Social media users In India needs to be careful

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May 24, 2020

There are many table stories and propagandas as the lockdown is coming to an end. We see many circulations on COVID’s misery most of them are proven to be fake. Amid such crises even politicians have not missed the opportunity of taking the situation to a new dimension. The blame game, circulation of videos and false data, creating fear among people is common practice. Social media platforms have generally taken an aggressive stance toward countering coronavirus misinformation. Many offences have been registered across the Maharashtra state for misusing the social media posting or sharing messages, videos or audio. Clips related to rumours and misinformation related to pandemic Covid-19 and also to create rift among two communities. From WhatsApp to TikTok and Facebook to twitter Maharashtra cyber security cell, sending a strict message, also ensured that objectionable posts were removed from the social media.

The cyber security cell has been playing crucial role in curbing the rumour mongering, fake news trend and also spreading of hate messages. The cyber security cell team has strictly warned the citizens against misuse of social media in the backdrop of the pandemic Corona spread and also to target different communities holding them responsible for its chain scare.

The Mumbai-based cyber security cell was also instrumental in tracing many social media users who were responsible for the mass gathering of the migrant labourers outside the Bandra station last month, WhatsApp users in India may be astonished to learn that there’s more to messaging apps than interactive medium. These days it has become a political propaganda tool to porn sharing groups.

Anything to everything, moral to immoral and fake to make belief as truth, this one particular app has not only grabbed your time, peace and attention by making you addicted to it but it has influenced your thought process and also your mindset. It is conditioning you every day against one particular agenda. Educated people falling trap to such things then one can imagine about common man of this country. What are we achieving out of it? No one knows. Similarly, there are many groups in the name of Dalits, Muslims or this party or that party ideology and they just create impression and panic among their community people as if India is not safe for them. They too share photo shopped pictures, videos, fake write-ups and much more to make believe their point by endorsing one or the other political party and condemning rival party. There are thousands of such groups and people are divided in those groups. The acclimatizing goes on 24/7. They just don’t stop there, the same post is circulated on social media by all the participants and from there it again gets circulated further, this is how we are colluding entire ambiance against our country. Trust me our country knows how to live with diversity, all those are born on this soil are belong to this nation and this nation belongs to them. There is nothing to feel unsecured or threatened. You have both sides; if some hate you some are there in bulk to hold you. No matter who so ever rules you, they don’t change your life for sure. WhatsApp is probably the best example of the vast potential that messaging apps hold. With over millions of active users, it helps them socialize. But the abuse of such apps needs to be monitored.

Depending on the content spread on social media, which is unfortunately based on falsified information, the opinions are created. The fake information on social media builds fear psychosis among people. In fact, ongoing tension itself was believed to have been a sure to result of an images of corona dead bodies on road, non-availability of hospital admissions, and much more. Opposition and their supporters making use of social media to tarnish the image of government at the same time create fear in the minds of people. Plus attributed to anti-Hindu and anti-national rant these fake circulations created lots of anxiety among students. There was almost a riot like situation in India but no one took action against the perpetrators, rather action taken on the ones who unmasked the fact, took beatings and attacks. There are many such stories and numerous videos get circulated on WhatsApp, Facebook, and Twitter allegedly showing whatsoever by conditioning the minds of people. Having investigated the sources of every single video, each could have led to communal tensions, panics and unpleasant incidents. Somehow, the people of nation have become slaves to smart phone and IT-Cell Propaganda. Social media has been a breeding ground for misinformation since long time and ironically the seeds of misinformation sown by the so-called responsible people on root level.

While Facebook and Twitter are highly public spaces where news, photos and videos generally flow freely, WhatsApp is more classified. This app was actually designed to keep people’s information secure and private, so no one is able to access the contents of people’s messages but now this has become dangerous tool in people’s hand to propagate all that they want. People are afraid bad things will happen if they say something wrong on social media. WhatsApp is a kind of safe place for people and they can discuss more conspiracy things. However, while WhatsApp-spread misinformation has become an increasing concern across the world — along with efforts to debunk it, this is somewhat looming danger. Without facts checking, the users are irresponsibly passing the messages about COVID19. To maintained peace and to deal with corona pandemic one needs to be smart enough to not get carried away by such schemes.

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Bombay High Court orders cops to block objectionable video

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Afternoon Voice

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May 24, 2020

The Bombay High Court has now directed the Mumbai Police to look into the allegations and the video clip available on Youtube and Facebook. The police have been directed to file an affidavit in reply in a week. It also directed the authorities to investigate Faizal if the police find any substance against him based on the allegations made by the petitioner. Directed the police to immediately block a video clip, which contained inflammatory content and was allegedly aimed at creating communal unrest. A purported supporter of All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) posted the video clip on some social media sites. The bench comprising justices RD Dhanuka and Abhay Ahuja was hearing a petition filed by a city resident named Imran Khan.

