World Development Report fails to suggest need for social protection from private sector

By

-

March 11, 2019

The World Development Report (WDR) is the World Bank’s development research and policy review report published annually. Started by IBRD since 1978, this report is intended to provide deep and extensive analysis on one particular aspect of economic development, every year.

The solutions and policy messages brought out in this report is widely scrutinised by researchers, policy makers, governments and civil society since this ‘flagship’ report is supposedly the Bank’s highly prized research contribution to the development world.

Heavy research budgets, far-reaching dissemination and the legitimacy of ‘World Bank’ publication make this a cherished one for the Bank. Few of the previous years’ reports focused on education, health, environment, risk management, poverty, the role of the state, youth, agriculture, equity and public services delivery.

Quick Glimpse into the development of WDR 2019

The World Development Report 2019: Changing Nature of Work (WDR 2019) examines the changing nature of work and firms, laying emphasis on the impact of technology and digital innovation on the current global economy.

But what made this report a highly talked about one in the recent debates on development? The Bank’s previous president Jim Yong Kim writes in his foreword that this document shows the transparency of work since it was open to all for modification of drafts, almost every week online.

And then, there were more than a million downloads even before halfway its publication which also made it the most downloaded report in 2018. Another occasion to note is that its preparatory phase was delayed by the Bank’s then chief economist Paul Romer’s resignation [he was the first director of WDR 2019], over his controversial remarks on the direct correlation between the political leanings of the staff and annual rankings of countries in Ease of Doing Business process of the Bank.

Subsequently, the work was taken over by Simeon Djankov, who is the Founding Director of the much sought-after, yet much criticised, Doing Business Reports. Yet another highlight of this report was the introduction of Human Capital Index [The human capital project examined in WDR 2019 will be explained in another section of this article], again contested, where countries will be now ranked annually in terms of a child attaining optimum productivity after having attained education and full health from birth till 18 years of age.

Paradoxical Messages of WDR 2019

But above all, this report faces strong criticism for its two pertinent direct messages – deregulation of businesses and shifting obligations of firms/employers for social protection of workers/employees to the shoulders of the State. Few voices have come out globally carefully analysing the nuances of various explanations given by the Bank to establish the context for its suggestions for the future of work for the evolving economy.

It is true that the report has failed to give a rounded, well-thought critique on the actual challenges faced by workers in the accelerated transformation of the world of work. To put it short, critically speaking, this report is inherently characterised on anti-worker perspective. The deregulatory solution brought out in this report parrots almost all the editions of Doing Business Reports since 2003 promoting private sector development and having influenced watering down of many regulatory policies across countries to facilitate rapid entry and development of the business.

This was eagerly executed by governments because labour regulations policies allegedly stifled exciting investments and swift economic growth. It is ironical that the same Bank, in its WDR 2013: Jobs, after extensive review on the link between labour regulation and employment [following a massive hue and cry from few governments, labour movements and ILO], had stated that this ‘link’ was non-existent. This obviously shows WDR 2019 disproves the exhaustive findings of WDR 2013!

Moreover, the Bank, during its previous Annual Meetings at Bali during October 2018 had introduced its new Environmental and Social Framework, where respect for workers’ rights in Bank’s projects was entered as Labour Safeguards [ESS2– Labour and Working Conditions]. Not less than two weeks later after the much appreciation for Bank’s new safeguard policy, came WDR 2019 in direct and stark contrasting opinions. This is highly contradictory and problematic from the Bank’s side sending two conflicting messages in two separate yet distinguished policy publications.

The world of work is progressing rapidly with technological and digital innovations including robots and Artificial Intelligence. Stable jobs are giving way to Gig- jobs and digital market places paved the way for platform market places and superstar firms. “Innovation will continue to accelerate” and there are growing chances, as already seen in many countries, that automation would replace the low-skilled redundant labour.
Hence the jobs remaining outside automation would require highly skilled work-force that would have exceptional cognitive skills [logic, reasoning, critical thinking], socio-behavioural skills [teamwork, resilience, confidence, leadership] and skills of predictive adaptability [‘an individual now can have not many jobs but different careers in one lifetime’].

In order to feed into this need for a productive workforce, education and health must be critical for every child [starting from birth, especially until 5 years of age] and adult [adult learning outside the school and tertiary education. Therefore, the bank’s new Human Capital Project and Human Capital Index examines closely at this aspect of development and will recommend policy actions through country strategies.

And what about those who fail to fall in the ‘formal’ and productive workforce, namely the informal workers? Well, they will be given social assistance [various forms of UBI, negative tax], social insurance and State will protect them with basic minimum, and if possible reskilling and upskilling initiatives would be undertaken].

All said, the gap of finances which then the State is faced with can be covered by mobilizing tax revenue – by imposing VAT, excise tax on tobacco, alcohol, sugar, etc. and by expanding the tax coverage base, along with further strengthening of global efforts of OECD and G-20 to agree together on preventing tax erosion and profit-shifting through tax havens.

And thereafter, to accommodate all these policy changes, there should be political incentives for governments through new social contracts for the State to protect all, whether they are formal or informal workers, whether they are employed or unemployed and wherein the returns to work for the State is also guaranteed.

It finally follows that the goal of social inclusion is achieved thus. Well, aren’t we all made happy … and all looks rosy!

