Jan vigyan samachar
E-Newsletter of Bharat Jan Vigyan Jatha – March 2007 (second issue)
Friends,
Since the beginning of the last rejuvenation effort of BJVJ, beginning October 2006 and formally starrting with the BJVJ meet in January 2007 at Patna, there has been a slow and slight build-up of some communication, some actions and some small coming together with people’s groups / struggles that are in the forefront of the movements by marginalized / oppressed people. We are still trying to ‘find our feet’ , and are not sure what will be the next ( and more importantly, right) course of action. We are also trying to re-connect with the bases that we can build upon. Many of the Basic Units formed during 1999-2001 are to be searched out and re-energised. Many might not be active any more, or might not be convinced of our sincerity and continuity of purpose – ‘this one more time’. And there seems to be some disagreement amongst continuing constituent groups – about the understanding and focus of the present efforts. Quite a large diversity of understanding & views for a ‘beginning’ !
So, is that good or too much to tackle ? Some of us might like to compare the present situation with the very beginning of ‘this’ BJVJ in 1991-92, and also the ‘second coming’ after 1995. In 1991, there were hardly any ideological discussion / debates, about what is the position and role of BJVJ vis-à-vis the Indian scenario at that time. We had a no. of vision documents prepared, but largely by a couple of persons including me – under the guidance of our Chairman, and without a real understanding of the national social & political picture. These were mostly some well intentioned expressions of a desired ‘Utopia’, so to say, though backed by genuine & intense conviction. And most importantly, we did not consciously look out to be part of a greater whole. We worked to quickly build a ‘national network’, and became a platform for different types of NGO’s, Voluntary Organisations and science clubs, many of which were left out by the so-called ‘mainstream science movement’.
Starting 1995, our experiments in the field of elementary education was better grounded in the theoretical & ideological understanding, but many of the constituent groups and many active workers felt left out / out of place. The bold and unique “LOKSHALA” experiment, with ideas being tried out in several ‘Field Laboratories’ across India, and regular academic back-ups to do course-corrections, generated both appreciation and apprehension, commitment and alienation, amongst the ‘BJVJ people’. Some of the field labs are still very active, have even found their own feet and progressed - but most of them are not (as is the case with Basic Units or earlier associate groups). Were these only the failures of leadership ? Or, are we not able to find some key ?
This time around, the divergent views are more, but probably there largely is an understanding that we need to carry this diversity in a larger common goal, of building a just, equality-based, people-centric India, and keeping the poor, the marginalized and the oppressed in focus. – Editor.
Bharat Jan Vigyan Jatha (BJVJ) - E-56 First Floor, Samaspur , Pandav Nagar, Delhi – 110091 (phone 011-22799236), OR --> c/o Science For Society, Dept. of Chemistry, Science College, Patna University, Bihar – 800005 (Attn. Prof. S P Verma ).
Prepared & Edited by : Soumya Dutta, with inputs from associated groups / activists
WORKSHOP “RECLAIM YOUR ENVIRONMENT”
APRIL 22-29, HYDERABAD.
With a view to build-up the capacity of activists – to effectively intervene and help displaced / impacted people’s struggles, BJVJ along with Cerena Foundation, is organisisng a seven-days intensive training workshop on RECLAIM YOUR ENVIRONMENT, which will also focus on the Environmetal Impact Assesment (EIA) scenario and associated knowledge / skills. This will be held at Cerena Foundation, D-101 HighRise Aptmts., Lower Tank Bund Road, Hydbd-80 in the last week of April 2007, 22nd to 29th.
It will be for a small no. of committed people’s science sctivists, who – personally and organizationally, will commit to use this for strengthening the movements / struggles of the marginalized people in India. We can take in a max. no. of 16 activists, preferably – but not exceeding two from each organization.
The nominated activists will need to have at least a std. 12 science background, be comfortable with numbers and computer use, willing to put in a min. of 10 hrs. a day during the workshop, and share in the organizational/ logistics arrangement.
Contact sagdhara@yahoo.com or
ACTION 2007 – JAN SANSAD IN DELHI
Action 2007, a collective of various people’s movements, concerned voluntary groups and citizens, are organizing a JANSANSAD (People’s Parliament) at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, from March 19 to 24, 2007.
The Programme --–
19th March : 3 PM – 6 PM Assertion of People’s Politics and Democratic Governance.
20th March ; 10 AM – 1 PM Unorganised Sector Workers and Labour Laws;
2 PM – 6 PM Development, Displacement and Right to Natural Resources;
21st march : 10 AM – 1 PM SEZ’s, Agrarian Crisis
2 PM – 5 PM Rights to Information, Education, Work, Health & Food;
22nd March : 10 AM – 1 PM Dalits & MinoritiesRight to Life with Dignity;
2 PM – 5 PM Adivasis, Forests & Forest Rights;
23rd March : 10 AM – 1 PM Urban Development and DispossesionResources;
1:3PM – 5 PM WTO and IFI’s; Issues of sovereignty;
24th March : 10 AM – 1 PM Women’s Rights and Issues;
1 PM – 5 PM State Repression and Millitarisation;
We hope to send you the full text of the Charter Of Demands prepared at ACTION 2007, as soon as it is available online. In the meantime,pusadkarprabhakar@yahoo.com is the contact address for this (mob.09226494838).
