Economic Development and Tribals: Some Thought

This is extract from a paper I had written a year ago but could do little progress for publishing it.. though its right time to think on these lines mentioned hereunder;

What are the constraints we are facing when it comes to economic reforms verses the tribal development? Following are some of the points we would like to highlight;

1. The budget- ‘Provisional tribal development’
The pressure from the elites and powerful lobbies to attract funds already to the developed and progressive regions are immense. Even if the state governments like Gujarat and Maharashtra are cash rich in development expenditure in the industrial regions, they pay only lip service in the tribal areas. One wonders what makes these states to restrict their expenditure so low in the tribal regions on the basic amenities like Hospitals and schools. For the state might be spending more than Rs. 500 crores on the education and health in Gujarat, the share of this budget in the tribal districts of the Dangs, Valsad, Surat, Dahod, Panchamahal etc would be well below 10% of this amount. Tribals are not part of the structural adjustments process of the World Bank initiated reforms in the country. The tribals had to mend their business in absence of the strong leadership to claim their share of budgetary provisions. The reform initiated by the earlier NDA government and present continuation of reform under the UPA Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, there is clear need to focus on the tribal welfare.

2. Sector Constraints – Health and Education
The health and education though given importance during the last budget session by Government of India, it is yet to be accepted by the respective state governments. The sense of urgency is lacking- and so is the penetration of facilities in rural area. The beneficiaries of private education and health facilities have been restricted to mainly urban or most often to the peri-urban areas (due to tax concessions). The education institutions run by trusts are not capable of providing quality education in absence of basic structural reform. The tax concessions to the education and health institutions should be extended to the tribal regions to allow benefits of quality education and health infrastructure. With limitation on their ability to access equity and commercial financing, these institutions remain dependent on donations, and subsidies as the norm, rather than balancing or incremental requirement.

3. Fragmentation
In the country like ours, we have innumerous school boards giving multiple- course platform to the students. The tribals have no choice to get quality or mainstream education given the high cost of admission. The differential treatment of the course content by the different board results in the variable education standards in the country. The most of the urban and well to do families can afford to provide the best of education facilities to the children, whereas the tribals need to depend on the poorly managed ashram shalas. Why can’t we come out to provide similar quality education to tribal children’s in their own regions? We must now make effort to define a national curriculum that balances regional aspirations.

4. Lack of Planning
One of the important aspects of the concern we feel is related to the lack of planning on the resources and capabilities needed. There has been less focus on tribal sub plans during the post 1990s with the advent of the reforms. We are not focusing on the future vocational training requirements of the tribals in absence of the agricultural lands or massive displacement due to development projects. Most of the elite educational institutions are not in position to out reach to the tribal regions. Instead we have sets of sub standard institutions harping on the large population base with little stake on the welfare of the tribals. For Example, the prevalence of Medical and Engineering colleges and Universities in the remote areas just to tap new monetary freedom of tribals rather than providing quality infrastructure. We certainly require more robust reform structure in the sector to decentralize the education and health infrastructure without any prejudice.

5. Utilization of resources
While limited availability of resources is a common concern, the focus should be on sub-optimal utilization of allocated resources. To our mind, government is clearly not the most efficient manager of expenditure. The current framework provides enormous subsidies, with less than adequate measures to ensure that beneficiaries of the subsidiaries are only those who need them; additionally we must pay attention on how subsidy is directed towards the poorest of the poor. The tribal areas though rich in bio-diversity and natural resources, lack innovative thinking similar to the economic reform. Time has now ripe to concentrate on not only on the macro economic reform, but also on how to utilize the tribal resource in order to maximize the their welfare.

6. Thinking differently
Tribals also need to start thinking differently, even though they are given opportunity for the government job they have not been able to gather enough. This may be due to lack of educational and support environments in the tribal regions. The tribals are gaining their stake in monetary economy by getting exposure to the market reform through media. They need to ask for quality services rather than an alternative system of education and health. They can join themselves to mainstream not only politically, but also integrate their learning and knowledge to rest of population. The path forward can also be to use private intervention to help schools augment their capacities, and also inculcate the habit for paying for those who can pay for the quality services. There can be differential pricing mechanism for most of the basic quality services based on the paying capacities of the tribal societies.

