Thursday 20 September 2007

FDI in Food Retail in India - Food Chain Consolidation Dreams and Global Investors

The India FDI Watch Campaign seeks to prevent Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the retail sector in India. India FDI Watch is a national coalition of labour unions, trade associations, environmentalists, NGOs and academics that have formed to block attempts to allow foreign direct investment in India’s retail markets. FDI in retail will amount to job losses in the thousands as well as thousands more small businesses and kiranas being forced to close. It will continue the race to the bottom in wages and working conditions that Wal-Mart and other multinational mega-retailers have spread across the globe. Multinationals look at India, with its 1.2 billion people, as a vast, untapped market, but we do not want to become the next country to have our cultural traditions, worker's rights, environment, and independence destroyed by Wal-Mart. Contact us for more information.

IndiaFDI Watch - http://indiafdiwatch.org/index.php?id=47

For more information: download the India FDI Watch Brochure.

For more information, download the India FDI Watch Brochure (in Hindi).

Thousands protested to oppose the Bharti-Walmart Joint Venture

On the heels of the announcement of the Bharti-Walmart joint venture, thousands of traders, hawkers, farmers and workers protested across India. Protesters also included a group of American students who demanded that Wal-Mart not be allowed into India. Mass-based organizations called on the Prime Minister and Sonia Gandhi to immediately stop the Bharti-Walmart Joint Venture and not allow Wal-Mart’s backdoor entry into India. There was also a strong united call on all corporations—both foreign and domestic—to "Quit Retail". The protests were timed to commemorate the start of the "Quit India" movement, which started on August 9, 1942, with mass-based sections of society drawing parallels to the East India Company and companies like Wal-Mart, Bharti and Reliance.

Agitations took place in the metro cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Kolkata along with other major cities including, Kalicut, Bhopal, Jaipur, Ranchi, Balia, Meerath, Sonipat, Nagpur, Nasik, Pune and Indore.

In Delhi, thousands of traders, hawkers, farmers and workers protested in Chandni Chowk, a historical market, and burned effigies of Wal-Mart, Bharti and Reliance. Dharmendra Kumar, Director of India FDI Watch and national coordinator of the Vyapaar Aur Rozgaar Bachao Andolan conducted the proceedings and told the agitators, "Both Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh have acknowledged the dangers of corporations entering into the retail sector. The Govt. has commissioned a report looking at the impact of the entire supply chain on livelihoods after Sonia Gandhi had written a letter of caution. Sonia Gandhi had also publicly refused to meet with Michael Duke, Wal-Mart Vice-Chairman during his visit in February after public demonstrations were held due to his arrival. However, both Sonia Gandhi and the PMO have remained silent on the Bharti-Wal-Mart deal and though they have publicly cautioned against corporations and commissioned a study, they have taken no subsequent actions. He demanded that the Wal-Mart Bharti joint venture should be immediately revoked and all corporations should be stopped until thorough study has been conducted by an independent special task force comprising of stakeholders."

Shyam Bihari Mishra, President, Bhartiya Udyog Vyapar Mandal refered back to the British Raj, stating, "The East India Company, the most powerful company at the time, came to colonize India’s people and domestic and international trade and now Wal-Mart, the world’s largest company is trying to enter India to do the same. Mr. Mishra said India has a history of resistance, our people threw out the British and sixty years later if millions have their businesses and livelihoods threatened we will do the same now. He announced that family members of traders would boycott corporate stores." Praveen Khandelwal, General Secretary, Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) said "The livelihoods of retail traders are at stake. If big retail giants like Wal-Mart and Reliance come into the country, small traders would be finished." A mass campaign would be launched to strike back and make corporations realise that we will not let them ruin our livelihoods, he said.

Vandana Shiva, Director, Navdanya said "India is a land of retail democracy- hundreds of thousands of weekly haats and bazaars are located across the length and breadth of our country by people’s own self-organizational capacities. In a country with large numbers of people, and high levels of poverty, the existing model of retail democracy is the most appropriate in terms of economic viability and ecological sustainability.".

Shaktiman Ghosh, General Secretary, National Hawkers Federation warned the government "about taking such strong stances against India’s millions of hawkers and small shopkeepers in favor of only a few huge corporations who seek to dominate the Indian retail market."

Mr. Indu Prakash of Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Reform revealed the nexus between judiciary and corporate retail which led to the ceiling of shops of more than one hundred thousands of traders of Delhi and still goes on.

Mr. Bhati of Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh, Delhi, Harbhajan Singh Siddhu, National Secretary, Hind Mazdoor Sabha, Sunil Kansal, Secretary, Rashtriya Vyapar Mandal, Hakim Singh Rawat, General Secretary, Delhi Hawkers Welfare Association, Banwari Lal Sharma, President, Aazadi Bachaon Aandolan, R K Sharma, Secreatry, UTUC-Lenin Sarani and Venkatesh of Lok Raj Sangathan also addressed the protesters in Delhi.

In Mumbai, thousands of retailers, hawkers, workers and cooperatives participated in a one day trade bandh and a mass public event organized by the Vyapaar Rozgaar Suraksha Kriti Samiti, a joint action committee of trade associations, hawkers groups, trade unions and others. Leaders of Federation of Associations of Maharastra (FAM), Retail and Dispensing Chemists Association (RDCA), India FDI Watch, Mumbai Mahanagar Vyapari Seva Parishad (MMVSP), Mumbai Vyapar Mahasang (MVM), Apna Bazaar, National Hawkers Federation, Center of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) and Hind Mazdoor Kisan Panchayat (HMKP) addressed the protesters. Mohan Gurnani, Convener of the Mumbai based Vyapaar Rozgaar Suraksha Kriti Samiti and President of the Federation of Associations of Maharastra (FAM) said "organised retaling would leave 20 crore people without jobs. Let the government first come out with a rehabilitation for these people and then it can open up FDI in retail". Kishore Shah, President of the Mobile & Telecom Retailers and Distributors Association (MTRDA), stated that around 12,000 retail shop-keepers deal in SIM cards and recharge vouchers of Air-Tel in Mumbai, generating business worth crores of rupees every day. Mr. Shah said "We have already informed all our members, distributors and wholesalers against selling any Airtel products". The Mumbai APMC—wholesale— market remained closed, along with thousands of retail shops across the city, including all chemists and druggists shops. Apna Bazaar, Maharastra’s largest cooperative store also downed its shutters and wholesale markets remained closed in Nasik and Pune.
At an evening event at Shanmukananda Hall in Mumbai mass-based groups laid out a future course of action and adopted a charter of demands. They called on the Center to immediately repeal the Wholesale Cash-n-Carry Permission, and all licenses granted under the permission; repeal the APMC Model Act, implement the National Policy on Street Vendors, take measures against predatory pricing and formulate a national policy on retail trade and small scale industries.

