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1. CRG’s Past
Researches in this Area: This proposal is intended to carry forward
Mahanirban Calcutta Research Group’s (CRG) ongoing work on
socio-economic rights of people and the communities, rendered marginal
in context of economic reforms in India. Besides providing opportunities
for research, the segment will enable dialogues with researchers, rights
activists and thinkers, college teachers, young researchers, and
activists in popular movements towards a better understanding of
interdependence and the complexities of the global processes, and their
unequal impact on nations, countries, regions, and populations at
various levels, also understanding the nature, causes and consequences
of poverty and erosion of rights. With special focus on women, dalits,
indigenous population, and unorganised labour the project will seek to
address the important questions of: How can rights be sustained in face
of globalisation? What is the nature of the erosion of rights we are
witnessing? And what is meant by ‘sustainability’? The field studies
will be significant as in the past in researches, dialogues, and
orientation activities of CRG.
2. The Perspective:
Globalisation often understood as an ambivalent process (bringing both
possibilities and challenges in the socio-economic realm) encompasses
global processes that increase interconnectedness between people and
intensify the global trade in products between them. The neo-liberal
model of globalisation promoting the right of free trade and capital has
a basic clash with the tenets of universal human rights. Thus there is a
constant tension between the ‘social’ yearning for democratic values and
‘economic’ competition for unhindered profit, trade and movement of
capital. Since the 1980s, India has moved to varying degrees, to a
strategy of export-orientated development, liberalisation and
privatisation and fiscal strategies of neo-liberal economic paradigm,
which gained momentum in the early 1990s. India’s Economic Reforms
Programme (July 1991) under the TINA (There Is No Alternative) theory
was also in wake of foreign exchange liquidity crisis, declining GDP
growth rate and a near stagnating economy. The reforms have continued
since then irrespective of changes in the government at the Centre. The
rupee is stronger, and a particular section of people had never had so
many choices to spend their money on. Yet, the abundance of choices,
unprecedented growth in income of the middle and upper classes, and the
increased urban base - all these have come at an irreparable cost borne
by a large section of population (dalits, indigenous population groups,
women, and wandering informal labour), which have been rendered
invisible in past fifteen years.
3. State Policies:
The government policies in this period have consistently revised or
removed support structures for small farmers in Indian agriculture while
promoting unsustainable, high-input agriculture which farmers,
especially in dry areas, cannot afford to practice. Farmers are facing
the worst ever crisis due to increased inputs cost, frequent failures of
rain, erosion of government support mechanism in terms of subsidies,
loans, attractive support prices and other such policies which went in
strengthening the agriculture sector in past. The demand for
strengthening the minimum support price system to cover the real cost of
production, waiver of debt and proactive support to low-input
sustainable agriculture especially in rain-fed areas has fallen on deaf
year. Moreover, land is seen not as something required for meeting the
food needs of population but as real estate meant for development of
SEZs (Special Economic Zones), creating high class infrastructure, multi
storied housing projects, export-based units, while depriving thousands
of the only available source of income or sustenance. Many studies
confirm that nothing less then long- term solution will solve this
problem.
4. The Issue of
Sustainability of Rights in these Conditions: Globalisation is a
rights-centric conflict between different interests of various actors in
direct confrontation. These actors are (a) the nation states, (b) the
international institutions (UN, WTO, World Bank, IMF, etc.), (c) the
MNCs, and (d) the affected population groups in various countries, in
this case, India. Nation states have to assert their right to retain
their sovereignty. International Institutions clamour for the right to
global governance. Multinational corporations claim the right of free
trade and commerce. Affected population groups demand that basic human
rights be achieved, and sustained. It therefore becomes necessary to
understand the context in which globalisation functions and the way
popular struggles see their own struggles in the broader framework of
these conflicting rights of different actors. The rights question has
assumed significance in such a perspective; it differs significantly
from the traditional Western concept dominated human rights scenario. In
the post-colonial context the rights discourse is a part of the claim
makings dynamics in a democracy; it expands democratic tolerance,
stresses the preservation of popular gains in face of globalisation, and
emphasises socio-economic rights in the same measure as civil and
political rights.
5. The Programme:
The programme has three segments: Research, Orientation and Training,
and Publications.
6. Objectives: The
main aim of the programme is: To engender research in rights based
approaches to development, livelihood, and globalisation; also to
sensitise representatives of the government and civil society engaged in
the formulation and implementation of policies about the special needs
of the women, Dalits, indigenous communities, specially challenged
people, and other marginalised groups in society during the crisis
situation such as Tsunami, floods, ethnic conflicts, internal
displacement, etc. 7. Research Segment: This segment of the programme will look in to the demands of several popular struggles and government’s responses through detailed field surveys in East India especially in West Bengal, Orissa, Bihar, Jharkhand and North East India around following issues:
To sum up, the
proposed tasks will be achieved by primary research through selected
case studies and examining them in the context of the effectiveness of
the policy measures. The emphasis will be on studying the implementation
and efficacy of these policy measures, and developing an alternative
policy framework. The project would also study and document the
alternatives developed by communities through their popular struggles
against the changing socio-economic scenario in localities. The research
programme will be thus part analytical, part ethnographic.
8. Orientation
Segment: To address the above mentioned concerns CRG also proposes to
organize short orientation programmes on “Rethinking the Issue of
Rights, Justice and Development” with participants from various parts of
the country, particularly from the East and the Northeast, during the
proposed duration of the programme.
9. Publications
Programme: This study will contribute to the literature on globalisation
processes, its social, economic and political impacts, policy analysis
and critiques, and offer findings on addressing the chinks in
formulation and implementation of policy measures especially on the
issue sustainability of rights of the marginalised communities which
would further serve as a toolkit for training and teaching by other
implementing organisations of the government programmes, and independent
developmental programmes in this region. Research articles, monographs
and volumes will be published on the basis of the research work.
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GC-45,
First Floor, Salt Lake, Sector III, Kolkata-700 106 |
Globalisation
& Sustainability of Rights
