India's National Food IN-Security

The country’s GDP is reeling under the pressure of Eurozone and global economic turbulence, the Indian currency is rapidly loosing its sheen, the markets throbbing with negative anticipation and each of the centre’s political allies relentlessly pushing for their pound of flesh! Did Pranab Babu, the Brahmin from Kirnahar and the perpetual second-in-command in successive Congress governments, have a choice but to declare austerity measures and a slow withdrawal of fuel subsidies? Apparently none. But why then the Government, didn’t press the button a little earlier by controlling the expenses on the lame duck President’s insipid foreign visits? Why then the state is contemplating building a 4,500 square feet sprawling bunglow, in Pune Cantonment area, for the President’s post retirement stay, wasting a few more precious crores? This at a time when the State has failed miserably in its duty to ensure food and nutrition for poorest of the poor of this country.

The article 47 of the Indian constitution says, “The State shall regard the raising of the level of nutrition and the standard of living of its people and the improvement of public health as among its primary duties”. Even the Supreme Court has linked citizens’ right to food to their fundamental rights, hearing PILs and delivering judgements and observations in atleast 65 cases, since 2011, related to hunger, malnutrition, food and social insecurity, etc. But does anyone believe that the Government has paid any heed to the Apex court’s call for accountability and action?

Innumerable Indians die of starvation and malnutrition. The numbers are appalling and scary. The Great Indian Food Paradox is that every year millions of tonnes of food grains are left to rot and are scandalously wasted, in absence of adequate and proper storage space and competent supply chain strategies. Ceaselessly kept on its toe by its political allies the Government continues to be burdened with the weight of the great Indian populist politics, and is obliged to be the largest single buyer of the gross national agricultural produce, in the name of a systemically flawed concept called ‘national food security’ – a misnomer in a country where well over 30% of the population are reeling under intense poverty and are struggling to secure one measly square meal a day.

The Government hardly has an alternative when it comes to buying the agricultural produce to try and protect the farmers from resorting to distress sale of food grains in case of bumper crops. Smarting under the compulsions of coalition politics, the UPA Government keeps on pleasing agricultural lobbies by ensuring basic minimum price of purchase, completely regardless of the demand-supply theory as well as the health of its very own coffer. Every lawmaker in the parliament sings to the same tune and never questions the populist yet chronically inefficient method of the Central food procurement policy.

The fact remains unchanged and is in the public domain, that incredible amounts of food grains are wasted year after year, due to the sheer incompetence of the successive Governments in providing adequate storage or establishing a properly functioning supply chain. Neither the Babus nor the Netas are willing to question the terribly flawed system, resulting in colossal wastage of accumulated stocks, left to rot under the vagaries of merciless weather conditions in open and unprotected spaces. The saddest dilemma is that if the Government sanctions funds for building up a chain of state-owned godowns, its treasury would fall short of the money required to purchase food grains from the farmers, to hoard up the godowns built on public money in the first place. What a damning irony at hand!

Another pertinent question is then why doesn’t the Government just use up the surplus crops and distribute them at subsidised rates through public distribution system? The answer is simple: transportation costs, system inefficiencies, leakages, pilferages, theft and manipulation by local officials and dealers would jack up the cost of distribution quite a few notches above the cost of storing them in open spaces.

So would it help bringing in supply chain specialists, who have the knowledge, experience, moolah and intention with no compulsion other than that of practicality, economy and commerce? Would our quintessential political class, raise themselves above serving their petty political interests, by grabbing onto an opportunity to show that they care? Or would FDI in Retail continue to be the favourite whipping boy for the legislators, especially the ones who are happy to keep a seriously starved nation hanging on its hinges, and sacrificing pure economic logic and larger good on the altar of dumb regional politics?!

 

Pic courtesy: various news sources     

Who needs constitutional puppets anyway?

