Lessons from Covid-19: Proposals for G20 on Pandemic Preparedness
Dear Reader,
Welcome to Takshashila Dispatch. In this edition, we cover our twin proposals to the G20 on essential medical supplies stockpiles and global teams for early pandemic warning, detection, and response and our work on reforming India’s Censor Board, the China factor in India’s electronics manufacturing ambitions, the saga of former Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang, and how to provide effective social security to platform-based gig workers.
Lessons from Covid-19: Proposals for G20 on Pandemic Preparedness
The Covid-19 pandemic wreaked havoc worldwide, left millions dead, and exposed severe shortcomings in our health infrastructure. How can multilateral forums like the G20 respond to create better pandemic preparedness? Last week, we published two policy briefs outlining proposals for the same.
Proposal #1: Globally Distributed Network of Essential Medical Supplies Stockpiles
The rapid spread of Covid-19 and supply chain disruptions owing to lockdowns led to acute shortages in essential medical supplies needed to treat patients. To avoid such recurrence, Shambhavi Naik, Saurabh Todi & Harshit Kukreja argue in their policy brief that the G20 must set up a distributed network of medical stockpiles around the world:
Proposal #2: Global Teams for Early Warning, Detection & Response
While the Covid-19 pandemic may have subsided, the world is not safe from future outbreaks. Shambhavi Naik and Harshit Kukreja argue in their policy brief that the G20 is uniquely placed to meet the challenges future pandemics might bring:
The G20 must consider forming a G20-led early warning, detection, and response (GEWDR) team for disease outbreaks.Â
The GEWDR should be established:Â
At the national level of select G20 nations
At the G20 level
These teams would have the mandate to develop and implement rapid response plans for emerging infectious diseases, epidemics, and pandemics. The teams should be interdisciplinary and consist of experts like epidemiologists, microbiologists, data analysts, and public health professionals. They should work in collaboration with national public health agencies and WHO to monitor, identify, and respond to potential outbreaks of infectious diseases. The teams would be responsible for the early detection of outbreaks, the rapid deployment of response teams, and the coordination of local and international response.
A Lost Opportunity to Reform the Censor Board
Even as the Parliament is currently considering amendments to the Cinematograph Act, 1952, which lays down the legal framework for film certification, a fresh controversy surrounding demands for censorship over certain scenes in the movie Oppenheimer has broken out.
In the latest Takshashila Issue Brief, we reiterate our earlier proposals to abolish the Censor Board and replace it with an independent Indian Movie Authority (IMA), which will regulate private entities called Independent Certification Authorities (ICAs) licensed to provide film certification. Age-appropriateness of the content shall be the only basis for the grant of film certification, and all demands for censorship over moral, religious, social, or other grounds will have no role to play:
India’s Electronics Manufacturing Dream Hinges on Re-coupling with China
Pranay Kotasthane writes in a column for the Centre on Asia and Globalisation, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, that India’s ambitious electronics manufacturing target requires it to re-couple with China on chips, investment, and talent, as opposed to the stated goals of reducing import dependence on China.
These figures have sounded alarm bells in Indian strategic circles, prompting the push for tighter controls over imports from China. However, such measures are unnecessary and counterproductive for three reasons. First, chips imported from China are not necessarily ‘Chinese’ chips. China is a much bigger player in outsourced assembly and packaging of chips than in fabrication. So, it’s highly likely that many of the packaged chips that India buys from China were originally fabricated as dies (unpackaged chips) in other countries, such as Taiwan or South Korea. Moreover, even if the chips were indeed fabricated and packaged within China, the work could actually have been done by foreign companies with facilities in China (such as Samsung, UMC, and SK Hynix), rather than ‘Chinese’ companies per se.
Second, chip dependence on China is not a strategic vulnerability. As long as multiple alternative suppliers are available outside China—which is the case for most commodity chips—the dependence fails to translate into a tool of statecraft that China can deploy against India.
Finally, for India’s own chip assembly and packaging to take off, the frictionless import of unpackaged chips without barriers is imperative. Thus, there is no avoiding the continued import of chips from China over the next few years.
The Curious Case of Qin Gang
A month after he went ‘missing’, China replaced its foreign minister Qin Gang with Wang Yi. In an article for Hindustan Times, Manoj Kewalramani tries to make sense of the recent developments and actions of the standing committee of the National People’s Congress (NPCSC):
His sudden downfall owing to disciplinary issues, therefore, would likely be read by some as a setback for Xi’s power and stature. However, such an assessment might end up being an overreading of the situation. It is worth noting that although NPCSC announced Qin’s removal as foreign minister, he continues to retain his position as one of five State Councilors. This is a peculiar decision. If Qin’s downfall was related to serious disciplinary issues, whether related to matters of state or personal issues, it likely would have resulted in his removal from all posts followed by an investigation. Is his retention in the State Council a face-saving effort owing to his proximity to Xi? Or is it a sign that Qin’s removal as foreign minister was not due to displeasure with his work or disciplinary violations but rather owing to health limitations preventing him from meeting the demands of diplomacy? Another noteworthy development is that searches for Qin Gang’s name on the ministry of foreign affairs’ website are yielding no results after his removal as minister. There is clearly more to this than meets the eye at present.
Social Security for Gig Workers: Perils of Rajasthan’s New Law
The Rajasthan legislative assembly recently passed a law for providing social security to lakhs of platform-based gig workers engaged by online aggregators. The law envisages a 1-2% welfare cess on the value of every gig transaction, as contributions towards a welfare fund managed by a state board.
Nitin Pai unpacks the problems with this approach to gig workers’ social security:
A centralized fund for gig worker welfare is a 19th century solution for a 21st century problem.
A far better way is to channel money directly into individual gig worker welfare accounts. There is already a technology and financial infrastructure—in the form of Aadhaar and UPI—to make targeted welfare payments. Rajasthan should use this instead of duplicating efforts of creating new unique IDs and payment channels.Â
The welfare board should create individual accounts for the monthly transfer of funds into them. In addition to investing the capital under its management for long-term returns, this fund should be used to purchase group insurance—life, term, health and accident—for its members. Also, it could help mitigate the effects of gig income volatility by enabling discounted micro-overdraft loans, using the Open Credit Enablement Network that has already been rolled out.
As much as I favour putting in place a strong social security system, I do not like the idea of extracting a 2% cess from aggregators to finance it. It seems wrong in principle. Social security is society’s obligation and cannot be transferred to private firms. It should rightfully be financed by the state’s exchequer, from the taxes that individuals and corporations already pay.
India’s Blind Spot: Understanding and Managing Our Cities
In last Friday’s episode of All Things Policy, Sowmya Nandan spoke to Devashish Dhar, author, and Takshashila alum, about his new book ‘India’s Blind Spot: Understanding and Managing Our Cities’. The book is a comprehensive study of the phenomenon of Indian urbanisation and what comes with it.
Applications for the September Cohort of GCPP are Ongoing
The GCPP is offered over 12 weeks and is the ideal introductory course to public policy and governance for working professionals. It will help you master the fundamentals of economics, policy evaluation, ethical reasoning, effective communication, and public persuasion.Â
All classes are online and held on weekends.
That’s all for this week. Take care!