Gurudas Das Gupta, Member Parliament and General Secretary All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) while addressing the 19th State Conference of AITUC at Punjabi Bhawan at Ludhiana on Sunday
Ludhiana, August 4, 2013: Gurudas Das Gupta, Member Parliament and General Secretary All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) while addressing the 19th State Conference of AITUC at Punjabi Bhawan here on Sunday, has alleged the UPA-II Government is increasingly working in the interest of big corporate business houses of India and the international cartels undermining the national interest.
He added latest decisions of the Government are enough indicators of the rightist shift in the policies detrimental to Indian growth and progress based on justice and equality. These are against the basic spirit of the Indian constitution which speaks of justice and equality as its mainstay. The government is more inclined to respond to the demands of the international finance capital and the MNCs while hitting the common man hard, even denying them basic amenities like food, shelter, health and education.
“Therefore there is an urgent need for the working people to unite in strength to lead the struggle against these policies so as to meet the goal of sustainable development in the interest of all the people of the country”, he asserted. He said on that score, the job insecurity and the job losses on the one hand and increased trends of contractorisation and outsourcing, contractualisation and casualisation of labour on the other hand is norm of the day.
Further, he said there is attack on unionisation itself and pressure on existing unions to suppress and intimidate them to contain their activities. Bringing in FDI in retail trade is a virtual sale out of small business to the foreign companies. It will be big blow to more than 4 crore small traders, shopkeepers, marginal and poor farmers, other small producers of goods in home based and small scale industries etc.
He said recent announcement of 100% FDI in Telecom and raising of FDI limit in oil sector would further lead to perpetuate the economic crisis. The government has been responsible for unprecedented rise in corruption at higher places with loss to national revenue and denial of rightful share of common people in the wealth being produced in the country.
He further deplored that accumulation of wealth in the hands of few, whereas the vast majority is suffering under acute poverty and unemployment. The latest reports have indicated that 100 top rich families own assets to the tune of 16 lakh crores of rupees whereas 70% Indians are forced to live on meager spending of Rs.16.60 paise per day. With the policies being pursued will further hasten these gaps.
He said, the government continues to act in ruthless manner against the common people and the response to people’s agitations by the Prime minister and some of his ministers are arrogant to the core. The government’s announcement that only 21.9% of the population lives below poverty line is a shear mockery. How can anyone earning Rs.33 per day is above poverty line he asked.
He said in this background he said, the trade unions have come out with their strategies to fight the attacks of government on working people. The successful two days strike by all the Central Trade Unions on 20-21 February, in which independent federations, associations and other independent trade unions also participated, first ever such action in the independent India have shown the unity among the working class and is a big challenge before the government.
Amarjeet Kaur, National Secretary, AITUC in her speech said that the workers charter of demands includes seeking check on price rise of essential commodities, end to labour law violations, for social security and pension to all workers, abolition of any ceiling on Provident Fund, gratuity and bonus, abolition of contract labour, steady regularisation of them and equal pay for equal work, no disinvestment of public sector/ government sector enterprises and resources, national minimum wage to be raised to not less that Rs. 10,000, universal entitlement of maternity benefit to working women etc.
Comrade DL Sachdev in his greetings called upon the unions to prepare for the next round of proposed joint agitations which includes campaign on demands at grass root level to be followed by massive rallies in the state capitals on September 25 and then a march to parliament on December 12 to be adopted in a joint national convention of Trade Unions to be held on August 6 at New Delhi.
Addressing the conference Bant Singh Brar, President and Nirmal Dhaliwal, General Secretary of Punjab unit of AITUC said that the state govt. of Punjab is not following a different course as regards the economic policies in general are concerned. Rather it has been taking anti labour and anti farmer measures more aggressively. There is increase in the unemployment and due to contractualisation of jobs the real wages of the workers in the state have come down. The workers protests are being crushed by using the police force. AITUC will resist all this.
The conference began with hoisting of AITUC flag by veteran trade unionist OP Mehta.
The conference was attended by over 250 delegates from various sections from different parts of the state. The conference elected Bant Singh Brar as president and Nirmal Singh Dhaliwal as general secretary. It also elected a working committee to run the affairs for the coming period.
Earlier, Dr. Arun Mitra, Chairman. Reception Committee welcomed the delegates.
Today’s conference was attended by the elected delegates of various organisations of workers and employees from all over the Punjab. These included workers from different industries, Hosiery, Textile, Construction, Roadways, PRTC, Corporations, BSNL, Banks, Power sector, FCI Palledar, University, PSSF, Govt. Class 4 employees, Khet Mazdoor, MANREGA Workers, ASHA workers Anganwadi workers and other unorganised sector.