Liberalisation of government control and opening of Indian economy to global markets: Need for second level democratic agrarian reforms to eradicate poverty and unemployment, to save farmer and democracy.
Land reform laws and liberalisation: 65 to 70% of Indian population in contrast to many developed world of 2 to 3% live in rural and semi urban areas and depend on subsistence agricultural economy.The land reforms and land ceiling laws have privatised the land and conferred ownership rights on small farmers and tenants. well this agrarian reform was a step in democratisation of political, economic resources of the country for dignity,independence and development of farming community as a whole against the then feudal intermediate exploiters.But with liberalisation of markets to global competition, this once democratic agrarian reforms has now become bottleneck to their own freedom and development and has become a swirl pool of mass poverty unemployment,debt trap and unhygienic neibhourhoods and abetment to suicides.
Dishonesty of politicians and political parties:Our political system, politicians are adopting the vote catching and paternalistic approach to empower themselves with more power over such dependant mass poverty by false and dishonest promises of dolls from the state coffers and projecting it as if it is their personal credit, good somersault that such benefits are dolled to them. we observe this with all political parties without exception. some take extreme forms of mass corruption of public funds to spend, to trade on the poverty of huge sections of our people.This is producing dishonest and criminal mentality , mass cheating in politicians and burocracy, from head to bottom of political parties in their competition for survival for capture of governmental power.
This is not good to democracy or economic survival of country in the global competition in this globalisation era.
We need to diagnose the cause of the disease and prescribe proper medicine or else our succeeding generations may fall in to once more slavery conditions. Beware of politicians who are trying to trade with the poverty of our masses with out constructive ideas!
causes of the disease: lack of education and self employed small and middle class ownership holdings in agriculture and businesses is the cause of low productivity,irresponsiveness to market price fluctuations, immobility and poverty.It has all trappings of subsistence ecnomy.He cannot conduct the agriculture on business principles.he has no business accounting practices. he wont calculate the family labor.He would not calculate the interests on capital invested on land towards its purchase or notional purchase and the rent it to derive and the alternative opportunity costs to his loss of wages or income to his labour or skills, and he cannot yet exit the agriculture or business as he has no other alternative employment to fall back and will be forced to sell his product in distress sale below his production cost prices in adverse market conditions and continue to live in poverty attached to land and village. With new tech consumer items like cell phones, though his communication channels increased and with it his level of knowledge of society and market, it is increasing his monthly bill payments without better employment and incomes.
Last week i went on a small vacation trip to Dharmashala,Dalhousie Pathankote via Delhi Panipat Chandigadh by bus and car,auto. I had made such trips to different parts of north and south India from kanyakumari to Kashmir and Jiasalmir to Gouhati, Himayan hilly regions of Arunachal pradesh and Sikkim Gangtok, Kulllu, Manali.The greatest part to be observed from these trips is great unity in diversity of the country, in fact as a mini-world in itself.But equally discomforting to me was the colossal poverty side by side super rich, unhealthy and unhygienic neibhourhoods on roadsides and inside the towns and rural habitats.Food items exposed to roadside dust are sold by small business vendors. they could not have other source of employment out side their small vending.it would appear to me that it is not fitting with minimum standard capitalistic entrepreneurship and mobility and their business is no less than the subsistence farmer in rural India.. in my personal observation of living conditions of people in most parts of rural India, the problems related to economics of their household as well as the small business' environment in their neighbour hoods are all most of similar pattern despite huge ethnic, cultural, linguistic, religious, and social geographical diversities from Kashmir to kanyakumari,Jaisalmir to Gouhati.All of them are maintained in very unhygienic conditions. though it is hand to mouth, and often lapsed in to debt with money lender, he cannot leave for better avocation because he has no better skills nor any employment opportunity outside. similarly food venders on foot path etc. These problems are like hen -egg cause effect relationship.Similiar is the position with subsistence farmer in country side.he cannot leave his land though it is not a profitable avocation as he has no opportunity to any fixed hours employment in public or private sector, either in country side or urban cities suited to his qualifications and social status. It is like that he has to live on his land in this subsistence conditions under the perennial debt trapped conditions and poverty because he has no better other alternative employment opportunity though he may be ready to do any work suited to his qualification.
