Generation Y of rural Sri Lanka

This is the story of six young men and women. All are in their twenties. Not all have met each other, but they have many things in common. All are from rural areas, and with agricultural backgrounds. Their parents were not rich – not a fact they want to hide. None of them studied in a city - not even for few years - or had any university education. In a nut shell, these six largely missed what city boys and girls had for granted, a carefree childhood, good education and unrestricted access to books and libraries. 

They do not complain. They have challenged life and won against all odds- riding the Internet wave with intelligence and determination. They have proved themselves. Instead of waiting the government to teach, they have learnt themselves. Busted the dream of government jobs they have found ways of standing on their feet. An uneasy start has not prevented them standing shoulder to shoulder with their city peers. Having put aside the past, they dream about future.

To paraphrase Erich Segal, they do not know they are a generation.

Radhika

 

Like many of my friends, I first met Radhika on cyberspace – but she was not the typical netizen. I was elated to receive her first email, for I knew this eleven year old, then a Grade 4 student, had to travel 40 km to use Internet at a cybercafé at Anuradhapura. Her village, surrounded three sides by the Vilpattu jungle then did not even have a telephone, let alone Internet. Radhika’s parents were farmers. Her place near ‘Mannaram Handiya’ of Mahavilachchiya, was not too far from the last police post of the civilized world – go 10 km North and you will be in no-man’s-land. Last year four innocent farmers were killed by fleeing tigers within one km from her home.

Today Radhika works as a graphic and web designer for a firm in Colombo. She sat General Certificate of Education -Advanced Level (GCE - A/L) – equivalent to plus 2 - once, obtained 2As for Buddhist civilization and Sinhala, a B for English and a C for Political Science. (A = Distinction, B = Very Good pass; C = Credit) Authorities ruled out university admission. She does not care. Why should she? She is skilled, determined and has a future. An outdated, non-career-focused university education could add little to her career.

“I first learnt web design when I was in Grade 4, and was very keen to learn.” She writes in her blog. “When someone asked me what I would like to do in the future I would always answer, ‘I want to be a Web Designer’. That was one of my greatest dreams. Today my dream has come true. I am truly happy to have achieved my goal!”

Srikanth
 
Conventional Center, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Srikanth sits in front of a video camera. I offer to interpret. “No, I can speak in English” he smiles and continues confidently:
“My name is Srikanth. I am from Koslanda, a remote village in the less developed Uva province in Sri Lanka. I run a Rural Knowledge Centre and provide IT services to villagers who have never seen a computer till 2005. Even I have not seen a PC just few years ago but today I run a Business Process Outsourcing work for a New Delhi based firm. My work has been appreciated by Jamshetji Tata National Virtual Academy, which honoured me by recognising me as a Fellow.”

While teaching him basic computer networking about four years ago, I noticed Srikanth and his younger brother Chandrakanth need the help of fellow students to even to sit or stand from the chair. Both, and their sister too, were born with the same congenital condition –dwarfism, they are unusually short and suffer from debilitating bone conditions that hinder normal mobility and dexterity. Today he knows, unlike humans, computers do not discriminate.
Srikanth is passionate about taking ICT to villages. He gets disturbed when the web site of Ministry of Education does not release Ordinary Level results in time. Many young students are waiting at his knowledge center. He gets indignant when ministry official asks him to direct students to schools to collect result. “Why do you make commitments you cannot make? Is this how you keep the promise of taking ICT to villages?” he yells. I feel relieved. Here is another rebel to take the baton forward.

Ruvini
 
Ruvini at 20, has already achieved a lot. How many journalists could boast interviewing Dr. Craig Barrette, Chairman Intel Inc and Lalith Weeratunga, Secretary to the President of Sri Lanka?

Ten years ago, Ruvini had not seen a PC or even a telephone, for that matter. She was part of the team, under the guidance of their English teacher, who compiled a handwritten English magazine. Having seen a photocopy of this magazine, US Embassy donated them a used 486 PC and a printer. That was what they used to create their first web site. She has come a long way since then.

A seasoned blogger now, Ruvini discusses the Woman’s place in Buddhist Society in her blog:

“In the Brahmin society women always had a subordinate place. Men enjoyed more privileges than women, who had been deprived of some of their rights. They were exposed to a great deal of physical and mental torture. They could not learn and follow a religion as visiting religious places were forbidden. A Sanskrit stanza summarises their fate:
“Baleyya pithur vase nishteth -Panigrahasya yavvane
Puthranan bhartheera prethe -Nabhajesthri vethanthranam”

A woman should live under her father’s protection during her childhood; after marriage husband’s and then under the protection of her sons. If she has no sons, she was expected to jump into her husband’s funeral pier.”