In Bangalore thousands protested at the town hall and burned effigies of corporate retailers like Wal-Mart and Reliance. The protest culminated in leaders presenting the Governor with a memorandum calling on the state to repeal the recent passage of the APMC Model Act. A Charter of Demands, same as was passed in Mumbai, was also placed before the District Collector. Smaller protests were organized throughout the state in different districts including Kodagu, Bijapur, Gulbarga and Davangere districts.

In Jaipur fifty American students joined with hawkers demanding that Wal-Mart leave India and demanding implementation of the National Policy on Street Vendors. The American students and hawkers demonstrated in the old city and held signs saying "Americans Oppose Wal-Mart Everywhere". Ms. Cheryl, an American citizen, learning Hindi at Jaipur said that Wal-Mart has a disastrous impact on small shopkeepers and neighbourhood communities in America and called Indians to learn from their experience and not to allow Wal-Mart to operate in India. Ms. Cheryl said that the world is moving from ‘Corporate to Cooperative’ and Indians should not corporatize their cooperatives.

In Kerala the Kerala Vyapari Vyavasayi Egono Samiti organized protest marches in over 1000 places across the state. In Kalicut over 10,000 traders protested in front of the corporation’s office and submitted a memorandum demanding that corporations keep out of retail and the immediate halt to Wal-Mart’s backdoor entry and the repeal of the Wholesale Cash-N-Carry permission.

In Kolkata the Federation of Trade Organizations (FTO) of West Bengal organized protests in all the 12 districts of the city along with protests across West Bengal, including in front of malls. Tens of thousands traders participated in the protest. In the evening, thousands of hawkers took out a protest march from the city museum.

In Ranchi, Uday Shankar Ojha who led the vegetable vendors before Reliance Fresh in May and has only recently been released from Jail, led thousands of hawkers and vegetable vendors at Albert Ekka Chowk in Ranchi, demanding that Reliance Fresh and all other corporations leave the retail sector and "withdraw their sinister plans to displace millions of livelihoods".

In Bhopal there was a state-level protest meeting in the morning at Gandhi Bhavan and traders sat on a dharna at Roshanara Chowk in the afternoon and burn effigies of Wal-Mart, Bharti and Reliance. A call for Bhopal Bandh was given for 21 August to oust corporate from retail trade.

Similar protests were organized in other cities including Allahabad, Lucknow, Meerut, Bagpat and Sonipat.

Monday 25 June 2007

Indian Politicians Visit Washington - Beg Direct Investments

MAHARASHTRA CHIEF MINISTER IS ON AMERICA TOUR : Begs Direct Investments in Killing Fields of Vidarbha

Here in Maharashtra since June -2005 there is mass genocide of cotton farmers and more than 4000 farmers suicides have officially reported by the sate administration and it has been widely published in American media too, it is ridicules for the Maharashtra chief minister to invite American MNCS for direct investment in the dying land of Vidarbha.

VJAS has urged NRIs in America to ask about Maharashtra chief minister compete failure to stop the mass genocide of vidarbha farmers, Kishor Tiwari added.

Kishor Tiwari

President

Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti
Email - vidarbha@gmail.com
Blog : andolan.blogspot.com
contact : 094222108846

Monday 21 May 2007

Singur, Bengal Communists, Tata Industrialists and Bengali People

Fresh tension erupted on Sunday at the site of the upcoming Tata Motors small car unit in Singur in West Bengal as some 200 farmers clashed with the police to reclaim their land acquired for the project.
The farmers, led by Trinamool Congress leaders like Becharam Manna and legislator Rabindranath Bhattacharya, who are also leaders of the Singur Krishjami Raksha Committee, marched towards the project site to break the boundary wall. Police fired tear gas and used batons to disperse them.
Policemen deployed in the area, 40 km from here in Hooghly district, prevented the farmers from causing any damage to the wall. But the farmers attacked the police with bricks and some sharp weapons.
"We have dispersed the mob but a constable and a police officer were injured," West Bengal Inspector General of Police Raj Kanojia told IANS. "We are keeping a watch on the situation."

The Trinamool Congress claims that around 20 protestors were injured in the violence.
Manna and Bhattacharya were taken into custody. Social activist Anuradha Talwar, an associate of Medha Patkar, was also detained.
"Today's incident proves that the people are still resisting there and they will not give up so easily," said Sougato Roy, a Trinamool Congress leader.

On May 8, about 200 farmers gathered there and tried to destroy the boundary wall.
Singur has been chosen by Tata Motors for its small car project that will be spread over 997 acres of land.
The issue triggered a violent face-off between the government and the farmers led by civil society groups and parties like the Trinamool.
The latest flare up has triggered fresh tension over land acquisition.

After a political slugfest for weeks, the ruling Left Front and the Trinamool arrived at a consensus on Saturday to hold the much-awaited all-party peace meeting on May 24 to restore normalcy in trouble-torn Nandigram.
The meeting aims to end a crisis that has claimed at least 21 lives since the January flare-up over a special economic zone.

