Government's  Ambivalent Population Policy is Disappointing

By Parmanand Pandey

 

   The affidavit filed by the Union Government in the Supreme- Court in response to a petition filed by an Advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay that it cannot adopt the policy of coercion in family planning by implementing two-child norm has been disappointing, to say the least. The logic of the government is that the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) is declining, and any coercion will be counterproductive is fallacious logic. It is difficult to understand how the two-child norm policy will amount to coercion?

    The burgeoning population of the country has created innumerable problems for the country. The land-area is fast shrinking because houses, factories, offices, hospitals, schools, colleges, institutes, roads, and other infrastructures need to be built to meet the requirements. The population, on the other hand, is not stabilising. It is increasing with every passing year. 

There are many people, who consider it their duty to defy the population control policy. They say that if God has given us one stomach, then 'He' has given two hands, two legs and other organs to work and feed the family. So, they do not believe in family planning. There is an apocryphal story that when Benazir Bhutto was the Prime Minister of Pakistan, a journalist asked about her views on population control, which she vigorously supported. But when asked whether she ever used contraceptives, she put her fingers on the mouth and told the lady journalist that if she replied in affirmative, Mullas would bay for her blood. Here in India also most of the Islamists consider it as an insult to their religion if they adopt the two-child norm policy. However, to be fair, the educated section of the Muslim community has realised the importance of the two-child norm.

 National Population Policy was adopted some twenty years ago but it is still a voluntary programme. The government appears to be living in the constant fear of the emergency days forgetting the fact it was because of the family programme of the emergency that the population of India is still 135 crores otherwise; by now it would have been at least one and half times more than China, which is at least two times bigger in area than India.

    The Government’s affidavit has also forgotten what the Prime Minister said in his Independence Day speech last year that ‘those who choose to have small families contribute to the development of the nation and that it was a form of patriotism’. If it is an act of patriotism, why no population policy is framed to keep it under check?

India is one of the first few countries of the world which adopted the family planning programme, but it has never been given the force of the law. There is, no doubt, that there is a serious shortcoming in the two-child norm policy in a patriarchal society like India, where the desire for sons is so overpowering that people hardly have any regret in going for female foeticide. But this social problem must be handled by social awakening as well by strict implementation of laws.

I was appalled to find some people, who claimed to be very God-fearing and cannot even think of even killing a rat, but they took recourse to female foeticides many times over in their insatiable desire of getting a son. Strangely, they never regretted their criminal acts.

Therefore, a two-pronged strategy has to be adopted (a) persuasion along with (b) legal persecution for effectively controlling the population of the country.  

 Not Farmers but Middlemen are Fidgety with Farm laws

 Parmanand Pandey

There is no limit of perversion among Dalals and intermediaries, who have been misleading a section of farmers from Punjab to continue their siege of the Singhu border at Delhi-Haryana border in this biting cold despite the assurances from the government to discuss all issues of the farmers.  The problem is not with farmers as they have not joined the so-called agitation, it is being orchestrated by the forces, which have nothing to do with farmers but they want to keep the issue simmering for their own interests.  They have no sympathy for the farmers either otherwise; they would have educated them about the deleterious effects of paddy stubble burning, overuse of chemical fertilisers and pesticides and for changing patterns of crops to save the depleting water table.

  These three farm laws are revolutionary by any stretch of consideration. Only brokers and self-styled Kisan leaders are opposed to it because they have nothing to do with agriculture. They are the exploiters of farmers. As a matter fact, Mandis should have been dispensed with long back in the interests of farmers but they continued to remain as the tools of exploitation mainly due to rogue politicians.

  The government is also shirking its responsibility, otherwise, it should have swung into action by now to politely ask them to clear the roads by using the bare minimum force. No government worth its name could afford to allow the Shaheen Baugh model of protests in any part of the country causing huge inconveniences to a large section of society for days and weeks together. Selfish politicians and intermediaries claiming themselves as the Kisan leaders should have been sternly dealt with for the sake of real farmers and the general public.  

  These fork-tongued leaders have not been able to point out even one demerit in these farm laws, which should have been brought in half a century ago and then by now, the agriculture would have been free from the unbearable burden that it has on itself and it would be more remunerative as well.

  In fact, if the government wants the peasants and other farmers to make them strong and self-reliant it will have to do away also with MSP. Why should others be given the responsibility of deciding the prices of our (farmers) products? Nobody wants that the prices of the products of a detergent company, a biscuit company, a textile company or a furniture company should be decided by any outsiders, then why the prices of the farmers' products should be asked to fix them by any outside agency? The crux of MS Swaminathan’s Committee report is that the farmers must get the value of their products, at least one and half times more than their inputs but that is not possible without open competition.

