11-11-2020 (Important News Clippings)
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Quality Of Reciprocity
Visit to Nepal by Army chief signals continuity of ties, distance travelled by both countries from summer of discontent
Editorial
Delhi has reached out to Kathmandu through both the civilian and security establishments. The visit by the Army chief, General Manoj Mukund Naravane, to Nepal earlier this month was part of a long-standing reciprocal tradition between the two countries’ militaries of conferring the rank of general on each other’s army chiefs. It is heartening that the custom continued this time despite a bitter map row that has cast a shadow on ties. For sure, General Naravane’s visit was not expected to resolve the spat over territory, but it helped to signal continuity in bilateral relations between the two neighbours. It gave both sides the opportunity to draw a line under the Indian Army chief’s statement in May that alluded to a China hand behind Nepal’s claims over Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura and triggered anger in Kathmandu. Nepal Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli’s statement to Naravane reiterating friendly relations between the two countries, and expressing hope that the problems between the two would be resolved through dialogue, was indication that Nepal is as keen as India to turn the page on this chapter.
Behind-the-scenes efforts are already on to resolve the issue. Delhi has reached out to Kathmandu through both the civilian and security establishments. There seems to be a realisation in both capitals that this age-old relationship, powered mainly by people-to-people ties across an open border — unique in the South Asia region — has to be nurtured better. Naravane’s visit, and that of R&AW chief Samant Goel days earlier, has helped clear the air. Prime Minister Oli was seen as making a conciliatory gesture by withdrawing school textbooks that carried the revised map of Nepal with Kathmandu’s new territorial claims.
It is understood that Oli has to walk a thin line between his domestic political compulsions and Nepal’s relations with India. While Oli’s map project helped him play to nationalist galleries back home, it, and his China tilt, has not prevented him from sensing that putting all Nepal’s eggs in the Beijing basket may not be that popular either among domestic constituencies, and that Delhi is as vital to its interests, especially as the Chinese penchant for map revisionism in the region does not stop at India alone. The India-Nepal Boundary Working Group will reportedly meet soon for a joint survey of the border areas. Both countries have travelled some way from their summer of discontent.
Date:11-11-20
Trump lost, maybe not Trumpism
Idea that a good man in the White House can resurrect the golden era of liberal internationalism is a serious illusion. Biden victory masks deeper cracks in political community that Trump showcased
Subrata Mitra , [ The writer is an emeritus professor of political science, Heidelberg University, Germany. ]
The fond hopes of a Joe Biden presidency restoring “normal” politics at home and the world are misleading. Unless one looks at the small print, Trump’s legacy and the main outcome of the US presidential elections are easy to miss. The presidential election that pitched thuggish, demagogic nationalism against amorphous, sentimental liberalism, ended not in a knockout blow, but a technical win, on points. Taking all the results — elections to gubernatorial positions, and seats in the Senate and House of Representatives and the support for Trump which exceeded all forecasts — one can see why President-elect Biden has emerged hamstrung from the contest, with a Senate majority and a conservative Supreme Court stacked against any major undoing legislative initiative to herald his new era. But even more dangerous than a Biden presidency that might not be able to deliver on its promise is the fact that the Biden victory masks deeper cracks in the political community that Trump, in his haphazard ways, showcased.
The idea that putting a good man in the White House can resurrect the golden era of liberal internationalism is a serious illusion. The Democratic coalition of liberal media, high-tech entrepreneurs, the denizens of leafy suburbs offended by Trump’s antics, inner-city Blacks and civil society activists who voted Biden in was held together by Trump in office. Without this common nemesis, this disparate coalition, with very different agendas, is unlikely to hold together. On the other hand, white blue-collar workers, who have lost out from the flight of manufacturing overseas, and a section of evangelical Christians who feel menaced by radical ideas such as gay marriages and LGBT rights, form an enduring constituency that has felt left out by the liberal establishment. It remained receptive and loyal and is unlikely to fade away.
