The Government of India led by the elected and elated congress, has made a welcome move for setting priority agenda and 100 days time frame. Some of its priority will test it resolve in implementations. The test of new government will be to tow in line, formidable Indian bureaucracy, which is the “eminence grise” of our country since independence and rather likes to fallow the role model from the book Yes Minister and be described as worst bureaucracy in Asia than to give the input of their intellect, expertise and experience to the government of the day. Some of priorities set by government are the need of hours but the leaders like Sharad Pawar who had a long experience of Indian system and bureaucratically implementations of schemes, response and speed has his doubts and not the misplaced ones. The sadistic pleasure derived from the failure of such schemes or proven as a utopia or impractical in run of time is the more satisfactory to babus who always resent the administrative reforms. They are trained in the institution where the training modules and syllabus still suits the colonial India environment.
These Schemes are not new or innovative ideas. They were and are the need of the poor India. The slum is not meant only Dharawi slum, but slums are also spread in the villages of India. While the World Bank financing the Dharawi slum resettlement schemes from 80’s and onward whose fate was well known to every one, there was and is Indira Awas Yojna for villages. To days war cry to remove slums has been thought by some] that it has taken out of the Slum Dog Millionaire, The Rajiv Awas Yojna is meant for urban slums. No, the need was always felt. One forgot about the slums in villages. The provisions of Indira Awas Yojna aimed to villagers living below poverty line are and were inadequate. The Area of the Indira Awas is 20 square meters which includes toilet and bathroom and kitchen. We have seen the 20 meters of bating area, dining area, garages, drawing rooms etc. But a family of 4 at the minimum to be fitted in 20 Square meters is not better than their Jhuggis at slums. For building such Indira Awas colony it should have been in middle or adjacent to man habitation of the village. But none were made so at least in Chhattisgarh, M P, U P and Bihar. Indira Awas were meant for the poorest of poor and most of them are Schedule Cast or Tribes so the Indira Awas were made invariably out of village like separate settlements. So No one is residing in them. Carors of rupees at every state was allocated and shown as spent some how but Indira Awas so built now has to dug out by the archaeological survey
Department in the most of villages. No one talk about the fate of the scheme where these quarters have gone. The utopia was demolished by real threats, almost no Indira Awas is seen i.e. build 25 years before and no one lived and the leaders of the day. It has happened in 25 years only. The leaders who conceived the scheme may be included in laughing stocks but fortunately very few remember the Indira Awas Yojna. If Rajiv Gandhi Awas Yojna will have same design and same allocation of funds and to be allotted to the person below poverty line than how one manage the daily needed but most costly items like electricity, water, education and medication apart from food
The second Priority is right to food to the persons living Below Poverty line. The below poverty line population of India is actually residing below starvation lines. Our country has unique parameters and treatment of it, so it shows a declining trend by simply adjusting the level of income in such way so every year, people jumping over and above poverty thresholds. Our country in 21 century is dreaming to become a super economic power of world is using statistics to control the poverty. By using the bureaucratic talisman upon it we are keeping the poverty thresholds as low as we can. The facial make over of government is complete. The World Bank has set the global Poverty Line thresh hold as US $ 1.25 per day per person and described them extremely poor. The person earning US $ 1.80 per day per person than the person will considered poor.
While the government appointed National Commission for Enterprises in Unorganised Sector under the chairmanship of Shri Arjun Sengupta came to conclusion that 77% of our population is not earning Rs. 20 a day, it was talking about 85 million people as per current population estimates. But planning commission has older standards old as in 2000. Our poverty line thresholds in year 2005 - 2006 are 368 Rs. In Rural Area and 560 Rs. in urban Area in comparisons to 2001 – 2002 Rs. 328 in Rural Area and 454 for urban Areas. In the Ninth five year plan 1997 - 2002, the criterion is less than 20,000/ per anum income for family and less than two hectare land and no television or refrigerator etc. It means that income of Rs. 1,666/- per month and 416.66 per head and 13.88/- per day. Every body was not that lucky. On the same criterion the 10th five year plan 2002 to 2007 has applied the same yard stick which has been challenged in Supreme Court of India. A stay has been granted and vacated in February 2006 without deciding the case.
The government choose to proceed with the data collected on same principals. The new rates are Rs 368/- for rural area, means Rs 12.26/- per day, Rs 1472/- per month and Rs 17664/- per year. Farmers are dying and committing suicide but the poverty thresholds of nation seems to shrinking in rural area. In urban areas it is Rs 560/- per head means 18.66/- per day and 2240/ per month and in a year Rs 26880/-
The World Bank criterion, even lowered to a dollar a day even than as per exchange rates of to day, 1 US Dollar = 47.67/- INR, the Indian families living below poverty line are earning less than Rs 12.26/18.66/- a day. It is not that every one is fortunate enough to do so. It is another irony attach to them that most of them are treated as employed. The situation is so absurd that in 11th five year plan 2007 – 2012 has to term such population as working poorer.
