TMC Government Ruining Economy, Alleges Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee

We must organize the huge unorganized labour force in the country; and CITU will accomplish this job in near future forming trade unions for the people of the large unorganized sectors, avowed Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, while addressing the massive gathering at the open session of 10th CITU State Conference at Howrah Stadium.

On Manmohan Singh Government

Explaining the current labour scenario of the country Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee sharply criticized Manmohan Singh Government for incessantly taking anti-people decisions that have severely affected the huge labour force of the country. ‘It is our country where unemployment, hunger, poverty pervade beyond all earlier records. So what Manmohan Singh is saying, the country is moving in opposite direction’. The Central Government is taking anti-people decisions that have increased retrenchment of workers throughout the country. Company owners are now yearning for more profit cutting the wage of the labourers hiring them from other places. This has to be condemned. So CITU has decided to organize the huge unorganized labour force to form trade unions for them, said Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.

On Present Government in West Bengal

While talking about the present scenario of the state Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said that ‘West Bengal is witnessing severe crises in almost all sectors of life and profession in this new Government regime. Here the working forces including left workers are being badly intimidated and attacked almost everyday. Trade Union offices are being ransacked on a regular basis. They do not want any trade union activities other than theirs anti-workers culture. How long we will tolerate?’

‘Transport workers and the whole transport situation of the state are in deplorable condition. Most private transport vehicles are clogged down being incapable of managing the cost of the business. The Government is acting as sleeping beauty. Transport workers are not getting salaries, pensions, compelled to commit suicide. This is the crude reality of the state’.

‘In such a situation the new Government has already increased Ministers’ salaries from Rs. 7000 to Rs. 27000, when people are starving. We had never taken such unfair anti-people decision’.

The situation is rural Bengal is deteriorating considerably. Farmers are not getting legitimate price of food crops; the Government remains silent. Farmers’ suicide is a regular phenomenon in the state.

The industrial situation is, as people know, facing unprecedented crisis. Shalboni project, WIPRO and INFOSYS, companies the Left Front Government had invited to set up in the state earlier, are not in a position to continue. Just look at Singur. It has transformed into a deadly silent zone. The flagship NANO project could have organized more than 4000 jobs. The Government is therefore not in a position to encourage any further industrial investment.

In addition to such a mess in the overall professional sector, the Trinamool Congress has ousted ABG Company from Haldia just to provide undue benefit to a company owned by a TMC MP. This is just unprecedented. The Trinamool Congress people, led by MP Shuhendu Adhikari, even abducted three ABG officials. This is the actual situation, said Bhattacharjee.

In another situation in Dubrajpur, the TMC Minister was directly involved in an operation where the company was not giving proper compensation to the land holders. Police firing was occurred and the Minister now denying his involvement.

What is therefore the land policy of the present Government? How will they provide land if any industry comes in this state? What our present generation is going to do without employment opportunity? Engineering, Techno Institutions and Colleges are not filled up by adequate number of students.

The power sector is going to be the next debacle. They have stopped the Katwa power project for not being able to provide land. This will create a problem in future. We are getting power because there are severe shortage of industries and so the requirement of power.

On Law and Order Situation

Better is not to say much about this issue. A reign of terror including rape, killing, abduction, robbery is being unleashed in the state. Actually the miscreants have received a clear message from the Government that ‘nothing will happen’. The Government on the other hand is saying that nothing has happened. Only some are trying to malign the Government. So the situation is now getting out of control. The Government did not spare a poor farmer who was trying to tell about the ravaging hike of fertilizer price.

Our heart is down to see the series of attacks on Women in our state. Almost everyday such news hit front page of newspapers. This is just anarchy; and not to last long. Our people are conscious and they are the best judges of the present situation of the state.

On Towards Vigorous Struggle Call of CITU 10th West Bengal State Conference

The neo liberalism and its economic policy are making the life of the working class miserable day by day. The Central Government is giving all its effort to create the flexibility in the labour market in order to gain so called investors’ confidence. The working class of West Bengal is under continuous attack of the ruling Trinamool Congress. In this juncture the 10th West Bengal State Conference of Centre of Indian Trade Union (CITU) was held at Comrade Jyoti Basu Nagar (Howrah) and Comrade M. K. Pandhe Manch (Sarat Sadan). The Conference has been formally inaugurated by A. K. Padmanavan, all India President of CITU after hoisting the red flag and offering the floral tribute to the martyrs. In his inaugural speech Padmanavan said that the CITU would fight the attack on the people by the Central Government at the name of economic reforms jointly with other trade Unions. By mentioning about the attack against the workers in West Bengal in the changed political situation Padmanavan said that the workers of West Bengal shall be able to play its historical role in the situation like the earlier days. He said the Indian economic policy has undergone a right wing shift since the neo liberal economic policy has been introduced. Padmanavan has alerted the Central Government against any attempt to make the labour laws of the country flexible. He said the Government is acting under the dictation of the Word Bank and the chamber of commerce in order to make the labour laws of the country flexible. He said that the multinational companies are not following the laws of the land. They are restricting the workers to participate in the trade unions. Even the constitutional rights of the people are being undermined by the big corporate and MNC’s. The Central Government is playing the role of mere spectator in these violations. Padmanavan emphasised the necessity of protection of the trade union rights along with the social security, control of price hike and universal public distribution system. He said that CITU has always in favour of the united workers movement from its class outlook. After travelling a long path all the trade Unions have called for 48hours strike on 20th and 21st February 2013. This has happened for the first time in the history of independent India. The trade unions will participate in vigorous campaign like Parliament March on 20th December 2012 in order to make the strike successful.

