Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) extends firm solidarity to the Striking Samsung Workers of the Sriperumbudur plant in Tamil Nadu, India, and condemns the unlawful arrest of CITU Tamil Nadu State Secretary, E. Muthukumar along with more than 100 striking workers by the State Police; CITU demands the immediate intervention of the Hon’ble Chief Minister, Tamil Nadu to ensure the Law of the Land including the Right to Association and Right to Collective Bargaining to the Samsung Workers.

Around 90% of the total 1723 workers of the Samsung India Sriperumbudur plant are on their 8^th Day of Strike today. The demands are to attain their Right to Association, Right to Collective Bargaining and initiation of fruitful discussion by the Management with the majority union. The globally stigmatized Samsung Management with their infamous No-Union Policy wants to curb all these democratic rights of the workers and is blatantly violating the rights provided by the Trade Union Act 1926, Industrial Dispute Act 1947 along with the ILO Conventions No. 87 and 98 and International Labour Standard (ILS).

The Samsung Sriperumbudur plant producing home appliances alone accounts for around a third of its annual $12 billion revenue extracted from Indian soil. The workers in this plant are subjected to long working hours, torturous intensity of work pressure to finish each produce like refrigerator, washing machine or TV within 10-15 seconds, non-stop work for 4-5 hours at stretch and unsafe working conditions. In contrast to the Samsung workers in Seoul who receive Rs 4.5-6.0 lakh on average as wages and salaries, their Indian counterparts are working in meager Rs 20,000-25,000 per month. Noteworthy that, the Samsung Global has gained a consolidated a year-on-year net profit of 9.84 trillion KRW (South Korean Won) in the second quarter of 2024 against 1.72 trillion KRW in the last year.   

As the Samsung Management is reluctant to discuss and resolve the issues with the majority Union, the striking workers were compelled to plan for a march to the District Collector Office of the Kancheepuram district on Monday, 16^th September 2024. But, the leaders including the Union President E. Muthukumar were illegally detained from the Union Office in the very morning along with 104 striking workers. Police prevented the Samsung workers at the outskirts of the Kancheepuram District from even entering the city. The peacefully striking workers were threatened and physically manhandled by Police at their protesting venue.

CITU strongly condemns the act of the District Police coming highhandedly over the protesting workers asserting their lawful democratic right and the vindictive instigation of Samsung management against its own workers. No Multinational Foreign Company should be allowed to mutilate the Laws of the Land prevailing in our Country. CITU demands immediate intervention of the Hon’ble CM of Tamil Nadu and the appropriate authority to unconditionally release the detained workers and to ensure that the statutory Rights of the workers are protected.

CITU calls upon all of its units to organize gate/ work place level meetings in support and solidarity of the Striking Samsung workers today and tomorrow.

Don’t Turn Indian Workers into Slaves of the Multinationals – Protect Rights and Laws.

Issued by
Tapan Sen
General Secretary

Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) expresses its profound grief at the passing away of Comrade Sitaram Yechury, General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on September 12, 2024. He passed away at AIIMS, New Delhi following severe lung infection and respiratory ailment. He was 72.

Comrade Sitaram Yechury, as one of the tallest leaders of the Party of the working class was deeply committed to the cause of the working class and exploited masses. He was one of the most well-known Marxist ideologue of our times.

In his academic life, he was student of outstanding brilliance. He joined the student movement in Jawaharlal Nehru University in a very stormy period and was elected as President of JNU Students Union thrice. He was the President of the Students Federation of India for a long time. He was arrested during the emergency for his frontline political activities.

He was elected to the Central Committee of the CPI(M) in 1985. He became a member of the Polit Bureau in 1992 and elected as the General Secretary of the CPI(M) in 2015.

He was a member of the Rajya Sabha from 2005-2017. He raised the voice of the toiling masses, especially the working class in the Parliament.  He opposed the privatisation of PSUs and was instrumental in exposing many of the corruption scandals emanated from the neoliberal policies of the Central Government. He also played a role of crusader against all forms of communalism and obscurantism being promoted by the Politics of Ruling clique now in governance.

As the leader of the CPI(M), he fought the case against electoral bonds.  He staunchly opposed the abrogation of Article 370 by BJP government and was the first one to visit Kashmir fighting the Government which tried to make Kashmir a jail.

He stood by the ideals of socialism all through his active political life and led the ideological struggle upholding the scientific socialism nationally and internationally.                                                                                                          

He was one of the faces of struggles against neoliberalism and all its perverse reflections in economy, politics and society in India since late-eighties/ early 90s. As the leader of the CPI (M) and as an MP, he was very keen in participating all working class struggles of various sectors.  He also raised the issues of various sections of the Working People as well as exposed various perverse anti-people and anti-democratic policies of the Ruling Class through his exquisite oratory in Parliament. He got the best parliamentarian award in 2017.

