Government should ensure universalisation in key service sector like health and education to end disparity between rich and poor, felt participants at a state-level consultation towards the people’s mid-term appraisal of the Eleventh Five Year Plan.
Organised by Wada Na Todo Abhiyan, Katha Rakha Abhijan ~ Orissa, Srusti and Network for Social Accountability (NSA), the consultation conducted the people’s mid-term appraisal of the Plan, an initiative billed as the first of its kind.
Eminent academicians, social scientists and civil society representatives placed their views on thematic appraisal of the Eleventh Five Year Plan pertaining to education, health, drinking water and sanitation, nutrition and social safety net and agriculture.
The participants, including budget experts, focused on the unfinished agenda of the government to universalise basic education and health facilities for all citizens.
As far as education is concerned, as against the target literacy rate of 84 percent, the state could achieve only 63 percent as of now. The current gender gap in literacy is as high as 25 percent in the state as against the target of 15 percent. In health sector the target of infant mortality of 37 in 1000 live births stands an illusive dream in contrast to the present rate of 71, they noted.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr JK Roy, former joint director, CRRI said that India will face a serious food crisis in two years if we are not able to meet the four per cent growth rate in two years. He lamented the fact that most of the plan and programmes of the government are for irrigated area whereas a state like Orissa has around 70 per cent of its land under rain-fed agriculture.
Chitta Behera of the Right to Food Campaign maintained that a structural change is necessary at the government of India level to make the Planning Commission a statutory body so that its acts of omission and commission are justiciable. Mr Siba Shankar Mohanty, campaign coordinator, Wada Na Todo Abhiyan, Delhi said the planned expenditure pattern on key sectors has to be people oriented. Most of the time governments are found in fund crunch when spending even the budgetary allocations. The poor monitoring mechanism of the state calls for a strong community driven mechanism so that fruits of development reaches the majority.
More than 120 civil society organisations and associations from all over the state participated in the consultation.