CPI (M) demands settlement of dues to retrenched labours in Orissa

More than 4,000 labourers, who were retrenched due to shelving of expansion project of Vedanta's Alumina refinery at Lanjigarh in Kalahandi district, should have their dues settled and paid immediately, demanded Orissa unit of the CPI (M). A fact-finding team of the party also alleged that these retrenched labourers were beaten up by hired goons with the assistance of police and agents of the ruling party to compel them to leave the area as early as possible without settling their dues.

These workers had been employed for the refinery expansion project of Vedanta through the L&T. The L&T had taken the contract for construction work for the expansion project. This was a sequel to the halt of refinery expansion work at Lanjigarh following N.C. Saxena committee report and subsequent orders by the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests, stating the expansion as illegal in the absence of statutory environment clearances.
(Courtesy : The Hindu)

Himachal Kisan Sabha protest against failure of government to deal with apple season

Hundreds of activists of Himachal Pradesh Kissan Sabha today gathered outside deputy commissioner office to protest against government’s alleged failure to deal with apple seasons. The authorities were charged for remaining passive in tackling the problems faced by the farmers. HKS state president and senior party leader of CPI-M, Kuldeep Singh Thanwar lead the protest, which was attended by large number of farmers gathered at district headquarters.

 

A memorandum was also submitted to Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal through Deputy Commissioner Shimla, J.S.Rana, in which HKS alleged that state government has failed to tackle the problems affecting one third of state farmers and three lakh families, engaged in the apple profession. It said that 10 districts of the state have been affected from the mismanagement of the peak season. HKS also alleged that as rain or weather wrath played havoc with the fate of farmers, similarly government and administration have also been eluding the farmers by neglecting them in the hour of dire need. Giving four major lapses of government in dealing with Apple season, HKS highlighted that frequent disruption in traffic, landslides, road mishaps and charging of excessive truck freight for transportation were not doing any good to the farmers.  It alleged that the sacristy of Truck for apple transportation to markets had forced the farmers to be exploited in the hands of truck operators, charging monopolistic fare from the farmers.

Consequently, it demanded immediate restoration of main and link roads to facilitate the left out crop from the interior, provision of trays and apple cartons in government fair price shops and societies at minimum prices, availability of trucks on affordable freight charges and removing of disparity in MIS scheme to benefit the farmers. It also demanded personal intervention o Chief Minister in controlling the apple season operation in the tandem manure and constitution of a joint committee comprising all related departments under the chairmanship of Chief Minister to take account of the emergent situation and sorting it out.

(Source :www.himvani.com)

Our development policies are oriented towards poorest of the poor : Buddhadev Bhattacharya

Com. Buddhadev Bhattacharya talks to CPIM West Bengal website

West Bengal Assembly poll is due in nearly six months from now. In this situation what are the areas of development you have taken as priority task?

All of our developmental programmes are being directed towards alleviation of poverty and unemployment and improving the quality of life of the poorest of the poor. In this direction, a programme of land reforms is continuing. We distributed 16000 acres of land to landless poor in last one year. We have initiated a new scheme of home stead land to the homeless people in both rural and urban areas. The programme of REGA has been undertaken vigorously in the villages. State govt. has launched similar progammes in municipal areas. Different schemes for SC and ST people are being implemented. There is also special emphasis on education and training for skill development. Government has recently declared a policy to accommodate Muslim families as OBC on the basis of their family income. More than 1.4 crore minority population in West Bengal will get this benefit. More than 11 lakh self help groups, especially of women are active in various economic activities. Most of them are getting bank loans for doing business and earning money. Education was always in the priority list of the governmental function. On the one side we have tried to expand our base in primary education recruiting all school going children in government run schools. On the other hand we are trying our best to improve the quality of education and develop the higher educational institutions as centres of excellence.

What is the status of the slogan “Agriculture is our base, Industry is our future”?

During the Assembly Elections in 2006, we raised the slogan that agriculture is our base and industry would be our future. It is not simply a political slogan but a well planned development perspective. There is a considerable success in agricultural production with regard to rise in the production of rice, jute, vegetables, potatoes, etc. Farmers, poor and marginal farmers, of this state are better off than any other part of the country. On the other hand investments for setting up the industries are also coming. It was more than Rs 7060 crores last year. This year will be no exception. Steel, Chemicals, Fertilizers, Agro processing and IT are major areas of investment in West Bengal. No doubt Govt. is facing many obstacles from opposition in many parts of the state but we cannot stop industrialization. Because it is the need of the hour, industries are particularly necessary for the young generations.

How do you consider the danger of Maoists in West Bengal?

Maoists are operating in very difficult terrain not because of the fact that poor people, particularly tribals are living there. They operate in those areas simply for the topographical advantage to implement their politics of terror and so called armed struggle. Their programme is to destroy the democratic structure, constitution and the Indian state. It is a threat to all right thinking Indian citizens.

