Achintya Bhattacharya Birth Centenary Celebrations Conclude

THERE were three distinct visions for an independent India during freedom struggle – the Nehruvian vision, the Left vision and the right-wing ‘Hindutva’ vision. Pandit Nehru represented the mainstream vision for a ‘secular democratic’ India, while the Left vision was for a ‘secular, democratic and socialist’ India. The third was for converting independent India into a rabidly intolerant ‘Hindu Rashtra’. This vision originated with the formation of the RSS in 1925. The Muslim League was a ‘twin brother’ of the RSS.

The Spectre of Social Counter-Revolution

The following is the text of the Ambedkar memorial lecture delivered by Prabhat Patnaik at the Indian Institute of Dalit Studies in September.

I WOULD like to use this occasion to dwell upon a point to which Dr Ambedkar had drawn attention in his closing speech to the Constituent Assembly on November 25, 1949.

District Conference of Odisha Sales Representatives' Union Held

THE 4th Berhampur district conference of Odisha Sales Representatives' Union (OSRU) was held at Sahid Laxman Nayak Community Hall in Berhampur on September 7. CPI(M) state secretariat member Ali Kishore Pattnaik inaugurated the conference. OSRU general secretary Subhnkar Das, who was the chief speaker, discussed the organisational functioning and developments in the sector. Das opposed the anti-worker policies being pursued by the central and state governments.

Tribal Youth, Students March against Conspiracy to Divide Tripura

MORE than 20,000 tribal youth and students marched through the streets of Agartala on September 10, to voice their stern warning against the divisive forces aiming at dividing Tripura.

NPRD Welcomes SC Verdict on Reservations for Disabled

THE National Platform for the Rights of the Disabled (NPRD), in a statement issued on September 13, has welcomed the judgment of the Supreme Court setting at rest all hitherto misinterpretations of the three percent reservation provided to persons with disabilities as per the Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995. The Court has ruled that the three percent reservation applies not just to recruitment to all categories, but to departmental promotions as well.

India's Mars Mission Enter its Final Phase

INDIA'S Mars Orbiter mission – the Mangalyaan – is now moving into its last and most critical phase. The Mars Orbiter is going to be transferred on September 24 from its current heliocentric or sun-centric orbit and into a Mars-centric one. This is no mean feat, as this phase has defeated many an earlier mission. If it succeeds, India's ISRO will be the fourth space agency to manage such a feat; the others are US's NASA, the Russian and the EU space agencies.

Understanding Inflation

RULING class offensives against the labouring poor in conditions of economic crisis are typically sought to be justified by advancing theories that attribute the crisis to the labouring poor themselves.

Red Salute to Comrade Benoy Konar

The following is the press statement issued by the AIKS on September 15.

Demand to Punish All Guilty in Saradha Scam Gains Momentum

THOUSANDS of people are coming out on the streets demanding punishment for all those involved in Saradha scam and compensation for the depositors by selling the properties of the fraudsters. CBI investigation into the largest financial scam in the history of the state has already exposed the nexus between Saradha owners and Trinamool Congress leaders and ministers. The role of the chief minister herself has come into question.

Last Salute to Comrade Benoy Konar

THOUSANDS of people paid their tributes to Comrade Benoy Konar , veteran Communist leader and legendary figure in peasants’ movement, who passed away on September 14 at a hospital in Kolkata. He was 84.Born in Memari in Burdwan in 1930, Comrade Benoy Konar began to participate in the freedom struggle and joined the Communist Party in 1948. He was greatly influenced by his elder brother Harekrishna Konar, one of the stalwarts of peasant movement in India.

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