Street Vendor and the State

Step out the terminus railway station - Sealdah and you find your self standing in front of one of the biggest taxi stands with men socked in sweat shouting Howrah Howrah!!! The hot and humid air coming from the swampy delta and sea nearby, makes you utterly uncomfortable and believe me you would want to tear off your shirt and run for a near by cool water pond, but wait you can't do that so keep walking.

Coming out of the taxi stand you will be stunned to see the crisscross flyovers and a city of black and yellow taxis, buses and tram, with no sight of any permanent settlement.(which reminds you of the song "ae dil hai mushkil jeena yahan ye hai Bombay, ye hai Bombay, ye hai Bombay meri jaan" but you wont be mistaken for the Bengali script will keep remind you that you happen to be standing on a different side of India that just happens to be a bit similar to the city for which the song was penned down).  The city lives under the highway, i must say. And who are these people? Street vendor. What are they selling? Well, think of cheap decoratives, cell phones, Chinese goods, lamps, CDs, DVDs, posters, milk shakes, sweets, fruits, etc spread along the sides of the broad roads from one end to another, from north to south, from east to west. Walk and walk and walk and still it seems the city never begins to show its other face.

By the night the archaic buildings become hotels and and who knows what business goes on inside those walls and dark rooms. And more importantly where does the city goes in the night? Where do those people sleep?

Well, my friends do not be bothered we have more important things to discuss than a bunch of invalids. Yes, invalids they are, for they make our cities look dirty, they are involved in crimes such as rapes, they do not pay the taxes and they do not have any identity. Is it so?

The concerns revolving around these poor people have made many civil society activists raise these issues to the Centre. The National Commission of Safaai Karmachai have been asking for addressal of their demands for long.

The centre came up with a National Policy on Urban Street Vendors in 2009 (the links of the same is attached below). The policy recognises the need of regularising street vending in cities. There are on an average 2 million Street Vendors in each city in India. The centre realises the harassment at the hands of police and local mafias that these poor people face in absence of any mechanism to address their plight. The Ho'nable Supreme Court had in 1989 drawn attention towards the Article19 (g)of the Constitution and the need to properly regulate street vendors.



Recently the Parliament of India passed a much awaited The Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Bill. The Bill has several commendable provisions. The Bill seeks to constitute a  Town Vending Committee (TVC). The TVC would perform various functions such as demarcation non-vending zones, limiting vendors to a maximum of 2.5% of total city's population, providing ID cards, co-ordinate with local authorities in urban planning and being and interface with the police for the street vendors. The Bill also provides for a  grievance redressal committee this will help bringing justice to the street vendors in case of harassment. Preference is give to the marginalised sections: Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs), minorities, women and disabled persons.


Street vending gives an informal source of earning to the numerous unemployed men and women in India and the Bill will certain be a step towards regularization of the same. The successful implementation of the Act will call for efficient establishment of mechanism suggested in the Act on grass root level. Also, the municipal subjects fall under the State list, so concerns are being raised about the possible centre-state friction that can come up.

With time, we can hope that the myriad problems faced by our fellow country men who have by far been marginalized and left to live on the side walks of our mega cities, will be properly addressed.

Humidity...pweh!!!

Loneliness in Bengal for a Hindi speaker may not be an exception

Yes!you guessed it right, its Salt Lake City, in front of DLF buildings 

(Dedicated to 15th June 2010 - the day I kept my step for the first time(technically, second time but I feel it was never so intimate as this time) on the literary soil of West Bengal to be only stunned by the abject poverty and plight of innumerable men and women. The land of Tagore, Stayajit Ray, Eden Garden, Park Street, Victoria Palace, Writer's Building.....and what not... I stood silent.)

On Poverty Line and Some Related Aspects of Growth

On Poverty Line and Some Related Aspects of Growth

8:51 AM
22-12-2013
Chakresh Singh
Allahabad.




Determining the poverty line has always been a contentious issue. The need of poverty line is more for the academic purpose and analyses of the performance of public schemes more so in the era of social welfare schemes shifting from targeted focus to universal coverage. The parameters considered during determination of poverty line cannot be changed again and again as that affects the comparative analyses of development in two different periods as the data of the past becomes irrelevant or incomparable with the new one. Therefore, while determining poverty line, care is taken that so that the comparability of data is maintained.

Tendulakar Committee's poverty line is more close to the internationally accepted poverty line of in PPP terms (PPP refers to a method used to work out the money that would be needed to purchase the same goods and services in two places). The 2004-05 Tendulkar poverty line was Rs.16, which in PPP terms, is equivalent to one U.S. dollar per person per day. The new poverty estimates of Rs. 29 per person per day recently released by the Planning Commission are equivalent, in PPP terms, to the new internationally accepted poverty line of $1.25. The figure was reached by considering the consumption data available with the NSSO, which is an apolitical and credible institution.

