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Over the years, Rabial, who was born on 25th March 1950, has worked with complete dedication to empower the urban poor community in major cities of India since 1979 (starting with Dharavi in Mumbai). He was actively associated with several organisations such as the Christian Institute for the Study of Religion and Society(CISRS), the Asian Coalition for Housing Rights(ACHR), the Leaders and Organisations of Community Organisations in Asia (LOCOA), the People’s Responsible Organisation of United Dharavi (PROUD), the Institute for the Development of Education and Action(IDEA), the People’s Union for Development and Reconstruction (PUDAR), as well as Habitat International Coalition (HIC) for the past three decades.
In CIRS (founded in 1957), Rabial has played an important role in social movement all over the country involving women, tribal and minorities. It has a wide network involving hundreds of NGOs and CBOs with whom there is regular interaction in developing social movements and improving the living condition of the marginalised and backward sections of society. The Community Organizing programmes is the principal area of activity of CISRS and has been working for improving the living condition of the urban poor in different cities in India.
During this long period, Rabial was National Coordinator of the Shelter For the Homeless National Forum in India. His work included liaison with national NGOs and CBOs of India in their fight for housing rights and also with providing them their basic amenities of life and living.
In addition, he was the founding organiser and consultant of Proud and Power in Mumbai and the Slum dwellers coordination committee in Kalkotta, where he fought for housing rights, mobilized the urban poor and ensured their sustainable development. He was also the founding member of the Asian Coalition for Housing Rights (ACHR), City Net, LOCOA, and the India Habitat Forum (INHAF). Rabial was also effectively involved in the work and actions of Board Members from Asia Habitat International Coalition (HIC) since 2006, members of the India organizing Committee of the World Social Forum (WSF), NGO Advisory Committee Member, Planning Commission, Govt. of India; and Honorary Director-cum-Secretary of IDEA. His extensive range of accomplishments, as well as dedication to his work, renders his loss all the more tragic.
We join our prayers and share our condolences with his wife and his daughter and celebrate Rabial’s memory, a member who worked hard to defend the rights and the dignity of the poor and the homeless in West Bengal, India and all over Asia.
"The announcement of the untimely death our dear and respected colleague, Rabial Mallick, is an unbearable shock. It is with great sorrow that I convey my personal and HIC’s condolences to his wife and daughter. He is not only a great loss to us as our HIC Board member for Asia, but the entire social movement striving for the realization of the dignity of the poor and the homeless. He was a dedicated, inspiring and visionary leader whose loss will be felt by us for many years to come and we shall honour his memory by continuing the struggle to which he deicated his life". Davinder Lamba, HIC President.
"It is hard to believe that what I heard from Somsook/ACHR is true. It is shocking, simply unbelievable that Rabial is no more. The fact is that on returning from Vietnam on Monday, I sent him and Sheela Patel a letter asking if we could take joint responsibility to organize a community architects’ meeting in India for ACHR.
I did not know that he would never read that letter as he had left for the other world.
It is terrible. I do not know what is wrong. We are losing some very special individuals one after the other. Peter, Ken. Now Rabial.
My association with Rabial is more than two decades old. He first landed up, some time in ’80s, in Ahmedabad, unannounced, with plans, ideas and aspirations in his kitty on strengthening PROUD–People’s Responsible Organization for United Dharavi–and development of Dharavi slum. I did not know him then. But his enthusiasm, his burning desire to do things for the disadvantaged and the deprived, his commitment and his vision were infectious. I became his admirer.That lead to our doing many things together, including CIDHA–Citizens’ for Dharavi, for which I prepared a long note.What is remarkable about Rabial is that, over two decades that I knew him, despite disappointments and setbacks, his passion for doing things for the pavement and slum dwellers never wavered.
This is a rude shock for all of you as it has come prematurely. There is no way you could be prepared . And how does one prepare for such disasters? We will miss him always. More than us, thousands of poor for whose good and benefit he worked all his life. He was a very special individual.
And that makes his going that much more difficult.
We pray for strength to you all. We know the world has collapsed for you.
We pray for his peace in the God’s heaven. In deep sorrow." Kirtee Shah, and all at ASAG and INHAF.
HIC GS, April 2010