A policy with many a right intention Jandhyala B.G.

Tilak
Thirty-four years after the last National Policy on Education was introduced, in 1986, the
National Education Policy, 2020 has been announced. It has been approved by the Union
Cabinet, and will hopefully be approved by Parliament soon. It has several innovative ideas and
daring proposals, but also makes a few problematic assumptions.

A majority of the path-breaking proposals submitted by the Dr. K. Kasturirangan

Committee, in the 2019 draft National Education Policy, seem to have been approved. Those
proposals saw extensive debates and discussions in the country and generated a lot of
feedback. Very few important proposals that figured in the draft have been ignored in the final
policy. There are a couple of major new proposals in the 2020 policy which were not proposed
in the draft or which have been marginally modified from the draft policy. While I welcome the
policy as it promises a large set of transformative reforms of the entire education system, I
refer to some proposals and issues here.

Bold moves
It is heartening that there are statements in the policy such as “education is a public
good” and “the public education system is the foundation of a vibrant democratic society”. I
wish these statements forcefully guide the formulation of the policy in all aspects. The
recognition of education as a public good has important implications for public policy in
planning, providing, and financing education. It also has important implications for the state’s
approach towards private education. In fact, benevolent private players and private
philanthropists draw inspiration from the nature of education as a public good. It is public
education that contributes to the building of nations, their growth — socially, economically,
politically, culturally, and technologically — and the building of a humane society. There are
many more statements in the policy that may be welcomed. For instance, the policy promotes a
holistic education as well as “each student’s holistic development in both academic and non-
academic spheres”, emphasises extra-curricular activities, emphasises research, speaks of
“substantial investment in a strong, vibrant public education system”, and so on.

The major recommendations of the Committee that have been approved include a
5+3+3+4 system in school education that incorporates early childhood care and education;
universal education that includes the secondary level; adoption of school complexes; breakfast
in the school meal programme; and introduction of vocational education at the upper primary
level. A series of reforms have been proposed in higher education too. These include a
multidisciplinary system offering choices to students from among a variety of subjects from
different disciplines; integrated (undergraduate, postgraduate and research levels) education; a
four-year undergraduate programme; and overhauling of the governance structure in higher
education. There will be just one regulatory body for the entire sector in the Higher Education
Commission of India. The policy also places emphasis on the liberal arts, humanities, and Indian
heritage and languages; facilitates selective entry of high-quality foreign universities; aims to
increase public investment in education to 6% of the GDP; promises to provide higher
education free to about 50% of the students (with scholarships and fee waivers); and aims to
increase the gross enrolment ratio in higher education to 50% by 2035. Some of these
proposals were suggested by earlier committees such as the Yashpal Committee and C.N.R. Rao
Committee, and several experts. As they have immense scope in revitalising the system, we
may applaud many of these moves.

Some policy decisions are bold. For instance, the policy says, “Wherever possible, the
medium of instruction until at least Grade 5... will be the home language/mother tongue/local
language/regional language.” It also says the three-language formula will be implemented. The
first proposal, which should apply to all schools including private schools, will reduce elitism
and dualism in schools to a great extent, though one might expect a bolder move like a
common school system, which would be a greater equaliser. The three-language formula will
promote national integration. Reforms like revamping the University Grants Commission and
abolishing the affiliating system were only dreamt of earlier by many experts. Of course,
implementation of these audacious reforms is still a major challenge.

Missing in the final policy

What are the proposals or statements that were emphatically made in the draft but are
missing in the policy? One important statement that was repeatedly made in the draft policy,
that all commercially oriented private institutions will be closed, is missing in the final policy —
though the 2020 policy promises closure of substandard teacher education institutions only.
Now the policy simply states, “The matter of commercialization of education has been dealt
with by the Policy through multiple relevant fronts, including: the ‘light but tight’ regulatory
approach that mandates full public self-disclosure of finances”, though almost every
policymaker and administrator in education recognises that there is a serious problem with the
private education sector in India. Second, the draft policy promised doubling public expenditure
on education to 20% of the total government expenditure, from 10%. The 2020 policy simply
reaffirms the commitment to allocation of 6% of GDP.
A few other recommendations of the Committee did not find a place in the final policy.
They include setting up of a National Education Commission at the national level and a similar
one at the State level. There is no mention of State School Education Regulatory Authorities in
the 2020 policy. At the State level, the Department of School Education is regarded as the apex
body. There is also no promise of ‘full’ recruitment of teachers at all levels, though the policy
promises robust recruitment mechanisms to be put in place.
Among the few new proposals, the establishment of a model Multi-Disciplinary Education and
Research University in every district is one. In school education, a National Assessment Centre
has been promised to make assessment and evaluation more holistic. The policy, unlike the
draft, rightly recognises the need to strengthen the Central Advisory Board of Education.
Apart from a few controversial proposals, a few untenable basic beliefs and assumptions
of the Committee prevail. The Committee seems to have great faith in “light but tight”
regulation, confidence in the private sector in making honest self-disclosures of all aspects of
their operations, and faith in the adequacy of common norms for public and private
institutions. It also seems to have faith in the government’s ability to implement many reforms
— for example, in doing away with the affiliating system and making all colleges autonomous
degree-awarding colleges of high quality, ensuring institutional and faculty autonomy, and in
the autonomous functioning of institutions of governance with no external interference.
Policymakers and administrators have been struggling unsuccessfully with some of these issues
for years. A major challenge policymakers will continue to face is how to differentiate the
benevolent philanthropic private sector from undesirable but powerful market forces in the
education sector and regulate the entry and growth of the latter.

The New Education Policy is positive on intent, but

pedagogical questions remain
The challenges lie in universalising access, forking out finances and, most importantly, in
capacity building of teachers

A sweeping policy document on education has taken a long time in coming — the last such
being unveiled way back in 1986. The National Curriculum Framework 2005 was a pedagogical
document, whereas the present one looks at overhauling the structure of school and college
education. It suggests moving from a 10+2+3 system to a 5+3+3+4 one; easing the curriculum
burden with emphasis on concepts as opposed to rote learning; doing away with the cast iron
division between ‘science’ and ‘arts’; and at the college level bringing in a four year
undergraduate course with ‘multiple exit’ options. Foreign universities will be invited, a move
that will lift standards, if they indeed do come. The intent to make learning interdisciplinary at
higher levels is unexceptionable. The limitations of over-specialised learning have become
apparent in an increasingly complex world, impacting the quality of decision-making by
corporates and governments. Interdisciplinary courses will enable students to align their pursuit
of studies with their aptitudes, hopefully reducing drop-outs in the process.

