The CPI(M) State secretariat has given a call for making
the State-wide picketing of government offices on July 12 demanding
food security and universal public distribution system (PDS) a success.
The
secretariat said in a statement Friday that the United
Progressive Alliance (UPA) government had failed to control inflation
that had reached an unprecedented level in the country. Never before had
inflation reached a two-digit figure in the country since independence.
This was mainly on account of the neo-liberal policies being pursued by
the UPA government. The permission granted for speculative trading,
hoarding, and wrong export policy had all added to the crisis.
The
entry of corporate giants into the food sector, the lapses in
increasing productivity, and low growth in the farming sector were also
some of the main reasons that led to the crisis. The government’s
policies had weakened the public distribution system. Without learning a
lesson from the crisis, even now the government was trying to
categorise the public as above and below the poverty line (APL and BPL).
The Planning Commission recommendation that those with a daily income
of Rs.26 in rural areas and Rs.32 in urban areas could not be deemed
poor would deprive a vast majority of the benefits of the PDS.
The
Central government policy to cut subsidy in farming sector had led to
an increase in fertiliser prices. Still, the government had not taken
any step to implement the Swaminathan Commission recommendation that 50
per cent of the production cost should be included while fixing the
floor- price of agricultural produce.
The previous
Left Democratic Front (LDF) government had used the PDS and cooperative
sector to curb inflation caused by the erratic policies of the UPA
government. Since the United Democratic Front (UDF) came to power, the
prices of essentials had gone up by 200 per cent. Kerala stood 17th in
controlling prices as per the Labour Index Survey.
The
CPI(M) has, among other things, demanded for the abolition of APL-BPL
classification; introduction of universal PDS; provision of 35 kg
foodgrains to all families at Rs.2 a kg; and for produce-price stability
for farmers.