The crisis brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic is an opportunity to “legislate new labour laws that will assure workers decent and fair wages, working conditions and norms, and health and residential facilities”, according a host of academics, including historian Ramachandra Guha, sociologist A.R. Vasavi, and theatre personality Rameshwari Verma, among others. They have written in an open letter to Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa arguing this.
The letter also opposes the recent ordinance brought to the APMC Act in the state. “It is important that key institutions such as the State Agricultural Producers’ Marketing Committee be retained and new rules made to facilitate better servicing of such organisations,” the letter states. It also suggests promotion of farmer-producer organisations and small-scale, rural-based processing and production units. “This will be the realisation of self-reliance and will be more important than promoting the entry and hold of corporate interests in agriculture.”
The letter delineates 14 points, including a host of short term and long-term measures pertaining to labour, food provisioning, agriculture, ecological restoration and conservation, strengthening panchayats, re-skilling youngsters, and public health.
The academics have also requested the government to consider nominating professionals and experienced persons, including civil society members, as advisers to the State emergency task force set up to tackle COVID-19.
