Caste, Cyclones And Petty Politics

I enjoyed Barun Mitra's article on caste in Mint today. He hits the hammer on the nail when he says:

As time goes on, economic growth is eroding strong caste distinctions. Indians who want to escape restrictive social customs in their villages can find economic opportunities and upward mobility in cities. Urbanization has also provided an opportunity to remain anonymous in a sea of humanity, in contrast to small towns or villages where it was easy for residents to know each other’s ancestry and caste.

He is equally forthright when it comes to condemning those politicians who are calling for a caste census:

Thus, the only people who would advocate a caste census would be the people who personally benefit from it: namely, politicians who depend on identity politics to win votes. They hail from mostly smaller parties such as the Rashtriya Janata Dal in Bihar or the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh (UP). Marginalized from the halls of power, they think a caste census could facilitate the flow of more money and affirmative action programmes to their political constituencies.

His conclusion rams the point home:

India’s politicians face a clear choice: They can side with the old social order and try to secure their own political future through patronage or they can discard it, like the rest of the country is doing. Indians are on the move and their many identities are becoming optional. It is the politicians who are in danger of being left behind, exposing the true nature of their own identities.

Which brings me to the cyclone that is to hit the East Coast today. Already, 12 people have died. Many more deaths and much more damage is expected - especially to the shacks that poor people on the coast call homes.

Why should the coast be poor? If there was free trade, coastal areas would be rich. There would be solid buildings to take refuge in when cyclones hit - as in Hong Kong, where residents are advised to sit in the bars and while away the time till the typhoon abates.

Thus, as with caste, so with cyclones - it all boils down to petty politics. This is the petty politics of reservations and protection. Both must go.