Ek Anna..

Lot of hopes are pinned on the Shri Anna Hazare and his team of civil rights activists, who are ready to give final shot to the menace called corruption. We all are sitting on the arm chair waiting for the action from the camps and willing to see the fight in our life time. His certificate for corruption free state has already created storm and poor fellow has to take back his word and spew venom on the state working in Gujarat. Indeed the situation is not good, but do we need this certification then only we would like to improve. There are lot agencies in this world who would certify our state of administration at all levels. You need to be watching the scene change in Indian politics where these actors change their role on the either side of stage.

We are serious about many things but it takes steam out of idea when it goes for implementation. Every failure in planning or development does not mean we are corrupt, but sheer poor understanding and willingness to undertake the task on hand. We have created series of mission on all subjects under the sun, guided by near fad end of carrer babus and their ex mates. These all policy douldrums have no basis of inhouse research or study, all have their roots on the western or their originated framework. Its pity that Shri Anna and his team has to cajole and understake a task where the existing govt should have understaken, we are moving towards parallel democracy and pseudo governance in running goverments from the court, media and civil right activists.

Yes! this has happened after governments tried to run it on corporate fuel (idea) in streamlining, opening self to outside world only to realise that they have plenty to hide and inexperience in handling corporate governance. Thus the failure in managing tasks on time and promising too much before they can absorb the earlier ideas and policy. The commissions were formed to study and suggest various issues, may be they have carefully studied the system and recommended the action. But in nutshell, the governments fail to acknowledge the report or implement even easy actions proposed. Its now easy for all of us to say bechara Ek Anna...?

AMC on Demolition Spree: Building Cities-Destroying Homes

This time again the demolition of hutments along the Sabarmati River Front project highlights the priority of the Gujarat government and Ahmadabad Municipal Corporation (AMC). The displacement of over 50000 persons overnight in the city causes serious violation of human rights and plight is politcised to gain the development of the city. The ruthless attempt by the AMC to throw away whosoever comes on the way of clean city, making it 'slum free'. The high ideals set by the judiciary in coming to support the slum dwellers in what is called as their homes, stands nullified amidst the urgency of the local body. The series is similar to what has been observed in most part of the country including Jharkand, Maharashtra, Delhi, Punjab, Karnataka and others, wherein the homes made out of temporary materials are demolished along with the hopes of the people. The city administrative makes it hard for the poor to survive given its preference to rich dwellers where they escape demolition by paying the much legalized 'impact fees'.

The nature of conflicts invited by the local bodies calls for utmost serious thought on the governance and right to justice for the affected people. The dance of terror on the daily life of poor is inflicted by the administration and police who were supposed to protect them in time of dire needs. There is ample legal scope to save the poor from ultimate humiliation and apathy given the judgements made in past for the people and against the demolition. The high handedness of the administration emerges from the lack of awareness and system in place even after 65 years of independence. The dominance of the class over the others mixed with fair amount of greed for land and unjust planning forces the poor to accept the fate in the event like what has happened in Ahmadabad recently.

Hopes of the people in the city specially the poor and unprotected is running dry for any acceptance from the society where they can seek justice. The repeated acquisition of land for the development projects also adds more slum dwellers in the city in absence of seeking job and shelter. The insufficient compensation and high cost of living in the cities makes the task of poor households very difficult to survive. Only when the development projects further targets them to make way for another giant project which might be luxury for some group of society. The selective target of the people based on class and creed is humilating and defeating for the very purpose of Indian democracy. The lack of stringent legal backing and support system leaves people little choice in accepting the fate without protest. The reaction of the homeless group if turns violent is just to have another day to mute protest is high expectation from the administration. The immediate attention of the people and leaders is called to stop the savage practice in the name of urban development and beautification.

Leaving Agriculture for Industrial Development:Raw Deal

Most center to the argument about shifting of population from agrarian base to non agricultural base since the carrying capacity has declined to support large population. Many tend to believe that with industrialization jobs would open up but what a class, it would be mostly jobs of doorkeepers, odd-job-boys, maids, mason-helpers, etc will be available! Some one may add another job: that of a Hawker. From a peasant or agricultural laborer (though poor, no doubt) becoming a maid / servant / gatekeeper / hawker / rickshaw-puller…etc ... a ‘development’ indeed!

