‘People’s Manifesto drawn’
koman.co.in
While the India’s general elections are around the corner, it is time for leading contestants to cull out issues that would erupt at the time of election campaign.
Although the government is claiming that most of the issues that were plaguing the country in the past-years are being addressed, the country is still passing through multiple crises that hindering the development like ecological imbalance, unemployment, falling democratic rights, socio-cultural friction etc.
On the other hand, the opposition including torch-bearer that voices against the States’ Regressive policies point out that there are attempts by the various government to stifle democratic voices. However, these crises are just not India specific, but the ‘alternative thinking groups’ have found time before general elections, so that their voice will be heard by people of this country.
These groups call themselves as ‘Vikalp Sangam’, a unified platform for most of the civil society organizations and propose various initiatives addressing the multiple crises as they perceived. A decade old initiative is very well organised and expresses collective vision, how, they want the India to be.
Targeting forth coming 2024 general elections as a point of reference, this initiative suggests how to address the unemployment crises. It advocates, apart from conventional models like promoting small manufacturing, value added production in agriculture and allied industry by making reserve the products and services exclusively for these sectors.
The central idea of these groups is that the large industry needs to be tamed to balance the haves and have-nots by approving conducive macro-economic policies that encouraging small and hand-made industry. Further, they offer proper controls over the state spending by making the state agencies more accountable and make the public audit as mandatory.
It also points to growing concern over inter-faith and inter-ethnic conflicts and the State need to spend at least 6 per cent of its GDP towards education more specifically in mother-tongue based education. Further it opined to increase spending on community health by providing nutritional food, safe drinking water etc.
It also focused on environment issues such, conservation of wildlife and biodiversity, besides national laws on water, land etc. It proposed a newer authority in the name and style, National Environment Commissioner on the lines of independent Election Commissioner.
(The entire recommendations available on www.vikalpsangam.org)
Interesting ideas.