COVID-19 hospitalizations, deaths worldwide reach record highs

Bryan Dyne

All over the world, the 2020 holiday season is dominated by the tragic reality that 1.7 million human beings, cut down by the coronavirus pandemic, will never again have the opportunity to visit and celebrate with loved ones.

More than three people have died each minute from the disease since the first case of COVID-19 was reported to the World Health Organization. They include grandparents forced to say goodbye to their loved ones via computer, workers whose last moments were spent struggling to breathe on a ventilator, young adults whose lives had barely begun, and infants as young as two months old who were barely aware of the world before their lives were snuffed out.

Dr. Rafik Abdou and respiratory therapist Babu Paramban check on a COVID-19 patient at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center, LA, Nov. 19, 2020 [Credit: AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File]

Nearly a year on, the pandemic is accelerating. More than 11,500 people are dying every day, almost double the highest death rate recorded during the first wave in April. It took four months for the first 100,000 lives to be lost. Now, 100,000 people are killed every nine days.

The United States remains the most hard-hit country. President Donald Trump’s policy of herd immunity, aided and abetted by the Democrats, has so far slain more than one in every 1,000 people living in the country. Every day nearly 3,000 deaths are reported, along with 220,000 new infections, as schools and workplaces are forced to remain open, further spreading the deadly disease.

The most recent surge has prompted a variety of ominous comments, particularly from President-elect Biden’s coronavirus advisory board. Dr. Celine Gounder, a professor at New York University, told MSNBC that a “surge on top of a surge on top of a surge” is coming in the next few weeks. She warned that hospital workers will “have to be making some very difficult decisions about triaging, unfortunately, who gets what care and who does not.”

This will be most true in states such as California, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas, where hospital systems are nearing capacity. “If we have another surge after Christmas and New Year’s like we did after Thanksgiving, it will completely break our hospitals,” Tennessee Health Commissioner Dr. Lisa Piercey told National Public Radio.

Comments along these lines were made by another member of Biden’s advisory board, Dr. Atul Gawande. He told CNBC that “hospitals in more than a third of the country are already full to overflowing,” setting the stage for an even more catastrophic situation than that which already exists. There are more than 115,000 coronavirus-related hospitalizations in the US, double the peak numbers in both July and April, and the daily hospitalization rate is rising,

When asked about how to avoid an even worse scenario, Gawande responded, “What do we do about it? It is still the same practices that really work,” before adding, “The next 100,000 deaths are baked in.”

The statement that nothing can be done to save 100,000 lives amounts to an admission of the bankruptcy of the “practices” of the entire American ruling class. It is, moreover, untrue.

It is well known that specific emergency measures can be taken to contain and eventually halt the spread of the virus and end the wave of death. In those countries, such as China and Vietnam, that have carried out serious and sustained lockdowns, including nonessential workplaces and schools, the virus has been contained and almost eliminated.

China, where the virus first emerged, has a population of 1.4 billion, more than four times that of the United States. Its total COVID-19 death toll is 4,634, and no deaths from the virus have been recorded since April. The United States, which, like the industrialized countries of Europe, has insisted on keeping non-essential production going and forcing schools to stay open, is now suffering on average some 19,600 COVID fatalities a week—more than four times the total in China over the entire course of the year. It is not an endorsement of the Chinese regime to acknowledge these facts.

Emergency measures that would contain and control the virus and end the wave of deaths are not taken for one basic reason: they cut across the economic interests of the financial oligarchies that dominate capitalist society. Corporate profits, stock prices and the wealth of the super-rich take absolute priority over human life. And to force workers into virus-infested plants and workplaces, and students and educators into unsafe schools, so as to keep the flow of corporate profits going, the same ruling classes refuse to provide income protection for the growing ranks of the unemployed. Workers are presented with the “choice” of risking death or becoming homeless and destitute.

As the derisory “relief” bill just passed by the US Congress underscores, the ruling class—most brazenly in the US—is using the pandemic to further enrich itself and drive down even more the wages and social conditions of the working class.

That is why the struggle against the pandemic, mass death and mass impoverishment is a political struggle against the capitalist system. It depends on the independent intervention of the working class to force the shutdown of non-essential production and the schools, provide full income protection for the workers affected, establish safe conditions in essential workplaces, hire thousands more nurses and doctors, provide ample medical and health resources, including PPE, and guarantee high-speed internet and other resources for home learning during the pandemic. The vast resources required for these social necessities can and must be acquired through the expropriation of the obscene wealth of the corporate-financial elite and the establishment of public ownership of the major corporations and banks, under the democratic control of the working class.

The incoming Biden administration has already rejected any such measures, declaring instead that there must be no shutdown and the schools must be fully reopened—in all essentials, the same homicidal herd immunity policy pursued by Trump. Those condemned to die should roll over and accept their fate, perhaps with a $600 consolation prize.

Biden and Trump’s approach to the pandemic is mirrored by every major capitalist government. In Great Britain, where a new and more infectious strain of the coronavirus was recently detected, the National Health Service predicts that its hospitals will be treating more coronavirus patients on Christmas Day than at any point in the pandemic. The country has suffered more than 69,000 deaths and is currently facing a record number of new infections.

In Brazil, which has the second highest coronavirus death toll in the world, more than 189,000, fascistic President Jair Bolsonaro is promoting hydroxychloroquine as a cure for the pandemic. The drug, touted by Trump as well, has been proven to have no effect on COVID-19 mortality rates. This has not stopped Bolsonaro from stepping up his own herd immunity policy by pushing this and other ineffective drugs to end the few remaining lockdown and other public health measures in Brazil.

Across the Pacific, the policies of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have been equally disastrous. After imposing a lockdown across the country with little warning or planning, which left tens of millions stranded, Modi used the social crisis generated in the aftermath to launch an all-out back-to-work drive. This resulted in a surge in cases that started in May and continues to this day, resulting in more than 10.1 million cases and more than 146,000 recorded deaths.

