Goal 1 : No Poverty

No Poverty

Goal Number 1.

In the Preamble to the Goals, the UNO has made an emphatic declaration to portray its ambition towards the issue of poverty. “We are resolved to free the human race from the tyranny of poverty and want and to heal and secure our planet”. No poverty is the first of 17 Goals which seek to alleviate the problems of humanity and the planet. The UN seeks to “end poverty in all its forms everywhere”. Extreme poverty has been slashed in half since 1990. While this is a remarkable achievement, one in five people in developing regions still live on less than $1.25 a day, and there are millions more who make little more than this daily amount, plus many people risk slipping back into poverty.

Facts and Figures on Poverty

·         836 million still live in extreme poverty

·         High poverty rates are often found in small, fragile and conflict-affected countries

·         About one in five persons in developing regions lives on less than $1.25 a day

·         High poverty rates are found in small, fragile and conflict-affected countries

Targets of SDGs with respect to Poverty

The SDG on poverty (Goal 1) aims to, by 2030:

1.      Eradicate extreme poverty for all people everywhere, currently measured as people living on less than $1.25 a day.

2.      Reduce at least by half the proportion of men, women and children of all ages living in poverty in all its dimensions according to national definitions.

3.     Ensure that all men and women, in particular the poor and the vulnerable, have equal rights to economic resources, as well as access to basic services, ownership and control over land and other forms of 13 property, inheritance, natural resources, appropriate new technology and financial services, including microfinance.

4.     Build the resilience of the poor and those in vulnerable situations and reduce their exposure and vulnerability to climate-related extreme events and other economic, social and environmental shocks and disasters.

The SDG on poverty also aims to implement nationally appropriate social protection systems and measures for all, including floors, and by 2030 achieve substantial coverage of the poor and the vulnerable. The UN will ensure significant mobilization of resources from a variety of sources, including through enhanced development cooperation, in order to provide adequate and predictable means for developing countries, in particular least developed countries, to implement programmes and policies to end poverty in all its dimensions. It will also encourage nations to create sound policy frameworks at the regional, national and international levels to support accelerated investment in the field of poverty eradication.

Operational tools

The United Nations has vowed to use the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank and the UNICEF (UN Children’s Fund) and the United Nations Development Programme to achieve its goal of eradicating poverty, with the IMF leading the battle against poverty.

Contribution of the International Monetary Fund

Inter alia, the IMF will enhance support for developing countries in building capacity in tax policy and administration, including on international tax issues. It will also help in achieving sustainable development and poverty eradication by providing more effective support for fragile and conflict states to address their specific challenges and wide and persistent capacity building needs. It will also provide more in-depth and comprehensive advice in the field of macroeconomics and policy, to ensure environmental sustainability and enable countries to overcome large infrastructure gaps. 

Conclusion

The Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the UN are in furtherance of the Millennium Development Goals. Poverty is an issue that the free world has been fighting with forever. To help reach the goal of eradicating poverty, each nation must play a part to ensure that this ambitious goal can be achieved.

  

United Nations New Development Goals

NEW PROBLEMS, NEW SOLUTIONS: THE UNITED NATIONS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

The United Nations, since its establishment in 1945, has been a world stage or a global platform for the countries of the World to come together, collaborate and cooperate on numerous issues that affect the world at large. The working mechanism of the UN is such, as would suggest the working of a world community, which aims at the greater good of the world and its people, at large, transcending boundaries and borders.

MILLENIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS 

In September 2000, leaders of 189 countries gathered at the United Nations headquarters and signed the historic Millennium Declaration, in which they committed to achieving a set of eight measurable goals that ranged from halving extreme poverty and hunger to promoting gender equality and reducing child mortality, by the target date of 2015.  Countries of the world worked towards ratifying this declaration in their respective states by formulating plans and their consequent application.
The MDGs were revolutionary in providing a common language to reach global agreement. The 8 goals were realistic and easy to communicate, with a clear measurement/monitoring mechanism.  The MDGs established measurable, universally-agreed objectives for eradicating extreme poverty and hunger, preventing deadly but treatable disease, and expanding educational opportunities to all children, among other development imperatives.
Substantial progress has been made regarding the MDGs. The world realized the first MDG of halving the extreme poverty rate by 2015.
The MDG Fund contributed directly and indirectly to the achievement of the MDGs. It adopted an inclusive and comprehensive approach to the MDGs. The approach was guided by the Millennium Declaration and its emphasis on development as a right, with targeted attention directed towards traditionally marginalized groups such as ethnic minorities, indigenous groups, and women.
 However, the achievements have been uneven. Despite some initial success, the goals could not be fulfilled by the countries in entirety in the 15 years that they had in hand, since the inception of the plan.