However, the challenges lie in universalising access, developing on principles of the Right to
Education Act, forking out finances, arriving at a consensus with States on issues like an apex
body for higher education and common entrance exams, and perhaps most importantly, in
capacity building of teachers. There has been no systemic effort to create quality teachers, with
state-run institutes not measuring up to the demands of the day — more so in an age where
teachers need to go beyond what is available on the Internet. Eclecticism in curriculum must be
matched by a focus on creating teachers who can deliver. It is not surprising that annual ASER
surveys report dismal learning outcomes. In restructuring courses to make them ‘easier’ and
‘interesting’, rigour should not be sacrificed. It will hurt our position as a knowledge economy.
The policy has mooted regional language medium of instruction at least till Class 5. This seems
like going against the grain, given the social demand for learning English. The trouble is that
English is a global language, but if teachers are ill at ease in teaching subjects such as Maths,
Accountancy and Physics in English it also puts students at a disadvantage.
Perhaps, the most significant policy suggestion is on financing. It suggests that the Centre and
the States will work together to increase public investment in the education sector to 6 per cent
of the GDP. The policy makes a strong economic case for “investment” in education, as against
regarding it as “expenditure”. Indeed, India’s future depends on this shift. Its budgetary bias
against developing human capital has lasted far too long.

New school of thought for rural education

Resource-starved rural schools need innovative solutions to accommodate the likely surge in
students due to reverse migration
India’s not-so-robust public education system is soon going to face three daunting challenges
which, if not tackled with imagination, could cause it to crumble.
First, we will see a 10-15 per cent increase in enrolment in resource-starved government
schools, as parents move their children from private to public institutions because of economic
constraints. Second, rural schools with poor infrastructure will see an over 25 per cent increase
in enrolment, and urban schools that are better off will see a drop in enrolment because of
reverse migration. Last, the number of children who drop out of school by Class V will see a
significant increase from the 30 per cent recorded today because economic distress.
If this does not shock you, nothing will. We are going to face an education crisis of gigantic
proportions in rural India, the likes of which we have not seen before. Conversations with
senior ministers and officials in the States concerned clearly indicate that they already have
many challenges today — they don’t need new ones. So who will tackle them, and when? The
problem requires immediate attention.

Reverse migration impacts

In the past two months, for the first time in Independent India’s history, we have witnessed a
reverse migration to villages from cities, with the country’s highways full of impoverished men,
women and children trudging thousands of kilometres back to their villages, driven by their
survival instinct and the sense of security the home provides. Several studies state that around
30 per cent of the big cities’ population comprises daily-wagers; they are mostly the ones
returning to villages, having lost work and facing starvation.
Schools in rural India already lack basic infrastructure. Consider these facts: Though the
student-teacher ratio has improved over the years — with the national average increasing from
32 in 2009-10 to 24 in 2015-16 — there are still schools where one teacher is managing as many
as 150 students.
There are around one lakh single-teacher schools in India, accounting for about 9 per cent of
the total schools in the country. The result: More than 50 per cent children in government-run
schools are unable to perform grade-level tasks. It is also one of the major causes of high
dropout rates in rural schools, where almost half of the total children leave the school by 14
years of age. Now, imagine the impact the massive influx of millions of migrant children will
have on the fragile education system in rural India.
Researchers estimate that 40-60 lakh people might return to Uttar Pradesh, and 20 lakh to
Bihar alone, in what is perhaps the greatest humanitarian crisis of the century.
Will these poor migrants, who have faced untold miseries, be willing to send their children to
school, or will they force them to earn a living for the family? Now, even if these parents choose
education for their children, how can the schools accommodate them? And, how are teachers
going to manage these many students? Already, the number of school-going children between
the ages of 5 and 14 is among the highest in these States.

Digital-driven solutions
We have two choices: First, sit back and watch. Second, act. If we choose the latter, it is the
time to think for out-of-the-box solutions. If schools fail to accommodate the children, can we
break the walls, as it were? If we don’t have more teachers, can we set up a system where one
teacher can effectively teach more children?
We need to redefine our education system in rural India. We need to work on creating a
different kind of infrastructure, and we need to invest in building teaching capacity, but not by
sticking to conventional training methods. We have to leverage innovation in technology in
order to deal with the numerous factors that can fail us in ensuring education for our coming
generation in the post-Covid world.
But this is easier said than done. It requires fast-tracking the growth of the digital
communications infrastructure in rural India, bridging the digital divide and, most importantly,
creating a free learning platform where we track the progress of each child rather than just
making content available through TV or YouTube. Learning is not a process that starts or ends
with content.
Besides this, we need to equip teachers with multimedia tools to allow them to simultaneously
teach hundreds of children remotely across several locations, which will help address the
shortage of teachers in these schools. Digitalisation of education through well-thought out
interventions is the only way forward, and if we do it systematically, it can address various
problems ailing the education system of the country.
And this requires preparing one of the largest workforces — the teachers — to attempt
something they have never done before: Using new, innovative teaching methodologies and
tools. We cannot wait for the pandemic to peter out before we begin doing that, because time
does not wait for anyone.
Rebuild India’s confidence, revive the economy
These are extraordinarily difficult times for our nation and the world. People are gripped
with the fear of disease and death from COVID-19. This fear is ubiquitous and transcends
geography, religion and class. The inability of nations to control the spread of the novel
coronavirus and the lack of a confirmed cure for the disease have exacerbated people’s
concerns. Such a heightened sense of anxiety among people can cause tremendous upheavals
in the functioning of societies. Consequently, disruption of the normal social order will
inevitably impact livelihoods and the larger economy.

The economic impact of COVID-19 has been much discussed. There is unanimity among
economists that the global economy will experience one of its worst years in history. India is no
exception and cannot buck the trend. While estimates vary, it is clear that, for the first time in
many decades, India’s economy will contract significantly.

An event with deep impact

Economic contraction is not merely a GDP number for economists to analyse and
debate. It means a reversal of many years of progress. A significant number among the weaker
sections of our society may slip back into poverty, a rare occurrence for a developing nation.
Many enterprises may shut down. An entire generation may be lost due to severe
unemployment. A contracting economy can adversely impact our ability to feed and educate
our children owing to a shortage of financial resources. The deleterious impact of an economic
contraction is long and deep, especially on the poor.

It is thus imperative to act with utmost urgency to nurse the economy back to good
health. The slowdown in economic activity is both a function of external factors such as the
lockdown and behavioural changes of people and enterprises, driven by fear. The foundation
for reviving our economy is to inject confidence back in the entire ecosystem. People must feel
confident about their lives and livelihoods. Entrepreneurs must feel confident of reopening and
making investments. Bankers must feel confident about providing capital. Multilateral
organisations must feel confident enough to provide funding to India. Sovereign ratings
agencies must feel confident about India’s ability to fulfil its financial obligations and restore
economic growth.

