Incompetence at many levels
The floods are an annual reminder that the government’s disaster management system needs an overhaul. It is not just that the government has yet to take steps towards even studying viable methods of prevention, but rather that the post-disaster management is just as ineffective. Floods naturally impact the overall growth figure to the downside, but while emergency assistance programs can plug holes in the GDP figure, the micro fallout hardly ever gets the attention it deserves. And floods, again, are the most pertinent example. Their impact lasts long after the waters recede; not just in terms of large labour relocation, but also degradation, even devastation, of productive land, and hence farmers.
That is exactly what is happening this time, just as last time. And the suffering farmers are getting just about as much attention as last time as well; which means they continue to be victims of official neglect. According to the local press, this year’s floods have already destroyed five crops in eight districts of Punjab alone and cane, cotton, moong, fodder, orchards and vegetables have been affected.
Each in turn affects the country in different ways. Loss of pulses, for example, will not only de-track Punjab’s pulses initiative, but also affect the food supply chain. Cotton, on the other hand, will also cause a chain reaction in the export industry, subsequently impacting the deficit – which already has the IMF worried. Yet, just as last time, while the finance ministry will manage to balance the macro equation, there is no telling what is to become of so many small farmers who will lose this produce and their livelihood as well. Unless they are taken care of, next year’s output might be affected even if there are no floods. The government is reminded of its responsibility at all levels in the disaster management matrix. It must begin with erecting a viable prevention mechanism, and give far more thought on the lives of farmers once the floods are gone.
