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| What Does the Collapse of Civil Society Mean For Us? |
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| Dear Moneylifers, |
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| We began this month with an incredibly thought-provoking lecture by Dr Pratap Bhanu Mehta, our foremost public intellectual today. This was the 4th Annual Right To Information Lecture, which was again conducted online for the second year owing to the pandemic, and it was great to see over 500 of you participating on Zoom, YouTube and Facebook. Dr Mehta's choice of topic "The Collapse Of Civil Society: Reflections on Democracy and the Public Sphere" intrigued both Moneylife members and activists, and he masterfully revealed why he thinks that a few big victories and highly dedicated activism is still not enough to make a difference. It would need a Herculean public effort and mass awakening for serious change, he felt. |
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| Our key discussants Mr Nikhil Dey, founding member of the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) and Dr Ritu Dewan, well known academic, activist and author brought in their own diverse perspectives that both supported and challenged some of Dr Mehta's views, making for a very stimulating evening. Some of you who missed the session have been asking for a recording. Here is where you can watch it on YouTube. |
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| We have also made a lot of progress on finalizing the five finalists for the first ever corporate governance award. We will put out the names this week and seek you final inputs before announcing the winners in early January 2022. Remember, these are completely independent awards that are based on public nominations followed by a rigorous screening template and process that was put before the jury. We are especially gratified that many of our nominees are highly successful and eminent investors themselves. The finalists we promise, will surprise many of you. |
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| We hosted former Chief Information Commissioner Shri Satayananda Mishra for the seventh in the series of 'Conversations on RTI with Shailesh Gandhi'. Mr Mishra spoke with refreshing candour on the evolution of the RTI Act and the attitude of the government and bureaucracy towards the need for transparency within the government, self-regulatory organisations, first line regulators as well as how powerful corporates have continued to use legal challenges to avoid disclosures mandated by the Act. If you missed the opportunity to attend the session, you can still read about it here and watch the video recording on our YouTube channel. |
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| Our previous conversations are all superbly insightful and you should certainly take the time to catch up on them here: with Ms Aruna Roy, founder of the National Campaign for People's Right to Information, Mr Wajahat Habibullah, the first Chief Information Commissioner, former CIC Prof (Dr) Sridhar Acharyulu, with Shri Yogendra Yadav, National President, Swaraj India, renowned social activist Shri Anna Hazare and Ms Anajali Bhardwaj, activist and founding member of Satark Nagrik Sangathan. |
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| I am also urging you to make an effort to spread the word about what we do and encourage people to become members and watch our videos. Over the coming months, we will be announcing more programmes with eminent individuals, so do keep an eye out for them. We also look forward to your suggestions on webinars and would be happy to conduct a programme on an interesting topic of your suggestion. |
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| 'RTI Advice' App |
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 Our 'RTI Advice' app on Android and iOS platforms allows novice and veteran users of the Right to Information Act to connect and benefit from expert advice on RTI or the Act itself. The app is language neutral and allows you to get answers on text, or video format and also attach documents. Since its launch, senior RTI activists including former commissioners have generously answered over 880 questions on the app making it an excellent repository of RTI information. Do use the app and help others benefit from this important tool. |
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| Join Moneylife Foundation |
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| Do encourage your network to learn and benefit from Moneylife Foundation's free Membership and our helplines by sharing this message. |
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| I also want to draw your attention to our 'how to..' series on a range of issues such as – succession (How To Handle Inheritance Issues on the Death of a Parent/ Spouse?), filing consumer complaints for online shopping (Cheated while shopping online? Here's How To Get Your Money Back), obtaining a legal heir certificate (How to obtain a legal heir certificate?) or registering a complaint with your bank (How To Register a Complaint against Your Bank with the Banking Ombudsman) etc. |
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| Do watch our series of financial literacy videos, to keep your savings safe and learn how to save for the future. |
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| Counseling on Helplines & Zoom Meetings |
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| Our counseling sessions on various issues remain online (Legal & Credit Helplines) until full normalcy is restored, we also have Zoom counseling meetings for members when necessary. If you have a query on housing society, insurance, banking, credit or any other issue, please do become a member of Moneylife Foundation and take advantage of the knowledge imparted by our experts who guide through our helplines. |
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| Forthcoming Webinars: |
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| Register and become a member of Moneylife Foundation, to be added on to our mailing lists, so that you are notified when we announce new webinars and also receive information about our activities and initiatives. Also, allow me to also remind you that you can always catch up on our past financial literacy programmes on our YouTube channel as well. As always, we look forward to your active feedback on issues that you would like us to discuss, and we will do our best to make it happen. Please do write to us at [email protected] |
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| Programmes in November |
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| This month we had the pleasure of hosting former Chief Information Commissioner, Shri Satyananda Mishra for our 7th 'Conversations on RTI with Shailesh Gandhi' session. This time the conversation revolved on the evolution and impact of the RTI Act since its enactment and whether transparency has flourished under RTI. You can read more about this session here and also watch a video recording on our YouTube channel here. |
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| We also has the pleasure of having Dr Pratap Bhanu Mehta for our 4th Annual RTI lecutre, where he spoke on The Collapse of Civil Society – Reflections on Democracy and the Public Sphere. The lecture was followed by a spirited discussion with social activist Nikhil Dey and Prof Ritu Dewan, who shared their thoughts on the topic. While we are uploading the transcript of the lecture to our website soon, do watch the video on our YouTube channel and read about it here. |
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| Moneylife TV & Helplines |
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| With the outbreak of Covid, our physical events and daily clinics for this month continue to remain suspended for the safety and benefit of all those involved. However, in this lockdown period you can still take advantage of our numerous videos of past seminars and workshops which are always available on our YouTube Channel – Moneylife TV and Moneylife News Bites. |
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| Although counselling on various issues from our experts is not possible in-person, you are welcome to email on [email protected] with your details. We shall forward your mail to the expert for guidance and do our best to get your query resolved. |
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| You also have the option of posting your query on either our Legal Helpline or Credit Helpline. |
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| Also, Moneylife Foundation is now on Telegram and Instagram, so do follow us on these channels to stay updated on our activities and events. |
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| Best regards, |
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| Sucheta Dalal |
| Founder-Trustee, Moneylife Foundation |
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| Trustees: TS Krishnamurthy, Walter Vieira, Sucheta Dalal, Debashis Basu. | | | | Moneylife Foundation is registered with the Charity Commissioner of Mumbai, is an Affiliate member of OECD's International Network on Financial Education, is a Supporter Member of Consumers International, Development Partner of Advocates for International Development (A4ID), and is a winner of the 10th MR Pai Memorial Award. | | |  | | | | Donations are eligible for tax benefits under Sec 80G of the Income Tax 1961 (50% tax exemption) and MLF is registered under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010. 80(G) Reg No: DIT(E)/MC/80G/685/2010-11 dated 7.2.11 effective 8.+9.2010 | FCRA Registration No: 08378138  | | | |
