Sluggish diamond, ceramic business fueling Patel unrest

AHMEDABAD: The Patels have been cheerleaders of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's much-debated 'Gujarat Model' of development. "Nine out of 11 diamonds sold across the world are polished in Gujarat," Modi used to say. He'd also proudly mention Morbi, a ceramic cluster that took China head-on. But, growing joblessness in both these sectors, as well as slowdown, is fuelling unrest in the Patel community, which has graduated from agriculture to manufacturing.

Patels dominate the diamond and ceramic industry. About 40 per cent of small and medium enterprises in Gujarat are controlled by Patels, who constitute around 15 per cent of the state's population. Over the decades, while Patels were moving from farming to manufacturing, their SMEs became the backbone of Gujarat's industry. Near absence of government jobs during 13 years of Modi rule actually spawned enterprise, with Gujarat consistently registering double-digit growth.

It's no coincidence that the biggest Patidar rallies over last two months and most violent protests last week took place in diamond hubs of Surat, Bapunagar in Ahmedabad and Amreli. About 450 small diamond units, mainly doing job-work for medium and big diamond companies, have shut down. Hundreds of others are bleeding and are cutting jobs. In Amreli, the slowdown in diamond industry was aggravated by recent floods, which devastated agriculture. "In Amreli, it was a double blow for us,'' said Ghanshyam Dobariya, president of Amreli District Diamond Association.

Similarly, Morbi is fighting a losing battle to China because of persisting ban on cost-effective coal gasifiers despite winning a court battle. About 25 per cent units in this Patel-controlled industry have shut shop because gas as fuel is economically unviable. Morbi erupted most violently following the arrest of Hardik Patel, convener of Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS), last week.

Patidar mobs attacked Gujarat Pollution Control Board office twice, besides targeting scores of government buses and public representatives. "Almost all ceramic units in Morbi are Patel owned and we have represented to CM a number of times to save the industry. The anger against the government was not over reservation, it was over a policy which favours only big industry," said an official of the 600-unit ceramic cluster.

"Unemployment is one of the main factors that have contributed to the unrest among Patels," said Ghanshyam Shah, former professor of economics at JNU, Delhi. Thousands of out-of-work youth were easily swayed to flock to the rallies and take to the streets.

Besides, diamond and ceramics, sectors like such s textiles, auto components, engineering as well as chemicals among others are feeling the pinch of slowdown. This has also resulted in job losses, especially in industrialized regions like Surat, Morbi, Ahmedabad and other parts of Saurashtra.

One may argue that Gujarat is among the top states in the country to have attracted large investments and registered impressive industrial growth. However, experts are of the view that Gujarat has seen jobless growth. "Over the past 20 years, the annual industrial growth has been 22 per cent, while employment growth is just 3.5 per cent," said Sunil Parekh, an industry analyst. A huge Rs 1.80 lakh crore investment has gone into manufacturing sector but it has not created enough jobs. "We are chasing investments without any care for employment," Parekh added.