CHAPTER v – OLD VERSUS NEW

The All India Postal and RMs Union conference held in 1942 at Agra was a dull session. Sri.Lakshmi K Maitra who was elected President of the Union in 1939 was continuing and presided over this session as well. The conference passed a resolution reiterating its demand for sanction of same scales of pay for all stations. The delegates from Calcutta Postal Union opposed this and withdrew from the conference. Sri.R M Laheri was elected General Secretary of the All India Union. The All India Postal and RMS Union was losing grounds in the Punjab, NFW and in Madras Presidency due to lack good workers inside the union and the Indian Posts and Telegraph Union was flourishing. The financial position of the Central Union was going from bad to worse. For years together practically the Central Union was being mainly financed by Bombay and Bengal. Sri.Laheri could not continue as General Secretary for more than a year. The Union was unable to maintain him by paying him even a scanty sum of Rs. 150/- p.m. There was no session of the All India Postal and RMS conference in 1943. The conference of 1944 was held in Bombay however gave new impetus to the movement. I felt that the P&T Workers movement could only be advanced if a common front of pre-1931 and post -1931 employees is built on a common demand. In the Bombay conference we succeeded in framing such a demand.

Although the D.L.O Calcutta was functioning at Patna, I came back to Calcutta on 3.9.43 and joined duty in Calcutta G.P.O, and shortly afterward I was posted as Quartermaster, Defence of India Corps (P&T) and got Viceroy’s Commission and later joined the Provincial Union as Assistant Secretary to serve the Union under the direction of the Joint Secretary and General Secretary. On coming back to Calcutta G.P.O after 4 years, I came in contact with innumerable young Postal and RMS workers of Calcutta G.P.O. and its T.S.Os and Calcutta RMS. All the Unions since inception were recognised as Service Associations and they were functioning as such. These youngsters in a progressive outlook pointed out to us the defect in the unions and wanted to run them on trade union lines on a different method. As I fully concurred with their views I made up my mind to help these new bloods in the union in their efforts to re-organise the union on the trade union basis.

I attended the Bombay Session of the All India Postal and RMS conference in December 1944 with a new programme in hand and with a new mission. Sri. Govind Lal Moti Lal, a multimillionaire of Bombay presided over the Conference. His presidential address was not to the liking of majority of the delegates who wanted living wage and better service conditions. The presidential address was full of sermon and advice not to make any such demands. The younger groups in the conference held a special meeting at night after the open session of the conference, and they persuaded me to preside over the meeting and took a decision to place before the conference for adoption of a resolution demanding Rs. 80-250/- scales of pay for all the Postal and RMS Class III officials and Rs. 50- 120/- for all Postmen staff and the tussle began.

The All India Postal and RMS conference of 1944 at Bombay was in short a tug-of-war between the old leadership and the new comers in the field with progressive outlook, whose main object was to create a common front of post- and pre-1931 entrants in the department by formulating a demand which would be in the interest of both the categories of the employees in the department. The seasoned labour leaders like Jamna Das Mehta, R.S.Nimbakar, V.G.Dalvi and S.C Joshi the General Secretary, All India Postal and RMS Union, Bombay Provincial Branch, expressed opinion against putting any demand before the Government for revision of scales of pay when it was faced with a critical war situation. Sri.S.C.Joshi who had been connected with the All India Postal and RMS Union for more than twenty years and was tipped for the post of Chief Labour Commissioner of India was found to be determined to oppose the very idea of adopting any resolution by the conference demanding revision of scales of pay. After much discussion he modified his views to the extent that the new entrants should be given old scales of pay to which we disagreed. Sri. Joshi for whom we had every regard and who had done much for the P&T workers, could not keep balance and proposed that the pay scales of the clerk in the P&T department should be Rs. 500-100-1000-200-2000. This was too much to be brooked by the delegates present . I feel tempted to reproduce below the sharp reply I gave to Sri. Joshi ; “Shri Joshi should not think that this benign British Government is going to win the war with the aid of the Russian Government and a result of this, after successful termination of the war as its natural repercussion, the people of the country will be tending towards socialism , so we with our socialistic out look will refuse to accept such a scale of pay as proposed by Shri.Joshi, but we are determined to have a living wage commensurate with the cost of living index which was 320% higher than that of pre-war index. We do not want a motor car for each one of us but we are not prepared also to be run over by a multimillionaire’s motor car on the Hornby road of Bombay”.

