People's
Democracy
(Weekly Organ of the Communist Party of
India (Marxist) No. 05
February 02, 2003
(Weekly Organ of the Communist Party of
India (Marxist) |
Vol.
XXVII No. 05 February 02, 2003 |
TRAI
Effigies
Burnt
THE
decision
of
the
Telecom
Regulatory
Authority
of
India
(TRAI)
to
increase
the
tariff
for
landline
telephone
users,
even
while
giving
concessions
to
mobile
cellphone
users,
was
protested
by
the
CPI(M)
state
committee
in
various
parts
of
Andhra
Pradesh
on
January
27.
In
Hyderabad,
CPI(M)
activists
led
by
the
state
secretariat
member
Y
Venkateshwar
Rao
staged
a
demonstration
in
front
of
the
BSNL
Musheerabad
Area
Manager’s
office
protesting
this
decision.
They
enacted
scenes
depicting
the
union
communications
minister
Pramod
Mahajan
and
various
private
cellular
operators
who
were
together
throttling
the
poor
and
middle
class
telephone
users.
They
later
burnt
an
effigy
of
TRAI.
In
Vijayawada,
CPI(M)
city
committee
staged
a
demonstration
in
front
of
the
BSNL
office.
Hundreds
of
Party
activists
raised
slogans
against
TRAI
and
the
central
government
for
heaping
burdens
on
the
poor
and
the
middle
classes.
Ch
Babu
Rao,
CPI(M)
city
secretary
addressing
the
demonstrators
said
that
this
decision
of
TRAI
exposes
once
again
the
real
aim
of
establishing
such
regulatory
authorities
–
the
liquidation
of
public
sector
companies.
The
demonstrators
later
burnt
an
effigy
of
TRAI.
