Fight wrong policies of Congress governments: Prakash Karat

 

Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Prakash Karat on Thursday underlined the need for building a “powerful national movement against the wrong policies” of the Congress governments at the Centre and States.

Addressing a public meeting convened by the Telugu Desam Party and its friendly parties at Gundur in support of their charter of demands for farmers' welfare, Mr. Karat said the movement should involve farmers, agricultural labour, workers and other toiling sections and it should ensure that the wrong policies were fought back. The CPI(M) was committed to fighting unitedly with the TDP and other like-minded parties the governments' “wrong” policies.

Leaders of national parties converged here to express their solidarity with the struggle launched by the TDP.

The former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda; Rashtriya Lok Dal president Ajit Singh; Indian National Lok Dal president Om Prakash Chautala; the former Chief Minister of Jharkhand, Babulal Marandi; CPI deputy general secretary S. Sudhakar Reddy; MDMK representative Ganesh Murthy; RSP leader Abani Roy and others attended the meeting.

Farmers' suicides

Lamenting the “distressing spectacle” of suicides by farmers, Mr. Karat said that as many as 17,368 farmers committed suicide in 2009 alone, reflecting the failure of the government to come to their rescue.

Mr. Naidu advised Congress MPs to launch an indefinite strike in support of the demands raised by farmers who were facing the worst-ever crisis during the current year following a series of calamities.

He recalled how the Congress leaders prevented discussions on agriculture crisis in the Legislative Assembly by insisting on a solution to the cases registered against students during the pro-Telangana and Samaikhyaandhra agitations. The government, he said, scrapped all the cases within a day of the MPs launching fast.

Mr. Naidu recalled how he was prompted to launch an indefinite fast after several efforts to convince the government to concede the demands of farmers went in vain.

The TDP president demanded that the government implement the recommendations of the M.S. Swaminathan Commission on farmers, who were facing steep rise in the costs of inputs while the returns on their investments remained almost the same.

“The Andhra Pradesh government's assurance to give loans at 3 per cent interest rate remained on paper as a major section of farmers are not covered under the scheme,” he said.

“Eyewash”

Mr. Deve Gowda said the Rs. 400 crore announced by the Centre to Andhra Pradesh as advance plan amount was “peanuts and eyewash,” which would not serve any purpose.

The Centre should declare therecent heavy rains as a national calamity to make good the farmers' losses.

Mr. Chautala said that though the Group of Ministers recommended payment of Rs. 10,000 an acre as compensation to farmers hit by calamities, it remained on paper.

Mr. Ajit Singh said that though the agriculture sector was witnessing rapid strides, the lot of farmers continued to remain miserable.

(Courtesy : The Hindu)

Shameful Surrender to US Foreign Policy Agenda

The decision of the Central government to bar Indian companies from using the Asian Clearing Union (ACU) to process payments will directly affect India’s trade with Iran and in particular will affect the import of gas and crude oil from Iran which constitutes around 16 to 17 per cent of the country’s crude oil requirements. 

The Americans have been pressurizing India as Iran’s largest trading partner in the ACU to close down this route as they consider it a barrier in the implementation of the US’s arbitrarily imposed sanctions on all companies doing trade with Iran. 

This decision of the Government of India is a shameful surrender to US foreign policy agendas and is against the national interest. This is all the more apparent since the sanctions imposed by the United Nations exclude imports in the energy sector and, therefore, it is not at all incumbent on India as a member of the UN to take such a step. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that the US spokesman on the issue should praise India’s “significant action”. The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) condemns this decision of the government as being against the national interests. It demands rescinding of the step. It calls on other political parties to also put pressure on the government.

CPI(M) Andhra Pradesh State Committee To Launch Agitations on People’s Issues

The extended meeting of the CPI(M) AP state committee has decided to mobilise people on a large scale and organise movements for the resolution of the problems being faced by the common people of the state. It has called upon the people to fight back the implementation of World Bank-dictated policies by the state government in the name of reforms. The extended meeting was held at Sundarayya Vignan Kendram, Hyderabad on December 19, 2010. Below we give the full text of the political resolution unanimously adopted by the meeting.

THE extended state committee meeting of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) demands from the state government to resolve the serious problems being faced by various sections of people of the state immediately.

