www.afeias.com 1 IMPORTANT NEWSCLIPPINGS (21-May-21)

Date:21-05-21 Decentralise, to Tackle Covid in Rural India

ET Editorials

Covid-19 has spread to peri-urban and rural areas, calling for new ways to tackle it, given the disparity in health infrastructure. Empowering states and district administrations to innovate and allocate resources, including medical supplies and vaccines, leveraging existing, state-owned built-up spaces.

District administrations must be asked to improvise makeshift hospitals. Oxymeters, oxygen cylinders and Covid drugs must be rushed to these centres. Testing has to be stepped. ASHA workers, anganwadi workers, teachers at local schools, postal workers and other civil servants present in rural areas must be trained in Covid- appropriate behaviour and the rudiments of Covid care, and to tackle hesitancy in relation to tests and vaccines. The district administration must gear up to maintain records and monitor data on a daily basis. Railway infrastructure, where available, can come in handy for emergency treatment/ vaccination centres, along with schools, even as primary health centres become field hospitals. Basic medical implements and medicines required must be stocked. Information exchange among states is vital.

The government has issued standard operating procedures for containing and managing Covid-19 in rural areas; state governments have been alerted. But what is required is for district administrations to be agile and to innovate, with proper backup from governments at state and central levels.

Date:21-05-21

Riding The Storm

Arabian Sea is becoming more cyclone prone. We need to reimagine development on the western coast

Editorial

Amidst the raging pandemic, states along India’s western coast have been hit by another crisis. More than 75 people have lost their lives in , , Goa, Karnataka and Kerala after swept in from the on Monday, leaving a trail of destruction. Furious gusts of winds going up to 185 km/hour uprooted trees and blew away walls and mud houses leading to the death of at least 20 people in western and southern India before the cyclone made a landfall in Gujarat, leading to a loss of more lives. Vaccination drives had to be suspended in parts of Maharashtra and Gujarat and Covid patients along the cyclone’s path had to be shifted to safer facilities. Several areas battered by Tauktae had borne the brunt of last year, some others had been affected by Cyclone Vayu the year before. Tauktae, in fact, is the fourth consecutive pre- www.afeias.com 2 IMPORTANT NEWSCLIPPINGS (21-May-21) monsoon extreme weather event in the Arabian Sea, indicating new disaster management and planning challenges for the country’s western shores.

Traditionally, the Bay of Bengal has been more prone to cyclonic activity compared to the Arabian Sea. The Eastern is much warmer than its western part and till 2018, it was also stormier. The Arabian Sea averaged two or three cyclones a year, most of which would dissipate over the sea — it did seed four extremely severe cyclonic events since the 1998 Gujarat super cyclone that claimed at least 4,000 lives. Rising temperatures because of global warming seems to be changing cyclonic behaviour. In 2014, a paper in the American Meteorological Society’s Journal of Climate warned “the western tropical Indian Ocean has been warming for more than a century, at a rate faster than any other region of the tropical oceans.” That year, winds blowing at 125 km per hour forced authorities in Gujarat to evacuate more than 30,000 people. Since then, the frequency and intensity of storms in the Arabian Sea have increased.

The improvement in the country’s weather alert system since the super cyclones in Gujarat and Odisha in the closing years of the last century resulted in significant reduction in the loss of lives. More than 2 lakh people were evacuated in the coastal states to temporary relief shelters this year. But the virus has compounded matters. There are concerns that these crowded centres could become Covid hotbeds. Last year, for instance, Cyclone Amphan complicated West Bengal’s and Odisha’s path to recovery. Nevertheless, the states along the western coast have much to learn from the experiences of their counterparts on the east — both in terms of successes and failures. As a first step, they need to invest in more cyclone shelters. Over the long-term, conversations must be initiated on ways to factor in climate related vagaries while planning construction and developmental activities close to the coast.

Date:21-05-21 Facts about fact- finding

Citizen-led investigative reports enrich judicial process and empower citizens

Ankita Pandey, [ The writer is a teacher at Delhi University.]

The solicitor-general of India challenged five fact-finding reports conducted on the riots in Northeast Delhi in 2020 in the Delhi High Court on February 24. He argued that the citizen groups, which conducted the fact- finding, were examples of a self-constituted, extra-constitutional, “parallel judicial system”, that did not have any authority in law. They could not be relied upon by any formal judicial forum. He said that people cannot have their own fact-finding committees, they must go to a competent authority.

