Trade unions call for nationwide protest on Wed against privatisation
The unions said that the budget presented by the Finance Minister is full of rhetoric and far away from the ground realities
New Delhi: A joint platform of 10 central trade unions on Tuesday gave a call for a nationwide protest on February 3 against privatisation and other "anti-people" policies proposed in the Budget for 2021-22 and to press for scrapping labour codes and providing income and food support to the families of poor workers.
The ten central trade unions are Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC), All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS), Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), All India United Trade Union Centre (AIUTUC), Trade Union Co-ordination Centre (TUCC), Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA), All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU), Labour Progressive Federation (LPF) and United Trade Union Congress (UTUC).
"The joint platform of Central Trade Unions and the independent sectoral federations/associations calls upon the unions and working class to observe nationwide protest on 3rd February demanding, scrapping of labour codes and electricity bill 2020, No privatisation, Income support and food support to all poor workers' households and (to protest) against anti-people policies as reflected by union budget ( presented on Feb1, 2021)," a statement by joint forum said.
According to statement protest day to be observed through massive demonstrations/mobilizations at the workplaces, and industrial centres/areas and also burning the copies of the Labour Codes.
The Joint Platform of Central Trade Unions and Independent Federations has called upon the trade unions and workers in general to carry on an intensive campaign in all the workplaces and in residential areas throughout the country against the destructive anti-worker, anti-farmer and anti-national policies of the government and make the programme a massive success to pave the way for further combative struggles including multiple day's strike in the days to come to fight, defy and resist the destructive and anti-national policy regime.
The unions said that the budget presented by the Finance Minister is full of rhetoric and far away from the ground realities.
It is totally deceptive and destructive for the national economy, besides being cruelly insensitive to the suffering of the mass of the toiling people. The Finance Minister has repeated the claim of the government's economic survey that the labour codes are good for the workers, similarly, the farm laws were also praised.
"There is no relief to the farmers' rather the government has only announced the increase of the threshold for taking loans. It is a cruel joke on the farming community which is already finding itself in a tight corner and is already entrenched in debt. The demands of the farmers are totally ignored rather the farm laws are being praised by the government as a boon to them, when they are braving all odds seeking their total repeal," they highlighted.
The budget has totally ignored the poor masses and their needs. The government has stood for the Corporates and abandoned the common masses pushing Indian economy further into mess, the unions added. She has actually extended, rather repeated her presentation of the same deceptive packages announced in the month of may 2020, they added.
The budget is friendly to Indian and foreign Corporate and continues to give huge concessions, reduction in tax for them and increase in the cess on the common man. The common masses are burdened more when there is a crisis for their livelihood itself, the unions opined. The budget continues its policy of selling our public sector banks, enhancing FDI in the Insurance sector to 74 per cent besides pushing through aggressive disinvestment in LIC, and pursuing privatisation in almost all profit-making public sector enterprises while announcing the closure in all loss-making PSUs including those in core and strategic sectors, they stated.
The stated target of raising up to Rs 1.75 lakh crore from disinvestment of profit-making Public Sector Enterprises exposes the destructive motives and bankruptcy of the government, they pointed out.