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Saturday, October 30, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Friday, October 22, 2010
CORRUPTION IN CWG 2010: PROTESTORS DEMAND THOROUGH, TIME-BOUND PROBE
ABOUT 700 activists of the CPI (M) held a protest demonstration outside the Delhi secretariat on October 20, demanding a full time-bound probe into the corruption in Commonwealth Games, immediate declaration of free use of all sports facilities for the public, return of funds from the Special Component Plan for SC/ST development diverted illegally by the Delhi government for the CWG, strict action against errant the contractors (86 per cent as per the labour ministry), payment of all outstanding dues to workers, and rehabilitation of all hawkers, street vendors, homeless etc.
Addressing the gathering, CPI (M) state secretary PMS Grewal criticised the limited scope of the V K Sunghloo committee appointed by the prime minister and its narrow interpretation by the Delhi chief minister. He said the additional taxes and VAT, diversion of funds earmarked for social welfare, increase in tariffs of buses, Metro and water etc had been forced on the people of Delhi in order to fund the games. But the people will not tolerate any eyewash investigation that does not bring to task all those involved in corruption and misappropriation of funds, including those in the highest positions.
The gathering was also addressed by CPI (M) state secretariat member Mohan Lal, Anurag Saxena (CITU), Nathu Prasad (convenor, Dalit Adhikar Committee), Albeena Shakil (JMS), Ravinder (DYFI) and Anand (SFI), who spoke about the adversity faced by different sections of the people during the organisation of the Commonwealth Games.
A memorandum enlisting all the demands was submitted to both the prime minister’s office as well as the Delhi chief minister by a delegation comprising of M L Malkotia, Ashalata and Asha Sharma. The Delhi government representative shamelessly denied any role of the Delhi government and was reluctant even to receive the memorandum, echoing the attitude of the Delhi chief minister who wants to evade all enquiries.
The protesters vowed to continue the struggle till all the guilty are brought to book for this massive corruption.
MEMORANDUM
THE memorandum sent to Dr Manmohan Singh, the prime minister of the government of India, sought to draw his attention to the profligate, corrupt and anti-poor aspects of organisation of the Commonwealth Games 2010. The details are as below.
Colossal Expenditure: The 2010 Commonwealth Games (CWG) have been marked by profligate expenditure. This is borne out by the following facts that are public knowledge today:
In 2003 at the time of bidding for the CWG the projected expenditure was Rs 1,899 crore.
In April 2007 the union cabinet approved a budget of Rs 3,566 crore for the CWG.
In the July 2009 CAG report the cost of creating venues, city infrastructure and operational expenses of conducting the games was estimated to be Rs 12,888 crore.
The estimated cost rose to Rs 70,000 crore at the time of the start of the games.
The cost of organising the 2006 CWG at Melbourne was just Rs 5,200 crore. Even if we presume a 100 per cent increase in costs due to inflation, the total expenditure on the 2010 games should be one-seventh of what it was reported to be at the start of the 2010 games.
Massive Corruption: The above exponential increase in estimates of expenditure is in itself sufficient grounds to suspect massive corruption. This is further confirmed by the following:
Whereas it cost Rs 90 crore to build a new cricket stadium at Hyderabad, the cost of renovating the JLN Stadium was Rs 961 crore!
The cost of the foot overbridge outside the JLN Stadium that collapsed was pegged at Rs 10 crore. The Army built it afresh at a cost of just Rs 80 lakh!
There was glaring corruption in hiring utilities for participants as the table below shows:
Item
Purchase cost of Item
Rent (45 days)
Treadmill
Rs 7 lakh (at Harrods, London)
Rs 9,75,000
Refrigerator (big)
Rs 15,000-20,000
Rs 42,202
Computer (top quality)
Rs 60,000
Rs 89,502
Liquid Soap Dispenser
Rs 460
Rs 3,397
Toilet Paper Roll
Rs 30-40
Rs 4,138 (purchase)
The wilful pandering to the demands of contractors over and above the original amounts at which contracts were given to them also reeks of corruption. For example, the multinational Emaar MGF that was given the contract for the CWG village for Rs 1038 crore was inexplicably handed out a bailout package of Rs 700 crore by the government in May 2009.
Diversion of Social Welfare Funds: The Delhi state government illegally diverted funds meant for the welfare of deprived sections to the CWG. This is borne out by the following:
Rs 678.91 crores was diverted from the Scheduled Castes Special Plan (SCSP) by the Delhi government for the CWG. This was admitted by the union home minister in the Rajya Sabha on August 27, 2010.
