Fixing Accountability Of COVID Funds

NANDITA HAKSAR

WE are witness to the most horrific tragedy in our country’s history.  The most visible part of the tragedy is the movement of the inter-state migrants back to their homes. It is estimated that the consequences of this nationwide lockdown has been an estimated 114 million job losses (91 million daily wage earners and 17 million salary earners who have been laid off), across 271,000 factories and 65-70 million small and micro enterprises that have come to a halt.

In consonance with the tragedy the government has mobilised crores of rupees from home and abroad to fight the pandemic and help those who are the most vulnerable victims of this pandemic.

The Prime Minister National Relief Fund has been there since 1948 and in March 2020 the Prime Minister established the PM CARES Fund:  the Defence Minister, the Union Home Minister and the Union Finance Minister are ex-officio trustees of the fund.

PM CARES Fund has got exemption under the FCRA, and a separate account for receiving foreign donations has been opened. This enables PM CARES Fund to accept donations and contributions from individuals and organisations based in foreign countries. The objectives of the fund are: 1 To undertake and support relief or assistance of any kind relating to a public health emergency; 2.        To render financial assistance, provide grants of payments of money or take such other steps as may be deemed necessary by the board of trustees to the affected population; and 3. To undertake any other activity, which is not inconsistent with the above objects.

Individuals, corporations have made generous contributions but the salaries of government servants too have been cut without permission and added to the fund despite protests and challenges in the courts.

Each state has set up its own relief funds. Here we have the Goa state COVID-19 relief account. It is set up in the Vidhan Bhawan branch of the State Bank of India, New Assembly Complex in Panaji.

Goa Shipyard Limited has extended financial support of Rs 1.25 crore towards PM CARES Fund and Rs 50 lakh towards Goa Chief Minister’s Relief Fund to support country’s battle against COVID-19. Under the corporate social responsibility initiative, the financial aid provided by GSL will be used as a part of preventive and relief measures against COVID-19.

It may seem a generous donation but it would be interesting to know whether this amount is less or more than what the corporation spends under the CSR; and by giving a one-time donation do they get away from the corporate responsibility. Surely the donation should be in addition to the funds spent of CRS?

In addition, according to reports in the media relief is being given to various sections of the workers such as the 19,000 registered construction workers in Goa will get 15-day wages of a semi-skilled workers under the Goa Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board Assistance Scheme. This was announced by Goa’s Labour Minister. She also promised Rs 4,000 as one-time relief to all GBOC workers.

The central and state government have cut the salaries of its employees without permission and diverted it to the relief funds. With these donations of crores of rupees why are the migrant workers in Goa (the question can be asked in every state) in such a pitiable situation? Why are they not being given food and shelter?

And now with the rains coming the shelters are being closed down leaving migrants on the road with no information on the next train home. Even the handful of volunteers and activists who are working to get the migrants on the trains are not given information on the trains.

The shelters must be kept open and food supplied to the migrants till the last of them has left. But the citizens have a right to know how much funds have been spent on food and shelter for the migrants so far and where the funds have come from.  

Who is handling the funds and is there any system of accountability put in place? After all accountability is a basic tenet of a democratic system.

While we demand audits and accounts from the government we need to also look at the problem of inter-state migrants deeper. How has he remained invisible; and why is he or she a target of so much hate or indifference?

Herein lies the crux of the tragedy: we look upon the inter-state migrant as an outsider. Most of these workers are disenfranchised so no MP or MLA feels responsible for them. They are not organised so trade unions are indifferent to their plight.

Take the example of the migrants working in the fish industry. They are most vulnerable and some sleep in boats even when there was no pandemic. Most of them are from Odisha, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. Many of them want to go home desperately. They have no food, shelter or wages.

How much money from the multi-crore relief fund created in the name of the victims of this lockdown has reached the migrant fish worker? And we need to ask who is responsible for their plight?

Why is there no pressure or campaign to get funds released for the fish workers if they wish to stay or funds for them to go home with dignity?

We, the citizens must also take responsibility. Is it not time to rethink who is an outsider? A person who deprives his workers of their rights under the Indian Constitution, or the inter-state migrant worker who risks his life in the seas to bring fish to our table?

The governments in too many states, including Goa, take advantage of the indifference to the inter-state migrant to deprive him or her of their rights. We too must take responsibility.