Do you think Maoist became active in West Bengal because of under-development?

Under-development is one of the problem but not the main problem. I would like to remind you that Khalistani movement took place in Punjab where the then per capita income was highest in the country. In West Bengal land reforms has been implemented in Jungle Mahal, like other parts of the state. As a result no big land owners have big junk of the land in that area. Vast areas of land belong to poor and tribals. They have right to enter forest and collect forest products for their livelihood. Area development schemes are going on to create more facilities in irrigations, drinking water, rural roads, electricity etc. Primary and secondary schools are operational and most of the children attend those schools regularly.

How do you view TMC- Maoist nexus in the state?

The main opposition party wants to be the ruling party in state by hook or crook. Therefore, they support Maoist annihilation programme in Jungle Mahal where they have no following. They want to enter into Jungal Mahal with the help of Maoists. A section of big press is always supporting the cause of Maoists. Some of the journalists may be sympathetic to Maoist cause without having a concrete idea about their ideology. The owner of the big press know very well that left extremism always help the right wing politics against main stream left opposition in the country. The Trinamool Congress always gives statements alleging our party for ‘sabotage’ and other crimes. Trinamool is actually based on lies and false propaganda. They think if they repeat the lies again and again it will confuse the ordinary people. But I believe that good sense will finally prevail.

What is your opinion about the policy of the second UPA Govt.?

Second UPA Govt. has failed to improve the life of aam admi. India is now virtually divided into two countries. One is for a few rich millionaires, and other is for millions of hungry poor. There is a serious setback in agricultural production which is threatening the food security of the country. Number of people living below poverty line has increased during UPA regime. Growth in rate of GDP has failed to solve the miseries of the common people.

DEFEND THE PRO-PEOPLE LEFT FRONT GOVERNMENT IN WEST BENGAL

Pamphlet prepared by CPIM central committee for the campaign

Introduction

The Left Front government in West Bengal completed 33 years in office on June 21, 2010. This record of remaining uninterruptedly in office for three decades by winning 7 successive state assembly elections is unparalleled in the country and indeed a record for any elected Government in the world. The government could achieve this by winning the trust of the people of West Bengal, especially the trust of the working class and the peasantry, through its propeoples programme and policies.

Ever since it assumed office in 1977, the Left Front government has pursued a programme of providing relief to the people and adopted alternative policies, despite the constraints faced by a State government functioning within India’s bourgeois-landlord set up. The Left Front government has implemented thoroughgoing land reforms and established a vibrant Panchayati Raj. These historic initiatives have broken the back of landlordism in the rural areas of West Bengal, invigorated the agrarian economy, empowered the poor peasants and agricultural workers and brought lakhs of rural families out of abject poverty.

Several other pro-people policies have been undertaken in regard to strengthening workers’ rights and social sector development, which have benefited different sections of the people: factory workers, unorganised workers, government employees, school and college teachers, students, youth and women. Initiatives have been taken to uplift the conditions of the dalits, adivasis and minorities. Through their experience, the people came to recognize the Left Front government as a pro-people government and a custodian of their rights. The unstinted support of the people for the Left Front has made West Bengal the bastion of the Left movement in the country.

Attack by Anti-Left Forces

During the recent period, this bastion has come under intense attack. Ever since the Left Front won the assembly elections in 2006 with a big majority, the anti-Left forces have launched a counter-offensive. On the one hand, there is a political gang-up of all anti-Left forces in the state under the leadership of the reactionary Trinamul Congress. On the other hand, there is a concerted effort to physically target, terrorise and annihilate Left cadres in the rural areas, particularly those from poor and socially deprived background. Over 250 activists and sympathisers of the Left, mainly belonging to the CPI (M), have been killed in West Bengal since May 2009. Those killed include comrades from the most oppressed sections of society, brave cadres from the adivasis, scheduled castes, minorities. Most of these gruesome killings are being carried out by the Trinamul Congress (TMC) in league with the Maoists. The Congress party, a junior partner of the anti-Left alliance in the state, is also extending support to this murderous campaign and is directly involved in these attacks in some districts.

Clearly, the ruling classes in India and their political representatives cannot tolerate the alternative policies that the West Bengal Left Front government pursues. Another basic reason behind the intensified attacks is the crucial role that the Left movement in West Bengal has played in enabling the Left movement in the country as a whole to mount a strong resistance against the proimperialist anti people policies of the Central Government.

