MMA - KAS Virtual Dialogue on Political Administration and Reforms held on Wednesday 13th May 2020

Key Takeaways of the Discussion:

• The Coronavirus has demonstrated to the whole world just how fragile our societies are. Our political systems have to be like living organisms.

• In the past few years, we have seen social and political upheaval combined with technological advancements, unheard of for the past thirty years.

• E-Governanceis no more a luxury. It is a vital necessity.

• Around the world, charismatic leaders have rejected ideas like “institutions” and “rules of the game”. They bring in their own agenda of political reforms that seek to do away with all checks on their power.

• While trust in the political system is still high, our politics have started to fray at the edges. Reform is needed before it is too late.

• Historically, a cautious approach to reformhas led to a very high trust in Germany’s political system. But post COVID, reforms will be requiredat a faster pace.

• The strategy that the Indian government will have to adopt to combat the present crisis is to establish a political consensus. 

• Good governance must happen along with socio-economic development, respect for rule of law, successful countering of community spread and appropriate legal framework coupled with capacity building of the citizens.

• Building social capital is crucial at this juncture.

• Lockdown is only a default measure. Slowly, the Government of India is realizing that it is not going to contain the problems and that it cannot provide a holistic approach for the entire problem. 

• Institutional mechanisms will have to be strengthened at all levels. We need to involve the private sector.

• We have to put in mechanism in an organized way, so that the entire gamut of COVID-related problems could be addressed. A Health Emergency Bill should be put in place.

• The World Conference on Natural Disaster Reduction was held in Oklahoma in 1924.It’s high time to hold a global conference of this kind, to take stock of the situation and work out a plan of action for safer work.

• There are four pillars - the policy, institutional framework, technical matrix and financial regime. All should ideally work in tandem towards managing the crisis.

• The country needs immediate succor from hunger. More than 40 crores of people are now suffering. The major issue we need to address is providingfood, shelter and jobs to people hit by the crisis.

• The need of the hour is universal testing and arranging COVID-19 protective equipments, testing kits and mobilising professionals – biologists, scientists and researchers.

• The government alone cannot tackle this issue. The entire health sector will have to be mobilised, for which we require a lot of money.

• Our fight against COVID-19 cannot be half-hearted. It should be on a war footing. It is the Third World War in a different format. 

• Migration of labourers has become a major problem today. We can't ask the labourers to purchase tickets and travel and to pay for accommodation during their quarantine. The government has to mobilise funds for that.

• Ultimately, the rule of law may turn out to be a real challenge.  The government has a responsibility to protect its citizens from the economic impact of the global pandemic.

• The components of the economic packages announced so far may not be adequate to meet the present crisis.

• The state governments are short of funds. With GST regime, the government of India has the responsibility to transfer funds to the state governments in time.

• The data collected on COVID infections is defective and questionable. The testing cannot be done selectively. We need to establish a mechanism. Adhocism will not help.

• The Centre can send the guidelines. But ultimately, the state governments should be empowered, who have to in turn empower the local boards to tackle the problem.

• The World Health Organisation (WHO) may not be able to effectively manage the COVID problem, as its powers are limited. India getting a representation on the WHO Board may not change that situation significantly.

• The government must come out with another package solely focusing on migrant labour. Crores of people cannot be neglected and converted as beggars on the street.

• Some of our COVIDwarriors - health workers and doctors- fight without adequate weapons with them - proper PPEs.  This needs to be addressed.

• The Kerala model of COVID management has been commendable. They have done it in a focused way. They had earlier tackled Nipah virus effectively. It is really a good model for every state.

• The citizens have to be guided. Health literacy will have to be wide spread.