Our Below Poverty Line estimations, is not updated annually nor did it link to the inflation. Where as in U S A the poverty line is set annually and related with inflations. For example in 1969 the requirement of the family in terms of food was worked out in reference to prices off 1963 and it was determined that a family of four will require US $ 1033 annually for food. The studies also revealed that family with such income spent about one third of their income on food. The poverty line was fixed as US $ 3099 in 1969 on and above the food requirements. This Poverty line is revised annually and in year 2006 it was US $ 20,650 {$1720.83, per month} for a family of four. This system may be introduced to India but our “eminence grise” are very apt to use the phrase and use it frequently in fifth year plans “Indian Context”. Inspired from the phrase, advertisement sprang out, car for Indian road conditions. So in Indian context Indian poor will remain to eat only.
Our criterion is based on the food which can provide the 2100 calorie a day. Any doctor will tell you that this much of energy is only enough to be spent on your daily chores. To work in fields and to carry the weights or pull the rickshaw one need extra energy. A hospitalized person, not even allowed to leave the bed for her/his daily routines, will have an intake of food consisting 1400 to 1600 calories. We may argue that we are not U S A but every one knows that the prices of food grains had trebled since 2001. The Consumer price index has soured high and government is adjusting it by providing
Variable Dearness Allowance. So why not we review the threshold of starvation line, why we do not link it to inflation, to retail consumer price index, as we have different poverty thresh holds for different states. Why we do not have definition of working poor and why we do not we think about it before introducing to any kind of right to food. Will this right will be limited to the 2100 Calories only? For Adults, for earning member, for pregnant women, for children and for the family of more than four all will have the same food. If so, than this right will be remain a decorative right, as we have other rights, so far out of reach of common man.
The right to food is the right to live. The difference between human and other species is that we have acquired and attach dignity to living apart from the food and reproduction. We bury our dead with dignity we brought our children with dignity. The human dignity is with clothes, education, medicines and human right. So the right of food without the guarantee of clothe, education, medication and human right have no meaning. To feed a pet or through surplus to wild, it did not make any difference without a will of caring and a sense of honour attach to it. So the leaders who have vision to recognise the right of food because they had tested some foods of common man must not leave it to bureaucracy who has planned it and standardise it since independence and failed to or refuse to or had not been able to see, the need to link the below poverty line with retail consumer price index, to inflation while receiving in every quarter enhanced V D A to them selves. Other way it will be another Utopia like Indira Awas Yojna Rajiv Gandhi Jal Grahan Mission or Connect River plan or clean Ganga or Operation Black Board or Mid Day meal and many such ambitious and well meant plans. It has also need a monitoring body with resolve to let it not failed and empowered to get it implemented not in the way as NREGA, Mid Day Meals, or Aangan Bari is being implemented. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India has analyze the Year 2006 and 2007 and found that only three percent job card seeker found 100 days work. The fake muster roll and false payment and use of machine and nepotism in implementation of NEREGA are ridden with these accusations. But government is pushing it nevertheless. If such political resolve is there for clean implementations of many such well meant scheme in , we can hope for good Other way India may be shining but will be remain a paper tiger. With greater and rising financial inequality which is now start ticking like time bomb. We have now poor terrorists, poor Naxalites, Poor
Kidnappers, low priced murderers, poor drug paddlers, poor child labours and what not. The 21st centurion India has to overcome upon all and it is a very great responsibility of Rahul but of bureaucracy and other politicians has to bear with him and expecting common people.
Akhtar
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Respected Editor,
With regards,
June 8 2009 issue and Quite Revolutionary by Sudip Mazumdar had been received with openness. The Quite Revolutionary may induce changes in Congress but real challenge of deliverance of governance and it is controlled by bureaucracy, the system with colonial hangover, a self interest group, which is not answerable to masses. Two of government priorities which seen as Rahul Gandhi thrust has raised apprehension and expectation in India, the expectation of hope and fear of doom of these priorities in the hands of bureaucracy. As the truth of National rural Employment Guarantee scheme said to be instrumental in congress come back, is being exposed in implementation side the hope of inclusive growth is hard to realize.
We India, is a social informal group which is working in Chhattisgarh and Madhay Pardesh. Our motto is;
“Salus populi Est suprema Lax”{Regard for the public Welfare is the highest law} and we actively fallow the government schemes and its implementations in state and central both a like. Our group firmly believes that awareness has to be spread so the population do not be swayed by slogans or hypes. In view to that we sent our perception to these good sounding schemes and their future. In the blame game of our country every finger is pointed to politicians, but the institutions of nation are equally responsible so we believe. The executive as a whole should be held responsible and not only dummy captains of the ship.
Hope that our perception will be shared amongst our fellow citizen through your respected weekly.
Thanking You,
Akhtar
Co – Coordinator: We India
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