|
Within a month of the BJP government coming to power the prices of essential
commodities began to skyrocket. Within the last six months the prices of
vegetables have gone up 82%, edible oil 30%, foodgrains ab6ut 20% and even the
price of salt shot up to Rs. 25 per kg in Delhi. The annual inflation rate
(official) at end August was 300% higher than at the same time last year. The
most glaring has been the rise in prices of onions which had gone up some 700%
to reach a price of Rs. 60 per kg in some parts of the country. Ordinary
vegetables like tomatoes were selling at Rs. 40 per kg, potatoes at Rs. 20 per
kg and even the price of tur dal has reached Rs. 54 per kg. In the next few
months the price of rice is expected to rise again.
And what is the attitude of the government ? Vajpayee, while speaking to a
reporter (Nov. 7) said, that it was not illegal, under the law of the land, to
hoard. He described the hoarders' "itch to make profits out of shortage as a
normal business ritual." Ex-Chief Minister of Delhi, Sahib Singh Verma lectured
that the "poor do not eat onions." Meanwhile, under World Bank instructions, the
BJP has diluted the provisions of the Essential Commodities Act, preventing
action against hoarders. It even sought to totally scrap this act, but due to
the assembly electi6ns it has temporarily postponed the attempt. It made a big
pretense of selling onions through the PDS, but the fraud was soon exposed... in
Delhi consumers, after hours of waiting, found that the bulk of the onions had
been siphoned off by corrupt officials; and in Rajasthan it began selling onions
through ration shops at Rs. 26 per kg, while students of Jaipur distributed
onions at a mere Rs. 17-per kg.
The BJP has falsely sought to put the blame for the price rise on
natural-calamities. But while onion production has dropped by about 15%,
prices have risen by 700%. Next, it pretended that the price rise helped the
farmer. But, inspite of the gigantic rise in 6nion prices, the farmers during
the April '98 rabi crop got less than what they received during the November'97
kharifcrop. The reality is that is not just the unseasonal rainfall that is
responsible for the massive rise in prices of essential commodities, but
primarily the government - big trader - international agribusiness combine that
is robbing the Indian people to make windfall profits. It is they who resort to
rumourmongering in order to create panic buying. It is these robbers who are
out to destroy the country and its people in order to make crores overnight. Let
us then see the modus operandi of price manipulation by these gangsters.
Politics of Onions
Onions were one of the few vegetables that even the poorest use in their food.
Cheap, and easily available, it adds not only a little taste but food-value to
the poor man's diet. Now, even this has been wrenched out of his reach by
unscrupulous traders and a criminal government.
As far back as June '98, the Department of Consumer Affairs in the Food and
Civil Supplies Ministry warned of food shortages and strongly recommended
banning food exports. But the Commerce Ministry over-ruled the recommendation,
and between April and August '98 NAFED exported 2 lakh tonnes (i.e. as much a 5%
of the year 5 total production) even as prices were shooting up in the domestic
market. Party to this deal was NAFED chairman, Ajit Kumar Singh - a Congressman.
Meanwhile the traders began reaping in their crores, aided and abetted by the
government. The government not only allowed exports but even prevented imports
in order to keep prices high within the country. Even though on September 10 the
government decided to import 13,000 tonnes of onions, the move was stalled by
minister Sompal, who kept saying that there was no need for imports as "the rise
in prices will benefit farmers." Finally, only on October 13 were imports freely
allowed by putting onions on OGL (Open General Licence). But then again, when
425 tonnes was imported (at the rate of Rs. 16 per kg), the government did not
give clearance for 36 days, allowing the bulk of the onions to rot. In addition,
the delay in allowing imports led to a rise in the international price of onions
from $245 per tonne to $373 per tonne giving big profits to the international
dealers.
Such anti-national actions of the government, have only benefited a handful of
big traders and international dealers, leading to enormous waste and the
fleecing of the people of our country. No doubt, the windfall profits would have
helped finance the BJP's election campaign.... but, as far the farmer goes, they
gained little, having been paid barely Rs. 4 to Rs. 5 per kg by the traders and
NAFED.
Rice -Prices set to rise Again
At the heart of the paddy crop disaster is not only the damage caused by floods
but a scam where government agencies, at great cost to the farmer and consumer,
allowed traders windfall profits.
This year, as the crop in Punjab began to be harvested in September, storm
clouds developed. As the mandis have no proper storage facilities the farmers
were desperate to immediately dispose off the crop. The government departments
are obliged to purchase all the rice brought to the mandis at the MSP (Minimum
Support Price - Rs. 470 per quintal for the high-grade veriety and Rs. 450 per
quintal for ordinary paddy). But just at this crucial moment the procurement
agencies disappeared; The rains that hit north-India in mid-September is
believed to have wiped out over one million t6nnes of paddy in Punjab. In the
first three weeks of October procurement barely totalled 2.3 million tonnes
compared to 3.7 million tonnes in the same period i~ 1997-i.e. just 62% of the
previous year's amount.
