People's Democracy
(Weekly Organ of the Communist Party of
India (Marxist) No. 47
December 01,2002
(Weekly Organ of the Communist Party of
India (Marxist) |
Vol.
XXVI No. 47 December 01,2002 |
LAST
month,
the
state
government
led
by
the
Indian
National
Congress
(INC)
and
Nationalist
Congress
Party
(NCP)
completed
three
years
in
office.
Under
the
World
Bank
pressure,
the
state
government
has
pressed
ahead
with
privatisation
of
the
power
sector
and
other
infrastructure
facilities
in
the
last
three
months.
At
the
same
time,
it
has
failed
to
clear
the
dues
of
cotton-growing
peasants
for
last
year’s
purchases,
while
it
is
trying
to
help
the
sugar
barons
who
are
facing
a
fall
in
sugar
prices.
The
Monopoly
Cotton
Procurement
Scheme
and
the
Employment
Guarantee
Scheme,
which
provided
some
protection
to
the
peasants
and
agricultural
workers
for
three
decades,
are
being
gradually
dismantled.
In
other
words,
the
INC-NCP’s
state
government
is
trying
to
transfer
the
burden
of
the
crisis,
triggered
by
the
new
economic
policy
and
the
drought,
on
to
the
shoulders
of
workers
and
peasants.
Along
with
this,
the
internecine
conflict
between
these
two
parties,
and
the
infighting
within
both
of
them,
continues
unabated.
Taking
advantage
of
the
popular
discontent
caused
by
these
policies,
the
communal
Shiv
Sena-BJP
combine
has
started
a
hectic
statewide
campaign
against
the
state
government’s
failures.
At
the
same
time,
along
with
Sangh
Parivar
outfits
like
the
VHP
and
Bajrang
Dal,
the
SS
and
BJP
continue
to
fan
communal
passions.
A
major
communal
riot
in
Solapur
and
minor
incidents
in
a
number
of
other
places
are
also
a
part
of
the
communal
alliance’s
efforts
to
stage
a
comeback.
The
interim
Supreme
Court
judgement,
staying
the
disqualification
of
seven
MLAs
who
had
defected
from
the
ruling
INC-NCP
combine
last
June,
has
also
strengthened
the
hopes
of
the
SS-BJP
alliance
to
bring
down
the
present
government.
In
this
situation,
the
CPI(M)
has
gone
in
for
both
independent
and
united
actions
on
various
issues,
like
land,
power
and
the
attacks
on
the
peasantry
and
working
class.
A
report
of
the
statewide
land
satyagraha
organised
by
the
party
has
appeared
in
these
columns
last
week.
In
August-end,
the
state
government
came
out
with
a
White
Paper
on
the
power
sector.
The
main
proposals
in
it
were
trifurcation
of
the
Maharashtra
State
Electricity
Board
(MSEB),
with
generation
and
distribution
being
privatised,
leaving
the
MSEB
to
look
after
transmission
only.
Another
proposal
was
the
gradual
withdrawal
of
all
cross-subsidies,
leading
to
a
uniform
rate
of
power
within
five
years.
This
would
raise
the
rates
for
agricultural
and
domestic
consumers
substantially,
while
bringing
down
the
rates
for
industrial
and
commercial
consumers.
It
will
be
noted
that
load
shedding
has
reached
unprecedented
proportions
in
all
districts
of
Maharashtra
in
the
last
four
months,
causing
tremendous
hardships
to
the
peasants
and
other
common
people.
This
sudden
spurt
in
load
shedding
is
intended
to
damn
the
MSEB
in
the
eyes
of
the
people
and
thus
facilitate
privatisation.
The
figures
of
power
shortage
are
also
being
manipulated
to
serve
this
purpose.
While
the
White
Paper
proposals
were
to
be
discussed
with
interested
parties
and
people’s
organisations,
the
government
has
already
started
with
privatisation
of
power
supply
in
the
corporation
cities
of
Pune
and
New
Mumbai.