The delivery in Delhi of several social welfare measures like widow or old age pension has been stopped in large measure in the recent months. This gives rise to suspicion about diversion of funds to the CWG from other heads of social spending as well.
This diversion of social welfare funds comes in the background of an increase in the prices of petrol and diesel, rampant inflation in the prices of edibles, enhancement of VAT on several commodities and hike in bus, Metro and water tariffs in Delhi, all of which are adversely impacting especially the poor and deprived sections. In plain words, the central and Delhi governments have willingly facilitated the loot of public money in the name of expenditure necessary for the CWG at the cost of their meagre commitments to social welfare.
Inhuman Treatment of Workers: The workers engaged in building different facilities for the CWG have been subjected to inhuman exploitation by builders and contractors:
They have not been paid statutory minimum wages besides being deprived of benefits like provident fund and ESI in total violation of labour laws.
In 2008-10, the Labour Department officials made 958 inspections of CWG construction sites. Violation of labour laws was found in 827 i.e. over 86 per cent of the cases. This shows the scale of violation of labour laws by construction companies and contractors.
Prescribed safety norms were totally ignored at CWG worksites. As a result, over 100 workers have been killed and hundreds of others have been injured.
Forcible Displacement of the Poor: This is one of the most shameful aspects of organisation of the CWG motivated by the strong desire to showcase ‘Shining Delhi’ to foreigners sans its squalor and poverty. What this means can be seen from the following:
Over two lakh families from 44 slum clusters were evicted to make space for CWG related projects. They were promised relocation at outskirts of the city where they would face gruelling commutes to work, lack of civic amenities and disruption of their children’s schooling. How many such families have actually been relocated even in this manner, is not clear.
Thousands of vendors and hawkers were forcibly displaced, depriving them of their means of livelihood. No guarantee for their rehabilitation after the CWG has been given.
A generalised “purdah” through installation of so-called “view-cutters” was thrown over poorer parts of the city to render invisible the areas deemed unsightly for the visitors’ eyes.
Flawed Infrastructural Development: The reality of the much touted benefits of the infrastructural development undertaken for the CWG is laid bare by the following:
Construction of new bridges, flyovers and roads is confined to the venues at which the CWG were held or their approach routes. Colonies, adjacent to CWG venues have not seen any infrastructural development. Thus adjoining colonies of the poor continue to have broken roads, poor sanitation, irregular bus services, absence of parks, patchy street lighting etc.
Urban renewal forms an integral part of the vision of countries and cities organising international sporting events. For example, London’s successful bid to host the next Olympic Games was predicated on its promise to develop run-down inner city areas and clean up and regenerate deprived zones. No such vision informed the organization of the 2010 CWG.
It is claimed that CWG sports facilities will help boost Indian sports. If the existing user charge based model is continued, CWG sports facilities will remain out of reach of most people. The fact that the Government did not use the CWG to develop sporting facilities in different areas, especially those of the poor, underlines the elitist nature of its sports policy.
Accountability: The role of all agencies involved in organising the CWG must be minutely investigated and they must be made accountable for any lapses on their part. However, certain recent developments give an impression contrary to this.
These are:
There is no clarity about the terms of reference of the V K Shungloo committee appointed to probe the organisation of the CWG.
The Delhi CM has publicly sought to define the scope of this committee as being one which will only probe corruption in the expenditure by the Organising Committee.
This is an ill-concealed attempt to prevent a scrutiny of the role of the central and Delhi governments, DDA, CPWD, MCD, DMRC etc, the expenditure undertaken by whom is many times more than that undertaken by the Organising Committee.
In the light of the above, the CPI (M) demands:
1) Time bound enquiry into the entire organisation of the 2010 CWG. Detailed and transparent investigation of the role of all agencies involved in holding them. Strict punishment to all those found guilty of corruption or profligacy in any aspect of organisation of the CWG.
2) Immediate allocation to the Delhi state government by the central government of social welfare funds diverted for the CWG.
3) Strict action against all builders and contractors who violated labour laws in constructing the CWG projects. Immediate disbursal of outstanding dues of workers of these projects.
4) Rehabilitation of all vendors and hawkers displaced for the CWG; issuance of tehbazari licenses to them and proper rehabilitation of families evicted to make space for CWG related projects.
5) Ban on user charges for availing sports facilities built for the CWG or those hitherto existing for enabling people to freely access and use these facilities.