While supporting the Congress led Government from outside during the period of 2004 to 2008, the Left played a crucial role in blocking rightwing policies like disinvestment in PSUs, opening up sectors like banking, insurance, retail, higher education etc. to foreign capital and further liberalization/deregulation of sectors like food, agriculture, petroleum and mining. The Left forced the Government to raise more taxes from the rich and spend on social welfare schemes for the poor like the NREGA. The Left also resolutely opposed India’s strategic alliance with US imperialism, which was being cemented through the nuclear deal. This has hurt the interests of international finance capital, MNCs – mainly the American ones – and big corporates in India. It is therefore in the interest of these sections of the imperialists and Indian ruling classes to weaken the Left, so that the pro-imperialist, neoliberal policies can be implemented in the country without hindrances. And weakening the Left is not possible without attacking the strongest bastion of the Left in West Bengal.

Ire of Communal and Fundamentalist Forces

The Left Front government in West Bengal and the Left movement have emerged as a bulwark against the communal and fundamentalist forces, in defence of secularism and the rights of minority communities. In a state, which has historically been afflicted by communal violence and strife, the Left Front government’s policies and movements led by the Left have strengthened secularism and made West Bengal the safest and most secure state for the minority communities. Communal and fundamentalist forces have therefore always been hostile to the Left in West Bengal. These forces are actively backing the anti-Left forces today to weaken the Left, in order to expand their political space in the state.

TMC-Maoist led Offensive

The issue of industrialization in West Bengal was used by the opposition to mount a vicious campaign against the left Front. Although not an inch of land was acquired in Nandigram, misgivings were created among sections of the peasantry that their land will be forcibly taken away. The TMC has used the situation to bring in the Maoists, mobilise all the anti-Left forces around this TMC-Maoist axis and launch a violent offensive against the Left Front. This TMC-Maoist led offensive has the backing of imperialist forces and Indian big business on the one hand and the erstwhile rural elites in West Bengal on the other, who seek to regain their hegemony by rolling back land reforms. Anti-democratic separatist forces in West Bengal like the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha and Kamtapur Liberation Organisation have also joined the anti-Left offensive in North Bengal. The Congress led Government at the Centre, while paying lip service against Maoist violence, has chosen to turn a blind eye to the open collusion between the Union Railway Minister and the Maoists. Alongside physical attacks on the cadres of the Left, the anti-Left forces have also unleashed a vicious campaign against the CPI (M) and the LeftFront government in West Bengal to tarnish its image and record. In this, they have found a set of willing allies in sections of the corporate media as well as some anti-Communist NGOs. These entities are working overtime, spreading canards against the Left and trying to paint a progressive mask for the TMC leader, in order to spread confusion among the allies of the Left and cover up for the violent, semi-fascist character of the anti-Left forces. The entire effort is geared towards demonizing and vilifying the Left Front government and dehumanizing the CPI (M) cadres with grotesque lies, so as to justify the barbaric slaughter of over 250 innocent and poor people!

 

Slander on Land Acquisition

The slander campaign against the Left Front government is mainly based on land acquisition. An impression has been created as if the government is forcibly acquiring huge tracts of farmland for building SEZs and other private industries. What is the reality? Let us take the example of SEZs. Since the SEZ Act was notified in 2006, only 11 SEZs have been built in West Bengal till date, out of which 9 are IT/ITES SEZs mostly built on 10 to 20 hectares of land, with the largest one built on 48.5 hectares. Altogether, these 11 SEZs have required 210 hectares of land. Contrast this with the fact that in Goa, 3 SEZs have been built on 250 hectares. Therefore, the reality is that the area of land under SEZs in West Bengal is even lower than that of a small state like Goa! Moreover, during the same period, out of the 363 SEZs built across the country, Andhra Pradesh has built 74 SEZs - the largest number in a state - that have come up on 12300 hectares of land. The table below shows how other states like Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu etc. have built SEZs on large tracts of land:

Special Economic Zones in Selected States Notified Since 2006   

State                      No of SEZs                 Total Area under SEZs          Size of Largest SEZ 

Andhra Pradesh            74                                   12300(Hectares)                    2206

Maharashtra                 62                                    9150                                    1597

Tamil Nadu                  57                                    4470                                    1019

Karnataka                    32                                    2160                                      588

Haryana                       32                                   1380                                       440

Gujarat                       30                                    8600                                     6214

West Bengal                11                                     210                                         48

Goa                             3                                      250                                       123

Thus, while the baseless calumny against the Left Front government regarding acquisition of large tracts of land has continued unabated despite the West Bengal government not allowing large SEZs to come up, states like Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Haryana have handed over thousands of acres of land to big corporates and real estate developers for SEZs. Those who have been crying themselves hoarse about supposed land acquisition for SEZs in West Bengal have not cared to protest against the proliferation of SEZs in these states.

