Mathew Cherian's Journey From Engineering To Caring For India's Elderly
January 31, 2024
A Global Indian Times Interview
By Cherian Samuel*
Mathew Cherian has spent decades trying to tackle the health, economic and social problems of the elderly in India. He is the Board Chair of CARE India. From 2002 to 2020, he was the chief executive of HelpAge India.
From 1987 to 1994, he served as director of Oxfam India, the local arm of the British charity. Earlier, he worked for farmers’ milk cooperatives in Gujarat, which were associated with the National Dairy Development Board.
Mathew, aged 66, started his career working for U.S. energy services company Schlumberger on oil rigs, in an offshore area near Mumbai known as Bombay High.
I first met Mathew in 1976 when I joined the Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS), Pilani, India. We were both Christians from Kerala, me with a strong Malayali accent, which he did not have since he grew up in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. We lived in the same student residence hall, Krishna Bhavan.
Mathew, a year senior to me, earned a B.E. in civil engineering, 1980, while I earned a degree in economics. In 1982, he was in the first class of students to graduate from the Institute of Rural Management, (IRMA), Anand, India.
Mathew is the author of two books: A Million Missions, (2014) and Ageing and Poverty in India (2020). His third book, Managing A Million Missions, (2024), released this month, is co-authored with Muthusami Kumaran.
In this conversation, Mathew chats about the issues of elder care, his career moves from an oil rig engineer to working for non-profits and his books.
Global Indian Times: Congratulations on your new book, Managing A Million Missions. How is it related to your previous book, A Million Missions?
Mathew Cherian: I wrote the first book (A Million Missions, 2014) since very few in India knew about the roots of the voluntary and non-profit missions in India. Major figures like Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Lala Lajpat Rai and Mahatma Gandhi ran volunteer groups which pushed for social reform in India. Similarly, Christian missionaries, notably Mother Teresa, sought to help and comfort the poor in India. Islamic organizations set up school and colleges. In fact, education was a big priority for many volunteer groups. In the book, I tried to trace all this history and relate it to the current needs for social change in India.
The focus of my new book (Managing A Million Missions) is on how to manage non-profit organisations – a guide for founders, managers, volunteers, and students.
GIT: What are the key challenges facing the elderly in India?
Mathew Cherian: The elderly face both income and social security problems. The old age pension paid by the government of India is of little help, being around Rs. 200 (less than $3) per month. In fact, nearly two-thirds of the 130 million elders in the country live in poverty. Most of them have no money to buy medications, let alone pay for private medical and hospital care.
Free health care and particularly geriatric care is not available in 600 of the country’s 806 districts. Also, in free district hospitals which offer geriatric care, there are few beds available for the elderly. The challenge is to provide geriatric health care and adequate pension payments to the rising elderly population, which will reach 170 million by 2026.
GIT: What is the situation in our home state of Kerala, given the migration patterns, demographic transitions, and the need for elder care?
Mathew Cherian: Kerala is the ageing capital of India, in part because the average life span in the state is among the highest in the country. Given the mass migration of young adults, to the Middle East or large cities in India in search of jobs, most towns and villages have very few care givers for the elderly. This is also true for most families, since the children and grandchildren have migrated.
The situation is worst in my home district of Patthanamthita. The need for elder and dementia care is immense. Some of the churches have started day care centres called pagalveedu. Also, Kudambashree, a large non-profit, is working on providing elder care, in collaboration with village panchayats, across Kerala.
GIT: You were working in rural development and with non-profits. Why did you take up the job of Chief Executive of HelpAge India?
Mathew Cherian: I worked at Oxfam India (the local branch of the British charity). Subsequently I founded Charities Aid Foundation to raise funds for development and other non-profit organizations in India.
In 2002, M.M. Sabharwal, Chairman of HelpAge India, asked me to take-over as the Chief Executive. I was surprised since I knew very little about the problems of the elderly. I asked my father. He said living in Kerala made him realize the importance of elder care work done by HelpAge and others. I followed my father’s advice and joined HelpAge as CEO.
GIT: Was it easy to switch from focusing on development to ageing?
Mathew Cherian: There was a lot of learning, including by traveling across India. In 2010, I was part of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s delegation visiting Japan. My role was to study how the Japanese deal with elder care and see if their techniques can be applied to India. Nearly a third of Japan’s population was over 65. Japan had numerous policies, including offering a range of elder care services, retirement living and long-term care insurance.
On my return to India, I tried implementing some of the Japanese policies in Kerala, especially at hospitals, community centres and palliative care centres. It was tough at the start since everything I tried to do was new to the policy makers and staff.
GIT: What is your role as the Global Ambassador for Ageing with HelpAge international?
Mathew Cherian: From 2008 to 2018, I served on the Board of HelpAge International which works in 72 countries. When I finished my term, I was appointed as a Global Ambassador. My role is to promote policies that help seniors and speak at various forums in South and South East Asia. I also represent the voice of older people at United Nations forums.