The President, Shri. Govindlal Motilal, intervened and put a question – If a scale of pay such as Rs. 80 -250 is granted to all clerical staff in P&T department, it will require ten crores of rupees; where from would the money come? I replied, “It will come from the pockets of multi-millionaires like Shri.Govindalal Motilal”.

The resolution moved by me demanding revision of scales of pay was carried by over whelming majority of votes amidst cheers. Shri. Raghubans Sahai Srivastava (Uttarpradesh), Shri.B.K.Kamble (C.P), Shri.Suresh Chandra Day(Bengal), Shri.Natarajan(Madras), Shri.Deodhar (Bombay) and others took active part in the debate and discussion. Shri. Ganpat who hailed from Hyderabad, consolidated the younger group.

The conference did not elect any General secretary but kept the post vacant. Later on, Com.B.S. Kamble was selected as General Secretary of the All India union.

The proposal brought about by some of the delegates from Calcutta for demanding higher scale of pay for Calcutta, Bombay and Madras was rejected by the conference. A common front of the old and new was formed on the basis of the resolution for revision of scales of pay . The conference of Bombay was a great success in this respect. The resolution adopted by the conference inspired other unions like the India Post and Telegraph union, The Indian Telegraph Association The All India Telegraph Union and the Postman and Lower Grade Staff Union to demand of the Government for revision of scales of pay of all categories of staff.

Shortly after the conference, Shri. S.C,Joshi was appointed Chief Labour Commissioner of Government of India. Shri. Talpaade, an eminent lawyer of Bombay, replaced shri.Joshi in the Bombay Provincial Union.

The year 1944 was not only a year of great test and trial for me but also a year of revitalising my energy and for finding out a base to begin with work for creating a new set of active workers for the union. My coming back to Calcutta G.P.O and being incharge of Military section (D of 1, Corps P&T ) Calcutta City Postal Unit afforded me an opportunity to come in contact with hundreds of young workers of all categories in the Postal and RMS offices in Calcutta City. It was a year of trial because I was on deputation in Calcutta G.P.O unit but my posting as a Quarter Master of D. of I Corps in Selection grade was unjust and irregular. Any of the officials of Calcutta G.P.O. and its Town Sub offices should have been selected for the purpose. I declined and protested but the O.C LT Col E.N.J .C Byrne threatened me with court martial as the order was a military order. I had to agree but adopted a new method of passive protest against that unjust order of Col. Byrne. The entire extra amount I was getting by way of my working as Quarter Master in Selection Grade every month, I began contributing to the Calcutta G.P.O poor fund as” One-ana fund “ of which Col. Byrne was the Chairman. I used to tell him every month that this contribution was nothing but a passive protest against his unjust orders.

The P&T workers in Bengal and Assam were any how carrying on, as by joining the D.of I Corp P&T, they were getting military compensation allowance plus Ration Allowance which lessened their hardships to some extent but those working out side this area were in economic distress and unrest was visible amongst the P&T workers everywhere but there was no joint machinery to consolidate their activities.

The Krishna Prasad Committee, which was appointed earlier to examine the question as to how far the dearness allowance could be increased specially for those who belonged to the postmen and Lower Grade staff, submitted its report no doubt, but the findings of the report never saw the light of the day.

Discontentments were gradually increasing amongst all classes of Indians owing to the political and economic situation of the country. The congress, which was the main political organization of the country was driven underground by the Government. Mahatma Gandhi was released on the 6th may, 1944. All other congress leaders were still in detention. The P&T workers although in employment of Government, were anxiously awaiting for a settlement between the Government and the other political parties in the country because they were sincerely believing that transfer of power from the alien rulers to the national leaders will free them from economic distress. To a worker, liberation and freedom mean full socio-economic justice done to him for which all of us were longing for years together. But neither the political situation improved nor did our hardships lessen.