Moreover, at a time when forests in various states are being destroyed through indiscriminate commercial exploitation and illegal mining, West Bengal has not only prevented such predatory exploitation of the environment but has succeeded in enhancing the forest cover in the state from around 14% in the 1980s to over 16.6% presently. While states like Uttarachal, Punjab, Haryana, Maharashtra etc. have been granting forest clearances for commercial projects on a large scale, the West Bengal government has the record of granting the least number of forest clearances among the major states of the country (along with Bihar). It is even more ironical that the Left Front government was being castigated for taking away farmers’ land precisely at a time when the government was redistributing significant amount of land to the landless families in rural areas. 16700 acres (6760 hectares) of land was distributed by the government between 2007 and 2010. The government is also distributing homestead land worth Rs.20000 (0.1 to 0.5 acre), free of cost to each landless family in rural areas. Besides, over 26000 pattas have already been distributed to adivasis and other forest dwellers for 15300 acres under the Forest Rights Act, 2006 (FRA). The Maoists in league with the TMC has held up the process of FRA implementation in districts like Paschim Medinipur by threatening adivasis who want to claim their rights under the Act.

Best Record in Land Reforms

West Bengal continues to hold the foremost position in land reforms in the country. Total agricultural land distributed in West Bengal amounts to over 11.28 lakh acres upto February 2010. Over 30.1 lakh farmers have benefited from the land reforms programme, 55% of whom belong to dalit or adivasi households. With a view to empowering women, 6.15 lakh joint pattas and 1.62 lakh female pattas have been distributed. Through recording of sharecroppers (barga), which forms an important component of land reforms, another 15.13 lakh farmers have benefited. West Bengal accounts for 54% of all land reform beneficiaries in the entire country till date.

Pro-Peasant Policies

The land reforms initiative have ensured that 84% of agricultural land in West Bengal is owned by small and marginal peasants. Promotion of small and micro irrigation projects, has increased the net irrigated area as a proportion of total agricultural land in the state from only 32% in 1977-78 to 72% at present, even as the national average is only 45% at present. At a time when the neoliberal policies of withdrawal of the state from agriculture pursued by the Centre has spelled doom for the peasantry across the country, the Left Front government in West Bengal has continued to extend state support to the small and marginal peasants through provision of subsidised inputs – especially improved seeds and organic fertiliser–and ensuring adequate procurement at fair prices. The daily wage rate for agricultural workers has been increased to Rs. 82. The results can be seen in the steady agricultural growth registered in the state. While agricultural growth rate for the country as a whole in 2008-09 and 2009-10 was 1.6% and 0.2% respectively, agricultural growth in West Bengal in the last two years was 4.4% and 4.2% respectively.

Under the Left Front government, West Bengal has emerged from being a rice deficit state to the topmost producer of rice in the country (148 lakh tone production in 2009-10). West Bengal also occupies the first position among all Indian states in the production of vegetables and fish. Despite being the highest producer of rice, Central procurement of rice from West Bengal remains to be very low at less than 5% of total central procurement (FCI procurement of rice is concentrated in AP, Punjab and UP). In this backdrop, the Left Front government has stepped up procurement of rice from the farmers at its own initiative from 2007. In 2009-10, a total of 17.4 lakh tonnes rice was procured and distributed at a subsidised rate of Rs. 2 per kg to 2.64 crore BPL persons in the state. This year, the state government has decided to further increase procurement and expand the scope of Rs. 2 per kg rice to the lowest 20% of APL families over and above all BPL families.

Strengthening Panchayats

Besides undertaking such pro-people initiatives in land reforms and agriculture, another major success of the Left Front government has been the decentralization of power and deepening of democracy to the grassroots through the establishment and efficient functioning of panchayats and municipalities. The three-tier panchayat system established in 1977 in West Bengal has achieved successes that is unprecedented elsewhere in the country. It was a full 16 years after this initiative by the Left Front in West Bengal that the panchayati raj system was adopted for the entire country through the 73rd and 74^th Constitutional amendments in 1992-93.

As a result of successful implementation of panchayati raj, social power has shifted from the rural elite to the rural poor through empowerment of peasants and agricultural workers, mostly belonging to dalit, adivasi and minority households. It is because of this empowerment that regressive practices like untouchability, atrocities against dalits and adivasis and phenomena like khap panchayats – which are still prevalent across the country – are virtually absent in Bengal. The government has recently implemented 50% reservation for women in panchayats and other local bodies.

Workers’ Rights

Many significant steps have been initiated by the Left Front government for the working class, especially in regard to social security for the workers in the unorganised sector. 17 lakhs unorganised workers have been enrolled in the Provident Fund Scheme till date. The government also provides financial assistance of Rs. 1500 per month to workers of closed factories and tea gardens. Pension of Rs. 1000 per month is paid to old age persons, widows, the disabled, artisans, handloom weavers, farmers and fishermen. The government has recently extended the Employment Guarantee scheme to the urban poor at a minimum wage of Rs. 100 per day. West Bengal has the largest number of functioning small manufacturing units in the country (27 lakhs) as well as the largest number of employment in them (58 lakhs). 10.4 lakh Self-Help Groups (SHGs) are also functioning in West Bengal today, employing over 1 crore persons. The Government is providing interest subsidy to the SHGs to ensure loans at only 4% interest.

