Covid-19 move tests PM Modi’s support as lockdown hits poor
I voted for Modi in all the elections but now I’m very sure that he works only for the big people and not for a man like me Ravi Prasad Gupta A former worker at a pipe plant in Gujarat
Modi is 100 per cent right. He should extend the lockdown. It’s because of middlemen that we are not getting food Prahlad Kushwaha An unemployed labourer in Mumbai
new delhi — Ravi Prasad Gupta, a worker at a pipe plant in the western Indian state of Gujarat, for years proudly supported Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his promise to usher in “good days” for millions of impoverished labourers.
But Modi on March 24 announced a three-week lockdown to fight the coronavirus, which meant Gupta lost his job and so decided to head home, first by train and then on foot.
“I voted for Modi in all the elections but now I’m very sure that he works only for the big people and not for a man like me,” Gupta said in the northern town of Lucknow where he was getting on a truck for the next leg of his journey home.
The shutdown has dealt a body blow to India’s neediest, many of whom have long backed Modi.
Thousands of desperate day labourers like Gupta have walked hundreds of miles home — and more than 20 have reportedly died on the way. In slums, anxious families are low on food, while homeless shelters are overflowing.
Modi has apologised to the poor and two days after announcing the lockdown, his government unveiled a $23 billion economic plan to hand out cash and food.
Government critics say the shutdown was poorly planned, and that authorities are now scrambling to contain its fallout instead of focusing on the coronavirus.
Rivals also accuse Modi of being tone-deaf to the suffering of the poor and of seeking to polish his image with the crisis.
During a radio address on Sunday, Modi encouraged Indians cooped up at home to reach out to childhood friends on social media, dust off old musical instruments and introspect.
He has also shared some cartoon videos called “Yoga with Modi” for keeping fit, and encouraged people to watch them on a special Modi app.
He has also created a relief fund — PM-CARES — sidelining a decades-old traditional prime ministerial aid fund. “Why the self-aggrandising name, PMCARES? Must a colossal national tragedy also be (mis)used to enhance the cult of personality?” historian Ramachandra Guha, a Modi critic, said on Twitter.
Shaina NC, an official with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, said criticism of the lockdown was unwarranted.
Some state governments blame Modi’s top-down management style for what they see as the chaotic implementation of the shutdown, which has complicated operations for e-commerce, medical device makers and farmers.
“Did the prime minister talk to any of the state governments before
unilaterally announcing it? No,” said Bhupesh Baghel, the chief minister of opposition-ruled Chhattisgarh state. If given proper notice, he said, Chhattisgarh could have stocked up on essentials and coordinated with neighbouring states.
Two central government officials dealing with the shutdown said Modi’s administration had not expected it to trigger the exodus of migrant workers.
“This was not anticipated, perhaps the time was too short,” said one, referring to the advance notice, who declined to be identified as he is not authorised to speak to media. Modi said on Thursday the lockdown would end in phases, amid fears there could be a second wave of infections.
To be sure, Modi remains India’s most popular politician and some of his supporters are blaming others for the problems. —