If the warnings of public health officials, as well as the World Socialist Web Site, had been heeded back in February and March, millions who are now dead would still be alive and the holidays this year would not be overshadowed by the specter of death.

Australian COVID-19 outbreak underscores danger of corporate drive to lift safety restrictions

Mike Head

Under obvious big business and media pressure, the government of Australia’s most populous state yesterday partially lifted some of the limited safety restrictions it had implemented in Sydney, despite warnings from infectious diseases experts that it is far too early to know how far the city’s COVID-19 outbreak has spread.

Long lines of cars at inner-west Sydney COVID-19 testing station [Photo: WSWS Media]

After a “crisis” cabinet meeting of the state’s Liberal-National government, New South Wales (NSW) Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced that restrictions would be relaxed in half the city’s northern beaches region—the current epicentre of the virus resurgence. Unlimited numbers of under-12 aged children can be included in household gatherings there, and across Greater Sydney during a three-day Christmas period.

Contrary to the results of scientific studies globally, Berejiklian claimed that young children were not infectious. Gatherings of up to 10 people, plus children, are permitted throughout the metropolitan area, home to five million people, and up to 50 elsewhere across the state. Inexplicably, residents of the southern half of the northern beaches are still not allowed to leave their infected zone, yet can host visitors from anywhere.

The resulting danger, as epidemiologists have warned, is that Christmas and subsequent New Year celebrations could become “super-spreader” events. This underscores the risk of another disaster like the recent four-month outbreak in the neighbouring state of Victoria, where the premature business-driven lifting of restrictions and a failed hotel quarantine system led to more than 800 of the country’s 908 virus deaths.

The spread of the Sydney outbreak over the past week highlights the global character of the coronavirus pandemic, which has so far claimed more than 1.7 million lives. Once again, the resurgence has exposed the government- and media-cultivated myth that Australia and nearby New Zealand have “beaten” or even contained COVID-19.

The rejection by the government of pleas by medical scientists for basic precautionary measures, such as temporary lockdowns and mandatory mask-wearing, underscores the domination of corporate profit-making interests over the lives, health and livelihoods of the population.

Today, like every day this week, new recorded cases have been added to the Sydney outbreak. The official total currently exceeds 100, including one interstate in Melbourne. The list of feared infection sites posted by the health authorities—featuring supermarkets, shopping malls, gyms, clubs and restaurants—has been continually extended as well. It already covers working-class suburbs throughout the metropolitan area and towns across NSW. Today, residents of 36 suburbs in the state’s Central Coast region were urged to get tested because of COVID traces in the sewage system.

Many of those wanting COVID-19 test have had to wait more than five hours [Photo: WSWS Media]

Despite the claims of “gold-standard” testing and contact tracing facilities, residents of potential hotspot suburbs have queued for up to six hours at testing sites. “Patient Zero” has not been identified either, although genomic testing has shown the infection to be a US variant. That means the virus could have escaped more widely before the first local cases were reportedly “seeded” on December 11.

The contrast could not be greater between the profit-driven corporate and government response, and the public responsibility displayed by the tens of thousands of residents who have lined up patiently to get tested this week, and then self-isolate for 48 hours or more while awaiting results.

Yesterday, the federal Liberal-National government revealed, via Chief Health Officer Paul Kelly, a doubling to four in the number of arriving international travellers infected with the new more contagious COVID-19 variant that is “out of control” in Britain. Nevertheless, flights from the UK have not been blocked, on the false premise that Australia’s hotel quarantine system has proven effective in preventing coronavirus transmissions.

Epidemiologists and public health experts have said it remains “critical” for the health authorities to track down the first case that led to the outbreak, as well as expand the testing, make mask wearing compulsory and extend movement and gathering restrictions throughout Sydney.

Among the experts whose advice the state government rejected is World Health Organisation adviser and professor of epidemiology at the University of NSW, Mary-Louise McLaws. Speaking before Berejiklian’s announcement of reduced restrictions, she said the existing rules should remain over the Christmas break, because it was too early to make any sort of judgment from an outbreak management perspective.

“We look for at least one to two day incubation periods, preferably that is 14 days of zero to ensure that this large cluster has finished at the northern beaches,” McLaws told the “Today Show” television program. “We have multiple sites outside of Sydney that haven’t quite had a full incubation period.”

McLaws said the unknown source person could have been asymptomatic and might have been in contact with people who travelled interstate for the holidays a couple of weeks ago, before other state and territory governments reimposed border restrictions this week in response to the Sydney outbreak.

The voice of the capitalist class was sounded when the Business Council of Australia (BCA), representing the largest companies operating in Australia, joined other business groups on Tuesday to demand an “urgent” national cabinet meeting to end border shutdowns and set “predictable” rules to manage “inevitable local outbreaks.”

As published in the Nine Network newspapers, BCA chief executive Jennifer Westacott wrote: “We cannot continue going on with a stop-start economy, where families and businesses fall victim to inconsistent rules.” While claiming that they agreed with “safeguarding Australians,” the business chiefs insisted that the population had to “live with” the virus, in the interests of economic “recovery,” because a vaccine rollout “won’t happen overnight.”

The underlying agenda of the financial elite was spelled out in yesterday’s Australian Financial Review editorial. It told Prime Minister Scott Morrison he “must not waste this crisis.” Instead, he had to “get on with injecting reform into the recovery.” This is precisely what big business has been doing for months exploiting the pandemic to justify sweeping workplace changes that slash wages, jobs and conditions.

The editorial declared: “Creating herd immunity globally by vaccination may take years if ever, and the virus may spring back in new mutations.” It said the “virus shock” must be used to impose “serious tax reform” and changes to “byzantine industrial relations system.”

After offering the Morrison government “constructive” support throughout the year, federal Labor leader Anthony Albanese yesterday tried to appease public unrest by calling for earlier delivery of a vaccine. But that is no substitute for immediate action to protect lives.

