OPINION

The loss of the Bharatiya Janata Party at the hands of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the Delhi Assembly elections held in February this year, made two very clear conclusions – one that BJP Delhi unit president Manoj Tiwari failed to enthuse the substantial migrant voters and also that the saffron party lost it traditional Vaishya (Baniya) vote to the rival party.

In what was almost a bipolar poll, the BJP should have ordinarily romped home had the party’s Vaishya vote base gone with it. They instead opted for a Baniya-led AAP and almost all Vaishya dominated seats with the exception of Rohini went to the AAP. The Rohini seat was won with much difficulty by former Delhi BJP president Vijender Gupta, a Baniya himself.

Probably these factors weighed heavily on the minds of party top honchos while appointing municipal councillor and former Mayor Adesh Kumar Gupta as its Delhi unit president. The new party president, however, is a Baniya of a different genre. Unlike the traditional Baniyas of Delhi, who trace their roots to Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan, Gupta is from Kannauj in central Uttar Pradesh. The task he has at hand is to win the municipal elections scheduled for April 2022.

Caste and community combinations aside, another major factor which contributed to the defeat of the BJP in Delhi was absence of a face to match the appeal of Kejriwal. Manoj Tiwari remained party president for almost four years but could never rise beyond his image of a Bhojpuri singer who could win polls regaling audiences with rendition of his lewd songs which at times bordered to being vulgar.

Coronavirus has made us to listen to our common sense. It will recharge our commitments to our cultural, socio-economic and political worldviews, and transform the processes of society building approach. Two concepts of development based on fraternity and science will be celebrated. This approach calls for investing in Gandhian philosophy in our ways of life that should be based on wellbeing of humankind and fraternity as a pillar of society.

The second investment should be made in the field of medical science and technology. Covid-19 across the globe has shown that fraternity and medical science is crucial for a healthy society. Society adapting these two concepts of developmental approach can change the socioeconomic and political ways of life. This will also give importance to “civic federation” where village units or municipal units will become problem solving centres and will also expedite the processes of economic inclusion.

When we analyse the various countries on the parameter of investment in Medical Science we find that with 16.4 per cent USA, 7.5 per cent UK, 7.5 per cent Cuba, 6.5 per cent Italy, 11.2 per cent Germany, 11.2 per cent Norway, 11.2 per cent France, 11.2 per cent Australia, 10.9 per cent Japan; all spends approximately 10 per cent of their GDP on the health system. These nations have world’s best healthcare system but in spite of that, they witnessed huge casualties due to Covid-19. Just imagine if their health infrastructure would have not been good then casualties would have been multiplied many folds.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday last announced a Rs 20 lakh crore package for the revival of the Indian economy. Wary of the fact that his government is seen to be pro-rich and has come in for criticism for the not able to take care of the poor, especially the migrant labour population, during the Covid lockdown, the Prime Minister was particular in assuring that the relief package would empower one and all and will not be “trickle down”. He claimed it would cover all sections from the word go.

Soon after the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address, opposition Congress said the address “failed to address woes of millions of migrant workers.” While the details are awaited as the package details announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman would need to be deciphered, but the Prime Minister’s mention about for the street vendors must have come as a big relief for a major section of the urban poor and people who form a very important clog in our economy.

The mention about street vendors was important, as the informal sector has been worst hit by the drastic consequences of the Covid pandemic. Though the government figures may differ, the social sector organisations working in the sector, claim that the informal sector workers constitute 93 % of the workforce. During the lockdown several of these workers have been pushed towards destitution, as evident from the images and reports of misery of migrant population from across the country.

It is often said that a crisis is too precious an opportunity to be wasted. The current Coronavirus pandemic is not only a global health crisis, but also the biggest challenge the world has faced since the World War II in terms of loss of lives and livelihoods, disruption of economies, and the sheer scale of the spread. Other global events that we have seen in our lifetime, from Cold War to 9/11, pale in comparison to the scariness of this pandemic. 

This pandemic has brought many things, previously obscured from public attention, to the forefront. Warren Buffett has famously commented; only when the tide goes out, do you discover who has been swimming naked. Foremost among those exposed swimmers has been healthcare in India. It has suffered from a chronic lack of focus, poor spending levels of the government on health as reflected by being a measly 1.28 percent of GDP, and the lack of concern by the common public, which tends to view health expenditures as wasteful extravaganza.

To add to the misery, most of the health care professionals are poorly paid, struggling with misplaced vigilantism, mob violence and activism of consumer courts. This as number of posts across all hospitals lie vacant even as the doctor-to-patient ratio remains at one doctor for every 1,445 Indians, lower than the WHO's prescribed norm of one doctor for 1,000 people.  Until the time the government and the citizens value human health and well-being as their foremost priority, things shall not substantially change.  

This is where this crisis presents a unique opportunity to proactively focus the attention of the government, media, policy makers and the common public on this critical issue. The cure should start with budgetary support, which requires to be enhanced to 6 to 7 percent of GDP on health for the next decade. To amplify, in initial years to cover the stark gap, it should exceed 5 percent, and thereafter remain at minimum 5 percent. Certain percentage of this budget should be earmarked towards providing interest free loans and other support to set up quality private hospitals across the country. 

Background Schools in Bihar, usually, witness two spells of rescheduling – excessive winter and summer. Based on our earlier experiences we have been trying to reach and maintain connect with the students using simple digital platforms – WhatsApp and emails. The teachers and the students have enjoyed this arrangement which was considered a pleasant break from the ‘business as usual’ scenario.

There has been appreciation from the parents who considered this as an ‘extra care and attention’. The nationwide lockdown, made this imperative to look for options which could create an environment for sustained academic –and other creative activities in the face of ‘possibly’ longer unscheduled spells.