--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I was giving a lecture in India, the…" description: "\"When I was giving a lecture in India, the capabilities that I have to be concerned with there, namely the ability of people to go to a school, to be li..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f8/amartya-sen-2518_ability_when-i-was-giving-a-lecture-in-india-the_2819287.jpg" --- # When I was giving a lecture in India, the capabilities… ![“When I was giving a lecture in India, the capabilities that I have to be concerned with there, namely the ability of people to go to a school, to be literate, to be able to have a basic health care everywhere, to be able to seek some kind of medical response to one's ailment; these become central…” quote by Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f8/amartya-sen-2518_ability_when-i-was-giving-a-lecture-in-india-the_2819287.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f8/amartya-sen-2518_ability_when-i-was-giving-a-lecture-in-india-the_2819287.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f8/amartya-sen-2518_ability_when-i-was-giving-a-lecture-in-india-the_2819287.jpg) > “When I was giving a lecture in India, the capabilities that I have to be concerned with there, namely the ability of people to go to a school, to be literate, to be able to have a basic health care everywhere, to be able to seek some kind of medical response to one's ailment; these become central issues in the Indian context which they're not in the UK, because you're well beyond that.” [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Basic education, literacy, and healthcare are primary concerns in developing contexts, unlike in wealthier nations. **In simple terms:** Fundamental needs differ by country. Key Takeaway Focus on improving basic services first. Themes development education healthcare Mood concerned hopeful Type social political When to use this quote - rural schools - public health initiatives - government planning Key Concepts human development policy priorities Questions to Reflect On - What policies can bridge these gaps? - How can individuals contribute? A Different Perspective Addressing these issues requires substantial resources and political will. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability/) [Ailments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ailments/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Health](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/health/) [Health care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/health-care/) [India](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/india/) [Indian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indian/) [Issues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/issues/) [Lectures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lectures/) [Medical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medical/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) ## Related quotes > [The Indian context is unique. The market is very large, and I believe there is enough room for many players to innovate on different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bhavish-aggarwal/the-indian-context-is-unique-the-market-is-very-large-and-i-believe/) [Bhavish Aggarwal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bhavish-aggarwal/) > [Reliance's success is a reflection of India's capabilities, the talent of her people and the potential of her entrepreneurs, engineers, managers, and workers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dhirubhai-ambani/reliance-s-success-is-a-reflection-of-india-s-capabilities-the-talent/) [Dhirubhai Ambani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dhirubhai-ambani/) > [When the mind is free of fear, guilt, anger and is more centered, then it holds the power to heal any ailment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/when-the-mind-is-free-of-fear-guilt-anger-and-is-more-centered-then/) [Sri Sri Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/) > [He who thinks that macrobiotic living is merely a cure for physical ailments, however, can never really be helped. It is not a new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-ohsawa/he-who-thinks-that-macrobiotic-living-is-merely-a-cure-for-physical/) [George Ohsawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-ohsawa/) > [Stage fright, like epilepsy, is a divine ailment, a sacred madness... It is a grace that is sufficient in the old Jesuit sense -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-rosen/stage-fright-like-epilepsy-is-a-divine-ailment-a-sacred-madness-it-is/) [Charles Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-rosen/) > [Because of poor posture, practically 95% of our population suffers from varying degrees of spinal curvature, not to mention more serious ailments. Good posture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pilates/because-of-poor-posture-practically-95-of-our-population-suffers-from/) [Joseph Pilates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pilates/) > [I only get unusual ailments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-kimmel/i-only-get-unusual-ailments/) [Jimmy Kimmel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-kimmel/) > [... we will hope that future historians will explain the morbid symptoms of present-day society as the childhood ailments of an aspiring humanity, due…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/we-will-hope-that-future-historians-will-explain-the-morbid-symptoms/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [As a physician I have sympathy for patients suffering from pain and other medical conditions. Although I understand many believe marijuana is the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-frist/as-a-physician-i-have-sympathy-for-patients-suffering-from-pain-and/) [Bill Frist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-frist/) > [Cats are rather delicate creatures and they are subject to a good many ailments, but I never heard of one who suffered from insomnia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-wood-krutch/cats-are-rather-delicate-creatures-and-they-are-subject-to-a-good-2/) [Joseph Wood Krutch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-wood-krutch/) > [Keep your mind as much as you can from dwelling on your ailment. Think of strength and power and you will draw it to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prentice-mulford/keep-your-mind-as-much-as-you-can-from-dwelling-on-your-ailment-think/) [Prentice Mulford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prentice-mulford/) > [Just a little sheep dip. Panacea for all stomach ailments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/just-a-little-sheep-dip-panacea-for-all-stomach-ailments/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [Pranayam is the right science of breathing where deep, regulated and rhythmic breathing is done along with mental purification. Its practice plays an important…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virchand-gandhi/pranayam-is-the-right-science-of-breathing-where-deep-regulated-and/) [Virchand Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virchand-gandhi/) > [You can trace every sickness, every disease and every ailment to a mineral deficiency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linus-pauling/you-can-trace-every-sickness-every-disease-and-every-ailment-to-a/) [Linus Pauling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linus-pauling/) > [There never was a tonic that would cure more social ailments than a healthy, happy home. There never was a greater source of social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-l-evans/there-never-was-a-tonic-that-would-cure-more-social-ailments-than-a/) [Richard L. Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-l-evans/) ## More by Amartya Sen > [Capability is just a concept of what is it we're looking at. Now how far we can go along that and what new capabilities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/capability-is-just-a-concept-of-what-is-it-we-re-looking-at-now-how/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [Human life consists of doing certain things ... to take part in the life of the community; to be able to talk about subjects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/human-life-consists-of-doing-certain-things-to-take-part-in-the-life/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [“Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high; Where knowledge is free; Where the world has not been broken up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/where-the-mind-is-without-fear-and-the-head-is-held-high-where/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [Violence is fomented by the imposition of singular and belligerent identities on gullible people, championed by proficient artisans of terror.