The sole concern of the ruling class, like its counterparts in every country, is to boost the share prices of the major corporations and enlarge the bank accounts of the super-rich. Health and lives are being sacrificed to “economic revival”—that is, to the drive for corporate profit.

Working people must insist that measures be put in place immediately, based on the best scientific advice, to protect the population and guarantee a decent standard of living for all.

Instead of governments pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into corporate pockets via “support packages” and into military war preparations, society’s resources must be invested in health care infrastructure to treat, contain and eradicate COVID-19. That means reversing the chronic under-funding of medical research, public hospitals and aged care homes in order to ensure people are protected from the threat of infectious disease.

This is above all a political issue not just a health issue. The massive sums monopolised by the financial elite must be seized and used to meet these and other essential social needs as part of the socialist reorganisation of society as a whole. Matters cannot be left in the hands of the corporate elite and their political servants. Workers need to intervene independently in the political struggle for a workers’ government.

COVID-19 bill that stiffed workers full of handouts to big business

Jacob Crosse

The COVID-19 relief bill passed by Congress this week provided a pittance for workers affected by the greatest economic crisis since the Great Depression. But in recent days it has emerged that the bill is stuffed full of handouts to major businesses and the superrich.

People wait in line to collect fresh produce and shelf-stable pantry items outside Barclays Center as Food Bank For New York City provides assistance to those in need due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Sept. 10, 2020, in New York [Credit: AP Photo/John Minchillo]

Included in the combined relief and spending bill are generous tax incentives for large businesses totaling over $110 billion for liquor producers, wind energy lobbyists, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) and electric motorcycle manufacturers. The Washington Post reported that the “tax extenders” are “something of a year-end tradition” frequently added to large bills at the behest of industry lobbyists.

Speaking to the Post, Howard Gleckman, a tax policy expert at the Urban Institute, characterized them as a “gravy train for members and lobbyists.” He added that these are “classic special interest tax breaks that do not benefit the overall economy in any way.”

One extender, lobbied for by liquor and alcohol giants, Anheuser-Busch and Bacardi North America, re-ups tax cuts that first became law in 2017 but were set to expire this year without congressional approval. In an interview with the Post, Democratic Senator Ron Wyden (Oregon) defended the cuts as a way to “help small brewers and wineries.”

The extender granted to NASCAR goes back to 2004 and will help Brian France and the rest of the France family, owners of NASCAR and worth a reported $5.7 billion, to continue claiming tax breaks on their facilities through 2025. Another extender will grant a tax credit to purchasers of electric motorcycles worth up to $2,500, or 10 percent of the cost of the vehicle.

The bill also includes the so-called “three martini lunch” provision, which allows business executives to deduct their meal expenses at 100 percent, compared to the previous 50 percent, which will lead to a $5 billion reduction in tax revenue, according to the Tax Foundation. While Trump has championed this provision since April, the stimulus bill failed to include a $120 billion fund that had been lobbied by the National Restaurant Association (NRA), which reported that employment within the industry remains 2.1 million jobs below its pre-coronavirus level.

To add insult to injury, Trump threatened to veto the bill Tuesday, raising the prospect that millions of desperate people will not get any assistance at all for weeks.

While the bill is the largest in US history at nearly 6,000 pages, not a single line was devoted to protecting career federal employees from political retaliation and terminations. Two weeks before the election Trump issued an executive order which allowed him to reclassify federal employees and civil servants that work within government agencies, such as the Office of Budget and Management, allowing them to be dismissed with little cause, similar to political appointments. It is unknown how many of the 2.1 million federal workers, many of whom deal with crafting policy or giving confidential advice top officials, could be affected.

The $900 billion so-called relief bill which has been attached to a $1.4 trillion omnibus package also does not add any language to thwart a recent executive order issued by the Trump administration that strips most civil service protections from thousands of federal employees, opening them up to termination with little cause or recourse.

Far from providing direct immediate relief for the hundreds of thousands of businesses that have closed their doors, the bill earmarks $284 billion to refill the corporate slush fund known as the Paycheck Protection Program. Ostensibly created to allow small businesses to receive low-interest loans which can be turned into grants in order to retain workers, instead, the program has been seized upon by major restaurants, hotel chains, political consulting firms, and profitable companies to enrich themselves, and generate billions in fees for major banks, while laying off thousands of workers.

Meanwhile, the “relief” is a fraction of the jobless aid workers and their families received at the beginning of the year. The bill only extends federal unemployment benefits for 11 weeks at $300 a week and a one-time direct payment of $600, half of the $1,200 included in the CARES Act. Student dependents would not be eligible for the check, nor would immigrants without a social security number. The bill only renews the Centers for Disease Control eviction moratorium for just one month, until January 31, 2021.

Both vital measures are set to expire on the 26th and the 31st respectively, leaving roughly 13 million people collecting unemployment with nothing the day after Christmas, while some 19 million are facing eviction January 1, 2021. It should also be noted that the moratorium has not prevented hundreds of thousands of people from being evicted.

Despite the frenzied character of the past two weeks of negotiations, the fact is both political parties have deliberately denied unemployment aid to workers in an attempt to blackmail them into going back to work in order to generate profits.

While Congress was able to come together and nearly unanimously pass the CARES Act at the end of March, which provided some $6 trillion to the Treasury and Federal Reserve; the meager assistance for jobless workers in the form of $600-a-week unemployment payments through July and a one-time $1,200 direct payment was deemed a “disincentive” by the ruling class and hindrance to the continued extraction of surplus labor value. Hence, the deliberate delay and the demand by President-elect Joe Biden that schools be reopened, no matter what, within the first 100 days of his administration in order to force parents back on the job.

As Congress dithers over the peanuts that will be spared in order to prevent a mass social movement from below, thousands of families are wondering where they will be sleeping after being evicted despite the CDC moratorium. Speaking to CNN, Jordan Mills, along with her partner Jonathan Russel and their two-year-old daughter Valkyrie, were evicted this month even after providing a CDC declaration to her landlord and court, as well as making a payment plan with her landlord.