Trump’s legacy is complex. The most important of these is that “Trumpism” — the movement consisting of ideas, people and rage that Donald Trump incarnated — will outlive the Trump presidency. Trumpism is more an attitude than a coherent philosophy. Unlike Reagan or Thatcher whose isms contained a core of monetarist policies and a worldview based on the Cold War, Trump’s connect is with people who had become invisible to the political establishment. His powerful appeal to these Americans who feel forgotten and dispossessed will continue to be part of the political furniture. These are the ones for whom his transgressions were not an issue, who took him “seriously and not literally” unlike the establishment, which took his clowning literally and did not see the seriousness that underpinned them.
Seen from this angle, the assumption that the four topsy-turvy years of Trump were an aberration — “a surreal interlude” — and that politics will seamlessly get back to its normal shape of two-party competition on predictable lines, is a chimera. The angry nativist conservative populism that Trumpism champions — one sees echoes of this trend among England’s Brexiteers, and supporters of Le Pen in France — will continue to be a potent force from the radical right. The volatile residue of the Black Lives Matter movement is unlikely to fade away either, and will continue to invade the somnolent middle which has sustained the bipartisan consensus of American politics.
Trump’s America, while undermining the Western alliance and asking West European states to take responsibility for their own security, had nevertheless brought its full force to bear against the aggrandisement of China. A Biden presidency, preoccupied domestically, seeking to restore the Western alliance, might seek an accommodation with Chinese ambitions. Biden’s “willing to strike, but afraid to wound” policy might let international rogue states have their way. Pakistan and Turkey will have it good. The Chinese will possibly have the last laugh.
What, then, are the implications of the Biden presidency for India? The left wing of the Democrats are likely to raise issues with some of the core policies of the Modi government with regard to Kashmir, Indian Muslims and CAA. The China-Pakistan axis might be emboldened through the diversion of American interest away from South Asia. Under these circumstances, the premise that “US-India ties stand on a mutually beneficial bipartisan and strong footing” can be misleading. The Quad and Malabar war games — fine as strategic symbols of cooperation with like-minded democracies — will probably continue. However, the hope of securing India’s national interests by riding on the coat-tails of an assertive United States is a dangerous illusion.
The best way forward is to retain strategic autonomy through the Nehruvian concept of non-alignment, adroitly refurbished as the Modi doctrine — “Friendship with all, alliance with none”. India need look no further than the motto of Rajputana Rifles, “Veer bhogya vasundhara (The brave shall inherit the earth)”, as the basis of its security. The Indian state simply has to prepare its people to stay focused on taking responsibility for its own security, getting manufacture up to scratch and look beyond partisan quibbles about farm policy for short-term electoral advantage. With regard to the states of South Asia, India will need to take on board two-timing neighbours, and in domestic politics, the Union government will need to make common cause with Opposition parties in states where they are in power, ideological differences notwithstanding.
Road bumps
The Finance Commission’s road map is critical amid a stand-off between Centre and States
Editorial
On Monday, the Fifteenth Finance Commission submitted its report with recommendations on the formula for sharing the divisible pool of tax revenues between the Centre and the States for the next five years to the President. The panel’s proposed fiscal road map, up to 2025-26, will only come into the public domain once it is tabled in Parliament, if not in the winter session, at least before the Union Budget for 2021-22 is presented. An action taken report would reveal the government’s acceptance or rejection of the panel’s prescriptions. When the Fourteenth Finance Commission recommended a sharp increase in their take-home cut from 32% to 42% of the divisible pool of revenues and the Centre accepted it, States had obvious cause to be upbeat. However, their actual shares of total taxes mopped up have turned out to be far lower as the Centre deployed more cesses and surcharges to garner additional revenues in recent years.
There are fresh reasons for the States to be anxious about the Commission’s revenue sharing recommendations, not in the least because of their recent stand-off with the Centre on how their GST compensation dues will be paid this year. While 22 States have now come on board with a solution conjured up by the Centre, there are still loose ends as more dues pile up over the next two years. Second, the Centre had tasked the Commission with assessing a few unusual ideas, including the creation of a non-lapsable fund for defence and security spending, and incentivising States for performance on reforms considered desirable by the Centre such as adoption of direct benefits transfer. Southern States are worried that the use of 2011 population data, instead of 1971, will penalise them for managing population growth better. All these have the potential to impact States’ actual share. The RBI’s assessment of State finances reveals they were already hurting from the slowing economy. The pandemic and the lockdowns have made things worse. Last year, this Finance panel had tabled an interim report for 2020-21 by saying a five-year forecast is tough when the economy is slowing down due to the effects of reforms like demonetisation and GST. Its final report comes at an even more uncertain time, with the pandemic throwing the global economy into a tailspin. That the panel has dedicated a volume entirely to States, analysing the development needs of each, is heartening. The Centre can allay States’ fears further by tabling the report soon so that any anxieties can be debated and laid to rest, and States can also plan upcoming Budgets with less uncertainty. Being receptive to States’ concerns can help forge a fresh cohesive federal compact for the coming years — a double engine that can hasten India’s return to high growth.