The faction feuds within the state Congress party have reached their pinnacle. After the appointment of the new chief minister by the Congress high command, the dissatisfactions within the party have flared up. Those MLA’s who did not get a cabinet berth are angry. Even those who got a place in the cabinet are, in some cases, unhappy as to the kind of ministry they have got. Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, Congress MP and son of former chief minister late Y S Rajashekar Reddy, has rebelled against the party and resigned from both party membership and Lok Sabha membership, complaining that the Congress party is insulting his supporters. He later on announced that he is going to form his own party soon. In the events that followed one another at a lightening speed, the Congress high command was forced to enter the scene and do the adjustments in its own ‘style.’ But, despite the high command's intervention, the uncertainty in the government and the dissatisfaction in the party did not subside. On each and every occasion these faction feuds in the party are resurfacing. And the party leaders are busy in dealing with them. The people of the state have given mandate to the Congress party to rule the state for five years. It is already one and a half years since this mandate was given but still these leaders are busy in faction feuds and the distribution of the fruits of power amongst themselves.

On the other hand, there is no time left for the Congress party to look into the problems of the state, its people and the administration. The Congress high command, which should have set right the things, has rather contributed to the degeneration in the situation and thus the worsening of the governance in the state. The sealed-cover culture in the distribution of positions of power has come back again, and has led to the gross distortion of democratic values. So, the entire responsibility for the uncertainty and confusion that has descended on the state for the last few months, rests completely on the shoulders of the Congress high command.

The Congress leadership is responsible for the building up of the animosities among the Telugu people by its ways of opportunism and casual attitude on the question of the unity of the state. The Srikrishna committee, which was constituted to dwell into the matter of integrated/divided state, announced that it will submit the report even before the deadline of December 31. There is a chance that some forces and people might try to aggravate hostilities between the people of various regions in the state and thus jeopardize peace and fraternity by using this occasion as an opportunity. The CPI(M) calls upon the people to be alert in these matters.

There is nobody in the government as of now who is caring about the problems of the people. Because of that, people are being forced to fall back upon the mercy of the administration for getting things done. But in the present situation, even the government administration has become rudderless and passive. As of now, the new chief minister and his ministerial colleagues dont look like moving in the direction of setting the things right and resolving the issues of the people. As their problems go unattended to, the people of the state got vexed up and are taking to the path of agitations. Sections of people like ITDA Gurukul school hostel staff, employees of the Indira Kranti Padham, Asha workers, RTC employees, State Electricity Board employees, Singareni contract workers etc are all on the path of struggle on their genuine demands. Many other sections of people are making plea after plea for the resolution of their problems, and are getting ready for taking part in the struggles. Police lathicharged the IKP workers recently.

A rasta roko programme was organised on December 11 under the leadership of the secular opposition parties seeking increase in the support price for farmers produce. Various sections of the people are appealing to the government on their various problems. Unorganised workers are asking for the implementation of the minimum wages; government employees and teachers are asking for their genuine rights and health facilities; anganwadis are asking for retirement benefits; poor are demanding for housing sites, ration, and the implementation of the employment guarantee scheme; girijans are asking for patta rights on the forest lands and the students are appealing for scholarships and hostel facilities.

Farmers are committing suicides because the paddy crop was damaged in 14 districts of the state. So far 40 farmers have committed suicide because of unbearable losses. The farmers are demanding compensation for the damaged crops. The CPI(M) extended meeting demands the state government to pay attention toward the immediate resolution of these problems.

The state assembly and legislative council meetings were held for six days from December 10. The government utterly failed in showing a way out of the immediate and serious problems facing the people. It wasted a lot of time in the session. It has not responded properly toward the problems of the farmers, despite the opposition raising the issue forcefully. The government announced only namesake measures. But these measures are not sufficient enough in order to rescue the farmers, that too in particular the tenant farmers who have undergone an immense loss. The CPI(M) calls upon the farmers to take to a path of agitation for making the government come down on the question of resolving the issues in a befitting manner. It is only because of people’s agitations in the past that the government has come down and started implementation of the welfare schemes. In the past, huge movements were organised for the sake of housing sites, ration cards, forest rights, resolution of the issues of hostels, for nodal agencies, for identity cards to the tenant farmers etc. The government now is trying to weaken the welfare programmes that are a result of these people’s struggles.