Link - IANS - Hindustan Times - Indo-Asian News Service Kolkata, May 20, 2007
First Published : 14:16 IST (20/5/2007)
Last Updated : 14:50 IST (20/5/2007)
http://www.hindustantimes.com/storypage/storypage.aspx?id=a1335933-e39f-4391-a941-513625e063d1&MatchID1=4464&TeamID1=10&TeamID2=6&MatchType1=1&SeriesID1=1109&MatchID2=4466&TeamID3=2&TeamID4=4&MatchType2=1&SeriesID2=1110&PrimaryID=4464&Headline=Fresh+tension+at+Tata+Motors+site+in+Singur

Friday 23 March 2007

Government Machinery and Land Evictions - SEZ Debate

The Indian Cricket Minister has weighed in, on the debate of farmland farmer evictions, with some very important "comments and umpiring decisions".
The Indian Cricket Minister, who also wears the hats of Indian Agriculture Minister and guess what, the Food Minister as well, has gone on record to state that he is not in favour of the use of bureaucracy and government machinery, on behalf of industrialists, by the various state governments.
He expressed these views in relation to the sorry, messy, spectacle and bloodshed, enacted by the Left coalition parties government, in West Bengal, that sent in 5,000 police men, in riot gear to get one cordoned off small village called Nandigram, to be forcibly evicted vacated, from a group of farmers and sharecroppers. That this was all done, by a carefully nurtured protege of Shri Jyoti Basu, and that this was all done in the 250 years anniversary of the Battle of Plassey in Bengal, that paved the way for British colonial expansion in the whole of India, is a matter of historical irony, for the students of Indian history.
We have discussed this issue elsewhere.
Here however, we would like to discuss, the public statement of the Cricket Minister, who has expressed his disapproval of the use of bureaucracy and government machinery, in farmland evictions for the benfit of industry and for the benefit of industrialists.
The sarcastic politics watchers amongst us, know that for the so called students of Chairiman Mao, power flows from the barrel of the gun.
Now the real question is, in what capacity has he expressed the views that he has publicly expressed, about government machinery and its use in farmland evictions and of legislative changes.
Is it as a Cabinet Minister of the Man Mohan Singh Congress government ?
Is it as a Cricket Minister ?
Is it as Indian Agriculture Minister ?
Is it as Indian Food Minister ?
Is it as a veteran Indian political heavyweight from Western Maharashtra sugar belt who rose to power on the back of Western Maharashtra sugar cooperatives ?

Asking this question is crucially important, because the sheer ideological confusion, that characterizes the debates on farmland acquisitions and the rationale for Special Export Zones, in a democratic country like India is often missed in the sound and fury of the industry versus agriculture, poverty versus development debate in India.
It bears attention that the reasonable and logical sounding words, of this tough talking Western Maharashtra minister, who is exceptionally silent on one of the biggest agrarian crisis in modern India, in his own home ground of Maharashtra, is feeling the need to sell the idea that, industrialist are free to go and directly deal with Indian farmers and buy up land that is un irrigated, as long as they do not ask the politically immature governments like that of Shri Jyoti Basu's protege, to send in a pack of riot battle gear uniformed policemen, to do the dirty job for them.
As per the Cricket Minister, the Central and state governments should only play the role of facilitators in Indian Farm Exit Policy and not take on an overtly active role. He has added his suggestions about non irrigated land and the willingness of Indian farmers in state policy regarding land acquisitions. But this is cosmetic.
Are WTO, ASSOCHAM and FICCI listening ?
The Indian Agriculture Minister is effectively saying that he will ensure, that the central Congress Government, adopts a laid back attitude, does not step in on the side of farmers, unwilling to be evicted ....
From this it is clear, that the only objection the Cricket Minister has to farmland evictions, is that it should be done in such a way that it does not become a media story and instead takes, place, drip by drip, in the rural farmlands of India, maybe somewhat like the cotton farmer suicides in Vidarbha.
Shocking that this deliberate excercise in Indian Farm Exit Policy, and forcible demographics modifications on Indian farms, is being choregraphed by the Indian Agriculture Minister. How can Vidarbha farmers expect to find a real solution to their problems when such an Agriculture Minister is seated in the Krishi Bhawan in New Delhi ?
Maybe the Germans and European women, are better friends of Vidarbha farmers than such an Agriculture Minister who is having full control over Krishi Bhawan, unchecked by anyone in the media.
It is shockingly tragic, that such a minister, is in charge of such an unprecedented Indian Agrarian Crisis, at this juncture in Indian history, as agriculture and kisans face the butchers knife.

And he is bowling top spinners, and advising West Bengal Communists, to refrain from using government machinery for land evictions and acquiring land for Special Export Zones.
Can the Indian farmers read the top spinners of their Agriculture Minister or will they all be bowled out ?

Thursday 22 March 2007

Cricket Minister Bowls a Top Spinner

The Indian Cricket Minister who also doubles up as Indian Agriculture Minister, and surprises of surprise, as Food Minister too, has now bowled a top spinner.
Really capable all rounders in Indian team.
The tough talking political heavy weight from Maharashtra, is of course very well known for his intervention in the Cola agricultural pesticides debate, by claiming that Indian mothers are also equally guilty, of feeding their children with breast milk spiced up with acceptable levels of pesticides as per Indian food regulation standards. He did not however explain why we should trust him as the Food Minister, fit for the new incredible Indian Next generation - GEN-X
Many future Cricketers are springing up in India with deep dosages of pesticides in their blood, courtesy our sanguine Food Minister, which will all cumulatively lead to big sixes in World Cups.

The same Minister had pointed out how, in his role as Food Minister, responsible for deflating food prices for South Indian wheat eaters, was in contradiction with his dual responsibility as Indian Agriculture Minister responsible for seeing that hard working, Indian kisan are able to sell their produce, in the markets, either to government procurement agencies, or to private traders, at slightly higher rupees, than the previous year.
Sometimes one cannot but wonder at the sheer competence and the immense burden of weight carried by the respectable Cricket Minister. Any other mortal by now would have been screaming at the Prime Minister and Congress Party, to reduce the political, administrative, and ministerial responsibilities that he has simultaneously been burdened with.
He also certainly feels, the Vidarbha cotton farmers agrarian distress and suicides issue, from his own home ground of Maharashtra, as adding to yet more weight on his share of responsibilities. After all how much can one man do, when burdened with so many and often such conflicting responsibilities ?
But then maybe he does not have any such doubts.
The Honourable Minister decided to bowl a top spinner, on the issue of farmland acquisitions, carried out in Singur and Nandigram, on behalf of top domestic and foreign industrialists, by the erudite bhadralok of Bengal Communists.
The Minister has found it appropriate to dispute the strategy of using governmental muscle for acquiring land for Special Export Zones (SEZ).
Dispute yes, but without feeling the need to justify, why these Special Export Zones are needed in the first place.
Notable economists from Bangla Desh and other places, are being brought in to buttress arguments of how New Amar Sonar Bangla needs industry in place of farmlands, to force a decline in agriculture dependant populations and force the creation of an industrial proletariat that will be begging outside Writer's Building for small morsels of food. The rhetoric of the protege of Shri Jyoti Basu may be inadequate for the peasants and farmers of Nandigram, but maybe our Cricket Minister is satisfied with the batting performance of Bengal.
His track record as the Minister who pushed through large scale GM experimentations on Indian farmers, without long term risk analysis, and farmer and crop insurance best practices, will also not be missed by Indian economy, industry and agriculture watchers.