There has been decline in poverty in the past decade. It has fallen from 407 million people living below poverty line in 2004-05 to 269 million in 2012-13. MGNREGA is being seen as the major reason behind such changes amongst other schemes. Though no one denies the huge leakages in these schemes but MGNREGA has helped in increasing the wage rates, thereby increasing the consumption, which in turn increases demand and thus employment. There is complimentary in such a growth. Better wages, create more demand, more demand create more jobs. 

The caste census will help make more informed policy making. But at the same time, it throws up new challenges. The grounded elites can collude with data collecting authorities and provide doctored data and thereby defeating the idea of inclusive growth. The is a need of social audit in any such data collection.

The last decade also saw more and more mechanization in agriculture. With improved wages and more construction works, major work force of agriculture shifted to other sectors. Agriculture contributes only 15% to the GDP and uses around 50% of the work force, therefore such a shift is a welcome sign. 

Manufacturing sector remains a concern area and there is a need of sharper policies. We heavily import intermediate and capital goods. There is a need of improvement of infrastructure so that more investment can take place in manufacturing sector.

No growth can be sustained if the Human Capital is not trained as we move ahead. India is 1.2 billion strong and we can a strengthen our demographic dividend by introducing vocational training course in schools and colleges. Also, there is a need of setting up more ITIs and such intitutions.

India is also facing the challenge of making herself energy independent. The high oil prices, directly affects inflation and price rise. Also, the instability in middle east region, calls for proactive role in this direction so as to make India safe in the case of another 1973 crisis like situation in future. We can use our long coast lines to tap wind energy. Also, we are the 7th largest country, we have huge potential of tapping solar energy. Cost effective technologies can make such option more viable. Nuclear Energy mission can also be revised.

Meanwhile, it should not be forgotten that 40% of of our children are malnourished and more that 50% female population is anaemic. There is a need of increasing the GDP share for health and education sector. The empowerment of women can help improve the condition of women and children. 33% reservation for women in Parliament will be good starting point.

Financial inclusion of the poor the next step. The direct cash transfer scheme can help bring down the leakages, but for successful implmentation bank penetration in rural areas is crucial.

The project implementation has always been a point of concern. eGovernance, stringent laws against corrupt practices and strengthening investigative agencies can bring down corruption o considerable levels. Which is exactly what needs to be done today and safe the huge loss of public money.

As Indians are growing into a more aware population, the shift in politics from caste and communal focus to developmental goals is already being felt. One can hope that, in the coming fifteen years, India would be able to cross the above mentioned hurdles to inclusive growth.

On Section 377 of IPC and Unnatural Sex

Backdrop:

In July 2009, the Delhi high court had  legalized homosexual acts between consenting adults in private, by partially declaring Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) unconstitutional and a hurdle in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

The Supreme Court held on 11^th December, 2013 that the unnatural sex or homosexuality between two consenting adults under the section 377 of the IPC will continue to be an offence. LGBT comprise a miniscule percentage of the population and have been demanding right to have unnatural sexual orientation. So far, less than 200 people have been prosecuted under Section 377.

Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code states that, whoever voluntarily had carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal, shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.

This present judgement had overturned the 2009 Delhi High Court judgement that decriminalized gay sex. Some see this as a blow to liberal values and human rights.

Under the Sexual Offences Act, 1967 buggery is no longer an offence in England if committed between two consenting adults of and above the age of 21. This Act has, however been criticized even in England as negating States’ right to suppress a social vice.

Articles 14, 15 and 21 of the Constitution of India, provide for freedoms to the subject but to certain conditions, one of them being The Doctrine of Natural Justice.

As of now, "it is up to Parliament to legislate on this issue."

Amnesty International called the decision a "body blow to people's rights to equality, privacy and dignity", while a legal challenge from gay rights groups is also possible.

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Natural rights is simple nonsense: natural and imprescriptible rights, rhethorical nonsense, nonsense upon stilts. - Jeremy Bentham 

Every law framed by man bears the character of a law exactly to that extent to which it is derived from the law of nature. But if at any point it is in conflict with the law of nature in ceases to be a law; it is mere perversion of law. - Locke

The American Declaration of Independence states that it was 'self evident' that every human being has 'certain inalienable rights'. In 1879, the French Declaration of 'rights of man' asserted that 'men are born to be free and equal in rights'.

Relatively recent was the adaptation of UN Declaration of Human Rights, 1948.

While the debate on viability and definition of Human Rights goes on some glaring examples of underline flaws in our understanding of the broader issue. Since, abortion is illegal in the Republic of Ireland, last year an Indian doctor - Savita Halappanavar, died during miscarriage. 

The current issue of denying a section of our society from following their free-will in the matter of person choice about their sexual orientation, is no less severe. The law, by deciding what is to be considered as natural and unnatural in the matter of sexuality of the people, is setting up bad precedent. Several countries have accepted LGBT as a section of society, equal to all other members in all respects.

We cannot make a section of our society untouchable. We cannot force a person, who was so far a transgender to try change her sexuality.

The Supreme Court's judgement needs to be reviewed and there is a need of assuaging the fears of all our friends whose life is being infringed upon by such harsh judgement.