Diagnosis of the disease: Liberalisation and privatising,integration of Indian economy to global economy is in right choice and in right direction. Once we liberalise our economy to global competition and market forces,every part of economy i.e. industrial, agricultural and service sectors must be tuned to the with stand the global market forces and market price fluctuations,and our democratic political structures,legal and property rights as well as the legal remedies under the constitution and laws must be so fine tuned to seize the opportunities and overcome any bottlenecks to meet these global challenges
all other things being given,the operation of free markets have the tendency to shift the individual labour time and values of a small and inefficient producers and other market players to more productive efficient operators in market value -price mechanism which determine the market prices and therefore a natural tendency to push the subsistence farmer from out of markets and to unemployment. there fore following factors have to be kept in mind while bringing the agrarian reforms.
1) The inequality arising out of value- price mechanism in market exchange relationships
2) effects of this inequality on small ownership self employed subsistence economies to increase the poverty,unemployment, ,disease and unhygienic neighbourhoods
3)The low capital to labour ratio in agriculture and lack of division of labour due to this small ownership holdings.similiar is the position with small household traditional industrial ,shops and establishments resulting low productivity
,4)lack of opportunity to adopt modern methods of production and management and accounting methods
5)inability to adopt to the modern minute division of labour and specialisation
6)The effects of these factors on the freedom and security to life and liberty and property of such subsistence farmers/businesses in any given political system with free markets economy.
It is a mass vicious circle.Once we liberalise our economy to global competition and market forces,every part of economy i.e. industrial, agricultural and service sectors must be tuned to the with stand the global market forces and market price fluctuations
Need for review of land laws and agrarian reforms:Therefore, we need a review of our land laws,agricultural property relations , relations of production in agriculture, rights of ownership and management structure in agriculture as they have fallen behind the times and needs to relook and review.
other things being equal, the global or any market price is determined by the aggregate supply and demand functions of social product to the social labour time / value and and quantity of product while the production cost prices are determined by the average cost per unit product which include the average rate of profit on the total social capital invested. assuming the perfect competition and indifference of consumer for any revealed preference,the market prices tend to cost prices.If the supply is more than the demand,the produce of farmer/producers with low productivity or whose cost prices are more than global average cost prices will be pushed out of market by selling his product at distressed sales.
the global market penetration and expansion is to produce the goods as cheap as as possible i.e. unit cost prices of products at a lower level than the global average and it means increasing the productivity of labour above global average and to do it we must overcome the subsistence farming agricultural and other business economy. Cheap labour power of India,China and south east Asian and other countries have proved to be globally advantageous in market competition while other things being equal,or cheapening of product prices by technology led modern mode and methods of production.during 17th and early 18th century before the onslaught of 18th century British industrial manufacturing,India had a better division of labour in its village social structure and had advantage in exporting Indian silk and Bengali cotton that have fascinated the western consumers, to the Indian trade advantage and it was destroyed by cheap industrial cotton manufacturing exports during the later part of 18th century from Britain . This was in effect the inequality arising out of operation value-price mechanism in market price determination .we have to understand the effects of this differences production systems and suitably amend the Indian agriculture to overcome and to make it as a profitable business in the global markets.
But how and what prescription that enhances the freedom and security to farmer, political democratic values and economically more productive agricultural economy? by reforming the present subsistence farming to capitalistic and corporate entrepreneurship economy.
prescriptive remedial medicine: Following policy prescriptive medicine in agrarian sector will cure the defects and make the Indian and the farmer fit to seize and face the global opportunities and challenges.