However, even a cursory look at our past shows that fact-finding investigations are a well-established practice in India since the movement for independence. Worldwide, fact-finding is at the heart of rights advocacy. The first Gandhian experiment, the Champaran satyagraha of 1917, started as an extensive fact-finding exercise. In Champaran, the peasants were forced to grow indigo on their lands as a condition of tenancy and were required to pay an illegal cess on it and exorbitant rent to local landlords. In his autobiography, Gandhi writes that he decided to visit Champaran “to enquire into the conditions of” the indigo planters when he was informed of their distress and the lack of appropriate response by the colonial administration. Gandhi carried out a detailed investigation with a team of volunteers and recorded the statements of peasants. To make these statements www.afeias.com 3 IMPORTANT NEWSCLIPPINGS (21-May-21) credible, the peasants signed or put thumb impressions on them, and these were recorded in the presence of an officer from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). This exercise forced the Lieutenant Governor of Bihar, Sir Edward Gait, to set up a formal enquiry committee with Gandhi as one of its members.

The Congress conducted another high-profile fact-finding investigation in the aftermath of the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre of 1919. The government had set up an investigative committee led by Lord William Hunter to investigate the massacre. Disappointed with the work and political motivations of the Hunter Commission, the Congress set up a parallel body, the Punjab sub-committee, to investigate the event. A similar fact-finding enquiry was undertaken in 1924, when the police opened fire on the workers of Kanpur Cotton Mills, killing six people and injuring another 58 workers. The enquiry exposed the collusion between the mill management and the police, which had resulted in the deaths. In colonial India, the practice of fact-finding was used routinely to make a demand for an official enquiry or to challenge the existing official enquiry.

There has been a surge in the number of independent citizen groups-led fact-finding investigations in the last few decades. In the 1970s, several fact-finding investigations were undertaken to expose encounter killings that took place during the counter-insurgency operations against the Naxalite movement and during the Emergency. In 1977, the Andhra Pradesh Civil Rights Committee (APCRC), under V M Tarkunde, took up an investigation of 33 cases of encounters of Naxalite political prisoners during the Emergency. It collected enough evidence and testimonies to establish that the police shot 19 of those who died in cold blood. The committee produced reports and sent copies to the Prime Minister, Home Minister and the press. This committee demanded a judicial commission to investigate all other cases of encounters. The central government obliged and asked the state government to institute a judicial enquiry, which was set up under Justice Vashist Bhargava.

In 1987, a citizens’ group constituted itself as the Indian People’s Human Rights Commission (IPHRC) and conducted several fact-finding investigations and published reports. In the 1990s, people’s tribunals were set up in the wake of the 1992-93 riots after the Babri Masjid demolition. The enquiry was conducted before Justice Hosbet Suresh and Justice Daud, two retired judges of the Bombay High Court. Justice B N Srikrishna, who was appointed by the government to enquire into the riots, had issued a contempt notice to the two judges stating that conducting a parallel enquiry would lower his prestige. This contempt notice was challenged before the Bombay High Court and struck down.

In 2008, having read the news items of deaths of several workers in manholes, a group of lawyers from the Alternative Law Forum undertook a fact-finding investigation. They submitted a report to the State Human Rights Commission and filed a Public Interest Litigation in the Karnataka High Court. The HC constituted an expert committee to delve into the issues raised by the petition. Having received a report from this committee, the court instructed the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board to procure manhole cleaning machines. It also issued orders for compensation to the victims’ families.

These cases demonstrate that citizen groups conducting enquiries and publishing reports in the public domain ought to be seen as a sign of democratic and legal consciousness. They are not taking the law into their hands or encouraging vigilante justice. Moreover, these fact-finding investigations are cost-effective, rapidly mobilised, and encourage civic participation. Their findings can potentially transform public and governmental understanding of an event or crime. Thereby, they had laid the groundwork for prosecution if a court of law finds their evidence admissible. Fact-finding reports should be verified and criticised if they lack in rigour or evidentiary standards. They should not be dismissed just because these are self-constituted by the citizens. Seeking to delegitimise citizen-led fact-finding is in fact a way to control the narrative — it robs citizens of the ability to state their side of the story. It would be dangerous if official information was the only information available in the public domain. The long tradition of fact-finding investigations is a strength of India’s democracy. One that should be preserved not discredited. www.afeias.com 4 IMPORTANT NEWSCLIPPINGS (21-May-21)