He was a master in international issues and a champion of anti imperialist causes and assertion in politics.

An excellent orator in various languages, he could communicate to the common workers as well as intellectuals.  He was famous for his quick wit.

Sitaram Yechury also contributed immensely as the Editor of the weekly People’s Democracy for long years, and also the Editor of the theoretical quarterly organ-“ The Marxist”.

He made important ideological contributions in the critique of Hindutva communalism.

He played a major role in   forging a broad unity of the secular opposition parties in the struggle against communal forces in governance.  He was respected by all for his political integrity and commitment.

The untimely demise of Comrade Sitaram Yechury at this crucial juncture in our national politics is a big loss for the working class movement in particular and the progressive values and the society in general.

CITU pays respectful homage to Comrade Sitaram Yechury and conveys heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family and friends.

CITU will half-mast its flags for a week in respect to the departed leader.

Red Salute to comrade Sitaram Yechury

Issued by
Tapan Sen
General Secretary

Demands

Ø  Time Bound Implementation of its Recommendations by Kerala LDF government

Ø  Immediate Setting up of similar committees with specific time frame for Bollywood and all other language film industries

Ø  Central government must bring a Model Code of Conduct for the film and television industry to end sexual violence and gender discrimination

Ø  Speedy functioning of Fast track courts to ensure fast trial and justice in cases of sexual violence and rape; Increase budget allocation for FTSCs

The All India Coordination of Working Women (CITU), the women’s sub-committee of Centre of Indian Trade Unions(CITU) welcomes the release of the Hema Committee Report, and the assurances given by the LDF Government of Kerala to implement many of its recommendations in order to improve the working conditions, particularly of women in the Kerala film industry.

We congratulate the survivor actress who came out to fight and the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) that has played a stellar role in highlighting the shocking discrimination and sexual harassment faced by women working in the Kerala film industry.

The Committee made commendable efforts to prepare a comprehensive report recording depositions of more than 50 men and women including senior actors as well as junior artists and technicians. The Committee endured several challenges to complete the report as the victims were greatly afraid about the breach of their confidentiality.  As a result it took two years to prepare the report. The release of it was further delayed by several privacy related issues and interventions by statutory bodies and judiciary.

Apart from shocking revelations of demands for sexual favours, intimidating and predatory sexual advances and attacks that women at all levels in the film industry face at the very inception of their working careers, the Committee has pointed to rampant gender discrimination in remuneration, technical opportunities, lack of basic on-site facilities such as toilets and changing rooms, grievance redressal mechanisms, illegal age limits on work participation, and lack of contracts and regulation of working conditions.

The Committee has pointed to the existence of a ghastly reactionary near-feudal power structure under the tight control of a few men within the industry that results in a totally illegal and unauthorized “ban” on those who dare to raise their voices against the injustice faced by them. It has recommended the drafting of a separate specific law to regulate the industry, and set up a Tribunal, a special Welfare Fund, ensure written contracts, equal remuneration and a gender balance in decision making bodies. In a wider context, it has called for a comprehensive Film Workers’ Policy and support for women produced cinema and gender justice in cinema content.

In a welcome move, the LDF government decided to call a conclave and invite women across the spectrum within the industry and various stakeholders to discuss comprehensive suggestions to address all kinds of discriminations and the way forward. We also welcome the LDF government’s decision to set up an investigation team of Police to look into various casesincluding POCSO cases coming out after the publication of the report and to help the survivors. It will be appropriate the to set up a fast track court to deal with these cases as well as to give confidence to the victims who are still silent.

Sexual exploitation of women, discrimination and unfair practices exist not just in Kerala, but are reportedly widespread in film production centres across the country. We may recall that many actresses in Bollywood have earlier revealed about the sexual assaults they faced in the name of ‘casting couch’. In Telugu film Industry, a film artist stripped herself and demonstrated in Hyderabad in protest against this harassment. We demand the concerned state governments take immediate action on these complaints and frame holistic policy to address the issues.

We stand in solidarity with women in cinema and support their struggles to dismantle patriarchal power structures, build gender-just workplaces with fair labour practices, and end the culture of silence in face of fear and oppression.

Issued by
A R Sindhu
Convenor, AICCWW (CITU)
Secretary CITU

Letter To, Hon’ble Chief Minister, Chandigarh, Haryana.

Shri. Nayab Singh Saini Ji,

The Ordinance as above subject is promulgated on 14.8.2024 claiming to provide the security of service to the contractual employees working in the various Departments, Boards, Corporations or Authority under the Haryana state Govt. Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) expresses its serious concern and opposition to it, urging for immediate  withdrawal of the Ordinance.

