Against
Government’s Water Policy
The
14th conference of CITU, being held from 4th to 8th
April, 2013 at Kannur, condemns the Water Policy, 2012 of the Government of
India directing the state governments to realize water charges on ‘production
cost’, privatization through PPP route and to establish independent regulatory
authority and, thereby, withdrawing from government’s responsibility of
providing water for drinking, household use and agricultural use particularly
by the toiling sections.
The
UDF government in Kerala decided enactment to corporatize this vital service
sector by establishing Kerala Drinking Water Supply Company Ltd with majority
private shareholding and bringing entire state under its coverage. Similar
steps are being taken in other states also like Delhi Jal Board is being privatized
beginning in four areas under slogan of 24/7 supply; Maharashtra government
doing the same beginning at Nagpur; Karnataka government in Hubli and Dharwar
etc.
People
have their basic right on this natural resource for protection of their lives
and livelihood which must not be allowed to be used by corporates for business
and profits.
The
conference calls upon the working class of the country to rise in defending the
people’s right on this vital natural resource water.
Against
Attack on Trade Union Movement
This
14th conference of CITU, being held from 4th to 8th
April, 2013 at Kannur, notes with grave concern the widely spreading and rapidly
increasing attacks on the trade union movement by the
corporate-police-administration combine to terrorize and suppress the working
class in different parts of the country.
These
attacks are manifestation and part of aggressively driven neoliberal policies of
the present dispensation abetted by the MNCs and corporate media. Such growing
intolerance to opposition and agitation of the working class in pursuance of
their trade union and democratic rights is also a danger signal to democratic
system and norms of the country.
Consequent
to successful 20-21 February, 2013 strike, the police at Noida in Uttar Pradesh
launched unprecedented attack by arresting large number of union functionaries
of CITU and other central trade union affiliates and sent them to jail who are
not yet released despite joint delegation of all central trade unions to Noida
administration. This conference demands their immediate release from jail and
to stop any further arrest of trade union functionaries.
A
trade union leader of road transport workers in Haryana was crushed to death during
peaceful picketing on 20th February 2013 on the day of strike.
Large
numbers of workers of Maruti Suzuki plant in Manesar in Haryana are in jail
combined with mass dismissals of hundreds of permanent workers and 1800
contract workers.
In
Tamilnadu simply for forming unions hundreds were victimised by way of
dismissals, suspension, keeping idle months together, transfers to far off
places etc. Hundreds of criminal cases filed against the leaders and frontline
workers. Similar developments are taking place in other states also.
At
the instance of employers’ organizations, the general secretary along with the
vice president of Maharashtra state
committee of CITU were arrested and sent to jail by the police.
The
attack on the trade union and democratic movement in West Bengal, where working
class and Left movement is strong, is also to be seen as an integral part of
this attack.
The
united trade union movement against such aggressive neoliberal policies and
attacks is a major development in defence of trade union and democratic rights
of the working class and the people.
This conference condemns such attacks by
corporate-police-administration combine and calls upon the workers of all trade
unions to raise their voice of protest against such attacks anywhere in the
country.
On Tasks of CITU among Working Women
The 14th Conference of CITU,
being held on 4-8 April 2013 in Kannur reiterates its commitment to carry
forward and strengthen the work among working women that CITU has started
nearly 35 years ago.
The conference notes that
CITU has made considerable advances in organising working women since 1979 when it organised the first all
India convention of working women in Chennai and constituted the All India
Coordination Committee of Working Women. The membership of women in CITU which
was less than 7% at that time has gone up to 31.96% in 2011. In several states
it is more than 50%. Women’s presence in the mobilisation of CITU, in its day
to day activities, in the conferences at the state and national level, in the
decision making bodies has also increased since then.
While expressing its
satisfaction at this progress, this conference also is conscious that many
weaknesses that have been repeatedly pointed out by the successive conventions
of the All India Coordination Committee of Working Women (CITU) as well as the
successive all India conferences of CITU are yet to be overcome.
The general weakness of
unions, particularly in industries where both men and women work like
plantations, beedi, brick kiln etc, in raising the specific problems of working
women like equal wages, maternity benefits and crèches, sexual harassment etc from
the union platform and mobilising both men and women on these issues, still
continues. In several states, even where women membership is above the national
average, resistance to elect women as delegates to conferences and to the
decision making bodies continues. This was evident in many of the recently
concluded state conferences also.
Our work among working
women is not reviewed in the state committees. Proper attention is not paid to
identify, train, develop and promote women cadres. No action is taken by the
state committees to ensure formation of women’s sub committees in our unions in
sectors with considerable women workers and to see that they function
effectively. Holding the state conventions and constituting state level
coordination committees is observed as a periodic ritual in some states while
in some states even this is not
done.
This conference reiterates
that our work among working women is part of our objective of uniting the
entire working class and mobilising it to play its due role in leading the
struggle against all exploitation. It firmly believes that overcoming the
weaknesses and improving our work among working women will contribute to
strengthening the CITU and trade union movement as a whole. The basic weakness
lies in the influence of the class divided patriarchal society along with the
lack of consciousness on the urgency of organising and activating working women
in leading bodies of CITU at all levels. The CITU as a whole has to make
conscious and sustained effort to overcome these weaknesses. The
convention of All India Coordination Committee of Working Women, which had to
be deferred due to unavoidable reasons and will be held shortly, will also
discuss these issues in detail and make the necessary recommendations.
