CITU denounces the tone and tenor of the anti-people and pro-rich General Budget 2010 -11 presented by the Finance Minister today. The Budget is a cynical and insensitive response of a corporate-captive government to the woes of common people, hit by an unprecedented price rise of essential commodities specially the food items. While the sensex is up in immediate response to the budget, the CITU warns that the budget is bound to re-fuel the inflationary expectations along with inflation.
CITU deplores the governments’ single point perverted agenda to reduce subsidy instead of bringing down the price level. Its pro-rich bias is clear in its tax proposal wherein a revenue loss of Rs. 26,000 crore in direct taxes mostly on account of concessions to big corporates, has been more than absorbed through extraction of more than 60,000 crore through indirect tax imposed from the common people. Governments’ insensitivity becomes glaringly clear when non-withstanding the decline in agriculture production it has chosen this time hiking the prices of fertilizers across the board i.e. increasing the price of urea by an administrative pricing before the budget and then increasing the prices of potassic and phosphatic fertilisers through Nutrient Based Subsidy (NBS) policy w.e.f April, 2010. The NBS is only going to push the profits of fertilizer manufactures/importers and lead to higher cost of production of all agriculture products.
The hypocritical anti-poor intent of the government is reflected in its decision to re-introduce import duty on both crude oil and petroleum products as well as to increase the excise duty on diesel and petrol by Rs. 1 per litre. Impact of both will be an hopping increase in petrol & diesel prices by around Rs. 2.60 per litre which will have a cascading effect on the present inflation. This is Coupled with its hidden agenda to deregulate the pricing of petroleum products under the cover of Parikh Committee recommendations. CITU re-iterates that the recommendation of Parliamentary Committee on Petroleum and Natural Gas on Pricing of Petroleum Products to eliminate import duty on crude oil and to reduce of excise duty on petroleum products cannot be brushed aside by the government of the day. CITU notes the proposed cess of Rs. 50 per tonne on coal will not only increase the price of coal but also the price of electricity which is another major input for agriculture. With increase in price of agriculture inputs like fertilizer, diesel and fuel, the food security of the country is being put in jeopardy while the budget talks about a food security bill.
Similar tokenism as well as crude joke is presented in budget through an allocation of only Rs. 1000 crore for social security of 47 crore unorganised sector workers. The budget sppech by the finance minister did not miss to mention about the restrictive conditionality of “below-poverty-line” in this respect which itself excludes 90 per cent of the unorganized sector workers from the purview of such social security benefit. Similarly budget totally ignores the plight of 1.4 million anganwadi workers and need for universalisation of the ICDS scheme by way of making meager increase of Rs 538 crore in allocation compared to revised estimate of last year.
CITU regrets to note that the budget does not include a single proposal submitted jointly by all the trade unions during the pre-budget discussion while most of the suggestions given by the corporate houses have found place in the budget including the continuity of the stimulus package for them announced in the wake of global recession. CITU charges the Finance Minister of misleading the Parliament by stating that the ownership has been expanded through the Governments’ disinvestment programme of PSUs, knowingly fully well that in the case of NTPC and REC the retail investors participation was nominal and SBI and LIC had to subscribe the shares. The declaration in the budget that the government will mobilize Rs. 25,000 crore through disinvestment of PSUs during the current year is totally illogical as the PSUs had a reserve surplus of Rs. 5,35,840 crore on 31.03.2009. As a matter of fact during the year 2008-09 the reserve and surplus has increased by more than Rs. 50,000 crore a part of which could have been utilized for new investment and job creation.
CITU strongly denounces total lack of any positive steps in this budget to reduce the price rise, to create and protect employment and to insure social security of millions of workforce and calls upon the working class to oppose the anti-people budget through the Satyagraha Programme on 5th March 2010.
All India Federation of Anganwadi Workers and Helpers on Budget 2010-11
The Union Finance Minister Sri Pranab Mukherjee has increased the allocation for ICDS by a meager Rs.538 crores. This is grossly inadequate in view of the fact that today only around 42% of the children below 6 years of age are covered by ICDS and as per the directive of the Supreme Court, the scheme is to be universalised by 2012. The UPA government has assured the Supreme Court that it will universalise ICDS, ‘with quality’ by 2012. This budget shows the callous attitude of this government towards the most important programme for the overall development of the children below 6 years, who constitute more than 15% of our population.
In 11th Five Year Plan, the revised plan outlay for ICDS is Rs. 72, 877.52 crores. But including this fourth budget under the 11th Plan, the total budgetary allocations made by the government, till now is only Rs. 26,998 crores, which is nearly one third. This is highly condemnable. The decision to implement the World Bank proposed changes in ICDS will result in the dismantling of the ICDS.
This budget is shockingly insensitive to the plight of the anganwadi workers, who work far below than even half the minimum wages and helpers who work below than one third the minimum wages, in most parts of the country. No Allocation has been made either to increase the honorarium of the anganwadi workers and helpers or to provide them any social security. The Prime Minister had promised some social security and pension provisions to the anganwadi workers and helpers to a delegation of our Federation in 2006. Even after four years no measure is taken by the government in this regard.
The only mention of ICDS in the budget is limited “ICDS platform is being expanded for effective implementation of the Rajiv Gandhi Scheme for Adolescent Girls” thus increasing the workload. The All India Federation of Anganwadi Workers and Helpers strongly condemns the negligent attitude of the Congress led UPA government in allotting adequate funds to the ICDS, particularly the anganwadi employees. We call upon all the anganwadi employees in the country to join in thousands in the ‘Mahapadav” in last week of April in Delhi for, social security benefits, increase in honorarium to minimum wages and regularisation.
All India Federation of Anganwadi Workers and Helpers on Budget 2010-11
The Union Finance Minister Sri Pranab Mukherjee has increased the allocation for ICDS by a meager Rs.538 crores. This is grossly inadequate in view of the fact that today only around 42% of the children below 6 years of age are covered by ICDS and as per the directive of the Supreme Court, the scheme is to be universalised by 2012. The UPA government has assured the Supreme Court that it will universalise ICDS, ‘with quality’ by 2012. This budget shows the callous attitude of this government towards the most important programme for the overall development of the children below 6 years, who constitute more than 15% of our population.
In 11th Five Year Plan, the revised plan outlay for ICDS is Rs. 72, 877.52 crores. But including this fourth budget under the 11th Plan, the total budgetary allocations made by the government, till now is only Rs. 26,998 crores, which is nearly one third. This is highly condemnable. The decision to implement the World Bank proposed changes in ICDS will result in the dismantling of the ICDS.
This budget is shockingly insensitive to the plight of the anganwadi workers, who work far below than even half the minimum wages and helpers who work below than one third the minimum wages, in most parts of the country. No Allocation has been made either to increase the honorarium of the anganwadi workers and helpers or to provide them any social security. The Prime Minister had promised some social security and pension provisions to the anganwadi workers and helpers to a delegation of our Federation in 2006. Even after four years no measure is taken by the government in this regard.
The only mention of ICDS in the budget is limited “ICDS platform is being expanded for effective implementation of the Rajiv Gandhi Scheme for Adolescent Girls” thus increasing the workload. The All India Federation of Anganwadi Workers and Helpers strongly condemns the negligent attitude of the Congress led UPA government in allotting adequate funds to the ICDS, particularly the anganwadi employees. We call upon all the anganwadi employees in the country to join in thousands in the ‘Mahapadav” in last week of April in Delhi for, social security benefits, increase in honorarium to minimum wages and regularisation.
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