A Plan of Action To Battle Covid-19 Pandemic
In my last article, Planned & Organised Deficit Spending I had dwelt on a system for sourcing as much money as required to take on Covid-19. As long as Covid-19 remains uncontrolled, only supply of essential needs, products and services (ENPS) should be addressed.
Many governments across the world have taken some measures, taking into account the monies available with them. In the context of India and taking into account the financial resources available, I would like to suggest the following actions:
● Clamp a lockdown all across the country except in agriculture and food, medicines, hospitals and power supply. These items can be moved freely all across the country with adequate safety precautions and should be made available to all, either through the PDS or independent shops or markets. Personnel in these sectors should be designated ‘Covid-19 Warriors’ and receive special treatment, as is the case.
● The governments should subsidise 100 per cent of all salaries in all sectors and these monies should be directly transferred into personal bank accounts. Personnel in the unorganised sector should also be paid full salaries. Owners and entrepreneurs should also be paid, depending on how much they have declared. Incomes of owners and entrepreneurs in the unorganised sectors should be estimated and paid too via direct bank or wallet transfers. Except for agriculture, food, medicines, hospitals and power bills, no other payments should be allowed in cash.
● No one should be allowed to migrate or move away from residences at their workplaces, as they would be receiving full salaries and be able to pay for food, rent and power and even send monies to their families in the villages.
● The lockdown should be lifted only when a proven vaccine is made available free of cost, with the elderly getting the vaccine first, then others, including the youngest of children.
Sub-head: What would this cost the GOI?
Depending on the time taken to research (where monies have been granted) a workable Covid-19 vaccine, the only outlay the government would have to bear is the payroll of all the working population of India. Even though I do not believe in taxes, the government would be able to recover taxes from all citizens eligible to pay taxes after disbursing monies to them under this payroll scheme.
It should be ensured that farmers are paid a “good” price and that the produce is distributed all across the country. Furthermore, hospitals and other health infrastructure should be up and running, as should pharmaceutical companies and chemists.
All other factories, non-essential services and businesses across sectors, should be closed down and have their workforce staying within the premises of the factories or business. Only such resident personnel should be employed to re-tool factories and business establishments so they may turn clean and green.
| Personnel living at residences within the premise of their workplaces, would only need to switch on the power to restart a factory once they have been vaccinated, and the economy would be back on its feet. From there onwards, the lockdown on the economy could be lifted. |
Personnel living at residences within the premise of their workplaces, would only need to switch on the power to restart a factory once they have been vaccinated, and the economy would be back on its feet. From there onwards, the lockdown on the economy could be lifted.
I agree that this has come too late but maybe some recoveries can still be made. Once payroll is assured by the government ‒ which is required immediately ‒ migrants all across India who have returned, or are waiting to return ‒ could be requested to come back or stay on at the factory premises on full pay.
This principle could also apply to all other employees and business owners, big or small. Of course, the personnel or bosses who can work from home are doing so and are already receiving full pay. This arrangement would then also take care of the requirements of all domestic helps whom the adequately paid employees would then be able to pay in turn. If government employees have been kept on full pay and the government has ordered the lockdown, then rightly, the government should also consider keeping everyone else on the payroll, at least till the economy restarts after the lockdown is lifted and all citizens are vaccinated.
In this manner, all one would have to do is just to turn the power on and restart business. In the current situation, with factories closed and personnel abandoned, so many time consuming and expensive actions need to be taken to restart the economy. However, we can prepare ourselves to get back to a situation where the payroll subsidy may be given from the very first day of the lockdown. That, however, will require prompt actions, like for example, arranging to have all personnel back on employee rosters of all closed businesses.
If ordinary Indian lives are valuable then it is my plea that the above suggestions are acted upon. This is not a dole, but just the government practising good governance.
