We need to restore balance, says Rajiv Gandhi Foundation CEO Vijay Mahajan

If you read the Constitution of India, it makes a large number of social statements but the instruments available to achieve these goals are only through the state

Vijay Mahajan, the father of micro finance in India, former chairman of BASIX and now CEO of Rajiv Gandhi Foundation, speaks to Anjuli Bhargava, on the role of civil society and social action as an agent of change at a time when the state and market are failing to deliver a more equitable society. Excerpts from the interview:

What prompted you to write a paper on the state of social action in India?

Many people, including those who work in the social sector, don’t have enough historical view of where we are. One thing that strikes you, as you chronicle it, is