By Dr. Maskoor Ahmad Usmani, TwoCircles.net
Establishments around the world are trembling, and people have lost faith in capitalism. Earlier people from lower strata thought that there are various opportunities in big cities and big companies or factories. They thought that their rights are protected and they can raise their voice in their union and get their proper share of wages and facilities. But the pandemic of COVID-19 revealed to them the true face of capitalism. The big capitalists in the country contributed to the PM Cares and CM Cares fund but didn’t pay any heed to the deteriorating conditions of their labourers in the so-called industrial cities. Their trains were cancelled by state governments under the pressure of a handful of construction mafias. Then came the dilution of labour laws in BJP ruled states UP, MP, Gujarat and other states. These are on its way to achieving the so-called trillion economy at the cost of the life of those who put the economy at the right place.
In India, seed sowing of Kharif crops will be affected badly which may lead to food security issues if it’s not properly managed. Those labourers reaching home have lost faith in big industries and capitalism. They are not in a mood to return and work where they were left stranded to die and go on foot to their homes. They will prefer to go on roots and rather focus on agricultural-based work in their respective villages.
Recently on TV, PM Modi announced a 20 Lakh crore package which seems to be a gimmick and mockery. It says that the government will guarantee the loan to the bank without any collateral, which is going to shake the banking system badly as these loans will reach to the upper strata only and not those who need it. It will open a Pandora box for NPA and corruption.
Amid these crucial times, it becomes highly important to analyse the role of the government in dealing with the pandemic and other crises which comes as a byproduct. We know that the Indian economy is mostly unorganised, more than 22% of the population lives below the poverty line. Experts say that more than 110 million people will lose their jobs in India. Many research organisations have estimated a negative growth rate of GDP.
As India went under continuous lockdown from March 23rd, 2020, it is seen that migrant workers and labourers have been trying to come back to their homes on foot. Many have lost their lives on the way. Later trains which were set to bring them back home lost their way and were moving on tracks for seven or eight days. The poor were deprived of food and shelter. Many lost their lives while battling for survival.
The purpose of lockdown was to flatten the growth curve of coronavirus positive cases. But what we have seen is that there has been an exponential growth in the cases in the last sixty days. The government was also seeking time to settle the stranded and prepare itself medically to fight the pandemic. But what is seen is a clear paradoxical situation. The country has been pushed into a more jeopardised situation.
These situations testify to the fact that there has been a complete governance fiasco. The government must come under public scrutiny and be held liable for the massive failures and lost lives. Rather than working for welfare, the government is trying to subdue the voices raised against it. Many prominent activists and students have been arrested as they were critical of the dispensation. The same old game is being played by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party to lure its robust supporters and increase its partisanship by hiding their failure in the name of nationalism and Pakistan. If at this point the government is not criticised and their accountability isn’t questioned, I believe that we are moving towards a totalitarian state form being a world largest democracy.
Dr. Maskoor Ahmad Usmani is a Political activist and Former President of Aligarh Muslim University Student’s Union. He can be contacted at [email protected]. He tweets at @MaskoorUsmani.