7. Prioritization
If we can think of the communities being indirectly affected by the economic reform, the tribals would be last thought of group. There is lacuna in approach towards the development excluding the tribals and other deprived sections of society. The economic reforms encouraged privatization of the most of the services provided by the public sector. The private players in the new economy are not ready to accommodate the reality of India’s social life. The responsibility of the private towards the tribals and weaker sections needs to be highlighted. This prioritization of the beneficiaries of the economic reform should not negate the larger sentiments. The tribals do not need reservations in the jobs but rather holistic approach towards their concerns. The activities that makes them self-relients and also does not diminish their self respect.

8. Tribals as ‘Human Capital’
We cannot go ahead with economic reform without the suitable development of our human capital. Though India is proud to have more than 50 % population between 25-35 age group by now, we are yet to understand the tribal constitutes 20 % of such youngsters. The future India cannot neglect the tribal youth, thus becomes added responsibility to let them learn to participate in development. The success of mid day meal in the primary school provides such hope to the poor tribals community. The mid-day meal address the fundamental issues of nutrition, hygiene and health of the community in addition to education. The health of women similarly is to be improved in the tribal regions not only by introducing health pills but also bringing out proper nutrition programme for the lactating mothers and adult women. The employment opportunities for the women in the region should be associated with such nutrition programme equivalent to the mid-day meal. The food for work scheme of Government of India needs some innovation on these lines.

9. Scope for Economic reform for Tribals and Poorest of Poor
For one, any reform specific to the tribals or community would need massive decentralisation, a pushing through of the panchayati raj, giving the poor authority and accountability to determine their destinies. This means a paradigmatic shift in the power equation between the 3 layers of our federal system. Decentralisation is required not because it is morally right (it is so), but because it will increase efficiency and entrepreneurial energies (it has always done so). The detailing problems that we discussed earlier will be solved at the grassroot level, differently in tribal societies. Focus can shift to outcomes, rather than irrelevant input measurement. New service delivery arrangements in education and health can be experimented with, involving public-private partnerships. New, locally appropriate technology solutions should emerge. Mistakes that are made will be localized and relevant to the tribals, from which there will be learning and adaptation.

At another level, a new dynamic needs to emerge between the economic reform (banking, micro credit, employment, housing etc) and policy-makers who wish to align the powerful forces of the reforms towards the tribals and poor. One where there is freedom to function, with responsibility for equitable outcomes. What is required on the part of government is an innovative regulatory mechanism, like benchmarking the services delivery of the priority sector segment to the services, and demanding tribal region wise reporting in the state socio-economic reports. The critical learning is that programme design needs to be left to the marketplace, that the cost of doing business with the tribals/poor might be higher than with elite urban customer segments, and hence need to be priced differently. When institutions are allowed to do this, the market will fill the services vacuum. We need to move beyond simplistic ‘Krishi-melas’ and cultural bonanza for tribals. If one truly wanted to see “tribals” developed, it is on display in India, with all its warts, reinforcing the belief that country needs effective programs. But effective programs needs a supple and disciplined government, demanding self-regulation from states, coming down hard and fast when necessary for the interest of tribals.

So, when the new policies of this government are announced, let us look closely to see if there is any change in the microstructure of governance, in the improvement of tribal societies. Let us look to see whether these “reforms with a human face” can actually be called “ reform for tribal societies and poorest”.

If not, all these ideas will get choked in the thickets of the system, making our reforms look like our city water supply: ‘plenty flows in pipes, loses on the way and trickles at the consumer end.’

Solar Storm: Disaster Predicted in 2012-2013

A lot of news item recently concentrated on the 'End of World' theory of the various prophets, spiritual leaders and media groups. A bit of suspesion emerges whether these are all true or spam? Its better to have a serious look once. Yes! scientists at NASA, USA has been warning the governments for the serious implication of the Solar Storm predicted to be cyclic event to immensely affect the earth.

NASA recently warned of a collision between modern society and the upcoming solar maximum.
Approximately every 11 years the sun peaks in activity while dotted with sunspots that often eject solar flares with damaging radiation and particles into space. If hurled in the direction of the Earth, the planet endures or suffers consequences ranging from beautiful displays of the aurora as they shimmer in the night sky, to very severe Electromagnetic radiation to the point of knocking out electrical power grids. The later is of most great concern to NASA as they meet to discuss the potential devastation and to recommend new tools to forecast such events as we approach the new solar maximum in 2012.

From the NASA Science News
“The sun is waking up from a deep slumber, and in the next few years we expect to see much higher levels of solar activity. At the same time, our technological society has developed an unprecedented sensitivity to solar storms.”

