CPIM holds anti mining rally in Andhra Pradesh

CPI(M) State secretary B.V. Raghavulu has asserted that the anti-mining movement in the tribal areas of Visakhapatnam district will continue until such time all leases are cancelled.

Addressing a meeting, a culmination of an eight-day anti-mining campaign by the CPI(M) in the 11 mandals of the tribal areas, here on Friday, Mr. Raghavulu said already 29 licences had been given for mining in nearly 4,000 acres. Accusing the government of giving scope for illegal mining, he said 120 applications for mining in 1.1 lakh acres were pending with the government.

‘Destructive mining'

‘Destructive mining' would not only ruin the ecology in the Girijan areas but would also devastate the plain areas, he said.

It was estimated that mining in one acre would get Rs. 2 crore of revenue and in 1.1 lakh acres it would get Rs. 2.5 lakh crore.

“But why should Girijans sacrifice their land and ecology for mining, when they are not getting health, colleges or bridges they need and the money on mining was spent elsewhere?” he asked.

The government was not even spending the tribal sub-plan amount of 7 per cent of the budget in tribal areas. The leaders of Congress, TDP, and YSR Congress should declare whether they were with Girijans or hand in glove with those taking up mining. He charged the Congress government with overcoming the Panchayat approval for mining in violation of the Panchyatraj Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act and putting it in the hands of mandal and zilla parishads. The mandal parishads should pass a resolution opposing destructive mining. Describing the tribal movement that led to putting off public hearing on china clay at Sarai in Kandrika mandal as significant,

Mr. Raghavulu said Girijans were ready to lay down their lives for protecting their lands from mining.

If the government wanted to take up mining in areas that would not disturb ecology, it should come out with an alternative mining policy for spending money from it in Girijan areas, set up industries using the raw material within the State and provide employment to local youth.

Former MP Midiam Babu Rao, CPI(M ) district secretary Ch. Narsinga Rao Araku Valley ZPTC Killo Surendra, K. Santi of GK Veedhi, and Makireddy Ramana of Samata, a voluntary organisation, spoke.

(courtesy :The Hindu)

Protest Petroleum Products Price Hike

The Left parties strongly condemn these price increases and demand that they be withdrawn. The Left parties call upon all its units to immediately conduct hartals, demonstrations and other protest actions.

The four Left parties, the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Communist Party of India, Revolutionary Socialist Party and All India Forward Bloc have issued the following statement:

The UPA Government has struck another cruel blow at the people by increasing the prices of diesel, kerosene and cooking gas. The increase in the price of diesel by Rs. 3 per litre has come at a time when the people are suffering from all round price rise and the inflation rate has crossed 9 per cent. The diesel price increase will raise the price of transportation and affect the farmers as well. The increase in the price of kerosene by Rs. 2 per litre will be an added burden on the poor. The Rs. 50 increase per gas cylinder will also burden the common people.

The withdrawal of 5 percentage points in customs duty on crude oil, which was imposed last year, shows how such taxes are levied by the Centre to raise revenue and this is the main cause for the high prices of petroleum products. Yet, the government refuses to restructure the taxes on petroleum products and give up the ad valorem tax.

The Left parties strongly condemn these price increases and demand that they be withdrawn. The Left parties call upon all its units to immediately conduct hartals, demonstrations and other protest actions.