 The causes for this incomplete implementation ranged from wars, economic crises, epidemics, lack of cooperation and collaboration, poor plans of implementation and the like. As a consequence, most countries remain in the same state, as they did 15 years ago, if not worse.

The MDGs, set to expire in 2015 gave way to the discussion of a post-2015 agenda. On completing 70 years of its inception and reaching the end of the duration/ the implementation period of 15 years for these goals, the diplomats from over 195 countries came together and worked on newer goals that need to be achieved.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS 

Voices around the world are demanding leadership on poverty, inequality and climate change. To turn these demands into actions, world leaders gathered on 25 September 2015, at the United Nations in New York to adopt the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The focus has now shifted towards building a sustainable world where environmental sustainability, social inclusion, and economic development are equally valued.
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) replace the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

 The concept of the SDGs was born at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, Rio+20, in 2012. The objective was to produce a set of universally applicable goals that balances the three dimensions of sustainable development: environmental, social, and economic.

THE RIO +20 CONFERENCE 

 The Rio+20 conference (the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development) in Rio de Janeiro, June 2012, galvanized a process to develop a new set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which will carry on the momentum generated by the MDGs and fit into a global development framework beyond 2015.

In the interest of creating a new, people-centeric development agenda, a global consultation was conducted online and offline. Civil society organizations, citizens, scientists, academicians, and the private sector from around the world were all actively engaged in the process.

Activities included thematic and national consultations, and the My World survey led by the United Nations Development Group. Specialized panels were also held and provided ground to facilitate intergovernmental discussions. The UN Secretary General presented a synthesis of the results of these consultation processes.

In July 2014, the UN General Assembly Open Working Group (OWG) proposed a document containing 17 goals to be put forward for the General Assembly’s approval in September 2015. This document set the ground for the new SDGs and the global development agenda spanning from 2015-2030.
Resolution No. A/RES/70/1, titled ‘Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development’ was passed in the General Assembly which encapsulates the 17 SDGs that have been set out to be fulfilled by 2030.
The 2030 Agenda comprises 17 new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), or Global Goals, which will guide policy and funding for the next 15 years, beginning with a historic pledge to end poverty. Everywhere. Permanently.
The Preamble reads,
“The 17 Sustainable Development Goals and 169 targets which we are announcing today demonstrate the scale and ambition of this new universal Agenda. They seek to build on the Millennium Development Goals and complete what they did not achieve. They seek to realize the human rights of all and to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls. They are integrated and indivisible and balance the three dimensions of sustainable development: the economic, social and environmental.”

This new development agenda applies to all countries, promotes peaceful and inclusive societies, creates better jobs and tackles the environmental challenges of our time—particularly climate change. The Sustainable Development Goals must finish the job that the Millennium Development Goals started, and leave no one behind.

THE GOALS 

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as proposed by the OWG :-

Goal 1
End poverty in all its forms everywhere

Goal 2
End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture

Goal 3
Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

Goal 4
Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote life-long learning opportunities for all

Goal 5
Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

Goal 6
Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

Goal 7
Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all

Goal 8
Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all

Goal 9
Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and foster innovation

Goal 10
Reduce inequality within and among countries

Goal 11
Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

Goal 12
Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

Goal 13
Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts

Goal 14
Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development

Goal 15
Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, halt and reverse land degradation, and halt biodiversity loss

Goal 16
Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all, and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

Goal 17
Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT FUNDS 

The SDG Funds is an international cooperation mechanism that supports sustainable development. It facilitates UN agencies to collaborate with national partners to build integrated and sustainable responses to development challenges.

It has been described as,
“The first cooperation mechanism specifically designed to achieve the future SDGs. Building upon the experience and lessons learned of the previous MDG Achievement Fund (2007-2013), the SDG Fund intends to act as a bridge in the transition from MDGs to SDGs, providing concrete experiences on how to achieve a sustainable and inclusive world post-2015 through its integrated and multidimensional joint programmes.”

Effect

It is too early in time to gauge the impact that the Global Goals are likely to have as the brainchild is still in its very latent stage. However, considering the increased cooperation among nation states, more dedicated funds for the cause, the increased realisation of a “community sentiment” among nation states, experiences of the past and better implementation programmes seem to suggest that the plan will be quite effective in achieving the objectives that it sets out to.

The UN has certainly been instrumental in getting the world to where it stands as of today. The countries, now realising the duty they owe, not only to a people, but to the human race at large, will most certainly cooperate towards achieving this novel-noble objective. However, the extent of its effectiveness, only time will tell.
Stay tuned to The InfoMission Project’s Blog for detailed analyses of the Goals!