The poor people of the state, who are already struggling from price rise and decline in employment opportunities, will further suffer if the welfare schemes are weakened. So, the new state government instead of trying to weaken the welfare programmes should rather try to plug the loopholes in them and implement them in a much better way, demands the extended meeting of the CPI(M). It also calls upon the people to prepare themselves for the protection of these welfare programmes and their further strengthening. The meeting also calls upon the people to mobilise themselves for the sake of the struggles on the issues of protecting and further strengthening of the welfare programmes; house sites for the poor; cultivable land for the landless; and the resolution of the problems of the sections of the people like the poor, weaker sections – the dalits, minorities, tribals, artisans, and the poor farmers. The state government is implementing the conditionalities of the World Bank in a disguised way in the name of reforms. It is bringing about new legislations for the sake of doing this. Property tax is being raised in some municipalities, along with a tax on garbage in those municipalities. Water meters are also being fixed. The extended meeting of the CPI(M) state committee appeals to the people of the state to fight back these anti-people policies of the government.

UPA's wrong economic policies have hit the poor: G Ramakrishnan

The United Progressive Alliance's wrong economic policies at the Centre and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's anti-people policies here had made the poor and the marginalised suffer a lot, said G. Ramakrishnan, State secretary, Communist Party of India (Marxist), on Wednesday.

Participating in a protest meeting held at Madurai to condemn the respective governments for failing to control the rising prices of essential commodities at Scott Road here, he said that onion prices and prices of many vegetables had skyrocketed and become out of reach.

Mr. Ramakrishnan, along with cadre, raised slogans condemning various scams such as the 2G spectrum allocation scam, Commonwealth Games scam, Adarsh Housing Society scam and other alleged scams of the Karnataka government.

The State secretary questioned how the Centre could provide a free hand to the oil companies to fix the prices and demanded a reversal of its decision.

The price rise in petroleum products had badly hit the people who were already suffering from inflation, he said.

Online and speculative trading had really played havoc in the Indian economy and during January to November 2010 the traders involved in online and speculative trading had made Rs.95 lakh crore. In the meantime, more than 17,000 farmers had committed suicide in the country.

Speaking on the alleged 2G spectrum scam, he wondered how the DMK president, M. Karunanidhi, played the Dalit card stating that since A. Raja was a Dalit he was being victimised and later when it did not work he used the Aryan-Dravidian binary. Now, he had asked his party men to organise meetings across the State asking them to explain that it was not a scam but a notional loss to the government.

Speaking earlier, N. Nanmaran, MLA, Madurai East, explained how the CPI(M) had always been in the forefront taking up the common man's issues. R. Annadurai, urban district secretary, in his presidential address, introduced the candidate K. Chandrasekhar for the by-election to be held for Ward 45 of Madurai Corporation and appealed for support from people and alliance partners.

(source : The Hindu)

Interview with Com. Biman Basu

Biman Basu, CPI(M) state secretary on some contemporary issues.

On current political situation in West Bengal.

West Bengal is facing a very difficult political situation today. The entire period of the Left Front Government never witnessed this kind of anarchy, chaos and terroristic type of attack on the common people of the state. As a result of this meticulously planned anarchy, the developmental programmes of the state government have been facing serious problem. In short, the anti development forces are moving against the interests of the people of our state. These anti democratic forces are doing havoc to democratic methods and practices.

On the role of opposition in West Bengal.

The opposition parties of West Bengal legislative assembly are behaving in an irresponsible manner. They do not adhere to any democratic principle. They are involving themselves in different types of anti democratic activities. For example, about two years back this irresponsible opposition attacked the assembly house, destroyed the record room and damaged valuables including rare furniture and antique. This opposition of the assembly never responds to any all party meeting conducted by the ministers or administration. Actually the democracy and its principles are jeopardized by the Bengal opposition.

On present situation in Maoist violence affected areas in West Bengal and the role of CPI(M) in organizing resistance to this Maoist violence.

The CPI (Maoist) is a combination of earlier MCC and PWG. This outfit is being run in the name of Com. Mao Tse Tung, one of the great leaders of international communist movement. But they do not follow the philosophy of Com. Mao.