On NREGA and cash support

There is extreme duress among India’s poor. At a time when agriculture activity has
been robust, data show that just in the month of June, 62 million people demanded work under
the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) programme at
minimum wages. This is thrice the usual number and 10 times more than the total number
employed by the entire listed corporate sector. It is evident that most of them are displaced
non-agricultural workers, struggling to make ends meet. Such is the scale and enormity of
despair in our labour force. Fortuitously, the MGNREGA programme has proved to be a bedrock
of support in such times but it is not enough.
 A meaningful cash transfer can restore confidence in these families. Money in the hands
of people can provide an immediate sense of security and confidence, which is the cornerstone
to restoring economic normalcy. India is perhaps the only large democracy that has not
provided direct cash assistance of a significant amount during the COVID-19 crisis. There seems
to be a misplaced sense of apprehension that providing large cash assistance may deter people
from returning to the workforce when needed and starve industry of labour. Such fears are
stale and unfounded. In the United States, as per reports, nearly three-quarters of unemployed
workers received higher pay and benefits under their government’s COVID-19 assistance than
from their employers. But this has not prevented American industry from reopening. While it is
inordinately late, it is still prudent to provide a significant sum as direct cash assistance to the
poor which can inject confidence in them to weather this COVID-19 storm.

Look at the financial system

There is also a dire need to restore confidence in the financial system which acts as the
vital lubricant for the economy. COVID-19 assistance measures undertaken by the Reserve Bank
of India (RBI) and the government such as interest rate reductions, credit guarantee and
liquidity enhancement schemes are welcome steps, but they have largely failed since banks are
not confident of lending. Reviving the health of the banking sector is not merely about capital
infusion or disinvestment of public sector banks. Allowing institutions such as the RBI, public
sector banks, bankruptcy boards, securities and insurance regulators to function freely and
professionally is the foundational step to restoring confidence in the financial system. It is
critical to allow processes such as the insolvency process to function smoothly without
intervention. If there is confidence among people to spend and among bankers to lend, then
the private sector will spontaneously derive the confidence to reopen and invest. When firms
feel confident of availability of capital and consumers, they do not need much else to kick-start
production and investment. Corporate tax cuts, such as the one announced last year, are
misguided luxuries that will neither boost private investment nor are fiscally affordable. Knee-
jerk reaction such as protection of Indian industry through trade restrictions cannot catalyse
economic activity immediately but instead, is a dangerous reversal of established industrial
policy that has generated enormous economic gains over the last three decades.
A large direct cash assistance to people, improving capital adequacy of banks and
providing credit guarantee schemes for corporates require significant financial resources.
Government finances are already stretched with a major shortfall in revenues. New avenues for
tax revenues are not feasible in the short term. Higher borrowing by the government is
inevitable. India cannot afford to be too fiscally restrained in these distressing times.

Government needs to borrow

India must make full use of loan programmes of international institutions such as the
International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Our long track record as an impeccable
borrower with no default, timely repayments and full transparency make us an ideal borrower
for these institutions. However, these will not suffice, and the government needs to borrow
more.
 Some have opined that India should hark back to the old ways of deficit monetisation by
the RBI, also known as printing money. This is understandable given the current unforeseen
circumstances. But we must be cognisant of the unhealthy impulses that seemingly free money
creates for governments. Deficit monetisation imposes high intangible and institutional costs,
as we have experienced in the past. It is perhaps prudent to adopt deficit monetisation as the
last resort when all other options are exhausted.
India is confronted with a dangerous trinity of military, health and economic threats.
Diverting people’s attention from these threats through choreographed events and headlines
will not make them disappear. India entered the COVID-19 crisis in a precarious position, with
slowing growth, rising unemployment and a choked financial system. The epidemic has
manifestly made it more painful.

Setting things right

It is important to enlarge one’s diagnosis of India’s economic woes from mere GDP
numbers to the underlying sentiments of fear, uncertainty and insecurity prevalent in people,
firms and institutions. Restoring confidence in people through direct cash assistance and other
welfare programmes can help them live their lives and spend. Restoring confidence among
bankers through autonomy of institutions and processes will help them lend. Restoring
confidence among businesses with greater access to capital will help them invest and create
jobs. Restoring confidence among international organisations by re-establishing the credibility
of our institutions will help get funding assistance and objective sovereign ratings.
Without being lured into complacency over illusionary recovery of headline numbers, the path
to India’s sustained economic revival is through the philosophical pursuits of improving
confidence and sentiments of all in our society, using the economic tools of fiscal and monetary
policies.
3 steps to help unlock ₹1.3 lakh crore of welfare relief

This amount, in Jan Dhan accounts, should be made easily accessible by improving last mile delivery
of cash, reducing rejections, and putting in place a digital system where ongoing issues can be
swiftly picked up and resolved

Covid highlighted two contradictory and critical facts about digital payments and cash for meeting
the needs of India’s vulnerable population. On the one hand, because we had a working digital
payments backbone and had activated Jan Dhan accounts across the country, it meant that
delivering Direct Benefit Transfers to BPL families’ banking accounts was easy, swift and leakage
free. On the other hand, it also put a spotlight on the fact that there were significant last mile
challenges in ensuring that the money deposited could actually reach intended beneficiaries and
the fact that they needed “cash in hand” to be able to meet their subsistence and emergency
needs.

A survey of around 50,000 BPL households revealed that close to 72 per cent would have either lost
their jobs or seen their wages decrease. Governmental assistance was critical and close to 85 per
cent of such vulnerable households received one of four governmental cash welfare schemes. This
was a good validation of the Government’s ability to respond to the distress faced by people using
the Jan Dhan and Aadhaar architecture.

However, most of these recipients are unable to use digital money/debit cards and hence they need
the money to be available to them in cash form. It is striking that less than 50 per cent of surveyed
persons could actually withdraw money from their accounts. Worries related to lockdown rules and
potential infection stopped people from accessing cash.

There were other reasons that stymied cash access. One was the surge in traffic in biometric
enabled cash withdrawal that resulted in an overload on bank servers and led to large number of
failed transactions. The other was dormancy of inactive Jan Dhan accounts due to extant rules. The
Government responded with a change in Prevention of Money Laundering norms so that
inoperative accounts receiving such transfers could be considered active. Anecdotally, the pressure
on servers also eased up post lockdown.

In spite of this, the percentage of households withdrawing cash remained less than 50 per cent. This
seems like a conundrum. What is stopping access to cash at a time when it is needed most?