The Ordinance in the guise of security of Service of Contractual employees shall create a parallel set of contractual employees and perpetuate it on permanent perennial jobs as against the state govt employees in the Govt Departments, Boards, Corporations or Authority under the state Govt instead of regular permanent state Govt employees. This is not permissible under the existing laws.

The State Govt employees recruited by Haryana Public Service Commission and governed by State civil services Rules have a fixed pay scale and their pay and other benefits are based on the recommendations of Pay Commissions while the contractual employees are not governed by the same rules and are denied it through this Ordinance also.

The Ordinance as per section 5 denies any pay scale on par with that of regular employees but provides for only a consolidated minimum pay as that of pay of same scale and some increment of service weightage for the number of years of service rendered by the eligible candidates as one time in the beginning in the guise of security of service. The Section 3(ii) of the Ordinance defines the eligible candidate as one who has completed 5 years with 240 days of work per year. This, in fact, shall also create multiple sets of contractual employees, with different service conditions outside the purview of the provisions of the Ordinance.

The Ordinance as per its first Schedule pushes the eligible candidates to Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY) Chirayu extension Scheme for health care benefits and to the Social Security Code 2020 for death cum retirement benefits – Gratuity and Maternity benefits much below and restricted compared to the defined benefits currently available to the state Govt employees while same and similar work is extracted by them. Furthermore the Social Security Code 2020 and other 4 labour codes are all opposed by almost all the central trade unions and all India federations of State Govt employees because of their patently anti-employee character.  

The contractual employees are governed by the Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act -1970 and Central Rules - 1971.  As per which the contract employees are not to be deployed in the permanent and perennial nature of Jobs which should only be manned by regular employees. And the contractual employees are eligible for equal pay for equal work in same and similar nature of Jobs. The Ordinance will finish-up all these positive provisions.

The Ordinance, in absence of any recruitment to the regular jobs in state Govt, will perpetuate the contractual employment in most of the permanent and perennial nature of jobs of state govt services contrary to the central legislation of Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act - 1970 and rules under it. Which are in force in State of Haryana through the Haryana State Contract labour (Regulation & Abolition) Rules -1975.

The Contractual employees working in the permanent and perennial nature of jobs in State Govt Departments, Boards, Corporations or Authority are to be absorbed in Govt services through conferment of permanent status as employees and are eligible to all the service conditions and benefits on par with other  regular state Govt employees. This is being denied through this Ordinance.

Hence the CITU urges for immediate withdrawal of it and for taking appropriate measures for conferment of permanent status to the contractual employees along with same and similar wages and benefits for the same and similar nature of work done by them in permanent and perennial nature of Jobs in the state Govt/corporations as well as in other private sector in the state, in the interests of fairness and propriety.

 Thanking You,

Yours Sincerely,
Tapan Sen
General Secretary

Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) denounces the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) approved by Union Cabinet on 24.8.2024 as another dubious desperate effort to deceive the Govt employees of their due full right to Old Pension Scheme known as OPS. CITU urges for restoration of old Pension Scheme.

The Old Pension Scheme was non-contributory and with assured pension existing as per Central Civil Service Rules 1972 now 2021. A. B. Vajpayee led NDA Govt had introduced the National Pension Scheme (NPS) in 2004 surreptitiously through an Executive Order for those recruited from 1.1.20O4. The central and state Govt employees and central trade unions opposed it from that day and were on path of struggles against it urging for restoration of OPS. The Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority Act 2013 notified in February 2014 enabled statutory basis for the NPS.

The unprecedented struggles by the Govt Employees for restoration of Old Pension Scheme(OPS) and the whole hearted support rendered to such struggles by the Joint Platform of Central Trade Unions and Federations could compel the arrogant BJP regime to shift from its arrogant stance of sticking to NPS, but the package offered by it in the name of so called UPS reflects the same deceptive ploy of depriving the Govt employees of their legitimate dues on account of pension.  Several State Govts also reverted back to the OPS and were urging for their share of state govt Employees contribution to PFRDA to be refunded to their State Govts. Modi Govt had rejected all of such requests of State Govts which reverted back to OPS. It was countered by the relentless struggles of employees and trade Unions. Hence this dubious attempt of deceptive UPS is made by Modi led ND Alliance Govt. The Finance Secretary T. V. Somanathan Committee recommendations to study modifications in NPS, which was also boycotted by several Employees federations, are used for this desperate attempt of UPS - a cocktail of NPS and truncated OPS is approved by the Union cabinet.

The Modi led ND Govt with its neo liberal pursuit of safeguarding the interests of speculative crony capital has come with this UPS with some modification of benefits with additional contribution of 4.5% from the Govt only to further its investment of pension funds of Rs. 10,53,850 crores called Asset under Management (AUM) of total 99,77,165 employees under NPS as on by 31.7.2024 in the share market.

