Editor,
“An empty belly does not listen to a sermon, but it is the food that will tempt.”
Every day, from dawn to dusk Ane Pakri, an old woman in her early 60s works tirelessly in her plot of land. The concept of ‘Atmanirbhar’ seems to be derived from her. She works arduously in her field which produces pineapple and other cash crops like areca nut, taro root, bamboo, etc. And whenever we visit her cultivated land, she narrates her plights in managing things such as engaging laborers for fencing, cleaning grass, the trespass of Mithuns (Bos Frontalis), and damage caused by the unruly beasts and climate. Moreover, it is quite fascinating to know that she has dozens of government-issued farming-oriented cards such as Kishan Bima, cards of Horticulture, Fishery, etc. which are of no use to her.
As she narrates to date, she has not availed any of government facilities except free ration from the “Modi Sorkar,” and she manages herself by selling the produces from her field and barter items like barbed wire for `fencing & other essential items of daily use. This is the story of every mother in our rural areas who manages everything by themselves without proper government aid and assistance for their survival. A group of mothers in the foothill village of Arunachal collect agricultural products and sell them in the nearby Silapathar Assam market by waking up in the wee hours to reach the market, in the absence of a proper means of buying and selling market in the locality with a better price.
No doubt, the government of the day has done some commendable jobs in providing basic facilities to its citizens of which CMAY is prominent, but the rest of the public and farmers-oriented schemes are yet to be implemented in the right way. Nepotism, biases, and politics are still directing people in authority while awarding government welfare schemes at the grass root level. In most cases, farming-oriented schemes are awarded to the people who have a stronghold in society, which further enlarges the gap between ‘haves and have nots.’
As a result, in the election, the poor population which has been suppressed throughout the five glorious years by a bunch of people, tries to quench their thirst without paying heed to what is morally right or wrong. To address the menace of the money culture in the election in our state, the first thing is to identify the underprivileged, needy, and old sections of society and uplift and promote them to attain the basic amenities in their lives. It is not enough just to identify ailments, but we should press on curing the ailments.
Yiri Kamcham
Kamcham, Lower Siang