Date:21-05-21

Circumvention

The Centre has a duty not to bypass political leadership in dealing with States

Editorial

Wielding power at the Centre comes with great responsibility. A major responsibility in a federal country with strong centralising features is to maintain the balance, as well as mutual respect, between political structures at the central and State levels. In particular, it is an obligation of the Centre to refrain from bypassing the elected leadership while dealing with States. Two recent developments have raised concern that the Centre wants to give instructions to officials functioning under elected State regimes. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has held two virtual meetings with district magistrates and State officials to review the COVID-19 situation. Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal held a virtual meeting to discuss the National Education Policy, and related matters such as the conduct of Class XII examinations with State Secretaries in charge of education. While such meetings may help the Prime Minister or any Union Minister get some feedback from the field across India, it is quite unusual for leaders in the central political executive to bypass their counterparts in the States. The Tamil Nadu Minister for School Education, Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi, took the right stand by not deputing any official to represent the State in Mr. Pokhriyal’s virtual interaction. The idea was not to boycott the meeting, but to say the Minister ought to have been included in a discussion on the NEP.

The Prime Minister addressing district magistrates, or collectors, does have a precedent. Rajiv Gandhi addressed the heads of the district administration in Uttar Pradesh, when it was under Congress rule, on the issue of Panchayati Raj. The defence then was that such direct interactions were permissible under the Constitution, citing Articles 256 and 257. These provisions stipulate that the States are obliged to comply with laws made by Parliament and also allow some directions from the Union government. If the Prime Minister belongs to one party, and the officials addressed are from a State run by another, there is bound to be resentment that the elected representatives of the State are being bypassed. In the present case, it is true that the Centre has a major role in the pandemic response. The Disaster Management Act has been invoked to specify guidelines on lockdowns, restrictions and relaxations and to ensure smooth medical supplies. However, it would be in the larger interest of the country if events and discussions are held in such a way that the political structures at the State are not seen to be undermined. There ought to be no scope for complaints, such as the one made by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, that Chief Ministers felt humiliated when all of them were not allowed to speak to the PM in a virtual interaction.

www.afeias.com 5 IMPORTANT NEWSCLIPPINGS (21-May-21)

Date:21-05-21 Balancing act

India should oppose indiscriminate attacks on Israel and disproportionate bombing on Gaza

Editorial

At the open UN Security Council session on Sunday on the Gaza conflict, India, a non-permanent member, attempted a delicate balancing act by reaffirming its traditional support for the Palestine cause without abandoning its new friend Israel. T.S. Tirumurti, India’s Permanent Representative at the UN, expressed concern over the violence in Jerusalem and the “possible eviction process” of Palestinian families in Sheikh Jarrah and warned against “attempts to unilaterally change the status quo” in Jerusalem. He also reiterated India’s “strong support for the just Palestinian cause and its unwavering commitment to the two-state solution”. But India was careful not to upset Israel’s sensitivities. There is a direct condemnation of the rocket attacks from Gaza but no direct reference to the disproportionate bombing Israel has been carrying out on the impoverished Gaza Strip since May 10. India also did not make any reference to the status of Jerusalem or the future borders of the two states, in line with a recent change in its policy. Until 2017, the Indian position was that it supported the creation of an independent, sovereign Palestine state based on the 1967 border and with East Jerusalem as its capital that lives alongside Israel. The balancing did not appear to have gone down well with the Israeli side. When Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has a good rapport with Narendra Modi, thanked 25 countries that he said stood with Israel, there was no reference to India.

For India, which voted against the creation of Israel in historic Palestine in 1947 in the UN General Assembly, ties with Israel have transformed since the early 1990s. In 2017, Mr. Modi became the first Indian PM to visit Israel and Mr. Netanyahu travelled to India in 2018. While Israel ties are on a strong footing, India cannot ignore the Palestinians for historic, moral, legal and realist reasons. Historically, India, which went through the horrors of 1947, opposed the partition of Palestine. Throughout the Cold War, it remained a strong supporter of Palestinian freedom, taking a moral and legal position against the Israeli occupation, in line with international laws and norms. It established full diplomatic relations with Israel in 1992, in the context of improving Israel- Palestine ties after the Madrid Conference and the changes in the global order following the disintegration of the Soviet Union, but never abandoned the Palestinians. India’s Palestine policy had realist underpinnings too. India has been energy dependent on the Arab world. It cannot alienate the Arab voices or be isolated in the General Assembly, where most member-countries oppose the occupation. These factors should have driven India to take a more emphatic position against both the indiscriminate rocket attacks into Israel, in which 12 people were killed, and the disproportionate bombing of Gaza, which has claimed at least 230 lives, including over 60 children.

www.afeias.com 6 IMPORTANT NEWSCLIPPINGS (21-May-21)

Date:21-05-21 The outdated nature of bureaucracy

The public sector, private players and civil society should all work together for public service delivery

Zubair Nazeer, [ Assistant Professor (Public Administration) at Jamia Millia Islamia, ]

COVID-19 has tested the resilience of all public institutions. Despite its efforts, bureaucracy has emerged as a major concern for the ineffective response to the COVID-19 crisis. This inadequacy is the reflection of the outdated nature of public bureaucracy.