She is happy that times have changed. Ruvini stands alone on her feet today – without expecting anybody’s protection. Missing the opportunity to study in a popular school in Colombo has not prevented her from obtaining an ‘A’ pass for English at GCE O/Ls or not or not having a university education from becoming a skilled software programmer.

Kumara
 
Thanks to Kumara, a poor blind lady - mother of four - has a roof above her head. Thanks to him, the school he teaches at also has a computer lab. He is not a billionaire philanthropist. He also does not get anything more from government than thousands of other teachers at the same level. Yet he knows how to move things by bringing right people together with the use of right tools.

Hailing from Pitamaruva, a virtually unheard remote area in Uva province, Sri Lanka, he selected teaching after authorities decided his 2As and 2Bs in commerce stream at GCE (A/L) were not adequate to enter any university in Sri Lanka. 

Two years ago Ministry of Education has given Kumara a target. Build ICT capacity in the village. He was given basic technical guidance, but no budget. Kumara only smiles when I ask how he found money to build the sophisticated computer center. “When you want something so badly, it will eventually come to you” he says.

Kumara is an amateur photographer and a blogger too. In one attempt of photo blogging he found the blind widow and family living in a temporary hut of 3 x 3 x 2 m (See the photo) that could hardly be a human habitat. Instead of offering petty cash, he interviewed the lady and uploaded the video to YouTube. Moved by that, an expatriate online community offered to build a new home for her for USD 5k. Kumara coordinated the entire affair. Within one year the poor family has a house. Four children of the blind lady, whose education was disturbed after their father’s demise, have returned to school. They no more beg for food. Strange what the determination of a young man can do.

I should not boast too much. Fifty frequently updated students’ blogs, from this remote village school tells enough about Kumara.

Danesh
 
When he wants to shut down the PC, like the rest of us, Danesh does not click the mouse. Computer recognises his voice and obeys. This is one of the many programmes written by this 22 year old Artificial Intelligence buff who sees no reason why he should use his PC the same old manner. His next aim is to bring his virtual assistant Trinity – that pretty girl who speaks to him – out of the computer to the real world as a hologram.

Danesh does not have much time for programming now as he runs a rural knowledge center too. This is no small task. His is not an ordinary telecenter. He provides more than hundred services to the villagers in the tiny hamlet of Mangedara – near Thulhiriya. His computer is like a one stop bank, post office, communication center, bill payment center and an information kiosk for hundreds. Need to pay an electricity bill? Don’t go to a bank (by the time it is credited in 2 months your connection will be terminated) or worse the post office (it takes six months). Danesh settles electricity bills within seconds. His payment system that piggybacks on an Internet Banking system of a well known bank can do many more – including paying telephone bills (any operator), water bills, e channeling etc.

Necessity is the mother of all innovations. Danesh’s creativity takes the bottlenecks as challenges. To avoid getting phone calls at midnight he has automated the process and invented perhaps the only fully automatic payment system in Sri Lanka. The user just has to send an SMS with the amount to a twelve digit number. His PC captures the SMS, logs to Internet Banking site and does the transaction with no human involvement. I can only envy the Mangedara villagers for enjoying the luxury of such services, which I do not.

Isuru
 
Twenty one year old Isuru is beaming with pride when he shows anybody his ‘Aston Martin’. Well, it has only two wheels, but it did not come as a present from parents.  They could not afford. His father does odd jobs in agriculture sector and mother is a housewife (read not employed). Isuru is proud that apart from paying the lease of the motor bike, his earnings also support younger brother’s education. He is hard working. Never wants to waste a minute even on online chatting. ‘Sorry, Chanuka…” he often reminds me, “…I am busy. Let us chat later” I understand. He has a target. His aim is to achieve 200%.
Isuru too sat for A/Ls once, and obtained a pass for one subject. He never wanted a retry as his goals were far higher.  His current job? Director, On Time Technologies, a rural BPO. Isuru, with his CEO, just few years older, leads a team of 15 operators who digitize accounting work for a top 10 companies in Sri Lanka. He guides, trains and supervises them. Also plays the operator when somebody is absent.

Most university graduates may not, but Isuru has the key to enter the world of Colombo private sector too, any time he wishes. He is an expert in PC assembling and networking; speaks and writes good English and has the correct attitude. Classmates of his dad might not sit in any director board, but Isuru finds no difficulty in getting good references. He has already declined several job offers. He sees no reason to leave village. Not because he is emotionally attached, but why leave when he can easily built his career there itself?

Each of these six young men and women is unique but they are not alone. They represent the emerging Y generation of rural Lanka – that exists in every nook and corner of the island, oblivious to many of us. Having rejected by the traditional university education system, that creates more scum than cream, their minds are not corrupted with obsolete political ideologies - the bane of developing societies. Their outlook is positive. They are determined to change – themselves and the world.