Travails of working for development

One of the things that bugs me about the attitude of development workers from other 'developed' countries is their constant bitching about India for numerous reasons starting from the dust, the incessant noise, the overwhelming pollution, the annoying beggars , the malnourished street dogs, unclean water , Delhi belly, people peeing on the roadside, corruption, eave-teasing, cows on the streets, traffic ....(and so goes the list). Now, if it were say, a business man on a trip to India who has had no experience of poverty and the problems it entails, and no compassion towards it and lands in India unaware and unprepared - then maybe I would understand his discomfort and hell, I would even offer him sympathy at his lack of adaptability to a condition called poverty that afflicts 1.1 billion people in the world , forcing them to live in less than 1$ per day.

But I cannot understand and refuse to humor people who 'work' in the development sector with the intention of alleviating that poverty and speak ill of the country that they decide to work in. I agree that living in India is not easy- it's hard for me as well even though I have been born and brought up in this country and know its ways.

Yet, there is a difference between acknowledging these problems at face value and just being outright condescending about it. You are not being true to your profession otherwise.