Development: A Noose Around Keralite's Neck

By K.P. Sasi

21 April, 2016
Countercurrents.org

The political parties have started preparing for the election campaign for the Kerala State Assembly elections. It is everybody’s guess that BJP will score more in Kerala this time. The left may criticise Congress for the progress of BJP in Kerala. But many activists may claim that both the left and the Congress have failed to check the growing communalisation in Kerala in appropriate situations, with a clear political and secular perspective. The reason the lack of clear and effective work against the growing communalisation could be the fear of losing Hindu votes since there is a general feeling that Hindutva agenda in its overall schemes is opposed, there is a possibility of losing Hindu votes. At a popular level, the result of such a dynamics is that Hinduism is more and more getting defined as Hindutva. The agenda of Sangh Parivar to spread such a consciousness among the people of Kerala has been more successful during the last few years, even if their increase in votes in the coming elections does not make a big surprise or a shock for the secular forces.

But the main issue for elections is `development’ as usual. This terminology called `development’ has been subjected to a mass level debate during the last four decades in India. Unfortunately, the political parties still do not appear to have heard of such debates initiated by activists, people’s movements and many organic intellectuals in this country. The question `development for whom and at whose cost’ is still unrecognised by our politicians. Or rather, it could be just a pretension that they have not heard of such debates. But there is a slight improvement in recent times. Those who are branded as `anti-national and anti-development’ activists have succeeded in changing the tone of public statements by the politicians. The politicians in Kerala today would say that we need `environment friendly development which destroys the environment’ and `people friendly development which destroys people’. This certainly is a remarkable step for the future!

The term for the UDF rule in Kerala is getting over. The claims by the Ommen Chandy Government is that they have brought in so much of `development’ for Kerala and therefore people should vote for further `development’. It is time for the electorate to assess the cost-benefit analysis of `development’ which the UDF Government has achieved during the last few years in Kerala.

As uncritical observers, let us say that the claims of the UDF Government are true, to begin with. Let us assume that the thousands of crores of rupees offered as charity to Adani by the UDF Government for the construction of Vizhinjam Transit Harbour is `development’. Let us assume that when the sea hits on 25 fishing villages affecting not just thousands of fisher people, but also worship places of different religions with all secular principles of equality of faith on the northern side of this mega construction, is `development’. Let us assume that the destruction of the only wedge bank in India out of 20 wedge banks in the world, consisting of one of the richest biodiversity regions with a number of threatened species in the ocean – a destruction facilitated by the Vizhinjam Transit Harbour Project is `development’. Let us assume that the destruction of two hills from the Western Ghats in order to fill the Indian Ocean for four kilometres for this construction is `development’. Let us assume that the idea of the UDF Government to construct so many airports in a small state of Kerala comprising of a length of 590 km, boiling down to one airport in every 60 km at an average, is `development’. Let us assume that the decision to provide 100s of acres of land for an airport in Wayanad instead of fulfilling the promise of providing land for the Adivasis is `development’. Let us assume that the dozens of malnutrition deaths among the Adivasis in Attappadi during the governance of the UDF Government is `development’. Let us assume that the money that people have to pay as toll taxes for their basic right to travel in Kerala is `development’. Let us assume that the huge corruption stories which were exposed in public during this time of governance by the UDF is `development’. Let us assume that the speed in which you travel on a metro forgetting to look back on what you have lost is `development’. Let us assume that while the Government is refusing the basic responsibility of providing the facilities of clean water, education and health for the people of Kerala, the tendency to turn essential services as a commodity in the open market is `development’. Let us assume that all the unmanaged wastes filling up in villages around the towns and cities of Kerala is an indication of `development’. The assumptions can be many which need not be entirely listed here at the moment. But the central question before the electorate in Kerala, even if one forgets the social, ecological, economic and cultural costs of this `development’ of the people for generations to come, is why `mega development’ projects are pushed by the politicians.