Improvement in Social Indicators

Human Development indicators have also improved in West Bengal under the Left Front government. The infant mortality rate measured per 1,000 live births in 2006 was 38 in West Bengal, compared to the all India rate of 57. Life expectancy has improved considerably in West Bengal to 64.5 years for males and 67.2 for females, compared to the all India average of 61 for males and 62.5 for females. As against the all India average of 7.4 per thousand, the death rate in West Bengal is 6.2. West Bengal has a literacy rate of 72 per cent against the all-India average of 63.4. Nearly 100 per cent of all girls and boys of age six are enrolled in schools and the school drop out rate has fallen considerably. The government is currently recruiting 60000 primary school teachers in the ongoing year, which will bring down the student teacher ratio and strengthen the primary education system.

Minority Rights

Steadfast defence of secularism and communal harmony has been the hallmark of the Left Front government in West Bengal. It is a matter of great pride, that West Bengal has remained free from any form of communal violence and riots in the three-decade long rule by the Left. Critics often question the record of the government vis-à-vis minority welfare in view of the findings of the Sachar Committee. However, the Sachar Committee ignored the record of land reforms in West Bengal which greatly benefited the poor Muslims. The share of cultivable land owned by Muslims in West Bengal is 25.6%, which is the highest in the country after Jammu and Kashmir (which is a Muslim majority state).

The Sachar Committee also ignored the fact that the West Bengal government takes the financial responsibility of paying salaries to all Madrasah teachers. The West Bengal Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (WBMDFC) has the best record among all states in disbursing scholarships and loans to the minority students and youth at subsidised interest. In 2009-10, nearly 3.5 lakh Muslims benefited from the WBMDFC schemes, which is the best record in the country as per the Union Ministry of Minority Affairs.

Besides strengthening and modernizing madrasah education, the government has upgraded the famous Calcutta Madrasah (set up by Warren Hastings in 1780) to Aliah University in 2007, which will teach modern subjects like engineering, science, management, physical sciences, humanities, social sciences etc. alongwith Islamic studies. A centre of the Aligarh Muslim University is also being set up in Murshidabad.

The Left Front government in West Bengal has recently decided to implement the recommendations of the Ranganath Mishra Commission Report to grant 10% reservations in jobs for Muslims belonging to OBCs. The process of identification of the OBC Muslim communities has been completed and over 1.4 crore Muslims out of a total of 2.2 crore in the state are being given OBC certificates, which will lead to a big increase in government job opportunities for Muslims.

Trinamul Congress: Destructive Force

While the Left Front government in West Bengal is trying to implement all these pro-people steps and striving to provide an alternative to the exploitative neoliberal order, the anti-Left opposition is hell bent on stalling the progress of the state. The CPI(M) and the Left Front government are acutely aware of their own limitations and shortcomings and are determinedly addressing the issues. The TMC, however, cannot offer any progressive alternative to the programmes and policies of the Left Front. Beneath the veneer of the populist slogan of ‘ma, mati, manush’, lies the bankrupt ideology of rabid anti-Communism and extreme political opportunism epitomized by the TMC supremo. One cannot forget that during her earlier stint as a Cabinet Minister in the NDA government, she had sent a bouquet of flowers to greet Narendra Modi for his victory in Gujarat assembly elections in 2002, after the state sponsored carnage of Muslims in the state.

During her present tenure, she has presided over a spate of railway accidents leading to the loss of precious lives. While 64 persons died in railway accidents across the country in 2009-10, 218 persons have died since April 2010. The Minister has shown no initiative in filling up nearly two lakh vacancies in the Railways, half of which are in departments connected to safety and maintenance. At the same time in the name of public-private partnership (PPP), railway infrastructure is being privatised and functions of the railways are being outsourced. The interests of the Railways are being sacrificed to meet the narrow political interests of the TMC. The Union Railway Minister had no qualms in addressing the PCPA-Maoist organised rally in Lalgarh on 9th August 2010, despite the PCPA being directly responsible for the sabotage and derailment of Jnaneshwari Express in Paschim Medinipur on 28th May 2010, which killed 150 innocent persons. After thoroughly exposing her incompetence and opportunism, the Minister is now offering to negotiate between the Central government and the Maoists.