6) Development of a minimum of eight sports grounds per Vidhan Sabha constituency in Delhi; development of sports clubs and free sports training for children and youth.
A copy of the memorandum was forwarded to Mrs Sheila Dixit, chief minister of the National Capital Territory of Delhi.
Courtesy: www.pd.cpim.org
Vol. XXXIV, No. 43, October 24, 2010
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Friday, October 15, 2010
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
LIC AGENTS RISE UP IN NATION’S INTEREST - P G Dileep
WHILE the prices of essential commodities and petroleum products have shot up quite high, the very existence of poor LIC agents is now under threat. Yet, if they are now on the agitation path, it is not for some narrow gain. It is to be noted that never since 1956 (when the insurance business in the country was nationalised) have the LIC agents agitated for a rise in their commissions.
Even today, those who move in all parts of the country, in even the remotest areas, to bring business for the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), are not asking for a raise in the commission rate. Then, one may wonder, why are they now coming out into the streets? They are in fact fighting to protect the existing benefits available to the agents while keeping in view the broader interests of the nation. Their demand is that the LIC must be saved and their hitherto available rights must be protected.
The fact is that it was the force of 14.5 lakh agents that raised the capital of the LIC to more than Rs 11 lakh crore (11,000 billion rupees) from a meagre Rs 5 crore in 1956. Over the years, a lot of sweat and blood of the agents has gone into this substantial growth of the LIC. The Indian insurance agency system has been treated as a model all over the world. It is, moreover, the LIC agents who are working hard to ensure the growth of the LIC even after the entry of 22 joint venture companies in the life insurance business in the country.
That is how the multinationals have realised that the LIC can be destroyed, to their advantage, only by eliminating these agents. So they are hell bent upon breaking the backbone of the LIC, i.e. the agency force, in collaboration with the UPA government.
Moreover, as these multinational companies are operating in the Indian market in collaboration with Indian corporate companies, the latter too are hyperactive to somehow influence the UPA government to try to eliminate the agents.
However, if the government of India succumbs to this pressure, it would amount to killing the goose that lays golden eggs.
The reason is simple. There is no other organisation like the LIC which has helped the government by handing it over Rs 11 lakh crore for infrastructure development. Logically, if such a huge resource base gets jeopardised, there is no doubt that the Indian economy would collapse and India would have to be permanently dependent on the IMF and World Bank for loans. Further, the capitalist countries are doing their level best to block the fast growth of Indian economy towards a prominent position in the world. That is why the agents of the LIC have repeatedly been pointing out that this is not a problem of agents alone but of every patriotic Indian citizen.
It is in this background that the LIC Agents’ Organisation of India (LICAOI) has chalked out an agitation programme, with the support of other sections of the common public, to save the LIC.
The demands the LIC agents are projecting are as below: control on the prices of essential commodities, protection of all public sector undertakings, halt to privatisation, withdrawal of the Insurance Bill, legislation to ensure the welfare of LIC agents, withdrawal of the amendments to the Agents Rules 1972, designation of the agents as sales executives, no introduction of direct selling, withdrawal of the IRDA proposal for agency renewal, and implementation of the demands to which the LIC management had agreed earlier.
On September 1, the day on which the LIC was formed, its agents formed human chains in front of all the divisional offices of the organisation. The slogans were Save LIC and Protect the Agents.
The action took place is in coordination with the CITU, AIIEA and NFIFWI. There were militant demonstrations in 73 divisions of the LIC, with 150 to 10,000 agents and their family members, LIC staff, members of fraternal trade unions and members of the common public participating in the demonstrations. About two lakh people joined the programme overall. In almost all places, MPs, MLAs, mayors, councillors and trade union leaders were present to express solidarity. This agitation conducted on an all-India basis proved to be a big success.
On the same day, a signature campaign commenced in all the centres. V S Achuthanandan, the chief minister of Kerala, inaugurated the all-India signature campaign in Thiruvananthapuram and several prominent leaders then took it ahead. The plan is to submit a memorandum to the union finance minister with five crore signatures. The LICAOI has solicited the support of one and all in this venture.
(P G Dileep is general secretary of the LICAOI.)
Courtesy: www.pd.cpim.org
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
CPI (M) ON LAND ACQUISITION BILL
THE POLIT BUREAU OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF INDIA (MARXIST) MET AT NEW DELHI ON OCTOBER 4 AND 5, 2010. IT HAS ISSUED THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT ON 5 OCTOBER 2010
In the recent period, the issue of forcible land acquisition for various projects in different states against the consent of a majority of landholders and the highly inadequate compensation offered to the farmers has come to the fore. This has highlighted the necessity for the new Land Acquisition Act alongwith the legislation for resettlement and rehabilitation.
