Wednesday, October 17, 2018

‘India among 5 economies worst hit by climate change’

91% Of All Disasters Since ’98 Caused By Weather Conditions: UN

Climate change is causing more havoc than geophysical events like earthquakes and tsunamis. A study by the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) shows how climate change has affected us in the last 20 years — of all the 7,255 disasters recorded globally between 1998 and 2017, floods accounted for 43% or 3,148 incidents followed by storms at 2,049. Together, floods and storms accounted for 72% of all disasters. The UN report, released on International Disaster Day on October 13, said about 91% of all disasters during 1998-2017 were caused by floods, storms, droughts, heatwaves and other extreme weather events, something that should alarm policy-makers here in India as it is most affected by all such climate change incidents. What is more worrying for low income countries like India is the fact that economic losses from up to 87% of disasters are not reported. Globally, disaster losses are estimated at $520 billion per annum, pushing more than 26 million people into poverty every year. The inequality is rising and far greater than projected, the study noted. Though India is yet to develop a robust mechanism to capture all disaster losses, an estimate by an agency says annual loss of human lives on account of just floods is an average 1,600, while loss of properties is more than Rs 1,800 crore per year. Besides floods, India has been experiencing hundreds of deaths every year due to storms, heat waves and other extreme weatherrelated incidents. The UN report has listed India among top five countries in the world with $80 billion in absolute economic loss due to disasters in the last 20 years. The global warming of 1 degree celsius compared to pre-industrial level has already altered the disaster map — disasters related to climate change have doubled in the latest 20-year period, an average 329 per year, compared to 165 during 1978-1997. The study said, during 1998-2017, storms, including cyclones and hurricanes, were second only to earthquakes in terms of fatalities, killing 2,33,000 people. With 2 billion population displaced and rendered homeless, floods have affected the largest number of people, followed by drought affecting a further 1.5 billion in the last 20 years. People in poor nations, exposed to natural hazards, are seven times more vulnerable than those in the richest nations.

Source: Times of India, 17/10/18

Tuesday, October 16, 2018

How India can overcome the zero hunger challenge

The one-way movement of raw materials and finished goods between farmers and consumers must be transformed into a two-way movement of commerce and healthy, nutritious food

The way we frame a problem determines the solutions we get. Hunger is a global challenge. It is often erroneously assumed that hunger stems from lack of food. However, if we probe the root cause of hunger, the answer is far more complicated.

Though the global food production is enough to feed all human beings, still there are approximately 815 million people suffering from chronic undernourishment. India produces enough food to feed all its citizens, yet it is ranked 100 among 119 countries in the Global Hunger Index rankings. Though the country has been foodsecure for the past decade, its economic growth and the changing demographics are transforming patterns of food demand. In India, the problem is further complicated as the food basket differs from region to region. There is a growing need for the design and development of more efficient integrated systems of food production, processing, preservation and distribution that will feed the changing tastes of the nation.

India wastes about 7% of its total annual food production and almost 30% of the fruits and vegetables because of inadequate warehousing facilities and cold storages. The situation is similar in other countries too. In Africa, it is estimated that the food wasted can feed close to 40 million people. Hunger is increasingly a processing, storage, supply chain and logistics challenge. According to the International Institute of Refrigeration, if developing countries had the same level of refrigeration infrastructure as developed countries, they would save 200 million tonnes of food or around 14% of their food supply.

In India, the National Centre for Cold-chain Development (NCCD) estimates that country has only 15% of the required temperature-control transportation facilities and less than 1% of warehouse facilities dedicated for transporting pre-conditioned agricultural produce. This lack of infrastructure means that only 4% of the country’s food is moved through cold chains. Cold chains do not just reduce post-harvest losses but also allow farmers to earn more by tapping into well-functioning remunerative markets, while maintaining the quality of their produce. Moreover, with growing climate variability and extremes, resilient transportation infrastructure will allow food to be transported from surplus to climate stressed areas, thus contributing to achieving zero hunger, goal 2 under the 2030 agenda for sustainable development.

