It's a deliberate move to prevent legislation
Udit Raj
Point 7 of the CII-Assocham Action Plan under the title 'Preamble'
says "Private sector industry is against any legislation that would
compromise the sanctity of its non-negotiable freedom of choice in
employment." Do we need more to question the timing, intention and
mindset of this Action Plan brought out by our big businesses? There
was tremendous pressure on Indian industry from the government,
political parties, civil society and the public after it was seen that
all along, industry has shirked its social responsibility. The Action
Plan is a deliberate move to pre-empt the intended legislation
proposed by none other than the ruling regime.
The Action Plan, under the title 'Entrepreneurship Development', says
"Larger companies to mentor and create at least one entrepreneur from
Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes a year. To begin with 100
entrepreneurs will be created in the first year." But, how they will
do it is not explained when the entrepreneurial base of deprived
communities is missing. Dalit businessmen will have to be created from
scratch and this will take years. What industry can do instead is to
start employing SCs and STs who, at present, find its doors shut to
them.
Moreover, there are over five lakh inter-racial marriages in the US
whereas Indian business communities marry within themselves. Only if
they start marrying in Dalit communities will we see Dalit
entrepreneurs and not by merely drawing up Action Plans.
JJ Irani's report may be trying to show that affirmative action, as is
practiced in the US, is being pursued. But the situation there is
different; the mindset and motives there are exemplary. IBM provided
reservations to African-Americans way back in 1930. In the US, they
bear the social responsibility for bringing ethnic minorities like the
Hispanics, African-Americans, into the mainstream out of their love
for an inclusive society. For they believe that a nation within a
nation and a society within a society can't work for the happiness of
all. Their charities are unparallelled and unprecedented. Take, for
instance, the recent donation by Warren Buffett. Or the fact that a
white American industrialist founded the Mississippi Medical College
for African-Americans.
In 2003, an African-American student got admission into the Law School of
Michigan University. A white American student challenged this
'affirmative action' which denied him admission even though he had
secured more marks than the African-American student. The case was
heard in the Supreme Court and about 75 industrialists defended the
affirmative action. Please give me some examples on these lines in
India. Rather, there have been indications in newspapers that the
recent anti-reservation protests were funded by corporate money.
In India, R&D is done by public-funded government institutions. On the
other hand, in the US private business does all the research in
science and technology. The public funds the budget of the IITs, IIMs
and AIIMS which provide very subsidised education. But the alumni of
such institutions contribute to the profits of big businesses; this
fact is never recognised and appreciated by our industry. If it can
take the help of government-funded education to grow and reap profits,
then why does it shirk its social responsibility to be an equal
partner in a common destiny and pitch in with some help. If the
government were all-powerful and all- resourceful, the likes of JRD
Tata, Jamnalal Bajaj, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett would not be
needed.
In India, we have legislation providing for reservations for SCs and
STs in government jobs and educational institutions, yet it is not
properly implemented.
The DOPT and the UPSC have taken unreserved seats as 'reserved' for
the so-called upper castes. My belief is that the Action Plan is an
eyewash. But, if the private sector really means it, then we are game
for it. However, without any stringent laws in place I don't see any
obligation falling on industrialists.
—The writer is founder- president of the Indian Justice Party
No comments:
Post a Comment