The desires and aspirations of marginal social communities living in the interiors are different from those who reside in cities, towns, and villages near highways.
These are the communities that have been on the receiving end of a neo-liberal economy, which is led by an aggressive State. These communities aspire for resources linked to their livelihood and want to live independently. Unlike other social communities, these do not want to depend on the state for resources. They consider themselves artisanal communities, or traditional knowledge communities in modern terms.
The manifestos released by political parties have left them out. The interaction between them and the political class is also negligent.
Many of them don’t want to diversify their livelihood under MNREGA or other schemes, and want to earn their livelihood from their traditional skills.
Their aspirations and demands from state, government and political parties are different. Pension plans, Kanya Dhan, Ladali Yojanas, revenge on Pakistan, Rafael etc are not even on their minds, let alone their priority issues in election season. MNREGA has no appeal for them. These communities are not eager to transform themselves as physical labour under such schemes. Since these communities don’t have their own land, they are not influenced by the discourse of rural distress either.
These are mostly traditional artisanal communities produced under jajmani systems (caste-based economic systems) and are found among both Muslims and Hindus. One can find them among OBCs, MBCs and SCs.
For them, their traditional livelihood and customary rights on natural resources, which are sources of their livelihood, must be preserved and protected.
Desires of Marginal Communities
What do they expect from our electoral democracy? We can find them living in small hamlets along the banks of Ganga, Yamuna and other rivers, either on the fringes or on difficult terrain.
There are communities spanning across identities and categories as created by our state politics like the Nishads, Mallahs, Nats, Tamboli and Dhobis, found among both Hindus and Muslims in these areas. The Nishads and Dhobis want the government to give them an opportunity to practise sand mining in the river belt. Nishads also want to preserve their community right to fish in the rivers. Instead of new benefits or promises, they want to preserve their basic traditional livelihood.