A Few Disquieting Specifics from WDR 2019

Apart from the disguising semantics of WDR 2019’s storyline, here is a list of important suggested possibilities of what might not be well with a large number of us globally, if its recommended policy actions are adopted by governments:

Minimum wages, which ensured fair returns to workers against exploitation of employers, shall be reduced – employers are free to reduce the wages to the bare minimum.
You and I can be fired from work at will. Because we pose structural rigidity to firms.
Employers will be made free from providing workers’ protection rights (imagine how this would read for those who work in occupationally hazardous environments especially and already for those working as independent contractors and gig-workers who juggle multiple careers who do not fall under the regular labour category)
Already data is given in the report of advanced economies enjoying the productivity of robots, while the employment growth has been steady and has not been affected. But how can these be ideated with that of situations in poor and low-middle income countries?
Workers are expensive if labour rights and protection are implemented in every firm, hence do away with labour regulations! [Shake hands with the similar recommendations of Doing Business Reports!]
The present Bismarckian model of social security scheme based on workers’ and employers’ voluntary contribution will be changed since they do not include the informal workers who are 2/3rdof developing country population.
The informality of works worldwide poses a huge problem of workers not being able to be adapted to the past faced requirements of the transforming economy. Majority of us will be jobless unless we keep on learning if we are adults. No mention of senior citizens in the report.
Digital marketplaces, to read accurately, ‘intangible marketplaces’ get away with not having to pay taxes and profit-shifting. So, let the governments finance their basic social welfare schemes and assistance by expanding the tax base and increasing regressive VAT. Imagine how a poor or developing nation would suffer from the burden of it – the ordinary man’s wages go into his daily sustenance and will not have savings, and then he needs to pay VAT over what he consumes for his survival!
Various forms of Universal Basic Income [UBI] are recommended.
Rich will get richer, poor will be increasingly poorer (seems the Gini coefficient hasn’t moved altogether for some time)
Other General Global Concerns with WDR 2019

The following broad critique has been collated and arranged from all the sources given in this article, hyperlinked at various instances.

Lack of significant research data
Selective data and evidence presentation
Casual handling of the subject with sweeping generalizations
Central assertions of the document [except maybe a little in the Building Human Capital and Lifelong learning] are devoid of solid and reliable data and genuine analysis.
The Bank has perhaps allowed right-wing ideologies to trickle down into their research reports.
While stressing the need to acknowledge the rise of platform markets and independent contractors, legal protection and safeguards for the emerging distinct labour force [who have also met serious resistance while campaigning for their rights like Uber Drivers] have not been addressed.
Pro-business and superstar firms agenda
Growing inequality of economies inadequately discussed
“Disregarding history, blinkered to indigenous protests, pretending there’s a peaceful pathway to all things good”

Longstanding observers of WDR over many years have recognised the emerging pattern of the Bank to move away from their adopting best practices to better learning by doing exercises. And that the Bank has been engaging in wider politics for better acceptance of their policy recommendations, including the “elite interests and ideologies; addressing collective action problems; building support for reform…legitimising a wider consensus”, for “pro-poor experimentation.”

The report has not just suggested eliminating the responsibility of social protection from the private sector and superstar firms, but altogether failed to address and recall the need of commitment from advanced nations to contribute in global development, by limiting the scope of the report to just low and middle-income economy experiments and discussions.

Much disappointing and worse is the fact that, here, human beings are pitted as human capital only, to be tailor-made for ‘productivity’. In the impatient race for economic growth and capital, the creativity of humanity, the plight of less privileged and marginalised, the ever-present resistances of people’s groups and movements, declining natural resources and accommodating other living beings, much less… the essence of life and living itself is non-existent in this ‘development’ report.

Courtesy: Counter View

Graduate, Factory Owner, Farmers Seek Labour Jobs In Jaipur’s Wrecked Informal Economy

By

-

March 11, 2019

0

Jaipur: At three grimy market squares in India’s pink city of sandstone palaces, the fates of a former farming couple, a former factory owner, and a graduate illustrated how difficult it now is to find even a job of hard labour, as a general election looms in a country witnessing record unemployment.

Daily wage workers wait for contractors at a market square in Jaipur. Demonetisation, the hasty, often chaotic implementation of the goods and services tax, and competition from Chinese-driven automation and goods has crippled economies nationwide.

It had been eight days since Shanti Devi, 30, and her husband Babulal Saini, 33, had found work. Draped in a bright, red saree, Devi sat on the pavement. Nearby, Saini, dressed in a checked shirt and gray pants stained with paint, was in animated discussion with some of the 300 gathered labourers.

Here at the Thadi market choukdi or square–one of 35 where workers in search of daily jobs gather in Rajasthan’s capital–everyone was distressed about the lack of employment.

Devi and her husband have worked at construction sites for daily wages since they moved to Rajasthan’s capital eight years ago from their village of Rajor in Karauli district, 150 km east, where they had a “small farm”, which they sold because they could not pay back a loan of Rs 5 lakh.

Shanti Devi and her husband Babulal Saini–who sold their farm to pay a debt–now earn Rs 8,000 together, down from Rs 18,000 in 2017. “Two years ago, we would get work for 25 days a month, but now we get only eight to 10 days of work a month,” said Devi.

They said they had never before experienced such a lack of jobs.

“Two years ago, we would get work for 25 days a month, but now we get only eight to 10 days of work a month,” said Devi. Their earnings in this period dropped about 55%: Today, the couple together earn up to Rs 8,000 per month; in 2017 it used to be Rs 9,000 each.

All the people in this story earn enough to be above Rajasthan’s official urban poverty line, Rs 1,002 per person per month, which means they are likely not eligible for government subsidies and social-security programmes.

The drop in wages and opportunities, experts said, were precipitated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s demonetisation programme–which invalidated 86% of India’s currency overnight–in November 2016 and the implementation in June 2017 of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), widely criticised for its hasty, often chaotic implementation.

Over the year to February 2019, the number of employed Indians fell by 6 million to 400 million, according to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), a consultancy. The unemployment situation mirrored the year following demonetisation but now indicates a “deeper and more sustained problem”, Mahesh Vyas, CMIE managing director and CEO, wrote on March 5, 2019.

“The low job opportunities compared to the size of the working age population have reduced wages in the private and unorganised sectors to a point, where, only the desperate are willing to take up such jobs,” wrote Vyas.

Competition from Chinese-driven automation and goods has further crippled economies nationwide, our reporting has found. A compounding factor in Rajasthan is a 2017 Supreme Court ban on environmentally damaging gravel- and river-sand mining, which threw thousands out of work, sent rural workers to cities and increased the pressure on jobs in India’s eleventh-poorest state by per capita income.

