Dear friends,
Millions of working people organized under the banner of 10 central trade unions and several federations and associations, have been demanding fulfilment of a host of burning demands, from the Modi-led central BJP government. Not having received any positive response from the government. the joint committee of the central trade unions has served notice to the central government for 2-days’ all India strike on March 28-29-2022. Our Party, the Socialist Unity Centre of India – Communist (SUCI C), wholeheartedly supports this strike action by the united body of trade unions.
Roll back of the imposition of four labour codes in place of the existing 44 labour laws – meant to snatch away most, if not all, the hard-earned trade union rights of the working class and refuse restoration and extension of all the labour rights, withdrawal of the scheme of privatization of all the public sector units, as well as of the National Monetization Pipeline (NMP), ensuring adequate compensation and protection to the frontline worriers, according status of government employees to all the Scheme Workers and till fulfillment of ensuring minimum wages and social security to them, strictly implementing the policy of equal wages for equal work, enhancing allocation to MNREGA-particularly during this Covid period when the life and livelihood of millions of working people including vast number of migrant labourers are devastated, urgent measures on war footing to bring down the galloping rise in prices of essential commodities, restoration of the old pension scheme in place of the New Pension Scheme (NPS)–these are some of the major burning demands voiced by the millions of working people of the country.
Our Party likes to reiterate that all the above policies and measures thrust upon the working people of the country are out and out pro-monopoly, pro-MNC and brazenly anti-people. In fact, everybody knows that these are more aggressive and speedier implementation of the policies of globalization – privatization – liberalization by the incumbent BJP led central government, though they were first imposed upon the people by the erstwhile Congress government. To satisfy the greed of maximum profit of the monopoly capitalists and multinationals, all the ruling parties, both at the centre and in the states, as their faithful servants, are planning and executing policies to help in ruthless exploitation of the working people. While these policies have filled the coffers of the capitalist barons even during the holocaust period of the Covid pandemic, they have wrought havoc on the lives of the working and middle class people and irretrievably ruined their lives. Crores of youths are unemployed, more and more are retrenched, permanency of jobs is virtually abolished and replaced by low wage contractual employment, and lakhs of posts in government offices are lying vacant for years. Figures speak for themselves: 83 crore Indians survive on less than Rs 20 per day. Middle class population is reduced from 9.9 crores to 6.6 crores. 1% of super-rich owns 73% of the national wealth. In last two decades, around Rs. 65 lakh crores of tax waivers and concessions have been awarded to the corporate sector. During this pandamic period, wealth of the billionaires rose by 35% while 40 more were added to the list of billionaires in India. Precisely, the rich became richer at the cost of the poor who got totally ruined.
Consequences of the above happenings are inhuman and beyond imagination. Starvation and hunger are all pervading. The peasants, drowned in loans, taking recourse to suicide; workers, youths, students are also very agonizingly following suit. Privatization of health and education have pushed these services beyond the reach of the common people. What’s more, mothers and sisters are forced into the most obnoxious ‘profession’ of flesh trade as the last resort of survival for themselves and their kith and kin. Number of youths are crippled by being encouraged to addiction to alcohol, drug, perverted sex resulting in rise in rapes, gang rapes and murders. All human values, finer feelings, love and affection are being destroyed.
Crying need of the hour is to initiate well organized, united sustained movements of the workers, peasants, youths, students, women i.e. all sections of the toiling people with firm determination and indomitable spirit braving all odds and attacks. Recent historic victory of the mighty peasant movement has proved how a courageous sustained yearlong movement of illiterate, semi-literate rural masses can compel the autocratic fascist BJP government to bow down and concede to the just demands.
It is in this background that the trade unions have jointly decided to go for nationwide strike for 48 hours to tell the govt. to roll back all the pro monopoly, anti -worker policies, on March 28-29 , 2022. Our Party, SUCI (Communist), calls upon the people of the country to stand by the united struggle of the trade unions with all forces at their command and work towards bringing pressure upon the central BJP government to withdraw all such anti-working class policies lock, stock and barrel.
With Revolutionary Greetings–
Provash Ghosh
General Secretary,
SUCI (Communist)
Make Success All India Strike on 28-29 March 2022