“People like me are still being evicted for nonpayment,” she told CNN. Mills attempted to appear at her court hearing to challenge the proceeding. However, she was unable to attend because of the cost of parking. “I couldn’t afford parking; it is all $20. I’m literally living hand to mouth. I got paid yesterday. I have $4 to my name.”

Job prospects remain slim for millions of workers whose industries have been wiped out by the ongoing pandemic. The latest initial claims from the U.S. Department of Labor revealed another historic week of job losses with 803,000 initial claims filed last week. Additionally another 397,511 claims were filed under the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program, created for contracted, the self-employed and “gig” workers, bringing the total number of first-time claims above 1.2 million, which under any other circumstances would be considered catastrophic.

Over 20.3 million people are collecting some form of unemployment, a slight decrease from the previous week, reflecting the fact that several states’ funding has dried up or the jobless have used up all their eligibility. Approximately 5.44 million people are collecting state benefits, while roughly 9.2 million are collecting federal benefits through the PUA program and nearly 4.8 million are collecting through the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation program, which provides 13 weeks of payments for those whose state benefits have expired.

Since the initial surge in unemployment claims in mid-March following the implementation of haphazard lockdown measures, over 72 million initial claims have been filed, nearly double the 37 million claims filed throughout the Great Recession in 2008. The unprecedented levels of job loss and the social misery that accompany it, coupled with the growing realization that whatever meager assistance emerges will not be nearly enough to recover what has been lost, are driving millions of jobless workers and their families into destitution.

Exemplifying the severe and unequal character of the social crisis, while US billionaire wealth has grown by over $1 trillion since the start of the pandemic, American personal incomes fell by 1.1 percent, or $221.8 billion, in November. In Illinois, the Greater Chicago Food Depository released a report on Tuesday showing that an average of 50 percent more people in Cook County were seeking help this year compared to last year. Citing research from Feeding America, which estimates that 54 million in the US face food insecurity, nearly 270,000 more households compared to 2018 had trouble finding enough to eat.

Whatever Frankenstein monster of a bill emerges from the protracted political maneuvering and backroom deals that has delayed and denied relief for millions of people for months leading to unnecessary hardship and mass death, the inescapable fact is that the US government has no interest in safeguarding the lives and well-being of the majority of the population. The fight to save lives, end the pandemic, and provide housing and food for all begins with recognizing that workers must organize for their own interests on a shared class basis in opposition to the entire capitalist system.

From Mass Agriculture to Corporatisation of Agriculture

Bhabani Shankar Nayak

Modi and His Washington Masters in Dismantling of Agricultural Economy and Food Security in India

The surge of wealth of Indian billionaires and the Modi led BJP government’s onslaught on poor, marginalised and farmers continue to grow simultaneously as masses face annihilating pandemic of Coronavirus. There is 90 % rise of Indian billionaire’s wealth over last one decade. It is not accidental. The Modi government has reduced corporate income tax from 30 to 22 percent starting from the financial year 2019/20. It has also provided many other opportunities and incentives and foregoing exemptions to corporations. The new corporates established in India after 1st October 2019 will only pay 15 percent. The Modi government further pursuing economic and agricultural policies to further marginalised the poor farmers and empower the wallet of his Hindutva capitalist cronies by reforming agricultural policies to dismantle all safety nets. Modi government follows the policy prescriptions of his Washington masters in the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The Executive Board of the IMF concluded its consultation with the Government of India on 25th of November 2019 and released its Country Report No. 19/385 in December 2019.  The report openly acknowledges deletion of market sensitive information and policy intentions as part of the half-baked IMF’s transparency policy. However, this country report reveals the policy prescriptions for the deepening of market forces in Indian economy. The IMF advocates and encourages the Government of India to reduce corporate income tax and implement both land agricultural reform for further trade and investment liberalisation. It further prescribed to increase and integrate wholesale agriculture markets for the expansion of agricultural exports. The New Agriculture Export Policy (2018) as designed by the Modi government as prescribed by the IMF aims to double agricultural exports to US$ 60 bn by 2022. The IMF further argues that the slow progress in reforming labour, land, and agriculture are creating setbacks in the structural reform process for economic growth and investment. The strengthening of business climate is the central objective of IMF and Modi government. In order to achieve these goals, the Modi led BJP government has approved the Agri-Market Infrastructure Fund of INR 20 billion to be used for development and up-gradation of infrastructure in 10,000 rural agricultural markets and 585 regulated wholesale markets.

It is within this context, the launch of the Adani Agri Logistics is not accidental but a systematic business initiative for procurement, storage, transportation and distribution of food in India. The Adani Agri Logistics is going to develop monopoly over food market. The corporatisation of agriculture and marketisation of food security is going to accelerate hunger and starvation deaths. It will destroy and pave the path for the privatisation of Food Corporation of India. The corporate takeover of the Food Corporation of India is going to be socially and economically disastrous for India and Indians.

The BJP led Modi government is implementing three dangerous agricultural policy reforms prescribed by the IMF. These policies are concomitant with the requirements of market forces. The agricultural reforms policies under the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Ordinance, 2020 are associated with three acts; i) the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, ii) the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act; and iii) the Essential Commodities Amendment Act. These policies are going to destroy farmers freedom to produce and diminish the security of their products and livelihoods. It is a death warrant against agricultural communities and farmers in India. The corporate takeover of Indian agriculture and growth of contract farming will accelerate agricultural capitalism in which corporates will command production, consumption and distribution, and control the lives of 60 percent of Indian population who are engaged in agricultural activities.  Agriculture is the source of livelihood for 494.9 million landless Indians and 263 million Indians depend directly or indirectly on agriculture for their everyday survival.