!) SEPARATE THE THE RIGHT TO OWNERSHIP LAND FROM THE RIGHT TO POSSESSION AND MANAGEMENT
2) ALL FARMERS will be treated as land lords and HAVE THE RIGHT TO OWNERSHIP OVER THEIR OWN PIECE OF LAND AS IT EXISTS ON THE APPOINTED DAY AND HAVE THE RIGHTS RECORDED AS A PROPORTIONATED SHARE HOLDER IN THE LOCAL SELF GOVERNING VILLAGE land bank UNIT
THE FARMER HAVE NO RIGHT TO POSSESSION AND MANAGEMENT AND THE SAME IS VESTED IN ASSET MANAGEMENT COMPANY UNDER THE GENERAL CONTROL OF SELF GOVERNING VILLAGE UNIT and general body of landlord share holders.
THE PERIODICAL AUCTION OF THE LEASE HOLD RIGHTS OF VACANT LAND FOR FIXED PERIODS OF ALL THE LAND VESTED IN ASSET MANAGEMENT COMPANY through independent auction houses
THE RENTS DERIVED AND PROFITS AND INTERESTS EARNED ON THE LEASE HOLD rights and INTERESTS WILL BE DIVIDED AMONG THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT ,LOCAL GOVERNMENT taxes , AND NET PROFITS AMONG THE LAND SHARE HOLDERS AS PER THE DECISION OF ASSET MANAGEMENT COMPANY WHOSE GENERAL BODY CONSISTING ALL SHAREHOLDERS OF LAND.
This will enable the farmer to retain,unrestricted right to sell ,mortgage, transfer his ownership rights along with its rights to attendant general managerial voting rights in asset management company.
It enable him to freedom of migration to earn the livelihood by taking up any employment suited to his qualification for fixed hours on pay under the local self government or contract farmer, or purchase the lease hold rights as an entrepreneur contract farmer, or migrate to more advantageous areas either for contracts or employment without loosing his rights over his piece of land share in asset management company.
this will have following economic and political, social effects:
It will integrate the India as one economic and political unit for free comepitive economy and an integrated market for levelling of market prices to cost prices for the benefit of all
It will create a landed property rights market on par with movable stock capital markets on all India and global basis.
It will free the farmer from his present status as all- in- one subsistence farmer as well as the burden of land management,production and marketing and create a class of democratic land lord share holders in land bank
Advanced productive and management practises in agriculture:create advanced capitalist and democratic corporate production and management practises in agriculture with its attendant huge division of labour and specialist jobs on capitalist lines,decrease the disparity between the rural and urban emoluments, with attendant inter departmental purchasing power and a huge home market for industrial machinery,and other goods and services like farm specialist industrial employments and jobs, full employment of land and labour on collective, capitalist ,corporate lines , increase the use of machinery and increase the cap capital to labour ratio, and the free labour markets to levelling of wages,prices to natural prices and its fillip to overall growth rate and GDP.
It will promote the global foreign direct investment in agriculture and related agro industrial businesses and employments, leading the country to effective role in global economic and political institutions towards global sovereign.
It will tend to create a casteless society by demolishing the caste and class privileges and barriers so far as the economy is concerned, tend to political and economic equality, bring equality before law and equal opportunity to all on the basis of workman ship and merit while protecting ones basic right to private and personal property.
second democratic revolution:It will bring the second democratic revolution ensuring to over come, poverty,hunger,unhealthy neibhourhoods, ensuring the social,political and economic justice enshrined in preamble within the four corners of constitution and law and strengthen the country both economically and politically in global arena.
democratic consensus among the farming community through debate and discussion: through debate I have the feeling that the overwhelming majority of Indian farmers irrespective of class differences will accept the proposed second agrarian democratic reforms once it is fully debated and explained.
I am of the opinion that this reform has all the cure for the defects of soviet and Chinese experiments in agrarian reforms, as well as the present American agricultural free enterprising economy and prove to be more progressive in technology led globalisation era(for more discussion.see as discussed by me in land reforms-globalisation and for a national consensus: http://www.goforthelaw.com/index.php/browsearticles/loadarticleview/78.html.
http://www.aplegalservices.com/articlesold/debate_national_consensus.htm)
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