Accept Universal Validity of UDID, Not Mandatory Possession

THE National Platform for the Rights of the Disabled (NPRD) has addressed two letters to the secretary, department of empowerment of persons with disabilities, Government of India on issues surrounding the validity of the Universal Disability ID (UDID) Card.Dated March 15, 2023 the letters are in response to an office memorandum and a DO letter issued by the department of empowerment of persons with disabilities (DEPwD), Government of India, which is the nodal department for disability affairs.

Restore Peace, End Hostility: Delegation of MPs to Tripura Governor

A DELEGATION of parliamentarians visited Tripura to assess the post-poll violence. Since the assembly polls in the state, goons of the ruling BJP have been perpetrating violence and targeting supporters and members of the Left parties. During the visit, the delegation comprising MPs of the CPI(M), CPI and the Congress submitted a memorandum to the governor on March 11, seeking restoration of peace, end to political hostility, and payment of compensation to those affected by the violence.

The “Hindu Rate of Growth”: Then and Now

FOR a large part of the dirigiste period, the gross domestic product of the Indian economy grew at a rate of around 4 per cent per annum or less, which, though an improvement compared to the colonial era that had witnessed virtual stagnation, was not very impressive. This low steady growth over a prolonged period of time was facetiously referred to as the “Hindu rate of growth” by many economists (perhaps because with this rate an eternity would be required for any noticeable social transformation).

CITU Campaigns for Minimum Wages in Telangana

THE CITU in Telangana has organised an extensive campaign from February 10 to March 5 on the issues of industrial workers, mainly focusing on demands of minimum wages, seven hours a day work and five day week. It had a good effect on the workers. A dharna was held at the Labour Commissioner's office on March 6. This is just the beginning of the united labour movement to come!Industrial workers see CITU as a beacon of hope, for working on the problems they face.

J&K: Farmers Protest against ‘Bulldozer Raj’

A KISAN protest dharna was held at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi on February 24, 2023 by All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) and Jammu and Kashmir Kisan Tehreek (JKKT). The dharna was organised against the forceful eviction of Jammu and Kashmir farmers using the Land Eviction Order, 2020. Farmers from Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh participated in the dharna.The demonstration in the national capital comes after a series of spontaneous and organised protest actions in Jammu and Kashmir.

Caution: Saffronisation of Doordarshan and All India Radio

THE National Alliance of Journalists (NAJ) and the Delhi Union of Journalists, in a joint statement on March 16, have expressed serious concern at the virtual capture of India’s Prasar Bharati, which runs both the Doordarshan and All India Radio, by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), through its own news agency, Hindustan Samachar.

CITU Urges Karnataka Governor to Reject Amendment to Factories Act

The new amendment extends working hours from nine to twelve and removes restrictions on women working late-night shifts.THE Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) has written to the Karnataka governor Vajubhai Vala and urged him not to give his assent to the amendment to the Factories act passed by the Karnataka Assembly.If passed, the new amendments would render changes to six sections of the Factories Act 1948. The new provisions would drastically change life inside and outside the factories.The maximum working hours have been revised to 12 hours/day, up to 48 hours/week.

Fighting for Justice: April 5 Delhi March by Farmers, Workers & Agri Workers

UNDER the leadership of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS), and All India Agricultural Workers Union (AIAWU), the working classes of India, including workers, peasants, and agricultural workers, have decided to step up their ongoing struggles in response to the government's anti-farmer and anti-worker policies.A statement issued by the three organisations on March 10, mentions that a joint campaign was launched after the convention held in Delhi on September 5, 2022 to address issues that affect the people and mobilise them to demand pro-people policies t

WB: Sagardighi Bypolls: People’s Intent is Clear

AS expected, the extent of people’s discontent with the misrule of authoritarian Trinamool regime was borne out in the outcome of Sagardighi by-election, occasioned by the death of sitting minister Subrata Saha in December last year. The TMC had been winning from Sagardighi in Murshidabad since 2011, three times in a row, and the by poll was considered a cakewalk, for in 2021, Saha had won by a massive margin of over 50,000 votes defeating his BJP rival Mafuza Khatun. The Left Front supported Congress candidate SKM Hasanuzzaman came third.

The US, UK and Australia’s Nuclear Submarine Deal

THE recent Australia, US and UK 368 billion dollar deal on buying nuclear submarines has been termed by Paul Keating, a former Australian PM, as the worst deal in all history. It commits Australia to buy conventionally-armed, nuclear-powered submarines which will be delivered earliest in the 2040s. These will be based on new nuclear reactor designs yet to be developed by UK.

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