,” he said.
In 1983, Yunus formed the Grameen Bank, meaning ‘village bank’ to finance the poorest of the poor, like beggars. Grameen now has 2,564 branches, with 19,800 staff serving 8.29 million borrowers in 81,367 villages of Bangladesh.
He said the banks which traditionally cater to the rich, often compound the problem when they are asked to lend money to the poor, as “they do not know how to do that”.
“So they make a mess of it. So to help the poor you should first create banks for the poor, which is a completely different system,” the acclaimed economist said.
Terming as “dangerous” the present scenario of concentration of wealth in the hands of a small number of people, Yunus warned that people will not accept such a system in the long run that takes everything away from the poor and makes the rich richer.
“When we consider the wealth distribution in the world, people often talk about an imagery of the pyramid and say how the poor are at the bottom of the pyramid. But I do not see any pyramid.
“The best explanation of it would be a mushroom. The upper part of the mushroom keeps growing all the time, all the wealth of the world is reflected in the mushroom. That mushroom is owned by a dozen people and now the number is coming down to less than a dozen.
“So the number of owners is decreasing but the shape of the mushroom is increasing, and that is the dangerous part of wealth concentration. The stem part of the mushroom is becoming thinner and thinner. That is the 99.9 percent of the population,” he pointed out.
Replying to a query, he said poverty is not created by the poor people themselves, but by the system “we built around us”.
“You take the seed of a tall tree in the forest, and a good seed of that tree, and plant it in a flower pot, and let it grow. The seed will grow. But the tree will grow only two feet or two and half feet.
“Poor people are bonsai people. There is nothing wrong with the seed. But simply, society didn’t give them space to grow as tall as everybody else.”
He said the current economic system will explode if it is not changed completely to reverse the flow of wealth.
“This is like a ticking time bomb. It would explode anytime. When I am asked if the humans would survive, the consumers would survive for the next 100 years, I say no. If we keep the system functioning as it is, it will explode. People will kill each other. Because it is just not possible to accept a system that sucks everything from the bottom and pushes it to the top,” he warned.
“The people at the top are not bad people, but the system has to be changed completely so that the system becomes reverse. Instead of the wealth moving to the mushroom, the wealth starts coming to the 99 percent people who are at the bottom,” he added.
–IANS
mgr-ssp/vd
Lucknow: Vishal Singh, a renowned social worker from Lucknow, also known as Foodman, has once again made India proud. He was honored by the Happy Hands Gloves Cooperative Limited Company in Korathai, Thailand, for his work with the Hunger Free World Mission.
The Hunger Free World Mission’s meeting was held in Korathai, Thailand, under Vishal Singh’s leadership. Representatives from several countries, including Mr. Raja Dwivedi (Managing Director of Happy Hands Gloves Limited), Thailand Coordinator Mr. Raja Mishra, and member Mr. Varun Singh, attended the event.
Under Vishal Singh’s leadership, the attendees took a pledge to work together toward creating a hunger-free world.
Speaking on the occasion, Vishal Singh explained that the main goal of the Hunger Free World Mission is social participation. He said the mission is not just about feeding people but also about meeting other basic needs of those who are struggling. The mission focuses on helping families of terminally ill patients in hospitals by providing food and shelter. It also works to fulfill essential needs like education, jobs, and care for the elderly.
For the last 16 years, the Vijay Sri Foundation has been providing free services, benefiting thousands of people. Vishal Singh highlighted that the mission aims to gain global recognition like other organizations such as WHO, WWF, and Red Cross, which work for social causes.
During this meeting, Vishal Singh was appointed as the Chairman of the Hunger Free World Mission by representatives from various countries. They also discussed holding regular meetings in different countries to push the mission forward.
Business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has also supported this humanitarian mission, vowing to promote the idea of “Seva Parmo Dharma” (Service is the highest duty) worldwide. Vishal Singh praised him, stating that people like Dr .Abhishek Verma inspire others to work for the betterment of society.
Recently, Romania’s Ambassador, Mr . Daniela Sezonov Ţane, invited Vishal Singh to the Romanian Embassy in Delhi, where they discussed the mission in detail. Impressed by his humanitarian work, she honored Vishal Singh and invited him to Romania to take the mission forward .
Food man Vishal Singh has been serving the people of India for the past 16 years. Through the Vijay Sri Foundation, he provides free meals to cancer patients & their families ,shelter, and education for women & children along with running free old-age homes in Lucknow.
In addition to his humanitarian work, Vishal Singh also addresses issues like crime and corruption through his role as Chairman of Seva Path Media and Managing Director of Vijay Sri Foundation.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Vishal Singh and his team worked tirelessly to provide food and help to the needy, including starving children, elderly citizens, and pregnant women. Despite contracting the virus himself, he continued to assist others after his recovery. He even created a life-saving oxygen regulator using household items, which was praised by doctors both in India and abroad.
In his address at the meeting, Vishal Singh spoke about his mission to create a hunger-free world. He pointed out that India’s large population, along with issues like unemployment and poverty, has caused the country to fall on the Hunger Index. He urged people to contribute just one handful of grains daily to help create a hunger-free world.
He concluded by saying that through social participation, we can empower the people around us, meet their basic needs, and work together to build a stronger, more prosperous, and developed society.
Foodman Vishal Singh Honored for Hunger Free World Mission in Bangkok
Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma
Cheers and Cheers: Barzilla’s Joyful Ode to Inclusivity and Celebration
Casino Days Reveal Internal Data on Most Popular Smartphones
Meghalaya Reserves Legalized Gambling and Sports Betting for Tourists
IPL 20202 UPDATE: KXIP vs MI IPL Dream11 Team Prediction for Today Match, Update Point Table of all Team.
In a Live debate AAP leader Syed Asad Abbas hurls abuses to BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma.
‘India’s Most Wanted’ trailer out Arjun Kapoor on hunt of Osama-Bin-Laden
Time to move on: Sonakshi on Shatrughan’s joining Congress
