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Far from business as usual
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The economic loss to Gujarat following the communal riots has been extensive. People are scared to come back to work and there is a deep mistrust between communities, says V.K. CHAKRAVARTI.
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An insurance surveyor takes photographs of burned shops to evaluate claims.
IN Gujarat, every house is said to be a shop or a workshop. Its peace loving people have been conducting their business built on trust for centuries. They have never asked the religion of the supplier or buyer. But, the Godhra carnage on February 27 and its aftermath have created a deep mistrust between Hindus and Muslims. Everybody has started looking at the other person with suspicion. Over 800 people have lost their lives in the riots, thousands have been injured and nearly a lakh are living in relief camps, unwilling to go back to their homes for fear of being attacked again by the other community.
It is still far from business as usual. Ironically, in terms of value, the estimated loss of Rs. 11,000 crores due to communal disturbances is almost identical to 92 project proposals worth Rs. 12,360 crores received at the "Resurgent Gujarat Business Partnership Meet 2002" hosted by the Government of Gujarat (GoG) in collaboration with the Ministry of External Affairs (MoEA) and FICCI in Ahmedabad during February 8-10.
The State, which has been on the forefront of economic development, contributing to 17 per cent of the country's total investment in the post-liberation period, one of the highest gross-domestic product (GDP) and market capitalisation, has been pushed back. Investors are not only likely to shy away from future investment but the existing industry may also leave the State. The losses, according to the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) are, trade loss Rs. 7,280 crores, production loss Rs. 2,260 crores, loss to self-employed Rs. 700 crores and the loss to government revenue in the form of excise, sales tax, octroi, Rs. 700 crores. (These figures exclude the vast damage to life, houses and household property). The Gujarat chapter of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on its part has retained a private consultancy firm to assess the losses, as the GoG too is busy assessing the extent of damages. The transport sector and hotel industry are the worst hit, having suffered a cumulative loss of over Rs. 300 crores and Rs. 200 crores respectively. Trucks were one of the major targets of arsonists. The State Road Transport Corporation and Municipal Transport Service revenue have dropped to less than 25 per cent. The Railways too, suffered heavily, as there has been a sharp drop in air cargo traffic. According to Mr. Jehangir Cama, president of the hotels federation, the occupancy rate has dropped to less than 10 per cent as against an average of 60-70 per cent during this time of the year. In case the riots last longer, he is afraid the State might lose out on tourists for the forthcoming season because bookings for October-February begin in May-June.
Textiles processing, diamond polishing, dyes and chemicals, plastics, engineering, entertainment, tourism and even pharmaceutical industries have been directly or indirectly hit by the riots. Loss to the electronic industry is pegged at Rs. 50 crores. Car dealers estimate that hardly 1,000 cars were sold as against an average sale of 3,000 cars per month. A large number of medium and small scale factories in and around big cities and industrial estates on the Golden Corridor, on the Mehsana-Kalol-Ahmedabad — Vadodara-Bharuch-Surat line, have suffered immediate losses of Rs. 300 crores.
The four non-life insurance companies have received nearly 4,000 claims seeking damages for nearly Rs. 150 crores under riots, terrorism and malicious damage cover. As per a report, insurers may have to pay higher premium to reinsurance companies in the wake of riots in Gujarat. The picture is all the more gloomy for three-fourth of the 7,000-odd smaller shops and establishments damaged in rioting and arson, which were not insured.
In the sensitive, riot-prone areas, people have not yet opened their shops. Factory owners cannot start their units. Workers have not reported back to duty.
The riots seem to have made the communal divide complete, sending out more ominous signs. It is the first time the rioters and arsonists have made big hotels and malls, jewellery, garments and department stores and showrooms their target. People from well-to-do families were caught on hidden cameras and closed circuit TVs, looting shops before setting them on fire. Many employees are seeking transfers out of riot-prone localities or even out of Gujarat. Certain organisations have given a call for economic boycott of the other community. Hindus dare not enter predominantly Muslim localities and vice versa. In certain cases, even police dare not enter such ghettos.
The riots in Gujarat have hogged the national limelight as never before. The role of political parties so far has also been far from secular.
The recent meeting of a delegation of prominent citizens led by ex-Sheriff of Bombay, Mr. Fakhruddin T. Khorakiwala, with GCCI president, Mr. Kalyan J. Shah, in Ahmedabad, is considered to be significant. With a view to restoring normalcy, they have decided to hold "Sarva Dharma Prarthana" peace march and mohulla committee meetings — an initiative the ruling or opposition parties should have taken on Day one itself. Together they plan to issue a joint appeal for peace.
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