I was invited by Allan Jagger who is the current President of Rotary Great Britain and Ireland to be the Keynote speaker at their annual conference which was held in Blackpool during the weekend of April 11th-13th 2008. It was the first time I delivered a speech to a full capacity audience of a few thousand plus at Blackpool Winter Gardens main hall. I had the pleasure of meeting Rotary International President Mr Wilf Wilkinson who told me had looking forward to meeting for a few weeks since he heard that I would be speaking after him. My full speech can be viewed by following this link.
Freedom in the Air – A Polio Survivor’s Tale
A slide show to go with this speech can be viewed by clicking this link – Gautam Rotary Speech Slide show
I am a survivor.
A polio survivor.
My life with polio started when I was a small boy in India aged about 18months, of the poor, industrial twin city of Kolkata, Howrah I was born in 1977, although there is no official record of my birth, I survived polio – at a time and place when 1 in 5 children were dying of the virus.
The poliovirus is 5,000 years old. It is an infectious disease caused by one of three polio viruses, Type One being the most dangerous as it attacks the body quickly.
The virus enters the body through the nose or mouth and infection starts in the gut. If the virus reaches the central nervous system, it can cause muscle paralysis affecting any part of the body. For me, I have limited lower limb mobility. Polio can result in death or permanent disability. Out of the 3 strains, the 2nd strain has been eradicated and since the late 90’s only 2 strains are left. .
Today, I have no memory of my birth mother or father or of anyone in my original family. Possibly because I had caught polio and was paralysed, possibly because there was no money, my mother or father or indeed my grandmother were unable to look after me properly and took me to Mother Theresa’s orphanage. It must have taken a lot of courage and mental strain to do that for me.
I spent two years living in the orphanage with Mother Teresa. My memories from that period are dark, sad, and lonely. I stopped talking for 6 months when I learnt that no one was coming to get me. Someone eventually did turn up and take me out of the Missionaries of Charity to the RCFC – the Rehabilitation Centres For Children where I would undergo 2 years of corrective surgery to give me a chance to be independent.
RCFC was established by some amazing people due to the inspiration and back-breaking work of a British nurse, Jane Webb OBE. Jane died a few years back, shortly after fulfilling her dream of becoming an Indian citizen.
RCFC is her legacy to the world and I owe so much to her, her vision and all the doctors, physiotherapists, teachers, calliper makers, surgeons, fundraisers, administrators and volunteers who have given their time either for free or for a pittance to RCFC.
My rescuer was Patricia, – or as I knew her then “Tricia-dee” – big sister Tricia – who, after completing her University studies spent time in Kolkata working with children with disabilities. Ever since Patricia was a child, she had dreamt of going to Kolkata specifically, and when she did she says that it felt like going home. Little did she know, she would meet me and we would create a strong bond. That bond was so strong that Patricia decided to adopt me. I think the last thing she imagined she would be doing at the age of 27 was to adopt a 7 year old, from Kolkata with Polio. Where I left the ghost of my birth mother, a new mother was found and my life turned upside down from that point on.
Because of Polio, destiny lead me to meet Patricia and to a new life in Auckland, New Zealand. One day I was in an orphanage in India, the next day, I was on a beach eating chocolate gelato.
This was the first time that I had a sense of belonging. I was given a passport and a birth certificate (in that order), I started to learn about families, how to live in a family, how make new friends from completely different backgrounds.
I left New Zealand after one year and came to London where I would meet my grandparents and the rest of my new family. I went from speaking Bengali to speaking English with a strong Kiwi accent. I was determined to lose my Bengali in order to show people that I was a pukka Kiwi /Britisher – these are ways to survive in a new world.
Schooling began in Auckland, and then on to Hill House in London, followed by Bedales in Petersfield, a stark contrast for the boy who had once boarded with, and was one of, India’s poorest children.
I felt very at home at my boarding school, perhaps because I was used to living with lots of friends of similar ages away from “home”
I read International Business Studies at Southampton Institute, which was followed by the opening of Level One, my nightclub in Southampton’s Ocean Village. During this period I became heavily involved in the music side of the business, a factor that would influence my subsequent work in the music industry.
I spent 6 years working in the British Music industry at Creation Management with Alan McGee who was the driving force behind Oasis.
Creation became highly successful and I was able to experience the roller-coaster ‘bona fide’ rock-and-roll lifestyle. I undertook the full management of some famous bands, sorting out tours, recordings and contracts – and anything else that needed sorting such as bailing out from jail.
One of my strongest memories from the roof of Mother Teresa orphanage is kite flying and in looking up at the sky, I also saw the contrails left by jet planes. I Ionged to be on one, to feel the freedom of flying in the air, no post-polio paralysis to hold me back. I shall also never forget the day I first saw an aeroplane and then flew in one as I left Kolkata.
I have always wanted to be a pilot and I qualified in September 2007 after only 6 months training. This dream of mine was made real.
During my pilot training days, I felt alive and felt a sense of freedom, of being liberated. I started to have new dreams and visualise my future where I wanted to help change peoples lives, if not try and change the world.
I knew very little about Polio. I had overcome polio and worked very hard to be fit and active but above all be independent. No one is truly that independent. We all need help in some shape or form from those around us. I started to find out more about Mother Teresa and looked at ways in which I can help charities and good causes.
After reading my blog “freedom-in-the-air” which is about learning to fly, Vivian Fiore from Rotary International’s office in Chicago found me and gave me the leadership that I was looking for in polio eradication, I was turning my energies towards new pastures. Using my skills, contacts and drive instilled from the music industry, I volunteered to support Rotary International’s campaign to eradicate Polio from India.
I was invited to go to India and take part in a National Immunization Day with Rotarians. This was going to be very special for me. Before leaving for India, I did as much research as possible as to what I should expect. For 20 years so many people have worked tirelessly behind the scenes to develop the immunization campaign.
