Reflections on the Sri Lankan Economic Crisis

SO much has been written on the Sri Lankan economic crisis that the facts are by now quite well-known (see for instance C P Chandrasekhar, Frontline April 22): the massive build-up of external debt; the huge Value Added Tax concessions that pushed up the fiscal deficit and made the government borrow abroad even to spend domestically; the decline in foreign exchange earnings because of the pandemic that particularly hit tourist inflows; the downward pressure on the exchange rate which made many Sri Lankan workers choose the unofficial route to send their earnings home rather than th

Karnataka: Shramik Clinic for Unorganised Sector Workers

FIRST ever of its kind, a free clinic for unorganised sector workers in the state of Karnataka has been started by Bengaluru district committees of CITU. Dr C N Manjunath, director of Jaydeva Institute of Cardiology, Bengaluru inaugurated the Shramik Clinic for Unorganised Sector Workers at Jyothi Basu Bavan, CITU district committee office on April 16, 2022 in the presence of CITU national vice president A K Padmanabhan.The clinic with free medical consultation will be available every day for the families of unorganised workers who are members of CITU affiliated Unions.

BSNLEU Conference Vows to Turn BSNL into a Vibrant PSU

THE tenth all India conference of BSNL employees union was held enthusiastically from April 2-4, 2022, at Guwahati. 396 delegates and 143 observers participated in this conference.BACKDROP OF THE CONFERENCEIn October 2019, the Modi government announced with much pomp and show, a package of Rs 70,000 crore for the revival of BSNL and MTNL. However, till today, this revival package remains only on paper. After the announcement of this revival package, 1,02,000 employees of BSNL and MTNL have been retrenched under VRS.

Rising Exports with Declining Domestic Value Added

INDIA’S trade deficit has increased in the recent months with double digit growths in both exports and imports. The trade deficit was a result of imports growing at a faster pace than that of exports. The year on year growth of exports and imports in March 2022 was roughly 20 per cent and 24 per cent respectively leading to a widening trade deficit. This is primarily because of rise in the import bills due to increase in international prices of petroleum, oil and lubricants (POL) and also of non-oil and non-gold and silver imports such as commodities and metals.

Ensure Legal Guarantee of an MSP, And a Central Loan Waiver to the Peasantry

THE 23rd Party Congress of the CPI(M) expresses grave concern at the deepening agrarian crisis in India, seriously aggravated by the neoliberal policies initiated in 1991 by the Congress-led union government in 1991, and taken forward since, by all subsequent central governments and by most state governments except those led by the Left. The current BJP-RSS regime led by Modi as prime minister has deepened the crisis with its ultra-neoliberal policies targeting all sections of peasants, agricultural workers and the working class.

For a Nation-wide Mass Movement of Policyholders, Employees, and AgentsAgainst Privatization of LIC

THE 23rd Congress of CPI(M) warns that the move of Indian government to make an Initial Public Offering (IPO) of 5 per cent of the shares of the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) is the beginning of a nefarious scheme to privatise LIC. Despite a quarter-century of deregulation of the insurance sector, LIC still accounts for 73 per cent of the policies and 61 per cent of the first-year premium in the country. It is one of the world’s most valued insurance brands.

On Jammu and Kashmir situation

THE brazen and unconstitutional assault on the special status of Jammu and Kashmir continues to be accompanied by the large-scale arrests, particularly of youth, and intimidation and harassment of mainstream political leaders through central agencies like ED, CBI, NIA etc. Unprecedented ferocious clampdown on the entire population and their basic rights continue.Arbitrarily dismantling the constitution of Jammu and Kashmir has resulted in seriously damaging the relationship between the people of the erstwhile state and the union.

Solidarity with Palestine

THE 23rd Congress of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) reiterates its solidarity with the people of Palestine, who have been fighting for their homeland for more than seven decades.Starting on March 30, 2018, the Palestinian people began a series of mass protests for the right to return to their homeland. These protests lasted for more than two years and were suspended in 2020, during the pandemic. The Israeli government killed more than 260 Palestinians, mostly by sniper fire and injured thousands more.

Messages of Greetings from Left Parties

Below we publish excerpts from the messages of greetings received from the All India Forward Bloc, Revolutionary Socialist Party, and the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation. These messages were read out in the inaugural session of the Party Congress. Since the National Council meeting of the All India Forward Bloc and the Central Committee meeting of the CPI(ML) were held during the same period as our Party Congress, they could not attend.

All India Forward Bloc

FRATERNAL MESSAGES OF GREETINGS

Below we publish the fraternal messages of greetings received from the Communist Party of Greece, Portuguese Communist Party and the Communist Party of Brazil

DEAR comrades,

On behalf of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE), please receive a warm comradely greeting to the 23rd Congress of your Party and our wishes for success in its work.

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