Everyone is rooting for participatory democracy these days as the simple concept of democracy has proved unattractive because it has failed to deliver. For thirty years politicians mislead us with “Grass root Panchayati democracy” — not any ordinary democratic dispensation. It was followed by “Multiparty-constitutional democracy”.

All this while, women were the most deprived class economically. “Democratic” governance from 1950-2006 could not do justice to these disadvantaged groups. A realisation has dawned that poverty and women’s discrimination are the result of ethnic and geographical divisions of Nepal. Those entrusted with national development had the knowledge of what they needed to do but didn’t have the desire or honesty to implement the programmes.

Most advocacies were aimed at promoting “smart advocates” to the highest post. We have seen Dalit ministers sipping cocktail while they had no time to visit their home districts before elections, which were manipulated anyhow. The experience of being cheated time and again by responsible people disenchanted the public. They did not actively engage in monitoring the progress of the development programmes meant for their own welfare.

The self-proclaimed Dalit and Janajati leaders are now campaigning to secure “dream posts” in the government, corporations and committees. The Maoists, who declined to accept the status quo, picked up arms. They must now prove that they took up arms to revolutionise the society. Only then can they prove that 13,000 lives have not gone in vain.

Use of technology and education are the ways of levelling inequalities and constructing a stable foundation for inclusive democracy. It is urgent to establish universities in the northern belt — Phidim, Bhojpur, Ramechhap, Gorkha, Gulmi, Jumla, Bajura, Darchula and Dandeldhura. The project implementation capabilities of Millennium Development Goals need to be improved significantly. The challenge is to find out correct development plans to eliminate the root causes of poverty rather than market various brands of democracy on which thousands of books are available. For real participatory democracy, industries north of Dhankuta, Kathmandu, Pokhara, Surkhet and Dipayal should be exempted from tax. The government must also provide matching funds to private sector industries to invest in sectors where returns are not guaranteed.

The common belief in a trickle-down patter of modern economy has largely proved useless for the dirt poor. The truth is that the trickle down effect is a painfully slow process. We should instead build “economic dams” for the diversion of water of development — i.e. human resources and capital — to the areas with dismal human development index. There is no need to stick to the rubric of democracy if it cannot deliver the goods. If we fail to find efficient economic models to rectify the ills of both the free and mixed economies, the current level of dissatisfaction will only grow.