Opinion | The meaning of independence in these dark times
4 min read . Updated: 18 Aug 2020, 07:38 AM ISTDecreased income due to the covid crisis has devoured the savings of the poor
Our country celebrated the 73rd anniversary of independence just two days ago. We have many things to feel deep reverence, great fascination and inordinate pride about our country, but with such gratifying emotions, we sometimes ignore the darker side of our reality. I would like to graciously draw your attention to those who are expected to be proud of the past, but their own present is blurred and the future is missing.
Let me start with the story of Deepak Brahma, a native of Kokrajhar district of Assam. Due to lack of employment close to his home town, he used to work hard in Gujarat. When he lost his job during the covid crisis, like his brothers, he also thought of returning to ‘apne desh’ his native countryside. Daily earners have no savings, no deposit. The money they raised by selling household items, anyhow, was spent in reaching the village. After reaching there, they found that the land of their forefathers has already forgotten them. There was no employment, with no affinity at all, people of the village were behaving like strangers. When hunger started crossing the tolerance limit, he sold his newborn daughter for ₹45,000, just to feed his two other children for a few days, but his misfortune does not end there. A local NGO got a clue of this and the matter reached the police. Brahma, the middleman and the buyer, all three were sent to jail. Poor Brahma, like a worthless fellow, got nothing and now a long legal battle awaits him. Sadly, such unfortunate people can be found in every corner of the republic of India.
We often forget the pain and suffering of others too easily, but only a few weeks ago, we had seen convoys of ill-fated people walking barefoot towards their villages under the scorching sun. Their water bottles were empty, stomachs were boiling with hunger, the soles of their feet were cracked and bleeding, but there was a hope that their village would give them shelter. This crowd included pregnant women, the sick and elderly, and children. Most of us have only heard about the partition of 1947. But, this time, the whole action replay was happening before us. These people had Aadhaar cards, but it was good for nothing.
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi used to call these people ‘Daridra-Narayan’ (penniless god). These are the people for whom Gandhi gave the concept of ‘Ram Rajya’. This dream was actually the pioneering spirit behind our freedom struggle. But what happened to this dream? We can now understand it.
The question arises, whether the governments at the Centre and states remained silent spectators even during the calamity of covid-19? Not at all. During this period, the treasuries were opened up and, as a result, there was no news of large-scale starvation, even after the extreme unemployment boom. Based on data from the ‘National Sample Survey’ and ‘All India Debt and Investment Survey’, Mint had done a comparative study that under the ‘Pradhan Mantri Kisan Yojana’ an amount of ₹2,000, as an advance quarterly instalment, had reached the accounts of millions of people. Free foodgrain was also distributed during this period. However, the same assessment also found that the urban poor were better off than rural communities. They faced more miseries despite free foodgrain and the ₹500 in Jan Dhan accounts of each woman.
In another survey, it was found that during the lockdown, incomes of the people decreased by 84%. When the reporters of Hindustan reached a few such people, they found that people belonging to lower-middle and middle-income groups struggled to cope with mountains of misfortunes. Decreased income devoured their savings just because of regular daily expenses. The biggest problem of this class was that due to their so-called dignity, they could not stand in the queue for free foodgrain, could not apply for MGNREGS, and had no choice but to wince.
No wonder those who had reached their vatan (village) with high hopes, now have to return to the same cities which had closed their gates in times of crisis. Spending twice the earning is now a realty of their life. That is why they are constantly trapped in the endless web of debt. Money lending may not be considered an industry, but moneylenders earned quadruples during this period.
Without dealing with this duality of freedom and population, how can we call ourselves able and independent? It is said that there are rays of hope behind every dark cloud of despair. Recently, social media and community platform LocalCircles in its survey found that 58% of Indians believed that we will overcome this economic crisis. This optimism of the people arouses hope.
Shashi Shekhar is editor-in-chief, Hindustan. His Twitter handle is @shekarkahin
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