The value of balances in bank accounts opened under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY)
has crossed the ₹1 lakh crore mark, as per updated data on the scheme’s website. A total of 39.39
crore beneficiaries held balances worth ₹1,34,733 crore as on June 17, 2020. This puts the average
account balance of a Jan Dhan account at ₹3,454.

This raises a fundamental issue. Is about 50 per cent not being withdrawn on account of short-term
issues like lockdown and health worries, or are there some significant structural issues that merit
understanding and attention. Should the target be for Jan Dhan account balances to be as close to
zero as possible?

Or, put in a different way, are there ways in which this welfare relief can reach targeted BPL families
and enable spending by them on much needed essentials?

The amount in Jan Dhan balances is approximately 0.8 per cent of GDP and can unlock relief and
consumption stimulus without further pressure on the government’s fiscal health with three key
actions:

Financial deepening

Time is money for a large part of the BPL population. A day spent in going to a bank or ATM is
essentially a day’s worth of labour foregone. It is important to have cash out point coverage across
all areas.

An open source geo-spatial platform can help map existing points of presence for cash
disbursement. It can particularly map areas of need and enable more informed build up of cash
delivery points. This pictorial depiction can further highlight which of these points are active and
functioning so that a trip to that location is not a wasted one.

The good news is that this basic infrastructure already exists and it is only a question of getting a
collaborative of practitioners and infra providers together to make this work.

Transaction success
There are two significant requirements to improve access and reduce rejections in Jan Dhan
accounts. First, biometric failure appears to be an important reason for rejections of transactions in
cash withdrawals. Second is the fact that mobile numbers in this demographic change constantly.
Data shows that 15 per cent of people have the wrong number linked to Aadhaar and 39 per cent
have no number at all. Hence the ability to easily update mobile numbers and to resolve biometric
issues could significantly improve the successful usage of these accounts.

Dalberg’s State of Aadhaar Report 2019 had stressed Aadhaar updation as a key challenge and the
fact that 25 per cent of those who tried to update details had failed to do so. As much as 33 per
cent of those who succeeded had found it difficult. A quick win would be to make all updating
processes online. For things that cannot be updated online (mobile, biometrics), it is critical to have
more points for updation.

Grievance redress

A digital system can be easily architected to have a continuous feedback loop so that ongoing issues
can be swiftly picked up and resolved. Given the existence of a central payments backbone and a
highly advanced digital financial ecosystem, this can be achieved in quick time. It will ensure that
fixing problems and identifying opportunities for improvement become an ongoing exercise.
These three interventions can have a significant outcome of unlocking ₹1,34,733 crore of money to
provide welfare relief, a 0.78 per cent of consumption stimulus at no extra cost to the exchequer
and, most importantly, to strengthen the lives and help recovery of those who need it the most.

Time for a national policy on migrant labour

As guest workers swallow the insult done to them during lockdown and return to work, it is
only fair to treat them with respect

The photograph of a migrant worker, who had alighted from a Shramik Express in Bihar, kissing the
ground was telling. It reflected his anger at the way he was treated by the governments, not to
mention his employer/contractor and the resolve to never leave his home State again in search of
work. In fact, he should count himself among the lucky 6.3 million people who got a train ride back
home. Thousands of migrant workers had to walk home hundreds of kilometres, many with their
children in tow.

Insecurities — job, income and food — coupled with a fear psychosis forced migrant workers to
panic and return home, defying the lockdown. The reverse migration that ensued brought to light
many aspects of guest workers that the country conveniently choses not to see.

Though they are said to account for 20 per cent of the total workforce — this puts their number
anywhere between 100 million and 140 million — and are said to be responsible for 10 per cent of
GDP, migrant workers get a raw deal. They are paid less and are denied formal contracts even
though they work harder and put in longer hours. They are not given gratuity or medical benefits
and are not entitled to any leave with pay. When at work, they do not have adequate occupational
safety and out of work, they lack a social safety net. Their living conditions are often appalling. They
lack political support as they are disenfranchised (they rarely get an opportunity to cast their vote).
The local population hates them as they are seen as job-stealers.

Even under these circumstances if they continue to migrate for work, it is because they earn much
more than what they can back home. Despite the relatively poor pay, they manage to save and wire
money back home to supplement the family’s income. But the traumatic experience they were
subjected to post-lockdown, many feared, would be the last straw which will deter them from
migrating in search of work again.

Coming to terms with reality

With lockdown easing across the country and manufacturing picking up pace, industry is beginning
to miss the migrant workers. Some companies in host States have already sent buses all the way to
Odisha, UP and other home States to fetch the workers. Migrant workers, on their part, have come
to terms with reality. Their initial anger has given way to pragmatism. They have realised that there
is no way they can earn enough staying back in their villages. The demand for jobs under MGNREGS
is far more than what is being offered. The textile sector is Coimbatore and Tiruppur is getting
‘frantic’ calls from migrant labour asking the companies to arrange e-passes and get them back to
work. According to labour economists, as much as two-thirds of the migrant labour will eventually
return to work.

While their return is critical for the country’s rapid economic revival post-Covid, it is only fair that
when they do come back, they are treated with the respect they deserve. After all, they are playing
a significant part in nation-building. Many will be surprised to know that there is already a law —
Inter-State Migrant Workmen Act, 1979 — to prevent exploitation of migrant labour. It calls for
registration of all establishments employing migrant labour and licensing of contractors.
Contractors are mandated to provide details of immigrant labour they have deployed to the
relevant authority. That apart, contractors should ensure regular payment, suitable
accommodation, no discrimination, free medical facilities and protective clothings.

There is a reason why this law has remained just on paper. It is onerous to implement and makes
the cost of hiring a migrant labour more than a local. Yet another case of an over-enthusiastic
bureaucrat defeating the very purpose for which the law was made. As things stand, there is no
information on the number of migrant workers with any State.

Protecting their interests

What is needed today is a national policy on migrant labour. It should accept that migration is
inevitable as there will regional inequalities in development. It should ensure that a migrant
worker’s economic, social and political rights are protected. They should not be discriminated
against when it comes to pay and other benefits that regular workers get.

They should be registered and given an ID which can be linked to their Aadhaar and Jan Dhan
account. Once this is done, the government can use direct benefit transfer to send them benefits
(experts admit that lack of such a facility caused the large-scale reverse migration now).

The Government’s plan to have a one nation-one ration card will help them source their
entitlements from whereever they are based. Similarly, their voter ID card has to be made portable.
This will ensure that they can participate in the democratic process and gain strength as a vote
bank.

These measures will help in integrating the migrant workers with their place of work. As Chinmay
Tumbe, an expert on migration, puts it: presently “migrants get economic security in the city and
social security in their villages”.