Khan moved the high court seeking direction to the authorities to immediately delete the hate speech video uploaded by one Abu Faisal, who claims to be an AIMIM supporter. Khan sought appropriate action against Faizal in accordance with law for uploading the objectionable video. He has also sought a direction to the authorities to permanently block Faizal’s access to social media.

Khan’s counsel, advocate Vivek Shukla, pointed out the wild statements made by Abu Faizal in the video. Faizal, in the video, claimed that the media has been directed to target Muslims and defame Islam under the garb of the coronavirus pandemic. Shukla expressed apprehension that the video uploaded on social media would create hatred between Hindus and Muslims. Shukla said that the police has taken no action although a complaint was made by the petitioner. According to Khan, in the video, it has been alleged that a vicious campaign is led by the RSS in the country to supposedly control the Muslim population. Khan said in the video, Faizal is seen provoking and encouraging his Muslim brethren to assault non-muslim doctors. The bench said the petition prima facie indicated serious allegations about an inflammatory speech by said Abu Faizal for creating hatred between Hindu and Muslim communities, and against the police for inaction.

The migrant issue is an elephant inside the room

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Vaidehi Taman

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May 22, 2020

Migrant Labours, Migrants, Migrants Workers, Maharashtra, Migrants on the Road, Daily Wagers, Lockdown, COVID-19, Coronavirus — Photo: Akshay Redij / Afternoon Voice

It seems that the Maharashtra Government is not realizing it. Thousands of migrants have taken to the streets across Mumbai. Economically and the commercially developed state has many challenges ahead. What we are not realizing today is all this growth of Mumbai is because of the efforts made by migrant workers. From taking part in construction work to selling vegetables and riding cars and autos is largely done by them. These are the same migrants today on the streets of the city majority who contribute to this development. Be it agriculture, factories, production units, logistics, constructions you will realize that this was the lot seen everywhere. It is the credit to their skills and hard work that these people are required in every state. Be it Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Assam, or any state. You will find these laborers everywhere. Now since they have gone back in masses and the general sentiment amongst them is that they might not earn well, but they would like to stay at their homes despite difficulties. What next when we are out of this Pandemic situation? How are we going to fill this gap? No thoughts on this so far.

Also forget the daily wage laborers, there is panic everywhere. Most of the service class working in different corporates and SMEs are migrants who have either majorly lost their jobs or are facing salary cuts. How they are going to recover and become the contributors in the tax system again of the states? Banks are calling such classes whomsoever is a consumer for either car loan or personal loan to do the profiling and check whether these credits will be recovered or not. Panic everywhere, in each sector, in every industry. At this moment government needs to look into the survival mode of people, two long months they are at home and struggling to earn one time meal, many have lost their jobs, small business is shut, beauty parlors, saloons to cooking classes like a small business but big contributors in the economy are totally collapsed. There are EMI’s, installments, rent, and school fees to many other expenses waiting to be paid. The middle class is at stake, with no help from the state government or Centre.

The lockdown has already disproportionately hurt marginalized communities due to loss of livelihood and lack of food, shelter, health, and other basic needs. The government does have a responsibility to protect the health and wellbeing of the population, but some of these steps have left tens of thousands of out-of-work migrant workers stranded, with rail and bus services shut down. The blanket closing of state borders has caused disruption in the supply of essential goods, leading to inflation and fear of shortages. Thousands of homeless people are in need of protection. Police actions to punish those violating orders have reportedly resulted in abuses against people in need. The government is facing an extraordinary challenge to protect over a billion densely packed people, but ramped-up efforts to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in India need to include rights protections. Many police personals and doctors and hospital staff succumbed to COVID19. These front-line workers are not provided with basic safety measures, some doctors who made noise are either got arrested or admitted to the mental asylum. The government should ensure that those at heightened risk, including sanitation workers, community health staff, early childhood caregivers (Anganwadi workers), and people such as midday meal workers – often poorly paid public service officials – who are at the front lines during this crisis, should have been provided protective equipment, medical benefits, and timely wages. Government has no time to look at all these measures; they are busy with social media wars and credit scores.

Above all the lockdown period has caused about two-thirds of production loss — has wiped out around Rs 8 lakh crore. And if the curbs are stretched for 10 weeks, the economy might collapse. The states together could take a hit of Rs 2 lakh crore in the current financial year, while about 10 crore workers in the mining, construction, manufacturing, and services sectors could be rendered jobless. Taking into account the contribution of deferent sectors of the economy and the extent of the lockdown indicates that about 60-70% of the goods and services produced in the country or the GDP is getting lost. Roughly 8-9% of the GDP gets produced in a month on an average. Wholesale and retail trade, hotels, mining, construction sectors will be the worst hit. Agriculture, banking, finance, and power sectors will not be as acted. Farm businesses, essential goods, and services exempted from lockdown have soured less disruption and economic loss. Additionally, e-commerce, except those, which could not transition to work-from-home, and pharmaceutical businesses have also not soured much. These

Businesses are expected to bounce back fully are the lockdown has lied.