The previous Andhra Pradesh State Govt had proposed similar or somewhat better than UPS in place of NPS in the name of Guaranteed Pension Scheme (GPS) with 50% of last drawn pay as pension for minimum 10 years of service with defined contribution and purchase of 40% annuity, which was correctly rejected by all the State Govt employees of AP urging for nothing short of OPS. Now the Union Govt has come with similar rather less beneficial scheme with some modifications in NPS which should are also aptly rejected by vast majority of the employees urging for nothing less than OPS.        

UPS is based on the continuity of 10% contributions by the employees with the Government contribution increased to 18.5% from present 14%. While in NPS the subscriber can take 60% and has to invest 40% in an annuity and get pension, under UPS entire pension wealth will have to be foregone to the government. In lieu of which government will give 10% of the employee emoluments i.e., basic pay plus DA for every completed six months of service. For 25 years of completed service the employee will get 5 months emoluments and for 10 years of service will get 2 months of pay on retirement as benefit in addition to gratuity.

In UPS, employee will get 50% of 12 months average basic pay as pension on normal retirement at the age of 60 with the completion of 25 years of service, effective from 1-4-2025 that is for those retiring on 31-3-2025 but not applicable to those retired before it. In OPS for 10 years of service 50% of last month's pay is pension and for voluntary retirement after 20 years of service employee gets 50% of pay as pension.

Employees with service less than 25 years will get proportionately lesser pension in UPS. Employee with 20 years of service will get only 40% of 12 months average basic pay as pension. For 10 years of service employees will get only 20% of average basic pay as pension. In case of proportionate pension for less than 25 years up to 10 years a minimum pension of Rs 10,000 is proposed by government. While Minimum pension in OPS is Rs 9000 plus DA (which as on 1-4-2025 will be 57% that is Rs. 5130) so minimum pension as on 1-4-2025 will be Rs.14,130. Hence the proposed Rs.10000 pension is half of that of OPS. For less than 10 years of service at the time of superannuation employee is not eligible for any pension

Under UPS family pension is 60% of pension i.e., 60% of 50%. It means 30% of last pay for 25 years of service at the time of superannuation.  For employee with minimum pension of rupees 10,000 it will be 60% of it, i.e., Rs 6000. Minimum pension of rupees Rs 10000 applies only to superannuation and not for family pension. But under OPS family pension is 50% of last pay if the pensioner dies before 7 years after retirement or before 67 years of age. There after family pension will be 30% of last pay. Minimum pension as on 1-4-2025 will be Rs.14130. But in UPS minimum family pension will be only Rs 6000.

DA/DR will be given to assured pension or minimum pension or family pension based on the Consumer price index as in the case of serving employees. Whether they will start a new base index from 1-4-2025 or they will grant the same percentage of DA/DR as for serving and OPS pensioners are not yet spelt out. In OPS if the pensioner or family pensioner completed 80 years of age additional pension of 20%, for 85 years 30%, for 90 years 40%, 95 years 50% and 100 years 100% is given with Same DA for additional pension also. In UPS this additional pension is not available. In OPS pension/family pension/minimum pension is revised whenever pay commission is implemented while there is no such assurance under UPS. Commutation of pension i.e., withdrawal of 40% pension in advance available in OPS is not available in UPS. For those employees who die or become invalid becoming all class unfit in NPS, OPS is applicable to them already. Employees can opt to UPS or NPS, once opted will be final.

There may be many more shortcomings in UPS which may be known after the full text of UPS is notified.

Hence the CITU denounces the UPS and urges the Union Govt to restore the non-contributory defined assured Old Pension Scheme.  CITU calls for extending full support to the Govt employees struggle for restoration of OPS.

Issued by,
(Tapan Sen)
General Secretary

Shri. Siddaramaiah Ji,

Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) while appreciating the above amendment Act enabling for the reservation to the SC, ST, & OBC’s candidates in outsourced jobs also in Govt Departments and PSU’s, expresses its grave concern regarding the condition imposed in the proviso to amendment clause 5, which bars the regularization of the contractual employees deployed in regular jobs and against the regular posts. Thereby it shall only perpetuate the contractorisation of regular jobs as there is hardly any recruitment to the regular jobs by the Govt including that of back log jobs.

It shall not only deny the regular jobs to the contractual employees from reserved categories but also to others. Hence in essence it shall deny the right to regularization to the contractual employees including to those benefitting from the above amendment Act, which shall turn out to be in core a social injustice meted to the contract employees from the reserved categories, besides others.

The contractual employees and their service conditions are governed by the Contract labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act 1970 and Rules-1971 under the Act. In Karnataka they are governed under the Rules framed in 1974 under the Act. As per existing law the contractual employees should not be deployed in permanent and perennial nature of Jobs, which should only be manned by regular employees.  Further the contractual employees are entitled to same and similar wages and benefits for the same and similar nature of jobs done by them, which is not and will not be available to the contractual employees in the state Govt services.