Institute of Rural Management, Anand, India
GIT: You trained as an engineer but switched to non-profit work. Why?
Mathew Cherian: While I was studying engineering at BITS (1975-1980) I volunteered with the National Social Service (NSS). Then, as a coordinator of the NSS, each week I organized a group of students to visit a village called Dhandhar, about five miles from the campus. The students and villagers built a primary school building and also a water tank in the village, using my expertise as an engineer.
I realized we students led a privileged life while the villagers were barely surviving, except for a few large farmers. I enjoyed meeting and chatting with the villagers.
Seeing poverty up close was a life changing experience for me, a teenager brought up in Chennai. So, I considered pursuing a career in development.
Then, while working as an engineer on an oil rig, based in Mumbai (1980-1981), I was constantly reminded of the poverty faced by most Indians when I passed by the slums in the city. This reinforced my desire to switch to a career in development.
GIT: Why did you choose to study at the Institute of Rural Management? What did you learn there?
Mathew Cherian: I was looking for a way to help me switch to working for non-profits and luckily IRMA was just starting. I applied and was among the first batch of students admitted. IRMA was founded by Verghese Kurien, a pioneer of the farmers’ milk co-operative movement in India. Kurien talked about his own career journey, which was inspiring to me and other students.
At IRMA, I learnt the basic steps in building up an institution, including farmers’ co-operatives. Also, how to market milk and other goods produced in the villages. Learning about financial management and organisational behaviour were helpful when I later ran HelpAge and other organisations.
GIT: How did the BITS experience shape you?
Mathew Cherian: Studying at BITS was the best experience of my life. I learned much about engineering from the teachers as well as fellow students.
I also studied comparative religion, learning about Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Zorastrianism, and my own faith Christianity.
We had guest lectures by Swami Chinmayananda. I was greatly influenced by his philosophy of all religions sharing the goal of common good. In my book, A Million Missions, I write about how various religions influence people, including in the non- profit world, towards the common goal of “compassion to all.”
And volunteering for social service, while on the campus, later led me to work for non-profits.
GIT: What kind of work did you do as an engineer and where?
Mathew Cherian: At BITS I had specialised in off shore foundations (geo-technical engineering). So, I worked for Schlumberger, helping build foundations for offshore installations for oil fields near Bombay. This was fascinating and tough work but quite mechanical. It was a short experience, which helped me compare my work as an engineer for a business to my interest in social, non-profit work.
GIT: What do you see as the major challenges for non-profit groups in India?
Mathew Cherian: The major challenge is the right-wing culture pervading India. There is encouragement and pressure to donate only to certain religious institutions and causes. Non-profits, especially smaller groups in rural areas, face big challenges in raising funds and finding workers and volunteers.
In addition, funding from foreign sources to charities in India have been stifled, in part by a complex maze of regulations.
GIT: What is the role of non-profits in India?
Mathew Cherian: Last year we compiled data on the contribution of the non-profit sector over 75 years, since India became independent in 1947. We found that the sector contributes approximately 2 % of the nation’s annual GDP. We have created lasting innovations that try to tackle major problems in education, health, jobs, ageing, and disability. The report revealed that it was the non-profits which brought attention of the policy makers, media, and politicians to issues like the right to information, the right to education and the right to a meal.
GIT: Do you see the Indian diaspora as a potential partner?
Mathew Cherian: The Indian diaspora does provide financial support to many non-profits in India. However, the foreign contribution regulation is so convoluted that they can only support about 15,000 out of three million non-profits. While it is easier for the diaspora to fund some religious organisations and causes, the regulations make it difficult for them to support most development projects.
GIT: Where did you grow up? What were your interests as a child? Did you play sports? What did you want to become?
Mathew Cherian: I grew up in Chennai and studied in Padma Seshadri School. I played cricket, field hockey and kabaddi. However, I was good at general knowledge quizzes and public speaking. I was part of the school team that won the Bournvita Quiz contest, Madras, in 1973. It was the highlight of my school education.
I had no major career or other ambitions. My dad wanted me to study engineering. So, I went and did it. I just followed my parents’ wishes.
GIT: What is your advice to young people in India considering a non-profit career?
Mathew Cherian: Such careers offer great potential to teach children, work on primary health care and in other areas, and improve the lives of less fortunate Indians, whether they are young or old. However, the experience will be tough at times. But persistence will pay off and you will be happy.
GIT: You are extremely busy, serving on several non-profit Boards, committees, and advisory positions. Do you find time to relax and have fun?
Mathew Cherian: I swim regularly and take long walks every day. Also, I find my work relaxing since I feel I contribute to a better society.
GIT: Looking back, would you have liked to do anything different about your education or career choices?
Mathew Cherian: No. I would not like to change anything. All my education contributed to my work and career. And my work helps me become a better person.
*Cherian Samuel, a writer based in suburban Washington DC, retired as an evaluator from the World Bank. He earned a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Maryland.
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