2 nations in 1 state ........... August 2, 2013 at 10:15Am on the eve of INDEPENDENCE DAY 2 nations in 1 state ……… the outcome is quite obvious rebellion/anti-state…these 2 are the same words from different perspectives Ø Fourth rank in Dollar Billionaires: In India in 2013, I am sure you all will be very thrilled to know, we have the fourth highest number of dollar- billionaires in the planet. We are ahead of all countries in the number of billionaires except the United States, Germany and Russia. Incidentally, our billionaires are richer than those of Germany and Russia in terms of net asset worth. 126th in Human Development: We have the second richest billionaires in the world in dollars and we have the fourth largest number of billionaires in the planet. But we are 126th in human development. The same nation that has ranks fourth in billionaires is 126th in human development. What does it mean to be 126th? It means that it is better to be a poor person in Bolivia (the poorest nation in South America) or Guatemala or Gabon. They are ahead of us in the UN’s Human Development Index. 836 million live on less than Rs. 20 a day: We are the emerging ‘tiger economy.’ But life expectancy in our nation is lower than it is in Bolivia, Kazakhstan and Mongolia. We have 100,000 dollar millionaires, out of whom 25,000 reside in my city of Mumbai, I am proud to say. Yet, 836 million people in our nation exist on less than Rs. 20/- a day according to the Government of India. Slowing down of infant death rate decline: The growth rate of our country is indeed the envy of many. But the rate of decline of infant mortality actually slowed down in this country in the last 15 years. The largest number of infant deaths 2.5 million takes place in this country, followed by China. Appalling MPCE of farm households: According to the National Sample Survey, the average monthly per capita expenditure (MPCE) of the Indian farm household (across zamindars and your half acre wallas), is Rs. 503. Miserable expenditure patterns: Out of that Rs. 503, 55 per cent or more is spent on food, 18 per cent on fuel, clothing and footwear leaving precious little to be spent on education and health. What is spent on health is twice that of what is spent on education because we now have the 6th most privatised health system in the world. Therefore, the MPCE shows Rs.34 as expenditure on health as against Rs.17 on education. Rs.17 a month on education means 50 paise a day on education. That is the spending of the Indian farm household. Incidentally, we are very proud to tell you that labour productivity in the decade of the reforms went up to 84 per cent according to the ILO. The same ILO report informs me that while labour productivity went up to 84 per cent, the real wages of labour in manufacturing declined by 22 per cent (at a time when CEO salaries were going through the roof). So, in the last 15 years, we have seen the unprecedented prosperity of the top of our population. And at the same time, the net per capita availability of foodgrain actually declined for over a decade. Ø Rising hunger at the bottom: The State of food insecurity in the world report of the FAO of the United Nations shows us that from 1995-97 to 1999-2001, India added more newly hungry millions than the rest of the world taken together. Hunger grew at a time when it declined in Ethiopia. A new restaurant opens everyday in some city of this country but as Prof Utsa Patnaik, our leading agricultural economist points out, the average rural family is consuming 100 kgs less than it did 10 years ago. The availability situation figure is one placed every year in Parliament in the Economic Survey which gives the net per capita availability (NPCA) of foodgrain contained in Table 1.17 (S-21). You get the numbers all the way from 1951. You can see how it has declined in the last 15 years. The NPCA was 510 in 1991, on the cusp of the reforms. That fell to 437 grams by 2003. The 2005 provisional figure was 422 grams. There may be a slight rise in one or another year, but the overall trend has been that of a clear decline over 15 years. A fall of 70-80 grams sounds trivial -- until you multiply it by 365 days and then again by one billion Indians. Then you can see how gigantic the decline is. Since those at the top are eating much better than ever before, it raises the question of what on earth the bottom 40 per cent are eating? Two-nation theory passé. Its Two Planets now: Today, for the top 5 per cent of the Indian population, the benchmarks are Western Europe, the USA, Japan and Australia. For the bottom 40 per cent, the benchmarks are the Sub-Saharan Africa (some of whose nations) are ahead of us in literacy. Indebtedness has doubled in the past decade: The NSSO’s 59th round tells us that while 26 per cent of farm households were in debt in 1991, that figure went up to over 48 per cent – almost double by 2003.
Posted on: Fri, 02 Aug 2013 05:12:28 +0000
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