The Modi government is accelerating agrarian crisis to create business opportunities for the corporations. The agrarian crisis and food insecurities in India move together. The food self-sufficiency, required agricultural production for buffer stocks and accessibility of food for all in India should not just be a dream but a reality given the availability of agricultural technology, land and labour. But unfortunately, successive governments are dismantling every social and economic safety nets designed after Indian independence. The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) is not an insurance for farmers but an income source for private insurance companies in India. This policy will ensure farmers in debt trap in the name if improved flow of credit. On the other hand, the PM Kisan Pension Yojana for small and marginal farmers is a way to consolidate small saving of poor, small and marginal farmers for corporate investment. These policies are detrimental to Indian economy and its people.

India has followed an integrated approach to agricultural economy and food security policy after independence. Production, availability and accessibility of food for all were the objectives of the integrated policy. The objective was to provide minimum support price to farmers and inspire them to produce food for food security of the country. The Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) was established to procure the products and safeguard farmers from the market and maintain price stability to access food for survival. The public distribution system was developed to ensure food security by distribution of food and rationing during food crisis. The Food Corporation of India was integrated within such an integral policy framework to provide buffer stocks to face situations of scarcities caused by natural calamities or war. From food to fashion, the market has always failed to develop a mechanism of egalitarian distribution. The markets only work towards the concentration of wealth in the hands of few and marginalise the masses.

The successive governments led by the Congress Party has destroyed the integrated policy approach to agriculture and food security in India. The Universal Public Distribution System was dismantled by the Congress governments by reforming it as Revamped Public Distribution System and Targeted Public Distribution System. These reforms have destroyed integrated and universalistic characteristics of the agricultural and food security policy to allow market forces to grow during half-hearted liberalisation during 1980s and full-fledged liberalisation and privatisation after the 1991 new economic reforms. The BJP and RSS used to oppose these reform policies during those days in the name of nationalism. But RSS and BJP stand today on the foundations of reform policies created and shaped by the Congress party. There is no difference between Congress Party and BJP when it comes to economic policies. Both uphold the interests of the corporations.

The ruling and capitalist class strategy is to expand consumerism and market of food in a massive scale as a result of which masses will continue to seek work for food. Such a feudal approach of Hindutva capitalism is suitable for political dominance of BJP, social and cultural hegemony of RSS, and economic dominance of corporates over Indian people and their resources. The food insecure and unemployed Indians will always be available as a massive army of low waged labourers for Indian and global capitalist class to amass their profit by inflicting mass misery. The agricultural reforms will accelerate corporatisation of agriculture and create conditions where farmers will be slaves in their own land. The landless farmers and agricultural workers will be low waged workers. Mass misery, hunger and unemployment are going to be three net outcomes of these policies while pushing India and Indians to live under corporate feudalism. The long-term outcomes of these reform policies are going to be more dangerous. Long term food insecurity and unemployment creates conditions for slave society.

The ruling and non-ruling elites in India have found their poster boy in Modi and ideological brotherhood with the BJP and RSS to pursue their hegemony.  The IMF argument behind the productivity of agriculture and empowerment of farmers is dubious. These agricultural reform policies are not going to increase productivity in Indian agriculture and farmers are not going to be prosperous. The capitalism as a system is always against productivity and mass prosperity. Economic productivity of labour has increased with the growth of science and technology, but mass prosperity did not grow. Like the rest of the world, India is witnessing concentration of wealth and marginalisation of masses and their everyday life.  As Prof. David Graeber has argued “the ruling class has figured out that a happy and productive population with free time on their hands is a mortal danger” to their command and controlled system of hegemony called free market capitalism. It is clear that Indian billionaires and their Brahminical social and economic order find its safety net under the leadership of Modi. The western capitalist systems were evolved over centuries of trial and error, but Indian capitalism has built by its consciously designed foundation of caste based Brahminical order. The ruinous economic policies, social disability and political stability are three weapons of Indian ruling and non-ruling class led by Modi. It is important to see the agricultural reform policies within these strategies of corporate cronies of Hindutva government led by Modi.

The farmers movement against the agricultural reform policies of Modi government gives new hopes deepening of democracy for a better India. It has exposed the corporate character of Modi government. It has dismantled the hegemonic narrative of neoliberal governance by the BJP and RSS. The mainstream media and all the hypocritic propaganda of BJP and RSS have failed to hide the authoritarian nakedness of Modi government and all its failures. The united working-class movement in support of Indian farmers can only save India and Indians from medieval forces of Hindutva. The bigotry of BJP and RSS can never be an alternative. These forces can never provide a peaceful and prosperous India to Indians. India needs a second wave of freedom struggle against caste, capitalism and Hindutva to ensure liberty, equality, justice, secularism, socialism and democracy enshrined in the Constitution of India. It is the duty of every Indian to rebuild their country by defeating Hindutva forces and their corporate cronies. The secular and democratic struggles are only path in history for a peaceful and prosperous future for India and Indians.

Self-defense: A simple step towards ending violence against women

Mounica Rudra

Violence against women:

            Violence against women (VAW) is one of the significant problems in the country. It is very underreported because of multiple personal and societal reasons like embarrassment, fear of retaliation, the family’s privacy, and victim-blaming issues by society. According to a study conducted by WHO, at least 1 in 3 (~35%) women faced physical and/or sexual violence in their lifetime. Many forms of violence occur in various situations like Rape, Marital rape, Domestic violence, Dowry Violence, Honor Killings, Acid throwing, forced marriage, Force-feeding, Sexual harassment, Stalking, etc.,

The situation in India:

            Many forms of violence are either unreported or neglected especially in Inda. This is due to certain beliefs and cultural values followed in the country. The main reason for this is believed to be the gender inequality index at 0.488 (2019); this puts India at the bottom 25% in the world’s rankings.

From the graph above, we can see that the number of cases are increasing every year, and these are just the reported ones. Government data shows that 99% of sexual violence cases are unreported, which might be valid for other crimes. So, the numbers on the graph are on the lower side.

Situation worldwide:

According to a study conducted by WHO, this map shows the prevalence of crime across different regions.

