People's Democracy

TU Convention Calls For All India General Strike

W R Varada Rajan

ORGANISED on July 25 by the Sponsoring Committee of Trade Unions, a united platform of struggle against the neo-liberal economic policies, the National Convention of Workers has chalked out a series of action programmes that would be culminating in an All-India General Strike on December 14 coming. Representatives of seven central trade union organizations, viz. the AICCTU, AITUC, CITU, HMS, TUCC, UTUC-LS and UTUC, of all-India federations and associations of employees and workers in banks, central and state government offices and departments, insurance, railways, civil aviation, defence, postal, petroleum, telecom and other sectors and also of several independent unions participated in this National Convention of Workers held at the Mavlankar Hall, Vithalbhai Patel House, Rafi Marg, New Delhi. 

The convention was called to plan for a countrywide movement for intensifying the united struggle against price rise, disinvestments and privatisation, against the ban on recruitment, anti-worker labour law changes, outsourcing of work and contractisation, and to press for employment generation as well as comprehensive legislative enactments for unorganised and agricultural sector workers. 

An eleven-member presidium, comprising Jibon Ray (CITU), Amarjeet Kaur (AITUC), Harbhajan Singh (HMS), N M Thomas (AICCTU), N Velappan Nair (TUCC), Sankar Saha (UTUC-LS), Ashok Ghosh (UTUC), Pradip Biswas (BEFI), Ramkumar Vajpayee (LIC), Shiv Gopal Mishra (AIRF) and Saila Bhattacharya (AIDEF), conducted the proceedings. 

A draft declaration was circulated which dealt elaborately with the challenges faced by the toiling masses, the growing attacks from employers and the indifference and anti-labour attitude of the UPA government at the centre, it and placed a 16 point demands charter for campaign and struggle.From the presidium, the following action programme was also placed before the convention and unanimously adopted. 

August 16 to September 15: Holding of conventions at state and sectoral levels; 

September 20: National Day for mobilisation for a general strike (by holding demonstrations, rallies etc);

November 29: Strike notices to be served jointly by all unions in their respective establishments;

December 14: All India General Strike.

Addressing the convention, CITU president M K Pandhe exhorted the participating unions and federations to carry on an intensive campaign among the people as part of mobilisation for the strike. He deplored the UPA government for pursuing the very same ruinous economic agenda as that of the predecessor NDA government, and failing to carry out the various pro-people commitments it had spelt out in its National Common Minimum Programme. Pointing to the victorious uprising of the people of neighbouring Nepal who overthrew the rule of the monarch there and the struggle waged by the students and trade unions in France forcing the government there to withdraw the anti-worker First Employment Contract legislation, he exhorted the working class of India to play their role in forcing a policy change on the present government. 

Gurudas dasgupta (AITUC), Thampan Thomas (HMS), Swapan Mukherji (AICCTU), S P Tiwari (TUCC), Krishna Chakraborti (UTUC-LS) and Abani Roy (UTUC) also spoke, endorsing the action programme. They highlighted the lawless situation witnessed in different parts of the country, with the hired gangsters and the police unleashing barbaric attacks on workers because of the growing employer-administration nexus. 

Leaders of several industry-level federations also spoke at the convention, pledging their total support to the action programme, including the strike in December. These included Sukomal Sen (All India State Government Employees Federation), S K Vyas (Confederation of Central Government Employees), C H Venkatachalam (AIBEA), Rakhal Dasgupta (AIRF), Amanulla Khan (AIIEA) Amitava Guha (FMRAI), V K Tewari (AIFUCTO), K Rajendran (School Teachers Federation), CC Pillai (NFPE), V A N Namboodri (BSNLEU), Michel Fernandes (CPSTU), R G Karnik (Maharashtra JAC) and others. 

The textiles ministry at the centre had convened a conference of the chief ministers, industry/labour ministers of the state governments, representatives of textile industry associations and central trade unions. The agenda included giving relaxation in the provisions of labour laws favouring the employers. The National Convention unanimously adopted a resolution, moved by W R Varada Rajan (CITU) and seconded by D L Sachdev (AITUC), deploring the move and rejecting the proposals made by the Group of Ministers headed by Sharad Pawar. 

The presidium invited to the dais the participants representing the NALCO and Neyveli workers who have successfully thwarted the recent disinvestment move of the UPA government through their struggles, and the entire gathering cheered them with thunderous slogans.

The National Convention of Workers and its clarion call for an all-India general strike in December strongly reflect the fighting mood of the working people throughout the country, whose experience since the last general elections of 2004 has been painful insofar as the economic policies and the labour situation in the country are concerned. It was also a reflection of the firm resolve of the workers to wage an unrelenting fight in the immediate future.