Devolution of powers and finances up to local levels and challenges therein.
Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors
The role of NGOs, SHGs and various groups
COVID-19: Social democracy and dividends for Kerala
Context: Kerala was the first State with a recorded case of coronavirus
Given Kerala’s population density, deep connections to the global economy and the high international mobility of its citizens, it was primed to be COVID-19 hotspot.
However, Kerala has been able to effectively contain the pandemic leading to flattened coronavirus curve (refer the image below).
Daily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 18th April 2020
Kerala’s ability to effectively tackle crisis is attributed to its robust Social Democracy
What is Social Democracy and what are its features?
Social democracies are built on an encompassing social pact with a political commitment to providing basic welfare and broad-based opportunity to all citizens
It supports practical, progressive reforms of capitalism (free-market economy) and is more concerned to administrate and humanize it — a key difference with Socialism which detests free-market economy
The emphasis is on State interventions to promote Social Justice — a key difference with Capitalism
Presence of vibrant Civil Society and robust institutions that checks State’s actions
Values of Liberalism, tolerance and decentralisation is promoted
Treats people not as subjects or clients, but as rights-bearing citizens.
Social Democracy can thus be considered as mid-path between Socialism and Capitalism.
Majority of countries in the world have adopted this model with the differing inclination towards free-market economy or State interference
How did Social Democratic Culture emerge in Kerala?
It emerged from recurrent episodes of popular mobilisation
Temple entry movement of the 1930s
Peasant and workers’ movements in the 1950s and 1960s,
Mass literacy movement in the 1980s,
Kerala Sasthra Sahithya Parishad (KSSP)-led movement for people’s decentralised planning in the 1990s
Recent gender and environmental movements
Advantages of Social Democracy- which is reflected in the state of Kerala
Nurtures a strong sense of social citizenship
Builds Institutions: Social Democracy drives reforms that strengthens the legal and institutional capacity for public action
Emphasis on rights-based welfare instead of clientele/patronage based welfare
Reinforces a vibrant, organised civil society which demands continuous accountability from authority
It pressures all governments, regardless of the political party in power, to deliver public services and to constantly expand the social safety net.
Pressurises to empower local government – Nowhere in India are local governments as resourced and as capable as in Kerala
Generalised Trust on the State, which enables heightened compliance with State’s directives
How was Kerala able to manage the pandemic effectively?
Due to its strong Social Democratic Culture, the government was able to
Convince citizens to comply with State’s directives (Enhanced Trust on State)
Quickly mobilise financial and societal resources – Announced COVID-19 package much ahead of National relief package
Smoothly coordinate across multiple authorities and jurisdictions – Creation of State response team that coordinated 18 different functional teams
Effective Communication: Daily press conferences with the public by CM to ensure the connect with public and to remind the public that virus does not discriminate, destigmatising the pandemic.
Social Issue: Government emphasised lockdown response was less an enforcement issue than about people’s participation
Leverage a broad and dense health-care system: Despite the recent growth of private health services, Kerala has maintained a robust public presence.
Taking into the confidence the front-line workers: Kerala’s public health-care workers are highly unionised and organised which made the government lay emphasis on protecting the health of first responders.
Highly mobilised civil society- As the cases multiplied, the government called on two lakh volunteers to go door to door, identifying those at risk and those in need.
Food Needs taken care of: Government was able to deliverthree lakh meals a day through Kudumbasree (Self-Help group) community kitchens
Last Mile Care: Two decades of empowering local governments in Kerala enabled in focalising containment efforts in hotspots
Conclusion
The pandemic is a physical exam of the social body, and never has public trust been put to a greater test.
Kerala has managed the crisis by building on legacies of egalitarianism, social rights and public trust
Connecting the dots:
Socialism with Chinese characteristics
Delhi model of development (during AAP government’s tenure)