I arrived in Delhi, which was covered by dense fog last November. I did not know what to expect, I was on my own and nothing I had researched prepared me for what came next. My first few days were spent with the Rotary Polio Plus team, giving press conferences to help raise new media coverage for the campaign and visiting disadvantaged children who were given education through Rotarians.
I would spend the remaining time I had in India in Moradabad. This is where I then took part in the eradication programme in Moradabad in Utter Pradesh, both on the static booth day and the house-to-house day.
I met with UNICEF, WHO, and the local government. It was completely overwhelming to understand the amazing work of the partner organizations. UNICEF who are experts at working with children, mobilise the foot soldiers. UNICEF also buys the vaccines, which WHO authorise. WHO, are amazing when it comes to global public health programmes. They have great strategies and an accurate surveillance system to track each polio case almost as immediately as they occur. I was privileged to have been invited to Geneva recently to sit in on WHO weekly polio meeting. I was in awe of how brilliantly they work and think. The UN, with it’s specialized agencies is a fantastic organization – not perfect of course – but fantastic. Things would be much worse without the UN, WHO, UNICEF and of course Rotary International.
India still has major polio epidemics. Sanitary conditions are poor, knowledge of polio and its treatment are not well known and many people receive inadequate care.
If you asked someone 20 years ago if Polio will be eradicated, they would have laughed at you. In the 1980s, global health organizations were looking for ways to improve childhood immunizations worldwide. At the same time, many Rotary members saw the devastating consequences of polio in their own countries, and wanted to protect children from this preventable disease.
Together, these two forces sparked Rotary’s PolioPlus program.
This is an exciting yet challenging time. Rotary and its partners have slashed polio cases by 99% worldwide.
Rotary’s top philanthropic goal is to eradicate polio worldwide.
• Since 1985, Rotary members have donated their time and money to help immunize more than 2 billion children in 122 countries.
The world must remain committed in order to achieve a polio-free world.
• If we don’t stay the course, experts say polio could rebound to 10 million cases in the next 40 years, and would negate the world’s 6 billion dollar global investment in the initiative.
• Independent health experts have set milestones and significant progress is being made.
Rotary is committed to fighting polio until every child is safe from this devastating disease.
Having spent a week in India assisting Rotary International with the campaign to eradicate polio, I now, naturally, have a wider perspective of the world’s priorities. There are so many more constructive things that could be achieved if we harnessed our collective energy towards working to promote human quality of life. So many pointless conflicts that exists in the world.
And think of the millions in the world who do not have basic health, education, sanitation, and peace and suffer from hunger and disease. We are so, so lucky here. I wonder how many of us will ever truly understand and appreciate that.
“Service above self”
What I saw of India through the work with Rotary allowed me to feel proud of being Indian as well as being British. So many people have worked on polio eradication for over 20 years. I have only been learning about the work for 6 months. I have so much more to learn so that I can do so much more. I was very proud to have had the chance to help Rotary in their vision for a polio free world.
While in India, I was very happy to get news that the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Rotary International will contribute US$200 million to polio eradication. This is a challenge grant. Rotary is committed to matching the Gates Foundation’s donation of $100 million: This endorsement, I hope, will be the catalyst for others to contribute further funds.
I wish to help in the fundraising process.
Rotarians all over the world are important to this fundraising activity. For 2008 there is a funding gap of $175 million. For 2009, there is $350 million gap in the funding.
Donor nations such as the G8 need to stand by their commitment to fund parts of the campaign. The EU recently donated £25 million Euros towards Immunization days in Nigeria. To date, of the $6 billion spent, 15% has come from Multilateral Sector, 48% from the G8, 22% from non G8 countries, and 15% from the private sector, of which Rotarians have donated close to $700 million dollars.
As a result of Rotary’s efforts, many will go on to live happy and productive lives, having been spared the cruel, lifelong consequences of polio that I know so well. To think that I may have saved some lives and prevented some people living with post-polio paralysis through my vaccinations that day makes me very proud.
You can do no great things but only small things with great love was something that Mother Teresa once said.
Polio eradication will be achieved. I believe this with all my heart.
It is important for me to help change peoples lives, especially in developing countries where people living with disabilities have little support. Maybe my destiny is to help eradicate polio. Maybe that is also your destiny too, through your generosity with your time and contributions.
Yes it is possible to immunize every child in high population or even in conflict afflicted countries.
Just last month, WHO announced that Somalia is again polio-free, calling it a ‘historic achievement’ in public health. Against a backdrop of widespread conflict, transmission of poliovirus in the country has been successfully stopped.
Two hundred and ten countries, territories and areas are now polio-free (including China), and 134 of these, which contain half the world’s population, have been certified polio-free by independent commissions.
This proves that it is possible to immunize enough children through polio campaigns to stop transmission of the poliovirus anywhere.
Though great progress has been made toward ending polio, the last steps remain the most challenging. Rotary will remain focused on eliminating polio worldwide until the certification of eradication is achieved.
This is why I want to focus my energy, my determination, and my passion, to help fight polio in the final chapter of the disease.
I have a deep understanding of how important voluntary organizations are in the world today. I have had great opportunities in my life, I believe that my calling in life is to help others less fortunate and celebrate in the spirit that the Sky’s the limit.
I wish to thank all Rotarians on behalf of the children whose lives have been saved and whose will be saved because of your service above self.
In order to end, I want to leave you with a quote from my fellow Bengali and winner of the Nobel Prize for literature, Rabindranath Tagore, who clearly should have been a Rotarian
“I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy. “
THANK YOU ROTARIANS
A slide show to go with this speech can be viewed by clicking this link – Gautam Rotary Speech Slide show