Sectors like construction, mining and small businesses dependent on migrant workers will face a supply crunch. The workers who have left cities will take time to come back, or they might not even return. There will be a problem of wages, which might move northward, migration has a completely different behavior. Lockdown continued for about 10 weeks; India’s economy would be completely ruined. Hence, those with the least risk should be allowed to function as soon as possible. The state governments’ revenues have soured massively. The Centre should release the held-up amount of approximately Rs 30,000 crore of GST compensation. Right now, I don’t see any ray of hope, but eventually, things should become breathable or else this would be never-ending loss to mankind and by all means.

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The new rules for #Lockdown4: Implemented from today across the state

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Afternoon Voice

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May 22, 2020

Lockdown, Mumbai, Lockdown 4.0, Maharashtra, Extended Lockdown, Coronavirus, COVID-19, COVID, India Coronavirus — Photo: Akshay Redij / Afternoon Voice

Starting from today, state starts implementing new guidelines for designated red zones and non-red zones, Mumbai does not get any relaxations, barring the opening of non-essential shops from 9 am to 5 pm for non-commercial purpose of upkeep or maintenance of material, plant and machinery. Civic officials pointed out that the guidelines are clear in the notification issued by the state and there is no need for a separate circular for the city.

Also, pre-monsoon works at both public and private properties will be allowed to begin, but only with permission from the local ward office. The Maharashtra government had on Tuesday issued revised guidelines for lockdown 4.0, keeping in place most of the curbs for red zones. Unlike earlier phases of the lockdown, when BMC brought out its own rules, Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal has not come out with a separate circular this time.

In previous phases, the government and the BMC had faced coordination issues. Ambiguously worded orders, different lockdown rules for Mumbai — reopening and subsequent shutting of liquor shops, permitting five non-essential shops in a lane followed by an abrupt retraction in 24 hours — had created chaos and confusion on the ground.

As per the guidelines to be in effect from Friday, while shops, malls and private offices will remain shut in Mumbai, the state has permitted these establishments to open shutters from 9 am to 5 pm for the “purpose of upkeep or maintenance of material, plant and machinery, furniture protection and other pre-monsoon activities”. Even housing societies are permitted to undertake pre-monsoon works.

Officials said that random opening will not be allowed, a permission slip from the civic body will be mandatory. “Shops and private properties will have to submit applications to their respective ward offices. Our ground-level staff will check the applications and permit pre-monsoon works. Otherwise, non-essential shops will open under the pretext of undertaking pre-monsoon works and sell their products,” said a ward officer. Retailers and shopkeepers said that better coordination at the ground level is required. “There needs to be clear guidelines. Also, with non-availability of workers and raw materials, starting maintenance work of the properties won’t be an easy task,” said Viren Shah, president of Federation of Retail Traders Welfare Association.

The earlier lockdown curbs will continue in Mumbai, with no standalone non-essential shops permitted, except electronic and hardware stores… Restaurants will not be allowed to open, but they can offer home delivery. Liquor stores will continue to be shut in the city. Taxi and rickshaws continue to remain prohibited in red zones, while private cars can ferry only two persons besides the driver for essential activities.

Bombay HC discharges Anilkumar Gaikwad in charges of graft

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Afternoon Voice

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May 21, 2020

The anti-corruption bureau (ACB) had booked Anilkumar Gaikwad along with the partners of FA Enterprises, Fateh Mohammed Khatri, and his sons Nisar, Jaitun, Aabid, and Jahid, on September 23, 2015, on charges of graft. Justice AM Badar, however, overruled the special court order on the ground of lack of evidence against Anilkumar Gaikwad.

When asked Gaikwad told Afternoon Voice, “I have immense faith in judiciary and court of law, the five years wait was painful to live with allegations. But finally, justice prevailed.” “I always believed that I will come clean.”

The Bombay high court on Tuesday discharged Anilkumar Gaikwad, the then executive engineer of the Presidency division of the public works department (PWD), from a case related to an irrigation scam in Maharashtra’s Konkan region. Gaikwad was accused of overlooking the rules and forwarding a proposal for registration of FA Enterprises as a Class-1A contractor with the government. He allegedly forwarded the proposals without conducting proper scrutiny of documents submitted by the contractor.

Gaikwad moved HC after the special ACB court rejected his discharge plea on March 15, 2019.The judge also took into consideration a government resolution (GR) issued by the PWD authorities on November 28, 2018, that exempted all their employees from penal consequences arising out of the scrutiny of documents submitted by contractors. The judge noted that the GR stated that PWD employees or officers who may be entrusted with the work of scrutiny of documents submitted by contractors to the department shall not be held responsible for penal consequences in respect of scrutiny of such documents, if those turn out to be false and fabricated.

“As this GR has the retrospective effect, the continuation of prosecution against the applicant (Gaikwad), which is an allegation that he has not ascertained veracity and truthfulness of the documents submitted by the FA Enterprises, would certainly amount to an abuse of the process of the court,” said Justice Badar.

