It took seven decades for the
ruling class parties to endorse the
vulnerability of workers in
unorganized sector and to promise
to redress it. When the opposition
parties made the unemployment
issue as their election plank, the
BJP delivered a political master
stroke in the form of pension
scheme. This is a mere election
gimmick given the meager finances
allocated to what the Finance
Minister said “one of the largest
pension scheme in the world within
next five years”.
This election-oriented budget
gave sops to the upper middle
class by raising the income tax slab
to Rs.5 lakh, and tax concessions
to real estate to promote sale of
normal and affordable houses.
These two measures were
promised by the BJP in the election
manifesto of 2014, but kept
unfulfilled waiting to announce
before the coming elections.
That the fiscal deficit remains
at 3.4 per cent despite the RS.1
trillion hand outs is presumptuous.
The growth rate of GDP pegged at
unrealistically high 11.5 per cent.
The plans to draw more dividends
from the Reserve Bank of India and
public sector banks puts more
stress on already stressed PSBs.
On the revenue side, the
revised estimates show Rs.1 trillion
shortfalls in collections of GST.
As there is no clear policy to revive
the manufacturing sector, the
collections of GST this year will not
be increased as expected. Last
year the Centre saved on disburse-
ments of grants and loans to states
to the tune of Rs.29,000 which may
not be possible in the current year.
It is certain that the fiscal deficit
may go uncontrolled leaving no
option to the incumbent govern-
ment than resorting to inflationary
measures.
This pre-election budget of
Modi is deceitful and based on
unrealistic assumptions.
Feb, March - 2019
Struggle for Land in Odisha
On Feb 1 st , 2019, more than
1000 people from the Sipasa-
rubali Mouza of Puri district,
Odisha led by Upakulia Jami-o-
Jangal Suraksha Samithi (UJJSS)
took out a rally in Puri town in
support of their right over the
land. People from 20 villages
have participated in the rally. A
three hour long meeting was held
in front of the District Collector’s
office. The people have declared
their resolve not to part with the
land under their possession for
the last nine years. They urged
the Govt. to scrap forthwith the
Multinational Corporate spon-
sored Shamuka Hotel project and
accept the just right of local
people on the said land. Com.
Batakrishna Swain the Convenor
of UJJSS has presided over the
meeting. Com.Srikant Mohanty,
Secretary, CMS, Odisha, Com.
Brahmananda Mallik, Com.
Bhimsen, Com. Sharat Rayguru,
Com.Tapan Upadhyaya, Com.
Reports:
Krushna Rout, Com.Mohan Naidu,
Com.
Surendra
Tapasy,
Com.Pratap Chinar, Lodnath
Nayak and others spoke. They
demanded that the govt. must
accept the just and democratic
rights of the people instead of
making the people to helplessly
wait for doles from the rulers. They
criticized the govt. for hanging on
to the idea of giving away the
people’s land to a Hotel project
despite a decade long struggle of
the local people and even after
knowing well how its proposed
move to install a project in this
coastal area can destroy the
jangal and thus dismantle the
natural protection from cyclones
and high tides and spells havoc
in the people lives and livelihoods.
The Organizers of the
peoples’ movement urged all the
parties to continue to extend their
support and solidarity to the just
struggle of the Sipasarubali
people for land.
In Solidarity with Wokers Strike
In response to the call of AIFTU
(New) the workers and peasants
were moved into solidarity actions
in Bihar, Odisha and other states
in support of the All India Workers
Strike on 8-9 January 2019.
Bihar
The AIFTU (New) and Bihar
General Mazdoor Union jointly took
out a procession in Patna on 7 th Jan
2019.
Nearly 400 people
comprising workers, poor peasants
and other toiling people coming
from different districts of Bihar like
Rohtas, Kaimur,Muzaffarpur, West
Champaran, Samastipur, Vaishali
and Patna marched along the main
thoroughfare surrounding Gandhi
Maidan. They chanted slogans in
support of the demands of workers
strike. The demonstration has
turned into a mass meeting near
Bhagat Singh Chowk, Gandhi
Maidan. Com.Arvind Sinha, the
General Secretary of AIFTU(N),
Com.Ashok Baitha, co-Convenor
of Bihar General Mazdoor Union;
Com.Azmulla Ansari, leader of Auto
Riksha Chalak Union, Sahebganj,
Muzaffarpur have addressed the
meeting. In addition to them,
Com.Satish Kumar of Communist
Centre of India, Com. Jayaprakash
of Shramik Mukti Sanghatan, Com.
Ram Lakhan of Bihar Nirman
Asanghatith Shramik Union also
spoke. Com. Nand Kishore Singh
of Bihar General Mazdoor Union
has presided over the meeting.
The speakers supported the all
India Workers Strike and appealed
to the working class to get
organized to fight for their class
interests.
contd. on page 23
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