Sanjay Parate
There is only one Mahatma in this country—Mahatma Gandhi, the Mahatma Gandhi of "Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram." The same Mahatma Gandhi who represented the pluralistic culture of this country and who was assassinated by Godse.
There are many "Bapus" in this country. There is Asaram Bapu, Also Morari Bapu, and a whole army of Bapus. Almost all of them represent the Hindutva ideology for which the Sanghi gang is known. Among this crowd of self-proclaimed spiritual leaders, some are great swindlers, some are famous for their romantic escapades, and some are even in jail for rape. Although Mahatma Gandhi is also called Bapu, his image rarely comes to mind when the word is uttered. Instead, the face of some Sangh-affiliated Bapu is what usually pops into people's mind.
Changing names and committing murder in such a way that no one can even prove the crime is a well-known tactic of the Sanghi gang. They were not satisfied with shooting at statues of Mahatma Gandhi on Godse's birthday, so they have found another way to symbolically "kill" Mahatma Gandhi. MNREGA has now become PBREA. The Sanghi gang has changed the name of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme to Pujya Bapu Rural Employment Scheme. Before anyone realizes it, Mahatma Gandhi's picture will be removed from the scheme's signboards, and the picture of figures like Asaram or Morari Bapu will appear instead. Changing names and degrading the quality of work — this is the first sign of transforming this secular country into a Hindu state.
Mahatma Gandhi and the MNREGA scheme have always been targets of the Sanghi gang. Mahatma Gandhi is the greatest symbol of the Ganga-Jamuni culture that the freedom movement fostered in this country. Those who have been licking the boots of imperialism since their inception in 1925 have an inherent animosity towards Mahatma Gandhi because, time and again, he stands against the Sanghi gang's Hindu nationalist project with his seemingly frail but powerful presence. They will never forgive Gandhiji for this and will continue to hurl abuses and attacks at him.
The National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme is a creation of the Left. During 2004-09, the Congress government in this country was dependent on the support of the Left. The Left parties could have easily exploited this support to enrich themselves, acquire land and property, and build empires worth billions. For the past 11 years, the BJP, the RSS, and other affiliated organizations and individuals associated with this gang have been doing exactly that. But the Left did not do so. Instead, they pressured the Congress and the Manmohan Singh government to enact laws like the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, the Right to Information Act, and the Tribal Forest Rights Act. Even while in opposition at the time, the BJP was not in favor of these laws. After coming to power, they have tried to weaken these laws, but they have never dared to abolish them completely. It was because of these laws that they claimed at the time that the Left was blackmailing the Congress government.
However, even after the decline of the Left's influence in Parliament, the laws enacted under their pressure continue to haunt the BJP, which finds itself unable to either accept or reject them. There was a time when the BJP dismissed MNREGA as a pointless scheme for digging holes, wanting to portray it as a monument to the Congress party's failures. But it proved to be the world's largest employment guarantee program and so effective that the BJP, despite its intentions, couldn't abolish it during its 11 years in power. It has, however, tried to undermine it by cutting the budget every year, delaying wage payments for months on end, discouraging workers, and manipulating the rules to push villagers out of the scheme's purview. This is the BJP's way of turning a vibrant program into a mere relic.
Despite numerous flaws in its implementation, this scheme has led to a 10 percent increase in the income of rural poor. Independent and government studies show that the scheme has enhanced the collective bargaining power of poor villagers, who have refused to work elsewhere for wages lower than those offered under MNREGA, regardless of whether they actually receive employment through the program. The dominant feudal class perceives this as a direct challenge from the poor villagers, which the BJP and its supporters cannot accept. They are therefore raising a hue and cry about labor shortages in villages due to the scheme and are actively opposing it.
The richest person in our country is earning Rs.1,236 crore every day, while a village laborer working 8 hours a day under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) earns an average of only Rs. 200. The income inequality between the richest and the poorest is a staggering 6.18 crore times. It is noteworthy that since its implementation, the wage rate under this scheme has remained far below the minimum wage rate set for unorganized unskilled laborers, and the country's farmers' movement is continuously agitating, demanding work under this scheme and a wage rate of Rs. 600. During the severe crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic, when there was a massive migration from cities to villages, this scheme became the lifeline for poor villagers, and the agricultural sector witnessed growth. It is this very nature of MNREGA that is currently under attack from the BJP.
This is not simply a matter of changing the name of a scheme. In fact, this renaming is another step in the ongoing campaign under the Modi regime to transform empowered citizens into subjects dependent on the government's favor. Receiving a favor is considered a matter of good fortune ; one shouldn't be upset if it's not granted. This same sense of subservience is embedded in the new name of this scheme. Between October 10th and November 14th of this year, the names of 2.7 million laborers were removed from the scheme's rolls on the grounds of inactivity, even though it is supposed to be a demand-driven program. The message is clear : this is no longer a public, universal scheme, but a handout program whose beneficiaries will be selected at the discretion of the ruling party. It is noteworthy that in the original scheme, Mahatma Gandhi used to guarantee employment to the villagers on demand, but now Pujya Bapu is not ready to give any such guarantee, because the word 'guarantee' has been removed in the new scheme.