Thursday 15 March 2007

Whose NandiGram, Whose Singur, Whose Bengal ?

The External Affairs Minister, and also, the Chairman of Empowered Ministers Committee for Special Export Zones (SEZ), Shri Pranab Mukherjee, the Congress minister from Bengal, has expressed deep anguish, at the way the Bengal Chief Minister has decided to honour his words, that he gave to big direct investors in Bengal.
The Bengal Chief Minister was groomed by Shri Jyoti Basu, over all these decades of sterile Marxist logic and bhadralok incompetence, to take over the reigns of a NEW BENGAL. The colour of this New Bengal, is unmistakably now red.
This is the Bengal that gave the resurgent India fighting the might of the colonial empire its National Anthem. Today this National Anthem has been sullied unmistakably by the student of Jyoti Basu, a man who decided that his word given in private conversations was more important that the words he could muster for the villagers of Nandigram. What a shame.
Is this then the New Bengal ? Is this then, going to be the shape and the face of the new India ? Is this the face of the urbane Marxists, the Politburo Communists, the Delhi based left ideologues, sitting in Delhi and Kolkata, and pulling the levers of power ?
A bunch of people who are not able to explain in words and win the hearts of the villagers of Nandigram and Singur ?
Is this going to be the colour of capital that will now begin to flow into Bengal and herald a new and prosperous Bengal ?
The revolution has come a full circle.
The bhadralok has decided that the promises it makes in private conversations, to industrialists are more important than explaining the new industrialization policy of Bengal to the people, the small farmers, whose land it wants to grab and forcibly convert into the industrial proletariat, without their concurrence ?
And the bhadralok is now ready to send forth the police in battle armed gear rather than talk, as the External Affairs Minister says, just because the chief Minister gave his word to some top industrialist in a closed room, in a secretive conversation, and will not tolerate any disobedience.
"The issue has to be resolved through dialogue," said Shri Pranab Mukherjee, the senior Congress leader from West Bengal and indeed one of the most respected of Indians on the global stage.
In sad contrast, are the empty words of firebrand Indian Communists of yester years, the occupiers of Writer's Building, who have lost touch with words, and are seeking bullets to do the talking for them.
Eleven people were killed and 75 injured when police opened fire on a huge mob, that fought pitched battles with the men in uniform in Nandigram.
If this is the New Bengal, the new Amar Sonar Bangla. If this is the shape of things to come in the new and incredible India, then maybe the clock has come a full circle after two and a half centuries. The Revolution has occurred.
The year is 2007. The irony cannot be last on those who study history. Exactly 250 years back, in 1757, a young British man, Robert Clive, had stood in mango forests, with a scroll, a map, a sword, and wondered how he was going to pave the way for a band of people to control a vast sub continent, incredibly rich and diverse. A land of whose riches he had read in Britain and had often dreamed of. The land of wealth but inner disjunction between common people and the ruling elite.
He too had decided that he would let the bullets, the swords, the cannons and the firmans, do the talking.
Yes, this protege of Shri Jyoti Basu, this new changing face of bhadralok, invites comparisons with the same young British man who surveyed Plassey and wondered why and how the British Empire would always remember him.
Today, the statue of Robert Clive, proudly stands outside the Winston Churchill Museum and the British War Cabinet offices of Second World War as its memory of the man who paved the way for English Empire in India.
It is exactly, 250 years of Battle of Plassey and a new battle has been won in Plassey. This time there are no British. This time it is a protege of Shri Jyoti Basu.

And once again, the Indian bhadralok has emerged from the slumber of the sterile Marxist rhetoric years.
Bengal. The state that gave India the Nstional Anthem, the state that opened the way to colonial domination over a proud sub continent called Bharat, the state that gave Subhas Chandra Bose, the state that gave the romanticism of Rabindra Sangeet, the state that gave the heart wrenching films of Satyajit Ray, the state that gave Amartya Sen, is now in the hands of a bhadralok, that has no more use for words and winning battles of the heart. How appropriate that this Bengal is in the hands of a protege of Shri Jyoti Basu.
Maybe it is the destiny of India, that this state and its bhadralok, will always, keep opening the doors to foreign domination, over a sub continent of proud people.
Let us remember the Mir Jafars, the Siraj ud Daulah and Robert Clive of 1757 as we turn the pages of history.
The Battle of Plassey (Bengali: পলাশীর যুদ্ধ, Pâlāshīr Juddha) was a battle that took place on June 23, 1757, at Palashi, on the banks of the Bhagirathi River, about 150 km north of Calcutta. It is near Murshidabad, then the capital of the Nawab of Bengal in India. Pâlāsh (Bengali: পলাশ), an extravagant red flowering tree (Flame of the forest), gives its name to a small village near the battlefield. A phonetically accurate romanization of the Bengali name would be Battle of Palashi, but the spelling "Plassey" is now conventional.

The battle was between Siraj Ud Daulah, the last independent Nawab of Bengal, and the forces of the British East India Company. Siraj-ud-Daulah's army commander had defected to the British, causing his army to collapse. After this defeat, the entire province of Bengal passed to the Company, and this battle is today seen as one of the pivotal battles leading to the British Empire in India.

