All India Conference of BSNL Employees Union – Kolkata
6-9 November 2014
The VII All India Conference of BSNL Employees union, the biggest and recognised union in BSNL, is scheduled to be held at Kolkata, from 6th to 9th November 2014. The Reception Committee with veteran P&T TU leader Com. Sisir Bhattacharjee as President, Com. Adhir Kumar Sen(Circle Secretary, Telecom Stores) as Working President and Com. Animesh Mitra (Circle Secretary W.Bengal) and Com. Saibal Sen Gupta (Circle Secretary Kolkata) as Joint General Secretaries along with their comrades in the Reception Committee have been working for the last few months enthusiastically to make all the arrangements for the AIC in a big way.
The Reception Committee is facing difficulties due to the the present political situation in the state. Govenment buildings and halls are not being allotted for the Conference and connected functions. Earlier we had the experience of the Conference of the Confederation of Central Govt. Employees, when allotted accomodation was cancelled. As such, the Reception Committee in consultation with CHQ, has decided the Telecom Factory premises for holding the Conference. Sufficient open space is there, which has to be converted in to a suitable Conference Hall accmmodating about three thousand or more people. Though the delegates and observers are less than 2,000, more workers will attend the Inaugural Session and Open Session on the first day. The kitchen and dinning hall will be nearby. Accommodation for the delegates are being arranged in nearby available places. In short, the Reception Committee is not taking any chance and is taking all measures to make the the accommodation of the delegates most convenient.
Kolakata (Calcutta) is a historical city, which has been the capital of the country till 1911 when it was shifted to New Delhi. The heritage buildings like Victoria Memorial, the famous hanging Howrah Bridge, the crowded streets with the age-old trams still running – there are a lot of places to see and enjoy, if time permits. The Telecom Factory Alipore, itself is a heritage building constructed about 150 years back for manufacturing the equipment for telegraph services etc and which has been the main factory of the P&T Department.
The inspiring role played by Bengal in the Independence struggle against the British is noteworthy. Social and progressive movements sprang up, some of them turing to revolutionary struggles. Swami Vivekananda, Rabindranatha Tagore and similar social reformers tried to change society for better. In the Cellular Jail in Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, one can see the large number of names of the freedom fighters who were jailed and put to gallows.
In the recent past, the left party government under the leadership of Com. Jyoti Basu enacted many laws which improved the condition of the workers and the poor. But at present, the working class and poor people are being attacked and their rights are being taken away. The working class and common people are resisting these onslaughts under the leadership of the Left Parties. This is only a temporary set back which will be changed by sustained efforts of the people.
Bengal is the cradle of the Trade Union movement in P&T. It was here that the pioneers of the P&T movement started their work. Henry Barton, Babu Tarapada Mukherjee, Dada Ghosh – there are many more names which are closely connected with the initiating of the trade union. The stories of their suffering, sustained struggles are a saga to be understood and remembered. It is again here, that the leading light of the P&T movement, Com. K.G.Bose, the indomitable fighter, started his activities, who later became the inspiration of lakhs of Central Government and P&T Workers in their advance march. The memories of all these stalwarts will be with the delegates when they reach Kolkata.
It is in this great city of Kolkata that the AIC will be held from 6th to 9th November 2014. (will be continued)