What would be impact?
(a) Outer Space: Solar storm can damage the electronic equipments and satellites including the communication, navigation and exploratary objects in the outer space. This would be difficult to save incase of severe storm. This would have very negative impact on the transport and communication sector on the earth.
(b) Earth Surface: Severe heat and sudden surge of storm would damage on the electricity supply infrastructure on a large scale. Most the effect till coming few months would not be unknown. On going researches are focussing on for preparing the mitigation plan.

In India, we are yet to see any serious activity concerning this event predicted and varified from scientists in US and Europe. We need to have tie up with international space weather prediction program to have clear assessment of the situation. We need to assess the impact this can have on the human life and health.

Stinking Cities..Rains bring more...

You must be welcoming rains with delight since the temperature went down during this week. The farmers are happy to get much needed water for their fields, while started to make huge investment in High Yeilding Seeds of various food and commercial crops, pesticides, fertilizers, etc. We in the cities tend to see rains not beyond our doors and windows. What meaning do we have for the rains except personal non-commercial interest? Its the city administration which has to tackle the rain into the drains or underground channels. Whilst, among these we should also know that, rains also brings back the stink emerging from the wastes, human night soil and sludge mixed with all the industrial and domestic lines. Our water bodies are filled with such a nightmerish water and wastes. Can you breath properly in the rains minus these wastes. Cities like, Surat, Vadodara, Ahmedabad, etc in Gujarat and other major metros of the country is stinking these days from the waste being decomposed with a mixure of hot and humid climatic changes. Stinks and humidity leaves most of the part of cities unbearable to venture out during the business hours (9.00 am to 7.00 pm). The rains and stinks would be apart only after 10-15 light showers days helping these wastes to move out of the city and pollute the regional environment. Smoke and hazardous gases rarely go away during the cloudy and humid seasons, it remain present in the lower strata of the atmosphere. This leads to more breathing problems in humans and plathora of dangers to plant and animal species.

Administration can at best clean the drains and leave the heap of waste away from the eyesight of the citizens, but its stink stays in the atmosphere of the city. This results the air we breath laden with heavy odur, bad tastes in mouth and infections in throat. What can be done? The cities would remain like that till we keep badly managing our solid and liquid wastes by treating them secondary to the city issues. Cities are happy to see creation of the infrastructure but are poor in operation and management of the systems.
Even the small town and large village settlements are also not left out from this modern life styles which are becoming 'chemical and plastic guzzling' economies. The outcome this phenomena is in wastes being generated, dumped all over the places and choking of the natural systems. Do we really care about city environment? At least not in the present cities of 21st century India.

Gujarat- Environmental Unconcerns

Come Environment Day June 5, we come to know about the environmental danger rivers in Gujarat faces, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/City/Ahmedabad/Gujarat-is-numero-uno-in-river-pollution/articleshow/6013338.cms,

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/City/Ahmedabad/Most-effluent-plants-in-state-are-totally-ineffective-Study/articleshow/6013340.cms
Serious! Nah the administration and people would soon forget the nature of these rivers and pollution enabling Vibrant Gujarat policies. We are not still on the verge of disasters. We need more 'Money' for the state. May be standing next to China, on the verge becoming industrial giant of India. This how Gujarat speaks these days!!

How to have commercial expoitation of rivers? Sabarmati is best example to make money in Vadodara, Surat, Bharuch etc. Also why have more township along Narmada Canal? We would invite more proposal soon. How to make money from the waste? We welcome all the refuse sellers in World to send us your garbage we bet to trade on these. Gujarat is happy to be emerging giant with little compromises, since people can affors to remain indoors, water is not being polluted in Bottles and Cans. Why bother about agriculture? Better we cultivate in other states and bring food nicely packed from the cold storages (of course our mega corporations are helping us to provide packaged deal).

Gujarat tends to inculcate using plastics (thats because we are highest producer of material) in the life styles of citizens. Harmless plastics does not choke up neck of fellow humans, how to stop poor animals in gulping poor plastics. Lest ! we do not have to produce grasses or save the forest. Yaah! Forests are better not to be utlized for the grasses, rather a township or eco -'logical' tourism can bring in more monetary help to always cash straped state. Wow! do we know how much more we can promote industry by just gulping power, minerals, wood, aerosols etc? We have to consume more inorder to stay ahead from other states. Why not discuss these Environmental Unconcerns with our collegues? Of course if you stop looking down at river you now call 'gutter' Ganga.