The enormous wealth gained from the Bengal treasury, after its victory in the battle, allowed the company to significantly strengthen its military might.

The carefully groomed political and ideological protege, of Shri Jyoti Basu is certainly, the harbinger of bad news. Not only for Bengal, but for the whole of India.
People will ask now, whose Bengal is it, whose India ?
Is it of the Communists, the capital laden industrialists and the bhadralok ?
What has happened to the real capital of Bengal in all these years ?
Are the people and the fertile Gangetic valley not itself a creator of capital anymore that it is grovelling for recognition in closed rooms for small bits of capital ? Yes the elite of Bengal has a role to play for rest of India.
Are they its rightful inheritors, or are they merely pretenders who got used to the cups of tea, and sterile conversations in Writer's Building and forgot that words and dialogue are all that it takes, for people's capital to once again build a beautiful and rich Bengal ?
A beautiful, "Amar Sonar Bangla" that has the power of the heart, to inspire and lead the whole of India ? Or will this Bengal, of the protege of Shri Jyoti Basu, that lays siege of rural villages in pre meditated operations, lead the new India ? How tragic !! Can we allow this Bengal to lead India ?
Two hundred and fifty years, and who knows, India has lost the Battle of Plassey once again. Marxist rhetoric is revealing its true colours finally in Bengal.
The elite of Bengal is bent on bartering away not only Bengal, but India, for pebbles. They have kind words for direct investors and determination to fulfill their promises, and only bullets for the people of singur and NandiGram.

Sunday 18 February 2007

Congress Privy Purse for New Maharajas

Dr. Shri Manmohan Singh,
Hon'ble Prime Minister,
Union Council of Ministers,
Government of India,
North Block, New Delhi – 110 001.
2) Shri Pranab Mukherjee,
Chairperson,
Empowered Group of Ministers – SEZs,
Government of India,
North Block, New Delhi – 110 001 .
Hon'ble Sirs,

We are greatly concerned and disturbed with the rapidly deteriorating Rural Economic Conditions across the various States in India, especially the parts which are dependent upon the Agriculture as main source of income. The Policies of the Governments either at Union or the States are killing the Rural Economy.

The Special Economic Zones (SEZs) culture has posed great threat to the survival of poorest of the poor & the entire Agrarian Community is becoming the victims of the special treatment meted out to the select class of the society in the name & style of promotion of SEZs and the mad competition being seen across the various states by the Corporates and the support given by the State Governments without considering the long term impact of such SEZs in India.

We are submitting this representation for lodging our strong protest against the Policies of this Government in extending the extra-ordinary helps to the Industrial Houses and the Corporates in the name & style of the SEZs and its mushrooming culture across the Indian States, which has been proved as disastrous to the economy of Rural India.

We sincerely hope that you will consider following vital points in light of the facts raised through this Representation and pass suitable orders directing the Core Group of Ministers' on SEZs which has taken a positive step by bringing to halt the approvals of Special Economic Zone projects and considering the need to review the Special Economic Zone Policy and Act 2005.

We are glad to know this decision was the need of the hour in response to the wide scale opposition and rising discontentment among communities across India for forced acquisition of their resources and also among the civil society and people's groups in general for not opening the issue of SEZs for dialogue or discussion.

We, being the Members of the civil society, have consistently been raising several concerns in the matter of establishment of SEZs. The key issues that have been raised by us include

1. Large scale forced acquisition of land and promotion of real estate businesses

2. Loss of local agriculture, fisheries based and other traditional livelihoods

3. Lack of equal and non-exploitative employment opportunities for local communities in SEZs

4. Increasing burden on natural resources like land, water, forests and environmental destruction

5. Revenue losses and lack of real economic development of the country and people

6. Breakdown of governance systems especially of the local self governments with the creation of foreign enclaves

7. No effort by the government to initiate or open public consultation on the matter.

The grounds of opposition to the culture of SEZ has been detailed as below :-
(A) Issue of Land and Displacement of livelihoods :
In countries like India the issue of large scale acquisition of farm land leading to dispossessed farmers and loss of farm based livelihoods across the country side has been dominant in creation of SEZs. In India, as of now the total amount of land for the 400 projects (both formally and in-principle approved) comes up to 1,25,000 hectares according to a news report The government however, claims that most of this land is available with the State Industrial Development Corporations which is indeed untrue. Farmer's protests against acquisition of their lands in Haryana, Maharashtra, Punjab, Tamil Nadu. Orissa and Gujarat are evidence enough to prove that.
The fact is that before the opposition started the government was completely unprepared to deal with the issue of land acquisition and the subsequent fallouts on farmers.

The Central SEZ Act 2005, for instance, is silent on land acquisition for SEZs. Further, land is a state subject and State governments are being expected to take the lead in establishing SEZs and, in characteristic fashion, the policy on land acquisition and potential displacement has been left unattended.
The SEZ rules do mention that the land can be acquired by the developer only after BoA approval. However, in Haryana and Maharashtra we have seen that the state government and developers have started acquisition before receiving a nod from the MoC.
Further , while there is a lower limit to the amount of land that can be acquired for an SEZ, there is no upper limit. Chapter 2 Section 4 of the Central Act in fact says that the central government after notifying the SEZ, if it considers appropriate, can subsequently notify, any additional area under the SEZ.
What is also ironic is the government's position that state should stay out of the land acquisition process and that it should be between the two parties (Private party and the land owner) in case of private land. This is rather unfortunate considering that the state is supposed to protect interests of the marginalized sections of the society rather than let the big sharks free to eat the small fish. Unless we move with the assumptions that farmers and rural communities in India are no longer marginalized this is a bit hard to understand
Another statement that "wastelands and single crop lands" can be acquired for SEZs is also adhoc and irrelevant. Any one who has an understanding of the rural areas would know that land use in India is not confined to cultivation but also extends to collective use for day-to-day survival. Fuel, fodder, other non-timber forest produce requirements are met from land, which could be categorized as 'common property resource' or charagah, gaucher, padit bhoomi in local languages but is referred to as "wasteland" by the government. Another critical issue is that in many states these "waste" lands are also either already under cultivation where the farmers are yet to get legal titles. In Raigarh district, where Reliance is planning to build a massive SEZ, almost 12,000 hectares of what are known as Dali Lands have been under cultivation by the tribals for decades now. Most families though are still awaiting regularization of these lands since they fall under the category of Forest land. Similar is the case for Orissa. For example, in Jagatsinghpur district the area where the Multinational Pohang Steel Company is planning its Special Economic Zone, almost 300 families are yet to be allotted legal titles. In the absence of pattas or titles, the villagers have virtually no bargaining power and get displaced without adequate or any compensation. Rehabilitation in such cases is not even considered by the government.
Also, considering the size of many of the special economic zones – they would be spread over an area of hundreds of hectares. It would be rather difficult to find contiguous "wastelands" spread over large areas, especially in many of the states like Tamil Nadu, Haryana, UP and Maharashtra, where these zones are coming up. So it would be virtually impossible to locate them "only on wastelands". In its myopic view of the problem of "Land" in SEZ projects the Ministry has failed completely in considering these complexities and dynamics which will have serious consequences for rural communities and the last of the common property resources in our country.

