People's Democracy

 ANDHRA PRADESH

 Left Parties Fight Against Reform Process

                                                       M Venugopala Rao

 THE Left parties, including the CPI(M) and the CPI,  gave  a call for united struggles to reverse the anti-people reform process being implemented by the Chandrababu Naidu government on the lines charted out by the World Bank.  Leaders of the Left parties and mass organisations paid homage to the martyrs of the historic people’s struggle against hike in power tariff  - Ramakrishna, Vishnuvardhan Reddy and Balaswamy - who died in the brutal police lathicharge and firing at Shaheed chowk (Basheerbagh crossing) in Hyderabad on August 28, 2000. 

Hundreds of agitators were injured in the brutal police repression.  On the same day of last month, leaders and cadres of the Left parties and mass organisations paid homage at the martyrs’ column at Shaheed Chowk.  Later, they took out a rally to the Press club in which B V Raghavulu, Dr Y Radhakrishna Murthy, Y Venkateswara Rao, N Narasimhaiah (CPI-M), S Sudhakar Reddy, Dr K Narayana, Aziz Pasha (CPI), G Diwakar (CPI-ML New Democracy), B N Reddy (MCPI), Sudhir (SUCI), G Vijayakumar (CPI-ML), B Venkat (A P Agricultural Workers Union), S Punyavathy (AIDWA), Satish (SFI), Sandhya (POW), P Padma (AP Women’s Federation) and others participated.

CONVENTION ON POWER REFORMS

A state level convention on “Power reforms - future of the state” was held by 9 Left parties at press club. In a resolution, the convention paid homage to the martyrs and took a pledge to continue their fighting spirit.  Moving the resolution, state secretary of the CPI(M), B V Raghavulu, explained the background of the World Bank dictated reforms being implemented by the state government and the nearly four-month militant struggle  of the people against the hefty hike in power tariff in April 2000. With that resistance from the people, the government could not increase power tariff in subsequent years as suggested by the World Bank, Raghavulu said.   However, the government imposed indirect burdens on the consumers and divided the distribution system into four distribution companies.  With no response coming for its attempts to privatise the distribution companies, the government tried to privatise 90 sub-stations in the name of franchising.  With no response coming for that also, the government is now trying to hand over Kolluru and Pedapulivarru sub-stations in Guntur district to voluntary organisations.  There is resistance from the people in the areas of those sub-stations to this move by the government. 

The government imposed burdens on the farmers and increased the deposit amount for out-of-turn connections to agricultural services from Rs 1000 to Rs 2000 per horse - power.  The slab charge for a three HP pumpset per month under this scheme has been increased from Rs 89 to Rs 625 and for a five HP pumpset from Rs 197 to Rs 1022.  While electricity is to be supplied to agriculture for 9 hours a day, it has been reduced to 7 hours and the actual supply is not even for four to five hours.  Even in drought-affected areas, dues of power bills are being collected forcibly under the Revenue Recovery Act.  The government is creating a situation in which the farmers are being forced to give up cultivation, unable to bear the burden of enhanced power tariff and reduction of cross subsidy.

The World Bank is not yet satisfied, though the state government imposed burdens indiscriminately on the people.  In its development policy review report of July 14, the World Bank suggested speedier implementation of the reform, privatisation of profitable distribution companies, eliminaltion of cross subsidies and fixing meters to agricultural pumpsets. The World Bank pontified to the government to give subsidies, if it so desires, in other forms, but not to reduce power tariff. With its Electricity Act, 2003, the BJP-led central government is bringing pressure on the state governments for privatisation of the power sector. The state government, following the dictates of the World Bank is trying in different ways to impose burdens on the people and hand over public assets to the rich at a throw away price. The convention gave a call to the people of the state to oppose these moves of the government, privatisation that is going on in the name of reforms in the power sector and the unbearable burdens and appealed to them to continue the movement with the inspiration drawn from the martyrs.

The convention demanded the government: 1. Not to take any steps to privatise power distribution system. 2. To continue the present slab system for agricultural power consumption. 3. Free supply of electricity to those poor people whose domestic consumption is less than 30 units per month. 4. Free supply of power to those farmers whose agricultural land is less than five acres.  Collect power tariff on par with water cess from other farmers whose agricultural land is more than five acres. 5. Ensure quality supply of power to agriculture for nine hours a day. 6.  The hike in deposits and tariff for out-of-turn connections to agricultural services should be reduced and no meters fixed to agricultural connections. 7.  Give immediate connections to agricultural services against pending applications.  8.  The power bills for the kharif season of last year in drought-affected areas should be waived. 9. Review power purchase agreements. 10. Stop privatisation of AP Gas Power Corporation Ltd.

