Starvation and India S Democracy by Dan Banik

Author:Dan Banik [Banik, Dan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Ethnic Studies, Public Policy, Political Economy, Social Services & Welfare, Social Science, Political Science, Regional Studies, General
ISBN: 9781134134151
Google: slB8AgAAQBAJ
Goodreads: 17478855
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2007-05-01T00:00:00+00:00

Three further reports were filed towards the end of December. The first related to the Prime Minister’s criticism of the Orissa government’s handling of the drought and its inability to utilise all available funds.15 The second report was somewhat more sympathetic to the Orissa government’s plight and pointed out that, despite promises by the Prime Minister and the central government, Orissa had not received any additional funds to meet the drought crisis.16 The final report, published on New Year’s Eve 1996, reported on how legislators in Orissa cut across party lines to jointly criticise the central government’s ‘indifference’ to helping areas like Kalahandi with additional financial assistance.17

In the first two of months of 1997, the focus on drought and starvation in the columns of The Hindu dried up. Rather, priority was given to covering the upcoming Panchayat elections in Orissa which were to be organised for the first time in several decades. However, in March 1997, the paper published two reports specifically related to drought and starvation. The first report highlighted the statements by the leaders of Lok Mandal, an organisation of rural workers in Orissa, which expressed concern over the ‘man-made tragedy’ resulting from the scarcity of potable and irrigation water in Kalahandi and several other districts of Orissa.18 The second report, which was based on a visit to Kalahandi by the correspondent, focused on the delay in the allocation of central government funds and the imminent shortage of safe drinking water:

Kalahandi, black spot of Orissa, which is reeling under acute drought conditions, is eagerly awaiting Central clearance of the third instalment of Rs. 4 crore under the Employment Assurance Scheme (EAS) . . . In November last, the Prime Minister . . . promised an immediate ad hoc assistance of Rs. 50 crore. But the State Government has yet to receive the full amount. In fact, the administration appeared a worried lot, for the situation would worsen if it failed to provide employment opportunities when they were needed most.19

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