INDIAN banking industry was predominantly in private sector for close to two centuries till 1969. Large number of private sector banks failed during this period causing deep misery in the lives of lakhs of depositors whose money was siphoned off to offset the huge negative net worth of these banks when they were wound up.  The private banks were largely used for funding their family business houses and were cruelly apathetic to the needs of the peasants, micro and small enterprises etc.

BANK nationalisation is going to complete its fifty years glorious journey playing an unprecedented pivotal role in the all-round development of our country’s economy. Public Sector Banks (PSBs) of our country, as on March 31, 2019, hold a sum of Rs 84.86 lakh crores as deposits. 85 per cent of this amount is from small deposits by common people of our country, who keep their savings in bank accounts, mainly in PSBs to meet their future family requirements. They do not go to the stock market for earning some speculating gains.

WHILE the tsunami waves that hit the coasts of India in 2004 took some lives on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the adivasi population of Jarava, Onges adivasis that have inhabited the islands for thousands of years managed to walk safe out of the disaster. These adivasis have always been living a primitive life, with almost no contact with the outside world. While the whole world was astonished at their survival in face of the disaster, researchers have theorised that just like animals and birds, tribals too might have sensed the danger of tsunami beforehand.

THE NSSO Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), 2017-2018 was released one day after the new government assumed office. It confirmed the earlier ‘leaked reports’ that the unemployment rate in the country had reached an all time high of 6.1 per cent. In fact the opposition campaign had been predicated on the fact that the fast track reforms and the pro-corporate policies of the government had unleashed an unprecedented employment crisis.

WHILE the working people the world over express their solidarity with each other in their struggles to end exploitation on May Day, the BJP and Narendra Modi are preoccupied with disrupting such unity and solidarity through their venomous campaign of communal polarization.

The first three phases of the 17th general elections saw the electorate voting in 302 seats out of the 543 Lok Sabha seats. The ruling BJP has 113 sitting MPs from these constituencies.