The judge noted that there was hardly any evidence against the PWD engineer Anilkumar Gaikwad.

“Perusal of the entire charge-sheet does not reveal iota of evidence for even prima facie demonstration of an offence of criminal misconduct on the part of the applicant,” said the court. It noted that the entire file relating to the registration and certification of FA Enterprises as a Class-1A government contractor has gone missing. No original document is available to shed light on the registration of FA Enterprises as a Class-1A government contractor, it added.

Leads and Misleads of Maharashtra Irrigation Scam

By

Vaidehi Taman

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May 21, 2020

The Maharashtra Irrigation Scam was one such issue that turned the tables of power. This so-called government scam which involved financial irregularities of Rs 35,000 crore in Maharashtra during 1999-2009. The allegations of corruption were made after a 2012 Economic Survey stated that the state’s irrigation potential had increased by only 0.1% during the past decade, even after Rs 70,000 crore had been spent on the various projects. Vijay Pandhare, an engineer employed by the government claimed that more than half the amount had been pocketed by corrupt political leaders. The Maharashtra Government rejected the allegations and it released a whitepaper, stating that there was a 28% rise in the irrigation potential, giving a clean chit to its ministers. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar was the irrigation minister of Maharashtra during 1999-2009. On 25 April 2008, Deputy Secretary TN Munde issued a circular stating that the Irrigation Department was making exorbitant payments for the various raw materials and components, instead of following the scheduled rates fixed by the department. In December 2009, local media carried a series of articles, accusing Pawar of awarding two projects worth Rs 1,385 crore to the builder-cum-contractor named Avinash Bhonsle, at an inflated cost. In November 2010, Pawar handed over the Irrigation Department to the fellow NCP leader Sunil Tatkare. He also appointed two inquiry committees, which found several financial irregularities. Pawar went on to become the Deputy Chief Minister in December 2010. The media continued to highlight the irregularities in the irrigation projects over the next year. In 2012, the State’s economic survey mentioned that the irrigation potential had grown by just 0.1% in the past decade, leading to criticism by the Opposition. Well the politics was played big time, politicians got scot free but other counter parts got in trap.

Taking the investigation forward in the irrigation scam, the Anti-Corruption Bureau registered case of cheating, forgery and criminal misconduct against five members of the Khatri family, Fateh Mohamed Abdullah Khatri, Nisar Fateh Mohamed Khatri, Jaitun Fateh Mohamed Khatri, Abid Fateh Mohamed Khatri and Jahid Fateh Mohamed Khatri. And against those who were all executive engineers in an irrigation project, and also against some unidentified Mantralaya employees. There was a circular issued by the government in 2001 which stated that a single contractor can’t get more than three projects. ACB claimed that their investigation exposed that in 2006 FA Constructions, which is owned by the Khatris, carried out six projects. Three of the partners in FA Constructions even floated a new firm in 2006 — FA Enterprises — to bag new contracts the probe also revealed that the accused were involved in forging documents to acquire a registration certificate from the Public Works Department (PWD) for FA Enterprises. ACB further alleged that Anilkumar Gaikwad, then the executive engineer with PWD, had helped the accused get the certificate by breaking rules. They booked Gaikwad under the Prevention of Corruption Act for criminal misconduct and with this the nonstop media trails began. Media took every liberty to tarnish the image of engineer, interestingly, when ACB officers went to the PWD office in Mantralaya to check and verify the documents the firm had submitted for registration, the papers were nowhere found. Hence, the ACB booked unknown officials from Mantralaya for destroying evidence. The certificate was issued while senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Chhagan Bhujbal was the PWD minister. Bhujbal was already facing action in connection with the alleged irregularities in the Maharashtra Sadan construction and other projects in the state, later on he was bailed out due to lack of evidences against him. Well, when nothing concluded in investigations the ACB came up with new statement to media stating that the Anil Kumar Gaikwad alone could not have facilitated the issuing of the certificate as well as the subsequent cover up, and the possibility of the association of higher ranking bureaucrats, including those at ministerial level, is being investigated. They included Mantralaya staff responsible for maintenance of files as co-accused in the case, although no one has been named as yet.

The case went on for five long years from September 2015, to till this month. ACB tried its level best to find the threads and establish case. Then the Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis who won elections in Maharashtra on so called expose of irrigation scam with his social worker friend, lost his credibility as the investigation were conducted one by one and no substantial claimed was established. This so-called scam was used for political gains and later on took insensitive twist. In 2019, again government changed, Fadanvis became now opposition leader but his aggression on irrigation scam tamed down. Not only that but the greed for Fadanvis joined hands with Ajit Pawar on 23 November, 2019 and both made few hours government with the help of each other. The very own narrative of Devendra about irrigation scam and calling Ajit Pawar a corrupt leader got diluted. In politics, irrigation scam took back seat but all those unwantedly got involved in the case were making rounds to court for hearings.