In the 21st century, democratic countries are still relying on traditional bureaucracies to perform public policy formulation and implementation roles. These bureaucracies have outlived their relevance. Weberian bureaucracy still prefers a generalist over a specialist. A generalist officer (IAS and State civil service officials) is deemed an expert and as a result, superior, even if the officer works in one department or ministry today and in another tomorrow. Specialists in every government department have to remain subordinate to the generalist officers. The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed this weakness. Healthcare professionals who are specialists have been made to work under generalist officers and the policy options have been left to the generalists when they should be in the hands of the specialists. The justification is that the generalist provides a broader perspective compared to the specialist.

Weberian bureaucracy

Traditional bureaucracy is still stuck with the leadership of position over leadership of function. Leadership of function is when a person has expert knowledge of a particular responsibility in a particular situation. The role of the leader is to explain the situation instead of issuing orders. Every official involved in a particular role responds to the situation rather than relying on some dictation from someone occupying a particular position. Weberian bureaucracy prefers leadership based on position. Bureaucracy has become an end in itself rather than a means to an end. Further, the rigid adherence to rules has resulted in the rejection of innovation. It isn’t surprising to see COVID-19 aid getting stuck in cumbersome clearance processes even during the pandemic.

The reform often suggested in India is new public management. This as a reform movement promotes privatisation and managerial techniques of the private sector as an effective tool to seek improvements in public service delivery and governance. But this isn’t a viable solution, not the least in India where there is social inequality and regional variations in development. It renders the state a bystander among the multiple market players with accountability being constantly shifted, especially during a crisis. Further, COVID-19 has shown that the private sector has also failed in public service delivery.

Collaborative governance

The most appropriate administrative reform is the model of new public governance. This model is based on collaborative governance in which the public sector, private players and civil society, especially public service organisations (NGOs), work together for effective public service delivery. There is no domination of public bureaucracy as the sole agency in policy formulation and implementation. As part of new public governance, a network of social actors and private players would take responsibility in various aspects of governance with www.afeias.com 7 IMPORTANT NEWSCLIPPINGS (21-May-21) public bureaucracy steering the ship rather than rowing it. During the pandemic, we see civil society playing a major role in saving lives. As part of new public governance, this role has to be institutionalised. It needs a change in the behaviour of bureaucracy. It needs flexibility in hierarchy, a relook at the generalist versus specialist debate, and an openness to reforms such as lateral entry and collaboration with a network of social actors. All major revolutions with huge implications on public service delivery have come through the collaboration of public bureaucracy with so-called outsiders. These include the Green Revolution (M.S. Swaminathan), the White Revolution (Verghese Kurien), Aadhaar-enabled services (Nandan Nilekani) and the IT revolution (Sam Pitroda). New public governance is the future of governance, especially public service delivery.

Date:21-05-21

भारी पड़ी लापरवाही

संपादकीय

अरब सागर से उठा चक्रवाती तूफान तौकते या ताउते जाते–जाते मानवीय क्षतत के ऐसे तनशान छोड़ गया है जो हमᴂ लंबे वक्त तक याद रहᴂगे। अगर यह भी याद रखा जा सके कक यह क्षतत भयंकर लापरवाही का पररणाम है‚ तो शायद भववष्य मᴂ ऐसे नुकसान से बचा जा सके। तौकते तूफान मᴂ मुंबई तट के पास ओएनजीसी के ललए काम कर रहा बजरा नंबर पी 305 सोमवार शााम को बह गया था। इस पर 273 लोग मौजूद थे। नौसेना और ओएनजीसी बचाव कायय मᴂ जुटे थे। यह बजरा बहने के कु छ ही समय बाद डूब़ गया। सोमवार से ही चल रहे बचाव कायय के दौरान बहुत से लोग बचा ललए गए। बुधवार को बजरा डूब़ ने वाले क्षेत्र से बचाव कायय मᴂ लगी नौसेना को 26 शव लमले‚ 49 लोग अभी भी लापता हℂ‚ जजनकी तलाश की जा रही है। इस बात पर गहरा अचरज जताया जा रहा है कक तूफान की पूव य चेतावनी जारी रहने के बावजूद इन लोगⴂ को वहां से हटाया क्यⴂ नहीं गया था और खतरे का सामना करने के ललए क्यⴂ छोड़ ददया गया। तूफान के वक्त इलाके मᴂ तीन बजरे मौजूद थे। इन बजरⴂ पर ओएनजीसी के ललए काम करने वाली एक ठेकेदार कंपनी के लोग काम कर रहे थे। ये तीनⴂ बजरे ताउते तूफान मᴂ फंस गए। 26 शव लमलने के बाद पेट्रोललयम मंत्रालय ने मामले की जांच के ललए उ楍चस्तरीय सलमतत गदठत कर दी है। नौसेना का कहना है कक खराब मौसम और तूफानी लहरⴂ से जूझते हुए उसके जवानⴂ ने राहत और बचाव अलभयान संचाललत ककया । बजरा नंबर पी 305 के डूब़ ने के दौरान उस पर मौजूद लोग जान बचाने के ललए समुद्र मᴂ कू द गए थे। इन्हᴂ बचाने के ललए कड़़ी मशक्कत करनी पड़ी ।186 लोग बचा ललए गए। बाकी दो बजरⴂ www.afeias.com 8 IMPORTANT NEWSCLIPPINGS (21-May-21)