India’s highly fragmented agricultural landscape makes the problem more complex. For example, despite being the world’s largest producer of banana, India has just a 0.3% share of the global trade. This is primarily because of the lack of large scale commercial farms and low consolidation among smallholders. Food loss and wastage is not only an issue of mismanagement of resources but also contributes to massive greenhouse gas emissions. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that food wastage accounts for 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Developing and upgrading rural infrastructure; training farmers in post-harvest practices that minimize losses; integrating small scale enterprises into value chains; organizing smallholder farmers into farmer producer organizations; customized financial services; investment in agricultural research; and last-mile marketing channels are extremely important to overcome the zero hunger challenge. They are also important for ensuring social equity, gender inclusiveness and reducing agriculture’s carbon footprint.

While this is an enormous challenge, it is an opportunity that compels action, especially for companies that are involved at various stages of the food value chain. Private companies have the competencies, insights as well as the resources to invest in potential solutions. Solving the problem of food loss and waste has the potential to have an enormous impact on society and on the company’s own performance. A report by the Boston Consulting Group estimates that solving the problem of food loss and wastage is a $700 billion opportunity for private companies.

Companies are also better positioned as they are better connected to the various stakeholders along the food value chains and have the ability to influence their behaviour. For example, the retail chain Tesco has started the ‘Buy one get one free—later’ programme wherein customers can buy certain food items and take the free product later when they actually need it, reducing the attraction to stock discounted products which often leads to food wastage. The problem of food waste is also intensified because of the lack of regulation around industry standards and policies. Companies can be advocates for industry standards that regulate food wastage and help increase general public awareness around the issue. The government, on its part, can have laws that penalize companies for wasting food within their supply chain and encourage repurposing and recycling of food items. For example, since 2016, France has been fining grocery stores for throwing away edible food.

American senator Daniel Webster once said, “When tillage begins, the other arts follow. The farmers, therefore, are the founders of human civilization.” The agriculture sector is a laggard in the fast changing economic landscape of the country. The farmer, the first participant of the economy, has to be supported to achieve the highest production and productivity and must be ensured a larger share of profit along the value chain.

Currently, we have a one-way movement of raw materials and a one-way movement of finished goods. This flow must be transformed into a two-way movement of commerce and healthy, nutritious food between the farmers and the consumers to overcome the zero hunger challenge and address poverty in all its forms.

Source: Livemint epaper, 16/10/2018

Hamstringing the RTI Act

Instead of holding a public debate on making the Act more effective, the government is seeking to dilute its provisions

The Right to Information (RTI) Act, operationalised in October 2005, was seen as a powerful tool for citizen empowerment. It showed an early promise by exposing wrongdoings at high places, such as in the organisation of the Commonwealth Games, and the allocation of 2G spectrum and coal blocks. However, it now faces multiple challenges.

The Act, path-breaking in many respects, did not give adequate authority to the Information Commissions to enforce their decisions. Besides awarding compensation to an applicant for any loss suffered, the commissions can direct public authorities to take the steps necessary to comply with the Act, but are helpless if such directions are ignored.

True, if an officer fails to fulfil his duty, the commission can either impose a maximum penalty of Rs. 25,000 or recommend disciplinary action against him. However, this deterrent works only when the piece of information lies at the lower levels; it is ineffective in many cases where information relates to higher levels of government. Implementation of decisions taken by the commissions, therefore, remains a weak link.

Proposed amendments

The recently proposed amendments to the Act would, instead of strengthening the hands of commissions, weaken them. The government proposes to do away with the equivalence of the Central Information Commissioners with the Election Commissioners on the ground that the two have different mandates. The underlying assumption that transparency is less important for a democracy than holding of free and fair elections is preposterous.

The government also proposes to replace the existing fixed five-year tenure of the Information Commissioners with a tenure as may be prescribed by it. This would make the tenure a largesse to be bestowed by the government. This would be detrimental to the independence and authority of the Information Commissions.

The Act struck a balance between privacy and transparency by barring the disclosure of personal information if it has no relationship to any public activity or would cause unwarranted invasion of privacy. However, the Justice Srikrishna Committee has proposed an amendment that would broaden the definition of ‘harm’, restricting disclosure of personal information even where it may be clearly linked to some public activity.

The Central and State Information Commissions have been functioning with less than their prescribed maximum strength of eleven because governments have dragged their feet on appointing commissioners. For instance, the Central Information Commission (CIC), currently having seven members, will have only three by the end of the year if no appointments are made. This leads to delay in disposal of cases, which is compounded by the backlog in the High Courts, where a number of decisions of the commission are challenged. This happens invariably in cases concerning the high and the mighty. For example, the CIC’s decision in 2007 to cover Indraprastha Gas Ltd. under the Act was stayed by the Delhi High Court, and the stay continues to operate.