Date:11-11-20
Strengthening public health capacities in disasters
Disaster legislation can help in this as private sector services are not a dependable option in the Indian context
Dr. Soham D. Bhaduri is a Mumbai-based physician, public health commentator, and editor of ‘The Indian Practitioner’
Much of Europe today is witnessing a menacing second wave of COVID-19, which is seemingly worse than the first. Infections have waned in India, although some are anticipating another wave around winter. While appearing unlikely, it is impossible to guarantee that a second wave will not be worse for India as well. However, one does not get to witness the sharp reaction today that the early days of the disaster evoked, albeit except for the fresh round of lockdowns imposed in parts of Europe. Neither is a second wave necessarily less dangerous nor is a vaccine freely available, but living with the pandemic for months together has had a desensitising effect on the collective psyche. Owing to such ‘desensitisation’, disasters that are not sudden and striking tend to be minimised. Unfortunately, the same has characterised India’s disaster management framework in writing off many pressing public health issues.
More a reactive approach
In 2005, India enacted the Disaster Management Act, which laid an institutional framework for managing disasters across the country (https://bit.ly/3eKDG9N). What hitherto comprised largely of reactive, ad hoc measures applied in the event of a disaster, was to be replaced under the Act with a systematic scheme for prevention, mitigation, and responding to disasters of all kinds. Disaster management considerations were to be incorporated into every aspect of development and the activities of different sectors, including health. While some headway has indeed been achieved, the approach continues to be largely reactive, and significant gaps remain particularly in terms of medical preparedness for disasters. The Disaster Management Act is one of the few laws invoked since the early days of COVID-19 to further a range of measures — from imposing lockdowns to price control of masks and medical services.
The common theme is that the public health angle in disasters and disaster management has been under-emphasised. Two important lessons emerge, which will be discussed: first, that health services and their continuing development cannot be oblivious to the possibility of disaster-imposed pressures; and second, that the legal framework for disaster management must push a legal mandate for strengthening the public health system.
Drawbacks in private sector
Since the capping of treatment prices in private hospitals in May, many instances of overcharging by hospitals in Maharashtra have surfaced, in some cases even leading to suspension of licences. It illustrates how requisitioning of private sector services during disasters can hardly be a dependable option in the Indian context. This is particularly important since the future development of hospital care services is being envisaged chiefly under publicly financed health insurance, which would very likely be private-sector led.
Health systems with large private sectors do not necessarily flounder during disasters. But the Indian private sector landscape, characterised by weak regulation and poor organisation, is particularly infelicitous for mounting a strong and coordinated response to disasters. During disasters, the limited regulatory ability could be further compromised. While publicly financed insurance could be a medium to introduce some order into this picture, a large majority of private hospitals in the country are small enterprises which cannot meet the inclusion criteria for insurance. Many of these small hospitals are also unsuitable for meeting disaster-related care needs. And while requisitioning can be done under law, punitive action against non-compliant hospitals becomes tricky during disasters since health services are already inadequate.
Also, development of certain services and competencies that are crucial for disaster response could lag behind. Private hospitals are known to prefer lucrative and high-end ‘cold’ cases, especially under insurance, and are generally averse to infectious diseases and critical cases with unpredictable profiles. Eric Toner (2017), under the “parking lot conundrum” (https://bit.ly/3eJdwUI), describes how disaster preparedness does not make a strong “business case” for hospitals, which prefer to invest in more profitable areas.