Hence the CITU urges the State Govt to bring in amendment to the above Act and delete the proviso barring regularization and also enable conferment of permanent status to the contractual employees along with same and similar wages and benefits for the same and similar nature of work in permanent and perennial nature of Jobs in the state Govt as well as other private sector in the state, in the interests of fairness and propriety.

Thanking You,
Yours Sincerely,
Tapan Sen
General Secretary 

Claims

 Modi in December 2014 - ‘I want to make it clear that we are not privatising Railways. We cannot go in this direction’

Modi in March 2024, while inaugurating and laying the foundation stones of several railway projects and flagging off ten Vande Bharat trains on the same day - ‘The foundation stone laying that happened today has come with the guarantee of your bright future’…‘Today I am giving a guarantee to the nation that in the next five years, Indian Railways will see such a transformation which no one would have imagined’

Reality

Privatisation:

In 2015, Bibek Debroy committee, constituted by Modi government recommended unbundling of the Indian Railways to facilitate piecemeal privatisation and also merging of Railway Budget with Union Budget.

Modi government started implementing them. Since 2017, the railway budget has been merged with the union budget. The government started splitting Indian Railways horizontally and vertically so private corporates can grab the pieces easily. It ignored the danger that lack of synchronisation between the various activities handed over to different private entities, would pose to the smooth running of trains and safety of passengers. It announced 100% FDI in almost all the activities performed by Indian Railways – construction, operations, maintenance, rolling stock, dedicated lines, train sets etc. Major activities like cleaning, maintenance works, ticketing etc have been outsourced to private players. It started privatisation of railway stations in the name of private participation in station development.

The 100 day action plan of the Indian Railways, after Modi returned to power in 2019, included corporatisation of the production units and other services, to facilitate their privatisation

National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP)

NMP is meant for handing over public infrastructure at throwaway prices to private corporates. Railway assetsincluding railway stations, passenger trains, railway tracks, goods sheds, etcare leased out to private companies on a long term basis.Thus control of assets is transferredto private companies for an indefinite period, which is nothing but privatisation.

The move to privatise goods sheds would impact not only the loading and unloading workers but also public control over land and the prices of commodities. With dedicated freight corridors built with public money being handed over to private players, private profits would become the priority over public welfare. Freight traffic today contributes 65% of revenue for the Indian Railways. Privatisation of this cost effective mode of transport would lead to loss of revenue to the Railways as well as endanger livelihood of thousands of people

Vande Bharat trains:

Production

Our production units have the expertise in producing diesel and electric locomotives and rail coaches. Integral Coach Factory in Chennai designed and manufactured the Vande Bharat express. But in April 2022, Indian Railways invited private bids for production of Vande Bharat trains as well as for their maintenance.

The decision to award the maintenance contracts for Vande Bharat trains will affect the functioning of the carriage and wagon repair and maintenance units and workshops across various zones employing 5.5 lakh workers. This is certainly going to destroy our indigenous capacity and leadto job losses.

Conditions of workers

The contract workers employed who provide basic services in the more than 50 Vande Bharat trains running today travel back to back for over 20 hours. But they are denied of minimum wages, over time payment, social security like PF, ESI etc and even resting place in the coaches. They are under the perpetual threat of losing their jobs if they raise their voice or try to get organised into unions.

More than 5 lakh contract workers, most of them young, are working in the Railways. Though the contractors are obliged to pay minimum wages and other statutory benefits to the contract workers as per the agreement they enter into with the government, all these are denied to the contract workers. The contractors siphon off workers’ legitimate earnings and loot hundreds of crores of rupees from the exchequer every year.

Bright future for the youth:

Indian Railways was one of the avenues that provided secure jobs to the youth of our country. But, the number of permanent employees in the Railways has declined by more than 1.5 lakh between 2015 and 2023. More than 3 lakh posts are lying vacant including in safety categories. In the name of austerity, posts are being abolished.

Transformation of the Railways

The Railways, which is now cheapest mode of transport available to the people, particularly the poor, will no more remain so, if the Modi government’s policies are allowed to continue. The last few years had shown this.

The redeveloped stations do not have any space for the poor passengers. Free waiting rooms are replaced by paid lounges. Platform tickets have become unaffordable.

General compartments are fast dwindling in numbers and are being replaced by AC coaches. Halts of passenger trains at smaller stations with low revenue are being abolished. Dynamic fares are introduced. Concessions for senior citizens, persons with disabilities, cancer patients, students etc have been abolished.

