SINCE the global financial crisis, India experienced a declining trend of investment to GDP ratio particularly due to declining investment growth in the private corporate sector. In the recent past, there has been little uptick in this ratio driven by capital expenditure undertaken by government spending. Although such high capital expenditure for successive years didn’t even ‘crowd in’ private investment. Recently the ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation has conducted a survey of private sector’s current CAPEX and future investment intentions.
IN a letter addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 12, M A Baby, General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), has called for the immediate convening of a special session of Parliament to address ceasefire developments and related national concerns.The letter was written in light of recent developments concerning the de-escalation of tensions and the announcement of a ceasefire between India and Pakistan. Baby noted that this announcement has brought a sense of relief to all sections of our nation, as well as to the peace-loving international community.
CPI(M) veteran leader and former all-India general secretary of the Students’ Federation of India (SFI), Comrade Nepaldeb Bhattacharya, passed away at a private hospital in the early hours of May 13, at 1.25 AM. He was 73.
He had been battling kidney-related ailments and was admitted to the hospital five days earlier. His cremation took place at Muktarpur crematorium in Bhatpara on May 13th afternoon.
CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby, state secretary Md Salim, and Left Front chairman Biman Bose expressed deep sorrow at his passing.
THE All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), in a statement issued on May 14, has strongly condemned the highly irresponsible, despicable and communal remarks made by Madhya Pradesh Tribal Affairs Minister Vijay Shah against a senior army officer, Colonel Sophia Qureshi, whose family prides itself on a three-generation history of service in the army.Shah's utterly prejudiced statement against a prominent face of Operation Sindoor, is not only shameful but also an insult to both, the army and women.
A CPI(M) delegation consisting of General Secretary M A Baby, Polit Bureau member Nilotpal Basu and Central Committee member Muralidharan met the three-member Election Commission of India on May 10. The meeting was held at the initiative of the ECI. The note submitted to the ECI is being released to the media.THE initiative taken by the Election Commission of India to invite recognised political parties for discussions is welcome.
PEOPLE on both sides of the border were relieved. The four-day-long military engagement between India and Pakistan came to a close on the late afternoon of May 10. Despite this, gunshots were heard late in the night. But later, the DGMOs of both countries confirmed that the ceasefire has held and war clouds have receded for now.However, these three weeks have unfolded a sequence of developments which is dramatic, unraveling a disastrous pattern in South Asia.
THE two-day All India Convention of Women Agricultural and Rural Workers, organised by the All India Agricultural Workers’ Union, was held at the EMS Academy in Malappuram district, Kerala, on May 9-10, 2025. The convention began with the flag hoisting by Durga Swami, central working committee member and state secretary of AIAWU’s Rajasthan unit, followed by floral tributes at the Martyrs’ Column.The convention was inaugurated by the U Vasuki, vice president of AIDWA, and CPI(M) Polit Bureau member.
THE triennial conference of the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), Delhi-NCR was held on May 3-4, 2025 at Surjeet Bhavan.After the flag hoisting by Prof Indu Agnihotri, former president of AIDWA-Delhi and paying respects at the martyrs’ column, the inaugural session began with inspiring songs by Jana Natya Manch that filled the air with enthusiasm. Thereafter, AIDWA national president PK Sreemathi formally inaugurated the conference.Salute to the women of Delhi! Salute to those daughters who did not bow down to oppression.
Hundreds of million Indian workers are ready to strike on May 20 to demand higher minimum wages and a rollback of BJP’s anti-worker policies.NINETY per cent of Indian workers are in the unorganised sector. This does not mean that they are outside trade union structures, but only that most workers must fight very hard to form unions.
THE Trump administration has launched an all-out trade war to isolate China and bring manufacturing, hollowed out through decades of outsourcing, and its associated jobs back to the US. While the Trump Tariffs and tantrums hog the headlines, China has quietly gone about implementing its long-term vision to transform its manufacturing sector and economy. Few narratives encapsulate global economic shifts like the story of China’s rapid automation revolution.