 S Sudhakar Reddy, state secretary of the CPI, presided over the convention, G Diwakar, B N Reddy, G Vijayakumar, Sudhir, Ratnamala of A P Civil Liberties Committee, K Venkateswara Rao of ML committee and Rajeswara Rao, president of state Lok Dal, addressing the convention, stressed on the need for continuing the struggle against the reform process, drawing inspiration from the martyrs.   

PROTEST DEMONSTRATIONS

Protesting against the price hike of petrol by Rs 2.28 per litre and of diesel by Rs 1.49 per litre effected by the oil companies, the CPI(M), CITU and other mass organisations conducted demonstrations, rasta rokos, burning of effigies of the BJP-led NDA government, prime minister A B Vajpayee and the minister for petroleum, Ram Naik, in several districts in Andhra Pradesh.  Leaders who participated in these protest demonstrations criticised the government of India for dismantling administered price mechanism for petroleum products and linking up their prices with international prices with a view to ensuring excessive profits to the oil companies. They also termed the move as a part and parcel of the conspiracy to privatise the oil companies in the public sector. The hike will have cascading effect on prices of essential commodities. They demanded the government to withdraw the hike forthwith. In Hyderabad, protest demonstration was held at RTC crossing, led by the state secretariat member of the CPI(M), P Madhu,  and the demonstrators burnt the effigy of the BJP-led government.  At Jambagh, under the banner of the CPI(M) hundreds of people took out a rally from the Party’s Abids zone office to Mozamjahi market where they burnt the effigy of the prime minister. The DYFI held a protest demonstration at Balanagar crossing and burnt the effigy of Ram Naik. Similar protest demonstration was conducted by the city committee of A P Auto and Trolley Drivers Union at Sangeeth crossing in Secunderabad.  At Karwan, the CPI(M) conducted a protest demonstration and burnt the effigy of the prime minister. Under the banner of CITU, a rally was taken out from Sundarayya park to Ambedkar college at Baghlingampally, protesting against hike in prices of petrol and diesel. In Vijayawada, under the banner of the CPI(M), a protest demonstration,  led by the secretary of the Krishna district committee of the Party, V Umamaheswara Rao, was held. Similar demonstrations were held at Cuddapah, Tirupati, Nellore, Anantapur, Guntakal, Visakhapatnam and other areas.

LONG MARCH IN KHAMMAM DISTRICT

Thammineni Veerabhadram, secretary of the Khammam district committee and a member of the central committee of the CPI(M),  undertook a long march to cover all mandals, towns and villages in the district on foot with a view to exposing the negligence of the Chandrababu Naidu government in utilising the Godavari river waters for the development of the district and explaining its  anti-people policies to the people.  During the 80-day long march, Veerabhadram will be trekking a distance of about 2000 kilometers, meeting the local people and eliciting their problems.

B V Raghavulu, secretary of the state committee of the CPI(M), inaugurated the long march on August 24, at Peruru.  In this connection, a public meeting was held which was presided over by the CPI(M) MLA, Sunnam Rajaiah. Addressing the meeting, Raghavulu pointed out that the failure of the government was responsible for the backwardness of the district, despite having plenty of resources for its development. It was painful to see the Godavari water going waste into the sea every year as a result of negligence of the rulers in taking up irrigation projects for utilising the same, he said.  Raghavulu accused the Chandrababu government of not giving the much needed importance to irrigation sector and  concentrating on other sectors like tourism.  The BJP-led NDA government at the centre was thinking of constructing temples, without bothering about construction of irrigation projects, he said and demanded it to take up the proposed projects for utilisation of Godavari waters as national projects. He reminded that the BJP conducted a march on the issue of utilisation of Godavari waters and pointed out it was all bogus.  As a result of the anti-people policies of the governments and discrimination, the available resources could not be utilised for development of different areas. The government is treating the tribals as second class citizens.  With a view to bringing all these issues to the notice of the people, the CPI(M) decided to conduct the long march, Raghavulu said.

 Veerabhadram said he was undertaking the long march seeking all-round development of Khammam district.   At every place he visits, he will be planting a sapling. During the long march, Veerabhadram would hear the views of the people and an action plan would be prepared for the development of the district.  After the long march, a mass movement would be launched, demanding all-round development of the district, Veerabhadram said. Accompanied by Rajaiah, members of the study committee, other leaders and hundreds of cadres and sympathisers, Veerabhadram started his long march.

During the first fortnight of his long march, Veerabhadram covered a distance of 362.05 kilometers. Everywhere he was received enthusiastically by the local people, and about 1200 representations on local problems were received. Most of the representations from the people relate to problems of irrigation, while people in agency areas are highlighting social issues and individual needs like ration cards and house sites.  In villages, Veerabhadram was visiting hostels, hospitals and educational institutions, examining the conditions prevailing there and addressing the local people.  It is noteworthy that some of the district leaders of the ruling Telugu Desam Party met the CPI(M) leader and welcomed his long march.  At border areas of Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Chattisgarh, also, Veerabhadram was received with warmth.