The policy should also ensure that contractors and the employers are made accountable when they
employ migrants. This alone will prevent exploitation. Efforts should be made to skill/re-skill the
labourers and a national registry created for them based on their skills. This will help them find jobs
independently. Today, they are beholden to their contractor for the next job.

Some baby steps have been taken by two large home States — Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
They have set up a Migrants Commission. This is not enough. They should discuss with host States
such as Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala and Gujarat to
ensure that migrant workers are treated well.

A smarter way is to start economically developing their States and creating local employment. If
they do so, supply of workers to host States will reduce and employers will be forced to treat them
better. But what some home States have instead done is to dilute or dispense with their labour
laws. That will go against the interest of migrant workers.

Leveraging reverse migration

Putting to use the skills and knowledge of migrant workers can boost livelihoods and
quality of life in India’s villages
Post the Covid-19 outbreak in India, rural areas and rural lives — especially of ‘migrant workers’ —
have attracted unprecedented attention. Visuals of people, including children, walking hungry and
barefooted with blank expressions shook the conscience of the nation. The lockdown brought
various activities to a standstill and these workers were suddenly jobless with neither money nor
hope. Faced with no other choice, they started going back home, however they could, and thus
began the phenomenon so unceremoniously called reverse migration.
Almost at the same time, when the media was abuzz with horror stories of migrant workers, rural
India was experiencing something unbelievable. The wheat harvest had begun. A large number of
migrant workers returned to their villages during the harvest time (one of the reasons for workers
fleeing the cities in droves during the lockdown). Few, who had come to celebrate Holi at their
villages but could not return due to the lockdown, joined hands with the others and soon the
harvesting of wheat was in full swing. Wheat procurement by the Food Corporation of India (FCI) as
on June 23 reached 38.5 million tonnes, surpassing last year’s procurement of 34.13 million tonnes.
Soon after harvesting, due to the early onset of monsoon, the sowing of kharif crops commenced.
By the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare estimates, a 39 per cent increase in the area
sown has already been recorded vis-à-vis the corresponding period in last year. Thus, agriculture
has emerged as a bright spot even during the pandemic, when all other sectors are gasping for
breath. This is good news not only for the food security of the nation, but also for the economy, as
the money in the hands of farmers after two successful crops will give the much needed push to
demand.
This is also the time to think and work strategically so that the resilience shown by the agriculture
sector, with contribution from migrant workers, is not only made more sustainable but is also
leveraged to improve the lives and livelihoods of the rural people. The basic aim is optimum
utilisation of the skills of migrant workers, especially their knowledge of the Internet and social
media, to work on challenges in agriculture and rural areas.
The idea is to reposition the much-talked-about migrant workers as the change agents. For this,
three aspects come into play:
Migrant workers’ experience
One of the major challenges of Indian agriculture is ineffective outreach of extension efforts.
Technology can play a role here. If messages/technical details on improved agriculture practices and
information related to the weather and markets could be passed on to the villages in local
languages via the migrant workers, using social media, the results may turn out to be just
unbelievable. It may lead to enhanced or diversified production, fewer losses due to the vagaries of
weather, and better price realisation.
The waning interest of the youth in agriculture has been a major challenge in recent times.
Leveraging the skills and knowledge of the migrant workers, besides improving the productivity of
agriculture, may also address the issue of migration to some extent. If this eventually leads to even
10-20 per cent of migrant workers staying back with a new means of livelihood, that is, agriculture
and marketing of agriculture produce, it would have a large socio-economic impact. Various
Central/State agriculture universities/krishi vigyan kendras may take the lead in this direction.
Promotion of agro processing
Agro-processing, even at a small level, can contribute in a large way in enhancing farm income.
Small processing plants can be installed at the village level (for a cluster of around 10-12 villages).
Migrant workers, many of whom have technical skills, can be groomed as entrepreneurs/operators.
The Ministry of Food Processing Industries recently launched the Scheme for Formalisation of Micro
Food Processing Enterprises under the Atmanirbhar Bharat package. Operationalisation of this
scheme will not be possible without technical manpower, and migrant workers with a little bit of
skill upgradation and orientation can come in handy.
This would be a source of sustainable livelihood for them, and at the same time, the availability of
agro processing right in the neighbourhood would help realise better prices for farmers as well, post
processing. Banks, MSMEs, agriculture departments and agro industry corporations at the State
level will have to work in a coordinated manner to connect the dots and realise the huge potential
for agro processing, for the benefit of both farmers and migrant workers.
Improving quality of life
The quality of life in rural areas needs improvement, and many a times, it is one of the reasons for
migration to cities in the first place. Implementation of the Swachh Bharat Mission is still work in
progress. Piped water supply is available to only 40 per cent of the rural population. The
government, through its ‘Jal Jeevan Mission’, and the various State governments are working in this
direction. Installation of small waste disposal plants at the village level is a huge potential
opportunity. The sale of manure produced by these plants can be a source of livelihood, besides
making the villages filth-free.
Similarly, the greater use of solar power domestically or in irrigation offers huge livelihood potential
for many who could be engaged in installation and maintenance of solar plants/panels, while the
activity itself would contribute to enhanced incomes of rural households.
Work on all the activities described above need masons, plumbers, electricians, painters, workers
with experience in fabrication work and so on. Many migrant workers will fit the bill. This would not
only give them work but also serve as an incentive for a good number of them to stay back in
villages as their living conditions could improve. Rural development departments and Gram
panchayats can explore this opportunity.
Migration by choice is understandable, but may have serious repercussions if it is forced, as is the
case with a large number of migrant workers. The avenues described above are aimed at turning
the crisis of reverse migration into an opportunity for not only enhancing the income of rural areas,
but also to improve the quality of life in villages and, thus, arrest the trend of migration. This is the
need of the hour, literally, as work on these opportunities needs to be initiated immediately, that is,
before the migrants start returning to cities.

GST 3.0 can prove to be a harbinger of growth and revival

Moving further towards a simplified and technology-enabled robust GST system is not
only critical for sustainable growth but also imperative for ease of doing business

It has been three years since the Goods and Services Tax (GST), India’s biggest tax reform, was
introduced on July1, 2017. Since then, it has been a roller-coaster ride for the government, for
industries and consumers due to this transformational law, which replaced a fragmented State
and Central based law on indirect tax.

This was coupled with changes and reforms, primarily focussed on rationalising rates,
simplifying procedures, and curbing tax evasion. Additionally, we have also witnessed
stabilisation of one of the world’s biggest online tax compliance system — the GSTN.

As we celebrate the third anniversary of India’s biggest tax reform since Independence, and talk
about the focus areas for the future, let us also rewind and glance at some of the critical
milestones achieved during the past three years.

