Instead of talking about MNREGA-II in the form of the right to apprenticeship, Rahul Gandhi should have talked about skill development initiatives. (Image: PTI)
Congress scion Rahul Gandhi gave five guarantees to the youth during his ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’ but it appears that these five pre-poll promises are like old wine in a new bottle
Congress scion Rahul Gandhi gave five guarantees to the youth during his ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra.’ Nyay scheme was part of the Congress poll promise in 2019 which was summarily rejected by the people and it appears that these five pre-poll promises are like old wine in a new bottle.
Let us begin with understanding the first major promise made by Rahul Gandhi to the farmers of the country. MSP (minimum support price) of agricultural produce has gained significance in the wake of farmers’ protests. First, this misconception needs to be clarified once and for all that MSP is going away. Congress implemented the National Food Security Act, 2013 and Chapter II of the said Act mandates very provisions for ensuring food security for the underprivileged class. Central and state governments have to procure the food grains through MSP operations, and these food grains are to be distributed at a subsidised rate as per Schedule I of the Act.
No government will ever dare to abolish this law and risk the wrath of crores of voters. In fact, the Modi government has extended the subsidised food scheme for another five years and the MSP scheme is going to stay as long as food security law is there. Mandating private procurement at a price not lower than the MSP can be considered but before that, the mechanism of fixing the MSP and its scope should be agreed upon, otherwise, we will have similar strikes every year to demand a hike in the MSP. Even Rahul Gandhi knows that the fiscal impact of this promise will lead to chaos but who cares when it comes to harvesting votes.
The Modi government has already launched a seed fund scheme for startups and funding the startups is not a path-breaking idea coming from the Opposition. This country needs an ecosystem and private capital is flowing for startups which can demonstrate scalability. Instead of focusing on the fund, respecting the businessmen and stopping the rhetoric of abusing them will do a great service towards promoting the culture of entrepreneurship. Similarly, instead of talking about MNREGA-II in the form of the right to apprenticeship, Rahul Gandhi should have talked about skill development initiatives. There are various studies which highlight the shortage of skilled manpower in the country.
There is a dichotomy in our politics when it comes to the federal structure. State governments stress on the federal structure when it comes to tax devolution from the Centre, but all eyes are on the Central government when it comes to job creation or even delivery of necessary services which are part of the State list under the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. The Centre can make changes in the fiscal policies and coordinate with the RBI on monetary policies but other factors like land, law & order, basic infrastructure etc. come in the domain of the state government. Job creation should be considered as a joint responsibility of the Centre as well as state government. Speaking purely from a statistical angle, accelerated economic growth has resulted in a decline in the unemployment rate in 2023 to 3.1 per cent which is the lowest in three years.
Paper leak is a menace across the country and no party can tell that they have been successful in controlling it. Aspirants spend their youthful years preparing for government jobs and the recruitment process gets delayed due to the nefarious practices of recruitment gangs. These kinds of practices have been going unchecked for years not because we do not have laws to curb it, but due to inaction of the law enforcement agencies in implementing the law. Even the existing provision under Section 420 of the IPC has imprisonment for up to 7 years term and Section 112 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 has a similar imprisonment term for petty organised crimes which includes selling of public examination papers. For perspective, it should be highlighted that the parliament passed a bill named ‘The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024’ in the budget session which is aimed at curbing malpractice and it has also received the President’s assent.
In 2023, the Rajasthan government led by the Congress implemented a law for ensuring social security of gig workers and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge hailed it as a landmark reform. At the central level, the Code on Social Security, 2022 (SS Code) already has provisions for ensuring the social security of gig and platform workers. Provisions of the SS Code are yet to be made effective.
It appears that the Grand Old Party has run out of ideas and out-of-the-box ideas need to come from it to woo the voters.
Shshank Saurav is a Chartered Accountant, Public Policy Analyst, and Author. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18’s views.