This is the second of an 11-part series (you can read the first part here), reported from nationwide labour hubs–places where unskilled and semi-skilled workers gather to seek contract jobs–to track employment in India’s informal sector. This sector, which absorbs the country’s mass of illiterate, semi-educated and qualified-but-jobless people, employs 92% of India’s workforce, according to a 2016 International Labour Organization study that used government data.

By delving into the lives and hopes of informal workers, this series provides a reported perspective to ongoing national controversies over job losses after demonetisation and GST. The number of jobs declined by a third over four years to 2018, according to a survey by the All India Manufacturers’ Organisation, which polled 34,700 of its 300,000 member-units. In 2018 alone, 11 million jobs were lost, mostly in the unorganised rural sector, according to data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), a consultancy.

Devi and Saini represent India’s informal sector, which employs, as we said, 92% of India’s 527 million workforce and absorbs those who have failed in other professions and those who are not qualified for anything but manual labour.

Like millions of informal workers nationwide, their already precarious economic situation has deteriorated over the last two years. Half their Rs 8,000 monthly wages are spent as rent on a one-room house with kitchen and toilet, and Rs 2,000 on the education of their two sons, aged five and seven. Devi studied till grade VIII, her husband is illiterate. They have a daughter, who was married at 13.

Their home is 4 km from the choukdi, and they pay Rs 10 per person per trip to commute to and fro in an electric rickshaw. The Thadi market choukdi is frequented by skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled labour. Skilled workers, considered the cream of the labour class, earn around Rs 500 per day; unskilled about half that.

But their stories are the same.

“Everyday, we wait for work from 8 am to 12 pm,” said Saini, clearly distraught. “When we do not get work, we return home. After this our whole day is lost because we have no work.”

A growing unemployment problem

Demonetisation and the GST “severely affected” Rajasthan’s small-scale construction, mining, gems and jewellery industries, made worse by a tide of Chinese imports and equipment that replaces jobs and a mining ban, experts and daily wage workers told us.

“Due to the cash crisis, the purchasing power of people decreased, and the market fell into recession,” said Nesar Ahmed, an economic analyst at the Budget Analysis Rajasthan Centre, a think-tank. “Since November 2017, jobs have reduced continuously (sic). The impact of the government’s decisions started showing after one year.”

Rajasthan’s unemployment rate more than doubled over two years, from 6.6% in 2016 to 14.9% in December 2018, according to CMIE data.
The jobs crisis has pulled into its fold even the educated.

Ganesh Mertha’s story reveals the magnitude of the crisis. At the Gurjar ki Thadi labour hub in Jaipur, Mertha, 22, an arts graduate of the Shaheed Captain Ripudaman Singh Government College in Sawai Madhopur in eastern Rajasthan, waited on a cool February morning to be picked up by a labour contractor. It had been a year since he moved to Jaipur in search of a job. On the day we spoke to him, he hoped to find work as a labourer for Rs 300 a day.

“I came to Jaipur thinking there would be a job for me, and I would like a good life in the city,” said Mertha, dressed in khaki pants and a worn, black tee shirt. In January 2019, he worked for only 12 days, earning Rs 4,800, of which Rs 3,500 was spent on rent for his single room near the choukdi.

Ganesh Mertha, an arts graduate, moved to Jaipur a year ago in search of a job. On the day we spoke to him, he hoped to find work as a labourer for Rs 300 a day.

In 2016, 200 of 300 people at a choukdi would find work, estimated Harikesh Bugalia, secretary of Nirman Mazdoor Union, a union of informal workers; today only 50-80 people do, and contractors exploit their desperation. “Labourers are going back to their villages,” said Bugalia. As their desperation grows, contractors offer lower wages, he said. “They are on the verge of hunger.”

Mertha knows that hunger.

“Many days I ate plain rice because I had no money,” he said, almost in tears. In February, he had found work on three of 28 days. “I am a graduate, and I am doing mazdoori (hard labour).”

Mertha’s life is harder because he must compete with scores of rural workers streaming into towns and cities after the mining ban, competing for fewer jobs than before. Mining continues illegally, but the ban has also slowed construction, which needs the sand, further squeezing jobs.

As sand-mining closes, more workers at labour hubs

Saurati Devi (45) and husband Rameshwar (49)–he uses one name–explained how they left Tonk city for Jaipur, 100 km to the north, after they lost their jobs to the sand-mining ban.

Her face lined and hands calloused, the effects of a lifetime of hard labour, Devi said she and Rameshwar, both illiterate, found work for no more than eight days a month, down from about 20 in Tonk.

“I have sent my son (who now studies in a college) back to Tonk,” said Devi, “Because it was difficult to afford the expense of having him here.”

Saurati Devi (centre) and her husband left Tonk city for Jaipur after they lost their jobs to the sand-mining ban. In the capital, the couple found work for no more than eight days, down from about 20 back in Tonk.

Their income is down by half to Rs 8,000 per month since 2017.

“People are forced to work on low wages because there isn’t work,” said Tarachand Verma, a lawyer at the Rajasthan High Court and an associate at the Human Rights Law Network, an advocacy. Even when there was more work, the options for daily wage workers were limited.

There are no official data, but about half the state’s 69 million people are workers–30 million on daily wage labour–according to estimates from the Nirman Mazdoor Union.

More than 3.5 million are construction workers, 2 million work in mining, 1 million in brick kilns, 500,000 in dyeing and printing, 200,000 in the gems and jewellery industry and 3 million on farms, the group estimates.

It was in gems and jewellery sector that we found the greatest anger at demonetisation and GST.

‘From a contractor I became a labourer, thanks to BJP’

Lalaram Chowdhury, 40, seethed with anger at the mention of demonetisation and the GST.

Once the owner of a gemstone-cutting and polishing factory, which he started in 2008, earning up to Rs 40,000 a month after expenses and employing 25 workers, we found Chowdhury at the Sitapur choukdi–looking for a job. He now travels 14 km to and fro by bus to Sitapur, earning up to Rs 10,000 and finds work for 14 days every month.