Increase in tax base: From over 64 lakh taxpayers migrating into GST regime, India had about
1.23 crore active GST registrations as on March 31, 2020. This growth indicates a significant
increase in tax base and a change in taxpayers’ compliance behaviour.

Rate rationalisation: With frequent changes in tax rates, the government continued to focus on
rationalising GST rates. On July 1, 2017, around 19 per cent items were under the 28 per cent
GST rate bracket, which is now down to only around 3 per cent. Also, about 50 per cent items
are in the 18 per cent bracket, 21 per cent face 12 per cent tax, and 25 per cent of items are
subject to 5 per cent GST.

Introduction of e-way bill system: Introduction and stabilisation of the e-way bill system was
also a major step taken in the right direction. By enabling some 56 crore e-way bills generation
in FY19 and around 63 crore during FY20, the system has been largely streamlined and has
enabled hassle-free movement of goods across States.

Legislative amendments and clarifications: From its original shape and form as on July 1, 2017,
the GST law has undergone significant changes. With almost 700 notifications, 145 circulars,
and over 30 orders, significant changes have been made to address taxpayers’ demands, to
carry out procedural simplifications and curb tax evasion.

The above statistics are encouraging and show the right intent of the government towards
further simplifying the GST law. We shall now proceed to discuss the key challenges faced
during these years, which industry hopes will be addressed by the government.

GST policy
Restrictions on the transitioning of pre-GST credits has resulted in multiple litigations
Non-issuance of clear-cut guidelines related to anti-profiteering law has created confusion and
fear in the industry, particularly with those dealing in consumer goods
Issues around “deemed supply” transactions amongst branches in country and related-party
transactions in the country and cross border
Blockage of input tax credits (ITCs) and limited ability to seek refund — that is,, only on exports
and inverted duty structure of goods
Denial of input tax credit on the construction and setting up of related capital expenditure
Mandatory registration for sellers on e-commerce platforms and impact on working capital for
these sellers on account of TCS
Procedural issues
Blocking of input tax credit by authorities in GSTN system due to non-reconciliation
Complex return filing process and issues related to functioning of the GST network system
Ambiguity over jurisdictions, particularly on tax audits and investigations
Investigation authorities commencing detailed audits in some cases

The aforementioned challenges coupled with the impact of Covid-19 have not only affected
large companies but also liquidity of MSMEs. Additionally, due to lack of resources, MSMEs are
also not able to do their regular compliance. In view of these, the following are some of the
suggestions which the government may consider to improve liquidity as well as simplify
compliance:

Improving liquidity
Allow refund of accumulated GST credit due to inverted duty structure, triggered by input
services as well
Permit payment of IGST on import of goods and services, using accumulated input tax credits
Make input tax credit of CGST fungible across States
Allow transfer of GST credit, as scrips
Allow refund of GST paid on capital goods to exporters
Easing compliance
Extension in the timelines for mandatory input tax credit reconciliation for taking ITC beyond
September
Relaxation in the timeline of 180 days provided under Section 16 for taking input tax credit
A world-class, simplified, and technology-enabled robust GST system is not only critical for
sustainable growth, but also imperative for the ease of doing business. In the next few years,
the government may take steps to further simplify the GST law. These steps can prove to be a
harbinger of growth at a time when the entire world is affected by the Covid pandemic.

Implementing e-invoicing and new returns, rationalising GST rates, reducing litigations related
to transitional credits, centralising advance ruling authority, having a single jurisdiction for
audits and investigations, and strengthening the GSTN system would be the key areas to watch
out for in the near future.

India’s data consumption may touch 25 GB/month per user by

2025: Ericsson
Ericsson expects the global number of 5G subscriptions to top 190 million by the end of 2020

Indians used about 12 GB data per month on an average in 2019, the highest consumption globally, and
this is expected to rise even further to about 25 GB (gigabytes) per month by 2025, driven by affordable
mobile broadband services and changing video viewing habits, according to telecom gear maker
Ericsson.

Ericsson, in its Mobility Report for June 2020, said India’s data traffic growth continued its upward
trajectory and it remains the region with the highest usage per smartphone and per month.

Given that only 4 per cent of households have fixed broadband, smartphones are the only way to access
the internet in many cases.

“Total traffic is projected to triple, reaching 21 EB (exabytes) per month in 2025. This comes from two
factors: high growth in the number of smartphone users, including growth in rural areas, and an
increase in average usage per smartphone,” Patrik Cerwall, Head of Strategic Marketing Insights and
Executive Editor of the Ericsson Mobility Report, said on Tuesday.

“The average traffic per smartphone is expected to increase to around 25 GB per month in 2025,”
Cerwall added.

He said that around 410 million smartphone users are expected to be added in India by 2025.

Global total mobile data traffic reached around 33 EB per month by the end of 2019, and is projected to
reach 164 EB per month in 2025.

Cerwall said the largest share of traffic increase during the Covid-19 pandemic has been absorbed by
fixed residential networks, which have experienced a 20-100 per cent growth.

However, many service providers also noticed a spike in demand on their mobile network, he added.
Citing a recent study conducted by Ericsson Consumer Lab, he said 83 per cent of the respondents from
11 countries had claimed that ICT (information and communications technology) helped them a lot to
cope with the lockdown.

While 57 per cent said they will save money for financial security, one-third plan to invest in 5G and an
improved broadband at home to be better prepared for a potential second wave of Covid-19.

Ericsson’s latest report noted that the average monthly mobile data usage per smartphone in India
region continues to show robust growth, boosted by the rapid adoption of 4G.

Low prices for mobile broadband services, affordable smartphones and people’s changing video viewing
habits have continued to drive monthly usage growth in the region.

Ericsson expects the global number of 5G subscriptions to top 190 million by the end of 2020, and 2.8
billion by the end of 2025.

By the end of 2025, 5G subscriptions are expected to account for around 30 per cent of all mobile
subscriptions at that time.

LTE (4G) will remain the dominant mobile access technology by subscription during the forecast period,
it said.

It is projected to peak in 2022 at 5.1 billion subscriptions and decline to around 4.4 billion subscriptions
by the end of 2025 as more subscribers migrate to 5G, it added.

In India, 18 per cent mobile subscriptions are forecast to be 5G and 64 per cent LTE (4G), and the
remaining on 2G/3G in 2025.

Mobile broadband technologies accounted for 58 per cent of mobile subscriptions in 2019, and this
figure is predicted to reach 82 per cent by 2025.

“The total number of mobile broadband subscriptions is set to exceed 1 billion by 2025. The number of
smartphone subscriptions has increased to 620 million in 2019 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 9
per cent, reaching 1 billion by 2025,” the report said.

