The minimum wage and social security of daily wage earners in agriculture sector have shown no sign of improvement because of discriminatory policy of the Odisha Government.
The rate of minimum wage in Odisha is one of the lowest in the country while on social security front the State continues to cut a sorry figure. It is Rs 224 per day wage and Rs 300 per month old age pension as social security in old age.
The Union Ministry of labour reported that the cost of living of the agricultural workers in Odisha is one of the lowest in the country.
Not just wage but a vast majority of the families of these workers have no basic amenities for a simple living. The census 2011 has estimated the presence of about 68 lakh agricultural workers and a major section of them is merely seasonally employed as the employment opportunity in agriculture sector has not increased, rather in recent years, the mechanization boost with State subsidy has reduced the employment scope of manual workers in many ways.
These section of workers mostly belongs to the socially-marginalised communities those who are experiencing social exclusion, due to continued prevalence of practices of untouchability in many forms, caste atrocities of heinous nature and many forms of social discrimination based on caste, ethnicity, gender and other forms of social identities, especially in rural areas.
landlessness, illiteracy and lack of access to credit along with social barriers collectively restrict their participation to go beyond locally available wage labour or distress migration.
They have no food security, social security and suffer with restricted access to available public infrastructure in the village while manage with bare minimum basic amenities of living. The current trend shows that there is no hope for any drastic change in the State policy in the coming days; rather the workers are waiting for the worst to happen.
In recent times, due to changing macro-economic trends, the number of agriculture workers has increased because many of the small and marginal farmers of backward classes and Adivasies with minimum land holding become landless due to displacement and conversion of huge agricultural land and forest for non–agricultural purpose, such as mining and industrial and other private, commercial purposes. This has paved the way for many unskilled persons to getting into wage earning as most preferred agricultural workers. The increasing cost of agriculture input and risk of natural calamities in the absence of adequate State protection made small and marginal farmers vulnerable.
In some parts of the State, attractive package of private companies’ contract farming has motivated the small and marginal farmers to lease out their small holdings and the situation forced them to join as wage labourers. The rate of minimum wage in some of the developed States such as Kerala, Punjab and Tamil Nadu is relatively higher along with support of basic amenities and services for rural poor. With better social security pension scheme for agricultural worker, the minimum wage of agricultural workers in Kerala is Rs 600 per day.
The provision of providing land to agricultural workers and their cooperatives for agricultural activities under the land Settlement Act,1962 has been avoided by the Odisha Government but this has been well implemented in many other States including Kerala. The attractive wage and social security package may be one of the major reasons of labour migration from Odisha to other States.
The continued poor wage rate of Odisha must be changed to arrest distress migration of workers from rural parts, lest it would have wider ramifications over rural agriculture and economy.
The salary and social security benefits of organised sector employees, people’s representatives, policy makers, bureaucrats, academicians, media houses are consistently increasing and social security benefits are being paid out of public finance.
These dominant and organised educated sections of the State are better paid through continuous negotiations, protest and pressures in different ways while the illiterate and poorest of the poor producers are always less paid because their issues and conditions are not so well discussed in decision making bodies and the most informed sections have not paid adequate attention to organise them for a better deal with the State.
They are not yet well represented in leadership positions of political parties, trade unions and civil society bodies of the State to voice their issues and concerns.
The ruling parties always prefer State charity to pacify the genuine demands of the poorer section and make them appease with short term little benefits out of State fund. It has been observed that the State Government does not follow any policy or convention while fixing the minimum wage of the agricultural workers.
The trade unions representing in such negotiating bodies have minimal influence over the decision due to lack of organisational strength and movement of agricultural workers. The social movements in the State among marginalised section have not projected economic issues such as minimum wage and social security as one of the most important dimensions of social change.
The Agriculture Workers Inquiry Committee of 1950 and 1956 has recommended many policy measures but they are not implemented due to lack of political will of the ruling parties. In the labour legislations of the country, the issues of agricultural workers feature the least.
The minimum wage fixing machinery (agriculture) convention and minimum wage fixing convention of IlO apart from Supreme Court judgment of 1991 say that the minimum wage must cover the living expenses of workers and his/her family members.
It must be reasonable to the general level of wage earned and the living standard of other social groups but unfortunately the State Government does not take into account such guidelines and the demand of trade unions of unorganised sector workers, agricultural workers unions and social movements are undermined. Similarly in case of compensation against loss, while the land owning farmers are being compensated due to crop loss, the agricultural workers are getting nothing as compensation during natural calamities because of their loss of employment and wage.
It has been demanded that during natural calamities, the agricultural workers must be compensated for a minimum period with alterative employment or social security benefits to earn a living to avoid starvation during the natural calamities and other lean periods in rural areas of the State.
However, it is high time that State Government hiked the minimum wage of agricultural workers to at least Rs500 per day at par with other developed States and implement social security measures especially the old age pension to rural wage earners. It must be ensured that they get basic amenities such as housing, drinking water, electricity, lPG connection and toilets and other sanitary facilities.
(manasbbsr15@gmail.com)