Further , the Government Land Information System [ GLIS ] reveals that the Central Government owns land to the extent of 15,531 Sq . Km in 72 parcels and one third of it is lying idle . Thus , a strong background is prepared to sell the valuable land owned by the government . In fact , it is the Nation ’ s land and people ’ s land .
Asset Leasing
This process was started long back under various names . However , the recent announcement is the process of its aggressive implementation .
During 2009-2010 and 2014- 2015 , the NHAI has given around 2400 kilometre National Highway for lease on the basis of Operate- Maintain-Transfer [ OMT ]. The model of Toll-Operate-Transfer [ TOT ] is introduced in 2016 in which the right to collect toll will be given for 15 - 30 years . Moreover , this structure provides for escalation of toll rate with inflation . Out of 5 rounds of TOT covering a stretch of 2395 km , 3 round involving 1400 kms have been completed and raised Rs . 17000 crores . Similarly , in June 2020 , the Maharashtra Road Development Corporation sold toll rights of Mumbai-Pune Expressway and Old Mumbai-Pune Corridor . Furthermore , in 2018 , toll rights of 682 kms of roads which have 85 % of commercial traffic and belongs to 9 Highway structures of Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat have been sold . In 2006 , the Airports of Delhi and Mumbai are given for 30 year lease on the basis of Operate-Maintain-Develop . The leasing of six brownfield Airports – Ahmedabad , Jaipur , Guwahati , Thiruvananthapuram , Mangalore and Lucknow have taken place in 2019 for which the concession period is 50 years . Public Private Partnership has been continuing in Telecom sector . BSNL and MTNL have given their towers and mobile sites for lease . Similar trend can be seen with Bus Terminals , Railway lines and Railway stations . Adani Group has already entered into the leasing business of Airports , Ports , Electricity , Gas , Oil and Coal .
All these assets are people ’ s wealth . Tamil Nadu Government is
October - 2021 seriously opposing ‘ Asset-Monetization ’. It is opposing the privatisation of Salem Steel Plant . Among the assets recognised for monetization , 4 Airports , one Heritage Train and some important Highways belong to Tamil Nadu . The land and the assets belong to the people of Tamil Nadu .
One of the six Airports won by Adani Group is the Trivandrum International Airport which belongs to Kerala . Kerala government is opposing its privatisation and has approached the Apex Court in this regard . Now the case is in Supreme Court .
Is there any decline in Public Debt ?
In the name of reducing public debt and achieving development , government aggressively implemented - ‘ Make in India ’ to attract foreign investment ; implemented privatisation of public sector undertakings ; permitted Monopoly Capital to enter into the fields of Defence , Minerals , Coal ; implemented liberalization of financial institutions and asset monetisation . What are its consequences ? The wealth of corporate forces massively increased which also strengthened their domination on the entire wealth of our nation . But , is there any decline in the public debt ? No , its on the rise .
The wealth of a nation belongs to its people . It is the responsibility of the elected government to protect it and to use it for the welfare of the people and to hand it over to the next generation safely . Contrastingly , the elected government considers the wealth of our nation as its individual private property . This phenomenon is popularized aggressively . Consequently , the process of transferring total wealth of our nation to Monopoly Capital has been hastened both with traditional methods as well as innovating new Neo-Liberal policy tools .
The ratio of tax revenue and Gross Domestic Product is at its minimum as the government is seriously minimising the corporate taxes and in addition providing various tax concessions and incentives . Moreover , the burden of indirect taxes including GST is already heavy for the majority who are living in miserable conditions . Hence , there is no scope to raise them further . Thus , debt is the only source remaining for the government . Consequently , it is on the rise continuously . The share of public debt in Gross Domestic Product is as high as 60.5 % in 2020-21 and has been further increased to 61.7 % in 2021- 22 . Foreign debt is to the extent of 11.5 billion dollars . Thus , the share of public debt has crossed the danger limit .
Experience of Other Countries
It is stated that the basis for our current Asset Monetization is the programme implemented in Australia in 2013 in the name of Asset Recycling . Only three states of Australia out of 8 states implemented it . It is strange to notice that Abu Dhabi and Kuwait have taken the infrastructure for lease . Australian Competition and Consumer Commission Chairman , Rod Sim , warns our country over this measure , indicating their bitter experience .
UK experienced serious problems and uncertainty due to the privatization of its Railways . Therefore , they are initiating the programme of renationalisation of Railways . Also the democrats in US are initiating measures to ensure that infrastructure is built by the government only .
In fact , Infrastructure is the key sector for any country . It is enough to ensure the destruction of a country ’ s infrastructure instead of waging a war against it . Hence , the transfer of significant National Infrastructure Assets to corporate forces has to be condemned and protested seriously . Indian Experience in the Past
‘ Asset-Monetization ’ is already taking place but under different names . Temple lands , properties of Cooperative Banks , Housing Boards , assets of Municipalities and their shopping complexes have simply been transferred to the exploitative class . Will it come back to the people again ? No , it won ’ t . This helped in strengthening the modern feudal or neo-zamindari class that works as the compradors to the Monopoly Capital . What is the public ’ s gain or government ’ s gain from the Public Private Partnership programme ?
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