Ericsson anticipates that by 2030, up to USD 700 billion of 5G-enabled, business-to-business value could
be addressed by service providers.

In India, the projected value of the 5G-enabled digitalisation revenues will be approximately $17 billion
by 2030.

“5G is a platform for innovation. It enables new services for consumers, enterprises and industry,
including large-scale IoT use cases. Healthcare, manufacturing, automotive and the energy/utilities
sectors are among the biggest revenue generating opportunities for communications service providers
in 5G,” Cerwall said.
India’s solar plans will have to stay their course, despite curbs
on imports from China
India, however, has a long road to traverse if it is to be both cost-effective and
self-reliant in this sector

The Prime Minister’s recent inauguration of ‘Asia’s largest solar power project’ in Rewa,
Madhya Pradesh, yet again sends a signal that India remains serious about clean energy. Yet,
the country’s solar installed capacity, at about 40 GW today, is short of the goal of achieving
100 GW by 2022. The pace of capacity additions has slowed somewhat after the imposition of
safeguard duty on solar cells and modules from China and Vietnam with effect from August
2018. The two-year period for which this duty was imposed ends in a few days. Reports, amidst
a policy of atmanirbharta, suggest that this levy may be continued in the form of a regular
tariff.
A move to build a self-sufficient solar sector for strategic reasons is unobjectionable. It is
notable that China accounted for over 75 per cent of India’s cell and panel imports (totalling
over $2 billion) at least before the imposition of safeguard duties, after which Singapore,
Thailand and Vietnam seem to have plugged some of the gap. That India’s costs are higher now
is apparent from the fact that a ‘manufacturing-linked tender’ awarded by the Solar Energy
Corporation of India in January was based on a tariff of ₹2.92/kWh, which is more than
contracts awarded sometime ago, based on a tariff of about ₹2.50/kWh. It is not as yet clear to
what extent the cells and wafers will be indigenously sourced in such cases. Studies have
estimated that domestically produced modules are 33 per cent more expensive than their
Chinese counterparts. Apart from scale economies playing a role, the cost of the raw materials
is estimated to account for a major share of the cost difference. At present, India is estimated
to have a module manufacturing capacity of 9 GW and a cell making capacity of 3 GW.
Ironically, the indigenous manufacture of PV modules calls for a reliable supply of electricity.
Clearly, India has a long road to traverse if it is to be both cost-effective and self-reliant in this
sector. Yet, there can be no getting away from the need to shift to non-hydro renewables, given
ecological obligations.
While China leads the world in PVs, making two-thirds of the world’s modules, the EU is trying
to make a comeback. The ongoing global stand-off with China will prompt a shift in this
direction, as the EU, once a leader in producing PVs, accounts for at least a fifth of PV
installations globally for which it is reliant on China. It is a sobering thought that solar power
accounts for just 3.6 per cent of India’s electricity generated, and 9.8 per cent of the total
installed capacity. India should take a leaf out of China’s policy book (China’s increase is a post
2005 phenomenon) and create the right demand and supply ecosystem. The PM-KUSUM
scheme is a notable step in this respect.

Taking nuclear vulnerabilities seriously

Seventy-five years ago, the Japanese city of Hiroshima was destroyed by one single atomic
bomb. Three days later, a second bomb destroyed Nagasaki. Those two bombs killed over
2,00,000 people, some of them instantaneously, and others within five months. Another
2,00,000 people or more who survived the bombings of these two cities, most of them injured,
have been called the hibakusha. Because of the long-lasting effects of radiation exposure as
well as the mental trauma they underwent, the plight of these survivors has been difficult. As
Akihiro Takahashi, a hibakusha, testified: “I’ve been living on dragging my body full of sickness
and from time to time I question myself. I wonder if it is worth living in such hardship and pain.”
But Takahashi and other hibakusha lived on and talked about their experiences in the hope that
their plight would never befall anyone else.
While Hiroshima and Nagasaki have been the last two cities to be destroyed by nuclear
weapons, we cannot be sure that they will be the last. Since 1945, the United States, the Soviet
Union/Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, Israel, India, Pakistan, and North Korea have
armed themselves with nuclear weapons that have much more destructive power in
comparison to those that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Damage and vulnerability

Over 1,26,000 nuclear weapons have been built since the beginning of the atomic age.
Over 2,000 of them have been used in nuclear tests, above and below the ground, to
demonstrate their explosive power, causing grave and long-lasting damage to the environment
and public health. But this damage is nothing compared to what might happen if some of the
existing weapons are used against civilian populations.
An appreciation of the scale of the potential damage and a realisation that nuclear
weapons could be launched at any moment against any target around the world should instil a
sense of vulnerability in all of us.
To appreciate why we are vulnerable, we should start by realising that there is no
realistic way to protect ourselves against nuclear weapons, whether they are used deliberately,
inadvertently, or accidentally. The invention of ballistic missiles at the end of the 1950s, with
their great speed of delivery, has made it impossible to intercept nuclear weapons once they
are launched. Neither fallout shelters nor ballistic missile defence systems have succeeded in
negating this vulnerability. Nuclear weapon states are targets of other nuclear weapon states,
of course, but non-nuclear weapon states are vulnerable as well.

The problems of deterrence

Nuclear weapon states have reacted to this vulnerability by coming up with a
comforting idea: that the use of nuclear weapons is impossible because of deterrence. Nuclear
weapons are so destructive that no country would use them, because such use would invite
retaliation in kind, and no political leader would be willing to risk the possible death of millions
of their citizens. That was the idea of deterrence.
Deterrence enthusiasts claim that nuclear weapons do not just protect countries against
use of nuclear weapons by others, but even prevent war and promote stability. These claims do
not hold up to evidence. Nuclear threats have not always produced fear and, in turn, fear has
not always induced caution. To the contrary, nuclear threats in some cases have produced
anger, and anger can trigger a drive to escalate, as was the case with Fidel Castro during the
Cuban Missile Crisis.
Moreover, the apparent efficacy of deterrence in some cases may have been due to the
more credible prospect of retaliation with conventional weapons. Countries with nuclear
weapons have in fact gone to war quite often, even with other countries with nuclear weapons,
albeit in a limited fashion or through proxies. Countries, however, might not always show such
restraint.
Nor should nuclear deterrence be considered stable. Strategic planners routinely use
worst-case assumptions about the intentions and capabilities of other countries to argue for
the acquisition of greater destructive capabilities, driving endless upgrades of nuclear arsenals,
and offering a rationale for new countries to acquire nuclear weapons.
Implicitly, however, all nuclear weapon states have admitted to the possibility that
deterrence could fail: they have made plans for using nuclear weapons, in effect, preparing to
fight nuclear war. The disjuncture between the ideal of possessing nuclear weapons for
deterrence and the practical reality of keeping these weapons primed for use has been
eloquently clarified by General Lee Butler, former Commander-in-Chief of the United States
Strategic Command. After years of having the top operational responsibility for all U.S. strategic
nuclear forces, he observed: “The goal — the wish, really — might be to prevent nuclear war,
but the operational plan had to be to wage war.” It is thus an illusion to think that nuclear war
is impossible.