जीएएल कन्सट्रक्टर और एसएस–3 और एक ऑयल ररग सागर भूषण पर मौजूद सभी लोग सुरक्षक्षत हℂ। बचाव अलभयान आईएनएस कोज楍च‚ तेग‚ बेतवा‚ व्यास‚ पी 81 ववमानⴂ और हेलीकॉप्टरⴂ ने संचाललत ककया। बचाए गए लोगⴂ मᴂ शालमल बजरा नम्बर पी 305 के चीफ इंजीतनयर रहमान शेख के अनुसार सभी लोगⴂ की जान बच जाती यदद उस तनजयन ऑयल ररग पर मौजूद 14 जीवन रक्षक नौकाएं पंक्चर नहीं होतीं जजससे उनका बजरा टकराया था। तूफान की चेतावनी काफी पहले लमल चुकी थी लेककन कैप्टन ने कहा कक तूफान की रफ्तार 40 ककमी. प्रतत घंटा से अधधक नहीं होगी। यही लापरवाही सबको भारी पड़़ गई।

Date:21-05-21

जीवन का अधिकार और संवविान

डॉ. सुशील कु . ससंह

य饍यवप देश कोरोना की दसू री लहर के कहर से बाहर तनकलने का भरसक प्रयास कर रहा है, बावजूद सके बीमारी कब तनयंत्रण मᴂ आएगी, कहना कदठन है। साथ ही, तीसरी लहर की आशंका और व्यक्त की जा रही है। रोजाना लाखⴂ की तादाद मᴂ लोगⴂ का कोरोना वायरस से संक्रलमत होना और चार हजार से 煍यादा लोगⴂ की हर ददन मौत का आंकड़ा महामारी की भयावह जस्थतत को दशाता है। जजस पैमाने पर लोगⴂ की जान जा रही हℂ, इससे जीवन का अधधकार मानो हालशये पर पहुंच गया है।

गौरतलब है कक मानव प्रततष्ठा हमारे संववधान का एक बहुमू쥍य आदशय है, और यह आदशय लोगⴂ के जीवन को संवारता है। सवो楍च न्यायालय ने भी मेनका गांधी बनाम भारत संघ के मामले मᴂ अनु楍छेद 21 को एक नया आयाम ददया था और इसके क्षेत्र को अत्यंत ववशाल बताया। न्यायालय ने कहा था कक प्राण का अधधकार केवल भौततक अजस्तत्व तक ही सीलमत नहीं है, बज쥍क इसमᴂ मानव गररमा को बनाए रखते हुए जीने का अधधकार भी शालमल है। जादहर है कक संववधान ने जीवन के अधधकार को एक आदर स्व셂प ददया है लेककन आज वही जीवन हालशये पर है। हालांकक बचाव और रखरखाव के ललए सरकार और समाज की ओर से प्रयास जारी हℂ, लेककन कु छ और प्रयास ककए जाने की आवश्यकता हो सकती है। मसलन, जीवन के अधधकार को संबल देने वाले अनु楍छेद 2। के तहत सभी करोना पीडड़तⴂ का सरकारी और गैर-सरकारी अस्पतालⴂ मᴂ हर तरीके से मुफ्त इलाज ककया जाना। इससे न केवल सभ्यता के तकाजⴂ का ठीक से वहन हो सकेगा, बज쥍क मानवता को भी ऊंचाई तथा सरकार को भी नया प्रततमान गढ़ने के ललए जाना जाएगा। भारतीय संववधान के भाग 3 के अंतगयत मूल अधधकारⴂ मᴂ पहला मूल अधधकार समता का अधधकार है। अनु楍छेद 14 मᴂ कानून के समक्ष सभी बराबर होते हℂ जबकक ककअनु楍छेद 19 मᴂ वाक एवं अलभव्यजक्त की स्वतंत्रता लमली है। मगर अनु楍छेद 21 मᴂ जीवन संवारने और गररमामय जीवन के अधधकार की अनूठी व्यवस्था देखी जा सकती है।

