December 20, 2015
Array

AIKS, AIAWU & CITU to Jointly Observe Jan 19 as an All India Day

IN view of the urgent need to intensify resistance to the onslaught of the neo-liberal policies and preserve unity of the toiling people, a meeting of the central leadership of All India Agricultural Workers’ Union (AIAWU), All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) and the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) was held to discuss possibilities of developing joint actions of these three sections. In addition, the attempts to divide and polarise society on a communal basis by the ‘Hindutva’ forces, the attacks on socially oppressed sections like dalits, adivasis and socially discriminated communities of the working people have also been on the rise under the Modi regime. AK Padmanabhan, president, CITU, Hannan Mollah, general secretary, AIKS, Thirunavukkarasu, president, AIAWU, Suneet Chopra (AIAWU), NK Shukla, Krishnaprasad and Vijoo Krishnan (AIKS), JS Majumdar, Hemalata, Swadesh DevRoye, Ranjana Nirula and AR Sindhu (CITU) attended this meeting held on November 27, 2015 at BT Ranadive Bhawan in New Delhi. It was also agreed to observe January 19, 2016 as an all India Day to commemorate the first country wide general strike in 1982, which raised not only the demands of the workers but also of peasants and agricultural workers . The charter of demands of that strike included remunerative prices for the peasants, comprehensive legislation for agricultural workers and social security for all in addition to the demands of the workers. Ten comrades, among them agricultural workers, were killed in police firing on that day. The meeting noted that the joint struggle by the peasants against the Land Acquisition Ordinance under the Bhoomi Adhikar Andolan received widespread support from the people. There was enthusiastic response from the workers to the CITU call to observe July 30, 2015 as an all India day in solidarity with the peasants. The BJP led government was compelled to desist from reissuing the ordinance. The agricultural workers are coming into struggles on their demands including against the drastic curtailment of financial allocations for MGNREGA. The working class went on a massive country wide joint general strike on September 2, 2015. In many parts of the country, peasants and agricultural workers participated in demonstrations on that day in solidarity with the struggling workers. This situation provides an opportunity to bring these sections of toiling people further together into joint activities. The all India day to commemorate the first country wide general strike in which peasants and agricultural workers became martyrs was considered an apt beginning in developing joint activities in the coming days. All state committees of the AIAWU, AIKS and CITU have been requested to make appropriate plans for effective observance of the day.