Both
are
the
cities
where
the
MSEB
was
making
a
good
profit.
The
government
has
also
reached
an
agreement
with
the
IDBI
for
purchase
of
power
from
the
Dabhol
plant,
earlier
built
by
Enron,
and
now
lying
idle
for
the
last
18
months.
The
rate
of
Rs
2.80
per
unit
and
the
purchase
of
power
to
the
extent
of
83
per
cent
of
the
plant
capacity,
recently
agreed
to
by
the
state
government,
are
in
contrast
to
its
own
earlier
proposal
of
Rs
2.25
per
unit
and
50
per
cent
capacity.
The
new
terms,
it
is
admitted,
will
cause
the
MSEB
an
annual
loss
of
Rs
700
crore
and
also
lead
to
closing
down
some
of
the
MSEB’s
own
plants
during
baseload
hours.
The
loss
will
be
greater
in
due
course
as
the
rate
is
linked
with
the
price
of
naptha
as
well
as
the
rupee-dollar
rate.
In
other
words,
it
is
a
diluted
edition
of
the
infamous
power
purchase
agreement
(PPA)
with
the
Enron.
The
Anti-Globalisation
Committee
of
Left
and
secular
parties,
which
led
a
successful
struggle
against
Enron
last
year,
is
now
running
a
campaign
against
the
said
proposals
for
the
MSEB’s
trifurcation
and
privatisation.
It
is
to
hold
joint
statewide
demonstrations
on
November
28,
the
death
anniversary
of
Mahatma
Jyotirao
Phule.
However,
as
far
as
the
Dabhol
proposals
are
concerned,
while
the
CPI(M)
has
squarely
attacked
them
and
most
constituents
of
the
Anti-Globalisation
Committee
appreciated
its
stand,
PWP
and
JD(S)
general
secretaries
supported
these
proposals.
The
sudden
haste
the
state
government
has
displayed
in
pressing
ahead
with
privatisation,
and
its
volte
face
in
the
matter
of
Dabhol
power,
are
obviously
meant
to
satisfy
the
World
Bank’s
loan
conditionalities.
For
the
last
30
years,
Maharashtra
had
a
Monopoly
Cotton
Procurement
Scheme
that
was
designed
to
protect
the
cotton-growing
peasants
from
the
loot
of
unscrupulous
traders.
The
scheme
had
been
serving
this
purpose
till
recently.
However,
with
cotton
prices
falling
as
a
result
of
cheap
imports,
the
state
government
is
under
pressure
to
give
up
this
scheme.
For
the
last
seven
years,
under
the
SS-BJP
as
well
as
the
INC-NCP
regime,
the
price
paid
to
cotton
growers
under
the
scheme
was
Rs
2100-2300
per
quintal,
which
was
higher
than
the
central
government’s
price.
However,
the
state
government
has
not
fully
paid
the
cotton
growers
for
the
cotton
purchased
in
the
year
2001-2002,
even
though
one
year
has
now
passed.
This
year,
in
spite
of
the
sharply
rising
cost
of
production,
the
state
government
has
declared
that
it
will
buy
cotton
under
the
Monopoly
Cotton
Procurement
Scheme
at
the
central
government
prices
only,
doing
away
with
the
bonus
that
was
paid
earlier.
Thus
the
state
government
will
buy
cotton
at
the
average
rate
of
only
Rs
1650
per
quintal,
which
means
a
sharp
and
direct
fall
of
Rs
500
per
quintal
from
last
year’s
prices.
For
the
first
time,
it
has
also
allowed
private
traders
to
buy
cotton,
thus
practically
dismantling
the
said
scheme
and
throwing
the
peasantry
to
the
wolves
of
the
free
market.
All
this
has
caused
tremendous
discontent
among
the
cotton-growers
who
number
over
27
lakhs.
This
has
also
led
to
a
number
of
peasant
suicides
due
to
indebtedness,
mainly
in
the
backward
Vidarbha
and
Marathwada
regions.