Spaces near the railway stations where the poor autorickshaw and rickshaw drivers used to park their vehicles are handed over to big private players in the name of ‘development’. Hundreds of thousands of them are losing their income. Poor passengers are losing cheap affordable transport to and from the railway stations.

Passenger trains are being detained to allow Vande Bharat trains to pass resulting in huge difficulties to the common passengers and dislocation of their routines. Private train operators will be allowed to fix prices, decide services and routes of the trains run by them.

It is clear that the Modi led BJP government is working for the ‘vikas’ of the big Corporates and ‘vinash’ of the common people. It cannot be allowed to continue 

Use your vote. Defeat the BJP and its allies to free the country from the regime thatguarantees loot and plunder by the corporates; to save the Railways and the nation

CLAIMS:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi: Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme will boost manufacturing, giving opportunities to youth while making India a preferred investment destination. 

Union Minister for Commerce & Industry, Piyush Goyal: PLI revolutionising Make in India will help create jobs, promote exports & make India the factory of the world.

Nirmala Sitaraman, Union Finance Minister, Union Budget 2019-20: PLI of Rs.1, 97,291crores to the manufacturing sector over 5 years for the industries in 14 sectors shall strengthen the manufacturing sector in India, raising share in GDP to 25%, create national manufacturing champions and 60 lakh new jobs and additional production worth of 30 lakhs crores.

Claim was “the scheme shall localise manufacturing, substitute imports, transform export basket from traditional commodities to high value added products, attract investment in core competency & cutting edge technology, impact MSME’s positively”.

REALITY:

Scheme for Promotion of manufacturing Electronics Components & Semiconductors (SPECS) with Rs.76000 crores outlay provides financial incentive of 25% of the company’s capital expenditure. Tatas, Muregappa Group, Micron, and CG, multinational companies from Japan, Thailand and Taiwan setting up semiconductor plants at Sanand, Gujarat and at Assam are given Rs.59000 crores.

In addition to such direct funding, Remission of Duties or Taxes on Export Product (RoDTEP) under Merchandise exports from India Scheme (MEIS) provides for reimbursement of taxes/duties paid by the companies.

But, there are no jobs created, no import substitution, no transformation in export basket, and no investment in core competency & cutting edge technology. Only money flowed from national exchequer to private corporate to boost their profit.

MSME’s are not positively impacted. PLI approved 176 MSME’s as outsource vendors/On-Site Suppliers of Corporates reduce the cost of component production/purchase cost, doubling the PLI benefit to the Corporates.

25% of the cost of capital investment through SPECS, then cost of production through PLI & reimbursement of taxes & duties paid on exports are reimbursed through RoDTEP.

Thus, the Modi government is subsidising and directly funding private capital through an unseen pipeline in the form of the PLI and other schemes that drain the public exchequer to the Corporates. Make in India and job creation are just ‘jumlas’ to deceive the people, particularly the young who are desperately looking for jobs. It is atrocious anti national loot & plunder of public money by the big corporates.

Jobs:

There are 1000 approved companies under the Scheme but jobs in these companies have stood stagnant or decreased e.g. in Wistron(infamous for non adherence to labour statutes & violence at factory), vendor of Foxconn, contract manufacturer for Apple has only 2520 employees.

Among the PLI-beneficiaries, Automobile & Auto Components have laid off 3.5 lakhs since April 2019; Maruti Suzuki reduced its temporary workforce by about 6%. Ashok Leyland, Tata Motors, Eicher, Mahindra & Mahindra, Kia India Pvt ltd, Toyota Kirloskar, Mitsubishi –approved Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) & BOSCH and other approved Auto components manufacturers for PLI have pushed the regular employees out of jobs through forced VRS and other means.

The approved beneficiaries of Food processing industries like Britannia, Parle, Anmol, Haldirams, and ITC foods, MTR foods, Hutsun and others too have not added to the number of employees.

In metals & Minerals for specialty steel approved applicants Jindal, Tata, Arcelormittal-Nippon, Bhushan, JSW, Kirloskar Ferrous, Kalyani, LLYOD no increase in employment  is visible.

But production has increased through increased productivity norms imposed on the workers.The share of contract workers has increased to 42.5% in 2022 from 13% in 2013 in manufacturing sector of India as per CMIE survey.Then where are the jobs claimed to be created/expected?

Localisation &Value Addition:

In mobile manufacturing where exports are claimed, localisation in the components manufacturing like camera module is only 25%, display assembly 25%, mechanics 20%, die cast 15% and connectors 5%. This means that the rest are imported. Value addition of mobile phones is less than 20% and in Apple Inc it is hardly 12 to 15%.

Enhancing Exports & Imports substitution:

The recent WTO’S Global Trade Outlook and Statistics report says India accounts for 1.8 % of global exports of goods. In 2023, export of goods has contracted by 4.71%. Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) says Indian exports & imports have dipped by 2.6% in 2023 compared to 2022.