In West Bengal, they have started their activities maintaining close link with different factions of Jahrkhand parties and recruited cadres from those groups. Many of the so called Maoist leaders came from Andhra Pradesh and bordering Jharkhand . Now they are closely tied up with TMC, the main opposition of West Bengal. In Bengal particularly in the Jangal Mahal area they are attacking CPI(M) and left parties with backing from TMC. They are actually having joint consultation before any operation. In the Jangal Mahal area itself, they have killed 221 CPI(M) and Left activists and sympathizers till date among which 170 are tribal people. Most of these martyrs were from very poor economic background. CPI(M) and the left forces have taken up the political programme of exposing the game plan of TMC and Maoists. This campaign was taken up vigorously in the village level as well in the urban area to mobilise democratic and peace loving people. More and more people have come forward to protest and raised the slogan of resisting the TMC-Maoist onslaught through their horrific experience. It is they who have taken out streams of protest rallies in the villages. The administration also is trying to curb the violent activities of Maoists.

On the opposition’s accusation that ‘CPI(M) is responsible for terror’.

The irresponsible opposition of the state is continuously spreading slanderous lies and false propaganda. This can be compared with the tactics of thieves or pick pocketers, who falsely cry out after committing the crimes. In reality, it is TMC who are creating terror in many parts of the state. They are pursuing a violent politics. TMC does not have any principle, policy or programme. Their entire politics is based on falsehood and lies.

On pro-people policies of the Left Front Government.

Since 1977, the Left Front under the leadership of CPI(M) is implementing the pro-people policies. Due to the implementation of pro-people policies 12 lakhs acres of land have been distributed among about thirty lakhs families, over 70% of whom are poor SC/St and minority. Similarly the poorer sections of the peasantry have been benefitted through the distribution of patta in implementing of operation Barga. LF Government also stressed on the expansion of education facilities for the poor people. In implementing the expansion scheme thousands of primary, secondary, higher secondary schools, and numerous colleges and under graduate institutions have been established. For last few years SSK, MSk centres have been started under the monitoring of Panchayets. Mid-day meals have also been introduced in all types of primary education. As a result, rate of drop out of students have been seriously improved. The expansion can be measured through the number of students appearing for Madhyamik examinations which now has crossed over 1 million. Notable feature is that huge number of first generation students have recorded remarkable success in the school leaving examination. State govt’s health care system has spread to the rural areas and more than 70% the population is being treated in governmental health care system, which is not the case in most other parts of the country. These few examples are, I think, sufficient to show the pro-people nature of LF govt’s policies.

On CPI(M)’s campaign among the masses.

CPI(M) and LF have taken up the programme of campaign on its success stories and against the slanderous campaign by the opposition parties. In the campaign we are stressing to defend the achieved rights of the people and for further advancement of our state. We are also campaigning against the anarchy and terror tactics of the opposition. We just can not ignore the motivated and pre-planned programme of dividing poorer section of the society. We are seriously building up the unity, integrity and harmony of the people at large. From 4^th January, 2011 an intensive campaign of 40 days will be conducted throughout the state.

On CPI(M)’s rectification campaign.

We all know that we are working in a decadent society. The communists have not descended from any other planet, communists are also product of this society. The unhealthy contest and rat race prevail in the society. This has accentuated with the implementation of liberalized economic policies in our country. Since we are coming out from this society we just cannot ignore the ugly reflections on us. Therefore, we have to keep vigil in our day to day life and running the party activities. We sometime commit mistake and we want to identify the mistakes to rectify us. The rectification campaign is a continuous process, which cannot be halted nor can be declared as time bound. To do work in a better manner for the well being of the people continuously, we practice rectification campaign in our party.

On the tasks of CPI(M) members and workers in the current situation.

All CPI(M) members have to take up his or her work very seriously in the present political situation. CPI(M) members cannot wait only for spontaneous reactions from people. Shameless, slanderous campaign against communists and left parties has to be countered effectively. Terror tactics are to be exposed in all possible manners and if necessary have to be resisted by the mobolising poorer section of the society. In the present situation, larger and larger mobilization of the people is the key to effectively answer the fictitious campaign and attack on democracy. Comrade Jyoti Basu used to say “It is the people who create the history, not the conspirators.” Left activists should always remember this.

