my fondest memory growing up

my fondest memory growing up

One of my fondest memory growing up was my grandfather narrating his favourite anecdotes. From expressing his adulation for the iconic architect – Walter Griffin, who designed some of the landmark buildings in Lucknow, to rejoicing over the grilling interview with Late Prime Minister, Lal Bahadur Shashtri on the ongoing anti-Hindi agitation. My grandfather retired as the editor of a leading Indian newspaper – The Pioneer,he frequently quizzed us on the stories of the day. In his early nineties, his eyes would light up when he narrated the turbulent times of the twentieth century when India was a British colony to the governance challenges of the twenty first century.

Of the many experiences that he shared with me, his story of the time when emergency was declared in India by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1975 remains etched in my mind. The rise of the judges such as Chief Justices MC Chagla, JC Shah and Narendra Nathwani against the preventive detention faced by the opposition leaders, to save the basic fibre of democracy, led me to reflect onto the necessity of a strong legal system in India.

I always aspired to be a lawyer donning black robes, congregating at the courtto argue matters, but I think I was naïve to perceive law with such a myopic view. For me law school was a time to explore different facets of life. Though some would say that life in law school can be challenging, however the vigorous academics, moot court competitions, publication of research papers, peer review editing for the law school journal taught me the ability to multitask and helped me to develop a well-rounded view on the socio-political matters.

Newly introduced to a world of law, I gravitated towards criminal justice reform system and started evaluating law in a new light with inimitable advantage of being a key pillar to governance and policy. As a part of the criminal curriculum, I had the opportunity to visit a juvenile home at Yerwada in Pune. Wandering through the cells of the juvenile home, a deep sadness engulfed me. The cells were dingy and dark, food was limited, and conjugal visits for the juveniles were stringent. The atmosphere was gloomy, and it seemed that the juveniles in conflict with law had little to no opportunity to return in society. The prison reminded of the stories of emergency that my grandfather narrated when he met Ms. Mrinal Gore, a socialist leader, who was detained with a lunatic and a leper in a horrid cell. Almost 40 years later, the conditions were still same with young impressionable children imprisoned under inhuman condition.

I wanted to contribute for the betterment of an otherwise ill-equipped juvenile reformation system. This inspired me to restore prison rights and reform prison administration by co-founding an organisation – PRESHTI. The aim of the organisation was to create awareness among students and citizens on the prolonged incarceration faced by under trial prisons, inhumane treatment in prison and lack of educational opportunities for juveniles in prison.

To draw the attention of the law students to this reformation cause, I collaborated with my classmates to spread awareness by addressing law students at college events. I also started writing in the college magazine (Prison Rape: Yet another human right violation, Reality of education in juvenile home), and used social media to create surround sound on the ailing judicial system.

We collaborated with the Pune District Service Authority (PDLSA) and conducted workshops in the correctional facility to educate juvenile in conflict with law on basic legal rights of prisoners. During this aeon, I wished to be the trailblazer of hope and faith for the children in juvenile home and bolster the foundation of education. The assistance in education would not only provide an opportunity to learn new skills but also help them to advance in their educational career to become employable. In pursuit to equip them with better opportunities, we organised workshops with National Institute of Open Schooling teaching tailoring, welding, carpentry and basic computer training. Further, we volunteered to help the juveniles in conflict with law with remedial classes so that they can be at par with the students of their age. Our effort proved effective and we became agents of social change and were able to rehabilitate 60 deemed pariahs of the society into responsible citizen.

Post my graduation, I got an opportunity to work as a corporate lawyer, where I witnessed the convergence of law and business. I demystified complex legal matters and assisted global conglomerates to understand legal landscape of India. I soon realized that being a corporate lawyer was not my calling, I had always been intrigued by the governance and policy making.

I was soon offered a position as a public-affairs professional with leading communication agency from UK, WPP Plc. I was entrusted with the responsibility to lead a team of five members to educate enforcement agencies regarding cyber-crimes for an e-commerce client. Our team collaborated with the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) and cyber experts to launch the first training in Delhi. However, our major roadblock was that the junior officers were disinterested in the training. After months of parley, we decided to motivate the reluctant cops with the “Cyber Rakshak Award”. The announcement of an award proved effective and 223 officers were enrolled for the training. It was a moment of self-actualisation as I started witnessing corporate social responsibility in a completely new light. In true sense, I understood that national development could only be achieved by integrated and inclusive growth with corporations, civil society and government.

Working as a lawyer and a public-affairs professional for over 2 years, I am grateful for the opportunities that have come my way. However, I have received no formal training in Public Policy. To understand the nuances of policy design, and social entrepreneurship, I felt the need to receive a formal training from global leaders in this field. I believe that UK, owing to the commonwealth heritage it shares with India (in terms of law, parliamentary practices, policy) is a perfect destination to hone my skills. I hope the course MSc in Public Policy and Public Administration from your prestigious university will provide me with tools to continue to unite and work with a diverse group of people

In future, I wish to partner with the government and civil society through my own resource centre in public policy consultation in education, infrastructure and technology. Innovation in public service could be a foundation for ensuring that policy and administration becomes competitive, efficient and cost-effective. Through innovation, India can remove the vices impacting the education system and help it become the innovation and knowledge capital of the world. My focus shall be on the convergence of education, infrastructure, and technology policy for the transformation of education, skilling, and training system in India.

This MSC would provide me with an opportunity to deep dive into alternative policy choices, based on empirical evidence. The focus of my master’s program would be to find a solution to the long-drawn problems in education, health and infrastructure in India.

I am confident that the master’s programme will enlighten me with the steps resulting to any social change with the tendencies leading to such changes. I possess a strong grasp of fundamentals in law and governance issues, relevant work experience, a desire to learn, along with a penchant for collaboration and leadership and a zest for challenges.