Author Archives: VAN NAMBOODIRI

JAC Called for talks on strike issues by the BSNL Management.

24 Monday Nov 2014

Posted by in BSNL - Better Service to the Nation, BSNLEU, PSU, Telecom

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

The BSNL Management wanted to divide the Unions which have given Strike Notice for 27 November 2014, by inviting only the recognised unions, viz. BSNLEU and NFTE for talks.

But the strong stand taken by the BSNLEU and NFTE that they will not attend the talks if they alone are invited has achieved results. Now the BSNL Management has invited the JAC for talks on 25th November at 17.00 hours.

The BSNL Management, if it wants to avoid a confrontation, should discuss the issues with a positive attitude, settle the demands and avoid the strike. Will the BSNL management adopt a positive attitude ?

Government to provide Wi-Fi Services in 45 cities

24 Monday Nov 2014

Posted by in BSNL - Better Service to the Nation, PSU, Telecom

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

The DOT has identified 45 major cities ( with population of more than 10 lakhs) and 705 tourist spots to be provided with Wi-Fi services. The funding will be done through the USO Funds. For providing Wi-Fi to these cities, Government will free 60 GHz Spectrum Band.

About 7,600 Staff Recruitment by State Banks

24 Monday Nov 2014

Posted by in BSNL - Better Service to the Nation, News, PSU, Telecom, TU News - India, TUI of Pensioners and Retirees

≈ Leave a comment

The State Bank Group Banks are in the process of recruiting more than 7,600 clerical staff. Applications have already been called for by State Bank of Hyderabad ( 2,566 vacancies), State Bank of Patiala (1,541), State Bank of Travancore (1,527), State Bank of Jaipur and Bikaner ( 1,188) and State Bank of Mysore (852). The State Bank of India had already recruited about 5,500 during the last year.

Despite the introduction of new technologies, the Banks have found out that fresh blood is required to run the services and serve the customers. Hence the recruitment.

Will BSNL Management realise that it also require fresh blood for a better service? Even after 1,30,000 employees have retired, mainly from the lower cadres, during the last thirteen years, these vacancies have not been filled up. Recruitment is an urgent requirement in BSNL.

 

Govt. on the move to hand over NOFN project to Private Companies.

24 Monday Nov 2014

Posted by in BSNL - Better Service to the Nation, Telecom, TU News - India

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

It is reported in the press that the delay being caused in the Rs. 20,000 crore NOFN Project, being entrusted to BSNL, Railtel and Powergrid  has made the government to rethink of handing over the work to the private companies. The target of fulfilling the task of providing 2.5 lakh villages with broadband service was projected to be completed by December 2016, which now has been preponed to March 2016 by the PMO.

There seems to be a big conspiracy in the government move. Government wants all the paraphernalia in tender process to be fulfilled by the PSUs and the same time wants it to be speeded up. The private telecom companies had already protested in entrusting the project to BSNL etc. Now, on the plea of the alleged delay they want to get the project for themselves. And the Modi Government, which got huge election funds from the corporates, is willing to play its role.

The Forum of BSNL Unions/Associations strongly protest this anti-PSU move of the government and demand that the proposal to hand over NOFN project to private companies be dropped and also allow the three PSUs to continue their work with out undue hindrance as was being done. In fact, the PSUs should be assisted in their efforts to finalise the project at the earliest.

Central TUs Strongly Oppose closure of PSUs

24 Monday Nov 2014

Posted by in CTU, General, PSU, TU News - India

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

,

The decision of the government to close sick PSUs has been condemned and strongly opposed by the Central Trade Unions. They have stated that there is no justification for the closure and the decision should be rescinded. They also suggested that these PSUs can be revived, if the government changes its policies.

The government earlier decided to close about 25 PSUs which are in loss, including BSNL and MTNL. In the first stage, it proposes to close PSUs, viz. HMT Watches, HMT Chinar Watches, Hindustan Cables, Hindustan Photo Films, HMT Bearings and Tungabhadra Steel Products. There are about 3,600 employees who will lose their jobs if the companies are closed.

The move of the government is only to close the PSUs, one after another to favour the corporates and private business and also to help them to increase their profits and eliminate competition from the PSUs.