The resolution adopted by the All India Conference at Bombay demanding revision of scales of pay of both pre and post 1931 employees which should not be less than Rs. 80-250 for the clerical staff, created enthusiasm amongst the members of the Postal and RMS Union. The other P&T Unions also later on followed suit. The Indian Telegraph Association demanded a scale of pay of Rs. 100-280 for the Telegraphists while the the All India Telegraph Union asked for a scale of Rs.100-300 and so on. This move taken by the different unions paved the way for a common front not only of the pre and post employees but also brought about courage and enthusiasm amongst the P&T workers in general.

The All India Conference did not elect the General Secretary. It was, however, in informal discussion practically decided that the services of one of our active workers in employment of the department be requisitioned. It has now become easy to elect any official as General Secretary or Asst. General Secretary on foreign service but there was no such system in vogue during those days and hence it was practically impossible for any official outside Delhi to come over there to work.

Shri.B.S.Kamble who was sounded, agreed to undertake the responsibility though it would be enormous personal inconvenience to him. In the central Council meeting held in Delhi in March 1945 Shri. Kamble was elected General Secretary of the Central Union to which post he continued up to June, 1946. During the entire period of 15 months he exhausted his own leave. This was a sacrifice, no doubt. (To be continued)

P and T Trade Union Movement in India during II World War and thereafter (1939 – 1954) ( by B.N.Ghosh ) CHAPTER – 3
STRENGTH AGAINST WAR ECONOMY