The Sheena Bora Murder Mystery

Sheena Bora Murder Explained

Every once in a rare while, a story comes our way that punches us in the gut, shocks us out of our settled assumptions, stokes a primal curiosity and leaves us bewildered with every grotesque twist and turn. It appears to walk a thin line between fact and fiction and sweeps aside far weightier issues that should deserve our attention. The Chinese and Greek economies are in dire straits, our stock markets are tanking with the rest of the world, the rupee is in free fall, Europe is facing a massive refugee crisis for which it was unprepared, Gujarat burned, Manipur is burning and the battle for Bihar is beginning to boil, but we have been transfixed by the bizarre spectacle of a former media baroness being arrested for allegedly killing her own daughter three years ago and getting rid of the body in the jungles with the help of an ex-husband and a driver. Why?

It may seem like a macabre fascination with a diabolical crime involving high society, or PLUs if you will, but there is more to it than that. "The average person who has been socialized to respect life, and who also possess the normal range of emotions such as love, shame, pity and remorse, cannot comprehend the working of a pathological mind that would compel one to abduct, torture, rape, kill...,"- Scott Bonn, Drew University, the U.S. of A. He wrote of why people are fascinated by serial killers and the incomprehensibility of such actions that drives people to try and understand the reasons and motives of those accused of such horrible minds.

This could very well also be said of the alleged murder of 25-year-old Sheena Bora by her mother Indrani Mukherjea and her accomplices in 2012. The crime Indrani is being accused of, although not completely unheard of, questions our basic inferences of human nature. Add to that the emerging "back story" of Indrani and we have an extremely compelling mystery at hand. While it is for the investigators to figure out the crime and establish the truth, the several stories cropping-up (from various sources), seek to piece together the roller-coaster life and times of the woman at the centre of it all. And through that, try and get a sense of the whats, whys and hows of the Sheena Bora-Indrani Mukherjea saga.

The timeline of events follow thus:

1968- Born in Guwahati to Upendra Kumar Bora and Durga Rani Bora; 

1983- Clears Class X examination from St. Mary's Guwahati, scores over 80 per cent in four subjects; Joins Cotton College, Guwahati, alma mater to the who's who of Assam; 

1984- Meets Bishnu Chaudhury, then a law student. They date for a while; 

1985- Shifts to Shillong midway through her inter and joins Lady Keane College; Meets Siddhartha Das, a young executive at a Shillong restaurant named Chirag; 

1986- Returns to Guwahati with Siddhartha, who starts living in her Sundarpur house. Tells parents they're married; Indrani's father tries to help Siddhartha by opening a restaurant for him, but it doesn't take off;

1987- Daughter Sheena is born. She's named after the chief protagonist of the 1984 Hollywood film, Sheena; 

1988- Mikhail is born. Reportedly named after Russian leader Mikhail Gorbachev; 

1990- In June, Indrani moves to Kolkata, saying she wants to study further. Siddhartha is evicted from the Guwahati house soon after;

1993- Submits an affidavit in court giving the custody of her children to her mother; claims they were born in 1989 and 1990; Marries Sanjeev Khanna, a regular at the prestigious CCFC Club, after a brief romance;

Moves from her PG accommodation to Khanna's house in Hastings in Alipore and 

becomes a regular on the club scene;

1996- Starts HR firm INX Services in Kolkata with an office near Park Street Post Office;

1997- Daughter Vidhie is born;

2000- Indrani and Sanjeev start drifting, and then falling apart;

Meets ad theatre personality Alyque Padamsee, who is impressed by her and urges her to move to Mumbai;

2001- Moves with Vidhie to Mumbai, where Padamsee becomes her step-up into the city's high society;

2002- Meets Star TV CEO Peter Mukherjea at a party hosted by Suhel Seth. The two start dating soon after; Divorces Khanna and marries Mukherjea. Is now first lady of the television entertainment industry;

Gets letter from parents, asking for financial support to raise Sheena and Mikhail. Agrees to help;

2003- Peter officially adopts Vidhie and raises her as his own daughter; Her HR firm grows by leaps and bounds in the media industry, acquiring big clients;

2006- Brings Sheena with her to Mumbai and enrols her in St Xavier's College. Mikhail moves to Pune to complete his education; 

2007- Starts INX Media with Peter. They raise funds and rope in Vir Sanghvi as the face of their proposed news channel;

2008- The Wall Street Journal  names Indrani as one of the 50 global women CEOs to watch out for; Entertainment channel 9X's ratings plummet. The Mukherjeas have a falling-out with Sanghvi, leading to him and several others walking out;

An enquiry is ordered by the Government into the financial dealings of INX Media but it never really takes off; 

2009- The Mukherjeas sell their stake in INX Media. A government probe later finds evidence of financial impropriety in the transaction;

Peter's son Rahul returns to Mumbai from London. He and Sheena start dating, leading to acrimony in the family;