Meanwhile, the traders (millers), eying a lucrative export market in the current
year, due to big crop failures in South-East Asia, swooped in on the desperate
farmers who were forced to sell their crop at distress prices as low as Rs. 300
per quintal. The procurement agencies thereby pushed the farmers into the
clutches of these vultures who, this year bought as much as 43.6% of the total
market arrivals -i.e. 2.6 million tonnes, compared to 1.9 million tonnes in the
previous year. Thus the millersitraders made huge profits aided and abetted by
the government.
But the scandal does not end here. The plot deepens, involving not only the BW',
but also, none other than the ex-Prime Minister. During his election to the Lok
Sabba, Gujral built his political base in Punjab, by ordering an unprecedented
relaxation in the quality standards of paddy to be procured in the wake of rain
damage. As much as 3a lakh tonnes was purchased, which is till today rotting in
the gowdowns, as the rice-eating states have refused to lake this sub-standard
grain.. Now, this is being sought to be pushed into the TPDS and sold to the
poor. What is even more criminal, the present Barnala ministry has, on October
28, '98, again allowed purchase of such substandard rice as part of government
policy.
The result of this, SAD-BJP action is that millions of PDS-dependent people will
now have to buy poor quality rice at higher prices, while exporters/traders will
sell good quality rice making huge profits.
Poverty WORSENS
The current price rise in food items is just the beginning of what the people of
the country will face in the future. It is a result of government policies that
seeks to open up entire sectors of the economy to the sharks of international
finance capital and their local compradors. Bowing to W6rld Bank/IMF dictates
all governments have systematically been throwing open the agrarian economy to
the vagaries of the market. What the Congress (I) and UP initiated since 1991,
the BJP has taken to its logical conclusion. In fact, for all their nationalist
sounding noise they are aggressively pushing international agri-business
interests in India.
On the one hand, their policies are leading to ruination of agriculture and
impoverisation of not only the peasantry but the country as a whole. On the
other hand, it is creating a powerful big faimer/trader combine that is getting
more and more interwoven into the global economy,
Even according to government data, agriculture is stagnating and poverty
increasing. Foodgrain availability per capita has dropped from 510 grams daily
in 1991 to 461 grams daily in 1995-96. The growth in production of foodgrains
has dropped from 2.6% per year in the earlier two decades to 1.7% in the present
decade (i.e. below the population growth-rate). According to an 'Expert Group on
Poverty' (GOI, 1993) the percentage of the rural population below the poverty
line (2440 k.cal) increased from 66% in 1987-88 to 70% in 1993-94 (see EPW,
Sept. 28, '98). The present massive increase in prices of essential commodities
will hit the rural poor the most as over 50% of the rural population comprise
agricultural labourers and marginal farmers, who have to purchase the bulk of
their food items. But, also to be badly hit will be the urban population,
including large sections of the middle classes.
But those that gain will be the big farmers-trader combine together with
international agri-business. While earlier the big farmers and big traders
formed two district lobbies, of late these two power groups are coalescing. It
is reported that over the years some bf the Indian big farmers have become more
of a landowner, allowing small farmers to till the land, while he has
concentrated on the trade aspect. Similarly some large traders have
backward-integrated to acquire land and have it tilled by small farmers. The
distinction between a section of the big farmers and the trader is blurring, and
so the big farmer parties of the Akali Dal / Bansi Lal / Chautala types find
less problems in aligning with the BJP.
And as the crisis deepens the big traders' profit increase. This year
agricultural production is expected to actually fill by as much as 5 million
tonnes. With ecological devastation of forests by the government and forest
contractors, and salination of the land by unscientific green revolution-type
farming, agricultural production is unlikely to increase much even in the
future. And infact, the Worldwatch Institute already predicts that India will
have to import 45 million to tonnes of grains by the year 2030.
If is this catastrophic situation is to be avoided, it can only be through an
agrarian revolution in the country, where food production becomes the focus of
policy. ... not to meet the desires of profiteers, but, the needs of the people.
By the redistribution of land on the basis of 'land to the tiller' and the
scientific development of agriculture, sufficient can be produced to meet the
entire needs of the country without getting caught in the import/export vortex.
If the country is to be saved from the present criminals who g6vern policy, an
agrarian revolution is the only alternative.
- November, 1998
|