Strong public sector capacities are therefore imperative for dealing with disasters. While the Disaster Management Act does require States and hospitals to have emergency plans, medical preparedness is de facto a matter of policy, and, therefore, gaps are pervasive. There is a strong case for introducing a legal mandate to strengthen public sector capacities via disaster legislation, including relevant facets such as capacity-building of staff. A desirable corollary will be that it will also serve us well during normal times.
Integration with primary care
Critics have indicated that the Disaster Management Act fails to identify progressive events (which nevertheless cause substantial damage, often more than sudden catastrophes) as disasters, thus neglecting pressing public health issues such as tuberculosis and recurrent dengue outbreaks. Had they been identified as disasters, they would have attracted stronger action in terms of prevention, preparedness, and response. Again here, a legal mandate can contribute to strengthening the public health system at the grass-roots level.
There is also scope for greater integration of disaster management with primary care. Primary care stands for things such as multisectoral action, community engagement, disease surveillance, and essential health-care provision, all of which are central to disaster management. Evidence supports the significance of robust primary care during disasters, and this is particularly relevant for low-income settings. Synergies with the National Health Mission, the flagship primary-care programme which began as the ‘National Rural Health Mission’ concurrently with the Disaster Management Act in 2005, could be worth exploring. Interestingly, the National Health Mission espouses a greater role for the community and local bodies, the lack of which has been a major criticism of the Disaster Management Act. Making primary health care central to disaster management can be a significant step towards building health system and community resilience to disasters.
While the novel coronavirus pandemic has waned both in objective severity and subjective seriousness, valuable messages and lessons lie scattered around. It is for us to not lose sight and pick them up.
पाक-चीन को नसीहत
संपादकीय
भारत इसकी अनदेखी नहीं कर सकता और न ही उसे करना चाहिए कि चीन लद्दाख सीमा पर किस तरह यथास्थिति से छेड़छाड़ करने की कोशिश में है। चीन केवल भारत की ही अखंडता के लिए खतरे नहीं पैदा कर रहा है, बल्कि वह अपने अन्य पड़ोसी देशों के लिए भी सिरदर्द साबित हो रहा है। इनमें से कुछ एससीओ के भी सदस्य हैं। इन सदस्य देशों और खासकर रूस को इसके लिए अतिरिक्त सतर्क रहना होगा कि एससीओ चीन और पाकिस्तान जैसे देशों के अड़ियल रवैये का शिकार न बनने पाए। चूंकि इसके आसार कम हैं कि चीन अपने अड़ियल रवैये का आसानी से परित्याग करेगा, इसलिए भारत को यह देखना होगा कि वह इस संगठन से कितनी उम्मीदें लगाए? यही बात एक अन्य संगठन ब्रिक्स पर भी लागू होती है, जिसमें भारत, रूस, ब्राजील और दक्षिण अफ्रीका के अलावा चीन की भी भागीदारी है। मौजूदा हालात में उचित यह होगा कि भारत इन दोनों संगठनों से ज्यादा उम्मीदें लगाने के बजाय क्वॉड को और सशक्त करने में जुटे। यह इसलिए आवश्यक है, क्योंकि एक तो यह मूलत: लोकतांत्रिक देशों का संगठन है और दूसरे, संयुक्त राष्ट्र भी तेजी के साथ अपनी प्रासंगिकता खोता जा रहा है।