Share in GDP:

The share of manufacturing sector in GDP which was 17% in 2010, dropped to 15% in 2014 and to 13% in 2022.

PLI & Electoral Bonds nexus:

Some of the companies which are approved applicants/beneficiaries of PLI appear in the list of purchasers of electoral bonds. Like Hetero Drugs Ltd, approved applicant under bulk Pharmaceutical drugs has purchased electoral bonds worth Rs.30 crores. Texport Industries Pvt Ltd under Textiles and several others too have purchased electoral bonds and are beneficiaries of PLI too. Not a mere coincidence but a nexus, quid pro quo - “Give Bonds Take PLI”

It is clear that the Modi led BJP government is using its control over the State to transfer public money to the big corporates and receiving corporate funds to keep itself in power. This is anti national and cannot be allowed to continue.

Use your vote. Defeat the BJP and its allies to free the country from the regime that guarantees loot & plunder by the Corporates!!

Claims:

‘The new labour codes universalise minimum wages and timely payment of wages. They give priority to occupational safety of the workers’ and ‘These reforms will contribute to a better working environment, which will accelerate the pace of economic growth. These labour reforms will ensure ‘Ease of Doing Business’ – tweeted Prime Minister Modi on the occasion of the passing of the labour codes in September 2020

Reality:

Twenty nine existing labour laws have been repealed and replaced by four Labour Codes - Code on Wages, Code on Industrial Relations, Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code,and the Code on Social Security. Whatever rights, benefits and entitlements that these repealed Acts  originally provided are extremely diluted in the Codes and many are dropped.

In totality, the four Labour Codes are designed to impose conditions of virtual slavery on the working people, in favour of the exploiting employers class.

All these Codes are meant to eliminate almost all statutory entitlements of working people for defined working conditions, minimum wage, working hours and social security along with right to organise, right to collective bargaining and right to strike etc both directly and circumstantially.  

Inspection, which is the lifeline of implementation of the labour laws, has been practically done away with through the self certification and web-based random inspection. Executives/ bureaucrats are empowered to unilaterally change the feeble provisions in the Labour Codes favourable to the workers without Parliamentary intervention, superseding the Parliamentary legislative process.

Employment relations are made infinitely flexible to promote massive contractualisation, casualisation, fixed term employment, deployment of apprentices in regular production etc. Floor level wages below statutory minimum are legalised. Longer working hours are permitted almost doing away with the concept of 8 hour workday. All these are meant to facilitate intensification of exploitation of workers.

The IR Code is designed to ensure trade-union free workplaces, making registration of unions difficult, virtually impossible, besides empowering arbitrary deregistration of unions by the Registrar of trade unions. Definition of ‘strike’ has been arbitrarily widened to include even collective protests. Virtually any strike can be termed illegal and banned and huge fines and imprisonment imposed on the workers, trade unions and anybody supporting such strikes in any way.

In addition to provide for increasing working hours without compensatory remuneration, the OSHWC Code dismantles well defined measures to address workplace hazards of the workers. Measures to ensure safety at workplace and prevent accidents are undefined and left to be decided by ‘appropriate government’, a ploy to liberate employers from their obligation to ensure safe workplaces. 

Code on Social Security does not provide for concrete social security schemes and benefits for the vast unorganized sector workers, while dubiously doing away with the existing functional sector-specific security schemes including defined funding provisions for beedi workers, mines workers and some other sectors. It arbitrarily empowers the executives/bureaucrats to dilute existing well functioning social security schemes like EPF, ESI etc. All established bipartite and tripartite mechanisms have been diluted in favour of employers, to promote parking the huge funds in EPF and ESI corpus for speculative purposes.

Thus the four Labour Codes are satanic projects for imposing conditions of slavery on the working people and curtailing their democratic rights as precursors to Modi-regime’s programme to organised onslaughts on democracy as a whole. Since TU activity is a precondition for a functioning of democracy, Modi has resorted to attack and eliminate TU rights with this instrument of labour law codification with a class vengeance.

After 2015 no meeting of the Indian Labour Conference, the national tripartite body that is supposed to meet every year has been convened by this government!  

The Modi government has enacted Essential Defence Service Maintenance Act to ban or restrict normal trade union agitation in any sector on the plea of their connection with defence production.Through this atrocious Act EDSA, the government empowered itself to ban trade union action in any sector, particularly all major infrastructural sector like electricity, port, petroleum, transport, steel, coal etc

Through its consistent united struggles the working class could prevent notification of the Labour Codes and their implementation till now though only a few weeks ago the Labour Minister announced the government’s intent to notify them.

