Kerala Raksha Yatra Scores Unprecedented Success

THE state of Kerala recently witnessed an unprecedented and unparalleled political upsurge in all the 140 assembly segments, during the course of the Kerala Raksha March which started from Vayalar on February 1 and culminated in a rally on the Kozhikode beach on February 26. “Secular India and Developed Kerala” was the slogan of the yatra.

Central Committee Communique

The Central Committee of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) met in New Delhi on March 1 & 2, 2014. It has issued the following statement on March 2

No Ordinances

Utilise 16th General Elections to Create a Better India

THE schedule for the 16th general elections has been announced. These will be the longest ever general elections planned in the country barring those disrupted and delayed due to exigencies such as prime minister Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination or the Kargil war. Spread over five weeks beginning April 7 and ending May 12 – these elections will be held in nine phases, the largest number so far.

CPI(M) Provides Homes for Riot Victims in Muzaffarnagar

THE terrible communal attacks that occurred in Muzaffarnagar and Shamli districts of Western Uttar Pradesh forced thousands of poor, working class Muslim families into an existence of misery, hunger, cold, sickness and complete insecurity. What are euphemistically called ‘tented camps’ lack both the tents and the semblance of order that these words imply. In open fields and empty ditches, people stuck poles into the ground and hung plastic sheets on them and then crept under them with their families.

AIFAWH Extends Solidarity to the Anganwadi Employees’ Struggle in AP

The All India Federation of Anganwadi Workers and Helpers (AIFAWH) in a statement issued on February 25, has extended full support to the struggle of the anganwadi workers and helpers in Andhra Pradesh demanding minimum wages and retirement benefits including pension and gratuity to all anganwadi workers and helpers. The struggle is led by the Andhra Pradesh Anganwadi Workers and Helpers’ Union. AIFAWH demanded the state government to immediately concede the genuine demands of the anganwadi workers and helpers in Andhra Pradesh.

Ill Conceived Move by the MCI

In a letter addressed to Ghulam Nabi Azad, union minister for health & family welfare on February 27, CPI(M) Polit Bureau member, Brinda Karat brought to his notice the ill conceived move by the Medical Council of India to bring an amendment to the Ethics regulation for doctors for exempting "the Professional Association of Doctors" from the jurisdiction of the Medical Council of India.

Scribes Win Wage Board Battle

IN February 7, the Supreme Court finally dismissed the case that newspaper owners had collectively filed to deny the working journalists and other newspaper employees the legitimate dues announced by the Majithia wage board.

The court ruled that the wages awarded by Justice Majithia must be paid from November 11, 2011, the date on which the award was notified by the central government. Its recommendations are to be implemented from April 2014 and arrears paid in four instalments within a year.

HARYANA: 72 Hours Strike Gets Wide Support

AT the call of the Employees Coordination Committee, the state government employees of Haryana staged a successful 72 hours long, state-wide strike from January 21 to 23, in spite of all types of conspiracy by the state government. Lakhs of employees of the government and semi-government bodies, boards, corporations, universities and municipal bodies as well as workers of the schemes run by the central government took part in the strike that paralysed all work in Haryana.

Egyptians Observe Third Anniversary of ‘Revolution’

EGYPTIANS observed the third anniversary of their revolution on January 25 under fraught political circumstances. The last two years had witnessed volatile events, including the ouster of the long ruling authoritarian ruler Hosni Mubarak and also the first democratically elected president, Muhammad Morsi. Morsi’s ouster had come under controversial circumstances. The violence that followed and the concurrent heavy-handed response from the Egyptian security apparatus has left deep wounds on the Egyptian national psyche.

THE WEEK IN PARLIAMENT

ON the very first day of the extended winter session of parliament, starting February 5, there was uproar in both the houses on various issues. In Rajya Sabha, the government brought the Prevention of Communal Violence (Access to Justice and Reparation) Bill 2014 for consideration; it could replace the Communal Violence (Prevention, Control and Rehabilitation of Victims) Bill 2005, which the union home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde withdrew. But the CPI(M) and other opposition parties forced the government to defer the bill.

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