2010- Peter and Indrani move to Bristol where Vidhie is studying and occasionally return to their Mumbai flat;

2011- Sheena gets a job in Mumbai Metro One, a part of Reliance ADAG Group;

2012- Sheena is allegedly killed on April 24 by Indrani, her ex-husband Khanna, and driver Shyam Rai. The body is allegedly dumped in Raigad;

Rahul goes to Khar police station, saying Sheena is missing, but no FIR is filed. Indrani tells him she's moved to the US; 

2015- The Mumbai police get an anonymous call from Meerut saying Sheena has been missing for three years. Investigation begins;

Shyam Rai is arrested in an illegal arms case on August 21. He allegedly confesses his role in the Sheena murder;

A body found in Raigad in 2012 is exhumed. On August 25, Indrani is arrested by plainclothes cops while visiting an orphanage;

Her ex-husband Sanjeev Khanna is also picked up by the police on August 26 in Kolkata;

Mumbai police chief takes charge of the case and starts sitting-in on interrogations; 

Indrani denies any role in Sheena's killing, insists she is in US. Peter, Mikhail, Rahul among those questioned by the police; and Sheena's father Siddhartha surfaces. Says he and Indrani were never married. The plot thickens, as police work on preparing a charge sheet.

The case has been taking a puzzling new turn every day. But apart from questions such as who is whose daughter, and who is seeing whom – which have added to the media frenzy surrounding the story – there are serious gaps still to be filled about more crucial issues, such as motive, the modus operandi, and even the murder itself.

The case for the Prosecution will now depend on the rigour of police’s forensic evidence, and a lot hinges on the DNA test report of the body that was exhumed in Raigad. For, as things stand, even the identity of the victim has not been proved. Given that Indrani’s key defence is to maintain unflinchingly, even when confronted with Khanna and Rai, that Sheena is alive in the US, establishing the death will be a crucial first step. The DNA report will also determine if Indrani is indeed Sheena’s mother. And it may, depending on the post-mortem and how clear the DNA evidence is after more than three years of decomposition, even reveal the manner of death.

The second key evidence will be the computer from which Sheena’s fake resignation letter was allegedly sent after she had been killed, and Sheena’s cell phone from which 11 text messages were sent to Rahul, asking him not to seek her out. Call records that place Khanna and Indrani in conversation 11 times on the day before the alleged murder, and the cell tower data that places them in Raigad after Sheena was killed, are also crucial to the Prosecution. And so is Sheena’s passport, recovered from Rahul’s house in Dehradun that militates against the theory of her living abroad.

The third element will be witness testimonies. Key witnesses include Rahul, who attempted to file a missing person’s report at Khar police station; the driver, who is expected to turn approver; Peter, who will need to prove his ignorance of the alleged plot to kill Sheena; and Mikhail, who claims there was a plot being hatched to kill him as well. The police have been filling the gaps with testimonies from anyone or anything that can corroborate their circumstantial evidence. From shop attendants who sold the props used in the murder, the doctor who conducted the post-mortem, CCTV footage from Hotel Hiltop in Worli that would allegedly show Indrani and Khanna working in collusion, and the policemen who did not register an FIR when the unclaimed body was first discovered in Raigad in 2012.

The picture that emerges, after several interviews and investigations across Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Guwahati is one of an eventful life that began in the backyard of Guwahati and went through several transformative makeovers before she ended up as the suave and polished first lady of Indian television - until the horrific twist in the tale. The police and media circus is still throwing up more questions than it is answering. The motive, the modus operandi, the sudden reconciliation of Indrani and Khanna, are all unclear. Is this a debauched family squabble? Is it all about money? Why did Sheena have to lose her life? 

And, perhaps the most unsettling question of all, did a mother really sever the most umbilical of bonds to murder her daughter in cold blood? It is a script that would make any sitcom writer in Mumbai proud. Unfortunately though, it all seems real, as real as what television could come up with, if not more. As the investigation makes progress and more sordid details spill out, the Indrani saga will leave us with larger questions about society, crime and human nature. 

At the heart of this grand tamasha, being played out almost in slow motion, Indrani sits on the precipice, a sword hanging over the head. In the end, is this Indrani as Medea, who resolved to kill her own children? Or Indrani as Icarus, who flew too close to the Sun? Or, as modern-day fables go, does the Indrani story hold the mirror to an ambitious nation longing for success, about the dark alleys that could follow the unbridled thirst for pelf and power? Hark back to the Indrani who wanted to be the sheep that looked the other way. Was she a wolf in lamb’s clothing?

Whether Indrani is guilty or not, it will push us to dissect notions such as ambition, greed, insecurity and hatred among others, in the context of our personal and professional lives in an aspirational and changing India. It may not make for a pretty picture. But then, not everything in the mirror can look good, can it?