Source: WHO

WHO also assessed the health impact on the individuals who have suffered violence, and here are the statistics

• Twice as likely to experience depression
• 5 times more likely to have HIV or other sexually transmitted diseases like syphilis, Chlamydia, or gonorrhea.
• 42% of women who experienced sexual violence have suffered injuries as a result.

So, Just like India’s situation, VAW is prevalent across different regions and is mainly observed in the developing nations.

Impact of COVID-19 on violence against women:

Reports by UN WOMEN show that crimes against women have intensified during the pandemic, especially domestic violence. Reasons for the increase in violence could be the strain put on money and health, which heightened tensions in the family, and living in confined spaces added to this. There were limited resources to help women, as many of them were diverted to aid COVID patients in many countries.

Coming to statistics, Argentina has seen a 25% increase in emergency calls, Cyprus and Singapore has registered a 30% increase in distress calls. A similar situation was witnessed in different countries like Canada, USA, UK, Germany, etc.,

Leading causes of VAW:

            Understanding the causes will help solve the problems at the root level and take precautions, which is a very complex exercise looking at the minimum shift of attitude over the decades. Some of the leading causes are lack of fear in the perpetrator’s mind about getting caught and being punished, perpetrators’ belief that they have the right to abuse, long history of unequal power dynamics between man and women, gender inequality, to remain dominant and discrimination. To deal with these causes, changes are needed from different levels of the socio-political system.

Existing laws to protect women:

There are many laws in place to help women fight against violence. The important ones are

• Violence against women reauthorization act of 2013: This law helps victims of sexual assault and domestic violence
• Family violence prevention and services act (FVPSA): This provides shelters and resources to victims of domestic violence and their children
• Sexual harassment of women at workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act of 2013: This act is in place to ensure women’s safety at the workplace.
• Protection of women from the domestic violence act of 2005: This is a civil law enforced to protect women from physical and mental abuse at home.
• Dowry prohibition act of 1961: This act provides safety against asking or taking dowry at the time of marriage. Dowry is also one of the main reasons for abuse in the country
• The immoral traffic (prevention) act of 1956 (ITPA): This law is put in place to limit prostitution by cutting down various aspects of sex work, reducing trafficking. 

Solutions to protect women:

To protect themselves, one should be self-reliant and not always depend on higher authorities to take action. With the prevailing crime rates, it is more than necessary for every woman to stay safe and use self-defense techniques. Many crimes that happen against women can be stopped if there are systems that make girls physically and emotionally strong to stand up for themselves.

Self-defense techniques promote confidence to tackle the attacker. They empower the ability to use your hands and feet with certain swiftness and emerge victorious from an undesirable situation. Self-defense is not just a tool to protect oneself. It also embeds self-confidence, which helps in achieving much more.

Different initiatives taken by NGO’s/ Companies:

Along with the constitutional laws, so many other sectors and organizations work together to stop this

• Loreal:

Along with an NGO Hollaback, Loreal has come up with a program called STANDUP against street harassment. This is a training program that helps prevent street harassment and create safe and inclusive spaces for all. This has two training programs which tells what to do “when you see it happen” or “If it happens to you.” You can check out the website here and signup.

• Red brigade Lucknow:

The vision of this NGO is FLOW (Fearless life of women). They believe that the way to achieve this is to learn self-defense and be self-reliant. They want to propagate the idea of self-defense using “NISHASTRA” (New Instrument against Sexual Harassment and Stand Against Rape Aggression), which has been very useful from their experience.

This technique is a blend of learning’s from various methods, incidences, situations & real experiences shared by sexual violence survivors. Many countries’ self-defense techniques that precisely fit for self-defense against sexual violence are also included in the training. You can check out their website here.

The way forward:

• Women should be made aware of different helplines and services that are present in case they experience violence.
• Work with men from various backgrounds to sensitize them about the issue
• The government should tie-up with NGOs and various organizations to eradicate the stigma around the problem so more people will report and help end this problem.

Rethinking Solid Waste Management in India

Aastha Dhiman, Mitesh Rajput &  Ravneet Kaur 

Solid waste management in India is one of the most misunderstood topics in the country. It is one of the most pertinent issues due to the wave of rapid urbanization and subsequent lifestyle changes that come across along with it. The per capita waste generation of urban areas in India is around 200-600 grams per day. This waste includes different types of garbage that are not appropriately segregated at the point of generation and, therefore, never get adequately treated in the following cycle.

The municipal corporations in India define specific guidelines for disposal, segregation, and collection of solid wastes. Solid Waste Management Rules 2016 focus on segregation of waste at source, responsibility on the manufacturer to dispose of sanitary and packaging wastes, user fees for collection, disposal, and processing from the bulk generator.

Despite significant development in social, economic, and environmental areas, Solid Waste Management (SWM) remains a significant problem in India. The informal sector has a crucial role in managing and extracting value from this waste. Approximately 90% of residual waste is currently dumped in landfills rather than disposed of adequately at appropriate sites. Current SWM systems are inefficient. Only about 70-80% of the municipal waste gets collected, and only 25 % of this waste is processed and treated. The untreated waste has a negative impact on public health, the environment, and the economy. Many urban local bodies opt for capping of landfills so that the waste does not cause harmful health hazards. But landfills without bottom liners and sideliners allow the leachates originating from waste to seep into the ground and cause groundwater pollution.

Most of India’s significant organizations currently do not have separate dustbins for disposal of biodegradable, non-biodegradable, and paper waste. Even if some organizations try to do it, at the collection points, these wastes tend to get accumulated again due to a lack of proper value chains in the waste management system. This also happens due to the lack of implementation of municipal policies of waste segregation. As a result, the segregated waste again adds up in landfills.

Therefore, each category of waste should be segregated at the point of discard so that treatment is easy and none of it gets piled up in the dump yards.

