People's Democracy

Widespread Participation In August Campaign

THE CPI(M) Delhi state committee organised a demonstration on August 30 to protest against the dismantling of the public distribution system. Hundreds of workers, women and youth participated.

The police prevented the demonstrators from reaching Krishi Bhawan and as a result an angry protest meeting was held at Rafi Marg. The meeting was addressed by state party secretary, P M S Grewal, Sehba Forooqui, secretary Delhi state Janwadi Mahila Samiti and Anurag Saxena, secretary, Delhi state CITU. Party state secretariat member Baldev Singh presided over the meeting.

The speakers lambasted the government for willfully destroying the rationing system. They questioned the targeted PDS dispensation and dubbed it as a means to deprive the poor of cheap rations. The government criteria for identifying those under the poverty line is absolutely absurd. In Delhi only those with a family income of less than Rs. 2016 per month are entitled to BPL cards. The PDS in Delhi is beset with rampant corruption and pilferage and hoarders and blackmarketeers have been given a free hand. Given steep hikes in prices of foodstuffs, it is criminal to deprive crores of the poor of benefit of cheap rations.

The CPI(M), therefore demands the central and state government to universalise PDS and provide cheap rations to all ration cardholders, issue ration cards to all those deprived of them in Delhi, provide sugar to all categories of ration cardholders, bring dals within scope of PDS and ensure their availability at cheap rates, increase the number of ration/kerosene shops, especially in poor colonies, provide good quality rations and ensure full quota of rations to cardholders, take strict action against corruption and theft in PDS and initiate strong legal action against hoarders and blackmarketeers, ban futures trading in foodgrains, increase procurement of foodgrains by FCI, ban foodgrains procurement by big traders, provide remunerative prices to farmers for foodgrains procured by FCI and ensure massive increase in government subsidy on PDS.

MASS STAY-IN AT 118 PLACES IN TRIPURA

The people of Tripura aired their strong demand for issuance of BPL cards to all the families who are genuinely living below the poverty line, through mass-stay-in at 118 venues spread over the state, before the central government offices like bank, All India Radio, Door Darshan Kendra, BSNL, and post offices.

The mass squatting on August 31, 2007 continued from 12.00 noon to 4.00 pm amidst high-pitched slogans on the issues relating to the all round development of the state including issuance of BPL cards to all the deserving families. It was the culmination of a fortnight long campaign movement organized from August 16 - 30 as a part of the CPI(M) Central Committee call on eight point charter of demands. Though mass squatting was on the sole demand for BPL cards to the left out families, the campaign movement included other issues like the demand for augmentation of PDS, introduction of REGA in North Tripura district, enhancement of subsidy on agri-inputs, guarantee of 100 days work a year for the urban labourers, extension of agri-credits on minimum interest rate, apart form the national issues like passage of women’s bill, central act for the agricultural workers, protesting nuclear deal and FDI in retail market etc.

The programme was organised at Stable grounds near the Agartala station of All India Radio. About 15,000 people from all walks of life, with a good participation of women, gathered for the mass-stay-in. The meeting was addressed by CPI(M) state secretary Baidyanath Majumder, state secretariat member Gautam Das and the leaders of various mass organisations. The meeting was presided over by CPI(M) Sadar divisional committee secretary Samar Adhya. Baidyanath Majumder strongly urged for providing BPL cards to the genuine BPL families, benefits of Antodaya scheme to be extended to the one crore families of the country. Expressing great concern at the suicides of farmers, Baidyanath Majumder urged the UPA government to act immediately if they are sincere to stand by the poor of the country.

Similarly, another massive stay-in programme was organised by Bishalgarh divisional committee at Badharghat in front of the Door Darshan kendra, Agartala where Subrata Chakraborty, party divisional secretary, Jharna Das, Chapala Biswas, all state committee members and others addressed the gathering.

In a preliminary calculation, it is estimated that more than one lakh people were mobilised on August 31 in 118 centres spread over the state. Reports from various sub-divisions indicate that everywhere there was a massive participation and the demand for BPL cards had a good response among the people, particularly the poor people.

(Haripada Das)

JHARKHAND

Demanding food security, PDS cards to all, Antodaya cards to all poor in scheduled areas, supply of food grains and other essential goods and for rooting out corruption in distribution of food grains and kerosene oil, thousands of men and women, rural and urban poor with flags, festoons and banners picketed FCI and SFC Godowns, central government offices, district and block offices of the state government in different districts of Jharkhand on August 29-30, 2007 in response to the call of CPI(M).

Picketing was held in front of FCI godowns at Sahebganj and Dhanbad, SFC godown at Jamtara, in front of deputy commissioners’ offices at Pakur, Godda, Koderma, and Ranchi, in front of SDO office at Madhupur, in front of block offices at Gomia, Chandankeyari and Kasmer of Bokaro district, at Torpa and Tamar in Ranchi district, at Nimdi and Gamharia in Saraikela-Kharsawan district, in front of income tax office at Ramgarh in Hazaribagh district and in front of post office at Chandwa in Latehar district.

Prior to the picketings, CPI(M) Jharkhand state committee organised a state-wide campaign from August 16 to 29, 2007 holding street corner and village meetings against price rise, demanding PDS for all, on peasants’ problems, for protection of retail traders, against unemployment, for women’s reservation bill, against communalism and against Indo-US nuclear deal.