At first glance, Chowdhury looked out of place, dressed as he was smartly, in a black-and-white checked shirt, jacket and a grey muffler. A closer look revealed his jacket had faded. He has bought no clothes for two years, he said, and his family–parents, wife and two children, all of whom he supports–grow vegetables at home to save money.

Lalaram Chowdhury, once the owner of a gemstone-cutting and polishing factory, sold the factory’s machines, paid his 25 workers and gave up his dream. Today, he survives on manual labour, earning up to Rs 10,000, and finds work for 14 days every month.

“I lost Rs 200,000 in a year after demonetisation, and then GST came, so I had to close down the factory in December 2017,” Chowdhury said. He sold the factory’s machines, paid his workers and gave up his dream, although he continues to live in the three-bedroom house he built in 2013.

“I will not vote for BJP in the [2019] Lok Sabha elections,” said Chowdhury. “Because of their policies, I became a labourer from a contractor.”

It did not help that demonetisation and GST arrived at a time when Chinese machines were reducing manual labour in the gems and jewellery industry.

Dressed in jeans and a blue, checked shirt, Ramphool Haritwal, 36, the owner of a gem-cutting factory in the Jaipur neighbourhood of Sanganer and a 10-year veteran of the industry, explained how Chinese machine tools had reduced manual work by 60%.

Over a year, Haritwal has cut his workforce from seven to three. Previously, raw gemstones needed to be cut, shaped and polished before being sold to jewellers. “Now, with the arrival of Chinese machines, all this work is done in one place,” said Haritwal.

Ramphool Haritwal, 36, the owner of a gem-cutting factory in the Jaipur neighbourhood of Sanganer and a 10-year veteran of the industry, explained how Chinese machine tools had reduced manual work by 60%. Over a year, Haritwal has cut his workforce from seven to three.

Demonetisation and GST, he said, broke their economic chain. A 0.25% GST rate on cut and polished diamonds and precious stones ended the businesses of small units that survived for decades on marginal incomes. The son of farmers, whose parents now live with him, Haritwal’s earnings decreased from Rs 25,000-Rs 30,000 every month to between Rs 10,000-Rs 15,000 at present.

The jewellery industry ran on cash, and with demonetisation and a government decision to limit cash purchases of jewellery to Rs 200,000–with the worthy aim of curbing unaccounted cash transactions and widening the tax net–the industry has been unable to cope, said Amit Basole, an economics professor at Bengaluru’s Azim Premji University.

“Due to lack of demand for gems and jewellery, we had to remove workers,” said Kailash Mittal, 53, president of the Jaipur Sarafa (jewellery) Traders’ Committee. Mittal owns a jewellery shop, where he has cut his workforce from 10 to six. By his estimation, the majority of those who drive electric rickshaws in Jaipur were once jewellery designers and gems cutters.

As Jaipur’s economy was wrecked, the government has always been many steps behind in addressing the resulting employment problem.

Social security programmes late, inadequate

In 1996, the Building and Other Construction Workers (BOCW) Act was passed, intending to register all unorganised sector workers so they could benefit from government welfare and social-security programmes. Rajasthan implemented the law 13 years after it was passed and created a labour welfare board.

In theory, this should have led to substantial benefits for the state’s masses of informal workers: education and skill development; life insurance; compensation for accidental death or injury; maternity benefits; bicycles and more.

So far, 2.3 million labourers have been registered in the state, according to CBS Rathore, additional commissioner of Rajasthan’s labour department, and Rs 2,200 crore collected as labour cess.

But no more than 73%, or Rs 1,600 crore, has been spent, and no more than 23.9%, or 550,000 workers, have benefitted, Rathore said.
Government tardiness was revealed during a 2018 social audit ordered by the Supreme Court in Salumbar block of Udaipur district. The report revealed that 22% of informal workers received benefits more than four to six months after submitting applications, 6.43% after seven to nine months and 4.56% after almost a year. The report also revealed that 39% of the 1,400 workers surveyed were not labourers, calling into question the government’s database.

Rathore acknowledged that the last two to three years had affected workers. “But the responsibility of getting them work is the industrial department’s, not ours,” he said, adding that his department only implements welfare schemes.

Santosh Poonia, programme manager at Aajeevika Bureau, an organisation that helps labourers secure livelihood, blamed the labour department for “negligence and oversight” in registering those who were not labourers under the BOCW law. Many were so registered, alleged Poonia, by bribing registering officers.

Rathore, the labour department additional commissioner, denied allegations of negligence and corruption, saying benefits of all schemes had been given to registered labourers on time.

The Centre and state have presented no long-term solutions to rural unemployment. The new Congress government, which took office in December 2018, started the Kaam Mango Abhiyan, or Ask-for-Work campaign, under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), a rural jobs programme, demand for which increased when the campaign ran–initially, from January 5 to January 20, 2019, with a further extension to February 28.

More than 2.5 million have thus sought work, according to the government.

To address the issue of informal employment, the Congress had promised labour welfare boards in its manifesto before assembly elections in December 2018, but there has been no further word.

“The newly-formed Rajasthan government has not put forward any plans for employment of educated youth, although their unemployment allowance has increased from Rs 3,000 to Rs 3,500 per month,” said Poonia.

Back at Gurjar ki Thadi, Mertha, the unemployed arts graduate, echoed the sentiments of other daily-wage labourers. “The government is not able to provide even small jobs,” he said. “Elections are held every time, promises are made to change everything, but nothing changes. In 2014, Narendra Modi had said that he would give 2 crore (20 million) jobs every year, but I read in the newspaper a few days ago that highest unemployment in 45 years has been recorded in his rule.”

At Thadi market choukdi, former farmers Saini and Devi term the 2019 general elections of little relevance. “My understanding of politics is very poor,” said Devi. “[All I know is] it is very difficult for workers to arrange for morning and evening meals. The government does not make any difference to any of us.”

Around her, most workers nodded in silent agreement.

This is the second of 11 reports. Here is the previous story from Indore.

(Sharma is a Jaipur-based freelance writer and a member of 101Reporters.com, a pan-India network of grassroots reporters.)

