New Delhi: A joint platform of 10 central trade unions gave Tuesday a call for a nationwide protest February 3. They will protest against privatisation and other ‘anti-people’ policies proposed in the Union Budget for 2021-22. The trade unions will also press for scrapping of labour codes and providing income and food support to the families of poor workers. The 10 trade unions are: Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC), All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS), Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), All India United Trade Union Centre (AIUTUC), Trade Union Co-ordination Centre (TUCC), Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU), Labour Progressive Federation (LPF) and United Trade Union Congress (UTUC).
“The joint platform of Central Trade Unions and the independent sectoral federations/associations calls upon the unions and working class to observe nationwide protest February 3 demanding, scrapping of labour codes and electricity bill 2020, no privatisation, Income support and food support to all poor workers’ households and (to protest) against anti-people policies as reflected by union budget (presented Feb1, 2021),” a statement by joint forum said.
According to the statement the protest day is to be observed through massive demonstrations/mobilizations at the workplaces, and industrial centres/areas and also burning the copies of the Labour Codes.
Also read: MVA in Maharashtra terms Union Budget as ‘national betrayal’
The unions said that the budget presented by the Finance Minister is full of rhetoric. It is far away from the ground realities. The budged is totally deceptive and destructive for the national economy. It is also cruelly insensitive to the suffering of the mass of the toiling people.
“The Finance Minister has repeated the claim of the government’s economic survey that the labour codes are good for the workers, similarly, the farm laws were also praised,” the statement said.
“There is no relief to the farmers. Rather the government has only announced the increase of the threshold for taking loans. It is a cruel joke on the farming community which is already finding itself in a tight corner and is already entrenched in debt. The demands of the farmers are totally ignored. Rather the farm laws are being praised by the government as a boon to them, when they are braving all odds seeking their total repeal,” the trade unions highlighted.
“The budget has totally ignored the poor masses and their needs. The government has stood for the Corporates and abandoned the common masses pushing Indian economy further into mess. She (Nirmala Sitharaman) has actually extended, rather repeated her presentation of the same deceptive packages announced in the month of may 2020, they added.
“The budget is friendly to Indian and foreign Corporate and continues to give huge concessions, reduction in tax for them and increase in the cess on the common man. The common masses are burdened more when there is a crisis for their livelihood itself,” the unions opined.