Finally, on 20 May, 2020, the Bombay High Court discharges Anilkumar Gaikwad in charges of graft. The anti-corruption bureau (ACB) had booked Anil Kumar Gaikwad along with the partners of FA Enterprises, Fateh Mohammed Khatri, and his sons Nisar, Jaitun, Aabid, and Jahid, however, overruled the special court order on the ground of lack of evidence against Anilkumar Gaikwad and others. Well the case ends here but ACB needs to answer many questions to come clean in their operations.

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Maha Vikas Aghadi – Split wide and Open

By

Vaidehi Taman

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May 20, 2020

MVA, Maha Vikas Aghadi, Uddhav Thackeray, Sharad Pawar, Pawar, Thackeray, MVA Government, Maharashtra Govt, CMO, CM Uddhav Thackeray, Sonia Gandhi, Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray — Image Courtesy: IANS

There are many leaders of ‘Maha Vikas Aghadi’ who have gone vocal in telling media sources about developing clashes between NCP Supremo Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray. Pawar is very much unhappy with Thackeray. Since few days there has been a constant buzz in media, so to put pause to these speculations Sharad Pawar held a meeting with Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to discuss the current challenges triggered by COVID-19 crisis and suggested ways to boost the state’s economy by introducing a policy of “encouraging new incentives” for industry growth and relaxing some conditions of lockdown. During the meeting, Sharad Pawar gave some suggestions to the Chief Minister on various important issues related to transport, education, agriculture, and industry. He said an action plan is needed on how to accommodate those in the various industries for whom new employment opportunities have been created in the state and suggested that to attract new investment in the state, it seems necessary to introduce a policy of encouraging new incentives for industries growth. Pawar was very proficient and to the point. Earlier Uddhav’s government has emphasized on starting industries in the state by relaxing some conditions of the ongoing lockdown. But these steps are not enough. Factories are not in a position to function as workers withing the state and outside the state have migrated to their villages. Pawar pressed the point to plan how migrants can be brought back to city. The NCP chief further stressed that the situation in the state will have to be restored by relaxing some conditions of lockdown and the government shall make some arrangements to open shops, offices and private sector establishments in a regularized and phased manner. In order to increase imports, exports and inland shipping, consultations should be held with businessmen, entrepreneurs and expert officials in the field. He further called for setting up a study group or committee to ensure students, teachers and institutes do not suffer and there is no disruption in imparting education. Pawar told Uddhav to highlight on increasing attendance of ministers and officials in offices as this step will create public confidence that the situation in the state is returning to normal. Appropriate instructions should be issued to the ministers and officials to be present in their office. He expressed concerns towards the disarray of transportation service and observed that there is a need to take appropriate steps to gradually restore road transport within the state, as well as plan for the resumption of air and rail services. He asserted on undertaking a mass awareness program to educate people on maintaining cleanliness and social distancing. Pawar is very much upset on Maharashtra’s suffering during the COVID-19 lockdown. Somewhere he feels Uddhav has not done enough for the state when it comes to good governance.

The visible difference between Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) supremo Sharad Pawar came to surface when he expressed dissatisfaction over his alliance government in the State of Maharashtra’s decision to give consent to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to investigate the Elgar Parishad case, reports the Times of India. Expressing displeasure over Chief Minister (CM) Uddhav Thackeray’s nod to handing over of the case to the NIA, Pawar has repeatedly demanded that a special investigation team headed by a senior officer of the Indian Police Service (IPS) be appointed to investigate into the complaints against police and home department officers in connection with the Elgar Parishad case. Meanwhile, disbelieving Pawar’s claim that the Union Government’s move to take over the investigation was not proper, Maharashtra State’s law and judiciary department has said that it was within the powers of the Union Government to take over the case. In relations to Pawar’s comment, Sena spokesperson Neelam Gorhe said, “The CM must have taken the decision in the larger interest of Maharashtra, one should not look for any political point. The CM must have applied his conscience while taking the decision. The alliance government headed by Uddhav Thackeray has agreed to transfer the 2018 Elgar Parishad case to the NIA complying with a January 25 decision of the Centre. Pawar who played a crucial role in bringing the Congress on board to form an alliance with the Shiv Sena is now regretting his decision.