We welcome feedback. Please write to respond@indiaspend.org. We reserve the right to edit responses for language and grammar.

Courtesy: India Spend

Watch | Artists unite against assault on culture and freedom

By

-

March 11, 2019

0

More than 200 artists, poets, writers, singers, performers, theatre artists, photographers and filmmakers came together to celebrate and demonstrate unity through their art.

The “Artists Unite!” platform held a convention in Delhi on 2 & 3 March 2019, and simultaneously similar events nationwide on these dates to, “weigh in with a collective voice, and with a creative energy that asserts arts and literature as a means of resistance to the hate politics that is sweeping the country and to mitigate the challenges to democracy.”

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum

‘Bahujan Victory’: Ordinance restores 200-point roster system for Universities

By

-

March 11, 2019

0

Following countrywide protests, the much-criticised 13-point roster system for Indian universities has been overturned and the original 200-point roster system has been restored.

The 200-point roster system ensured that teaching positions were reserved by treating the university as one unit. So, a deficit of reserved seats in one department could be compensated by more people from the reserved communities in other departments. However, the 13-point roster considers each department as one unit. So, for at least one appointment from each reserved category to be applicable, there must be a minimum of 14 appointments made (hence the term 13-point roster). This can have an adverse impact on the reservation and hence resulted in anger among marginalised communities.

The 13-point roster was first passed by the Allahabad High court and then upheld by the Supreme Court.

Following the SC order, several teachers’ associations wrote to the Ministry of Human Resources and Development and the Union Cabinet approved the ordinance on March 7 to restore the 200-point roster system. Thousands came out in protest against the 13 point roster demanding to #BringBack200pointroster

A nation wide Bharat bandh was also organised on 5th March on the issue of the 13 point roster and Forest rights.

The same day the ordinance was passed, the UGC ordered all central, state and deemed universities to resume the recruitment of teachers which had been put on hold from July 2018.

The SC order had seen a lot of backlash in various universities in the country including JNU, Delhi. Speaking to TwoCircles.net, Deeksha Rahul, an MA Sociology student from JNU and a member of Birsa Ambedkar Phule Students Association (BAPSA) said, “The protest against 13-point roster is a concrete example of agitation advocating the collective dissent by people over the denial of a constitutional right by the Supreme Court. The fight against 13-point roster is against the Brahmanical idea for keeping away the marginalised from their constitutional right to representation.

“The 200-point system ordinance over the 13-point system is the success story of the Bahujans. Dr B.R. Ambedkar asked us to Educate, Agitate and Organise. When educated Bahujans start understanding the Brahmanical face of the system, they come together to agitate for their rights and organise themselves for the assertion of unity and strength.”

Akash Poyam, Founding Editor of Adivasi Resurgence told TwoCircles.net, “The ordinance is a victory of people’s movement and of all the students who vehemently protested against the 13-point roster. It was a clear threat to the majority of marginalised communities from the SC, ST, OBC communities. For example, ST representation did not even come under the 13-point system and was placed at the 14th number.”

Courtesy: Two Circle

Be careful of what you read and watch on the social media

By

-

March 11, 2019

0

There are organised attempts to emotionally excite individuals and influence their political preferences by disseminating fake information before the Lok Sabha elections, says Pratik Sinha, Founder-Editor, Alt News, in an exclusive interview with Newsclick.

There are organised attempts to emotionally excite individuals and influence their political preferences by disseminating fake information before the Lok Sabha elections, says Pratik Sinha, Founder-Editor, Alt News, in an exclusive interview with Newsclick.

Courtesy: News Click

#MahaDrought: Farm Failure Spurs ‘Permanent’ Migration from Marathwada

By

-

March 9, 2019

0

Maharashtra’s Marathawada is amongst worst-hit regions by the drought this year. Newsclick travelled to Marathwada to get a glimpse into the plight of people, especially youth, across region.

three young boys leaving for Pune from Chinchpur Dhage

The heart-wrenching story of Akshay Tambe’s suicide in mid-February this year shocked Maharashtra, with outpourings on social media. Tambe, 22, committed suicide in his village Chinchpur Dhage of Bhoom tehsil in Osmanabad district after facing severe losses in his farmland. His dream of buying a four-wheeler and using it for taxi service in Pune was shattered. This tragic incident drew attention to the frustration that children of farmers are facing across Maharashtra. As also, it is a story of how permanent migration from agriculture is growing as a trend.

Tambe was helper at Pune’s petrol pump since the age of 19. He had dreamt of buying a car and becoming a taxi driver in Pune, around 450 kms from his native village in Marathwada. He saved Rs 80,000 from his monthly salary of Rs 11,000 over the three years for his dream.

But he knew that a new car needs down payment of a minimum of over Rs 1 lakh. So, with his two years of saving, Tambe decided to return to his native place, invest the same amount in onion crop and double the money in a single season. He invested the entire Rs 80,000 on onions. But his dream soon crashed, as sliding rates of onion just fetched him Rs 5,463. Reeling in deep shock, the 22-year-old committed suicide in the same farmland where he grew the onions.

Akshay Tambe’s father

The migration story of Marathwada has almost similar background of agriculture crisis in the region. “Around 12 boys from our village are now working in petrol pumps or as helpers or waiters in hotels of Pune. They don’t want to stay back in the village as they know that farming is a loss-making business,” said Vishal Dhage, Sarpanch of Chinchpur.

The Marathwada region has seen three droughts in the last seven years. Water table depletion has touched almost eight meters in the past five years. This has kicked off permanent migration in large numbers from Marathwada to cities, such as Pune in Maharashtra and Hyderabad in Telangana.

When Newsclick visited Chinchpur Dhage village, three boys in their 20s were leaving for Pune. All the three — Vishal Suravase (25), Ranjit Suravase (26) and Haridas Dhage (23) — work in petrol pumps in Pune and adjoining Pimpri Chinchwad and earn Rs 11,000 a month. “What do we do by staying back here? Farming doesn’t give us Rs 1 lakh per year. But any job in Pune does that,” said Vishal.

