Findings of a Socio-Economic & Political Survey in Rural Bengal
Parthib Basu, Debesh Das
PANCHAYAT elections are scheduled to be held on July 8 in West Bengal. To understand the current condition of rural Bengal and the perspectives of its residents, a socio-political survey organization called 'Janaman' conducted two consecutive surveys over the past year. These surveys, in two phases, involved over 25,000 respondents and brought out the present state of rural Bengal as well as what people think about the functioning of the panchayats and the roles played by various political parties.
· Crop price
A significant portion of the respondents, approximately 69 per cent, who are part of the farming community, complained that they are not getting the right price for their crops. Out of this group, 20 per cent held the middlemen responsible for this, while approximately 28 per cent held the state government accountable for the problem.
· Job availability in villages
As farming is providing fewer opportunities for livelihood in the villages, the search for alternative employment has become a necessity. Unfortunately, the job scenario in rural Bengal paints a bleak picture of frustration and despair. A staggering 83 per cent of the respondents expressed that there are no employment opportunities available. Approximately 70 per cent migrate in search of jobs, with 35 per cent leaving the state in pursuit of employment. Around 13 per cent of the respondents said they had to depend on various government assistance programmes to meet their basic needs. Even in industrial rural areas like the West Burdwan district, joblessness is a prevalent issue. In this region, 61 per cent of the respondents reported a lack of job opportunities or extremely limited job openings. 18 per cent attributed their unemployment to the closure of industrial units.
· Hundred days work under MGNREGA
There is a significant level of disenchantment, if not frustration, regarding jobs provided by under the MGNREGA. The survey reveals that a mere 14 per cent of people are satisfied with the programme, while the remaining 86 per cent have faced various issues. Among the respondents, 50 per cent reported being unsuccessful in securing any job opportunities through MGNREGA. About 24 per cent claimed that despite managing to secure a job, they did not receive payment for their work.
· Migration
A previous survey conducted by the same team in the year 2021-2022 among people residing in shanties or on the roadsides in Kolkata, indicated that 68 per cent of these people had migrated from villages after the year 2011 when the Trinamool Congress assumed power in Bengal. The reasons for this migration from villages to the streets of Kolkata were diverse, including agricultural losses, insufficient wages, and mounting debts.
· Panchayats’ performance
When asked about the functioning of panchayats, 78 per cent of the respondents expressed their dissatisfaction. When respondents were asked about the prevalence of corruption in the panchayat system, 78 per cent of them expressed that there is either corruption or nepotism in the delivery of services. Out of this group, 68 per cent attributed the responsibility to either the panchayat pradhan or other panchayat functionaries. Another 10 per cent directly blamed the state government for fostering corruption within the panchayat system.
· Redressal mechanisms
Naturally, it is challenging for people to report corruption to the police. Moreover, people may be hesitant to approach other administrative authorities out of fear of their identities being exposed. Knowing very well about the situation, the state government, led by the Trinamool Congress, introduced a unique phone-in programme called 'Didi ke Bolo' or 'Tell Didi,' enabling citizens to directly express their grievances to the chief minister. However, 84 per cent of the respondents revealed that they were unable to register their complaints or voice their grievances through this phone-in programme. 10 per cent of respondents, although fortunate enough to have their complaints registered, reported no subsequent action being taken in response to their grievances.
· Perception on political parties
In the last assembly election held in 2021, the three leading political parties in terms of vote percentage were Trinamool Congress, BJP, and CPI(M). To gauge the present perception of these parties, the survey team interviewed approximately 14,000 people. The team asked the respondents to identify the most suitable characteristic among the following four options for each political party: mass contact, pretentiousness, honesty, and corruption. The results are shown in the following table
Table: Main features of a particular party
Subject | Trinamool Congress | BJP | CPI(M) |
They are having good mass contact | 39.2 | 34.3 | 33.7 |
They are pretentious | 11.6 | 24.4 | 6.9 |
They are honest | 3.6 | 10.0 | 51.6 |
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Out of the 14,000 people surveyed, about 50 per cent of the respondents identified corruption as the main characteristic of political parties. Among those who indicated corruption as the main characteristic, 56.1 per cent specifically associated it with Trinamool Congress, 14.1 per cent attributed it to BJP, and only 2.5 per cent associated it with CPI(M). Some people mentioned about corruption of more than one political party.
· Poll prospects
The survey team also inquired about the potential impact of rampant corruption on the electoral prospects of the ruling party, Trinamool Congress (TMC). Among the respondents, 68 per cent believed that corruption would have a negative effect on the ruling party's vote share in the upcoming election. Furthermore, 34 per cent of the respondents expressed the possibility that TMC could even lose the election due to the presence of corruption within their ranks.
· Influence of communalism
The survey team aimed to assess the influence of communalism on the people. Encouragingly, the findings revealed that about 92 per cent of the respondents expressed their strong opposition to communalism or communal hatred.
The survey results clearly indicate a growing sense of anti-incumbency against the Trinamool Congress and its declining popularity in rural Bengal. While people's perceptions and ground realities may not always align precisely, government statistics on the performance of the Trinamool government in improving the lives of people in rural areas of Bengal not only support the survey findings but also reveal a worsening situation.