Interestingly, when the Maha Vikas Aghadi government took charge, Sharad Pawar had written a letter to CM Uddhav, demanding a probe by a SIT. He alleged that the previous BJP-led government abused its power to book activists and called the arrests of activists a conspiracy. Amid the clashes between NCP chief Sharad Pawar and Sena supremo Uddhav Thackeray, Maharashtra’s Deputy CM Ajit Pawar stated that, ‘No fortune teller can predict how long the Uddhav Thackeray government will last’, while addressing reporters in Mumbai. Ajit Pawar, who had previously jumped ship to form an unsuccessful BJP-NCP government, added that things will run smoothly till it runs according to the will of Sonia Gandhi, Sharad Pawar, and Uddhav Thackeray. Dismissing other statements on its crumbling alliance, he said no other statements apart from the three chiefs should be considered. But on the other hand, certain Maha Vikas Aghadi leaders are so restless that they are reaching out to their own media people and expressing their grievances under the condition of anonymity. A Shiv Sena veteran gave statement that, ‘If Cong-NCP don’t behave, Uddhav will resign’, to which a Congress neta revealed his unhappiness over the Thackeray-Pawar clashes. Since there is no restrain from these leaders itself in terms of sharing the internal disdain to outsiders and media, their revelations itself may result in breaking of this ruling parties alliance in future. Earlier, Thackeray challenged the BJP to pull down the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government if they can and the BJP had claimed that Maharashtra government will collapse before completing its tenure of five years owing to infighting. Thackeray and Pawar have locked horns over several issues. There has been discontent among the Sena-NCP-Congress after the expansion of the Maharashtra cabinet as there is a feeling in the Sena camp that the NCP has walked away with not only the highest number of portfolios but also the most important ones. Sena, for example, had to cede the important Home and Finance portfolio.

Within this political mayhem, one needs to realize that Pawar is a very seasoned politician and was the young buddy of Balasaheb Thackeray who founded Shiv Sena. Maharashtra’s political equations have always changed and amended with Sharad Pawar strategies as he is a veteran in the political arena and over the years has brought huge shift in Maharashtra’s political dynamics. Uddhav might have seen politics being with this father but relatively he is a newbie. This greater opportunity was given to him because Shiv Sena wanted to come into power anyhow and that’s why they ditched the BJP. Also, Congress and NCP wanted to revive their dead stems in state politics and this coalition provided a right opportunity for everyone. But no matter how much they team up or patch up, the fact is that their ideological differences have not changed and still remain the same. Till the time Pawar wishes, this coalition will sustain. The day he gets displeased, there is no future to this alliances governance. The Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress alliance was formed after the Sena-BJP ‘Mahayuti’ fell out squabbling over CM post and portfolio sharing. Since then, Shiv Sena which formed a secular coalition has been locking horns over hindutva with Congress, majorly over its hero Savarkar. Amid the growing differences between the allies of the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi government – Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress now, Sharad Pawar is all set to mend his ways once COVID-19 crises settles in state.

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Maha Vikas Aghadi: Alliance have distinct chemistry, even vulnerable to miscarry

By

Afternoon Voice

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May 20, 2020

Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in Maharashtra completes its 100 days of formation, but all is not well within the alliance, it seems Sharad Pawar is very much upset with Uddhav Thackeray’s style of working. His inability to control COVID-19 cases and also on lack of governance has brought disappointment to senior leaders. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) already labelled it a confused and stay government for purportedly halting works its previous release had undertaken.

A very prominent leader of NCP told AV under the condition of anonymity that “The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Congress do not trust Shiv Sena and its leadership and their government is the one which makes announcements only to retreat later. Shiv Sena snapped ties with the BJP and joined hands with the NCP and the Congress, both its ideological opponents for the power but Uddhav as Chief Minister has failed to manage his post.”

Right now, there is absolutely no coordination among the ruling parties. Above all Sonia Gandhi is also upset due to unnecessary attacks on him, after the Palghar lynching case. She expressed her dissatisfaction in handling the case. The internal contradictions have been there for all to see. The controversy over the Elgar Parishad case has still not gone away, with Sharad Pawar demanding a special investigation team, CM Uddhav Thackeray deflecting the matter by handing over the case to NIA, then Pawar’s outfit trying to claw its way back by talking of exploring ways in which the state could still carry out an independent inquiry. The ideological incongruities have also been apparent over the Sena’s open support for CAA and NPR and Congress and NCP’s stiff opposition to CAA-NRC-NPR, with a temporary compromise having been worked out by way of a While Mumbai, Konkan and western Maharashtra could do with a push, there is no way the state could end its longstanding farm crisis and sort out other pressing issues without giving equal status to the other three long-neglected regions of the state – Vidarbha, Marathwada and northern Maharashtra. If the real cause is Maharashtra and not only the Maha Vikas Aghadi’s survival, things could indeed counterpoint a panel that will look into the NRC and NPR issues.

The senior NCP leaders also said that the Sharad Pawar is regretting making Uddhav Thackeray a Chief Minister of Maharashtra. There is ongoing tussle between NCP and Congress, due to the decision of making Sena Supremo a CM. Meanwhile, Sena leader Sanjay Raut, who is considered to be an architect of Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in the state is also upset because in the recent times he is been sidelined by the alliance. Furthermore, there are many veteran leaders of Shiv Sena like Ramdas Kadam and others are not happy with Uddhav’s approach towards them. Over all there is no guarantee of sustenance of this Aghadi for long run.