Mugav village of Nilanga tehsil in Nasik district has a similar story. Every household has one person working in Pune. “The youth don’t want to work in farms. They see how the returns over their labour are very low and many a times totally unpredictable. Ours is the last generation that worked hard here in farms. Now, given the choices, the youth will run away to cities,” said Pandurang Kawale.

Usually, there are two types of migration. One is when families go to cities and spent three to four months in periods of extreme droughts. This is temporary migration, which is just starting in Marathwada. As the winter period has extended in a large part of the country, the need of water was lower. But, as soon as summers hit, people will start leaving their homes.

However, this permanent migration from Marathwada is an altogether different story, tied to drought, agricultural crisis and depression.
There is another angle to this kind of migration. It is about young boys and girls shifting to Pune for competitive exams. They dream of breaking away from agriculture by becoming officers. It is roughly estimated that around one lakh youths from Marathwada are studying in Pune.

Kuldeep Ambekar, a young boy from Osmanabad, runs an organisation to help such students from drought-prone Marathwada. “Students helping hand”, the organisation that he runs along with his colleague Sandhya Sonavane helps students from Marathwada in different ways, including providing books, connecting them to affordable mess as well as hostels etc.

“This is one of the dimensions of migration. When we speak to the students, they open up with us. They say that farming is no more an option for them. So, they want jobs, mainly in government, through this,” said Kuldeep Ambekar.

“Girls too understand that less education is a trap to stay back in the same area. Their hopes are over from farming. So, all those who can afford to come here and study, don’t miss the chance,” said Sandhya.

“When we hear stories of farmer suicides while working in Pune, we always get disturbed. We literally see ourselves in their place. Sir, there is no future for us if we stay back. You may think that I am exaggerating, but you go and ask any boy. He will tell you same story,” said Haridas Dhage, sitting third on bike which is taking him to a nearby station for catching a train to Pune. His words at the age of 23 speaks the whole story of all that has gone wrong with agricutlure in Marathawada.

Courtesy: News Click

When National Security Is Reduced To Chest-Size And Debate Is “Anti-National”

By

-

March 9, 2019

0

The public speeches, statements and behaviour of BJP leaders hardly enhance the credibility of India. They want to turn the armed forces into an electoral ally with the blatant politicisation of their actions. This was typified in the statements of several BJP office bearers like BS Yeddyurappa, who said that his party would win 22 seats in Karnataka after the strike, or the Jharkhand BJP president, who claimed a win in all 14 seats in that state, or the Delhi BJP chief who tried a crass takeover of the Army uniform, flaunting it as though it were a party flag.

Image Courtesy: PTI

BJP president Amit Shah claims that 250 terrorists were killed in India’s air strike in Balakot while his colleague SS Ahluwalia, a minister in the Modi government, informs the country that in fact the aim was precisely to avoid human casualties in the Balakot strike; that it was meant to send a message to Pakistan. Who then is the liar? While the Foreign Secretary claims terrorists, their trainers and infrastructure were destroyed, the Air Force chief snubbed this kind of talk with his statement that it is not the job of the armed forces to count casualties. The international press has questioned the veracity of the figures of casualties and damage. But Prime Minister Narendra Modi skipped the meeting of opposition parties and even today, the government not just refuses to share information but also wants to silence questions with bullying, intimidation and accusations.

The post-Pulwama strategy of the ruling party for the forthcoming elections is clear enough. For the BJP and the cohorts of the Sangh Parivar, the effort is to convert the great exercise of parliamentary democracy into a platform where jingoism parades as nationalism, where national security is reduced to the size of the chest of the strongman and where all debate is damned as being “anti-national”. This is very convenient for the ruling party as it faces mounting public anger against its five years of rule, which has established records in promises betrayed. Now, instead of unemployment, agrarian distress and other issues of urgent importance to the citizens of India, the ruling party wants to shift the narrative. But for a few – very few – honourable exceptions, the satellite media has done everything it possibly can to support this strategy and to whip up war hysteria, to glorify government claims, to repeat vile accusations against opposition parties, to peddle lies and fake stories without even the pretense of an impartial check.

The opposition has accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his party, the BJP, of politicising the Balakot air strike

The strategy has an even darker side. Kashmir is also to be the centrepiece of the fake nationalist discourse, to contrast the “strong” measures taken by the Modi government as opposed to the opposition parties who talk of peace and dialogue. This was seen in the immediate aftermath of Pulwama, when Kashmiri students and traders in different parts of India were targeted and attacked. These were not spontaneous actions. They were led by members of the Sangh Parivar. Vicious statements against Kashmiris by those holding constitutional posts, such as Arunachal Pradesh Governor Tathaghat Roy, or by other BJP ministers, went without a reprimand, let alone sacking.

While the campaign will run its course, the impact of the toxins injected into the polity by it will have caused much damage to India, both at the international level and internally. And as for the electoral and political benefits that Modi ji and BJP president Amit Shah hope to gain from such a campaign, they may be in for a surprise as there are many uncomfortable questions, even within the framework they want to set, which will dog them in their campaign.

Take the Prime Minister’s recent tall talk about terrorism. He declared in Ahmedabad that he would “settle all scores with terrorists” and “hum unke ghar mein ghus ghus kar maarenge (we will go into their homes and kill them)”. Using the same invective and aggression, he targeted the opposition parties, accusing them of helping Pakistan. He then went on an exercise of self-praise, describing himself as a man who thinks only of the country, whose nature is never to wait long and to give replies immediately. Waving his hands around, he declared that “India is in safe hands”. He has even referred to his government prefixing his name – the Modi government – surely a first in India! I, Me, My. Someone should caution him that he is in danger of tripping over what seems to have become a rather oversized ego.

The Balakot air strike was India’s response to the suicide bombing by Jaish-e-Mohammed in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama

What is the record of his government?