यहां यह बात भी गौर से समझने की आवश्यकता है कक कोरोना एक व्यजक्त की नहीं, बज쥍क पररवार और समाज के साथ ही राष्ट्र की भी गंभीर समस्या है। ऐसी बीमारी जहां पीडड़तⴂ को संख्या गुणात्मक बढ़त के साथ सुनामी का 셂प ललए हुए है, वहीं आधथयकी के दबाव के चलते लाखⴂ लोग इलाज के ललए पैसे के अभाव से भी जूझ रहे हℂ। इतना ही नहीं मनोवैज्ञातनक टू टन के बीच जीवन इन ददनⴂ कई परीक्षाओं से भी गुजर रहा हℂ। देखा जाए तो समाज मᴂ रहने वाला सामाजजक प्राणी कदठनाइयⴂ से जूझ रहा है।

एक अनुमान यह भी बता रहा है कक कोरोना संक्रलमतⴂ मᴂ केवल 10 फीसद को ही अस्पताल की आवश्यकता पड़ती है। इस ललहाज से भी देखᴂ तो करोना जब से देश मᴂ आया है, अब तक पीडड़तⴂ की संख्या पौने तीन करोड़ हो चुकी है। स्पष्ट है कक 27-28 लाख लोगⴂ को www.afeias.com 9 IMPORTANT NEWSCLIPPINGS (21-May-21)

अस्पताल की आवश्यकता पड़ी होगी। हालांकक आयुष्मान भारत के तहत देश के 20 हजार अस्पतालⴂ मᴂ मुफ्त इलाज का भी संदभय रहा है पर इसकी संख्या मामूली डे । ऐसे मᴂ कोरोना वायरस से पीडड़तⴂ का एक बड़ा दहस्सा इलाज के ललए स्वयं के पैसⴂ पर तनभयर है।

गौरतलब है कक रोजगार और कमाई के खात्मे के चलते इलाज करा पाना सभी के ललए आसान तो कतई नहीं होगा। सᴂटर फॉर मॉतनदटरंग इंडडयन हकोनामी (सीएमआईई) की ओर से जारी ररपोटय को देखᴂ तो 16 मई, 2021 को समाप्त सप्ताह के दौरान ग्रामीण बेरोजगारी बीते एक हफ्ते मᴂ दोगुनी उछाल के साथ 14.34 फीसद हो गई है। वपछले हफ्ते मᴂ ग्रामीण बेरोजगारी दर 7.29 फीसद थी। इसी दौरान शहर की बेरोजगारी मᴂ भी बढ़ोतरी हुई है, जो लगभग 11 .72 फीसद थी जो अब बढ़कर 14.71 फीसद हो गई है। जब बेरोजगारी एक हफ्ते मᴂ दोगुनी होगी तो इससे सहज ही अंदाजा लगाया जा सकता है कक लोगⴂ की कमाई पर इसका कया और ककतना गहरा असर पढ़ रहा होगा। ऐसे मᴂ होना तो यह चादहए कक सरकार बड़ा ददल ददखाती। ज셂री है कक सरकार कोरोना पीडड़तⴂ के ललए मुफ्त इलाज वाला रास्ता अपनाने मᴂ कतई ववलंब नहीं करे।

Date:21-05-21

मांग बढ़ेगी, तभी बेरोजगारी कम होगी

अ셁ण कु मार, ( अर्थशास्त्री )

करीब 50 हफ्तⴂ के बाद 16 मई को खत्म हुए सप्ताह मᴂ ग्रामीण बेरोजगारी दर बढ़कर 14.34 फीसदी हो गई। सᴂटर फॉर मॉतनटंरग इंडडयन इकोनॉमी (सीएमआईई) के मुताबबक, शहरी क्षेत्र मᴂ भी बेरोजगारी दर मᴂ इसी तरह से इजाफा हुआ है और शहरⴂ मᴂ वह बढ़कर 14.71 प्रततशत हो गई हℂ। इसका सबसे बड़ा कारण लॉकडाउन को बताया जा रहा है, जो कोरोना की दसू री लहर के बाद देशव्यापी तो नहीं, लेककन लगभग 90 फीसदी दहस्से पर ककसी न ककसी 셂प मᴂ लागू है।