  At present, the farmers do not have much retention capacity, they sell their products at throwaway prices when there is a glut of their products. This retention capacity can be increased only by making them strong by devising the crop insurance and freeing them from the trap of Mandis and MSPs. It is good that the Prime Minister himself has made it clear the Mandis and MSPs will be retained but they will have to be competitive because the farmers will then be free to sell their products to anyone, who offers more prices to their products. This is yet another reason for their being fidgety.   

Hemant Tiwari's Description Brought Memories Alive

 

   My good friend Hemant Tiwari, a senior journalist, a well-versed communicator and a convincing debater on many TV channels, has written a brief but a very touching post on his Facebook about his recent a whirlwind visit to his Nanihal (maternal home), near Singramau in Jaunpur district. His Nanihal is situated on the banks of river Gomti, so is my own Nanihal, which incidentally is also situated on the banks of river  Gomti in Pratapgarh district.  Most of us have been inculcated with faith that all perennial rivers are pious and they are like the Ganges and that is the reason that they are revered and worshipped. A famous pilgrimage ‘Dhopap’ is also situated on the banks of Gomti and when I visited this place in my childhood on my way to Nanihal, I was told that 'whosoever has bathed even once in Dhopap his/her all sins are washed away'. As they say that ‘faith can move mountains’, people throng to wash their sins in the sacred river of Gomati at Dhopap. It is an altogether different matter that it has become a highly contaminated river at Lucknow because of the callousness of the people and the administration. 

  However, what I wanted to say is that only three-paragraph word-sketch by Hemant Tiwari has been so powerful that it has made many like us to be nostalgic about our childhood. I would like to associate with him on the issue of rice-eating (bhaat as we say colloquially). One of my two sisters was married to an area, which is known for rice production and the eldest sister was married to a place which was situated on the riverbank, where rice was considered to be a luxury. My both sisters were eldest among all our siblings. Things have now completely changed as the rice and the wheat is produced in equal measures, thanks to the new varieties of wheat, paddy and the new technology.

  Increased production of wheat and paddy has, however, driven away the coarse grains like Sanwa, Kodon and Bajra (all are roughly translated as millets of different types). My mother herself preferred to eat Bhaat of Makka (maize or corn) to rice. I also love to eat these coarse grains in many ways. The crops of these grains have fast disappeared because their yield is much less than those of wheat and paddy. Now, these are sown in a very limited area as they are necessary for certain purposes. Even barley is not sown in our area because of the low yield and lesser remuneration.

  Hemant is bang on the head in his description of the scene of Bidai from Nanihal. Every Bhanja, Bhanji, Nati or Natin was entitled to get something from Nani or Mami. It could be from a few Annas to a few rupees some four or five decades ago but they were no less than treasures. A Bhanja or Nati was invariably excused for his mischiefs in Nanihal because nobody could punish him. It was generally believed that 'anybody who beats or slaps his Nati or Bhanja will suffer at the old age as his hands will tremble or shiver. This was one of the reasons that boys were not allowed to live for longer periods in Nanihal because chances of their being undisciplined were more as compared to their father’s house.

  This is equally true that most boys used to learn many good lessons from their Nana, Nani, Mama and Mami. These lessons helped to grow in life. Guardians in Nanihal were more concerned about the future and well being of their wards. I have seen umpteen number of people who have done much better in their lives as they lived for more time in their Nanihals.

  Technology and the mode of communication and transportation has completely changed life everywhere, be it rural or urban areas. The intensity of relations has also vanished. However, it is always soothing and sweet to remember the old memories. I have requested Hemant to write a regional (aanchlik) novelette on this theme. It may not be very relevant for today, but that will certainly help others to revive the memories and the new generation can learn a lot about the situation that was prevailing some half a century ago particularly in eastern Uttar Pradesh. 

Repealing of Farm Laws means dumping of peasants

 

   Any government worth name will be failing in its duty if it concedes to highly irrational and unjustified demands of some motivated persons masquerading as farmers for repealing of the farm laws. A so-called Kisan leader is seen to be speaking on some TV news channels that ‘why the government has gifted us something which we never demanded?’  Will anybody tell him that any government is mandated to take make such laws are in the interests of the people?

   Does a government which have been elected by the overwhelming majority by the people can afford to ignore them and listen only to those who are out to create anarchy by sheer dint of the resources that they have? The government is expected to work for the vast peasantry of the country while enacting the farm laws, which has been left ignored by the successive governments after independence. As a result of it, the condition of small farmers has not improved. Even farmers with good land holdings have got reduced to penury and have been cursed to live in the debt trap because of the faulty farm policies.