The Polit Bureau demands that the 1894 Land Acquisition Act be scrapped and the government bring forth legislations for land acquisition and for resettlement and rehabilitation in the forthcoming session of Parliament.
Source: www.cpim.org
Saturday, October 2, 2010
KERALA: LDF GOVT REVERSES THE TIDE OF DECLINE - Pinarayi Vijayan
DURING the UDF regime, its policies worsened the fiscal condition of the state of Kerala. The UDF government therefore imposed newer burdens on the people. Its financial state reached a dreadful situation, thanks to the chaotic fiscal management and corrupt governance under the UDF. In 2001, when the UDF came to power, total liability of the state was Rs 23,918 crore and but it increased to Rs 50,000 crores by the completion of its tenure in 2006. This impaired even the pay revision of government employees, which is due once in four years. Various pension schemes and welfare measures were either frozen or remained unpaid for long. Most of the days, the government treasury remained closed.
ALTERNATIVE FISCAL POLICY
As soon as the LDF government was formed in the state, it set in motion several imaginative and innovative schemes and projects so as to strengthen the state exchequer. While intervening to strengthen the fundamentals in various spheres including infrastructure development, the LDF government showed utmost concern to deal with the question of social security and initiated numerous welfare schemes. Its financial management with numerous novel proposals is well appreciated, and the government treasury has never been closed during the LDF period.
As a result of the alternative fiscal policy of the LDF government, the 3.3 per cent revenue deficit during the UDF period was reduced to 1.9 per cent during 2009-10. Commercial tax collection has recorded an increase of 14 per cent during this period; tax revenue has registered an average increase of 20 per cent. Commercial tax during 2005-06 was Rs 6,983 crore but increased in to Rs 13,194 crore in 2009-10. The value added tax (VAT) has increased to Rs 6,945.41 crore compared to Rs 3,321.9 crore during the UDF period --- a significant increase of 109 per cent in four years. The innovative idea of the government to add to the non-tax revenue by dredging the sands deposited in the major dams has been widely appreciated.
The fiscal deficit in 2004-05 was 4.04 per cent but the last budget projected it to come down to 3.49 per cent during 2010-11. Capital expenditure was merely Rs 682 crore in 2004-06 but is estimated to go up to Rs 4115 crore by 2010-11; it would be an all-time record in this regard. The government is endeavouring to increase its revenue from both tax and non-tax sources by implementing various innovative schemes.
The LDF government has taken utmost care to protect the state’s interests in the inter-state river water disputes. Mega ventures like the Vizhinjam Port project, Vallarpadam Container Terminal, Railway Coach Factory at Kanjikodethe etc are getting materialised because of the state government’s determined efforts. Lots of efforts were made to improve the ports to ensure their further development; a port policy was also formulated. The central government gave to the state the Indira Priyadarshini Vriksha Mitra award in 2007 and 2008 for its social forestry project. The forest policy of the state was formulated in this very period. The government has decided to set up a biodiversity research centre of international standards. The wages of the workers employed in forest areas, including the adivasis, has been increased by 30 per cent.
LANDMARK IN DECENTRALISATION
Unfortunately, while in power, the UDF regime endeavoured to sabotage the People’s Plan which the preceding LDF government had initiated and which had ensured people’s involvement in decentralised planning. Moreover, the UDF government slashed the powers of the local self-government institutions time and again. The Gram Sabhas were turned into mere forums to acknowledge the beneficiaries’ lists and this deteriorated the concept of ensuring people’s participation in the process of decentralised planning and execution. The state government had held back the SC development fund and even attempted to devastate the Kudumbasree, a self-help group. Powers of the local self-government (LSG) were drastically curtailed during that period.
But after assuming power, the LDF government once again showed its zealous dedication to ensuring the decentralisation of powers and took effective steps were taken to strengthen the LSG. The government devolved more powers and sufficient funds to the local self-governments and successfully implemented the concept of decentralisation in its true spirit.
The landmark achieved in decentralisation is significant in the state’s history of development. The People’s Plan has resulted in momentous strides in the overall development of Kerala.