Kali Ghosh, the Secretary of CITU West Bengal State Committee has placed the report in the conference. While placing the report he said that the workers movement of the state is facing various attacks during the tenure of the Trinamool Congress Government. He said that they went to submit their deputation before the Chief Minister of the State to draw her attention on growing attacks on trade Unions in West Bengal but she had refused to accept it.

On 10th November 2012 the CITU West Bengal State Conference has concluded with the call for a vigorous struggle against the neo liberal economic policies. Almost 1500 delegates from all over the state has participated in the Conference and discussed the various prevailing issues of the trade Union movement. Conference has created a road map for the future struggle for the working class people. In the context of growing number of unorganised sector workers and contractual workers the 10th Conference has emphasised on their problems and issues in detail and outlined the path of future programmes. Delegates have participated in the discussion on the draft report. With an elaborate discussion on the adverse effect of the economic policies of the Central Government the conference has also discussed the miserable conditions of the workers of the state in the last 18 months of TMC Government in the state.

The delegates have exchanged their experiences of the struggle against the terror and attack against the trade Union movements by the Trinamool backed hooligans. The expression of confidence has appeared on face of the delegates while talking about the historic success of the General Strike of 28th February called by the Trade Unions. The delegates have given importance on the consolidation of the various stream of worker movement in order to achieve the political goals.

The delegates in the conference have discussed the issue of the contractual labour in detail, specially the growing attack upon the labour laws of the country. The delegates have elaborately discussed the issue of the labour market flexibility and due to this effect of the neo liberal globalisation how the working class people of West Bengal are being affected at large. The organisation has decided to observe 12th December 2012 as the demand day for the Contractual workers. The workers shall unitedly hold their protest in front of the office s of the department of labour at the respective districts. The delegates have also pointed out the lathergy of the State Government to implement the social security and welfare programes initiated by the Left Front Government earlier.

On the other hand the CITU 10th West Bengal State Conference has discussed the issue of the unorganised sector workers. The roadmap has been framed to build up the vigorous campaign to unite the unorganised sector workers. The organisation will utilise all its effort to unite the workers working in various unorganised sectors in each districts of West Bengal.

The CITU will devote all its effort to make 48 hours strike a grand success. In the Month of December the Mass rally will be organised in all the districts and sub divisions of West Bengal and a huge and concentrated campaign shall be conducted among the workers and the common people throughout the month of December and January.

CITU will build up a joint struggle for drezing of Halidia and Kolkata Ports. The delegates of 10th West Bengal State Conference of CITU have discussed the issue elaborately and prioritized the labour issues in the ports. Tapan Sen, General Secretary of CITU said that the organisation consider the issues of the labour above all other issues. He also said that the organisation will stand with the retrenched workers who have lost their jobs at Haldia Port recently. He has demanded the joint effort of the Centre, State and the Port Authority to solve the existing problems.

The 10th Conference has elected the new West Bengal State Committee CITU. Shaymal Chakraborty has been re elected as the President and Dipak Dasgupta has been elected as the Secretary of CITU West Bengal State Committee.

Left Parties plans stir in Andhra Pradesh on power crisis

The State government is trying to suppress public voice by foisting false cases against them. The CPI(M) will not step back on agitations, more particularly regarding power crisis, even if cases are registered, party State secretary B.V. Raghavulu has said.

Com Raghavulu said his party was all set to launch an agitation against the power policies.

Meetings, dharna, etc. would be organised during this month and the agitation intensified in December. There was no question of backing out, he said. The “lopsided policies” of the government led to the power crisis in the State. None had asked for free power for agriculture. Farmers, who were dependent on borewells, would have been benefited if the irrigation projects in their areas were completed.

The government would also have saved Rs. 3,000 crore on power subsidy. But the government chose to spend Rs. 56,000 crore on Jalayagnam, which was a “waste of public money,” he said.

The Communist Party of India has warned of launching “militant struggle” if the government failed to bear the additional costs incurred by the power utilities instead of burdening consumers in the name of fuel surcharge adjustments.

The party’s struggle in association with other Left parties would be much intense than the one in 2000 that had resulted in police firing at Basheerbagh in the city killing three youth, CPI State secretary K. Narayana said on Sunday. “Basheerbagh will be repeated in all the 23 districts,” he added while accusing the government of targeting consumers for its own failures.

To begin with, the CPI would organise dharnas and demonstrations in the urban areas of the State on November 15 and it would also participate in the Electricity Regulatory Commission’s hearing slated on December 3 to consider fresh bout of FSA. “The APERC is behaving like an agent. It is being used to burden the people,” he said lamenting proposals for an additional Rs. 14,000 crore burden on consumers were being readied. Dr. Narayana who briefed reporters about the two-day State executive meeting here on Sunday claimed that the FSA charges were far exceeding the actual bills in several instances. “People will teach a fitting lesson to the Congress whenever elections are held.”