Ref:- Jurisdictionally confused India will have to adopt genuine federalism.
Dear Sir
Amidst the hullabaloo of last week’s Indian share market crises (where in the face of allegedly ailing US economy, SENSEX again crashed heavily with attended heart burns in secondary market and primary market also faced problems as the IPO of reputed companies were either withdrawn or caused heavy losses to investors) the people have generally ignored a very important & unfortunate development i.e. last week’s media coverage of :-
(a)- Starvation in Bundelkhand region (comprising the States of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh) and its repercussions in U.P. Assembly (where rowdy scenes were witnessed allegedly to draw attention of Government towards abject poverty & starvation in Bundelkhand).
(b)- Large scale irregularities in and poor implementation of National Rural Employment Guarantee Program (NREGP) in most of the States of India.
This might not have perturbed India and international human rights activists and forums (including UN) much, because it might have been taken as another such example in the backdrop of on-going starvation triggered suicides of farmers in Maharashtra etc. but this too (in tandem with such cases of starvation in other parts of India) has the potential of not only changing the entire economical – political life of India but it will have global implications also as given below:-
(1)- It is amazing that neither politicians / media of India nor the world community is asking that why are so much starvation / suicides and mass unemployment / underemployment in different parts of India especially when NREGP and world renowned economists Manmohan, Chidambaram & Ahluwalia (Prime Minister, Finance Minister & Planning Commission Dy. Chairman) are in place? The answer is simple that India does not have Rs. 10 Trillion to spend annually without which NREGP has no meaning or relevance to Indian conditions.
(2)- No sensible person in India including Governments of India (GOI) and its States believe that 8-10 % consistent GDP growth rate (which, as presently will always benefit only a small segment of Indian population) will automatically solve the problem of large scale unemployment / underemployment of India due to trickle down effect. What to talk of short term, even after a decade (which India does not have politically) of such GDP growth, it will not percolate to a grass root level where burning unemployment / underemployment problem of India can have any respite worth the name.
(3)- NREGP is the only hope and future of irresponsible India (which procreated profusely and allowed its population to triple since independence to a present level of 1,130 Million assuming that it is white men’s burden to feed India). NREGP is going to directly hit the nail by employing about 200 million unskilled Indians (if present government data & NGO reports are any indication) thus sustaining half of poor India. And whether some people like & accept it or not but it is going to cost about Rs.10 Trillion annually (when NREGP is implemented fully within another two years where it will employ both the spouses in all the about 600 districts for 300 hundred working days at statutory minimum wages) where productive assets will have to be created by NREGP (in order to also boost revenue generation) which will require not only unskilled soil digging labor but also semi skilled / skilled labor and supervisory & administrative staff in addition to huge material cost for creating these productive assets.
[Rs. 3.6 Trillion for unskilled labor @ Rs. 60/- per day+ Rs. 2.4 Trillion for semi skilled / skilled labor and supervisory & administrative staff at 60:40 unskilled to skilled workers ratio + Rs. 4 Trillion for material cost at 60:40 wages to material ratio = Rs.10 Trillion per year].
(4)- Under the inexorable pressure of unemployed masses of India in favor of efficient NREGP, the GOI will soon be constrained to relinquish all the jurisdictions (like health, education, roads, power, natural resources, minerals etc.) which it has usurped / still trying to usurp from the States in utter disregard to the principles of federalisms. Thus GOI will be constrained to confine itself to – in addition to traditional martial jurisdictions of defense, internal security etc. to its legitimate & necessary jurisdiction (in contemporary world) of basic human right of livelihood (through NREGP). This is the only way the financial resources of GOI can be diverted to NREGP instead of wasting it on usurped jurisdictions.
(5)- Such a gigantic task of employing about half the working age Indians at the cost of about Rs. 10 Trillion (presently revenue receipts of GOI will go maximum up to only Rs. 4 Trillion and GOI in any case will be able to spare maximum Rs. 1 Trillion for NREGP) will further constrain GOI to take this program departmentally in its own hands and not to leave it (as presently) to the hotchpotch functionaries of States and Gram Panchayats (local bodies), if efficiency and financial discipline are to be maintained (which will be the pressing necessity for such a massive program).
(6)- If communism is basically about providing employment by Government to the majority of its people (by owning the means of production or otherwise) then India (the largest democracy of the world) has already adopted communism at least by 50 % through NREGP. Now to what extent this 50 % communism with a daunting task of mobilizing about Rs 9 Trillion extra than present revenue income of GOI will have implication on the following, is any body’s guess:-
(i)- Present form of democracy in India which has so far failed to bring the problems, issues and potential of NREGP (vis-à-vis the solution of mass unemployment / underemployment & starvation of majority of Indians) to the fore, may precipitate its demise and may pave the way for the diarchy form of democracy with great implications not only for this region of Asia (where Federation / United States of Democratic Secular SAARC countries is only a matter of time) but also globally.
(ii)- India has been undisciplined monetarily, where in the past it generated huge amount of money illegally by printing currency without proper asset back up despite Article 292 & 293 of the Constitution of India. But this time in order to meet this annual gigantic requirement of additional about Rs. 9 Trillion for NREGP India will not be able to do so because world community will oppose it (as it will have grave implications to global monetary system, especially in this age of globalization where huge amount of foreign monies are entering various countries).
(iii)- Therefore in order to raise extra Rs. 9 Trillion for NREGP India should switch over to a new monetary system (may be with non-metallic asset backup along with its constructive possession with currency issuing authority or any other monetary system which will serve this purpose).
Yours truly
Hem Raj Jain
208, Supriya, Plot # 20, Sector – 10, Dwarka, New Delhi -110075, INDIA.
Ph: – +91 11 32940177, Mob: 09871194983