policy makers of SIDCUL are blind

 

POLICY MAKERS OF SIDCUL ARE BLIND (published in Garhwal post on 25 Dec 2011)

Uttrakhand wanted to become an industrialized state. In attempt to do so, it asked and got from the central government, some tax concessions. Anybody who sets up an industry in Uttrakhand, would get the benefit of these tax cuts, therefore the industries would make more money. (mind you the product will not be sold cheaper to the end user). This policy worked and hundreds of industrialists from other states came to set up industries, both big and small.

The reason for doing this is to bring employment and therefore money to the people of Uttrakhand. There is nothing wrong with that and the purpose to a certain extent has been served and thousands of people have found employment in these new industrial areas which are in Dehradun, (IT Park, Selakui and Pharma city), Pantnagar, Haridwar,  Rudrapur, Kotdwar, Bhagwanpur and some other areas too.

SIDCUL is the agency which has been created to establish, maintain and monitor these estates. They are the ones responsible for regulating the building work in these estates. The Industrial estate was planned and built by a large  company. It is headed by an IAS officer and has a complete hierarchy of  govt. officers to look after its affairs. As far as I am concerned it is the government which runs it.

The most wonderful thing is the fact the political class, government, policy makers, engineers, economists and everybody in this business see everybody, but they don’t see the industrial worker. They even see the non physical things such as flow of money, commercial taxes, impact on the environment, quality of air and level of noise, but they don’t see the misery of the industrial worker. They are blind to the industrial worker, I think we should carry out a psychological test in which they are made to strip completely in a room full of industrial workers, my gut feeling is that they would strip happily because they cannot see the industrial worker.

In this article let us talk about Haridwar. The industrial area is a good 6-7 km away from the main Haridwar town. There are some 250 or more industries of various sizes operating there with an estimated  50000 people working in them. Maybe 5% of these are workers who have brought from outside for the senior positions which need skill and expertise, They are the well paid ones. Lets talk about the remaining 95%.

THE REASONS WHY I SAY THE GOVERNMENT IS BLIND

1.      You have to see it to believe the ways people have devised to commute to and fro from work. Some go by bicycle, others have to take a shared auto which is sometimes shared by some 20 other people. A large section of these workers are girls, they have chartered large TUKTUK type vikrams to cart them at both ends of the shift. Some workers who live within 3-4 kilometres walk because there is a certainty about the time. Mostly workers are left to fend for themselves. A bus service would be an earning proposition. If a factory owner wants to run a bus service for its workers, it is charged road tax at commercial rates as if it was a profit making thing for him. THE GOVERNMENT JUST FORGOT ABOUT GIVING A BUS SERVICE FOR ITS OWN PEOPLE, IT EVEN FORGOT TO MAKE BUS SHELTERS. IT FORGOT TO MAKE A BICYCLE TRACK.

2.      The policy makers obviously thought that an industrial area will bring with it a need for hotel rooms and shopping areas and so they sold large plots to businessmen to make  hotels and a mall.The industrial worker does not go to these establishments. He goes to  tea shops, small dhabas, pan shops etc. The industrial workers have a life also outside the eight hours of workshift. THE GOVERNMENT FORGOT TO PUT A SINGLE SHOPPING CENTRE FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS PEOPLE WHERE THEY COULD EAT AND BUY A CUP OF TEA AND  THINGS OF THEIR USE.

3.      It is not allowed to build quarters for workers inside factories because it is a risk to their lives. It is not allowed to build them just outside the industrial area because it is a landuse violation. The government has pointedly refused to give land to the industrialists for a price for workers’ quarters. They made a couple of group housing plots in which flats are selling today for Rs thirty lakhs each. Where will the industrial workers be housed on a long term.  Shivalik Nagar which is close by has turned into a slum with upto six people living in a room. Room rent for such a slum like room may be as much as Rs 5000/-.  THE GOVERNMENT FORGOT TO MAKE ANY PROVISION FOR HOUSING. IT IS NOT EVEN ALLOWINGFACTORY OWNERS AND  PEOPLE TO BUILD ON THEIR OWN. IT IS NOT SELLING LEGALLY BUILT UNITS. IT IS JUST STANDING IN THE WAY.

4.      Accidents are likely to happen in the industrial areas because of heavy industrial activity, work with chemicals, high temperature and work at heights. There is no special purpose hospital for industrial injuries in the area. THERE IS NOT EVEN A  DISPENSARY TO TAKE CARE OF INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS EVEN THOUGH THE GOVERNMENT TAKES HUGE CONTRIBUTIONS IN THE NAME OF ESI.

One day there is going to be a strong trade union movement and this time,it will be the government and not the industry owners which will face the music. In this business, the industrialists are complying but the the political class and the government is at fault. In my view it is stupid on part of the peoples’ representatives to neglect this class, they can be made happy cheaply and they are huge in numbers. An election can be won by making a hospital, a profit making bus service, allotment of some low cost housing plots and some small shopping areas inside the industrial area.

I want the reader to decide if the government is interested in making its peoples life easy or is it just interested in filling its own coffers by way of taxes and premiums received on selling developed land etc.

PARAM JIGYASU

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