   Anybody having any concerns for the peasants will not lose sight of the facts that there have been regular demands for introducing fresh farm laws. If the old laws were so good, then how and why did hundreds of farmers commit suicides every year? The increasing number of suicides bear testimony that the interests of farmers were never seriously considered by the powers that be.

    Mandis must go lock, stock and barrel because they hardly serve any purpose of the farmers, only the brokers and intermediaries are benefitted by them (Mandis). These aarhatiyas and brokers do not think of the society otherwise, they would never have abdicated their responsibility of educating and convincing the Punjab farmers for not burning the paddy stubbles in their fields. These farmers also need to be told to switch over to some other crops to save the deteriorating health of the soil and preserve the fast-depleting water tables.

   Those who are doing politics in the name of farmers are their real enemies. Their strings are being pulled from somewhere else.  There is no need to pay any heed to the eternally frustrated intellectuals and selfish journalists because they will damn you, when you do something but will also damn when you do not do anything. Therefore, they should best be ignored.

There is no doubt that disputes must be resolved through talks and negotiations, but the question is talking with whom? Those who are assembled at Singhu border of Haryana and Delhi are neither kisans nor their representatives. They are motivated to the brim and no amount of negotiations will convince them. Even in a factory or a company, there are some Union representatives with whom the managements negotiate but here there is no representative who can convince others. Hence, the government will have to handle the issue in the as best manner as possible as it has the authority and the confidence of the people.

 

 

Only New Farm Laws can help Remove the Farmers’ Distress, Brokers must be Dealt with Iron Hands

 

Not many years ago, it was almost an uphill task to take even as little as 30 to 40 kilogrammes of grains from one district to other. If somebody having agricultural land at two places was straddling between two districts, the only choice for him/her was to dispose of the produce of one place and purchase the same, as per one's needs, at another place. The laws against carrying the grains from one place to other were so stringent that one had to grease the palms of police and other officials. Now under the new farm laws, one cannot only carry the agricultural produce but is totally free to sell or purchase at the place of one’s choice depending upon the prices he/ she gets.

Farmers all over the country are happy with new farm laws because it provides them freedom, ensures good prices and necessary insurance cover to their crops.  Mobility is the sine qua non for competitiveness and better pricing of any products.  Mandis are beyond the reach of ordinary farmers because the Mandis are the cesspools of corruption and this is the reason that only rich farmers can take advantages with the help of their fellows-in -corruption officials and intermediaries.

The government would do well to retain these eminently sensible farm laws which will transform the agriculture sector.  Farmers should be told in no uncertain terms that for the benefits of some brokers, vested interests, and kulaks the interests of crores of marginal and small farmers cannot be sacrificed.

Later or sooner, the MSP must also be dispensed with because this also helps only those farmers, who can pull the strings to brokers and sell their low-quality rice and wheat at the high prices. Most of the marketing of the no so good quality cereals is forced to be done by the governments at the rate of MSP. The government later sends them to the FCI, which is acutely short of the storage facility. The sub-standard grains are then sold to poultry farms or at other outlets at abysmally low costs. After all, this is the public money that goes to fill the coffers of rich kulaks, corrupt officials and intermediaries. So long this vicious circle is not broken the real Kisan will remain deprived of the profits. Agriculture can be modernised and made profitable only by contract farming. The fear of losing the landholdings are unfounded because the contract is to be provided only for renting the land and not for transferring the land to somebody else.

Agriculture like any other business needs money, which is possible only when the resourceful persons get attracted to it. Moreover, there is no point in keeping the burden increased on agriculture. Therefore, those who are opposing the reformative farm laws are neither the friends of farmers nor agriculture. They must be exposed. Agriculture has been in deep trouble or crisis for quite long. Farmers’ distress must be addressed otherwise; hundreds of farmers will continue to commit suicide and those who are engineering the protests have never had any sympathy with poor farmers. Those who are asking to repeal them must be dealt with iron hands to save agriculture and farmers from the trap of debts and the vagaries of nature.

Purposeless agitation of Disguising farmers

   Parmanand Pandey

  The ongoing agitation of some farmers of Punjab from November 26 in Delhi is being presented by a section of media and the fissiparous forces as if there are two fighting camps arrayed against each other. The fact is that no government can afford to work against the interests of the farmers and that is what has been taken care of in these farm laws. These farm laws have been long overdue, and they should have been enacted some fifty years ago.

  Think of neem coating of Urea bags, this simple step to stop the black marketing was not taken due to the pressure of the vested interests, who wanted to perpetuate it. The subsidy and loan-waiver based farmers' policies may make some leaders popular but ultimately, they do not help the farmers to stand on their own feet. The so-called Kisan-movement of some kulaks, aarhatiyas and selfish politicians must be exposed as it is against the interests of more than 99 per cent farmers of the country, most of them happen to be small and marginal farmers. It is an open secret that only this section of farmers, which is behind this artificial agitation has been cornering all the benefits in the name of farmers. It is also crystal clear that those who have nothing to do with farmings and yet are lending their support to it are insincere, disingenuous people and they are so filled with the hatred for the present dispensation that they refuse to see the factual position. Hence, they need to be cured of chronic jaundice they suffer from.

