August 26, 2005

Small ones

In this week that India passed a Rural Employment Guarantee Bill, we also hear that in five tribal districts of Maharashtra alone, about 13 children are dying every day of malnutrition. (See, for two examples, this report and this one).

The state Government claims that this number is down (slightly) from a year ago, and that in any case, the deaths are not due to malnutrition but to the low weight at birth of these kids. Plus "illness". Fine distinctions, if you ask me, but let that pass.

That small Indians are dying in such numbers at a time when we export food and have such a booming economy is a tragedy. It says something -- to me, at any rate. But then I get told often that I should not confuse these two issues, or that I should stop writing altogether -- so OK, I'll let that pass too.

Instead, I'll just offer two tidbits to explain (perhaps) why I mention these deaths together with the Rural Employment Guarantee Bill.

One: an extract from this report:

    Sanjay Savale, a researcher at Shivaji University at Nasik, studied one jobs program that has been running for over three decades. Though corruption marred several projects, places in rural Maharashtra have shown a downward trend in rural to urban migration. The program, he says, "has managed to break this migration cycle only because it provides work to people within two to six miles of where they live."

    Mr. Savale recalls what one tribal woman said to him about Maharashtra's Employment Guarantee Program (EGP): "I never previously ate rice in the dry season. We used to eat kanyaa [a congeal with only a little food grain]. EGS employment gives us the luxury of eating rice in the dry season."

"The luxury." Indeed.

Two: in truth, malnutrition among children can be easily addressed. Tamil Nadu has long operated an Integrated Nutrition Project: a programme targeted at the poorest areas and the most vulnerable people. A remarkable result: two years after completing the programme, children are, on average, two kilogrammes heavier than children who did not participate.

As far back as 1987, one study (in Malnutrition: What Can Be Done? by Alan Berg) estimated that expanding such programmes nationwide would need spending to the tune of 2.12% -- yes, two point one two per cent -- of the country's budget.

Why is it not possible to spend two paise in every hundred to save the lives of small Indians?

8 comments:

phucker said...

Since I have nothing better to do, and because I haven't been banned from your blog yet, I'll bite.

That small Indians are dying in such numbers at a time when we export food and have such a booming economy is a tragedy

Any proof available that small indians weren't dying when we weren't exporting food, and didn't have a booming economy? Were more or less children dying when the economy wasn't booming?

Not to say the fact that less children are dying with a "booming" economy is something to trumpet. I take issue with the word "booming". "Booming" is a Thomas Friedman adjective in this case. I'd say growing fast(not fast enough), and potentially booming. Anyhow, it's still an important point to keep in mind, if you're going raise the topic of booming economies and exporting of food.

Why is it not possible to spend two paise in every hundred to save the lives of small Indians?

It is more than just possible. But I thought the crux of the argument is who pays that two paise? Who spends it, and how is it spent. Isn't this what we've all been arguing about? You say the EGS is a Good Thing(TM), whereas to me it seems like an awfully Evil Thing(TM). I don't think this a good way to increase jobs at all, nor is it very sustainable. Eventually, it will turn into an Entitlements scheme, with politicians finding ways to dole out the EGS favours and funding to those whom they see fit. And then we will go back and blame the culture and say that there was nothing wrong with the scheme, it's the people and culture which are rotten. Increasing anybody's dependence on the Government is a Bad Thing, and that is what this act is doing. We need to do the exact opposite of that get India out of its trough.

Age-old questions and age-old debates.

Dilip D'Souza said...

TTG, you have nothing better to do? Meaning, you're unemployed like me? Maybe we both need to go sign up with the EGS.

But seriously, I have no idea who's banned you from their blog, but at mine, you're a welcome guest. I mean that in all sincerity.

Any proof available that small indians weren't dying when we weren't exporting food, and didn't have a booming economy?

Well, I would rush to find such proof if I had claimed that the small Indians weren't dying at those times. Since I have not, I don't feel the pressure to rush, thank you.

What concerns me is, kids are dying now, when we are exporting food. It would be a tragedy were we not exporting food, it is a tragedy when we are doing it. It is a tragedy, period.

You don't like "booming"? Fine, consider my sentence changed to "That small Indians are dying in such numbers at a time when we export food and have such a fast-growing (not fast enough) economy is a tragedy."

Now what's the issue?

Who pays? Well, who pays for other public outlays, like on schools, defence, roads, police, etc? Could those same people not pay that two paise?

Of course "how it is spent" is an issue. In my mind, that's the weak point of the EGS. Yet for me, there are two reasons for hope. One, that there's a man of some sincerity at the top for the first time (meaning Manmohan); and two, more important, there's the RTI.

There is evidence, and I thought I cited it in this piece, that programmes like the EGS work to reduce hunger and increase health -- despite the corruption in them too. Why is that not a good argument for such a programme?

phucker said...

TTG, you have nothing better to do? Meaning, you're unemployed like me? Maybe we both need to go sign up with the EGS.