Since the beginning of the war, the left wingers in the Congress has been carrying on by adopting different methods, propaganda against the masses against helping the war causes, which according to them was an imperialist war between Germany and Great Britain. Actually on 2nd October, 1939 as many as 90,000 Bombay workers had gone on political strike against the war and the repressive measures of the imperialism. Apart from the political unrest, the economic distress of the people due to war-time rise in cost of living index had created acute discontentment amongst the working class. The Post and Telegraph Unions, jointly and severally, had been agitating for increase of dearness allowance which was their main concern, and were practically unmindful of the political situation in the country. The declaration of war by Germany on Soviet Russia on the 22nd June 1941 by treating the non-aggression pact as a scrap of paper created a new chapter in the history of World War No. II. Just after declaration of war by Hitler’s Germany on Soviet Russia and conclusion of a British- Soviet pact, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru declared: “The progressive forces of the world are now aligned with the group represented by Russia, Britain, America and China to fight against the fascist –block.” All these factors completely changed the trend of thought of the working class in India. All India trade Union Congress and the Indian Federation of Labour of Mr. M.N.Roy which were the two bodies controlling the working class in India, issued their clarion call in favour of supporting the war, which they declared to be an anti-fascist war and which, according to many, for all practical purposes, was a people’s war. The call issued by those two trade union organisations had its tremendous effect on the general working class and their way of thinking took a different shape. During this period a large number of P and T workers volunteered for field service and did not hesitate to go to Egypt, Libya and late on to France, Italy and other countries abroad. The declaration of war by Japan did not only create a second front of war but for P and T workers and their unions in general and of Bengal and Assam in particular it created difficult task to manage things. Rangoon fell on the 8th March 1942. With the occupation of Burma, by the Japanese, the war spread at the very border of Assam thereby making entire Bengal and Assam an exposed area.
Visakhapatnam and Golconda were the two stations to be first bombed by the Japanese. I remember just on receipt of the news I sent two telegrams to the secretaries of Postal Unions of those two places enquiring about the safety of the P and T workers as well as encouraging them to maintain excellent morale and stick to their respective posts rendering efficient service to the Government and the public at this critical juncture. Later on Calcutta was extensively bombed on the night of the 24th December. Almost all the P and T buildings were more or less affected due to the bombing but all the P and T workers who were performing A.R.P. duties in different buildings played their part well and maintained excellent morale.
Port Blair and Andaman Islands were bombed on 2-3-42. On the 3rd instant, on behalf of the Provincial Union I sent them telegram assuring them full sympathy of P and T workers of India and as Japanese invasion of the island was believed to be imminent I sent wire to Mr. Shoobert the then DG P and T and Mr. Krishna Prasad, Postmaster General, Bengal and Assam, to recall the P and T workers of Port Blair to the mainland before invasion takes place and suggested that they should be allowed to get on board “S.S.Maharaja” of the Scindia Steam Navigation Company ship which would be leaving Port Blair on the 4th instant. The suggestion was accepted and most of the staff were able to come back to Calcutta before occupation. But the task became more and more difficult for the Union to manage on all sides. All the P and T Unions had, in the meantime, been able to arrange a number of joint deputations with the DG P and T where discussion round sanction of more dearness allowance to the staff and taking enough protective measures such as raising baffle walls round all P and T buildings in Bengal, Assam and in the sea coasts of Orissa, Andhra and Madras Presidency, equipping all the P and T Offices in those areas with fire fighting apparatus and sanctioning of additional special allowances for the workers.
In the first week of May 1942, reached the news in the Provincial office that as many as 19 P and T officials have deserted their work from Dinapur (Assam) as an after-effect of bombing of Imphal. The P and T workers of Chittagong and Silchar also became panicky as both the places were bombed. The Post Office at Derby near Silchar was totally destroyed but fortunately the staff could escape as they had left the Post Office building at the sight of the planes. Telegrams were pouring in from all parts of Assam and Eastern Bengal requesting me to visit those areas to give them courage and to arrange for their protective measures such as construction of baffle walls around all office, equipping them with firefighting apparatus and digging of underground shelters etc. I had approached the leaders of A.I.T.U., I.T.A., I.P.T.U., Postmen and Lower Grade Staff Union and also the Postal and RMS Union but unfortunately I could not persuade any one of them to agree to proceed to those areas. I myself was hesitating to proceed – not because of fear but my second son and my wife were extremely sick. But still then I decided to leave them and started for an extensive tour in entire Eastern Bengal and Assam frontiers. It took me full nine weeks to complete the tour.
In the meanwhile the joint deputation of all the unions which awaited on the DG P and T in April 1942 had rejected the proposal for militarization of P and T Department but as the prices of commodities were going up and up specially in area which was under South Asia Command, the Government sanctioned Rs. 20/- as extra allowance for the P and T workers stationed in border areas situated in the sea coasts. This new concession was however confined to Bengal and Assam only including Calcutta. All the Unions agitated for extending the concessions to P and T workers working in the coastal areas of Orissa, Andhra and Madras, specially in view of the fact that Visakhapatnam and Golconda had already suffered from bombing. The Government however did not yield to pressure. (Chapter not over.To be continued.)

CHAPTER – 2
STATE OF P AND T UNIONS

As the P and T Unions were then functioning in large numbers, each having its own way of putting things and all of them believed in paper warfare – and that too not in collaboration with each other, – they could not consolidate and even there was wheels working within wheels – every union has its internal quarrels and difference not being based on policy, programme and ideology – but in most cases due to personal rivalry there was no end of it. In such environments, the All India Postal and RMS Union, which was one of the biggest organisations in India, met at its annual session of Conference during X-mas of 1939 at Lahore on an invitation from Rai Sahib Jayanti Prasad, the retired Manager, Dead Letter Office, Lahore, due to various reasons; this session had its special significance.

