DONALD Trump’s leaving the G-7 summit without budging an iota on protectionism is indicative of the disunity among the leading capitalist countries on the strategy to overcome the capitalist crisis. Trump has decided that the US would go its own way, by enlarging the fiscal deficit, not just for giving tax concessions to the corporates, which would have little demand-stimulating effect anyway, but also for increasing government expenditure which would have this effect, and at the same time by protecting the domestic market.These two strands of Trump’s strategy have to go together.

THE CPI(M) launched a campaign, ‘Poraduvom Tamizhagame’, in Tamil Nadu to sensitise the people about the suppression of democratic rights, excesses committed by the police, unbridled corruption, administrative bungling and the anti-people attitude of the AIADMK government.As part of the campaign -- ‘Poraduvom Tamizhagame’ (Tamil Nadu Protests), six rallies were taken out from different parts of the state and these culminated in Trichy with a public meeting on June 14.

THE Jan Ekta Jan Adhikar Andolan (Peoples unity, peoples rights movement) is a newly formed platform of mass, class and social organisations, employees federations, teacher’s organisations, unorganised sector unions, dalit and tribal organizations, progressive non-government organisations and individuals. In its general body meeting, it decided to organise massive protests all over the country against the misrule of the anti-peasant, anti-working class, anti-minority, anti-dalit NDA government and expose the utter failures in its four-year rule.

COMING out of the historic summit that took place in Singapore on June 12, between the Democratic Peoples’ Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the US, the president of DPRK, Kim Jong-un declared, “The world will see a major change”. Donald Trump, US president joined, stating that “Anyone can make war, but only the most courageous can make peace!” Analysts across the world, including nay-sayers are poring through the one and half page declaration adopted in the summit and passing their judgements.

IN the department of posts, there are 1,55,000 post offices out of which 1,29,346 are branch post offices functioning in rural villages.  Out of five lakh employees, 3.07 lakh employees are gramin dak sevaks (GDS) mostly working in branch post offices. They are not treated as government employees but as ‘extra departmental employees’. The service conditions of GDS are very bad.  They are paid a meagre monthly allowance instead of regular salary. Depending upon the work hours, it varies from Rs 2,290 to Rs 4,575 and a DA per month.