Blog

Monday 9 August 2021

Thank You, Shri Mahtabji

( Shri Mahtab Bhartruhariji– Minister for Labor / bhartruhari.mahtab@gmail.com )

What for ?

For accepting my suggestion

What suggestion ?

To introduce an Urban Job Guarantee Scheme along the lines of MGNREGA

Where reported ?

An Urban Job Guarantee Scheme is the need of the hour / Business Line / 10 Aug 2021

( Authors : CP Chandrashekhar / Jayati Ghosh )

Extract :

Ø The Standing Committee on Labour stated in its report of August 3, 2021 that “there is an imperative need for putting in place an Employment Guarantee Programme for the urban workforce in line with MGNREGA.”

When did you make this suggestion ?

2 YEARS ago, through my following e-mail request to Shri Modiji :

Ø MGNREGA : Can it morph into UBI ? ………………….[ 11 May 2020 ]

Extract :

Ø MGNREGA should be re-named, MGNRUGA ( Mahatma Gandhi National

Rural Urban Employment Guarantee Act )

Ø Besides RURAL households, it should cover URBAN households as well

Ø Besides “ Unskilled Manual Work “, it must also cover “ Semi-skilled / Skilled “

work as well

Ø The daily wages payable , must be the “ Minimum Wage “ at the start of each

Skill level grade and periodically revised upward, depending upon CPI

Ø Number of “ Guaranteed Days of Work Employment / year “ should be :

# Rural Areas ……………………….. 300 days ( up from current 100 days )

# Urban Areas :

Class II towns ………………… 200 days

Class I Cities…………………… 100 days

Ø On MGNRUGA website , there will be provision for,

# Jobless persons to register ( providing full personal data / job locations

preferred / Skill level / prior experience etc )

# Companies / Establishments to register, providing full details of vacancies

# Match-making / Allocation etc

Ø If an Urban establishment provides work to any of the REGISTERED

UNEMPLOYED referred by MGNRUGA web site, it will not be required to pay

wages ( to those persons ), for periods mentioned above

For them, the wages will get paid directly by the Ministry subsidizing , at rates

prescribed under the Act ( DBT ) . Any wages paid in excess , will have to be

borne by the establishment concerned

This “ Wage Subsidy “ will be available ONLY to those establishments, who

install in their premises, Mobile-based Attendance System , as described at :

From BAD to MAD [ 01 June 2016 ]

MAD goes to Mandi [ 02 Jan 2020 ]

HOW WILL THIS HELP ?

Ø This modification of Scheme will cover jobless persons, all over India – not only Rural India

Ø The scheme as it stands now, covers “ works “ related only to ,

# Soil and Water Conservation

# Ground Water Recharge

# Irrigation

# Drainage

# Plantation

# Land……. Etc

My suggestion will extend the scheme to cover urban offices / factories /

shops etc, where millions have been rendered jobless due to lockdown

Ø Current rural schemes have to be monitored by govt officers / panchayat

office-bearers, who may lack supervision skills and / or lack “ motivation “ to

ensure that each MGNREGA worker puts in honest / hard / productive work,

at the end of the day !

As against this, when organized / profit driven establishments ( in Urban

setting ) are supervising such workers, productivity of “ Asset Generation “,

will be very high !

{ Read : https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/11/discovering-

obvious.html }

Ø Because of this Wage Subsidy ( better name it CORONA EMPATHY – so as

not to run foul of WTO ) , MSME will revive faster , with less worry for Cash

Flow . Products will become cheaper

Ø By providing jobs and enabling people to earn their own living , there will be

no need for Delhi-type “ doles “ – which are unsustainable in long run

Ø This ( scheme ) overcomes the major objections against UBI ( Universal

Basic Income ), viz :

# How to decide whom ( defining “ poor “ is difficult ), to give UBI

# People will become too dependent on “ Sarkar Maa-Baap “ and become

lazy / stop looking for work

Ø It is better than the Unemployment Allowance of USA ( now for 33 million

persons, sitting at home )

Dear Shri Narendrabhai,

It is time to think about a PERMANENT SOLUTION to this problem of UN-EMPLOYMENT { even beyond COVID }

Please consider my suggestion

1 comment :

bhuvana12 May 2020 at 01:43

Nice suggestion. Hope it gets implemented soon. The plight of labourers across the country is really pathetic.