Some ‘lucky’ ones may become some makeshift Tea cum snacks stall owners or betel-leaves–cigarettes–chewing-tobacco stall/'galla' owners on the pavements, always in a precarious existence – any time the ‘Cleansing cum Beautification’ drive of the govt can bulldoze them out, and they’ll have to rebuild their shanty stalls again.

In the name of industrialization we may have taken lot of land but the promise of the job still eludes many, most of the land owners are forced to leave their ancestral occupation to the serve the urban middle class. The states also now train such poorly educated people for the service of neo-rich society by conducting training programs. From the independent human being, the land owners were turned to dependent community on the industrial economy, however remains uncertain.

Educated sons and daughters of the so-called ‘middle’ / ‘upper-middle class’ people are upbeat and vying for those few thousands of good-paid jobs that may come up in the Special Economic Zones or Special Investment Regions. The management level jobs in the industries and mainly in the ‘service’ sectors serving the well-to-dos. The media, businessmen, and the likes are full of glee. And they will have plenty of ways to earn more money and plenty of things to do with their lots of money. But all of them together constitute only 12-25% of the population, at maximum 30%.

The enrichment of the selected community group or class in states or country for the development is not the development of rest in the society. For the remainder, those fellows at power have that old rotten rusted “Trickling Down” theory. Yes, some thousands among tens of millions of unemployed youth will get the rest of the lower end jobs. Some will get consolation of doing own “ business ” "dhandho" thats paltry Rs 1500 – 4000 per month. But the problem of unemployment will not even fractionally be solved. The people disposed by development will become paupers in their own land.

Turning Golden Goose: Gujarat's next 50 years

With the thundering voice of state leaders, the Gujarat has just passed a landmark in its history, economically the giant in making the state looks forward. The huge investment promises if made to see light of day would turn Gujarat into formidable state with who's who of corporate leaders jumping the bandwagon to share the corners offered by state. Economic progress cannot be denied to state and people have right to prosper. But given the approach adopted the fallout seems to be plenty. Lets list out some of them;

(a) State turning into environmental hot spot in generating huge carbon foot print, damaging its ecosystem and coastal regions beyond repair.

(b) The assumption of climate change impacting the coastal and high populated regions needs fast mitigation measure, else the investment would cause serious business loss in next 50 years. The settlements along the coast needs to be careful about such eminent dangers.

(c) The land transfers to the corporates would cause general shift in state's occupation pattern and how much of the working population 1.9 crores can be absorbed in the secondary and tertiary sector. This is given the encouragement capital based industries and almost little horizontal linkages would leave most of work force in informal sector.

(d) The shortage of agricultural land and utilization of much needed irrigation water for the urban areas and industries might lead to water crisis given the vagaries of nature in Gujarat. The man made drought in such situation would be catastrophic to the states development.

(e) The demongraphic changes induced by large scale investment would be due to migration of technical and service staff from other parts of country, since the quality of manpower required is simply in shortfall. The labour crisis in long run might cause a serious business loss to the investors, unless the other states support the state's development. The partnership between the states like Gujarat, MP, Rajasthan etc is required to leverage each others advantage.

(f) The inequality of development efforts in backward taluka and districts would cause serious social and political concerns may be important road block to economic growth given poor Human Development Index.

(g) The continued discontent between centre and state may turnout to be long drawn fight for the state to claim its rightful share, ultimately loss of investments by FII or large investors without support of national government. Somewhere, politicians have to live above party line.

(h) The nature of political leadership might also be cause of concern for the civil rights group turning against the state on the issue of justice, communal concerns and egalitarian rights of people. This might cause embarrassment to leadership and ultimate repression by the state forces.

At the right time, the Gujarat might turn out to be 'golden goose' to be shot at before it stops filling the national exchequer. Concerns of the people and politics of the day would hardly allow the state to fly away to its destiny given the national demands of investments.