If large retail companies like Walmart can be helped through establishment of Farmer Producer Companies in India to allow them procure farmers’ products directly from farm fields, why can’t Consumer Cooperative Stores be established and linked with such FPCs to help farmers at one hand and Indian customers on the other? asks SYED ZAHID AHMAD
Aam Aadmi Party has emerged as a hope for many Indians to get rid of corruption. But doing agitation is one thing and containing corruption another because corruption practised by individuals earlier has now turned into an institutionalised phenomenon and many institutions are managing this business of corruption in a legalised manner. Otherwise, can one justify why the Government of India should pay annual interest at 8% per annum on market loans when we have opened capital account and in economies like the US and the UK money may be bought at as low as 2% annual interest? It may be easy to handle corrupt people, but tough to curb institutionalised corrupt businesses in a democratic country like India.
Considerably AAP has been hardly benefitted with increased capital inflow by FIIs in the stock market. Mostly the benefits of economic growth during the last two decades were realised by our corporate, making Governments more indebted, causing increased pressure over taxpayers and consumers, and pushing the inflation higher. Amidst rise in foreign capital, stock indices, inflation and fiscal deficits, the aam aadmi was deprived of the fruits of development. In general, people of India have been taxed more to allow the Government bridge fiscal deficits, compared to the benefits drawn by the deprived section through welfare schemes. The Governments have been found spending more on repayment of debts along with interest than on public welfare schemes.
Both NDA and UPA failed to serve aam aadmi, rather focused on facilitating the corporate. Stock market capitalisation and rate of GDP growth were targeted to reflect economic development. Governments hardly cared for how increased income realised through developments is shared among different sections of people in our economy. This increased the gap between the rich and the poor of our society. Improving the livelihood of aam aadmi could not draw due attention of these Governments. If we really intend to serve aam aadmi, we need to focus on rural economy and the unorganised sector enterprises altogether comprising over 90 per cent of national workforce. Aam aadmi may be pleased with the facilities like:
1. Affordable alternative source of finance for their livelihood and welfare needs;
2. Lower tax rates on earned income, investments or incurred expenditures;
3. Better market linkages for produced goods and services;
4. Soft labour laws, excise rates, taxes over trade activities, service taxes, etc.;
5. Affordable art of technologies for cottage and rural industries;
6. Institutional and financial support to cooperatives for empowerment of aam aadmi;
7. Easy norms to receive benefits in terms of subsidiaries, incentives and grants, etc;
8. Low cost public utilities like water, energy, medical, education, and transport facilities, etc.;
9. Hassle-free norms to register enterprises, submit returns and get clearances, etc.
Since the fall of the USSR, our economists have been following the US model of development economics. If not corrected, they may further put thrust over US economic development models, whereas we need a model that can promote domestic economy through intensified efforts to explore potentials of Indian economy. We should not adopt Marxist or capitalist model, but a real socialist model of economic development for Indian economy whereby aam aadmi associated with agriculture or unorganised sector enterprises might feel privileged with the policies and regulations. We may require social economists to suggest better policies for Indian economic growth and welfare of people.
Hope the team engaged in preparation of Aam Aadmi Party’s draft policy for economic welfare and development of India would seek feedbacks from different sections before presenting it in the public domain.
Aam Aadmi Party needs to assure micro and smaller enterprises which should have the opportunity to avail themselves of equity funds at retail counters in banks and NBFCs (in the manner corporate draws equities from stock markets). If large retail companies like Walmart can be helped through establishment of Farmer Producer Companies in India to allow them procure farmers’ products directly from farm fields, why can’t Consumer Cooperative Stores be established and linked with such FPCs to help farmers at one hand and Indian customers on the other? Only such policy decisions would bring justice to Indian economy and let the aam aadmi feel empowered. Hope the Aam Aadmi Party would think and act to ensure socialistic economic growth of economy.
[The writer, Founder of Economic Initiatives, is a social activist based in Kausa, Mumbra, Maharashtra, India]