This BJP government led by Modi must be decisively defeated to ensure that the anti worker labour codes are buried lock, stock and barrel. Defeating this corporate communal nexus led by Modi is the prerequisite to strengthen united struggles against neoliberal policies, of which the labour codes are a part.

Use your vote! Decisively defeat the BJP and its allies! Strengthen the Left in the 18^th Parliament!

On 28^th February, 2016,  Prime Minister Narendra Modi  made  a  promise to ‘double farmers’  income’  (DFI) by 2022,  as  India completes 75 years of independence. The Ashok Dalwai Committee on DFI was set up on April 13, 2016 with a claim to increase farmers' income to 22,610 per month.

In February 2024 Modi claimed “This is the time when opportunity and incomes are both rising and poverty is declining."

Reality:

Farmers

As per NSSO report (September 2021), average income per person per day from cultivation is only Rs 27or a monthly average of Rs 816.5 only.

Average annual wage growth in agriculture during 2004-05 to 2013-14 in India was 12.3%. This has drastically come down during 2014-15 to 2022-23 to 4.8%. In agricultural activities related to harvesting, growth of wages fell from 13.1% to 5.7%.The growth rate of real wages between 2014-15 and 2021-22 has been below 1% per year, including for agricultural labour.

Public expenditure on agriculture in relation to total budget expenditure has been consistently falling in the Modi 2.0 years.

Farmers’ suicide: As per the recently released National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report,100474 farmers committed suicide during 2014 - 2022.More than 2000 farmers are leaving agriculture every day due to economic distress and poor livelihood conditions.

Farmers Betrayed

The Modi government was compelled to withdraw the three black farm laws by the historic united struggle of the farmers in which more than 750 farmers sacrificed their lives. But the Modi government has betrayed its assurance to the farmers related to the Minimum Support Price (MSP). Farmers demanding implementation of legally guaranteed MSP are brutally attacked. A young farmer was killed by Modi government’s police in February this year.

Workers

Stagnant wages for organised sector workers: Growth of wages of organised sector workers was 10.1% during 2005-06 to 2013-14. This declined sharply during 2014-15 to 2020-21 to 6%. Given the fact that the average inflation rate during the period 2014-2020 was 5.1%, there was virtually no increase in real wage of industrial workers during the entire period of Modi governance. Extreme irregularity in job availability further pushes down average earnings of workers.

The share of profits in Net Value Added in the organised manufacturing sector during the ‘80s was 18% which increased to awhoppingaverage share of 45.3% during 2014/15 to 2020/21. On the other hand, the share of wages in Net Value Added declined from an average of 30.4% in the ‘80s to an average of 16% during 2014-21.

In the case of non-agricultural activities and in all segments of urban jobs, wages are falling. The around 44 crore unorganised sector workers are pushed into precarious conditions. Wage growth for carpenters has come down from 10.9% to 5.5% during the same period. For sweepers the growth of wage had fallen from 11% to 5.9% in the Modi era!

According to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) data for July 2022 to June 2023, the rate of self-employed people in India, with an average per capita earning well below Rs 10,000 pm, rose to 57.3% in 2022-23 from around 52% in 2018-19. The earning of self employed declined in real terms during July-September 2022 to October-December 2022. During the period Oct-Dec 2022 to Jan-March 2023, the average earnings of regular/salaried workers declined.

Precarious work: Even 62% of regular wage salaried workers are employed without any written contract. 49.2% the regular wage and salaried workers do not get paid leave. 53% of the regular waged and salaried workers do not get any social security benefit.

This precarious state of income and wage reflects in the general living condition of an average Indian citizen. The Oxfam India Supplement 2022 report reveals that 84% of households in India suffered a decline in their income with tremendous loss of livelihoods.

According to Human Development Report (September 2022) published by the UNDP, more than a quarter of India’s people (27.9%) live in severe poverty.In absolute numbers, nearly 30 crore people are earning less than the Rs 178 per day!

Increasing Indebtedness: The syndrome of falling real wages and earnings is leading to increasing burden of indebtedness. As per NSSO Report 2018, average debt in rural areas was Rs 60,000 per household and for urban areas it was Rs 1.2 lakh. The net household saving fell down to 5.1% of GDP in FY23 from 11.5% in FY21, which is 50 years’ lowest. This means that for majority of our people, savings became negative and indebtedness has increased. It clearly exposes the livelihood crisis of people in Modi regime.

Suicide by Daily Wage Workers: Suicide by nonfarm daily wage workers has seen phenomenal rise. From 32000 in 2019 it has gone up to 38000 in 2020 and to 42000 in 2021, reflecting the desperate conditions of our workers.

Contrary to all claims, this BJP government led by Modi is the most anti-worker, anti-farmer government India ever had after Independence!

This Modi government must go to strengthen our united struggles for our incomes and wages to really increase

Use Your Vote!  Defeat Modi led BJP!