Clogging of the system

The clogging of the RTI system is also because a number of applicants, usually disgruntled employees of public institutions, ask frivolous queries. Their applications have unfortunately continued to exist alongside those of numerous RTI activists who have done commendable work, often risking their life and limb.

Further, Section 4 of the RTI Act requires suo motu disclosure of a lot of information by each public authority. However, such disclosures have remained less than satisfactory. Thus, the CIC has had to repeatedly direct regulators of the banking sector to disclose information on the wrongdoings of banks, so as to enable the public to make informed choices about their dealings with various banks.

In one case, the CIC had to direct the disclosure of the list of private persons who travelled with the Prime Minister, at government expense, during his foreign visits. Such information should have been disclosed suo motu by the government.

The RTI Act continues to render yeoman service in providing information to citizens. Though its aim is not to create a grievance redressal mechanism, the notices from Information Commissions often spur the public authorities to redress grievances.

Thirteen years of the Act’s functioning have given us enough experience to hold a public debate on making it more effective. However, if the issues listed above are not addressed, this sunshine law will lose its promise, particularly in terms of ensuring transparency at higher levels of governance.

The author is a former diplomat and a former Central Information Commissioner. Views expressed are personal

Source: The Hindu, 16/10/2018

A change still to come

Development is remaking the Northeast. But tough challenges remain.

The north-eastern region (NER) has been placed on a pedestal for the purposes of central assistance, subsidies and exemptions. The epithet of “special category states” allows a more liberal resource transfer dispensation for the eight states on account of their historical backwardness, geographical remoteness, sparse population, difficult terrain and strategic location. Income Tax Act exemptions are provided for Scheduled Tribe (ST) residents of Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Tripura, the hill districts of North Cachar, Mikir, Khasi, Garo areas. The constitutional principles of affirmative action have afforded greater access to higher education and government jobs to the ST population. The cumulative impact of these interventions has brought about substantial change, though several challenges remain.

The literacy rate of all the states of NER was more than the national average in 2011 census, the highest being Mizoram at 91.3 per cent. In 1961, all the states were below the national average, barring Assam, Manipur and Mizoram. The sex ratio of the states of the NER was more than the national average in 2011, except Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. In 1961, only Manipur and Mizoram had a sex ratio higher than the national average. The infant mortality in 2016 was well below national average, with Manipur being the lowest at 11 deaths per 1,000 live births. The poverty ratio in NER in 1993-94 was above the national average for six of the eight states. In 2011-12, all the states of the NER had poverty ratio (as per Tendulkar Committee estimates) less than the national average, except Arunachal Pradesh and Assam. These indicators suggest a significant transformation.

However, a deeper analysis reveals a different story. As per U-DISE 2016-17, the drop out rate from primary schools is the highest in NER, the worst in Arunachal Pradesh at 23.6 per cent. Drop-out rates at the upper-primary level are equally bad amongst these states, barring Assam. The NER has the highest percentage of poor quality rural classrooms in the country. The All India Survey of Higher Education report 2017-18 points out that the gross enrollment ratio in higher education for five out of the eight NER states is below the national average of 25.8 per cent.

In the health sector, NFHS-4 data points out that the percentage of institutional deliveries is the lowest in this region except in Sikkim, Mizoram and Tripura, which are doing fairly well. Let us also not lose sight of the fact that Manipur has the highest adult prevalence of HIV in the country, followed by Mizoram and Nagaland. High tobacco consumption, poor hygiene and dietary habits are the primary cause of cancer — the incidence rates being double of national average — making the Northeast the cancer capital of India. The absence of adequate diagnostic and treatment facilities make matters worse, especially for the poor.

Connectivity has been the proverbial Achilles’ Heel for the Northeast. On this front, there are visible signs of change, with the rapid construction of national highways, bridges, rail and air linkages. The iconic Bhupen Hazarika bridge and the nearly complete Bogibeel rail-road bridge are emblematic of hope. The recently-commissioned airports at Pakyong in Sikkim and Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh have given wings to economic possibilities. Rural infrastructure and connectivity have seen a significant improvement under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana and Border Area Development Programme, though the quality of road infrastructure, especially state highways and rural roads remains quite pathetic. Torrential monsoon rains and mudslides make the task of road maintenance even more challenging.