The current Indian President’s foreign visits spanning over the last half-a-decade have driven an incredibly large hole, deep into the pockets of the national exchequer, funded by the struggling taxpayers.  Her ‘official’ wanderlust, along with her kin, has made the country poorer by a whopping 205 crore, breaking all records with aplomb. The president’s itchy feet achieved the nearly impossible feat, while millions of Indians are left smarting under intense poverty, crippling inflation, endless corruption and dumb Indian politics.

The President, while talking to leading Indian news channels recently, justified her foreign trips claiming that her visits ‘go a long way in boosting India’s image internationally’! She described her 20 plus foreign trips to be ‘very successful’ in promoting India's growing image abroad and strengthen the country's ties with those nations. Beat that!

 ... is this the great Nehruvian socialist dream we all dreamt of?

From as much as I have followed the ‘ghoongta’ flaunting, coy demeanored lady during her tenure, with little or no demonstrated ‘aura’-tory or oratory skills, I am at my wits end to understand how her visits would ‘enhance’ the image of a modern, rising, new India to the rest of the world! Titular constitutional heads like the President or the Governors, in their current avatars, hardly have any influence on the Indian socio-economic or foreign policies. Some of them even get chosen based on their political affiliation that betrays their personal merit or caliber for the post. After more than half century of trials and tribulations of independent India, do we still need to continue with these useless constitutional posts and continue to drain tax payer money, those could well be used to alleviate deeper socio-economic problems like national ‘food security’?

Main bhi Anna Hazare !

Anna Sahib enters the fourth day of his fast and declares a “Jail Bharo” movement across the nation on 12^th of April even as the Government hardens its stand on the “jan lokpal bill panel”. The government calls it coercion politics. I am not sure what they meant and if they expected a 72 year old social activist along with millions of other ‘jagrook’ Indians to BEG for a genuine and just demand of the Indian people, which has been swept aside by successive governments and prime ministers, decade after decade, to save their glorified bottoms fed and bred on the taxpayers money. Kapil Sibbal declared today that no politician would be allowed to be a panel member, if a civilian chairs the panel. What audacity and ego of an elected representative, who finds it inappropriate and below dignity for a member of the parliament to perform under the chairmanship of a civilian, who incidentally allowed the politician with an opportunity to represent the civil society in the parliament!! Kapil has rejected the names (Justice G.S. Verma & Lokayukta Santosh Hegde) suggested by the Civil Society. Sibbal wants a leading politician (read one of the thieves) to head the panel, to be entrusted to set-up an anti-corruption body, which would end corruption in India and bring all corrupt organizations, politicians, public service officials and Babus (read the pack of thieves, looters and dacoits) to justice. Can you imagine the fallacy?

Let the Government ignore the signs to it own peril. Let them underestimate the growing solidarity amongst the citizens, cutting across all sections of the society and all parts of the geographical territory at their own risk. Let them wait for the time when a Jantar Mantar is transformed into a Tahrir Square.

As per the Indian constitution these lawmakers selected to various legislative bodies are mere servants of the Indian democracy and Indian people. They are not the masters of the people, certainly not monarchs of the land. They are simply the elected and paid bearers of the wishes of over a billion Indians. And this is no emotional statement of frustrated Indian tax payer … this is a fact as per the Indian constitution, celebrated as the most sacred testament of Indian democracy!

Very few of us are aware of the constitutional name of this great country, as mentioned in the Preamble. But we should be since it’s not just a name, it’s the summary of what our founding fathers wanted us to become post independence. It underscores the rights and values the India society, its people and the nation as a whole is expected to enjoy, receive and deliver – “Sovereign Socialist Secular Democratic Republic of India”.

Sovereignty:

How it should be –  India is supposed be the supreme, independent authority of its territory, has complete and sole rights in deciding, determining and executing all policy matters of national relevance - civil, political, military, economic, territorial integrity, India’s foreign policy, et all. No other country, groups or any foreign and external entity can direct, determine or influence our policies.

