The general body meeting of the All Indian Guards Council (AIGC) which is the principal union of railway guard, took place on 8th-9th November. KEC sent a message of greetings to the AIGC on this occasion.
The general body meeting of the All Indian Guards Council (AIGC) which is the principal union of railway guard, took place on 8th-9th November. KEC sent a message of greetings to the AIGC on this occasion. Several working class organisations which collaborate with KEC, including Airport Authority of India Employees Union, Air India Service Engineers Association, All India Loco Running Staff Association, All India Guards Council, All India Station Masters Association, All India Voltas Employees Federation, BEST Workers Union, Ladaku Garment Mazdoor Sangh, Mumbai Municipal Mazdoor Union, Western Railway Motormen’s Association, Lok Raj Sangathan and Purogami Mahila Sangathan had signed this letter of greetings to AIGC
Comrades,
Kamgar Ekta Committee (KEC) wishes the AIGC a very successful 36th BGM. A new Government has been sworn in on May 26 2014, under the leadership of BJP, headed by Narendra Modi, with the slogan of “Acche Din”, a slogan which is intended to confuse the working people. Your BGM is taking place in this background.
On July 9 when the New Railway Budget was announced, the first act of the Government was to increase the railway fares. It also declared a Rs. 8 Lakh Crores Golden Quadrialteral, connecting Delhi, Calcutta, Chennai and Mumbai, as well as a bullet train between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, costing Rs. 60,000 crores. Both these projects would be carried out by the private sector, as well as through FDI (Foreign Direct Investment), such as Japanese investment for the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor. Private investors will only put in their money in order to earn super profits. Experience the world over has shown that private operators impose oppressive conditions of work on their employees, raise fares and even compromise the safety of passengers and rail workers in pursuit of higher profits. Just recently Reliance Metro in Mumbai implemented a steep fare hike. Hence we have to ask the authorities about why the development of the Railway network all over India and travelling facilities for the working people of India is being handed over to the private sector in India, as well as to foreign governments and capitalists.
The commercial and other “non-core” activities of the railways, such as ticket booking, catering, station maintenance and housekeeping, washing and maintenance of coaches, laying of new railway lines and maintenance of existing railway tracks, etc. are slowly being handed over to private contractors. Very soon ticket checking will also be handed over. Of course all of these are just a continuation of the policies of the previous Congress Government, while the current Railway Minister also proudly justified his actions in so many words!
The New Budget announced by the government on July 11, was also in the same direction. FDI in defence, insurance and banking was increased to 49% from 26%. To give an idea of the priorities of this Government, the amount of money allocated to defence is Rs.2.30 lakh crores, while only Rs.100 crores is allotted to “Save the Girl Child Program”! The combined expenditure on health and family welfare, elementary, secondary, university and higher education, drinking water and sanitation was Rs.1.08 lakh crores, which is not even half of the defence budget!
In August 2014, the Government amended the Apprentices Act, allowing any industry to employ up to 8% of its total workforce as “apprentices”. These “apprentices” will not be covered under any protective laws and their remuneration is also left entirely to the employer.
On October 16th, Narendra Modi announced the Shramev Jayate Program. He talked nice words about the need to respect human labour. But he was totally silent on (a) Increasing the Minimum Wage, which is one of the lowest in the world (b) Providing security of employment by abolishing contract labour and (c) Ensuring jobs for all. On the contrary, in the last few months the state governments of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, both run by the BJP, have announced anti-labour changes in the laws to (a) Increase the legal working day to 12 hours per day from the current 8 hours (b) Allow the use of contract labour even in jobs that are of a permanent nature and (c) Allow closure of a unit or laying off workers without permission from the Government if it employs less than 300 workers. Now the Central Government has also started taking steps to amend labour laws in the interests of the capitalist class.
All these actions show that the aim of this government as well as of the previous government has been to give maximum facilities to the big capitalists like the Tatas, Birlas and Ambanis, to exploit the labour of the working people and grow even richer. The program of the big industrial houses is that of globalisation through privatization and liberalisation (LPG), which has been implemented by successive governments at the Centre and in the states, whether led by the Congress or the BJP. The last 22 years since the implementation of this program in India has shown that it hugely benefits a small minority of the population, the big capitalists.
So “Acche Din” or “Good Days” announced by Narendra Modi is actually for these big capitalists. On the other hand LPG has had disastrous effects on lives and livelihood of the working people of India. So it will continue to be “Buray Din” or “Bad Days” for us.
Comrades,
One of the main reason why successive governments have been able to continue the program of LPG to benefit the big capitalists is the disunity in the ranks of the working class. This is unfortunately evident in the Indian Railways also. There are multiple Unions here representing workers based on trade, caste, religion etc. This division of the railway workers has ensured that the Railways could push through its anti-worker and anti-people policies. For example, in 1992 there were more than 20 lakh permanent workers employed in the Indian Railways. Now after 22 years there are only around 13 lakh employees. This disunity has been actively encouraged and fostered by the authorities, as they know that a united working class can oppose all their anti-worker policies.
It is only the conscious efforts of the railway workers that can build unity in our ranks to oppose the ongoing attacks on our livelihood as well the future attacks. The brave railway men are realizing this and efforts are being made to build this unity across various sections of railway workers.
Similarly on a National Level, the working class has to overcome the division in its ranks due to multiple Unions that exist, dividing workers based on political affiliation, trade, caste, religion etc. There is a demand from all over India, from the hearts of all fighting workers to build the unity of the working class. It is only this conscious pressure from the militant workers that will smash the plans of the Government as well as the big capitalists they represent.
Comrades,
The AIGC has been in the forefront to oppose the anti-worker and anti-people policies of the Government. KEC calls on AIGC and our brother organizations such as AILRSA and other fighting organizations of the Indian working class, to challenge the program of LPG and to discuss and put forward to society an alternate program and path of development of our economy. The Indian big capitalists think and behave as if the labour, land and natural resources of our country are entirely for their exploitation. They use their control over the “elected” governments to plunder these resources and amass superprofits. They are in a race with the big capitalists of USA, Europe, Japan, etc. for world domination. Hence with the profits earned at home they are investing capital all over the world. But we have the duty to challenge this vision of the exploiters and assert that the labour, land and natural resources of our country belong to those who toil, the working people of India, who constitute the majority of the country. We have to develop and put forward an alternate program for the development of the economy as well as the polity. This program will have as its central aim the utilization of the labour, land and natural resources of India for the fulfillment of our ever rising needs, the needs of the working people of India. The aim of our program will be to develop mechanisms to put the majority of the population, the working people, firmly in the seat of power, so that there is real democracy, the rule of the majority.
Come, let us develop the independent program of the working class to challenge the capitalists’ program of liberalization and privatisation.