There is certainly a growing interest among the politicians to push mega development projects on the throats of people using public money. They are usually pushed with wild and unrealistic claims. One of the most unarticulated and yet obvious interest is corruption. Corruption has been a subject of public debate during the last few years. UDF Government has been accused of various corruption scandals during this term. But these are all small time corruption scandals catching the headlines of newspapers for weeks or months. It is time now to understand that the real corruption is in mega development projects comprising of investments of thousands of crores of rupees. Even the opposition parties may not dare to question mega development projects. I do not wish to go into the reasons for such behaviour here. But it is time today for the electorate to ask questions to any politician about the `priorities’ of development and what kind of `development’ people really need. And this is the best opportunity to ask such questions when they come to houses for votes. Because the politicians are at the mercy of people today till the coming elections!

The other important question before the electorate in Kerala, is `what kind of treasury is UDF Government leaving behind while facing the electorate again?’Let us also look into this question through the claims of achievement of the UDF Government in simple economic terms as per their own words. Because it is here that we can really understand the achievement of any Government by analysing how public money is utilised. The fact that Oommen Chandy has certainly taken up development as a `serious business’ during his rule in Kerala can not be refuted. And what is the net result? The total debts of the state has increased to 1,35,440.4 crores during the UDF regime in Kerala as per the Legislative Asseembly Reports published by Malayala Manorama on Febrruary 10, 2016. Kerala’s population is 3.4 crores. If we go by an assumption that an average family in Kerala has four members, then the debt of every family in Kerala is an amount of Rs. 1,59,340 (One Lakh Fifty Nine Thousand Three Hundred and Forty) plus interests on this amount. Most of the farmers who committed suicide so far in India had suffered a debt of only less than 1.5 lakhs (One Hundred and Fifty Thousand rupees). It just means that the UDF Government in such a short period has pushed every Keralite to the verge of suicide, since the responsibility for such a debt is due to the rule of UDF during this period. And if UDF can name this as `development’, then there is something fundamentally wrong in their perception of politics.

Therefore, if a Keralite conducts a cost benefit analysis of the present governance and its impact on oneself, it would be clear that along with the increase in taxes and and a decrease in social welfare subsidies, the average Keralite has increased burden of debt which has to be paid with more taxes and further reduction of social welfare services in future. Hence it is too clear that along with the destruction of social, environmental and livelihood fabric of people in this state due to the present model of `development’, the people of Kerala are also getting into more and more debts due to irresponsible governance. In such a context, it would be more appropriate to say that an average Keralite is facing a noose around his or her neck, just due to an irresponsible governance – a governance which keeps on increasing the debts for its people!

So, the concluding question facing is: `Who will return this debt? Will Oommen Chandy return this amount of Rs. 1,35,440.4 crores from his own pocket? Or is it going to be another burden for the people of Kerala?’ Who will return the loans from ADB and World Bank? Who will pay the burdening interests from such loans? The UDF model of development is all fine. But finally, the people of Kerala will have to bear this burden from their own pockets. Every Keralite must remember this basic reality before casting votes. If this question is not asked forcefully today, there is no need to crib in future about the increase in taxes, increase in prices, decrease in subsidies and social welfare and a decrease in all other areas of `people’s development’ where a government is morally responsible to pay.

The only relief is that Narendra Modi is better than Ommen Chandy in tightening the noose of `development’ much more effectively at a national level. The foreign travels for offering subsidies to corporate companies to take away the precious natural resources of the country, providing a free hand for the communal forces and keeping a blind eye to all issues of people’s movements are a clear indication for this. And there is not much competition between UDF and BJP on the basic perspective of `development’. If Oommen Chandy is offering thousands of crores to Adani as `charity’ for Vizhinjam Transit Harbour, Narendra Modi is also as charitable to Adani for the same project. And the left is confused as usual. Even after four decades of the successful struggle against the Silent Valley Project and a number of historical struggles against destructive mega development projects, the left is still wandering in the darkness of fear to take a proper political position to defend environment, culture and the growing number of millions of development refugees in this country. The tragedy is that the noose is always on the necks of people. Perhaps the only solution is to pray to the Development God! To save us from these development seekers!

K.P Sasi is a well known film maker.