Character of Maoists

Sections of the intelligentsia suffer from illusions regarding the Maoists. The CPI (Maoist) claims its lineage from the naxalite movement of the 1960-70s, which had sought to blindly imitate the Chinese revolution in India by taking up arms against the state and mouthing slogans like “China’s Chairman is our Chairman”. Following the collapse of the naxalite movement, a large section of the naxalites realised their left adventurist folly and parties like the CPI (ML) Liberation, CPI (ML) New Democracy etc. abandoned armed struggle and joined the parliamentary democratic process. The Maoists in Nepal have also realised the importance of democratic institutions and are today participating in elections and engaging with the process of framing a republican constitution in Nepal.

In contrast, the Indian Maoists have degenerated, indulging in mindless violence, brutal killings of innocent poor people by labeling them as ‘police informers’, extorting money from forest contractors and illegal miners and striking deals with corrupt bourgeois politicians for protection and patronage. While mouthing pseudo-revolutionary slogans, these nihilist anarchists exploit the tribals and prevent democratic mass mobilisation of the tribal people on their just and democratic demands.

In West Bengal, the Maoists have openly allied with the reactionary TMC to target the grassroot activists of the CPI (M) in the tribal populated forest areas of Paschim Medinipur, Bankura and Purulia districts. The Maoists alone have killed over 150 CPI (M) activists and sympathisers in these three districts since May 2009, most of whom were poor peasants and agricultural workers from dalit or adivasi households. They had tried to assassinate the West Bengal Chief Minister through a mine blast during his visit to Paschim Medinipur in November 2008.

While conducting security operations against the Maoists, the Left Front government has ensured that innocent people are not harassed or victimized. The government has launched several developmental initiatives in the tribal areas like granting pattas to forest dwelling people, expanding NREGA, opening PDS outlets, providing scholarships for tribal students and promoting tribal language and culture. As a result, the local people are spontaneously resisting the Maoists and cooperating with the security operations. Today the Maoists are on the run with many of their cadres either surrendering or being arrested.

Defend the Left in West Bengal

In the name of ‘poriborton’ (change) in West Bengal, what the TMC-Maoist combine has to offer is anarchy and socio-economic retrogression. The success of these forces will negate the advances made by the democratic movement and pave the way for the restoration of the earlier forms of exploitative order in West Bengal.

Already, incidents of former landlords attempting to recapture their illegally held land that was acquired and distributed to the landless have occurred in some areas where the TMC has gained foothold.

The assembly elections in May 2011 in West Bengal will be a major battle between the forces representing the interests of the working people, social justice, secularism and our country’s sovereignty and the forces which are representing the interest of the big capitalists, landlords, the rich and vested interests who seek to forge a strategic alliance with US imperialism and who use communalism, ultra-Left anarchy and divisive politics to achieve their objectives.

CPI (M) appeals to all secular, democratic and progressive sections of the country to see through the reactionary and undemocratic character of the anti-Left opposition in West Bengal, rally behind the Left Front to defend the bastion of the Left in West Bengal and further the left and democratic movement in India.

September 12 to 18 : Campaign to Defend CPI(M) and Left in West Bengal

PRAKASH KARAT (General Secretary, CPIM )

The Extended Meeting of the Central Committee held in Vijayawada had  given a call for a countrywide week-long campaign against the attacks on the Party and the Left Front in West Bengal. This campaign will be held from September 12 to 18.  The entire Party should go amongst the people to expose the nature of the violent attacks on the CPI(M) and the Left Front in West Bengal and to mobilise the people to express solidarity with the Left and democratic movement in the state.

For more than two years, there has been a concerted attack on the CPI(M) and the Left in West Bengal.  After the electoral reverses in the Lok Sabha election in May 2009,  this attack has been intensified.   All the rightwing and anti-Communist forces have united under the leadership of the Trinamul Congress to weaken the Party and the Left.   They are doing so by resorting to continuous violence and attacks designed to sever  the links of the Party and the Left Front with the people. 

Till August 31, 270 members and supporters of the CPI(M) and the Left have been killed.  The toll continues to rise daily.  There is a two-pronged attack – one is led by the TMC combine and the other by the Maoists.   The TMC-Maoist  collaboration is  an open fact.  The Congress party acts as a junior partner of the TMC and its ministers in the union cabinet seek to cover-up the TMC leaders’ pro-Maoist stance. 

Why is there such an attack on West Bengal?  West Bengal is the strongest base of the CPI(M) and the Left in the country.   The Left Front government has existed for 33 years after winning seven successive assembly elections. The distribution of surplus land under land reforms  in West Bengal constitute 22 per cent of the total land distributed in the country.  The gains made by the working class  over the last three decades due to their organised movement are substantial.   The Left Front government has stood with the working  people and sought to protect their livelihood and  living standards in the face of the neo-liberal policies pursued by successive governments in the last two decades.  The attack on West Bengal represents an effort to weaken the Left Front which will help the ruling classes to consolidate their neo-liberal project. 

