soc.culture.pakistan

[The extension of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA)
to the whole country is an unprecedented opportunity to build the
foundations of a social security system in rural India, revive village
economies, promote social equity, and empower rural labour]


http://www.hindu.com/2008/01/11/stories/2008011159891100.htm


Employment guarantee: beyond propaganda
By Jean Dr=E8ze


Ever since its enactment in mid-2005, the National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act (NREGA) has been a target of relentless attacks in the
corporate-sponsored media. Numerous business columnists, most of whom
have never seen an NREGA worksite (except perhaps from an airplane),
have gone out of their way to rubbish this programme. "Expensive gravy
train", "money guzzler", "costly joke" and "wonky idea" are the
colourful terms th ey have used to describe it.


It would be surprising if this had nothing to do with the "subversive"
character of the NREGA. Indeed, the Act runs counter to the current
reorientation of economic policy and state intervention in favour of
corporate interests, misleadingly known as "market-oriented reforms."
As one commentator recently put it, the NREGA is a prime case of
"meddling in markets" (Business Standard, March 13, 2007). It is
another matter that the state freely "meddles with markets" when it
suits business interests, whether it is by forcibly acquiring land on
their behalf, or by creating special economic zones, or by defending
the so-called "intellectual property rights." The difference is that
the NREGA empowers the working class -- there lies the danger.


To avoid misunderstanding, let me clarify that I am not dismissing
every critique of the NREGA as an act of propaganda. The Act has some
major flaws, and there is much scope for reasoned critiques of it as
well as for searching assessments of its implementation on the ground.
What is striking, however, is that informed critiques of the Act have
been few and far between. Instead, a plethora of shallow arguments
have been invoked to deride it.


Outlandish claim


By way of illustration, prominent media attention was given a few
months ago to a so-called "study by the India Development Foundation,"
allegedly showing that the NREGA caused inflation. This is an
outlandish claim, and I leave it to the reader to guess why this
particular item of government expenditure was singled out as being
responsible for inflation, as opposed to, say, the defence budget,
which is almost 10 times as expensive. Further enquiry revealed that
this "study" did not exist; it was just a speculative remark made at a
panel discussion by a member of this Foundation. Nevertheless, this
hot air was promptly pumped into the propaganda balloon.


To put things in perspective, there has also been much "pro-NREGA"
propaganda, mainly from the government. For instance, according to a
recent note from the Press Information Bureau (released on December
28, 2007), the NREGA is nothing short of a "tremendous success." This
assertion, not backed by any serious evidence, is typical of the
ostrich-like attitude of the Central government to the hurdles that
are holding up the implementation of the NREGA. Government propaganda,
however, is relatively innocuous since the public knows that official
claims have to be taken with a pinch of salt. Corporate propaganda is
more subtle, and thus more insidious.


CAG report


The latest wave of anti-NREGA propaganda in the mainstream media
focussed on a draft report of the Comptroller and Auditor General
(CAG). This report was highlighted in two successive front-page
articles published in one of India's leading dailies, with headlines
such as: "It's Official: In Poorest States, Job Funds Don't Reach the
Poor." This statement, and variants of it printed in this article and
elsewhere, give a very misleading picture of the CAG report. Indeed,
the report does not present any evidence of massive leakages in the
NREGA, nor was this the objective of the investigation. The main focus
of the report is on the conformity of the programme with the
provisions of the Act as well as with the operational guidelines. The
report points out, quite rightly, that the guidelines are routinely
violated. This applies, in particular, to the transparency safeguards,
making the programme vulnerable to leakages.


There is an important message here, but it is not the same as to say
that NREGA funds "don't reach the poor." A large proportion of these
funds does reach, and makes a big difference to the lives of, the
rural poor. This crucial point should not be lost in the din of
arguments for and against the NREGA. Further, recent studies clearly
show that it is possible to enforce the transparency safeguards, and
that this can go a long way in preventing corruption. This view is
fully consistent with the CAG's analysis.


The key message of the draft CAG report is a constructive one, summed
up in the concluding paragraph: "The MoRD needs to ensure that State
governments take swift and immediate action to remedy these
deficiencies and improve their administrative and technical
infrastructure..., so that the forthcoming expansion of NREGA to cover
all rural districts in the country can be successfully implemented."
The report presents useful recommendations on how to strengthen the
required support structures, relating for instance to staff
appointments, record-keeping and financial management.


The Central government would do well to heed this constructive
message. The extension of the NREGA to the whole country, just three
months from now, is one of the biggest organisational challenges any
government has ever faced. It is also an unprecedented opportunity to
build the foundations of a social security system in rural India,
revive village economies, promote social equity, and empower rural
labourers. As things stand, however, this bold initiative looks like a
political stunt, shorn of the far-reaching preparations that are
required to make it a success. It is in this context that the draft
CAG report needs to be treated as a useful wake-up call, rather than
as another stick to beat the Act with.


(The author is Visiting Professor at Allahabad University and a member
of the Central Employment Guarantee Council.)