लॉकडाउन मᴂ रोजगार का खत्म होना स्वाभाववक है, क्यⴂकक ऐसे मᴂ हम अपनी आधथयक गततववधधयⴂ को बंद कर देते हℂ। हालांकक, इस साल रोजगार पर उतना 煍यादा असर नहीं पड़ा है, जजतना वपछले साल पड़ा था। बीते साल देशव्यापी लॉकडाउन के कारण 12.2 करोड़ लोगⴂ की नौकरी खत्म हुई थी, जबकक करीब 20 करोड़ लोगⴂ के काम प्रभाववत हुए थे। यह समझना चादहए कक रोजगार की तुलना मᴂ काम अधधक प्रभाववत होता है। जैसे, लॉकडाउन मᴂ दफ्तरⴂ और स्कू ल-कॉलेजⴂ के बंद होने से सरकारी कलमययⴂ, लशक्षकⴂ, प्रोफेसरⴂ आदद www.afeias.com 10 IMPORTANT NEWSCLIPPINGS (21-May-21)

के रोजगार पर कोई असर नहीं पड़ा था। लेककन काम के बंद होने से सकल घरेल ू उत्पाद (जीडीपी) नकारात्मक 셂प से प्रभाववत होता है, क्यⴂकक इससे उत्पादन बंद हो जाता है। जादहर है, इससे बेरोजगारी बढ़ती है। इस साल आंलशक लॉकडाउन लगा है, लेककन कफर भी आपूतत य शंख ला तो प्रभाववत हुई ही है। जगह-जगह कारखाने बंद हुए हℂ और कु टीर उ饍योगⴂ पर इसका खासा असर पड़ा है। संगदठत क्षेत्र ़ को भी लॉकडाउन ने प्रभाववत ककया है। चूंकक इसमᴂ अब बडे पैमाने पर तनववदा पर रोजगार ददए जाते हℂ, इसललए यहां कलमययⴂ को बाहर का रास्ता ददखाना आसान है।

लोगⴂ मᴂ फैलते भय ने भी रोजगार क्षेत्र को प्रभाववत ककया है। दसू री लहर को देखते हुए शहरⴂ से कफर मजदरू ⴂ का पलायन हुआ। चूंकक बबना जांच के वे गांवⴂ की तरफ रवाना हुए, इसललए वायरस का प्रसार गांव-गांव मᴂ हो गया है। धचककत्सा जगत का एक मॉडल कह रहा है कक संक्रमण के जजतने मामले सामने आ रहे हℂ, उनसे करीब 10 गुना अधधक संक्रमण हुआ है, और मौतᴂ भी तीन से आठ गुना 煍यादा हुई हℂ। यह दहशत तब और बढ़ गई, जब मध्य वगय और ऊंचे तबके मᴂ भी महामारी का प्रसार बढ़ा। भयावह जस्थतत का अंदाजा इसी से लगाया जा सकता है कक पहले अखबारⴂ मᴂ आधे पन्ने पर शोक-संदेश छपा करते थे, लेककन अब यह बढ़कर चार-चार पन्ने तक हो गए हℂ। चूंकक यही वगय 煍यादा खपत करता है, इसललए बीमारी के आने के बाद इसने अपनी खपत कम कर दी। कफर, इन वगⴂ का स्वास््य खचय भी बढ़ गया है। गरीब तबका तो कजय लेकर जैसे-तैसे अपना इलाज करा रहा है, लेककन मध्य व उ楍च वगय अपनी बचत खचय कर रहे हℂ। तीसरी लहर की आशंका ने भी उन्हᴂ बहुत सोच-समझकर खचय करने के ललए प्रेररत ककया है। संभवत: इसी वजह से ररजवय बकℂ ने कहा है कक लोग अब नकदी 煍यादा जमा करने लगे हℂ, क्यⴂकक उन्हᴂ यह डर सता रहा है कक यदद कोई परेशानी हुई, तो नकद रालश ही मददगार साबबत होगी। इन सबसे हमारी खपत बुरी तरह धगर गई है, और खपत के धगरने का असर उत्पादन पर पड़ा है। उत्पादन कम होने का अथय है, नए तनवेश का कम होना, जजससे स्वाभाववक तौर पर रोजगार पर नकारात्मक असर पड़ा है।