The Modi government's first major announcement regarding the new Poojya Bapu Rural Employment Scheme is that the number of guaranteed workdays has been increased from 100 to 125. This means rural laborers will get work for more days in a year. However, this cabinet decision doesn't inspire confidence because the scheme no longer provides a "guarantee" of work, and past experience shows that even with the guarantee, rural families received work for an average of only 35-40 days.
Another major propaganda point is the increase in the minimum wage to Rs. 240 per day. This is the same kind of propaganda used when imposing the new labor codes on workers, replacing existing labor laws. The reality is that the Parliamentary Standing Committee recommended a minimum MNREGA wage of 400 rupees per day, a recommendation completely ignored by the Modi Govt. Even today, in many states, the MNREGA wage is higher than this minimum wage announced by the central government. For example, the MNREGA wage is currently 400 rupees in Haryana and 261 rupees in Chhattisgarh. Therefore, this minimum wage announced by the Modi government will encourage many states to reduce wages for this employment scheme or to keep them stagnant at the rates prevailing in those states for a long time. The 240 rupees per day wage announced by the centre for the rural employment scheme is far below the minimum daily wages announced by various states for unskilled workers. According to the minimum wages declared by various states for unskilled workers, it is highest in Delhi at Rs. per month, while it is very low in Jammu and Kashmir at only Rs. 8,086 per month. Taking the average across various states, it comes to Rs. 12,485 per month for unskilled workers. Based on this, the wage rate announced for the rural employment scheme is 42 percent lower than the all-India average of the minimum wage declared for unskilled workers. Compared to Delhi, it is 61 percent lower, and even compared to Jammu and Kashmir, it is 11 percent lower. Thus, there is not an iota of truth in the claims widely propagated by the Modi government through the Godi media.
Government records themselves show that most of those working under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) are tribals, dalits, people from backward classes, and women. Therefore, these are the very groups who will be most affected by the removal of the employment guarantee and by receiving significantly lower wages compared to their unskilled counterparts. The Manusmriti also sanctions the oppression and exploitation of socially and economically vulnerable sections of society.
The Sangh Parivar is obsessed with changing the names of streets, roads, cities, villages, stations, schemes, and institutions across our country. They are determined to give this country a "Hindu look" in the eyes of the world. This also helps them in their agenda of communal polarization. But renaming MNREGA to PBREA or something else will not yield any results, because the scheme is known as MNREGA among the people, and it will remain so. The struggle to make MNREGA a tool for the economic empowerment of poor villagers and to launch an urban employment guarantee scheme on the lines of MNREGA will continue.
The author is an independent writer on politics, social and agrarian issues. The views are personal.
There are many "Bapus" in this country. There is Asaram Bapu, Also Morari Bapu, and a whole army of Bapus. Almost all of them represent the Hindutva ideology for which the Sanghi gang is known. Among this crowd of self-proclaimed spiritual leaders, some are great swindlers, some are famous for their romantic escapades, and some are even in jail for rape. Although Mahatma Gandhi is also called Bapu, his image rarely comes to mind when the word is uttered. Instead, the face of some Sangh-affiliated Bapu is what usually pops into people's mind.
Changing names and committing murder in such a way that no one can even prove the crime is a well-known tactic of the Sanghi gang. They were not satisfied with shooting at statues of Mahatma Gandhi on Godse's birthday, so they have found another way to symbolically "kill" Mahatma Gandhi. MNREGA has now become PBREA. The Sanghi gang has changed the name of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme to Pujya Bapu Rural Employment Scheme. Before anyone realizes it, Mahatma Gandhi's picture will be removed from the scheme's signboards, and the picture of figures like Asaram or Morari Bapu will appear instead. Changing names and degrading the quality of work — this is the first sign of transforming this secular country into a Hindu state.
Mahatma Gandhi and the MNREGA scheme have always been targets of the Sanghi gang. Mahatma Gandhi is the greatest symbol of the Ganga-Jamuni culture that the freedom movement fostered in this country. Those who have been licking the boots of imperialism since their inception in 1925 have an inherent animosity towards Mahatma Gandhi because, time and again, he stands against the Sanghi gang's Hindu nationalist project with his seemingly frail but powerful presence. They will never forgive Gandhiji for this and will continue to hurl abuses and attacks at him.
The National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme is a creation of the Left. During 2004-09, the Congress government in this country was dependent on the support of the Left. The Left parties could have easily exploited this support to enrich themselves, acquire land and property, and build empires worth billions. For the past 11 years, the BJP, the RSS, and other affiliated organizations and individuals associated with this gang have been doing exactly that. But the Left did not do so. Instead, they pressured the Congress and the Manmohan Singh government to enact laws like the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, the Right to Information Act, and the Tribal Forest Rights Act. Even while in opposition at the time, the BJP was not in favor of these laws. After coming to power, they have tried to weaken these laws, but they have never dared to abolish them completely. It was because of these laws that they claimed at the time that the Left was blackmailing the Congress government.