This 14th conference of CITU calls
upon all the state committees of CITU, its industrial federations and
affiliated units to rededicate to the task of strengthening the work among
working women by –
Ø Discussing our work among working women as a
specific agenda in the first state committee meeting immediately after this
national conference
Ø Identifying the affiliated unions in sectors
with considerable number of women workers and constitute women’s sub committees,
make them functional and take up
women’s specific issues from the union platform
Ø Allot a state office bearer of CITU to monitor
the effective implementation of the above at all levels of the organisation
Ø Organise separate trade union classes for
working women activists and develop them to take up more responsibilities in CITU
and its affiliated unions
Ø Pay special attention to recruit women full
timers
The Conference resolves to convene a national
workshop with the participation of the president/ general secretary of all the
state committees of CITU, after the national convention of All India
Coordination Committee of Working Women to chalk out further concrete measures
to strengthen our work among working women.
Against the Privatisation of ICDS through ICDS Mission
The fourteenth conference of CITU, being held
at Kannur, Kerala, condemns the government move to privatise the Integrated
Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme and reiterates the demand of institutionalization
and universalisation of ICDS.
Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS)
is the only government scheme which provides supplementary nutrition, health
services and pre school education for holistic development to the children of
India. At present, the scheme provides nutrition and health care to nearly
seven and a half crore children and 1.8 crore pregnant and lactating mothers
through nearly 14 lakh anganwadi centres in more than seven thousand blocks all
over the country. Nearly 27 lack workers and helpers, are employed in the ICDS
without being recognised as workers, without minimum wages and any social
security, subsidising the government on its social sector expenditure.
Despite being in existence since the last
more than 37 years, the full potential of ICDS could not be realized as the
government was never serious in its effective implementation which is
demonstrated by its ad hoc approach towards it and inadequate allocation of
financial resources. As a result, malnutrition continues to plague our country
which today is home to around half of the malnourished children in the world.
Since the advent of the neoliberal policies,
the government has been attempting to privatise ICDS and withdraw from its
responsibility from it. It has been incorporating the directions of the World
Bank in its implementation, the main thrust of which is privatization and
targeting. On the pretext of strengthening ICDS and addressing the serious
problem of malnutrition, it has decided to implement it in a ‘mission mode’.
However, the measures that are included in its plan will in no way strengthen
ICDS but to privatization and will ultimately lead to its dismantling.
A ‘Mission’ itself is a short term programme
for a limited target which will be wound up after achieving the ‘Mission’
targets. The services provided by the ICDS are not ones which can be stopped
once any goal is achieved. However instead of taking measures for
institutionalizing ICDS and ensuring its effective functioning by adequate
allocation of funds, the government has made it mandatory to hand over a
minimum of 10% of the centres to NGOs. It has provided several incentives to
them including ‘flexibility’ to spend the money according to their priority and
will. Provisions are made to hand over the supply of supplementary nutrition
also to the corporate NGOs like ISKCON, Naandi Foundation etc and to the NGOs
floated by the corporate houses. The proposed Right to Food Act contains
proposals of fortified and ready to eat food, which will help the corporate
entry in he sector.In the name of strengthening the pre- school component and
Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE), the government is proposing to
involve the private nursery schools to be involved in ICDS. It is directed that
the financial allocations be made to the existing private nursery schools with
of course ‘flexibility’ in norms of spending. This move to privatise the
nutrition and pre- school education and siphon off public money to the
corporate account must be fought tooth and nail.
The working hours of the anganwadi workers
and helpers have already been increased and the retirement is made mandatory,
without any increase in the remuneration or provision for pension and social
security.
This conference demands that the government
should stop any attempts to privatise ICDS and assume full responsibility to
ensure for every child in India its right to food, health and education for a
holistic development. It demands the government to allot the necessary
financial resources for ICDS.
This conference fully supports the struggles
of the anganwadi employees for regularization, minimum wages, social security
and against privatization. It calls upon all the state committees of CITU to
extend full support to the call of the All India Federation of Anganwadi
Workers and Helpers to observe 10th July 2013 as ‘Black Day’ and
ensure its total success.
This 14th conference of CITU also calls
upon all the beneficiaries of ICDS and the people in general to join the
struggle to save ICDS from privatization and being dismantled.
On Com. Samar Mukherjee attaining 101th Year
This 14th
conference of the CITU, being held on 4th - 8th April
2013 at Kannur, considers it a proud privilege to felicitate the veteran trade
union leader and one of the founders of CITU, Com. Samar Mukherjee on his
attaining 101th year of life on 8th November, 2012.
Born on 7th
November 1911 in Howrah district of West Bengal, Com. Samar Mukherjee plunged
in national independence movement since his early life as a student and became
one of the leading personalities in the Congress Party. Being attracted to
Marxism – Leninism, he joined the Communist Party in 1940 and rose to its leadership
position. He joined CPI(M) from the day
of its formation and rose to its leading body, the Polit Bureau as its
member.
He was deeply involved in
the trade union movement since 1940during British rule. His entire life was dedicated to the cause of
the working class and other toiling masses, for which he had to work
underground, face trials and undergo prison life.
Com. Samar Mukherjee led CITU
for long years as its all India Treasurer, General Secretary and as one of its Vice
Presidents; and guided others in the trade union movement. He developed
international relation travelling in different countries on behalf of CITU and
CPI(M).
As member of West Bengal
Legislative Assembly and of both Houses of the Parliament and also in the
capacity of the leader of the Parliamentary group of CPI(M), he brilliantly
played his role in defending the interests of the working class and other
down-trodden sections. He was widely respected by all, despite political
divide.
On this occasion, this
Conference warmly greets Com. Samar Mukherjee and recalls his noble
contribution to the Communist and Working Class movement; and wish him good
health and longer life.
