Self-deception, Not Self-Reliance
Two forms of ‘Mann Ki Baath’ are being heard in the country. One is the anguished ‘Mann Ki Baath’ of farmers and migrant labourers. The other is the ‘Mann Ki Baath’ that resembles the speech of a primary school boy delivered by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Farmers all across the country are hitting the streets and protesting. In Punjab, normal life has been thrown out of gear with continuous agitations and ‘rail rokos’. Mumbai has come to a standstill. In Karnataka, farmers’ organisations have observed a bandh on September 28. But people’s heartfelt anguish and their clarion calls for help are not reaching the government. Amidst protests, anti-farmer and anti-labour bills are getting approved.
In this situation, enacting a political drama in the state, the Opposition, especially, the Congress moved a no-confidence motion against the BJP government of Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa. Although it was clear that the Congress could not unseat the government, it is a mystery why the Congress came forward with such a move. Other than providing an occasion for a discussion on the provisions of various anti-farmer laws that the government wanted to push ahead, the Opposition did not gain anything out of this. It also resulted in the postponement by at least six months the attempts of some BJP rebel leaders to overthrow the state government and replace Yediyurappa. In a way, this no-confidence motion provided the much-needed temporary relief for Yediyurappa. Though conspiracies are being hatched within the party against him, the BJP high command does not seem to have the strength to unseat him at this juncture.
In the midst of farmers’ outrage and protests, the Prime Minister who is unveiling various Bills has stated that ‘farmers will play a major role in ‘AtmaNirbhar Bharath.’ If the farmers were to indeed play such a role, why is the government outrightly rejecting the farmers’ demands and enforcing laws that are anti-farmer in nature? There is no answer to this question in Prime Minister’s ‘Mann ki Baath’ . The present laws will push self-reliant farmers to the corporate whirlpool and destroy their self-confidence. The agriculture Bills that the Prime Minister has introduced for farmers are not in support of farmers becoming self-reliant or ‘Atmanirbhar.’ Instead these laws mark the highest form of self-deception.
It is said that the Centre’s three agriculture Bills would help farmers sell their produce in the open market without any hindrance. The government is also saying that these Bills would help the produce of farmers reach national and global markets by encouraging private investment in boosting basic infrastructure. It would enable farmers to sell their produce outside APMC and help them sell their produce at competitive prices. Ironically, cereals, crude oil, onions, potatoes and others have been kept out of the list of essential items. This means that these items are out of the scope of price regulation. Besides, excluding emergency situations, the limit on private institutions hoarding essential commodities for future sales has been removed. Farmers have been so far selling their produce to APMC through commission agents. But with the new law, commission agents and APMCs will lose their significance. Eventually, the practice of the government declaring minimum support price for farmers will end. The BJP assured in its 2014 Election Manifesto that it would increase the support price to 50 per cent of the cost of cultivation. But, it is ironical that the party has forgotten this promise after winning. Now, the possibility of implementing the government’s promise about providing minimum support price is also reduced.
The country’s economy has been destroyed with the complete failure of the various programmes of the government. But for a few big corporate players such as Adani and Ambani, the industry is facing a grim situation that might push several mid-level entrepreneurs towards suicide. In this backdrop, Prime Minister Modi’s lessons on self-reliance, ‘Atmanirbharatha’, in defence of his government’s policies is more like the proverbial last nail on the coffin of the country’s economy.
The decision to remove the limit on hoarding farm produce is beneficial to corporate giants who will then be free to control market prices as they wish. Though the government has stated that farmers can benefit from an unregulated open market, it has not made any distinction between big farmers and small farmers. It is not possible for small and marginal farmers to compete with big farmers in a free market. The government has started to corporatize the agriculture sector. As the farmers will be engaged in business in the open market, it will create problems in the country’s public distribution system, adversely affecting people’s right to food. Food grains have to be purchased from big corporate houses for public distribution at a higher price. It is therefore important that the present model of purchasing farmers’ produce and selling through APMC be reviewed and a situation created where farmers are provided appropriate support price as their right and not as an act of generosity. The government must show some gratitude to the farmers for their service to the nation by providing a minimum support price to their produce. If farmers have to participate in Modi’s ambitious goal of Atmanirbharatha or self-reliance, he should first understand the concept of self-reliance. Otherwise, ‘Mann Ki Baath’ will be reduced to ‘Monkey Baath’ and the economy would remain caught in a log-jam.
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Mamata visits Bhabanipur EVM strong room, warns against counting irregularities
Kolkata (PTI): West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee early Friday warned against any attempt to tamper with the counting process, hours after she visited an EVM strong room in Bhabanipur, alleging possible malpractice.
Banerjee, who emerged around 12:07 am after spending nearly four hours at the counting centre for her Bhabanipur constituency housed in Sakhawat Memorial School in south Kolkata, said only one person would be allowed inside the designated counting area.
"Either the candidate or one agent can stay upstairs. I have also suggested installation of a CCTV camera for the media," she told reporters.
Stressing the need for transparency, she said, "It is essential to maintain transparency. People’s votes must be protected. I rushed here after receiving complaints. The central forces initially did not allow me to enter."
Sounding a stern note ahead of the May 4 counting, she added, "If there is any plan to tamper with the counting process, it will not be tolerated."
On Thursday evening, Banerjee had reached the Bhabanipur Assembly segment counting centre, which houses the strong room for EVMs used in the April 29 polling, citing suspicion of tampering with the machines.
She entered the premises along with her election agent and remained inside for hours, even as Kolkata Mayor and TMC candidate from the Kolkata Port segment Firhad Hakim reached the spot but could not meet her.
"I reached here upon learning that the chief minister has arrived. But I couldn’t meet her since she was already inside the premises, exercising her right as a candidate to visit strong rooms. I wasn’t allowed there. I will not be able to confirm what exactly is transpiring inside," Hakim said.
The development coincided with protests by TMC candidates Kunal Ghosh and Shashi Panja outside the Khudiram Anushilan Kendra in north Kolkata, where they staged a sit-in alleging irregularities and possible tampering of EVMs stored in strong rooms, leading to face-offs between TMC and BJP supporters.
Earlier in a video message, Banerjee had urged party leaders, workers and polling agents to maintain a 24-hour vigil on EVM strong rooms, alleging that the BJP could attempt to tamper with the machines before counting begins.
Her remarks come amid heightened political tension in the state following a fiercely contested Assembly election, with parties closely monitoring arrangements and raising concerns over transparency.