The strong position taken by the Central Trade Unions should be supported by the entire trade union movement in the country. The National Protest Day on 5th December 2014 called for by the 11 Central Trade Unions should  be made a gigantic protest movement by participation of crores and crores of workers from all industries, central/state government employees, PSUs etc.

We demand that the government should drop the proposal to close the PSUs; instead its should take urgent action to revive these loss making PSUs.

Number of Women Employees increase in Central Government Services

24 Monday Nov 2014

Posted by in CG Employees, General

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

,

As per reply given in the parliament by Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh, the number of women employees in Central Government has been increasing over the years. While there were 2.88 lakhs women employees out of total employees of 38.31 lakhs in 1991 ( 7.58%), it increased to 2.91 lakhs out of 38.76 total employees (7.53%) in 2001 and 3.11 lakh women employees out of 30.99 Lakh in 2009 ( 10.04%). this is a good news. Even when the number of total employees is being reduced, the number of women employees has increased.

As per the government, the following facilities are provided to the women employees to encourage women to join the services:

1. Maternity Leave 2. Child Care Leave 3. Child Adoption Leave 4. Special allowance to women with disability 5. Provision of creche facility 6. Posting of husband and wife at the same station 7. Special priority in allotment of residential accommodation 8. Provision for protection of women from acts of sexual harassment 9. Age relaxation for appointment to widows, divorced woman and women judicially separated from their husbands and who are not remarried 10. Special dispensation for women officers of All India Services of North East Cadre 11. Change of cadre in case of marriage of All India service officer and (xii) exemption from payment of fee for examinations conducted by the Union Public Service Commission and Staff Selection Commission.

But still the % of women employees are as stated only around 10% with about 90% being men only. There need to be much improvement for jobs to women.

 

CITU Calls for Continuity Of Protest Action On 24th November Against Privatisation Of Coal Sector

24 Monday Nov 2014

Posted by in General, TU News - India

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

,

From India News Network(INN)

New Delhi, November 23: CITU calls upon coal workers to protest against nefarious game plan of the government of India to commence the process of denationalization of coal mining through the promulgation of Ordinance containing enabling provision for allowing private sector in commercial mining of coal. CITU also calls upon the coal workers and their unions/federations irrespective of affiliations to organize “work stoppage” for two hours” in all the coal mines/establishments in the country on 24th November 2014 and hold massive militant demonstration to voice their determination not to allow handing over of the coal mines to private corporates, both domestic and foreign, for commercial mining.

CITU resents the manner the joint strike call in coal industry on 24th November 2014 has been postponed/deferred by some of the federations only on the basis of so called vague assurance of Joint Secretary of coal ministry on his effort to arrange meeting between the federations and the government, when the Ordinance initiating the process of aggressive denationalization of coal mining is already put in the track of implementation and the time of auctioning of coal blocks has been more or less finalized.

Similar assurance given to the federations on arranging meeting with minister by the CIL management and the bureaucracy only one and half month back did not materialize. In view of the Ordinance already put in implementation track, which, inter alia, grossly tampered and altered the basic provisions of Coal Nationalised Act 1973, the joint one day strike call of 24th November 2014 by four federations in coal industry was envisaged as a protest action, preparatory to higher struggle for resistance to the aggressive move for denationalization/ privatization of coal mining sector by the coal workers. There is no justification for withdrawal/postponement/deferment of said protest strike merely on the basis of assurance of meeting with government more so when such assurance has already been violated only a month back.

CITU led All India Coal Workers’ Federation has rightly opposed such postponement of strike and refused to endorse the conclusions of the meeting between the federations and the ministry officials held 22nd November 2014 at New Delhi. The AICWF while opposing such decision of withdrawal/postponement of strike decided to hold two hour work stoppage and massive demonstration in coal industry on the same day on 24th November 2014.

CITU calls upon the coal workers and their unions irrespective of affiliations to keep the continuity of the protest action on while observing work-stoppage for two hours and massive demonstration in all the coal mines and establishments on 24th November and prepare for united resistance struggle against the government move for denationalization of coal industry and privatization/disinvestment in the days to come.