However, even after the decline of the Left's influence in Parliament, the laws enacted under their pressure continue to haunt the BJP, which finds itself unable to either accept or reject them. There was a time when the BJP dismissed MNREGA as a pointless scheme for digging holes, wanting to portray it as a monument to the Congress party's failures. But it proved to be the world's largest employment guarantee program and so effective that the BJP, despite its intentions, couldn't abolish it during its 11 years in power. It has, however, tried to undermine it by cutting the budget every year, delaying wage payments for months on end, discouraging workers, and manipulating the rules to push villagers out of the scheme's purview. This is the BJP's way of turning a vibrant program into a mere relic.
Despite numerous flaws in its implementation, this scheme has led to a 10 percent increase in the income of rural poor. Independent and government studies show that the scheme has enhanced the collective bargaining power of poor villagers, who have refused to work elsewhere for wages lower than those offered under MNREGA, regardless of whether they actually receive employment through the program. The dominant feudal class perceives this as a direct challenge from the poor villagers, which the BJP and its supporters cannot accept. They are therefore raising a hue and cry about labor shortages in villages due to the scheme and are actively opposing it.
The richest person in our country is earning Rs.1,236 crore every day, while a village laborer working 8 hours a day under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) earns an average of only Rs. 200. The income inequality between the richest and the poorest is a staggering 6.18 crore times. It is noteworthy that since its implementation, the wage rate under this scheme has remained far below the minimum wage rate set for unorganized unskilled laborers, and the country's farmers' movement is continuously agitating, demanding work under this scheme and a wage rate of Rs. 600. During the severe crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic, when there was a massive migration from cities to villages, this scheme became the lifeline for poor villagers, and the agricultural sector witnessed growth. It is this very nature of MNREGA that is currently under attack from the BJP.
This is not simply a matter of changing the name of a scheme. In fact, this renaming is another step in the ongoing campaign under the Modi regime to transform empowered citizens into subjects dependent on the government's favor. Receiving a favor is considered a matter of good fortune ; one shouldn't be upset if it's not granted. This same sense of subservience is embedded in the new name of this scheme. Between October 10th and November 14th of this year, the names of 2.7 million laborers were removed from the scheme's rolls on the grounds of inactivity, even though it is supposed to be a demand-driven program. The message is clear : this is no longer a public, universal scheme, but a handout program whose beneficiaries will be selected at the discretion of the ruling party. It is noteworthy that in the original scheme, Mahatma Gandhi used to guarantee employment to the villagers on demand, but now Pujya Bapu is not ready to give any such guarantee, because the word 'guarantee' has been removed in the new scheme.
The Modi government's first major announcement regarding the new Poojya Bapu Rural Employment Scheme is that the number of guaranteed workdays has been increased from 100 to 125. This means rural laborers will get work for more days in a year. However, this cabinet decision doesn't inspire confidence because the scheme no longer provides a "guarantee" of work, and past experience shows that even with the guarantee, rural families received work for an average of only 35-40 days.
Another major propaganda point is the increase in the minimum wage to Rs. 240 per day. This is the same kind of propaganda used when imposing the new labor codes on workers, replacing existing labor laws. The reality is that the Parliamentary Standing Committee recommended a minimum MNREGA wage of 400 rupees per day, a recommendation completely ignored by the Modi Govt. Even today, in many states, the MNREGA wage is higher than this minimum wage announced by the central government. For example, the MNREGA wage is currently 400 rupees in Haryana and 261 rupees in Chhattisgarh. Therefore, this minimum wage announced by the Modi government will encourage many states to reduce wages for this employment scheme or to keep them stagnant at the rates prevailing in those states for a long time. The 240 rupees per day wage announced by the centre for the rural employment scheme is far below the minimum daily wages announced by various states for unskilled workers. According to the minimum wages declared by various states for unskilled workers, it is highest in Delhi at Rs. per month, while it is very low in Jammu and Kashmir at only Rs. 8,086 per month. Taking the average across various states, it comes to Rs. 12,485 per month for unskilled workers. Based on this, the wage rate announced for the rural employment scheme is 42 percent lower than the all-India average of the minimum wage declared for unskilled workers. Compared to Delhi, it is 61 percent lower, and even compared to Jammu and Kashmir, it is 11 percent lower. Thus, there is not an iota of truth in the claims widely propagated by the Modi government through the Godi media.
Government records themselves show that most of those working under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) are tribals, dalits, people from backward classes, and women. Therefore, these are the very groups who will be most affected by the removal of the employment guarantee and by receiving significantly lower wages compared to their unskilled counterparts. The Manusmriti also sanctions the oppression and exploitation of socially and economically vulnerable sections of society.
The Sangh Parivar is obsessed with changing the names of streets, roads, cities, villages, stations, schemes, and institutions across our country. They are determined to give this country a "Hindu look" in the eyes of the world. This also helps them in their agenda of communal polarization. But renaming MNREGA to PBREA or something else will not yield any results, because the scheme is known as MNREGA among the people, and it will remain so. The struggle to make MNREGA a tool for the economic empowerment of poor villagers and to launch an urban employment guarantee scheme on the lines of MNREGA will continue.
The author is an independent writer on politics, social and agrarian issues. The views are personal.
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