It
is
true
that
cotton
productivity
in
Maharashtra
lags
behind
that
in
some
other
states,
but
this
is
because
most
of
the
cotton
belt
in
the
state
has
hardly
any
irrigation
supply,
another
failure
of
the
successive
state
governments
in
the
last
50
years.
The
sugar
industry
is
facing
a
severe
crisis,
the
immediate
cause
being
the
precipitate
fall
in
sugar
prices,
again
due
to
massive
cheap
imports,
though
mismanagement
and
corruption
of
the
sugar
barons
has
also
contributed
to
the
present
plight
of
the
industry.
Last
year,
14
cooperative
sugar
factories
were
declared
bankrupt,
and
many
more
are
sick
this
year.
At
the
same
time,
licenses
are
being
indiscriminately
given
for
opening
new
private
sugar
factories.
Nearly
40
lakh
tonnes
of
unsold
sugar
stocks
are
currently
lying
with
the
sugar
factories
in
Maharashtra.
All
this
has
led
to
an
unprecedented
crisis,
which
has
severely
affected
cane
growers,
cane
cutters
and
sugar
factory
workers.
The
sugar
lobby
has
been
dominating
the
state
government
for
years,
with
more
than
half
the
state
ministers
and
75
MLAs
currently
belonging
to
this
lobby.
That
is
why
the
state
government
has
rushed
to
the
help
of
the
industry.
It
has
further
extended
its
subsidy
to
the
sugar
factories
by
announcing
an
export
subsidy
of
Rs
1000
per
tonne
of
sugar
for
the
export
of
10
lakh
tonnes.
It
has
also
made
several
demands
on
the
central
government
to
help
the
industry
overcome
its
crisis.
While
the
price
paid
to
the
cane
growers
till
last
year
averaged
about
Rs
1000
per
tonne,
this
year
they
are
being
offered
only
Rs
560-750
per
tonne.
As
the
cane
production
cost
have
gone
up
due
to
steep
rise
in
electricity
and
water
rates
effected
by
the
government
itself,
this
sudden
fall
in
prices
means
tremendous
hardships
for
the
cane
growers.
This
has
led
to
great
discontent
among
the
peasants.
Sugar
factory
workers
have
also
been
retrenched
and
their
wages
reduced
or
even
denied
in
places.
The
worst-hit
are
the
sugarcane
cutters.
The
cane-cutters
union
affiliated
to
the
CITU
has
been
conducting
a
sustained
struggle
for
their
demands,
to
which
the
state
government
has
so
far
not
responded
adequately.
The
Maharashtra
Rajya
Shetkari-Shetmajur
Sangharsh
Samiti,
which
is
a
joint
struggle
committee
of
Left-oriented
peasant
and
agricultural
workers’
organisations
led
by
the
CPI(M),
CPI
and
PWP,
is
now
running
a
vigorous
statewide
campaign
on
these
and
other
burning
issues
facing
the
peasants
and
agricultural
workers.
The
CPI(M)-led
AIKS
and
AIAWU
have
been
playing
a
prominent
role
in
this
mobilisation.
The
AIKS
and
AIAWU
organised
a
successful
jeep
jatha
on
the
issue
of
cotton
through
Vidarbha
from
November
12
to
19.
The
Sangharsh
Samiti
organised
a
large,
joint
Marathwada-level
convention
of
cotton-growing
peasants
at
Parbhani
on
November
20,
in
which
over
3000
peasants
took
part.
Now
the
said
Sangharsh
Samiti
has
planned
to
hold
a
massive
statewide
rally
of
peasants
and
agricultural
workers
at
Nagpur.
The
rally
will
coincide
with
the
state
assembly
session
there
on
December
12,
which
is
the
martyrdom
anniversary
of
renowned
freedom
fighter
Babu
Genu.
The
latter
was
killed
in
Mumbai
on
that
day
in
1930
while
opposing
the
import
of
British
cloth.