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/violence-is-fomented-by-the-imposition-of-singular-and-belligerent/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [I think the whole progress over the last two or three millennia has been entirely dependent on ideas and techniques and commodities and people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/i-think-the-whole-progress-over-the-last-two-or-three-millennia-has/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [No famine has ever taken place in the history of the world in a functioning democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/no-famine-has-ever-taken-place-in-the-history-of-the-world-in-a/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [To say that certainly America was very lucky to get a large amount of land, and the native Indians were extremely unlucky to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/to-say-that-certainly-america-was-very-lucky-to-get-a-large-amount-of/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [The lack of economic freedom could be a very major reason for loss of liberty, liberty of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/the-lack-of-economic-freedom-could-be-a-very-major-reason-for-loss-of/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [We need to ask the moral questions: Do I have a right to be rich? And do I have a right to be content…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/we-need-to-ask-the-moral-questions-do-i-have-a-right-to-be-rich-and/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [“He wrote extensively on how schools should be made more attractive to boys and girls and thus more productive. His own co-educational school at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/he-wrote-extensively-on-how-schools-should-be-made-more-attractive-to/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [One has to be realistic. One’s concern for equity and justice in the world must not carry one into the alien territory of unreasoned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/one-has-to-be-realistic-one-s-concern-for-equity-and-justice-in-the/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [While I am interested both in economics and in philosophy, the union of my interests in the two fields far exceeds their intersection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/while-i-am-interested-both-in-economics-and-in-philosophy-the-union/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [I was born in a University campus and seem to have lived all my life in one campus or another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/i-was-born-in-a-university-campus-and-seem-to-have-lived-all-my-life/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [If jobs are important, education is important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/if-jobs-are-important-education-is-important/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [Thailand's economic development was driven by educational expansion. That has been a very dramatic factor, and South Asia had been pretty miserable in not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/thailand-s-economic-development-was-driven-by-educational-expansion/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) [Explore all 162 Amartya Sen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) ## More Ability quotes > [I don't think there's a direct correlation between my sexuality and my skiing ability. But I think because I was so concerned about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-kenworthy/i-don-t-think-there-s-a-direct-correlation-between-my-sexuality-and/) [Gus Kenworthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-kenworthy/) > [“the importance of ability. The things that make a great job great, I discovered, are rare and valuable. If you want them in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/the-importance-of-ability-the-things-that-make-a-great-job-great-i/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/) [Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/) > [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [Maybe law enforcement would like the ability to turn on the camera on your Mac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/maybe-law-enforcement-would-like-the-ability-to-turn-on-the-camera-on/) [Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/) > [I've seen guys come along with more ability - they've been faster or bigger or stronger - but they never worked hard to develop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-largent/i-ve-seen-guys-come-along-with-more-ability-they-ve-been-faster-or/) [Steve Largent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-largent/) > [The youth of India has the strength to move the entire World with a click of a mouse, we have generated that ability!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/the-youth-of-india-has-the-strength-to-move-the-entire-world-with-a/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [An absolutely necessary part of a writer's equipment, almost as necessary as talent, is the ability to stand up under punishment, both the punishment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irwin-shaw/an-absolutely-necessary-part-of-a-writer-s-equipment-almost-as/) [Irwin Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irwin-shaw/) > [I'd be more frightened by not using whatever abilities I'd been given. I'd be more frightened by procrastination and laziness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denzel-washington/i-d-be-more-frightened-by-not-using-whatever-abilities-i-d-been-given/) [Denzel Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denzel-washington/) > [Bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. Take what I cannot give: my heart, body, thoughts, time, abilities, money, health, strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-prentiss/bring-into-captivity-every-thought-to-the-obedience-of-christ-take/) [Elizabeth Prentiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-prentiss/) > [You can only do the work to the very best of your ability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-baranski/you-can-only-do-the-work-to-the-very-best-of-your-ability/) [Christine Baranski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-baranski/) > [Judge a person not by his ability to make money but by his ability to retain it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/judge-a-person-not-by-his-ability-to-make-money-but-by-his-ability-to/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [Balance is the ability to be happy in the midst of the most chaotic or even boring or transient circumstance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/balance-is-the-ability-to-be-happy-in-the-midst-of-the-most-chaotic/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Bobby had faith in my ability as a singer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-london/bobby-had-faith-in-my-ability-as-a-singer/) [Julie London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-london/) [Browse all 9,990 Ability quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When I was giving a lecture in India, the capabilities that I have to be concerned with there, namely the ability of people to go to a school, to be literate, to be able to have a basic health care everywhere, to be able to seek some kind of medical response to one's ailment; these become central issues in the Indian context which they're not in the UK, because you're well beyond that.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Amartya Sen" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/when-i-was-giving-a-lecture-in-india-the-capabilities-that-i-have-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ability" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/when-i-was-giving-a-lecture-in-india-the-capabilities-that-i-have-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f8/amartya-sen-2518_ability_when-i-was-giving-a-lecture-in-india-the_2819287.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f8/amartya-sen-2518_ability_when-i-was-giving-a-lecture-in-india-the_2819287.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f8/amartya-sen-2518_ability_when-i-was-giving-a-lecture-in-india-the_2819287.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When I was giving a lecture in India, the capabilities that I have to be concerned with there, namely the…” — Amartya Sen", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Amartya Sen", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When I was giving a lecture...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/when-i-was-giving-a-lecture-in-india-the-capabilities-that-i-have-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/when-i-was-giving-a-lecture-in-india-the-capabilities-that-i-have-to/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```