The Triennial All India Conference of AIBDPA, the prime  organisation of DOT and BSNL Pensioners, will start at Tirupati, A.P. on 2February 2016 and will continue next day. About 1,000 delegates are expected to participate.
The Reception Committee is making all arrangements for the successful conduct of the same.
The Central Executive Committee will meet on 1st February at Tirupati to finalise the AIC Report and other connected matters.
The Conference will discuss all the issues of the DOT and BSNL Pensioners, Recommendations of VII CPC, Organisational matters etc.
As the fighting and biggest organisation of DOT and BSNL Pensioners, AIBDPA has got the greatest responsibility in organising the pensioners and solving their problems. This is what the ensuing AIC will try to plan and implement.
Towards Tirupati! Make AIBDPA AIC a Great Success!

January 30th 2016 is the 68th  anniversary of the martyrdom of Mahatma Gandhi, Father of the Nation. He was shot down by a Hindu extremist on 30 January 1948, when he was proceeding to a Prayer Meeting.
On this day, the Nation pays its respectful homage to the great man who led the country in its decades long struggle for freedom from the British imperialists.

It is reported that CMD BSNL has stated at a meeting at Bengaluru that unless there is  profit, wage revision can not take place in BSNL.
This is atrocious and unacceptable. The reason for loss to  BSNL is due to the wrong policies and anti-PSU decisions of the govt and the casual attitude of the top management, who mainly belong to DOT and not to BSNL. Despite this unhealthy position, workers under the call of the Forum are trying their best to improve services under the programme ” Service With A Smile”.
Any move to deny wage revision will be met with strong resistence from the workers.
As stated earlier in this column, it is high time to start the wage negotiation in BSNL.

As per call of BSNL Casual Contract Workers Federation, March to CGMT / GMT Office and Submission of Charter of Demands were organised effectively on 29th January 2016 througout the country. Hundreds of workers participated in all places. BSNLEU employees also participated jointly as given call BSNLEU CHQ. We Congratulate the workers for their effective participation.

Thousands and thousands of kilometres of copper cables of Telecom Department/ now that of BSNL, lies under our roads unutilised. Our Comrades in some places report that even the details of these valuable cables are not available.
On the other side, BSNL is unable to provide land connections due to lack of cables.
Is it not possible to restore the cables already laid and lying under the roads unutilised and used them effevtively?

Journey by train has always been fascinating. And today I am going from New Delhi to Tirupati to attend the All India Conference of All India BSNL DOT Pensioners Association(AIBDPA). And interestingly, it is the same Kerala Express in which I used to travel from Thiruvananthapuram to Delhi and back, when I was the Circle Secretary, Kerala. Of course the travel then was in Sleeper, but now I travel by A/C class. I am now a senior citizen and get 40% concession on fare.
The compartment is better and train is a bit faster. But I miss the tea and coffee since I am unable to get sugarless coffee and tea in train. Once in a while they specially make it and give me. That is the consolation.
One thing remains the same. The train is almost always late by the time it reaches the destination.
The move of the Govt. to privatise this great organisation should be opposed and defeated.

Shri J.S.Deepak has been appointed as the new Secretary Telecommunications in place of Shri Rakesh Garg. He had worked as Joint Secretary in DOT earlier. We welcome him in his new post. We hope that BSNL and MTNL will be given better consideration.

Com.VAN Namboodiri, President, BSNLCCWF met Smt. Sujata Ray, Director(HR), BSNL and discussed about the non- implementation of labour laws and CMD orders in this respect of UP(East) Circle. Director(HR) assured that suitable action will be taken in the matter. The issues of Kerala Circle wage revision of contract workers also discussed with Dir( HR), who assured suitable guidance has already been given.

Com.V.A.N.Namboodiri, Advisor, AIBDPA met Smt. Annie Moraes, Member(Finance), DOT and expressed serious unhappiness at thd delay is submitting the Cabinet Note. Member(Finance) stated  that the final touches to the Cabinet Note is being done and will be submitted to Secretay, DOT. After approval by Secretary, same will be sent to Minister and then to Cabinet.

One more privatisation of Air Ports! Now it is Goa Airport which is being jointly operated by the Airport Authority of India and Indian Navy. Government is proposing to hand over the Airport completely to the private. It will be the first airport in the country which will have no shares of the state government. The only consolation is that the central government will have a Golden Share and that the AAI can also participate in the global tender.
We  strongly protest against the unjustified privatisation of Goa Airport.