The principle of "eminent domain" which is the basis of our colonial Land Acquisition Act (1894) is being clearly misused and even given priority over the principles in the 73 rd and 74 th amendment of the constitution, which give primacy to gramsabhas as autonomous decision making entities.
Now, in a rush to facilitate the setting up of these zones the Government is also pushing a National Rehabilitation Policy based on a 2006 draft circulated by the Ministry of Rural Development. This draft has been extensively criticized by people's groups for being sketchy and inadequate. Further, this draft completely overlooks the earlier draft prepared in 2005 by the National Advisory Council (NAC) of the UPA in extensive consultation with people's groups. The 2006 draft does not draw from the principles of the 2005 draft version but in fact ignores them. In spite of detailed people's opposition to the new draft the government is pushing for its passage.
In a scenario where new mega-projects like Special Economic Zones are coming up at a fast pace within the legislative framework of the SEZ Act 2005, such a Rehabilitation policy in combination with the colonial Land acquisition act would do little to address the issues that arise out of development induced displacement.
(B) Labour Exploitation Issues :
It is a well known fact that all over the world trade and export zones have reported instances of labour exploitation as a characteristic feature. India is not very different.

Prior to the SEZ Act 2005, and the introduction of the SEZ policy, theoretically, all labour and factory legislation were fully applicable in the EPZs. However, even in the EPZs, trade unions were practically absent and rare despite attempts of trade unions to organize. The key reason being the restriction to entry into the EPZs, which is limited to the employees who are transported directly to and from the factory door. Workers have also reported fear of victimization by management if they become part of union activities. In the Noida EPZ, workers have been sacked for demanding that labour laws should be implemented.
The government had restricted the right to strike in two of India's export processing zones (EPZs) - the Santacruz Electronics Export Processing Zone (SEEPZ) near Bombay and the Kandla Free Trade Zone – by giving them "Public Utility" status under the Industrial Disputes Act. This makes strikes illegal unless they are preceded by specified reconciliation procedures involving the Labour Commissioners' Office
In the current SEZ regime, the labour laws have been significantly watered down. Chapter 2 Clause 5(g) of the SEZ rules hands over the power to the Development Commissioner to declare the SEZ as a "Public Utility Service". Clause 5(f) delegates powers to the Development Commissioner to handle workmen-employer relations. Functions of the labour commissioner are also handed over to the Development Commissioner.
As in other parts of the world in Indian EPZs it is the women who constitute the bulk of the work force in the EPZs, employed in establishments such as ready-made garments and electronics-based and software industries In an All India Convention of EPZ/ SEZ workers organized by CITU in 2002 it was discussed that women workers are exploited in these zones, Women are made to work in night shifts without providing proper conveyance to their residences. They are not given maternity leave. On the other hand, women found to be pregnant are removed from service. Cr unches are not provided. Young and unmarried women are only preferred. The use of toilets is controlled by issuing tokens. Sexual harassment is very common.
In the Santa Cruz Electronics Export Processing Zone (SEEPZ) near Bombay, ninety per cent of the workers are women who are generally young and too frightened to form unions. Working conditions are bad and overtime is compulsory. The same is the case in the Cochin SEZ. The Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act 1970 specifically prohibits employing contract workers in activities which are "permanent and perpetual" in nature. We have example of many SEZ/EPZs where almost all the activities conducted by the units in are permanent and perpetual in nature and yet the practice of employing contract workers goes unabated
In the time to come the issue of labour is going to emerge as a major concern in these zones.

(C) Environmental Issues in SEZs :
While it would be very premature to talk about the environmental impacts of the large number of SEZ projects that are coming up, we have the Chinese example to imagine the extent of the environmental losses involved. India is already going through a crisis in terms of water scarcity as well as loss of forests and biodiversity. The point is that in the current framework for economic development costs of loss of forest and other common lands; large scale exploitation of water resources; coastal lands and lines; pollution – air and water; generation of e-waste etc; are not even being computed.

The Environmental Governance Mechanisms have only seen weakening since the past five years.
We have the following points to consider :

It was way back in 2001 that the 1994 Environment Impact Assessment notification an amendment was made in 2001 that exempted SEZs from Public hearings, which was a critical part of the Environment Clearance procedure
The EIA notification 1994 was amended in a major way and a new notification was introduced in 2006 in order to issue fast track clearances for all projects
Schedule 1of the EIA notification, 2006 issued by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, under item 7c covers industrial estates/parks/complexes/areas, export processing zones (EPZs), Special Economic Zones (SEZs), Biotech Parks, Leather Complexes. The above categories continue to be exempted from the requirement of a public consultation even in the new notification
The EIA Notification, 2006 divides industries, projects and activities into Category A and Category B where projects under Category A have to be cleared by the Central Government, and Projects under Category B are to be cleared by the State Government.
Under Category A slated for Central Clearance " if at least one industry in the proposed industrial estate (SEZ) falls under Category A, the entire industrial area shall be treated as Category A irrespective of area", and "industrial estates with area greater than 500 ha. and housing at least one Category B industry" will be considered Category A and will require Central clearance.
Under Category B, with "industrial estates housing at least one Category B industry and area <> 500 ha and not housing any industry belonging to Category A or B", require an EIA report to be cleared at the State Level.
An industrial estate that is less than 500 ha and does not house an industry of either Category A or B is exempt from Environmental Clearance.
While it seems fairly clear that units operating within SEZs largely require an Environmental Clearance at either the Central or State Level, on the basis of an E.I.A, but without a public consultation, a broad-based, sweeping "Special Condition" undermines even this basic requirement. The condition states -