The
main
demands
of
the
Nagpur
rally
are
payment
of
last
year’s
cotton
dues
with
interest,
continuation
of
the
monopoly
procurement
scheme
at
last
year’s
prices
and
a
stop
to
cotton
imports
by
raising
the
import
duty
from
the
present
measly
10
per
cent
to
the
WTO-permitted
limit
of
150
per
cent.
Other
demands
of
the
rally
are:
payment
of
Rs
1200
per
tonne
to
sugarcane
peasants
and
the
clearance
of
all
their
old
dues
by
the
sugar
factories;
establishment
of
a mathadi
board
for
sugarcane
cutters
and
an
increase
in
their
wage
to
Rs
150
per
tonne;
withdrawal
of
the
move
to
trifurcate
and
privatise
the
MSEB;
end
to
load
shedding
and
reduction
of
the
electricity
tariff
hike;
compensation
for
crop
losses,
and
the
provision
of
water,
fodder
and
work
in
the
drought-hit
areas;
regularisation
of
occupations
of
forest
lands,
grazing
lands,
government
wastelands
and
vesting
them
in
the
names
of
the
tillers;
a
massive
expansion
of
the
Employment
Guarantee
Scheme
(EGS)
and
a
wage
of
5
kg
of
grains
plus
Rs
25
per
day
to
EGS
labourers;
universalisation
of
the
public
distribution
system
and
a
large
expansion
of
the
Antyodaya
scheme;
completion
of
all
incomplete
irrigation
projects
on
a
war
footing;
and
the
strict
implementation
of
the
minimum
wage
of
Rs
51
that
has
been
declared
by
the
state
government
for
agricultural
workers.
The
industrial
scenario
in
the
state
continues
to
be
gloomy.
Thousands
of
small-
and
medium-scale
industries
have
been
closed
down.
A
number
of
medium
engineering
and
pharmaceutical
factories
have
moved
away
from
the
state.
Almost
all
the
big
industries
have
retrenched
thousands
of
workers
under
the
‘voluntary’
retirement
schemes
(VRS).
The
powerloom
industry,
which
provides
work
to
nearly
five
lakh
workers,
continues
to
be
in
a
crisis.
Major
powerloom
centres
like
Ichalkaranji,
Malegaon,
Bhiwandi
and
Solapur
report
that
30
to
50
per
cent
of
their
units
are
closed.
In
the
textile
industry,
which
has
been
the
worst
hit,
a
number
of
mills
which
closed
down
after
promising
VRS
payment
to
the
workers
have
failed
to
honour
their
commitment.
Employment
of
contract
and
temporary
workers
in
jobs
of
permanent
nature
is
rampant.
Naturally,
unemployment
has
shot
up
by
several
lakhs
and
suicides
of
unemployed
workers
have
taken
place.
Yet
the
government
continues
with
its
policies
of
attracting
investment
from
both
foreign
and
indigenous
big
capital.
The
recent
infrastructure
summit
held
in
Mumbai
saw
the
chief
minister
promising
substantial
new
concessions
for
foreign
investors
in
infrastructure.
Last
week
also
saw
the
Microsoft
boss
Bill
Gates’
visit
to
Mumbai.
Industrial
tycoons
and
state
ministers
competed
in
grovelling
before
this
imperial
visitor.
The
Trade
Unions
Joint
Action
Committee
(TUJAC)
has
been
consistently
campaigning
against
the
government’s
anti-labour
policies
and
against
the
proposed
labour
legislation
changes
by
the
centre
in
particular.
The
TUJAC
held
large
demonstrations
in
Mumbai
and
in
several
other
industrial
centres
on
October
28.
However,
the
INTUC,
the
BMS
and
the
Kamgar
Sena,
which
had
participated
in
the
Maharashtra
bandh
on
April
25,
2001,
have
been
keeping
away
from
joint
actions
this
time.
The
TUJAS
is
implementing
the
action
programme
chalked
out
by
the
National
Assembly
of
Workers
and
it
is
meeting
with
good
response.
