SWACHCHA BHARAT, SAMARTHA BHARAT, SAMRIDHA BHARAT ( 3S BHARAT ) : PROGRAMME
I am writing this as a follow up of the first draft on the above campaign. I agree that all of you must have expected this much earlier. My only excuse is that I was waiting for the outcome of the fast of Shri Anna Hazare.
Whatever the political implications and interpretations of this grand protest gesture one has to agree that Anna (as he is known in Maharashtra) deserves kudos for earning pride of place for the fight against corruption in high places in the political agenda of the country. His demand for the speedy passage of the Jan-Lokpal Bill has been conceded and the Government has also bent to accept 50 per cent peoples’ representation on the Committee to draft the Bill. How fast the Committee will work and whether the Bill will be carried in the Monsoon Session of Parliament remains to be seen.
All said and done, we have to understand that this is a “corrective action” and not a preventive measure. Secondly, as long as someone is going to be ‘appointed’ by someone (a committee in the present case) political machinations cannot be ruled out. Thirdly, the corrupt in India who thrive rampantly when strong anti-corruption laws are already in place will expectedly be diligent enough to bye-pass one more hurdle-the office of the Jan-Local. Lastly, supposing someone is really brought to the book by the Jan-Lokpal, considerable time will have lapsed in the process and the irreparable damage to the country will already have been done.
We need, therefore, an active Civic Forum to define and initiate preventive measures. In the last draft I had listed 10 demands. If we agree that these demands are sharp enough to sustain a nation-wide campaign I submit the following structural blue-print for the 3S Bharat.
The campaign will operate at the National, State and City/District levels and organizing committees will have to be set up at the respective levels.
The above organizing committees will set up study groups at their respective levels for the following demands and areas of action:
1. Review of all taxation-related laws.
2. Possibilities of legal action/s under the present law.
3. Electoral reforms.
4. Vigilance on black money in and outside the country belonging to all-politicians included.
5. Vigilance on corruption, favoritism and red-tapism in government offices.
6. Vigilance on development policy, development plans and their execution at all levels.
7. Identification and resolution of other civic issues.
8. Advocacy of a culture of decency, dignity and transparency in all walks of life.
Of the above, the first four groups will function at the national level and provide guidelines for volunteers at all levels.
For the items 5 to 8 in the above list local committees will need to be set up. If we take 5 as the minimum number for one of the above committees, a city/district level unit will initially need at least 50 volunteers- to man the organizing committee, the above sub-committees and a few others for miscellaneous functions. These broad figures will help to visualize the size of 3S Bharat at the National level.
We will also have to take a call on how often the activists should meet, the kind of infrastructure the campaign will require, membership and fund-collection and other allied issues. Last but not the least we MUST have a novel action plan and also a fresh gesture/action/identification symbol – it has to be simple, prominent, eye-catching and inspiring.
Allow me to speak my mind on this. The corrupt system has thrown up its garish stereotypes which tend to get more vulgar by the day! Glaring badges, flags, banners, cut-outs, dress codes etc for identity; protest marches, slanderous slogan shouting, hysterical idolization of fallible individuals as campaign; utopian dreams as ideology and the frustration of non-deliverance….the list is endless. Let us not fall into that quagmire!
Let us be more intelligent than the corrupt system and its limpets; let us be more creative than our past leaders; let us show the stamina for a long-drawn “War on Corruption” instead of the short-lived promise of “Solomon Grundy”.
Let us reach the battlefield before the enemy.
Any thoughts on this?
Vinay Hardikar
9 April 2011, Pune.
No comments:
Post a Comment