On the employment front, the work participation rate in the NER is higher than the national average of 39.79 per cent, except Assam, which is marginally lower. The female work participation rate of most of the NER is far above the national average. However, there is an excessive dependence on government jobs. The tribal societies of the Northeast tend to be closely knit along lines of kinship and ethnicity. As a result, the educated youth are do not prefer relocating for jobs. Experiences of racial prejudice and discrimination in other parts of India have made matters worse.

The bigger challenge lies in harnessing private investment and catalysing home-grown entrepreneurship. The credit-deposit ratio of scheduled commercial banks in the NER is the lowest in the country. This is partly attributable to the complex land laws of the region, which are an overlay of customary rights (of clans and communities) over modern laws (conferring individual rights). As a result, a land titling exercise is yet to be undertaken in most states. In the absence of a clear land title as collateral, banks hesitate to lend and credible investors remain wary. Liberalisation of the regulatory framework around land holdings would help monetise the biggest resource of this region. Inner line regulations, based on a British-era law applicable in some hill states, also need to be simplified to make access easier for tourists and investors.

Winds of change are sweeping the Northeast, yet it will be a while before the states can shed their “special” tag. A competition-based resource allocation framework may help incentivise improvements in outcomes.

Source: Indian Express, 16/10/2018

India’s development record is poor. It’s best to accept it and make amends

Instead of denial, a much bolder step would be to increase investments and strengthen delivery in key areas such as health and education, which have inter-generational impacts, and can also go a long way in removing widespread inequality.

Last week, three separate global reports related to development were released: the World Bank’s Human Capital Index; the Welthungerhilfe and Concern Worldwide’s 2018 Global Hunger Index; and Oxfam International’s 2018 Commitment to Reducing Inequality Index. India performs poorly in all three reports. On the Human Capital Index, which seeks to measure the amount of human capital that a child born today can expect to attain by the age of 18, India is ranked at 115 out of 157 countries. On the hunger index, India is at 103 out of 119 countries, with hunger levels in the country categorised as “serious”. On the inequality index, India continues to do poorly, ranking 147 out of 157 countries in its commitment to reducing inequality. Earlier in September, the United Nations Development Programme’s Human Development Index placed India at 130 out of 189 countries.

While these reports have their own parameters and methodologies for judging the performances of nation-states, the consistent aspect is India’s low rank in all of them. There could be multiple reasons for such a report card: poor State capacity, inadequate funding, inefficient governance, wrong policies, poor implementation and corruption. But none of these issues can be improved/solved, unless we accept that there is a problem. And that’s where the reluctance of the government seems surprising. Last week, the Indian government rejected the World Bank’s Human Capital Index report, saying the score for India does not reflect the key initiatives that are being taken for developing human capital in the country. Instead of denial, a much bolder step would be to increase investments and strengthen delivery in key areas such as health and education, which have inter-generational impacts, and can also go a long way in removing widespread inequality.

Source: Hindustan Times, 16/10/2018

Feminine Power

The nine-day Navratri festival is all about ritual worship and veneration of the Divine Feminine. (Even if there is currently a huge disconnect between the way female deities are treated and the way real flesh-and-blood women in the real world are treated.) During Navratri, people religiously read the Durga Stuti that, in its 13 chapters, explains the advent of Ma Durga and how she kills all the asuras in order to protect the Devas. The book beautifully explains how the extremely frightened and troubled Indra, Brahma and other Devas could not handle the atrocities of the asuras and, thus, had to plead for the appearance of the Mother Goddess, who could destroy the extremely powerful rakshasas. By taking various forms, she vanquishes dangerous asuras with utmost ease and ends their barbarity towards the Devas and helps them to reoccupy their respective abodes. In real life, women multitask and are a source of great strength for the family. She manages gracefully all the day-to-day issues of the entire family, along with her own professional, physical and psychological issues. Yet, it is the woman who is rendered vulnerable. But let’s not forget that like Ma Durga, behind the soft appearance of every woman, there is immense power that can be commanded when the situation demands it. Women are sensitive caregivers, but if their dignity and respect is at stake, then she can, if she has the confidence, initiate action for justice. Women should never be underestimated and their contributions should always be acknowledged.

Source: Economic Times, 16/10/2018

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