ON August 1, 2020, the milk farmers struggle led by the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) and the Milk Producing Farmers Struggle Committee was intensified all over Maharashtra with the participation of thousands of farmers in around 50 tehsils of 20 districts. The first phase of this struggle began on July 20 in Ahmednagar and some other districts. The state dairy development minister Sunil Kedar organised an online meeting of farmer leaders and milk companies on July 21 at which the AIKS was represented, but nothing came of it. 

THE Communist Party of India (Marxist) Andhra Pradesh unit has lost two senior leaders to Covid-19, on August 4. Comrade Sunnam Rajaiah, 62, state secretariat member and Comrade T Shadrak, 62, member of the state control commission, have both succumbed to the viral infection, leaving a huge void for the Party. The Party state committee paid homage to the leaders and called for statewide condolence meetings for a week. It had also held an online condolence meeting at state level on August 11 to pay tributes to the departed leaders.

SLOPPY handling of the Covid-19 pandemic by the BJP-IPFT coalition government forced Tripura to the brink of community spread. The tiny state’s Covid-19 infection tally has crossed 4,000 with 17 deaths, whereas in the beginning of the nationwide lockdown (March-end) the number was one or two – people with history of travel outside.

PLACING the Central Committee decisions in a press conference held on July 27 , Sitaram Yechury, general secretary of the CPI(M) said that on the 16 demands of the people of the country a week long campaign and protests will be organised throughout the country by the Party units from August 20-26. He said, owing to the pandemic the CC meeting was held online.

CPI(M) Polit Bureau member, Brinda Karat has lodged a police complaint against Nageswar Rao, an IPS officer who is Director General of Fire Services, Home Guards and Civil Defence under union home ministry, for his tweets inciting communal hatred.  She has written to union home minister Amit Shah on July 28, regarding the same and urged him to ensure the prosecution of the officer according to the law of the land.