THE ANXIETY OF THE INDIAN BOURGEOISIE and its articulation are writ large in the slew of actions and reforms that the Central and State governments have announced to overcome the economic crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. This is obvious from the crude coercive expression of intent by Karnataka which, at the behest of the builders’ syndicate, cancelled special trains from Bengaluru meant to ferry stranded migrant workers to their homes, and from the Central government’s “economic package”. These point to a consciously conceived path to recovery from the current economic crisis by Indian capital in its characteristic moribund manner.
In a world that is starting to build anew, fully conscious that the new may not resemble the old, Indian capital has made a renewed and aggressive push for a decadent neoliberalism it hopes will help overcome the current crisis. This path to recovery will not only devastate the livelihoods of a large section of the Indian population but undermine capital itself. It is increasingly evident that the Indian bourgeoisie lacks an enlightened articulation of its self-interest. Overcoming this crisis will have to be a case of saving capitalism from itself.
CRISIS OF CAPITAL
Much of the world economy was already in chronic slowdown when the COVID-19 shock pushed it into an unprecedented crisis. Suspension of economic activity to limit the contagion by physical distancing, though imperative for mitigating pandemic-driven mortality, has led to a complete breakdown of the usual course of production and exchange. This has been detrimental to both capital and labour, though its repercussions are differentiated in form and severity contingent on their respective role in the reproduction of the social order.
Bu hikaye FRONTLINE dergisinin June 5, 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye FRONTLINE dergisinin June 5, 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Sarpanchs as game changers
Odisha manages to keep COVID-19 well under control because of the strong participation of panchayati raj institutions and the community at the grass-roots level under the leadership of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
New worries
Kerala’s measured approach to the pandemic and lockdown has yielded results. But it still has to grapple with their huge economic impact on its economy, which it feels the Centre’s special financial relief package does little to alleviate.
Capital's Malthusian moment
In a world that needs substantial reorienting of production and distribution, Indian capital is resorting to a militant form of moribund neoliberalism to overcome its current crisis. In this pursuit of profit, it is ready and willing to throw into mortal peril millions whom it adjudicates as not worth their means—an admixture of social Darwinism born of capital’s avarice and brutalism spawned by Hindutva. .
Waiting for Jabalpur moment
The Supreme Court’s role in ensuring executive accountability during the ongoing lockdown leaves much to be desired. Standing in shining contrast is the record of some High Courts.
An empty package
The Modi regime, which has been unable to control the COVID-19 infection, restore economic activity and provide relief to millions exposed to starvation, trains its sights on Indian democracy, making use of the panic generated by fear and a lockdown that forecloses paths of resistance.
Job Offers Withdrawn, Internships Now Unpaid
Engineering and business school graduates stare at a bleak future as job offers are withdrawn or revised, while delays in joining dates add to the climate of uncertainty.
In search of a road map
It is now increasingly clear that the government did not think through and provide for the consequences of the lockdown.
Clueless captain
As the nation longs for relief from the pandemic and the economic misery caused by an ill-planned lockdown, the government prefers symbolism over substance, exposing its lack of meaningful leadership.
RISING TREND
There are no signs of any let-up in the COVID case numbers well into the third phase of the lockdown even as issues of violation of physical distancing norms, mistreatment of front-line health workers, inadequate public health infrastructure and increasing distress among the poor come to the fore in most States, besides of course the low testing numbers and haphazard screening and isolation of suspect cases.
Dystopian pipe dream
The reluctance of the Narendra Modi regime to extend fiscal support to those in real need of help during a prolonged lockdown suggests that it is promoting further concentration of capital. Dire consequences await the economy and the polity.