DYFI demands probe on charges against Srinijan

M.B. Rajesh, MP and State president of the Democratic Youth Federation of India, has sought a comprehensive investigation into allegations of amassment of assets disproportionate to known sources of income levelled against P.V. Srinijan, Congress leader and son-in-law of the former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and present Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission K.G. Balakrishnan. The allegations against Mr. Srinijan are that he owned landed properties in Bangalore, Chennai, Dubai, etc., and a school in Yercaud. He has not so far denied the allegations, Mr. Rajesh said and demanded that Mr. Balakrishnan step down from the post of NHRC Chairman. DYFI central committee member V.A. Zakir Hussain was also present at the press conference.

Protest against increased railway Freight Charges

Ministry of Railways, keeping the whole country and the Parliament completely in dark increased freight charges on many essential items as well as industrial commodities that would further soar inflation and severe price rise. The order circular (no.TCR/1078/2010/21) issued on 20^th December will be effective from December, 27. Joint Director of the Railway Board Ashok Mehrotra has issued the order.

As a great betrayal to the public the railway minister increased the freight charges secretly when she has organized open meeting against the price hike at Esplanade in recent past. The new ‘fatwa’ of Mamata Banerjee would even upset the make-shift effort of the central government to curb down the soaring price of essential commodities.

CPI(M) West Bengal State Secretary and Chairman, Left Front Biman Basu has sharply criticized not only the order but way in which it has been endorsed keeping common people totally unaware and in the dark.

Railway while delimitating the freight has changed the classification of various items. The new order has changed the classification of sugar from no.110 to no.120. The freight charge of sugar transportation therefore is going to rise at a higher rate. For the first 100km transportation the freight charge would be Rs.100.10 per ton compared to the earlier rate Rs.91.70 per ton. For 200km to 210km it would be Rs.179 from earlier Rs.164; the increment is Rs. 15 per ton; for 501km the increment is Rs.32; for 1001km the amount is Rs.63; 1501km the amount is Rs.92 and for 2101km the increment is Rs.118.

The huge freight hike is doubtlessly going to push the price of sugar up in the market directly and have a cascading effect on other commodities also. The freight charge of ‘salt’ has also been charged at a similar rate. Besides that the rates of iron ore, cement, coal, steel and other base products are raised by 4% which is going to bash the market and have definitely a cascading effect on other essential consumer products in all forms of market.

When price of onions and almost all essential products have touched an unbearable height this increase of freight charge will

• Increase the transportation cost of the product;
• Increase the initial price of the commodity;
• Increase the price of other products of similar range;
• Increase other products in retail market;
• Encourage black marketers to hoard essential commodities;
• Suffocate common people in all aspects of life.

Another Untouchability Wall demolished in Tamil Nadu

Under severe pressure and protests by Tamil Nadu Untouchability Eradication Front and CPIM against the untouchability wall, Revenue officials on Saturday demolished two portions of a one-km-long compound wall in Nagarajapuram on the outskirts of the city, which had denied Dalits in the area access to the main road. The demolition of the “untouchability wall” along two stretches of 30 ft and 23 ft has now provided residents of the Dalit colony an easier access to the main road that stretches from Thadagam Road to Thondamuthur Road.

A real estate promoter had built the wall along his layout, measuring seven feet in height and two metre in width. The residents of the Dalit colony objected to this alleged discrimination.

They contended that the real estate promoter had built the wall fearing that the sites may not fetch a good price if Dalits had access to the approach roads at the layout. The wall had forced the Dalit colony residents to take a detour of more than a km to reach the main road.

The issue was brought to the fore by the Tamil Nadu Untouchability Eradication Front (TNUEF). The approved layout plan had a reserve site on the other side of the compound wall which was shown as earmarked for a park. The approach road inside the layout from the main road ended just ahead of the park.

District convener of the TNUEF U.K. Sivagnanam was present when Tahsildars Lakshmikanthan (South) and S. Sundarrajan (North) inspected the wall. The officials first deputed a surveyor to measure the lands to ascertain the exact boundaries. The officials also checked with the local body on whether the reserve site and the approach roads in the layout had been handed over to the local body concerned.

On confirming that the layout was approved and the reserve site and approach roads had been handed over to the local body, the officials carried out the demolition on Saturday.

Using an earthmover, 30 ft length of the old compound wall at one place and another 23 ft of the new at the other end of the Dalit colony was demolished.