If any zone with homogeneous type of industries (under sections of chemical and petrochemical/bulk drug industries), or those Industrial estates with pre –defined set of activities (not necessarily homogeneous), obtains prior environmental clearance, individual industries including proposed industrial housing within such estates /complexes will not be required to take prior environmental clearance , so long as the Terms and Conditions for the industrial estate/complex are complied with

Construction projects are out of the purview of the EIA notification 2006 :

The SEZ Act and rules also leave the following ambiguities :

No mention is made of regulatory mechanisms for Multi-product, single product zones, tourism zones as well as clearance for entire SEZ clearance vs. clearance for units
Guidelines for notification of SEZs are silent on environmental and ecological concerns
Single window clearances and roles of the approval committee are over arching. It is the development commissioner and later the SEZ Authority that would
The single window clearance feature makes the Approval committee at the state level under the DC responsible for approval of all SEZ units and even compliance to conditions of approval if any are to be monitored by the AC
There is no mention of the role of the Pollution Control Board
There is mention of Coastal Regulation related provisions in the sez rules and act. CRZ Notifications make space for SEZ's with almost no conditions and regulation
These issues become even graver with provisions like the one restricting entry into the SEZs , which will be open to authorised persons only. This would obviously make it difficult for independent researchers to enter the area to carry out any environmental impact assessments or studies.

Issues of Governance and sovereignty of self governments :
The most antidemocratic aspects of the SEZ Act which hit out at the sovereignty of governance systems

Special Economic Zones have been given the status of industrial townships as per provisions of clause (1) of Article 243Q of the Indian Constitution and defined in Section 3.2 of SEZ Act, 2005. The State Government will declare the SEZs as Industrial Township Areas to function as self-governing, autonomous municipal bodies. Once an SEZ is declared as an Industrial Township Area, it will cease to be under the jurisdiction of any other local body like- Municipal Corporation and gram panchayat. Moreover, the SEZ Developer and Units would also be exempted from taxes levied by the local bodies because of its self-contained local body.

This clearly undermines the constitutional status given to Urban local Governance and Panchayats under 74 th and 73rd amendment. The present need is to improve financial powers given to the Panchayats to enable them to invest in physical and social infrastructure as a means of promoting growth and equity. And unregulated excessive industrial exploitation of land, water and other natural resources would only worsen the life of rural poor when Panchayats do not have any control of decision and taxing SEZs.

The status of "deemed foreign territory" to SEZs will snatch the sovereignty of locals from their lands, and natural resources which is the backbone of local economy and sustenance and also their fundamental right to movement as Indian citizens will be violated.
What is really going to challenge the governance system is the creation and concentration of power in the hands of the Development Commissioner at the state level and the Board of approvals in the Centre.
Further, the SEZ Act provides that grievances related to the SEZ can only be filed with courts designated by the state governments which will only be for trials related to civil and other matters of Special Economic Zones. No other courts can try a case unless it goes through the designated court first.
Building of a physical boundary around the SEZ and restricting entry to authorsied persons' only means that it would be difficult for any individual or civil society groups and independent agencies to enter the area without prior approval of the Development Commissioner.
Creating foreign territories as SEZs within the national boundary will challenge the sovereignty of the country and undermine the constitutional right to freedom and liberty. This will enhance the internal conflicts led by economic and infrastructural disparity.
The act is completely silent as to the mechanisms for accountability of these (SEZ authority/ Approvals' Authority) bodies to the people of the country.

Countering the Economic Logic :

There are several questions that have been raised by economists and intellectuals challenging the arguments being offered in favour of SEZs as "engines of economic growth". Some of these are

Revenue losses from tax exemptions :
According to an internal assessment of the Union Finance Ministry in 2005, the government had to forgo about Rs. 90,000 crore in direct and indirect taxes over a period of four years on account of the SEZs.

The 1998 Comptroller and Auditor-General Report on EPZs, stated that "customs duty amounting to Rs.7, 500 crore was forgone for achieving net foreign exchange earnings of Rs. 4,700 crore and the government does not seem to have made any cost benefit analysis.".
The RBI has estimated that till 2010 the country exchequer would lose 1,60,000 on account of the tax subsidies to SEZ projects. The other concern is of SEZs turning into real estate businesses considering that 65% of the area within a zone can be a non industrial set-up.

Domination of IT and Software projects :
In the developing countries, the optimism generated by the boom in IT services allows the government to ignore the fact that growth of employment in the commodity producing sectors has not merely decelerated sharply but is increasingly less responsive to increases in output – the jobless growth syndrome. The optimism that IT services generate is only because this is the only segment where employment is increasing significantly. But that growth may be inadequate for most of the population except the middle class minority.

In Bangalore and Pune, both cities that have witnessed IT driven growth in the past five years, issues of widening class disparities within the city leading to several social problems have emerged. Between July 2005 and 06, the Consumer Price Index escalated by about 8% in Pune, and 7% in Bangalore. This is further driving the real estate market – and cities like Pune have seen a whopping ascent in property prices as well as new construction. The ultimate load is on the city infrastructure – problems that both these aspiring to be metro-cities are facing. The states where these cities are located also are the toppers in the list of approved SEZ projects.