Pulwama occurred when Jammu and Kashmir is under President’s Rule, directly under the central government. In January 2016, when the Pathankot attack took place, the BJP was in the state government too.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee for Home Affairs, which reviewed the security arrangements, had visited the airbase where the attack took place. It said in its report on May 3, “The committee is unable to understand how despite a terror alert (having been) sounded well in advance, the terrorists managed to breach the high-security airbase and subsequently attack it.” It declared that the “security cover at the airbase was not robust.” It mentioned that the perimeter wall was poorly guarded and the base did not have a road around it for patrolling.

Eight months later in September 2016, there was another attack in Uri and once again, the issue of intelligence agencies was raised. Modi ji used the same language as he does today and conducted what is referred to as a surgical strike, claiming to have inflicted serious damage to terrorist camps in Pakistan. But it is clear from the increase in terrorist attacks that it had no significant impact in either reducing or preventing such incidents.

Now once again in the Pulwama attack there are serious questions. How is it that a vehicle loaded with deadly explosives could escape security scrutiny? Who is responsible for this lack of intelligence information? Why were the minimum precautions of road clearance not maintained for such a large convoy of trucks carrying CRPF jawans? Why were proper arrangements for security not made? The Modi government wants to escape these questions with its rhetoric.

It claims it killed more terrorists than under any government.

The BJP wants to turn the armed forces into an electoral ally with the blatant politicisation of their actions, says the opposition

But what the BJP conceals is that it is on its watch, both in Delhi and as a partner in the coalition government in Jammu and Kashmir, that the number of terrorist incidents went up by 176 per cent and the loss of lives also increased.

In February, in a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Home Affairs Hansraj Ahir gave the information that there were 1,708 terrorist incidents between 2014 and 2018.

From 222 incidents in 2014, the figure decreased in 2015 to 208 incidents and then shot up to 614 terrorist incidents in 2018. The minister also informed parliament that in the same period, the number of civilians killed in Jammu and Kashmir was 138 – an increase of 35.71 per cent – and the number of security persons killed was 393, an increase of 93 per cent.

These figures reflect the result of the disastrous policies pursued by the Modi government in Jammu and Kashmir based on the ideological and political agenda of the Hindutva platform of Sangh Parivar. The refusal to accept the special status of Jammu and Kashmir granted by the Constitution of India, the refusal to open a political dialogue with all stakeholders in spite of the assurances given by Home Minister Rajnath Singh on the floor of parliament and the utter failure to implement a single programme of development for the people of the state are the hallmarks of this policy. There are no jobs and a total lack of opportunity; there is a serious agrarian crisis with low prices for agricultural products; the conditions of workers and employees are precarious. Where people’s frustration with their plight was high, the centre and the coalition government were totally insensitive to these requirements. On the contrary, instead of development, the people were met with state repression, leading to an unprecedented alienation of a very large section in the Valley.

Pulwama occurred when Jammu and Kashmir is under President’s Rule, directly under the central government

In 2014, the people of Jammu and Kashmir registered a high percentage of over 65 per cent in the vote for the state assembly, in spite of the threats of the separatists. The militants were isolated from the people who voted with some hope of development and peace. In five years the situation has changed so much so that in the Lok Sabha by-elections for the Srinagar seat, just about 7 per cent of people voted and the by-election for the Anantnag seat has still not been held.

Today, instead of an elected government, the people suffer under direct rule of Delhi, which makes matters worse. In these five years there has been the growing influence of Islamic fundamentalists destroying whatever remains of Kashmiriyat, and on the other hand, the increasing recruitment of local youth into the ranks of the extremists. The Modi government talks of Kashmir as a piece of territory, but never of the Kashmiri people.

It is well-known that Pakistan is providing the logistics in every sphere for terror attacks including the horrendous Pulwama attack. There is unanimity in supporting all government efforts to get Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar on the global terrorists’ list. But what of the battle to win back the minds and hearts of the people of Kashmir? The five years under the Modi government have highlighted the spectacular failure to do so.

Brinda Karat is a Politburo member of the CPI(M) and a former Member of the Rajya Sabha.

(This article was also carried on ndtv.com and is being published here with the permission of the author)

Plea to dismiss “anti-tribal, anti-forest dwellers” Supreme Court Order dated 13th February, 2019

By

-

March 9, 2019

0

Memorandum submitted by the Campaign for Survival and Dignity (CSD) to the President of India, the Odisha governor, and the Odisha chief minister, following a tribal and other forest dwellers rally in Bhubaneswar, asking the Supreme Court to scrap its order of February 13 on allegedly seeking to evict lakhs of forest dwellers from their land:

As you know that Campaign for Survival and Dignity (CSD), a national platform of tribal and other traditional forest dwellers’ organisations played a vital role in the enactment of the historic Forest Right Act by the parliament of India in 2006. In the act it is clearly admitted the forest rights and their habitats were not adequately recognised in the consolidation of state forest during the colonial period as well as independent India resulting in Historical Injustice to the forest dwelling scheduled tribe and other traditional forest dwellers who are integral to the very survival and sustainability of the forest eco system.

The provision under Section-4 is unambiguous and under this provision the government of India recognised and vested forest rights in the forest dwelling scheduled tribes and traditional forest dwellers. The provision under Section-6 is clear and unambiguous that the Gram sabha is the authority for the process of determining the nature and extent of individual or community forest rights of the scheduled tribe and other traditional forest dwellers.

We observed that from the beginning of coming to the power, the BJP government at the Centre is working against the historic Forest Rights Act, 2006. It brought anti-FRA, anti-tribals and forest dwellers CAMPA fund Act, 2016 , Anti-FRA-National Forest Policy, 2018 and have diverted huge forest land for no-forest uses bypassing the gram sabha. Now the 13th February 2019 Supreme Court eviction Order is an anti-tribals and forest dwellers is because of the failure on the part of the central government to defend the FRA in the Court.

