Fourth Susheela Gopalan Memorial Lecture: Women in the Web of Rapacious Money Lenders

ALL India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), Sushila Gopalan Memorial Trust and India School of Women’s Studies and Development, jointly held the Sushila Gopalan memorial lecture on December 19, 2021, at Bhubaneswar in Odisha.Thomas Isaac, former Kerala finance minister delivered the memorial lecture on the subject ‘Addressing Challenges before Women in the Neo-liberal Era: The Kerala Experience’. He spoke about the extremely adverse impact of the Covid pandemic on women based on the report of a survey of 1,75,000 households in the country.

Tamil Nadu: SKM holds Massive Victory Rally at Thiruvarur

THE Samyukta Kisan Morcha(SKM) state coordination committee meeting was held on December 7, 2021, at Pudukottai, Tamil Nadu. In the meeting, it was decided that the historic struggle and its success at the Delhi borders would be celebrated at Thiruvarur since that location is the central point for delta farmers in Tamil Nadu.

SAHMAT Celebrates India’s Annadatas

IN the year gone by the dark clouds of Covid-19 continued to hover over our lives. And like in the preceding year the plans of families and individuals relating to leisure and work were disrupted once again. However, unlike 2020 a glimmer of hope was provided by vaccines in the year gone by. The relentless onslaught of the Covid virus on human lives was not the only issue that was in the limelight, 2021 was also a year when the farmers’ protests occupied the centre stage. The almost year-long agitation by the farmers forced the incumbent government to withdraw the three black laws.

Human Rights Violations of the United States Government

IN October 2021, the United States won an election to serve a three-year term on the United Nations Human Rights Council. US president, Joe Biden welcomed the news, saying that the United States welcomes the opportunity to ‘lead the world toward a more peaceful, prosperous future, grounded in respect for human dignity’.

Consumer Sentiments Index: Recovery is not Automatic

THE bi-monthly results released by the Reserve Bank of India of its Consumer Confidence Survey provides some indication of consumers’ perceptions on the current state of the economy as well as of future expectations. The latest round released on 8, December 2021, is based on the survey conducted during the period October 25 to November 3, 2021, covering 5310 households across 13 major states. The survey results provide two summary indicators namely, the current situation index (CSI) and future expectation index (FEI).

Co-Lending: Towards Recolonising the Peasantry

IN colonial times, the peasantry had to borrow from private moneylenders. According to Provincial Banking Enquiry Committee reports, these moneylenders in turn borrowed from commercial banks. But while disbursing credit to the peasants and charging exorbitant interest rates, the money lenders at least bore the whole of the lender’s risk. The banks from whom they borrowed did not bear any risk in case the peasants could not pay back the loans they had obtained from the moneylenders.

Bihar: United State-level convention of Agricultural Workers

ON December 30, 2021, a joint convention of AIAWU and Bihar Khet Mazdoor Union was held in IMA Hall at Patna.The convention was inaugurated by V Sivadasan, Rajya Sabha member from Kerala and leader of AIAWU.

Historic Farmers’ Struggle in India

AIKS ROLE IN FARMERS’ STRUGGLETHE AIKS has been an important constituent of the AIKSCC and the SKM ever since their inception. In this capacity, it played a major role in the collective decision making and implementation of the just-concluded farmers’ struggle. Whenever contentious issues came up, the AIKS always took a principled stand on them, for strengthening the unity of the SKM.Within the SKM, the AIKS also took the initiative to strengthen worker-peasant unity and the unity of farmers with other sections of the people.

Celebrating Farmer-Worker-Artist Unity

FOR the first time in 33 years, Jana Natya Manch (Janam) did not perform a play on January 1.It was on that day in 1989 that Janam was attacked while performing a street play, Halla Bol, on the outskirts of Delhi, in Jhandapur village of Sahibabad, in support of CITU. Two people were killed in the attack – Ram Bahadur, a young Nepali migrant worker who had recently become a father, was shot dead, and Safdar Hashmi, Janam’s charismatic leader was bludgeoned on the head and left for dead. He died in hospital the following day.

Call for Fascistic Violence

EVEN two weeks after the hate-mongering dharma sansad in Haridwar on December 17 to 19, where calls were given to attack Muslims and eliminate them by mass murder, there has not been a single arrest. The first FIR lodged had only one name, that too of a Muslim who converted to Hinduism. Subsequently, after another FIR was filed, four more names were added including that of Yati Narsinghanand, the organiser of the event.On January 1, the Uttarakhand police had announced a special investigation team (SIT) to investigate the matter and the police officer-in-charge, when asked if arr

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