Long Lockdowns and Sinking Economy is new challenge to India

By

Vaidehi Taman

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May 19, 2020

Migrant, Workers, Labours, Migrant Workers, Economy, Economic Crisis, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Corona, Lockdown, Extended Lockdown, Lockdown 4.0 — Photo: Akshay Redij / Afternoon Voice

When the world and opposition was warning about COVID-19 threat, our government was busy hosting a mass event where lakhs of people travelled to India and left giving us the fatal gift of Corona virus. Once the government got out of its languor and imposed a country-wide lockout, it did not bother about its impact on common man, migrant workers and daily wagers. Ironically on one hand all the MP’s and MLA’s got hike in their salaries amid these crises in spite holding all riches and hardly doing anything for the people at large. On the other hand, the commoners are fighting for one meal and survival but the government turned its back by being mute spectator. The Centre declared the lockdown and imposed other harsh measures without consulting any of the State governments. Just like announcing demonetization, without any clue and survival support, people were thrown out to battle various challenges. Many lost their lives then and many continue losing their lives even today. The anarchy and confusion were foreseeable. No one knows what this government is up to and what this Prime Minister is actually doing? Crores of funds raised to battle the crises, people with large heart rendered donations, crores of rupees were taken as loan from banks in the name of COVID crises and economy revival, but nothing has changed on the ground and no solutions have reached to grass root level. Common man is dying not only with coronavirus, but also lockdown induced sufferings.

Unfortunate migrant laborers had nowhere to go, nothing to eat and none to look to for any help. The lockdown reminds one of this government’s colossal failures such as demonetization and flawed GST implementation. With India already grappling with an economic slowdown and job losses, COVID-19 has struck at the most unfortunate time and the inept insensitive handling by the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government has only worsened the situation. As always, the down-trodden sections of the society have had to bear the brunt of it and suffer worst time in their lives. Doctors, nurses, health workers and police personnel too have had to suffer a lot since the country was not prepared for this tragedy. After the lockdown, it will take months to get the workforce back, and streamline the machinery. There will also be a rush to complete pending projects. Migrants have completely lost faith; they became hopeless and shattered. Asking them to resume is another catastrophe because of the lack of basic humane treatment, they are so scared of present circumstances.

Likewise, in the extreme scenarios now painted, there seems to be no hope for many businesses like media houses, travel and hospitality segments. They will be unfortunately annihilated with job losses, bankruptcies and shutdowns. There are tens of thousands of people stranded across the globe, home or away, at their origins or midway. There will also be untold thousands who would now wish to visit their family after not having been able to be with them in times of deep uncertainty. People may be afraid of travel, but they may also want to move, as if freed from a prison. Post-lockdown, the sales of air tickets may zoom, as may their prices; the related spike in demand may shore up the hospitality sector too. The situation in agriculture is more intricate. The overall amount of work that needs to be done is, roughly speaking, constant within a short time-frame but this is a dynamic and mobile field of employment that faces unique bottlenecks now.

Farmers are sitting on a bumper rabi crop, although there are indications of a 15-20 per cent loss in wheat production due to untimely rain. But there is a shortage of labour, which moves from UP-Bihar to Punjab-Haryana, and also of mechanical harvesters which move from Punjab-Haryana to UP. The fact is that the wheat crop has to be harvested in the next week or two, or else there may be huge production losses. Although several state governments have announced measures to ensure free flow of farm labour, critics contend that the workers face problems at state borders. At this juncture, government may show any maturity, but people are wise enough to understand the intent. The farmers who are felt cheated are now not in a position to take the given opportunity of free flow as they have lost faith in the government policies and indifferent approach to the serious requirements and contribution of farming sector. As their work is dependent on the seasons and natures timings, it’s very critical certain farming activities are done at the right time to reap any fruitful result. Right now, they know that there is no point as even if they slog in farms, there would be more surprises and added challenges until the crop matures. Farming has become very complex issue as the lockdown has destroyed tons of fresh produce as it was left to rot due to lack of harvesting labour permissions. This has added to farmers running into huge losses and steep hike in food prices in markets. Food demand and supply thus as has big gap, and in coming time thus resulting starvation and inflation is inevitable. Employment is one facet of a complex farm scenario where the economic impact on individuals will be across levels. It’s a chain effect. Take one of the acute problems right now: farmer’s access to markets and vegetable mandi’s as their transportation too is hit. There are added costs as they will first take their crops to (the nearest) storage facilities and only later to the markets. Also, allied segments like dairy and poultry have also taken a severe hit and this will result to shrinking incomes. For farmers, warehouse receipts of their crops are not bankable or cashable. Until and unless they sell their crops, they cannot earn money to repay the loans taken earlier to buy seeds and fertilizers and further run their households. The crisis has stressed them badly because the lockdown has hit and damaged on all the modes of additional income. To finance the next crop, the farmers may have to take fresh loans, even if they have been unable to repay the earlier ones. This will result in a classic debt trap that can last several seasons. In the past we have seen this vicious cycle practically break the spirit of thousands of farmers and thousands have died committing suicide due to the stress due to the indifferent government approach and lack of crucial support system at the right time. Farmers are food providers of the nation and must be protected and nurtured in return. At present, the scenario for farmers seems only more grim.

