Petrol & Diesel Prices: End This Loot

THE relentless increase in the prices of petrol and diesel is adding to the problems of the people already burdened by the pandemic woes of joblessness and loss of incomes. The daily increase in the retail prices of fuel has led to the price of petrol breaching the Rs 90 per litre mark in various cities. At this rate, the Rs 100 mark will be reached very soon.The government and the oil companies justify this increase citing the rising global prices of crude oil. This is, however, a specious claim.

Withdraw Excise Duty Hikes on Petroleum Products

CPI(M) Polit Bureau has issued the following statement on February 18THE Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) strongly denounces yet another hike in the prices of petrol, diesel and cooking gas. These hikes in excise duties come at a time when international oil prices have fallen with the base price for petrol being Rs 47.12 in 2014 to Rs 29.34 in 2021, i.e., nearly 50 per cent. The main reason for these escalating prices is the unbridled hike in the excise duties by the central government, which today is 38 per cent of the cost of petrol. The tax levied by the centre incr

Stop Importing American Destructive Right-Wing Extremism to India

IN his inaugural speech, President Biden clearly named “political extremism, white supremacy, and domestic terrorism, as the dangers that need to be confronted urgently. The Biden administration directed its intelligence agencies to take a deeper look at violent white-supremacist groups operating overseas, some of which may have connections to US-based extremists. After seeing the chaos at Capitol no right-thinking politician can remain a mute spectator.

OBITUARY: Prof DN Jha, 1940-2021

PROFESSOR Dwijendra Narayan Jha (DN Jha or DNJ in short), who fought shibboleths and superstitions all his life, was busy doing so when he took a break, had lunch, went for his siesta and breathed his last on February 4, 2021. On that count, the loss to the cause he stood for and served – by providing well-honed intellectual instruments for changing the world for the better – is indeed real and irreparable. The departure of anyone who has given all that he/she had to is indeed very sad, but the bereavement causes little loss to the cause as such.

Bihar: Homage and Pledge in the memory of Ganesh Da

TRIBUTES were paid to the oldest and one of the tallest leaders of the Communist movement in Bihar, Comrade Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi in a memorial cum pledge taking ceremony organised by CPI(M), Bihar state committee in Patna.

THE WEEK IN PARLIAMENT

THE budget session of parliament began with president Ram Nath Kovind’s address to a joint sitting of both the houses on January 29. The CPI(M) and other opposition parties boycotted the president’s address in solidarity with the farmers agitating against the centre’s three contentious farm laws. On February 1, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the union budget for 2021-22.

Why Vizag Steel Should Not Be Privatised?

THE centre's decision to privatise the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant invited sharp opposition from people and political parties across Andhra Pradesh. RashtriyaIspat Nigam Limited (RINL), the corporate entity of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP) is the largest public-sector industrial unit in the state creating employment opportunity for close to around 20,000 people directly and many other indirect employment opportunities.The presence of the steel plant led to the massive economic development of the city.

Science, Technology & Innovation Policy 2020

THE government has released a Science, Technology and Innovation Policy 2020 (STIP 2020) and invited responses by January 31, 2021. The Department of Science & Technology and the Office of the Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government did conduct a series of consultations with some scientists and other experts to seek, albeit prior to the actual formulation and release of the policy document leading to considerable disgruntlement in this community.

AP: Do or Die Struggle to Protect Vizag Steel Plant

WHILE the whole nation was discussing about the farmers’ parade on January 26, the central cabinet unleashed an attack on Andhra Pradesh by announcing the 100 per cent strategic sale of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant.

AIAWU decides to Intensify the Struggle Against Farm Laws

THE meeting of the general council was held on February 1-2, 2021 in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh. The meeting was attended by 97 members and was presided over by Amiya Patra.Meeting discussed in detail the organisational issues and finalised its membership which is 70,87,499. The states of Kerala, West Bengal, Tripura and Punjab have increased their membership.

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