बुनियादी बदलाव की दरकार
रवि शंकर
दुनिया के अधिकांश देशों में चौथी औद्योगिक क्रांति के मद्देनजर ‘एजुकेशन 4.0’ पर जोर दिया जा रहा है। वहीं भारत में रोजगारों के बदलते परिदृश्य के अनुरूप शिक्षा हम अपने छात्रों को नहीं दे पा रहे थे। निजी और सरकारी शिक्षा संस्थानों की शैक्षिक गुणवत्ता और संसाधनों के बीच की खाई सामाजिक असंतोष का कारण बन रही थी।
भले कुछ मामलों में गिने-चुने राज्यों के आंकड़े देश के अन्य हिस्सों से बेहतर हैं, पर निचली कक्षाओं में मामूली सुधार को छोड़ दें, तो पूरे देश में शिक्षा का स्तर गिरता जा रहा है। ग्रामीण भारत लगातार सामाजिक, शैक्षणिक और आर्थिक स्तर पर भयावह पिछड़ेपन से जूझ रहा है। ऐसे में किसी कक्षा के आधे या एक फीसद छात्रों के अपने से निचली कक्षा के पाठ को पढ़ने में पहले की तुलना में सक्षम होने के आंकड़े से संतोष करना या उसे उपलब्धि मानना देश के भविष्य के प्रति आपराधिक लापरवाही होगी। सर्व शिक्षा अभियान, शिक्षा का अधिकार कानून जैसे उपायों के बावजूद अगर ग्रामीण छात्र शिक्षित नहीं हो पा रहे हैं, तो यह सरकार और समाज की सोच और दिशा पर बड़ा सवालिया निशान है। यह सही है कि 2009 के शिक्षा को बुनियादी अधिकार मानने वाला कानून बनाने और सघन सर्व शिक्षा अभियान के कारण हमारे गांवों में लड़के-लड़कियों की स्कूली भर्तियां बढ़ी हैं और प्राइमरी के बाद पढ़ाई छोड़ने वालों की तादाद में भी कमी आई है, पर बड़ा सवाल कक्षा में उपस्थिति का नहीं, बल्कि यह है कि कक्षा में ग्रामीण बच्चे प्राथमिक शिक्षा तक की जो पढ़ाई कर रहे हैं उसका स्तर कैसा है?
आजादी के बाद हमारे यहां शिक्षा पर कई आयोग बैठे। दर्जनों रपटें आईं, जिनमें सचमुच कई क्रांतिकारी, पर साकार किए जा सकने वाले व्यावहारिक सुझाव थे। कुछ सुझावों पर अमल भी किए गए, फिर भी जितना सुधार कागजों में दिखा, उतना जमीन पर नहीं।
हालांकि यह कोई नई बात नहीं है। क्योंकि अपने संक्रमण काल से ही भारतीय शिक्षा को कई चुनौतियों और समस्याओं का सामना करना पड़ा। आज भी ये चुनौतियां और समस्याएं हमारे सामने हैं, जिनसे दो-दो हाथ करना है। स्वतंत्रता आंदोलन के साथ ही भारतीय शिक्षा को लेकर काफी जद्दोजहद चलती रही। आजादी के बाद भारत सरकार ने सार्वजनिक शिक्षा के विस्तार के लिए अनेक प्रयास किए। यह और बात है कि इन प्रयासों की अनेक खामियां भी सामने आई हैं, जिन्हें दूर करने का प्रयास किया जा रहा है।
बहरहाल, संयुक्त राष्ट्र की एक रिपोर्ट में इस बात का स्पष्ट जिक्र किया गया है कि निरक्षरता के कारण दुनिया भर की सरकारों को सालाना 129 अरब डॉलर का नुकसान उठाना पड़ रहा है। साथ ही दुनिया भर में प्राथमिक शिक्षा पर खर्च किया जाने वाला दस फीसद धन बर्बाद हो जाता है, क्योंकि शिक्षा की गुणवत्ता का ध्यान नहीं रखा जाता। इस कारण गरीब देशों में अक्सर चार में से एक बच्चा एक भी वाक्य पूरी तरह नहीं पढ़ सकता। भले आजादी के बाद पिछले सात दशक में भारत ने बहुआयामी सामाजिक और आर्थिक प्रगति की है, लेकिन अगर साक्षरता की बात करें, तो इस मामले में आज भी हम कई देशों से पीछे हैं। आजादी के बाद देश की साक्षरता बढ़ाने के लिए कई कार्य किए गए और कानून बनाए गए, पर जितना सुधार कागजों में दिखा उतना असल में नहीं हो पाया।
