People's Democracy

BENGAL CPI(M)

Augmenting A Class Outlook In Rural

Growth And Urban Development

B Prasant

THE Bengal unit of the CPI(M) has iterated again its firm stand that it stood by a class outlook in the realms of rural and urban development in the state. 

In the rural stretches, the growth will be marked by a stronger unity of the vast mass of the rural poor and the landless for which the crux of the developmental efforts will be mobilised.  The rural poor would be involved increasingly as a part of the mass initiative for the implementation of the developmental projects and the creation and maintenance of assets.

The urban conurbations will see the continuing implementation of an urban developmental policy characterised by what state secretary of the Bengal CPI(M) Anil Biswas has described often as ‘looking meaningfully to the interests of the urban poor in a wide-ranging and comprehensive fashion.’

A meeting was convened on October 27 at the Muzaffar Ahmad Bhavan of CPI(M) Zilla Parishad sabhadhipatis, members of the CPI(M) district secretariats associated with panchayat functioning and developmental work, district secretaries of the CPI(M), and of CPI(M) ministers whose departments are involved in one way or the other with rural development. Panchayat minister Dr Surjya Kanta Mishra spoke in the meeting on the priority tasks.

It was noted in the meeting that the correlation of forces in the villages had swung towards the CPI(M) markedly during the last panchayat elections.  The meeting also too into cognisance the fact that importance should be attached always to the necessity of creation of more man-hours through the implementation of the developmental projects in the villages.

Anil Biswas, briefing the media said that the meeting also attached importance to the task of making the Gram Unnayan Samity (village development committees) function well. Food security was to be further augmented in the rural areas. The funds recently released by the LF government for the rural developmental purposes shall be used for creation of more man-hours and for the setting up of developmental projects.

The villages that lag behind in terms of development must be paid special attention to. The total literacy movement is to be made more widespread with supporting infrastructure set up.  School dropout rate due to financial reasons must be appropriately resolved. Coordination must be present in the work of various self-help groups.

Projects involving rural roads, regeneration of water-bodies, pisciculture, and animal resources must be completed in time.  The panchayats should function without deviating from the class outlook and be involved in enhancing the unity of the rural poor.

AREAS OF LACUNAE

The areas of lacunae in the rural development scene were identified.  Among the weaknesses that persisted concerned the building up of infrastructural facilities of rural electrification, the distribution of ration cards and of certificates to people belonging to the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, and the repairing of rural roads.

Anil Biswas said that the panchayats and the zilla parishads would mobilise a massive drive in conjunction with the state LF government to come to the aid of the flood-affected people.  Procurement of paddy at subsidised prices will progress apace with full coordination between the districts.  Chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and his cabinet colleagues have already discussed the issue in the presence of the union food minister.

The Bengal unit of the CPI(M) will play a more active part in the task of rural development and in the sector of implementation of panchayat schemes.  Due importance would be attached to the timely and proper completion of projects.  Emphasis would be given to involvement and initiative of the mass of the rural people in the implementation of rural development projects. 

A class outlook would be rigorously maintained and it would be ensured, said Anil Biswas, that in the course of the implementation of the rural developmental projects, no fissure of disunity was created in the ranks of the rural masses.  The correlation of forces in the rural areas, swinging towards the CPI(M) in a curve of continuum especially of late, said the CPI(M) Polit Bureau member, must be further consolidated, and developed.

Food production alone, said Anil Biswas, was not the be all and end all.  A crucial task was to reach out the produce to the rural masses, especially the poor and the landless.  Creation of more man-days would enable the rural poor to go right ahead with mobilising resources, including food supplies. The greatest of importance is to be attached to food security for the rural people.

The meeting also involved itself with the perennial problems of union government’s funds for various schemes coming to the states including Bengal quite late in the financial year.  Efforts should be made, said Anil Biswas, to ensure that the funds were utilised in good time.

URBAN DEVELOPMENT

In the realm of urban development and urban governance, the priority areas fixed, as before, were reaching out services to the urban poor, ensuring that the interests of the poor and the people with small incomes were maintained with comprehensive efficiency, and continuing with the task of involving the mass of the people in the running of the urban local bodies and widening the mass base of the CPI(M).

In the meeting where the priorities of urban development were discussed, the chairmen of municipalities/corporations run by the CPI(M), members of the district secretariat of the CPI(M) associated with urban development, district secretaries of the CPI(M) and the urban development minister of the Bengal Left Front government, Ashok Bhattacharya were present.

Present also, besides state secretary Anil Biswas, were CPI(M) leaders Jyoti Basu, Biman Basu (who presided), Benoy Konar, and Madan Ghosh.

Ashok Bhattacharya in explaining the direction of development of the urban local bodies said that the participation of the people in plan formulation and plan implementation must be ensured. The ward committees, self-help groups, and community development societies must be made active in a comprehensively pro-people manner.

Those participating in the discussion raised the following pertinent issues:

• In addition to providing services to the citizens, the urban local bodies must function in a pro-people, especially pro-poor manner

• The areas of priority for the urban local bodies are: generation of employment, mass health, slum development, education, and housing for the poor

• Slum development must be done and not removal of slums

•  The issues of potable water, drainage, and mass health should prioritised in slum development work

Responding to the discussion, Anil Biswas said that the Bengal Left Front government possessed a definite class outlook and that coordination of struggles and movements should be orchestrated with the developmental priorities.

In the special circumstances now where the poor were under attack, it devolved on the Left Front government to make sure that the interests of the urban poor must be looked to, Anil Biswas pointed out. 

In providing the essential services to the citizens, said the CPI(M) leader, the urban local bodies must also ensure that the total literacy drive and the mass health movement made brisk progress.

Anil Biswas also raised the following points:

• Mass participation and involvement in the task of urban development is to be further augmented and the mass base of the CPI(M) widened and deepened further

• Special attention must be paid to women, members of the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, and to members of the minority communities

• Developmental tasks must be finished in a time-bound basis, sweeping aside bureaucratic hindrance

• The mid-day meal scheme must be rigorously implemented and it should be ensured that the children from economically depressed families in particular are not deprived of the facility

• Such tasks as registration of births and deaths, distribution of ration cards, scrutinising and approving building plans, and issuance of trade licenses must be done swiftly and with comprehensive efficiency

• Pensions must be released as a task, which must be regarded as part of the social responsibility

• The urban local bodies must adopt strict norms to make sure that water bodies of the area were not filled up illegally.

Later addressing a media conference, Anil Biswas pointed out that 85 out of 126 urban local bodies of Bengal were run by the Left Front. In most of these bodies, the chairmen/mayors were from the CPI(M). This shows the sweep of the mass base of the CPI(M) and this base must be further strengthened and widened.