Well I have a day job, but at the rate I'm going I'll most likely be fired soon. I spend more time reading bloglines updates than writing software.
As for the EGS, no thanks - I don't think I'd be good on Public Works projects. The farthest I've ever been down that line is Sim City 3000(very addictive).

Who pays? Well, who pays for other public outlays, like on schools, defence, roads, police, etc? Could those same people not pay that two paise?

Well, for one, I pay for that stuff, as do you if you pay any tax. Judging by the services given and results produced for money already paid, what do I have except your and Sonia-ji's word that the EGS will help put more money in more people's hands eventually spiralling upwards with the famed Multiplier Effect keeping me in a job, and prevent those criminal deaths-of-Children?

None, if past experiences are anything to go by. It would be nice if we could guarantee employment for people - but you see there are a few other factors, which I don't think have been discussed in depth.

Is this scheme going to be permanent?

What do you do if everybody asks for a raise?

Will you fire people who have been given the employmjent guarantee but then decide to do nothing, and take a paycheck at the end of the week/month? (wow sounds like me in my job...)

(2) Any applicant who is provided with employment and does not report for work within 15 days of being notified under sub-section 8(5), or who is absent from work for more than one week without a valid application for exemption, shall stand debarred from applying for work or receiving unemployment allowance for a period of fifteen days.

Ok so I work for 10 days, take 15 days off as "debarment", and work for another 5 days. Yes I can just see the efficient productive public works that will arise due to this. Note it said UNEMPLOYMENT allowance - but what about the regulare wage. Is s/he debarred from that? It doesn't explicitly say.



(8) If the applicant is not provided with employment in the manner mentioned in sub-section 8(2) within 15 days of applying, he or she shall be entitled to a daily unemployment allowance, unless the applicant or his/her household has already received 100 days of employment during the current financial year
Ok. So you're going to be paid to be unemployed. Thanks. In the meantime, as an upper-middle class individual living in Delhi, I'll feel happy to know that while somebody is being paid to do nothing, women are still being raped on the streets of Delhi, - probably by lazy rich people, not unemployed disaffected individuals who will of course use this money for noble purposes.
Yes, there are hungry starving people in this world - but are you so sure that it will be the bottom of the barrel that will get these jobs? Ok even they do get them - how productive will these people be? They don't have an education, and they haven't been able to get enough to eat. What will be the quality of the work? And if they do get enough to eat, and have some small measure of education, will they qualify for this scheme? So that means that the poorest of the poor get a job but some poor fool who passed 12th will stay unemployed? Or be forced to work somewhere else for under the minimum wage.

The act states two things which really get my goat:
(3) It shall be the responsibility of the State Government to provide employment in accordance with the provision of the Programme to every such person within 15 days of receipt of an application.

And say there doesn't happen to be anything available at the time - sure India is far from developed and all, but suppose there just isn't any work available that meets the criteria set forth in the EGS. What kind of work will they "create" to ensure their targets are met? Digging holes and filling them up again in the name of "productive public works"? Will a village with 15 roads going nowhere get a 16th one, just so the 5 km from home criteria is met?

All of these things can be tackled if people have common sense, but governments don't use reason, logic, common sense or rationality in their actions. There many other underlying agendas.

7) As far as possible, employment shall be provided within a radius of 5 kilometres of the village where the applicant resides at the time of applying. In cases where employment is provided outside such radius, it must be provided within the Block, and transport allowances and daily living allowances shall be paid in accordance with the Programme Rules.

What if there isn't anything worth doing within 5 KM or within the "Block"? What if the people don't like the nature of work available within 5 Kms of the block? Sure they'll go and find something else to do outside the EGS, but there goes my tax down the tubes and into the pocket of the District collector. Will we get a discount if they don't find enough takers for the EGS?

(iii) All accounts and records relating to the Programme shall be available in convenient form for public scrutiny. Copies shall be provided to anyone on demand at cost price, as per procedures specified in the Rules.

The cost price is Rs. 15 Crores. Feel free to view the records after you pay up.

Dilip D'Souza said...

Sriram, I asked: "Could those same people not pay that two paise?"

You replied: They could, if they want to. Who is stopping anyone in India from contributing to various NGOs and charity organizations?

Nobody, but if you were a little less selective in your quote, you would have included my immediately prior question. Thus: who pays for other public outlays, like on schools, defence, roads, police, etc? Could those same people not pay that two paise?

Is it by contributing to NGOs and charity organizations that we get schools, defence, roads, police etc? And is it by contributing to NGOs and charity organizations that we will lick malnutrition? (Note: your answers to these two questions can be different).

Who ever said you were heartless, and how does that matter? But I would like to suggest something to you. Next time you're near Maharashtra, let's join forces and go to one of these areas where the kids are dying of malnutrition. Once there, let's see for ourselves what the situation is of these parents. Once there, you offer them your suggestion of providing their kids their basic needs.

This is a very serious suggestion. I will pay your way.

phucker said...