• The most common form of waste that all households generate in an urban scenario is kitchen waste. Most of this waste is biodegradable, and hence this should be segregated in the kitchen separately from the non-biodegradable wastes. The appropriate method to dump this waste is to have an organic compost (preferably a minimum of 12 feet deep) and compost the waste after dumping.
• The second type of waste most generated in the urban scenarios is the biomedical waste. This is mostly generated by hospitals, pharmacies, and left-over medicines at homes. While some of this waste is not harmful, most of it consists of syringes, solutions, and other toxic waste that is not suitable for landfills. Sadly, most of this waste ends up in the open and is prone to spread diseases and harm stray animals. The most common treatment for such wastes is to incinerate the harmful chemical and biomedical waste. Approximately 90% of regulated medical wastes are suitable for autoclaving, particularly microbiological wastes. Gas sterilization, chemical disinfection, and microwave disinfection are other prominent forms of medical waste disposal. While disposing of such wastes, one thing to be kept in mind is that these techniques require more capital investment. Hence, the waste generators might not be willing to segregate the wastes at the point of generation and send them to appropriate disposal centers.
• Thirdly, plastic, glass, or other materials are generated in the house as non-biodegradable wastes. These wastes generally are not segregated material-wise at the point of generation. However, after collection, these are classified and can be sent to appropriate recycling plants by the type of material.
• The fourth type of waste most generated in urban areas is the e-waste. Since we have started using technology at each point in our lives, and fast-moving gadgets are flooding the market, e-waste has become a large part of urban waste generation. However, there are not enough disposal mechanisms known to the common population. Most of the e-waste can be recycled, refurbished, resold, or salvaged. Suppose the electronic component or device cannot be reused. In that case, it is prudent to recycle the materials present in the waste at designated recycling plants meant specifically for such electronic wastes.

Therefore, at the household level, there needs to be proper segregation and disposal of wastes so that all these kinds of waste can be managed and treated appropriately. Article 51 A of India’s Constitution says that it is the fundamental duty of every citizen of India to protect and improve the natural environment, including forests, lakes, rivers, and wildlife.

Most of the waste management sector initiatives focus more on cleaning, but we need to understand that cleaning and waste management are two different concepts. Hence, we further look at some of the rules defined by law that regulate SWM policies in the country.

Solid Waste Management Policy Change

The Solid Waste Management Policy was changed after 16 years in 2016 to include segregation of waste at the source. This is done such that there could be recovery, reuse, recycle.

The responsibility is on the waste generator to segregate the waste into three categories.

• Biodegradable Waste
• Dry Waste (Plastic, paper, wood)
• Domestic Hazardous (Sanitary Napkins, cleaning agents)

1. Brands: All the bodies (Institutional, hotels, event organizers) are responsible for the waste segregation at the source. Some directions are given to brand owners, too, to reduce the generation of waste. Sanitary Napkin brand has been directed to increase awareness for the disposal and ensure a proper disposal mechanism (like providing a bag for disposal) for their product. Brands that generated packing non-biodegradable waste (Food & beverage industry) are directed to set up a system to collect back the plastic waste generated.

 

2. Fines: Municipal Authorities have been given the freedom to levy penalties for non-segregation of the waste. It is mandated not to bury or burn the waste on public premises. A waste processing facility is to be set up by all local bodies with a population of more than 1 Mn within two years of time.

 

3. Waste to Energy: Non-Recyclable waste could generate energy used in manufacturing processing plants or thermal power plants. The Ministry should create an infrastructure to give incentives or put a minimum cap for the industry to use such waste to create an effective circular economy framework.

 

4. Landfills: The landfill sites should be away from rivers, ponds, highways, and habitable areas. The emission standards have been made stringent. Construction of landfills on the hills has to be avoided. Sanitary Landfills could be there in plain areas. However, processing facilities are functional in hilly areas.

 

Implementation Issue of Solid Waste Management

The main issue is the garbage; instead of getting treatment keeps on rising in the landfill. The municipal bylaws have not changed in the new policy; the municipal corporation could evade responsibility from mandatory waste collection.

One of the significant issues is that the people who collect the waste by going from door to door do not segregate the waste as they are not integrated in the system & do not have proper education or training. The problem at the consumer end who is responsible for the generation of waste is that they do want clean surroundings and prefer garbage not piling up. Still, the issue is they are reluctant to put effort into segregating waste.

Swachh Bharat Mission was started in 2014 with the mission of making India Clean. Solid waste management as part of its mission and the government has taken several measures for it. In one of the case studies of SWM in Solapur, Maharashtra, the research found that 20% of the waste generated in a day remained uncollected. This directly affects human living conditions. Most of the waste-collectors van are open vehicles carrying waste, creating a nuisance of odor & smell as they travel across the city. Significant waste is collected from community bins & commercial establishments.

The waste, when collected, is dumped in the landfill. The landfill site maintenance is deplorable in India. Most of the waste dumped on open. The lack of maintenance of landfills affects the groundwater leading to its contamination because of leachate percolation.

The workers are affected at each level who are responsible for solid waste management. They face health hazards and also injuries because of dealing with sharp scrap material. The workers are more prone to respiratory diseases like asthma & T.B. The workers involved in loading garbage face eye infection problems. The rag pickers suffer from all kinds of pathogenic diseases and are not entitled to the medical facility for their health issues. They hardly earn enough to sustain their two times meal in a day. They are not accepted by society & the irony is they are termed as “Kachrawala” whereas they are the ones cleaning the surrounding.

Also, in the current times of Covid, medical waste is an alarming concern that needs to be handled even before covid medical waste has been a concern for the nation. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), India generates 559 tonnes of biomedical waste a day. 7% of daily medical cannot be processed, that is around 15000 tonnes a year. It is going to lead to a biohazard if the waste is not processed. Some of the infections caused by bio-waste are gastrointestinal, respiratory, Hepatitis, AIDS, etc. Even after a policy change, there are not strict measure in case someone violet rules. Only a show-cause notice or suspension of license is possible. Many projects remain stuck because of the lack of coordination between the environment ministry, CPCB & state level agencies to identify land for the processing waste.