The
CITU
is
leading
in
all
these
actions.
Under
the
leadership
of
CITU,
a
struggle
of
municipal
employees
for
bonus,
a
state
conference
and
demonstrations
of
Anganwadi
workers,
a
state-level
rally
of
powerloom
workers
and
the
establishment
of
a
new
union
of
auto-rickshaw
men
were
some
of
the
other
important
independent
actions
during
this
period.
EDUCATION,
JOBS
AND
FOOD
SECURITY
In
several
districts,
the
Students
Federation
of
India
(SFI)
has
led
struggles
against
fee-hikes,
the
donation
and
capitation
fee
system,
and
the
move
to
grant
autonomy
to
select
educational
institutions.
The
Democratic
Youth
Federation
of
India
(DYFI)
has
organised
demonstrations
on
the
question
of
unemployment.
Both
these
organisations
led
a
statewide
campaign
during
the
run-up
to
their
all-India
rally
at
Delhi
on
November
21.
Both
the
SFI
and
DYFI
are
slated
to
hold
their
state
conferences
during
the
next
two
months.
The
All
India
democratic
Women’s
association
(AIDWA)
has
organised
several
actions
in
various
districts
on
the
question
of
the
crumbling
public
distribution
system,
which
is
seriously
endangering
food
security.
The
collapse
of
the
ration
system
is
having
disastrous
effects
on
the
urban
as
well
as
the
rural
poor;
some
starvation
deaths
have
also
been
reported.
The
AIDWA
has
also
taken
up
actions
against
the
growing
atrocities
on
women
and
has
conducted
a
survey
on
the
dowry
question
as
per
its
all-India
call.
Communal
riots
flared
up
in
Solapur
during
the
Navratri
festival
in
the
first
week
of
October.
Cotton
mills
and
spinning
mills
in
Solapur
had
earlier
closed
down;
the
powerloom
industry
there
is
also
in
a
crisis.
Thus
Solapur
has
the
highest
rate
of
unemployed
youth
in
the
state.
Taking
advantage
of
this
situation,
communal
fanatics
on
both
sides
turned
a
minor
incident
into
a
major
riot.
As
for
the
local
police
who
the
CPI(M)
had
earlier
warned
about
the
likelihood
of
a
riot,
they
remained
passive
for
the
first
few
days.
Nine
people
were
killed,
several
injured
and
property
worth
crores
was
destroyed.
As
always
happens,
the
minority
community
bore
the
brunt
of
the
riot.
It
is
a
matter
of
concern
that
the
working
class
of
Solapur,
which
has
a
good
record
of
communal
amity,
was
also
affected
this
time.
The
CPI(M),
that
has
a
good
base
among
the
working
class
in
Solapur,
put
in
commendable
efforts
to
control
the
rioting.
Apart
from
Solapur,
minor
incidents
have
taken
place
in
a
number
of
towns.
While
the
Shiv
Sena
and
BJP
are
leading
agitations
against
the
state
government’s
omission
and
commission,
their
colleagues
in
the
Sangh
Parivar,
like
the
VHP
and
Bajrang
Dal,
are
busy
stirring
up
communal
passions.
In
the
traditional
Dussehra
rally
of
the
Shiv
Sena,
Bal
Thackeray
gave
his
notorious
call
for
the
formation
of
Hindu
suicide
squads
to
fight
Pakistani
terrorists,
and
a
group
in
Ambarnath
near
Mumbai
even
started
training
such
squads.
It
was
only
after
the
media
exposed
all
this
that
the
state
government
moved
against
this
outfit.
A
campaign
against
communalism
figures
in
all
activities
of
the
CPI(M)
and
of
various
mass
organisations.
In
a
number
of
places,
party
committees
have
brought
together
secular
people
from
broader
sections
for
specific
anti-communal
rallies.
The
party
is
also
trying
to
use
cultural
forms
like
street
theatre
and
full-scale
plays
in
this
anti-communal
campaign.