सवाल है, अब आगे क्या ककया जाए? टीकाकरण पर जोर ददया जा रहा है, लेककन इससे अथयव्यवस्था को शायद ही त्वररत फायदा हो सकेगा। ऐसा इसललए, क्यⴂकक अपने यहां टीकेकरण को लेकर स्पष्ट नीततयⴂ का अभाव है। अमेररका, बिटेन जैसे देशⴂ ने समय रहते टीके के ऑडयर दे ददए थे, इसीललए उन्हⴂने तेजी से टीकाकरण ककया है। नतीजतन, वहां की 50 फीसदी आबादी को टीका लग चुका है, जजसका फायदा उन्हᴂ लमलना शु셂 हो चुका है। अपने यहां अव्वल तो ऑडयर देने मᴂ देरी हुई, और कफर जैसे-तैसे टीकाकरण शु셂 कर ददया गया। कहा गया कक पहले डेढ़ महीने मᴂ एक करोड़ लोगⴂ को टीका लगाया जाएगा, जबकक सवा अरब की आबादी के ललहाज से हमᴂ 10 करोड़ से शु셁आत करनी चादहए थी। ऐसा इसललए, क्यⴂकक ‘हडय इम्यूतनटी’ के ललए 60 फीसदी आबादी का पूण य टीकाकरण अतनवायय है। यानी, 10 महीने मᴂ 84 करोड़ लोगⴂ को टीके की दोनⴂ खुराकᴂ लग जानी चादहए। इसका मतलब है, हमᴂ टीके की लगभग 170 करोड़ खुराक की ज셂रत है। इसे अगर 10 महीने मᴂ बांटᴂ, तो हर महीने हमᴂ 17 करोड़ खुराक चादहए। मगर ऐसा नहीं हो सका। इससे न लसफय वायरस के नए-नए इलाकⴂ मᴂ फैलने का खतरा बढ़ रहा है, बज쥍क उसके म्यूटेट होने की आशंका भी है। अगर वायरस म्यूटेट हो गया, तो यह उन इलाकⴂ मᴂ कफर से फैल सकता है, जहां एक बार यह तबाही मचा चुका है। ऐसे मᴂ, लॉकडाउन ही एकमात्र उपाय है। जब तक लहर बनी रहती है, हमᴂ लॉकडाउन के भरोसे ही इसके प्रसार को थामना होगा।

दसू रा काम स्वास््य ढांचे को बेहतर बनाने का है। ‘टेजस्टंग’ और ‘ट्रेलसंग’ के साथ-साथ ‘जीनोम टेजस्टंग’ पर हमᴂ जोर देना चादहए। इससे पता चल सकेगा कक वायरस हमारे ललए ककतना बड़ा खतरा बन सकता है। अभी वायरस को लेकर कई सूचनाएं बिदटश व अमेररकी प्रयोगशालाएं से आ रही हℂ। हमᴂ खुद यह प्रयोग अधधकाधधक करना चादहए, मगर ववडंबना यह है कक ववश्ववव饍यालयⴂ के बंद रहने से ऐसे शोध कम हो रहे हℂ। हमᴂ इस पर भी गौर करना चादहए।

एक बड़ी ज셂रत गरीब तबके को मदद देने की है। उन्हᴂ अगर नकदी सहायता लमलेगी, तो खपत बढ़ेगी, जजससे बाजार मᴂ मांग बढ़ सकती है। ऐसी ही सहायता मध्यवगय को भी चादहए। इस साल बजट मᴂ मनरेगा का आवंटन 1 लाख 10 हजार करोड़ 셁पये से घटाकर www.afeias.com 11 IMPORTANT NEWSCLIPPINGS (21-May-21)

70 हजार करोड़ 셁पये कर ददया गया था। यह कटौती नहीं होनी चादहए। चूंकक ग्रामीण इलाकⴂ मᴂ भी वायरस का प्रसार हो गया है, इसललए वहां भी उत्पादकता अब प्रभाववत होगी। इसे ध्यान मᴂ रखकर हमᴂ लघु एवं कु टीर उ饍योगⴂ को पयायप्त समथयन देना होगा। जादहर है, बजट की समीक्षा करते हुए उसे द셁ु स्त करना होगा, और ज셂री मदⴂ मᴂ खचय बढ़ाते हुए उन-उन जगहⴂ पर कटौती करनी होगी, जहां ऐसा करना संभव है। इससे राजकोषीय घाटा 煍यादा नहीं बढ़ेगा, और नई लहर से तनपटने के ललए भी हम तैयार रह सकᴂ गे। जान बचाने के साथ-साथ भववष्य बचाने पर भी काम होना चादहए।