The residential sector is generating more medical waste. The significant contribution is sanitary pads, earbuds or contaminated objects with blood. The government should come up with stringent medical waste regulations too and also promote industry & startups to take up the challenge of handling Medical waste. In the COVID-19, India has generated 18000 tonnes of bio-medical waste in 4 months.

Source: Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB)

The issue is all about the lack of awareness & reluctance of people. Mixing of general solid waste with biomedical waste would result in an additional load on Common Bio-medical Waste Treatment Facilities (CBWTF) incinerators, which are not designed for domestic solid waste. Recyclables that can be stored by isolating it for 3-5 days can be stored & reused. Many people do not know about it, and then through every bio-medical waste into the Yellow bins. The policy needs to rethink the Refuse, Reduce & Recycle policy in the Healthcare sector waste management. Non-segregation of bio-waste with dry waste is leading to a huge crisis.

Changes required to improve solid waste management/new ways of SWM.

Solid waste management policy was implemented to handle the informal sector better and formalize waste collection management. Without a doubt, there has been a lot of improvement in terms of the policy. A new rule has a wide scope of areas covering municipal areas and urban agglomeration, census towns, notified industrial townships, areas under the control of Indian Railways, airports, SEZs, and places of pilgrimage.

Even after the implementation of SWM, still a lot could be done to improve Solid waste management in India.  Some points are mentioned below

Decentralization of waste management – New policy has focused on the centralized committee, but the current system requires a strong and independent and decentralized waste management authority to regulate waste management. Without clear regulation and enforcement, improvements will not happen. Strong waste regulations can drive innovation.

For ex- Ambikapur in Chhattisgarh and Vellore present an excellent example of the same where the waste was collected in a decentralized manner, composted naturally, and is planted.

Attitude & behavior change for waste management – No matter how many policy reforms are on paper. Still, no policy will be successful if the masses do not become a part of it. In order to bring a fundamental shift in public mindset and behaviour towards producing less trash and not littering. Masses should be educated for behavioural change in the storage and disposal of waste. Municipal bodies should probe in media to educate the masses in the separation of waste. NGOs and community participation should be encouraged.

Training & development at an early stage– There is a need to develop training and capacity building at every level. All Indian school children should understand the importance of waste management, the effects of poor waste management on the environment and public health, and everyone’s role and responsibilities in the waste management system. This will develop responsible citizens who regard waste as a resource opportunity.

Levy heavy penalties for not following rules – The new waste management policy fails to impose a heavy penalty on defaulters. Due to the high informal system level, it is difficult to track in case of poor implementation of rules. Also, there is no defined penalty for defaulters, rather it at the discretion of local bodies.

Financial incentives or Tax subsidies for waste management companies – There has been a surge in waste management companies. To mobilize the solid management, govt could fund SWM companies, and infrastructure must be raised from waste producers through a waste tax. Also, the govt. should push companies to take up SWM activities under CSR activities. These funding activities and incentives would probably be sufficient to mobilize the masses for effective waste management throughout India.

Laying down explicit technical norms: It is imperative to make Bio-mining and Bio-remediation compulsory for areas wherever it can be applied because it is one of the most effective processes & eco-friendly. Use of these processes should not be kept at the discretion of local bodies, and rather an independent body should be responsible for deciding the geographical constraints that could prevent the use of the techniques mentioned above.

The decision-makers at all levels of government must opt for more innovative and green approaches rather than falling for the technology-extensive costly methods of waste disposal, which usually are being lobbied for by the manufacturers of such technologies.

Some exceptional case studies of other countries

Case study 1.0 – An artificial island in Singapore (Semakau Landfill: Not Just A ‘Rubbish Island’)

The ‘landfill’ world automatically brings a picture of a smelly garbage mountain to mind because that’s what it usually is. A landfill converted into a bio-diverse hotspot is now home to vibrant mangroves, rich coral reefs, and capital of birds and marine life. The Semakau Landfill is the first offshore landfill in Singapore is designed to protect the natural environment that resulted in an eco-park.

In India, offshore landfills are a great win-win for coastal cities, provided that enough island space is available or there is scope for artificial islands. Also, the Waste to Energy concept of Sweden is an amazing initiative, and if clean energy can be produced, the method can be utilized to electrify rural India and tier 2,3 cities where electricity is a problem.

Case study 2.0: Trading Trash for free Health care

In Malang, Indonesia, 55000 tonnes of waste every day. People living in the city did not have health insurance. Medika, a healthcare company, created clinical insurance that will allow people to exchange garbage for medical services and medicines.

In India, a similar approach could be taken to provide health insurance for the people to exchange their waste in rural and urban regions. This will tackle poverty & also waste problems in the country. This will increase the percentage of recycling waste in India.

Conclusion

The population growth, and especially the creation of megacities, is making SWM a major problem in India. The current situation is that Informal Indian SWM has insufficient waste treatment and dumping facilities. There are significant problems associated with public engagement in waste management, and there is typically a lack of accountability in the community for waste. There is a need for community knowledge to be cultivated and people’s attitudes towards waste to be improved, as this is important for implementing proper and sustainable waste management systems. Sustainable and economically viable waste management combined with the safe disposal of residual waste through the construction of engineered landfills and waste-to-energy installations will ensure maximum resource production from waste. India is facing problems relating to waste policy, the selection of waste technologies, and the availability of adequately qualified people in the waste management industry. India will continue to suffer from inadequate waste management and the effects on public health and the environment until these essential criteria are met.

The dramatic shift in how waste management regimes operate in India will take more than 4-5 years. The 2016 SWM rules lower the hope for the implementation of a decentralized solid waste management mechanism. It will, however, be challenging to see how source segregation functions on the field. To press for better enforcement of these laws, a major awareness campaign needs to be planned in association with governments, NGOs, students, and other stakeholders. The rules need to concentrate on making solid waste management a people’s movement by bringing the problems, concerns, and management of solid waste to residents and grassroots.