On top of this, the role played by the CPI(M) and the Left in national politics in the last few years has been marked by two specific features.  Firstly, the Left’s consistent opposition to the neo-liberal policies.  This is seen as an obstacle to the realisation of the goals set out  by big business and the ruling classes.  Secondly, the Left is the only force which opposes the strategic alliance with the United States which has been unfolding in the last one decade. It is this role of the Left  which has invited the attack on its strongest base in West Bengal.   Weakening the CPI(M) and the Left Front in West Bengal would mean weakening the fight against the neo-liberal policies  which are being promoted under the aegis of the strategic tie up with  the United States.

In West Bengal, the aim of the  anti-Communist combine is to oust  the Left Front government and  reverse the progressive measures which have been taken over the last three decades. The old landed interests wish to rollback the land reforms and get their power restored. 

West Bengal has an exemplary record of defending secularism and isolating the communal forces. Weakening the Left will be the precursor for the rise of the communal and sectarian politics.  Already we have seen how the  divisive forces and identity politics are being fostered by the anti-Left gang up – whether it be the  Gorkha Janamukti Morcha or the Kamatapuri movement. 

The targeting of the CPI(M) by the Maoists is part of the overall gameplan.  The brutal killings of the CPI(M) members by the Maoist gangs are intended to cripple the Party in some of its strongest bases – in West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia.  Those killed are Party members and supporters from the adivasis, school teachers, agricultural workers and poor peasants.  In a recent incident on September 4, a school teacher who was a member of the CPI(M) local committee was dragged out of a class room in Salboni primary school where he was teaching children and shot dead.  Even those who do not belong to the CPI(M) but refuse to cooperate with the Maoists are killed.

It is necessary to expose this brutality and vicious character of the Maoists – how they have become the instrument of the most reactionary and rightwing  forces in West Bengal.  The rally held in Lalgarh by Mamata Banerjee and the Maoists jointly on August 9 was a public display of this nefarious partnership.

The campaign to be conducted should expose the position of those intellectuals, social activists and so-called civil libertarians who are  supporting this  murderous partnership.  The likes of Swami Agnivesh and Medha Patkar are condoning the inhuman killings indulged in by the Maoist gangs by extending support to the Trinamul-Maoist gang-up. Many dubious NGOs are involved in this anti-Left enterprise.  This is a  common tactic of the rightwing forces, they  enlist the support of the ultra-Left to provide a cover for their reactionary platform. 

The campaign should highlight how the Party and the Left are fighting back this anti-Communist offensive in West Bengal.  The CPI(M) is going amongst the people and is taking up their issues by launching movements and struggles.   The Left Front government has initiated a number of measures to provide relief to the people suffering from price rise, unemployment and the agrarian crisis.  Special attention is being paid to the poorest sections.  In the areas affected by the Maoist violence, the people are mobilising and  resisting the Maoist depredations  and intimidation.   Thousands of people are  now coming out in rallies and processions against the Maoists in the affected areas. 

Though the Party and the Left have paid a heavy price with the loss of so many valuable comrades, their sacrifices will not go in vain.  The CPI(M) and the Left in  West Bengal cannot be suppressed  by killings and violent repression.  The defence of the Left in West Bengal is the defence of the gains made by the working people.

 It is incumbent upon the entire Party to go amongst the people and  rally them against the attacks on the  Party and the Left in West Bengal.   We should explain how for the working class, the peasantry and all democratic sections of the people throughout the country, the defence of the West Bengal movement will be a defence of their own rights and movements.

Fidel Castro's new book released

 The leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, released on Friday September 10th, his book "La Contraofensiva Estrategica" (The Strategic Counter-Offensive) in the Aula Magna of the University of Havana.

According to the evening broadcast of the National Television News, Fidel Castro shared with participants in the meeting details about the research process.

This is the second part to "The Strategic Victory", a voluminous book he launched last month in which the iconic Cuban leader describes in details how with barely 300 rebels they were able to sustain and defeat the fierce offensive of the 10,000-strong army of dictator Fulgencio Batista.

Kastiuska Blanco, a journalist, said that the second book is an epic tale of the actions of the Rebel Army in the home stretch of the liberation struggle.

It refers to the invasion by the guerrilla columns commanded by Camilo Cienfuegos and Ernesto Che Guevara, and groups that were expanding into other provinces, in addition to the actions taken by the three fronts around the eastern province of Santiago de Cuba, said Blanco.

The deputy head of the Ideological Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, Alberto Alvariño, gave details about the printing process of the book, which maintains the code-visual resources used in the previous book "La Victoria Estrategica" (The Strategic Victory).

Alvariño added that the most modern printing techniques were used, such as UV varnish with gloss and matte, in addition to relief work and print.