   MSP, frankly speaking, is also a deception. It has not helped the poor farmers anywhere except in Punjab. Go to villages of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar and see that wheat, paddy or maize is never purchased on MSPs. Even for the sugarcane prices, small farmers have to run from pillar to post. For obtaining the selling slips of their canes, they have to cajole and grease the palms of dalals and petty officials. They do not get the arrears of their canes for months and sometimes even for years. This simple fact cannot be understood by the romanticised revolutionaries and the parasitic NGO managers, who are funded and paid to work for their masters sitting outside the country.

   These were the same people, who were wailing and discussing on the television channels that the disease COVID might not kill the poor people, but the starvation will, without doubt, kill them. A bearded and fraud television channel owner, who has duped hundreds of crores and who also claims to be an economist, must have held discussions with some pseudo economists for nearly ten days in the wake of the lockdown and the crux of his discussion was that thousands would die because of hunger. But when more than eighty crore people started getting free ration every month for longer than eight months along with Rs 500/ in cash across the board, these spurious economists did not show even the minimum courtesy and basic moral courage to welcome this novel measure of helping the people.

  It is well-nigh impossible to establish Ramrajya but sincere efforts made in that direction should be encouraged.  Therefore, these farm laws, if honestly implemented are bound to ameliorate a lot of the small farmers. The need is to go for sustainable development and the pressure from the agriculture is to be unburdened and this is not going to be solved by retaining the APMS and MSPs. They can only be short term measures. 

  The government will do well to convince the tiny and misguided section of farmers, who have laid siege of some of the Delhi roads, that they must give up their adamant attitude and go back to their farming. But they will not do that because their handlers will not agree to it. Those who are sleeping can be awakened but those who feign to be sleeping they must be handled differently. This is for the government with enormous resources to think as to how to deal with these rich kulaks and motivated farmers.

Crime and Corruption were Inherent to MS Yadav’s Socialism

The day before yesterday i.e. on 22nd of November Mulayam Singh Yadav, the Samajwadi Party leader completed 81 years of his life. We wish him a happy and long life. Some journalists, who had been benefitted by the largesse’s and the neck-deep corruption prevailing at the time of Mr Yadav, hailed him as one of the towering leaders and the messiah of the poor, which is quite understandable but laughable. Most of the journalists in Lucknow and other places in Uttar Pradesh were regularly and extensively given crumbs by Shri Yadav in cash and kind to sing his paeans.

Posterity will remember him if at all he is remembered, for his rank opportunism, stinking corruption, brazen nepotism, shameless casteism and naked hooliganism with no vision for the future or understanding of the statecraft. It has been the misfortune of the State that practically an illiterate muscleman ruled the state for many terms as the Chief Minister of the largest state of the country. It was largely because of him that an equally, if not more corrupt, uncouth and eccentric woman like Mayawati, whose only qualification was of her being born in a Dalit family, also became the Chief Minister of the state many times.

Nobody has been more shameless in amassing money and perpetuating and favouring his family dominance in Uttar Pradesh than Shri Yadav. All developmental activities had literally come to a nought during his tenure. The education system was systematically destroyed by him. He used to openly make fun of education and wanted the copying to be freely used in the examination halls. Can there be anything more ludicrous than to say that if you cannot provide jobs to students then why not allow them to have degrees? Yes, these Aristotelian wise words were of Shri Yadav.

The biggest damage was done by him to the Hindi as he promoted and got saddled such persons in the important positions, who had neither Will nor talent to work for the service of Mother Hindi. Important constitutional positions were offered to those who were thoroughly undeserving to the posts they held.

Instead of solving the problems of Ayodhya and Uttarakhand, he started dealing with them like an arrogant and lunatic politician. He got killed dozens of karsevaks and innocent agitators at Ayodhya and Rampur. He had the cheek to say that he would not have hesitated in killing hundreds to get the support of a particular religion and was happy with the honorific of Mulla. How can a politician like him be fit to be at the helm?

He had, of course, excelled the art of keeping media persons bribed. The way the government houses were allotted to pick and choose persons, plots were distributed, advertisements were poured to select media houses was unparallel and unheard of in other dispensation. There were many journalists who used to get extensive cash and kind benefits from him and his administration and therefore there is no surprise if they owe allegiance to him.

Socialism was converted into a grammar of anarchy and lawlessness by Shri Yadav and, that too, without and any qualms and compunctions.