POOR EXPORT PERFORMANCE OF EPZS :
There has been a comparison between SEZs and EPZs and the prediction of performance of SEZs in export production based on the EPZ experience in India

Lets take a look at some figures that will throw a light on the performance of EPZs

EPZs contributed to 4% of the exports in the country (2002)
As per an MoC report the exports from the Special Economic Zones during 2004-05 were of the order of US$ 4 billion, representing an annual growth of over 36%. During April-December, 2005, the exports from the SEZs stood at about US$ 3.5 billion.
During the five year period ending 1996-97 the foreign exchange outgo on imports made by the units and the customs duty forgone amounted to Rs.16461.58 crore against which exports of only Rs.13563.87 crore were reported.
An appraisal of the seven EPZs was undertaken during August 1996 to July 1997. Out of 2333 units granted letters of Approval, 513 units were functional as on 31 March 1997.
The Ministry of Commerce stated that 1351 projects/LOAs had been cancelled or lapsed on account of non-implementation indicating 58 per cent mortality in the units approved.

While the zoning concept remains the same as far as EPzs and SEZs are concerned, there are certain differences here –

100% Export oriented units were essential in the EPZ policy and the conditions to get concessions and taxes were more difficult
The SEZ policy relaxes the conditions by allowing sale of products to domestic market by the Units in SEZ
The doubt that is being raised is that if SEZs are not able to attract EoUs then would they become hubs for domestic market production, which inturn would affect domestic producers in non SEZ areas (or domestic tariff areas)

Under all circumstances, in SEZ, the main beneficiaries would not be the units but the developers who would be getting land at cheap rates from the state along with huge concessions on infrastructure, maintenance and tax breaks. Even if they fail in attracting EOUs, their success will depend upon the set of activities (entertainment and township) that they can carry out for generating profits in the non industrial area of the SEZ.

Regional Imbalances :
The state wise break up of the number of projects below shows the dominance of SEZ projects in Maharashtra , Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh. As in the case of China many of these zones are to be located in coastal areas. They also seem to be clustering around urban and already developed areas due to easy access to infrastructural facilities for transport and communication. The question that is being raised is of creation and further accentuation of already existing regional imbalances. Further, there is a concern about concentration of these zones in areas that are already over burdened and running short as far as supply of water and power are concerned.

The question that is being repeatedly raised is that are these zones relevant in the current economic context of India?

In view of above, we hereby demand the following immediate reliefs in the national interest, especially the interest of Agrarian Community staying in the Rural India.

� the SEZ Act 2005 be repealed to ensure industrial and economic development which is fair and democratic

� the approved and notified SEZs be cancelled and land acquisitions already made be annulled

� an immediate dialogue or consultation be initiated with people's groups, communities and Panchayat representatives to seek opinion on strengthening the development of local economies.

We once again reiterate that the SEZ Act 2005 is anti democratic and unconstitutional as it completely violates the right to life and livelihood of people, who are being forcefully displaced for the implementation of these projects. The Act promotes large scale privatization and monopolization of resources into the hands of a few private developers at huge costs to the state exchequer as well as the economy and environment of this country.

We hope that being representatives of the people, you stand united with us for a just and democratic society that ensures equitable development for all.
Thanking You & anticipating an immediate steps from your Desk,
Yours faithfully,
KISHORE TIWARI
PRESIDENT,
VIDARBHA JAN ANDOLAN SAMITI,
11, TRISARAN SOCIETY, KHAMLA,
NAGPUR – 440 025
India

Monday 8 January 2007

Indian Bankers Upbeat - Indian Farmers Suicidal

Indian bankers are strongly upbeat about the overall situation from their perspectives, of the Indian rural scenario. Ask them, to point to some signs of the reasons for their optimism, and they promptly refer you to some report produced by some well paid think tanks / consultants who would be only too happy to follow up, with a Powerpoint presentation, showing the upward trends in the "disposable rural incomes" in India, the investments by Indian government in rural infrastructure, the photo of the farmer with the mobile phone, checking out the latest harvest prices in international mandis and receiving SMS messages of when to hold, and when to dispose of his food crops, depending on share market prices and Indian GDP forecasts, and the Reddys of Andhra, who are voluntarily surrendering their lands to the state, and getting kudos for disposing off land they should not have had in the first place.

It also becomes an ocassion for the Income Tax lawyers to join in and show their patriotism and loyalty towards Mr Chidambaram's tight tax collection regime and computerization in IRS. Should we not increase the tax base now, as per the latest reports from the Indian bankers with a significant footprint in the rural sector ?
ICICI chief Mr Kamath has shown the sleight of hands, that only corporate Indian banks can, and that too supposedly during the tenure of a Communist supported Central government. He says .. "After all, there is a lot of money to be made from rural areas ".
This just goes to show that in modern India, one man's meat is another's poison, bald vultures notwithstanding.
And yes, it does make one wonder whether the psychological states of pessimism and optimism, are due to the family genes, the bodily hormones, or due to the trouser pant pockets, as long as the middlemen all line up on your side.
Urban Indian economists are busy making their tryst with destiny. While looking at rural areas and populations as one vast potential market, rather than, the backbone of Indian cities and the well being of the country as a whole, they are themselves looking for investment consultancy contracts from foreign investors, suggesting how to facilitate doling out tax sops for Special Export Zones (SEZ), in a bid to further nudge and reward the dynamism of the corporate houses, and for patriotic purposes, in a bid to clamber on top of the Chinese dragon, as the bankers begin to position themselves to reposess farmlands from indebted, distressed and suicidal Indian farmers.
Ask these economists about a retirement scheme for farmers or social security for rural Indians and they will start pointing out the paltry pittance legislated by Shri Vajpayee, as a step too far.
The farmers of India now need armies of psychologists, psychiatrists and mental health experts to combat their chronic depression, that Oxbridge trained economists are winking at and mass inducing.
All the Optimists, reside in urban areas and all the Pessimists are now living in rural areas. The architects of the Second Green Revolution are busy playing the moves and countermoves and enacting roles of Shatranj ke Khiladi even as the bugles of the East India Company sound on the horizon. Satayajit Ray would surely have some acerbic comments for the modern day Nawabs of Oudh.
Make merry while the sun shines. The great saga of the untold Indian story of an undeclared Farmer Exit Policy takes shape.
And they used to talk of Shylock as that smirking Jew, who would have his pound of flesh. Indian farms are becoming one massive siphon for agricultural surplus, at rates that even the colonial rulers would have shied from.