GOVERNING BY BULLETS & BULDOZER
Nandigram is hogging the headlines for some time now. Yet in mid-March, the whole country was shocked to witness the organized brutality of the State machinery in West Bengal, in conjunction with the militarized party cadres, in killing a large no. of protesting farmers, agricultural workers and their family members. The shock was more, as the Government there is supposed to be run by “communist’ political dispensations ! This is the state where – in the 1970’s - land reforms was arguably most effective, giving share croppers a ‘right’ in the agricultural production, improving both production and equitable sharing of the economic gain of production !!
BUT then, should we really be shocked, or even surprised ? And how do we view the Indian State – irrespective of whatever political party is in power – and its machineries ? Look back a little, look around India of the last 15 years, and these incidences of governing by bullets and bulldozers have kept on increasing, in state after state. It is not only the “Marxcist” govt. of West Bengal who has let loose the police on to protesting farmers and workers. The Congress ruled state of Andhra Pradesh have shot & killed villagers protesting against the Godavari project, NDA ruled Orissa has killed tribals trying to save their land in Kalinganagar, Kalahandi etc, Congress ruled Maharashtra is no better against its own poor citizens protesting land acquisition for SEZ’s in Raigad, in Ratnagiri …, ‘Samajwadi Party’ ruled Uttar Pradesh govt. is brutally suppressing the protests of farmers in Dadri – to acquire land for Reliance, Congress ruled Delhi (under the cover of Supreme Court order !) bulldozed huge slum clusters of Yamuna Pushta and Vikas Marg – for “beautification” while conniving quickly with the moneyed and powerful traders to ‘legalise’ all their ‘illegalities’ – inspite of a Supreme Court order to the contrary, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Chhattishgarh ……... the list is very long !
And why the Governments of all these states, ruled by diverse political dispensations, are so united in their brutal, focused action against its own poor ? The only common thread is that all these protesting poor people hold on to a very precious natural resource – LAND, and whatever that comes with. “Grab all that you can, for they don’t make it (land) any more”. Who are the people or groups for whom the State is madly trying to acquire this land ? All giant capitalists – Posco, TATA, Salim, Reliance, DLF, ………..almost every big money-group.
The excuse given for exercising the “Eminent Domain” that the State is empowered with is that the industries proposed on these lands will create ‘employment’. The falsehood of projecting a few new jobs and not counting the many more livelihoods destroyed – is carefully created by the State and industry, and forcefully portrayed by the media controlled by them. Every acre of the highly fertile 997 that was acquired for the TATA’s small car project supported at least one farming family directly (these are 3-4 crops a year irrigated land, and average land holding size in West Bengal is significantly smaller than 1 acre ). Thus TATA motors Singur plant is displacing around 3-5 thousand people ! How many jobs would be created ? A few hundred in total. And how many of them would be offered to the displaced small farmers / share-croppers / farm-workers ? They cannot be the engineers, supervisors, managers – only a few labourers and chowkidars at most. So, why should they pay all the price for the “Development” of the car producing and driving middle class and the resulting profit of the capitalists ?
Similarly, if the middle and upper middle class of Kolkata need more electricity, why should the people of Haripur (in East Medinipur again, like Nandigram !) pay the price with their homes, their land and their livelihoods ? Why can’t the proposed Nuclear power plant be located in the Kolkata Maidan ? Enough space there. If the well-off are scared with the prospect of a nuclear power plant at their door-step, don’t they poor have an equal ‘right’ to be concerned ? Why the farmers and farm workers of Raigad have to be crucified to make way for Reliance’s 25,000 Acre SEZ, where hardly one-tenth of them can sustain themselves as tertiary service providers ? And why should they be forced to become maids, chowkidars, and tea-sellers in their own land, where they were producing food and feeding the country ? And why should the State intervene – not on behalf of the disadvantaged, but against these very poor people, with the brutality of roman gladiators ?
These wide-spread incidents, more the trend than exceptions, only show that the present Indian State is thinking and acting to ‘weed-out’ the poor from all tangible resources (the LAND these poor occupy / own and the mineral and energy resoures under that land are the clear targets of global capital today), and making those who manage to survive – slave servers to the moneyed. Those ‘running’ the State are the same people who swore by the Indian Constitution – by all its features of Equality, Justice, non-discrimination, fundamental rights - who are supposedly the servants of the people !! And looking at the media response, it seems the middle & upper class are convinced that theses poor are only holding them back from becoming the ‘global-Indian’, whatever that might mean ! Exploitation of labour is passé. The thinking seems to be that, since most of these poor farmers are doing only subsistence farming – thus not “contributing to the profit-kitty”, and are difficult to be turned into “significant consumers of manufactured goods”, there is no harm in eliminating them altogether !! Frightening thoughts – BUT is there any other plausible explanation ?
Some Budgetary facts : indiabudget.nic.in
All of you know the promises of the National Common Minimum Programme of the UPA ? 6% of GDP for Education and 3% for health?
The figures are - As percentage of GDP :-
Edu 2.98% 2.96% 2.79% 2.74% 2.88% 2.87%
Hlth 1.25% 1.28% 1.26% 1.25% 1.41% 1.39%
As percentage of total expenditure
Edu 10.6 10.3 9.7 9.9 10.2 10.6
Hlth 4.4 4.5 4.4 4.5 5.0 5.1