An Elder Brother and A Committed Comrade

COMRADE Kodiyeri Balakrishnan was much more than a colleague to me. Senior to me by two years, he was as close to me as a brother in a relationship spanning over five decades. It dates back to 1972-73 when we worked together as colleagues and office bearers of the SFI at the state level. His end has come now, as we were working together simultaneously at the state and national levels.Kodiyeri was at his best, working at the organisational level. His skills in this regard were quite evident even from his student days.

Dwindling Growth, High Food Inflation, Low Employment

THE post-pandemic recovery in the world economy that picked up in 2021 is likely to slow down due to expectations of rising inflation, continuing war, restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic and prolonged real estate slump in China as well as a slower than anticipated consumer spending in the US. While global growth rates are revised downwards from 6.1 per cent in 2021 to 3.2 per cent in 2022 and further down to 2.9 per cent in 2023, inflation expectations are high due to soaring food and energy prices. The average inflation rate in developing countries is forecasted to be 7.3 per cent.

Odisha: Big Rally Concludes September Campaign

A COLOURFUL dharna followed by a rally was held at Bhubaneswar on September 28, outside the state assembly, culminating 'September campaign', a call given by the Party.Coming from various parts of the state with red flags, banners and placards shouting slogans the protesters joined the dharna. The main issues were livelihood and against pro-corporate communal forces led by BJP-RSS at the centre and anti-people decisions of the state government of BJD.People came from northernmost Mayurbhanj to southernmost Malkangiri districts covering hundreds of kilometres.

Infringement of Rights of Political Parties

THE Election Commission of India wants political parties to provide detailed information about the financial implications of the promises made in their election manifestos as well as the effects of these promises on the fiscal sustainability of the state or central government’s finances.

Tens of Thousands Bid Emotional Farewell

THOUSANDS of people lined the streets of Kannur at 3.30 pm in the afternoon on October 3 when the body of Comrade Kodiyeri Balakrishnan was taken in a procession from the CPI(M) Kannur district committee office to Payyambalam Beach.

The Draft Telecom Bill: A Surveillance Paradise and a Gift to Telecom Monopolies

THE government has recently released a Draft Indian Telecommunication Bill, 2022, for public comments. At the same time, the union government has withdrawn the Personal Data Protection Bill, which had been in the making for five years. This bill was to give a framework for the citizens' privacy rights, based on the Supreme Court's Puttuswamy Judgement declaring privacy as a fundamental right. However, the citizens' rights still remain undefined.

AP: Provide Relief to Polavaram Project Evacuees

CPI(M) Polit Bureau member B V Raghavulu warned the Andhra Pradesh state and the central governments of intensified protests if they fail to provide relief measures to the evacuees of the Polavaram Project. Addressing thousands from the tribal region at the meeting held at Kunavaram village of the Alluri Sitharama Raju district, he stressed that the government should do justice to the displaced who lost their livelihood and property for the project. “CPI(M) leaders and cadre will hold a sit-in at the project site along with the evacuees if the government doesn’t implement all the promised r

AIDWA Welcomes SC Judgement on Abortion Rights

THE All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), in a statement issued on October 1, has welcomed the judgment in which the Supreme Court held that unmarried women have the right to access safe and legal abortions between twenty and twenty-four weeks of pregnancy, if they face a change in their material circumstances, similar to married women.

The New Threat on the Foreign Exchange Front

ON September 23, the value of the rupee vis-a-vis the dollar fell to a new low: it crossed 81 to a dollar after some weeks of relative stability when it hovered between 79 and 80. And it fell despite the Reserve Bank’s running down of foreign exchange reserves in a bid to hold up its value. In fact foreign exchange reserves had reached their highest level in October last year, but since then there has been a decline by over $90 billion until September 23 to just below $550 billion.

RSS Agenda Cannot be Implemented in Kerala: Pinarayi Vijayan

Below we publish excerpts from Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's press conference held on September 21, 2022. This has been translated from Malayalam YESTERDAY'S press conference at Raj Bhavan was a very unusual event in Kerala. It can be said that it’s not just in Kerala but also, in the country itself. The uniqueness was that Raj Bhavan became the venue for it. Usually, when the governor has to say something, he says it within the Raj Bhavan. There are formal channels of communication between the government and the governor.

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