STRENGTHENING PDS, COOPERATIVE BODIES
In the cooperative sector, the deposits have increased three times during the last four years of the LDF regime. All efforts were made to strengthen the cooperative sector and provide it various loans to the tune of Rs 5,000 crores every year. In the cooperative sector alone, 46,000 retail outlets were established as a part of the LDF’s policy of market intervention and to strengthen the public distribution system.
The LDF government has organised 51 Pattayamelas and allocated the title deeds to the landless poor; 1,20,300 landless people were thus given land. In case of any land acquisition for infrastructure development, the LDF government has shown extreme care in rehabilitating the affected families and ensuring them sufficient compensation for the land acquired. A land bank has set up during this period to protect lands from the illegal possession of and encroachment by the wealthy and distribute them among the landless poor.
The LDF government earnestly endeavoured to protect the interest of the believers. A Sabarimala master plan has been prepared for comprehensive development of the Sabarimala shrine. The Malabar Devaswam Board has been formed to administer the temples in the Malabar region and all the Devaswam appointments have been made transparent by handing the appointing job over to the Kerala Public Service Commission (KPSC). In place of the meagre remuneration given to the priests, the government has introduced a pay scale and their salary levels have been increased from Rs 500 and Rs 5,000 to Rs 3,150 and Rs 8,390 respectively. Construction of the Karippur Hajj House was recently completed. The LDF government has implemented a welfare scheme, including a pension scheme, for the Madrassa teachers also.
The UDF government’s policy had resulted in a shrinking of the Kerala State Roadways Transport Corporation (KSRTC); the design was to ultimately dismantle it. But the LDF intervention reversed the situation and the corporation has now successfully implemented numerous creative projects. The entire functioning of the corporation has modernised, 4,965 new bus schedules have started and natural gas is now being used in most of the buses in order to improve the fuel efficiency. Permanent appointments have been made in the KSRTC and thus more than 19,000 jobless youth have got employment. So as to ensure transparency in the purchases, open tender system has been implemented. This has saved more than Rs 1.5 lakh per bus, compared to the previous government. The KSRTC presence in public transport had shrunk to 13 per cent during the UDF regime; now it has increased to 27 per cent. The LDF government’s consistent effort to improve the road traffic will be remembered all the time.
The LDF government has ensured that all the permanent appointments are made through the KPSC.
FOR GREATER TRANSPARENCY
For the first time in the country, physical education has been included as a part of curriculum in the state. The sports quota appointments have increased from 20 to 50 so as to ensure more employment opportunities to the sports persons. Aiming to protect the rights of the youth, setting up a youth commission with quasi-judicial powers is in progress. All the dues of the contractors till December 2009 have been cleared and e-tendering has been implemented to ensure transparency.
The Registration Department was in a chaotic state and no effort was made to ensure transparency in the registration of property. The LDF government intervened to ensure transparency and to prevent unlawful activities. It enacted a law to prevent fraudulent registration and to check forgery of documents. Benami transfers of property and other frauds in registration have been effectively checked by mandating the affixing of a photograph and thumb impression on the documents.
As a result of the ardent intervention of the LDF government in Kerala, not a single household of common men in Kerala is now left out of the advantages of one or another project. It is the LDF government that recovered the state from the clutches of the UDF policy that threatened to obliterate all the past advantages. If the UDF regime had continued, the people of Kerala would have been in a state of utter devastation and anguish. The historic importance of the LDF government’s tenure is that it overturned a chaotic situation and led the state to progress and development, despite the menace of the central government’s devastating policies and also the impact of the worldwide economic recession. Obviously, it was possible due to the alternative policies framed within the perimeters of a state government’s limited powers.
The LDF government is marching ahead, writing memorable chapters in the history of Kerala’s development. Reactionary forces in the state have united to sabotage the LDF government’s efforts and are trying to unleash the caste and religious sentiments for their dubious game. The self-declared pseudo revolutionaries have also joined them. The right wing and reactionary media extend tremendous support to such heinous moves.
But there is no doubt that the enlightened people of Kerala are capable enough of rebuffing all such ignominious designs. The state has been a model in safeguarding the communal harmony and no effort of the evil forces could ever disrupt the secular fabric of the state. The Kerala legislative assembly is one of the rare legislatures the Sangh Parivar could never enter. The Kerala model of development has been made possible by confronting the communal forces on the one hand and by implementing the pro-common man policies at the centre of all development efforts, on the other. On their part, the people of Kerala will no doubt extend solid support to the LDF efforts for rapid development and to protect the secular fabric of the state.
Source: www.pd.cpim.org
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