Hi Sriram, nice to meet you too. I think part of the problem, is we think on full stomachs, with at least 15 years of education and exposure to things. So it is very hard for us to get into the minds of the parents of these starving children. It's a common refrain by PLU(People Like Us) - "If you can't afford kids, why do you have them". But we're thinking from our angle, and what looks like complete common sense to us. For the parents of those children, and the children themselves, they view the world through very very different eyes, and with a diffrent mentality, that frankly, while we may able to grasp, cannot fully comprehend. So, in the opinion of this mis-informed, upper-middle-class software engineer with an ivy-league degree, the best way to get people to rise up out of poverty, is to ensure an environment which allows to people to freely and legally make money in as many ways as possible - i.e. give them the freedom to find a way out of their quagmires if they so choose. This means the full-fledged espousal of a free-market economy. In a free-market economy, it does not mean an end to of the government (though some do advocate that) - but it means that the government gets relegated to a much smaller and less active role. It plays regulator, not an active participater which does stupid idiotic things like run hotels and manufacture bread, and promise people jobs, when there might not really be any jobs to give, because jobs don't just get created out of thin air by government fiat.
(I'm sure you know already know all this, but whats the harm in attempting to hammer it in?)

Dilip D'Souza said...

Sriram, Defense, roads and police are infrastructure - feeding someone's else child is charity.

I see you excised "schools" from my list. Why?

Is educating someone else's child charity? Why or why not? For that matter, is protecting someone else's child (police/defence) charity? For that matter, in what sense do defence and
police qualify as infrastructure?

Why is feeding a child charity, but educating and defending him not?

Besides, what was my original mention of the two paise referring to? To expanding something like TN's integrated nutrition project nationwide.

100% taxes is nonsensical; on that I have no disagreement with you. So let's try it the other way, why not have 0% taxation? What are the benefits/downsides now?

I have no clue what the situation of the parents is. I've never been to those areas. That's why I'm saying, let's go find out together. Your views of the world are just as likely to get confirmed as not, so why won't you come?

On the other hand, I do have some idea of the situation of parents in other situations. For one example, quickly, Pardhis in rural Maharashtra. In some cases, local villagers won't let Pardhi kids attend the schools, won't give Pardhis jobs, won't allow Pardhis to live anywhere but half a mile outside the village.

They make no assumption that the government is their parent. But in their situation, what does it mean to tell them to "work hard enough to improve their standards so that they can at least feed their children?", or that if they "get married and have kids [they] should also provide their basic needs?" Why not come with me and tell them, explain to them what you mean?

Dilip D'Souza said...

TTG, you say: For the parents of those children, and the children themselves, they view the world through very very different eyes, and with a diffrent mentality, that frankly, while we may able to grasp, cannot fully comprehend. So, in the opinion of this mis-informed, upper-middle-class software engineer with an ivy-league degree, the best way to get people to rise up out of poverty, is to ensure an environment which allows to people to freely and legally make money in as many ways as possible - i.e. give them the freedom to find a way out of their quagmires if they so choose.

I couldn't agree more (and hey, I'm a mis-informed, upper-middle-class software engineer with an ivy-league degree too).

So are we ensuring that environment? Have we ever done so?

phucker said...

Dilip,
in attempting to answer your post, I started becoming my long-winded, redundant and incoherent self (plus I didn't want to expose just how idle I am by replying to you immediately!). So I gave up writing those posts - this is the reason my blogging has all but died. I've noticed my writing has actually deteriorated, and considering it was awful to begin with...

But the short answer to "have we ever provided that environment" - the short answer is N. O.

"Are we trying to provide that now?".
There's a loaded question. And here is where the question of faith, fundamentalism and your previous post on "the only way" comes into the picture.
At face value, it is the countries which have combined free-market economics with free-market politics (democracy) that I believe have succeeded. Many people point to "socialist" countries in Europe as successes. If these people observe even an inkling of their rules, they'd be shocked to find out that many of these countries are actually capitalist in essence, approaching socialism once they've attained that much-cherished standard of living. None of those countries "started out" Socialist. America may have social security e.t.c., but it obviously leans towards to the market. Whether that's 60% free market or 80% free market I leave to other people to argue about. Singapore and Hong Kong are free ports, free trade areas, and and Hong Kong is much more capitalist than most other parts of the world. All the public transport, public utilities (except water) are run by private monopolies. Many big banks are allowed to print their OWN currency - Bank of China, HSBC, Standard Chartered. They print different notes, conforming only to the correct colours. )But the actual regulation of money supply is done by the HKMA - HongKong Monetary Authority.

So.. as somebody who grew up in Hong Kong, then India, then America, and who made the mistake of reading The Fountainhead at the tender age of 14 while other boys were out getting girlfriends...I have strong faith in the free-market system and honestly do believe that that is the only way to get India out of its mess. The points you made on that post, I tried to answer but then failed because these days my writing is really going to hell.

And now I'll end this post, realizing I've become my long-winded, redundant, incoherent self