While the Government of Odisha claiming to be No 1. In issuing highest IFR titles in the country, the government authorities with their colonial mind-set have bypassed Gram sabha and have not implemented the law in letter and spirit. The same historical injustice was committed when the government of Odisha filed an affidavit before the Supreme Court of India indicating that 573867 ST families made their claims and 31687 OTFD families made their claims over the forest lands and out of which 122250 claims of ST families and 26620 claims of OTFD families have been rejected. But it is a matter of serious concern that neither any Gram sabha nor any IFR claimant was given any opportunity before rejecting their claims by SDLC/DLC.

We, as a platform of the Scheduled Tribe and Other Forest Dwellers from the beginning of the implementation of the Act in the State, have been agitating all these matters before different quarters including approaching the door of Raj Bhawan which has a special authority in the Scheduled Areas of the State. The functionaries of the Government of Odisha did not pay any heed to individual grievances or grievances raised by any Gram Sabha or to our grievances raised at different levels for proper implementation of the act.

It is stated through an affidavit by the Government of Odisha that The Rejected Claims are being reviewed consequent upon this affidavit the Apex Court directed the Government to complete the process within four months.

The Order dated 13th February, 2019 of Apex Court noted that “Let the Chief Secretary to the State of Odisha indicate, by way of an affidavit, as to why after the rejection of the claims, which have attained finality, eviction has not been made. The Chief Secretary shall ensure that where the rejection orders have been passed, eviction will be carried out on or before the next date of hearing. In case the eviction is not carried out, as aforesaid, the matter would be viewed seriously by this Court.”

Thus if the 13th February Order of the SC is implemented, there will be mass eviction of lakhs of tribal and forest dwellers in the State because of the anti- people pro corporate and that to illegal and bureaucratic approach of the public functionaries holding different posts in the Government of Odisha.

And since most of the IFR titles 4, 22,384 (4, 22311 to STs and only 73 to OTFDs) over 2, 53,634 Hectares/6, 26,475.98 acres of forest land reported to have recognized are recognized in a haphazard way without proper demarcation leading to recognition of less area (not actual area under possession), they are also going to be evicted from their forest land by the SC Order. Besides, those who despite their occupation over forest land for generations have failed to file their IFR claims are definitely going to be evicted from their land. Even the status of recognition of Community rights in the State is very poor.

Thus to protest anti-tribal and forest dwellers approach of the government at the Centre, and also at the State and to demand to review and recall of the order of Supreme Court for forcible evictions, CSD is organising a mass protest rally on 7th March in State Capital, Bhubaneswar.

Our demands before the Central Government:

Dismiss the anti-tribal and anti-forest dwellers Supreme Court Order dated 13th February, 2019.
Scrap Anti- FRA Campa Fund Act-2016 and National Forest Policy-2018.
Bring amendments in all acts and rules like Bio diversities Act-2002, Wildlife Protection Act-1972, Forest Conservation Act-1980, Indian Forest Act-1927, Coal Bearing Act-1957 and all forest policy related to Minor Forest Produces etc. which have been main hindrance in the implementation of FRA-2006.
No diversion of Forest Land for Non-Forest Activities without proposal and recognition of Gram Sabhas.

Demands before the State Government:

Send back all so-called rejected, approved and pending IFR claims to the concerned Gram Sabhas, the real authority for reconsideration and appropriate action as per Rule-12A(6) FRA Rules-2012.
Stop correction of ROR of Forest Lands issued without demarcation
Stringent Action must be taken against the Government Officials who have discouraged and deprived Other Traditional Forest Dwellers to file their IFR in different districts, arbitrarily documentary evidence have been prioritised and oral evidence of elders bypassed, 629 issued IFR titles have been cancelled in Sundargarh district.
Recognise the Community Forest Rights over forest resources as per 3(1)(i) of FRA-2006 & respect the Forest Protection Management Committee formed under Sec-4(e) of FRA Rules-2007 and dissolve V.S.S form under JFM.
Identify all forest/un-surveyed villages falling in reserve forest area and convert them into revenue villages.
Withdraw all forest offence cases filed against tribal and forest dwellers using different sections of Indian Forest Act, 1927, FCA, 1980 and WLP Act, 1972 before and after FRA- 2006.

We demand Panchyat in every village, 70% quorum of the Gram Sabha, no representation of government official in any executive body of the Gram Sabha and direct flow of all funds to the Gram Sabhas.

We demand to inform the Campaign(CSD) what action have been taken based under the direction of Honourable Governor of Odisha (Vide Reference Number-CN/47/2018, Memo No- 5679SG/Dated 6.10.18) to the Chief Secretary of Odisha on the memorandum submitted by CSD, Odisha dated 28th September, 2018.

Courtesy:Counter View

World Development Report fails to suggest need for social protection from private sector

The World Development Report (WDR) is the World Bank’s development research and policy review report published annually. Started by IBRD since 1978, this report is intended to provide deep and extensive analysis on one particular aspect of economic development, every year.

Graduate, Factory Owner, Farmers Seek Labour Jobs In Jaipur’s Wrecked Informal Economy

Watch | Artists unite against assault on culture and freedom

More than 200 artists, poets, writers, singers, performers, theatre artists, photographers and filmmakers came together to celebrate and demonstrate unity through their art.

‘Bahujan Victory’: Ordinance restores 200-point roster system for Universities

Following countrywide protests, the much-criticised 13-point roster system for Indian universities has been overturned and the original 200-point roster system has been restored.

Be careful of what you read and watch on the social media

There are organised attempts to emotionally excite individuals and influence their political preferences by disseminating fake information before the Lok Sabha elections, says Pratik Sinha, Founder-Editor, Alt News, in an exclusive interview with Newsclick.

#MahaDrought: Farm Failure Spurs ‘Permanent’ Migration from Marathwada

Maharashtra’s Marathawada is amongst worst-hit regions by the drought this year. Newsclick travelled to Marathwada to get a glimpse into the plight of people, especially youth, across region.

When National Security Is Reduced To Chest-Size And Debate Is “Anti-National”

Plea to dismiss “anti-tribal, anti-forest dwellers” Supreme Court Order dated 13th February, 2019

JOIN OUR MAILING LIST

JOIN OUR MAILING LIST

Important Links

Other Links

CONNECT