==================================================

With regards,

Hemen parekh / hcp@RecruitGuru.com / 10 Aug 2021

Ø Urban Poor : Existence Admitted ! …………………………….[ 21 June 2020 ]

Ø How to Alleviate Urban Poverty ………………………………….[ 10 Sept 2020 ]

Friday 6 August 2021

Congratulations, shri Jagdambika Palji

( Chairperson- Parliamentary Committee on Urban Development )

[ Jagdambika.pal@sansad.nic.in / mp.jpal@yahoo.com ]

What for ?

For making a very sensible and pragmatic suggestion for solving problem of millions of jobless ( job-seeking ) youth , by enabling them to become self-employed

Who made that suggestion ?

Parliamentary Committee on Urban development [ Comm.urban@snsad.nic.in ]

Specifically What suggestion ?

Read following news in today’s Times of India :

Explore revising ceiling on vendor number, urban ministry told

Extract :

Ø A parliamentary panel has recommended the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry to explore the possibility of revisiting the ceiling on the number of Street vendors, which is currently 2.5 % of the population of the city, town, zone or ward

Ø It has said this ceiling is “ grossly inadequate “ in thickly populated cities such as Delhi and Mumbai

Ø The Standing Committee on Urban Development has observed that even after seven years of enactment of law to protect the livelihood of Street Vendors, several states had not taken steps essential for implementation of the Central Legislation like carrying out VENDOR SURVEYS and forming TOWN VENDING COMMITTEES

Ø The report comes at a time when the Centre has rolled out a scheme for subsidized loans of Rs 10,000 to Street Vendors

Ø As of July 30, 43.3 lakh vendors had applied for the loan and 25.3 lakh of these applications had been sanctioned

Banks had disbursed loans to 22.8 lakh Street Vendors

=============================================

Thank You, Shri Jagdambika Palji,

For considering – and endorsing – my suggestion to allow / permit / enable / empower, ANYONE / ANYEHERE, to become a Street Vendor ( ie: essentially, to become SELF-EMPLOYED )

Especially when :

Ø Millions of millions of young and old, are already jobless ( more so after the pandemic )

Ø Every year , country is adding 12 million to its “ Army of Unemployed “

Ø Neither the Public Sector, nor the Private sector is in a position to create so many “ Paid Jobs “

Over the past few months, I have sent following E-mails to our Cabinet Minister / MPs / MLAs / State Chief Ministers / NITI Aayog etc :

Ø RBI : Do not Nudge : Shove ………………………………………….[ 14 June 2021 ]

Extract :

Dear RBI,

Thank you for giving this NUDGE to PSBs ( Public Sector Banks ) . I hope PSBs will act upon your advice expeditiously . That is good nudge

But, you can give ( this scheme ) a powerful SHOVE , by urging the Central Govt to enlarge / expand, the ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

For a long time, I have been pleading with the Govt ( read my following e-mails ) to ,

> Not restrict the scheme ONLY to those persons who are ( currently ) or were

( in the past ), Street Vendors or who have been SURVEYED

I have advocated that the Scheme should be open to ANYONE who may not be eligible as per above criteria but who just WANTS to become a SELF – EMPLOYED STREET VENDOR

Dear Shri Narendrabhai,

Ø I request your PERSONAL INTERVENTION in changing the Eligibility Criteria for Street Vendor Scheme

My earlier E Mails on the subject :

Ø Street Vendor Loan Scheme ……………………………………..[ 14 May 2020 ]