How it actually has been – Ask Montek Singh Ahluwalia (America’s primary conduit for influencing Indian policy matters, directly or indirectly related to American and its allies’ interests, globally), and a host of other Indian lawmakers and public service Babus.

Socialism:

How it should be – The principle of socialism says that the State should strike to achieve the greatest good for the greatest number of its people which is essential for the purpose of establishing an egalitarian society.  The Indian Constitution makers opted for a path involving slow, regulated and planned growth to ensure inclusive socio-economic development of the nation, and with the idea of establishing a welfare state where all policies, regulations and government activities are expected to be designed and directed towards the development and welfare of the masses. Indian constitution emphasizes the need for ownership, control and distribution of national productive wealth for the benefit and use of the community and its components and condemns any system or machinery of misuse of its resources for selfish ends.

How it actually has been – India houses a third of the world’s poor. The Arjun Sengupta Report (from National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganised Sector) states that 77% of Indians live on less than 20 rupees a day (about $0.50 per day) while the N.C. Saxena Committee report states that 50% of Indians live below the poverty line. As per World Bank estimates, by 2015 (almost 70 years post independence), an estimated 53 million people will still live in extreme poverty and 23.6% of the population will still live under US$1.25 per day!

We indeed have a very very slow growth pattern but certainly not an inclusive one (consider the Indian socio-economic scenario which is ridden with gross inequalities). A super-power with nearly half of its population reeling under extreme poverty. An egalitarian nation, ranking very high on global corruption index, with black money stashed in foreign banks amounting to multiples of India’s massive GDP. A socialist country with its annual military expenditures amounting to more than thrice that of the money required to allow two square meals a day for a year to nearly 600 million people of this country. Mera Bharat Mahan!!  

Secularism:

How it should be – The constitution urges the lawmakers, governments, legislative and administrative bodies to by and large remain indifferent towards religious influences, whilst policy making. The constitution seeks to promote religious pluralism in India where practising his or her religion of choice is a fundamental right of every Indian citizen. Each Indian is also required to abide by his or her fundamental duty of respecting all other religions practiced in India along with the rights of their followers.  

How it actually has been – We still get political parties winning elections promising more Mandirs uprooting Masjids. We still have people exercising democratic rights in the name of Jihad!! We still have politicians, public servants, and extremists behind the veil of NGOs and socio-religious groups fanning religious riots and mass murders as a matter of state’s strategy, while successive governments, administration and judiciary turning a blind eye to all such gross violations of basic human rights in India.

Democratic:

How it should be – Of the people, by the people, for the people.

How it actually has been – Do I need to say anything on the wonderful D-word, used, re-used, misused and royally abused, day in and day out in the parliament, legislative assemblies, public forums, political rallies, media, and every other platform made available to our fiery Netas and Netris .  The only time I see the politicians and Indian lawmakers talk about, promote and practice democracy are when they are caught in crisis or when they can visualize an impending electoral gain that can be derived from it. 

The Indian lawmakers, the executioners, the reformists, the regulators and the champions of democracy are all selected (not elected … remember, we just vote for/make a choice amongst the lot presented to us by political and administrative outfits … that’s hardly a choice), and are accountable to the centralised power centres and political aspirants. Hence the deeply entrenched corruption at all sections and levels.

Our democracy is anything but of the people, by the people, for the people.

Republic:

How it should be – It implies that India is not a monarchy, that it’s an independent territory and not a dominion of any other nation. That its people have the right to self determination, right to select its own representatives to run the country, right to enjoy all the national resources, duty to protect territorial integrity and the dignity and rights of its fellow citizens. That it is the people of this country who are the collective owners of its prosperity and well-being.

How it actually has been – I leave it for my readers to judge on how we have fared as a Republic.

Jai Hind !

Our national motto has been Satyameva Jayate. Time has finally come for truth to reign supreme. Time has come for us to seek justice, seek the truth, seek the correct interpretation and execution of the Indian constitution.  Time has come for us to rise and say “Main bhi Anna Hazare”  

Pics courtesy: The Times of India