भारत की सार्वजनिक शिक्षा व्यवस्था को देखें तो एक सुव्यवस्थित व्यवस्था दिखती है, जिसमें एक सोच और संरचना है और यह व्यवस्था भली प्रकार से वांछित रूप से विकेंद्र्रीकृत भी है। मगर मौजूदा परिदृश्य को देखें तो पाते हैं कि इन सबके बावजूद अपेक्षित परिणाम नहीं दिख रहे हैं। व्यवस्था के सही तरह से काम न करने की गहराई में न जाकर ऐसी बातों पर विमर्श जारी है, जिनके आधार बहुत मजबूत नहीं दिखाई पड़ते। सच्चाई यह है कि राज्य सरकारें अब भी शिक्षा को लेकर पर्याप्त गंभीर नहीं हैं। शायद इसलिए कि यह उनके वोट बैंक को प्रभावित नहीं करती। दरअसल, समाज के कमजोर तबके के बच्चे ही सरकारी स्कूलों में पढ़ते हैं, जबकि संपन्न वर्ग के बच्चे निजी स्कूलों में पढ़ते हैं। सरकारी स्कूलों की उपेक्षा का आलम यह है कि स्कूलों में शिक्षकों की नियुक्तियां तक नहीं होतीं। एक या दो शिक्षक सभी कक्षाओं के बच्चों को पढ़ा रहे होते हैं। कई जगह तदर्थ या अंशकालिक शिक्षकों से काम चलाया जाता है। इसके अलावा स्कूलों में ढांचागत सुविधाएं ठीक करने पर भी ध्यान नहीं दिया जाता। इन स्कूलों पर न तो कोई नियमन है और न ही गुणवत्ता सुनिश्चित करने की कोई व्यवस्था। ऐसा नहीं माना जा सकता कि सरकारी स्कूलों में सुधार नहीं हो सकता। असल बात दृढ़ राजनीतिक और प्रशासनिक इच्छाशक्ति की है।
गौर करने वाली बात यह है कि हमारा देश उन उभरती अर्थव्यवस्थाओं में शुमार है, जो शिक्षा पर अपने सकल घरेलू उत्पादन (जीडीपी) का मामूली हिस्सा ही खर्च करते हैं। इसे बढ़ाने की जरूरत है। इसके बिना शिक्षकों को जरूरी प्रशिक्षण देना और समुचित संसाधन उपलब्ध कराना संभव नहीं हो सकेगा। यह भी जरूरी है कि पाठ्यक्रम पूरा करने की जगह सीखने की क्षमता बढ़ाना पढ़ाई की प्राथमिकता बने। बढ़ती युवा आबादी को रोजगार और जीवनयापन के बेहतर मौके उपलब्ध कराना फिलहाल एक गंभीर चुनौती बनी हुई है। आज प्राथमिक शिक्षा में आमूल-चूल बदलाव की जरूरत है। उसमें निवेश बढ़ाया जाए, शिक्षकों की नियुक्ति प्रक्रिया बदली जाए। पाठ्यक्रम में परिवर्तन हो, छात्रों और अध्यापकों को कंप्यूटर और आधुनिक तकनीकी साधन उपलब्ध कराए जाएं। प्राथमिक शिक्षा को दुरुस्त करके ही समाज के हर वर्ग को विकास प्रक्रिया का साझीदार बनाया जा सकता है। गौरतलब है कि बेहतर साक्षरता दर से देश जनसंख्या बढ़ोतरी, गरीबी और लिंगभेद जैसी चुनौतियों से निपट सकता है।
बहरहाल, देश की बहुत सारी चुनौतियों और समस्याओं का समाधान करके एक बेहतरीन समाज बनाने का सपना तब तक साकार नहीं हो सकेगा, जब तक देश की एक बड़ी अशिक्षित आबादी साक्षर नहीं हो जाती। आज विश्व आगे बढ़ता जा रहा है और अगर भारत को भी प्रगति की राह पर कदम से कदम मिला कर चलना है तो शिक्षा व्यवस्था को दुरुस्त करना होगा। असल में हमारे यहां की शिक्षा व्यवस्था में प्रयोगवादी सोच की कमी है। देश में शिक्षा का कानून तो लागू कर दिया गया है, पर उत्तर प्रदेश और बिहार जैसे राज्य, जहां गरीबी अधिक है, वहां इसके सफल होने में काफी मुश्किलें आ रही हैं। लेकिन सरकारों को यह भी समझना होगा कि सिर्फ साक्षर बनाने से लोगों का पेट नहीं भरेगा, बल्कि शिक्षा के साथ कुछ ऐसा भी सिखाना होगा जिससे बच्चे आगे जाकर अपना पेट पाल सकें।