CPIM Westbengal State committee website launched

CPIM West Bengal state committe launched its website on Friday. The website, www.cpimwb.org.in, is in English and Bengali.

Lies and misinformation about the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and other issues in West Bengal are being spread by the media and the Opposition parties, Biman Bose, party's State Secretary, said. “This website will primarily focus on the Bengal party, its activities and campaigns. It will also contain the party’s views on the current situation in the state. Information on the successes of the Left Front government will also figure in this portal. We will invite views and opinions about our party and the government. We will try to reply to those, he added.
Very often there is misinformation that is spread from ignorance, or wilful lies are told to the people, which creates confusion among them. We shall strive to report true facts and dispel any falsehoods.”

He said a section of the media usually waited for an opportunity to attack the party and the CPI(M)-led Left Front government in the State. “The attempts to malign the CPI(M) will continue, but the party will have to establish a connection with the people,” he said.

“Many people are eager to know about the Communist movement in West Bengal and not all of them prefer to come to our meetings on the streets. This website shall allow us to connect with them,” he said.

The website includes a forum for interaction with visitors, where they can pose queries and seek clarifications. Any allegations of corruption or inappropriate behaviour by an individual can also be brought to the notice of the authorities.

CPI(M) to intensify stir against property tax

Communist Party of India (Marxist) plans to intensify the agitation against the steep hike in property tax by Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation. Addressing a public meeting, the party State Secretary B.V. Raghavulu on Friday said while people were reeling under severe hardship due to price rise and several other taxes, the GVMC chose to increase the property tax between 100 per cent and 1,000 per cent.Demanding immediate withdrawal of the notified tax hike, he promised to be with people of in fighting for their right. Terming the letter of Member of Parliament Kishore Chandra Deo to Union Minister for Mining as a well-rehearsed strategy of the Congress Government, Mr. Raghavulu took strong objection to the permission given to the construction of a port at Nakkapalli to export Bauxite mined in Sapparla, Ananthagiri, Chintapalli and Araku.

Tribals of Visakhapatnam district were being cheated as even an alumina plant was being permitted at Makavarapalem, which showed the scant respect for the welfare of the native people and the environmental protection. Criticising the Congress for destabilising the Left Government with constant attack on some pretext or other with the help of Trinamul Congress in West Bengal, he took exception to alleged coming together of Congress, Trinamul Congress to fight the Left parties in the forthcoming polls. CPI (M) district secretary Ch. Narasinga Rao and Steel Plant Division secretary D.Ch. Venkateswara Rao participated in the public meeting.

(Courtesy : The Hindu)

CPI (M) opposes cotton export

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) Karur district committee has urged the Central Government not to allow unrestricted export of cotton stating that such a measure would affect the fortunes of the textile manufacturing industry that provides employment to thousands of skilled, unskilled and semi-skilled labourers.

A resolution to that effect was passed at the party district executive committee meeting here recently. Party district secretary G. Rathinavelu said that the textile sector was suffering immensely due to the misplaced policies of the Central government. Yarn prices have been going up steadily and every possible step to bring down the price should be taken immediately.

It was in these circumstances that The Central government has come up with a plan to resume banned cotton export and that has upset the textile industry a lot. The cotton year starts from October 1and lasts till September 30. The best quality cotton arrives at the head of the season and if exports were to be allowed then the best quality would be exported to competing countries depriving our textile industry of precious raw material.

Expecting price rise in the cotton yarn sector, there has been a forced and artificial scarcity of yarn . Hence the Centre should take steps to ensure availability of enough quantity of cotton for the local textile units by banning cotton exports altogether and reining in the price of yarn, a resolution demanded.

Through another resolution the party called upon the district police administration to take immediate steps to curb the incidents of crimes especially in the bus stand area. Anti-social activities including organizing kangaroo courts, usury and money collection from small roadside traders terrorizing the public and others should be put to an end.

The district administration and the district police should take immediate steps to curb the menace, Mr. Rathinavelu observed.

Those who participated included State Executive member K. Thangavel, party district unit office-bearers G. Balachandran, P. Ilakkuvan, J. Annakamatchi, K. Sakthivel and M. Jyothi Basu also spoke.

(Courtesy : The Hindu)

DYFI Tamilnadu State conference from September 24-27 at Coimbatore

The 13th State conference of Democratic Youth Federation of India, Tamil Nadu committee will be held at Coimbatore from september 24-27, 2010. The Conference will conclude on 27th September with a huge youth rally of 1 lakh participation. Comrade Sitharam Yechury will inaugurate the conference. 5000 White volenteers will participate in the rally. The decision was taken at a meeting of the state committe of DYFI which held its meeting at Tiruchi on this Thursday and Friday. The committe also dismmissed the claims of the Tamil Nadu government's claim that only 2% of the population is unemployed.