The illusion of control

A related illusion concerns the controllability of nuclear weapons. In the real world, it is
not possible for planners to have complete control. However, the desire to believe in the
perfect controllability and safety of nuclear weapons creates overconfidence, which is
dangerous. Overconfidence, as many scholars studying safety will testify, is more likely to lead
to accidents and possibly to the use of nuclear weapons.
In several historical instances, what prevented the use of nuclear weapons was not
control practices but either their failure or factors outside institutional control. The most
famous of these cases is the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. There are likely many more cases during
which the world came close to nuclear war but because of the secrecy that surrounds nuclear
weapons, we might never know.
If deterrence has not prevented nuclear war so far, what has? While a comprehensive
answer to this question will necessarily involve diverse and contingent factors, one essential
element in key episodes is just plain luck. This is, again, best illustrated by the case of the Cuban
Missile Crisis, where nearly four decades of scholarship attest to the crucial role of luck. The
consequences of bad luck, then or later, could make the COVID-19 pandemic seem benign by
comparison. While humanity has luckily survived 75 years without experiencing nuclear war,
can one expect luck to last indefinitely?

Time to re-imagine the urbanscape

With IT and IoT, cities can be both smart and inclusive. Improved delivery of welfare
services can arrest reverse migration
Migration and migrants will remain an integral part of India’s urban landscape. The UN’s ‘World
Urbanization Report’ shows that the proportion of urban population in India to total population is rising
at an accelerating pace: from 17 per cent in 1950, it rose in sixty years’ time to 30.9 per cent in 2010 and
is expected to reach 50.3 per cent by 2046. Studies also show that over 50 per cent of the increase in
urban population between 2001 and 2011 was attributed to the rural-urban migration and re-
classification of rural settlements into urban.
Over the years, the government has brought in schemes for urban development and modernisation. The
Seventy-Fourth Constitutional Amendment in 1992, the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission
scheme launched in 2005 by the UPA (for a period up to 2012), Smart City mission (2015), and Pradhan
Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)-Housing for all (2015), are some of the notable initiatives.
Although these initiatives have shown progress, they have not been able to transform the liveability of
Indian cities in a significant manner. Important reforms visualised under JNURRM like the enactment of
community participation law, transfer of water supply, city planning functions, reform in rent control,
etc., have been implemented only patchily by the States.
Even if the target of building 20 million houses under PMAY-HFA by 2022 is achieved, that would only
eliminate the previous backlog. Media reports indicate that only 10 per cent of the projects targeted for
completion under the Smart Cities mission between 2019 and 2023 are likely to be completed.
The slow pace of progress is clearly unacceptable and the current reverse migration shows the
consequences. Once the employment/wage benefit of migration became uncertain due to lockdown,
the migrants found the urban environment so hostile that some even opted to walk back home. The
absence of any form of a social security net created such deep insecurity in their minds that despite the
assurances of governments to provide food and shelter they chose to take the most arduous route to
their home towns/villages.
Focus areas
Clearly, if there is need for a paradigm shift in the way we think about cities/urban areas, it is now. They
should be thought of as Smart Hubs for Rural Urban Transformation and Integration (SHRUTIs) designed
to benefit both rural and urban areas focussing primarily on the following:
provision of public housing either through the construction of smart buildings and the rapid expansion
of the rental market;
public health (through preventative measures and tele-medicine) and improved sanitation through
treatment of waste;
solid waste management with emphasis on waste to energy/compost and recycling;
public transportation with focus on shared mobility and removal of congestion; conservation of water
and electricity through smart grids and metering and smart building design and encouragement to
renewables;
pollution control through expansion of electric vehicle infrastructure;
intensive use of tele-education for massive skilling programmes according to requirements in local
areas; and a system of unemployment insurance.
The thrust areas should have a high component of information technology including internet of things
(IT/IoT) to reduce the costs of roll out. For the urban local bodies (ULBs) to effectively harness these
technologies they require proper organisational and technological support. For each of these thrust
areas, the State governments should appoint state level authorities to fund, technically support and
monitor the progress against clear outcome targets. The State missions should have support from
corresponding Central missions in these areas.
To provide an IT/IOT platform on cloud to the ULBs, a National Information Utility (NIU) should be set up
as proposed by the Technology Advisory Group of the Finance Ministry. The technical standards for this
platform could be laid down by Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY). In a
democratic society, this would have to be done in a manner in which the privacy and security of the data
of the citizens is protected and it is here that the role of the publicly accountable NIU would be pivotal.
In the case of public housing, technologies like drones, geographical information systems and robotic
process automation can help the ULBs play a facilitating role for affordable housing construction
through the speedy preparation of master-plans (with zones for affordable housing), digitalisation of
land records, streamlining the approvals. In the package announced by the Finance Minister, rental
housing was mentioned as one of the means to alleviate the housing shortage in urban areas.
ULB developed e-platforms where rental companies could pool accommodation from individual lessors,
re-purpose and offer it for rental to lessees on standard terms and conditions would reduce the risks to
parties, thereby stimulating the supply of locked properties on to the rental market and construction of
more units on the promise of better returns.
Public health
One can similarly visualise a similar role for IT/IOT in delivery of preventative public health to the
doorstep of the citizens. Mobile units equipped with automated testing and high quality tele-medicine
facilities to backup public or public-private partnership hospitals could help in early detection of
diseases, both communicable and non-communicable, and screening of patients. Further tracing and
referrals can also be done through apps. Artificial intelligence-based systems could be used for early
detection of epidemics giving ULBs time to prepare well in advance, thereby saving both lives and costs.
In other thrust areas too, technology could play the backbone role. Tele-education for geography-
specific skill development is an obvious choice as would a blockchain-based unemployment insurance
system. If government expenditure on urban development is purposefully stepped up, the employment
impact could be felt in not only construction but further afield, in industries such as electronics, sensors,
telecommunications, new construction materials, health equipment, robotics, start-ups, etc.
A rainbow revolution, similar to the earlier green, by which people of different strata and backgrounds
live and work harmoniously and productively together, bound ultimately by a common destiny, is the
need of the hour. The SHRUTI approach can create the necessary eco-system to make that happen. In a
future pandemic, the migrants may still want to go home; but given the long term security in urban
areas, they will want to return early to a home away from home.