According to the Centre of Indian Trade Unions, over 490 IT employees in Bengaluru and West Bengal have lost their jobs so far, citing a market slowdown due to the global coronavirus the companies have laid off its employees and the startups are in the same boat. They just began, boomed and busted within no time. India’s startup ecosystem is also staring at monstrous losses. Many are instituting layoffs or pay cuts as fears intensify.

Many prominent media houses have sanctioned layoffs or mandatory leave without pay. While the Indian Express and Business Standard newspapers have announced pay cuts, others are also taking steps to curb costs. On April 10, 15 employees of News Nation, a Hindi news national channel were asked to leave with immediate effect. On April 13, digital news website ‘The Quint’ asked about 45 employees to go on indefinite leave without pay. The organisation faced “a truly unprecedented situation” in these circumstances, it is clear that our revenues will be under severe strain over the next 3-4 months. Times Life, the Sunday supplement of the Times of India has also asked its employees to leave on April 13.

On April 15, global airline’s grouping International Air Transport Association (IATA) noted that more than 20 lakh jobs are at risk in India’s aviation sector. Passenger revenue is expected to fall by more than $8.8 billion and passenger demand declined by 36%. Some domestic airlines, such as SpiceJet and GoAir have resorted to leave without pay and layoffs of expat pilots. Travel restrictions, including in India are paralyzing the hospitality sector too. The coronavirus scare has crippled the sector completely. In March, India’s merchandise exports shrunk by a record 34.6% while imports declined 28.7% as countries sealed their borders to combat the virus. Like the hospitality industry, the export sector, too is demanding the government to intervene to save it from the massive crisis. Over 1.5 crore people in India could lose their jobs in the wake of gloomy global trade trends due to Covid-19, predicted the industry body. The sectors that are heavily dependent on exports are apparel, gems, jewellery, handicrafts, engineering among others. The apparel exports sector alone estimates 2.5-3 million job losses because of order cancellations.

The unemployment tracker survey released by Centre for the Monitoring of Indian Economy (CMIE), the only data source of its kind that reports unemployment on a daily, monthly and quarterly basis. The CMIE interviews every day about 3,500 randomly selected persons in its consumer survey. Post-lockdown, like everything else, the survey too came to a halt. They managed to do only 2,289 interviews in the last week of March. But the data was not released as the sample was too small and the week was rather unusual. India has unfortunately shifted economically backward by many years but Government seems to be to hardly bothered with this drastic shift. The national coffers seem to get empty by the day but still no respite to the common man plight as there are no legitimate signs of a economical revival put into action on ground level. Shallow promises of care cannot be the only solution, as ground reality of most Indian’s sadly begs to differ.

(Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@www.afternoonvoice.com)

Shramik Special: Trains with unrest, expectations and dreams to reach home

By

Afternoon Voice

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May 19, 2020

Shramik Special Train, Shramik Special, Huge Crowd of Migrant, Migrant Workers, Bandra Railway Station, Migrants on the Road, Labours, Migrant Workers — Image Courtesy: PTI Photo

Huge crowd of migrant workers gathered outside the Bandra railway station in Mumbai earlier today to board a “Shramik special’ train to Bihar. Only people who had registered themselves (about 1000) were allowed to board, rest were later dispersed by police. unprecedented scenes have been witnessed at Mumbai’s Bandra Railway station after thousands of migrant labourers gathered at the station.

As per initial reports, the migrants were informed that special trains will be running from the Bandra railway station for labourers. Initial reports suggest that migrant labourers have started arriving at Bandra railway station at around 9 am but in just few hours, there were around 4,000 – 5,000 labourers present at the station. Sources also said that migrants had received phone calls from police station informing about special trains being arranged for them from Mumbai. Hundreds of migrant workers were seen standing in long queues in order to catch the Shramik Special train to Bihar on May 19.

Officials say around 230 trains carrying close to 3 lakh migrants have run from various parts of Maharashtra since May 1. Of these about half the trains have been run from Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus. The maximum number of passengers allowed to travel on each of the 24-coach train has been set at 1,200 to comply with the social distancing norms.

Ram Lal a migrant who had to return back after standing for hours in the queue told AV, “We don’t know how to do online registration, moreover need lot of money to buy data and internet usage, we are five members, the form has limited number of recipients, government should start some physical counter for ticket booking for the people like us”

Bhavri Devi said, “I have paid extra money to computer agent who did out booking, it’s been seven days but no confirmation. We have to visit the person again and again with our queries” I am feeling cheated and lost. Needs to go home as early as possible”.

Meanwhile, reports of huge crowd of migrant labourers gathering at Chandigarh and Bhopal railway stations have also been surfaced, according to a news agency.

As the Bandra railway station administration, police officials continue to remove migrants from near the station, four people have been arrested who are accused of spreading the rumour about special trains being run for migrants willing to travel to Uttar Pradesh, Bihar.