 

Revolutionary Greetings on NFPTE Diamond Jubilee !

24 Monday Nov 2014

Posted by in BSNLEU

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

,

Revolutionary Greetings on NFPTE Diamond Jubilee !

Today, 24th November 2014, is the Diamond Jubilee of the mighty NFPTE, the united organisation of the P and T workers of India. The National Federation of P and T Employees was formed on 24 November 1954, 60 years back at New Delhi. Of course, it was not the first organisation of the Postal, Telegraph or Telecom workers. But it was the first united organisation of the entire P and T employees, merging and realigning all the existing unions in the Department. The various unions existing separately had realised that a united organisation is necessary for advancement and settlement of the issues of the employees. While, Henry Barton, Babu Tarapada Mukherjee and V.G.Dalvi were the pioneers of the trade unions in this sector, which were formed during the first and second decades of the 1900s, Com. B.N.Ghosh and Com. K.G.Bose among others were the architects of the new organisation making a strong foundation for the mighty federation.

The initiative and leadership of NFPTE and Confederation of Central Government Employees and Workers in the Historic Five Days Strike of 1960, the One Day Token Strike of 19 September 1968, the Bonus Strike of 1974 and the various other struggles are history and well recorded.

NFPTE was bifurcated in to NFPE and NFTE in 1986, consequent to the bifurcation of the P and T Department. BSNLEU was formed after telecom services were corporatised in to BSNL.

But the comradeship, co-ordination and fraternity continue with the unions both in Postal and BSNL.

On this 60th Anniversary of NFPTE, Revolutionary Greetings to all our comrades! Let us March Ahead with Dedication and Determination to the cause of workers.

NFPTE Zindabad! P and T Unity Zindabad !

 

 

Three Days in Varanasi

23 Sunday Nov 2014

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

For the last three days, we, me and wife, are  in Varanasi and are leaving for Delhi now. The 3  days have been fully utilised.
On 21st, the day we arrived at Varanasi was utilised to visit Saranath, the heritage site of Budha’s first sermon,Ramnagar Fort, the palace of Kashi Raja on the banks of Ganges and also a few old temples.
The circle conference of BSNLCCWF was on the second day, 22 November, fully covering the day.
On the third day, we visited the Banares Hindu University and the Ghat in Ganges in the morning. Attended and addressed the AIBDPA and Pensioners meeting in the afternoon.
In between these engagements met office bearers, leaders and  workers of BSNLEU, BSNLCCWF and AIBDPA.
All the comrades were very helpful and appreciated our visit.
Our thanks to all comrades including Coms. RS Chauhan, KR Yadav, RK Mishra, Haridwar Yadav, Jeet Lal Maurya, Ashish Bhattacharjee, Santhosh Kumar, SP Tiwari, BN Singh, Rameswar Lal and many others. If we have forgotten to mention some other comrades, please excuse us.
Once again, thank you all. Your love and affection for us have been beyond our imagination.

AIBDPA Meeting at Varanasi

23 Sunday Nov 2014

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

A well attended meeting  of AIBDPA and other pensioners’ associations was held at CTO premises, Varanasi, on 23 November 2014, utilising the presence of Com.VAN Namboodiri, who had come to attend the Circle Conference of BSNLCCWF UP(E).
Com.B.N.Singh, senior leader, presided over the meeting. Coms.Hari Om, Yad Ali, B.N.Singh, R.S.Viswakarma, Rameswarlal, Ram Samuj, Prem Kumar, Haridwar Yadav, Jeet Lal Maurya and other leaders addressed and pointed out certain issues facing the workers.
Com.V.A.N.Namboodiri, in his speech explained the present position of the demand of 78.2 per cent IDA fixation, demands placed before VII CPC, discussion with CPC, other demands of pensioners, TUI(Pensioners and Retirees), issues of casual and contract labour, one day strike on 27 November by JAC and by BSNLCCWF, Indefinite Strike from 3 February 2015 called by Forum on Revival of BSNL etc. Questions raised by participants were answered and explained by Namboodiri.
The house decided to strenghthen AIBDPA as also BSNLCCWF.
Pensioners are enthused by the discussion and decisions.