The Government of India had introduced the new scales of pay with effect from 18th July, 1931, totally disregarding the universally accepted principle of equal work. The All India Postal and RMS Union had at its annual session held at Delhi on the 30th and 31st October, 1931, singly made a bold attempt to counter-act the Government’s move for imposition of salary cut and introduction of new scales of pay but could not withstand long Government’s oppression and surrendered. Since then it had been passing resolutions in successive conferences urging grant of old scales of pay to the new entrants. Amongst the other recognized P and T Unions, the Indian Telegraph Association, the All India Telegraph Union and the All India Postmen and Lower Grade Staff Union were the main functioning Unions and all these Unions had also been as usual, in their annual gatherings passing resolutions urging sanction of old scale of pay for the new entrants but the weak and quarrelling leadership failed to make plans and programmes for joint action in the matter. The Lahore session of the Conference had met just after the death of Sri N.C.Sen Gupta who had succeeded Sri Tarapada Mukherjee as General Secretary of the All India Postal and RMS Union at its session at Peshawar held in November, 1929. Mr. M.G.Swaberry who was one of the founders of the All India Postal and RMS Union and had started the Indian Post and Telegraph Union after severing connection with the mother Union, attended this session of the Conference, along with a large contingent of members of his own Union. I remember on my way to Lahore from Calcutta, I had halted at Delhi only to persuade him to attend the session and make a joint attempt to re-amalgamate the Unions. The All India Conference no doubt elected Sri Monmohal Lal Topa as General Secretary of All India Postal and RMS Union but took a bold step and elected Mr. Swaberry as Honorary Secretary of the All India Union in the hope that this will pave the path for unity.

The social, political and economic condition of the country during the period, reflected to a greater extent on the trade union movement, especially of the middle class employees. The rivalry between the Congress and the Muslim League, though in a milder form, reacted upon the activities of the Unions and Associations of the educated middle class employees specially those in Government service and influenced their decisions. The Unions which used to draw inspiration or were under the influence of sectional or of communal organisations, mostly devoted their energy to the cause of the employees belonging to the community or communities in relation to posting, transfer, promotion and recruitment etc. , and how to take the grater share in the cake, though the cake itself was too inadequate to serve all. To these institutions greater causes such as improvement of service conditions, better pay and prospects, etc. became secondary object. The foreign rulers having imperialistic and capitalist outlook with a view to perpetuate their exploitation of the country’s wealth had to depend much upon the divide and rule policy, through secret agencies, were favouring the growth of service associations on the communal and sectional lines. The progressive service Unions and Associations which were struggling hard for developing real trade union sense amongst their members and were fighting out for greater causes had to face insurmountable difficulties in making their way through.
The leftist political organisations which had just begun dealing with general labour welfare and were busy in organizing the ordinary labours and the working class could arrest the growth of communal feelings amongst them, but as they were quite unmindful of the middle class employees’ Unions, they continued to function under the care of the non-trade unionistic political leaders. It is significant that the Telegraph Workmen’s Union and the All India Postmen and Lower Grade Staff Union, were not so much affected by the communal and sectional trend of feelings prevailing in the country, as was the case with the other Unions dominated by the Class III employees. The leadership of the All India Telegraph Union and the Indian Telegraph Association, All India Postal and RMS Union and the Indian Post and Telegraph Union though felt the necessity for greater unity amongst the P and T employees’ movement and although they were getting push from the youngsters, who were post 1931 employees, could not advance the cause. The internecine quarrel and rivalry amongst the leaders, not due to any ideological differences, but mostly on personal grounds and want of proper trade union consciousness amongst the mold of the employees, stood as barricades against united action being taken by the P and T Unions conjointly even on vital issues concerning the workers. The attempts for unity by the employees here and there on each occasion to their ill-luck, proved abortive. The undemocratic constitution of some of the unions also played no less important a part in delaying the growth and expansion of those organisations and their activities in right directions. As to how those undemocratic constitutions stood as a stony rock for years together to foil all attempts for unity move will be discussed later on. Some of the unions, no doubt, had democratic constitutions but due to circumstances already hinted above, could not do much headway towards bringing much needed unity. The gesture shown by the All India Postal and RMS Union conference at Lahore, with very good intention, was therefore, of no avail. Mr. M.G. Swaberry, in spite of his personal inclination as I could study him at the time, could not come forward to accept the offer so generously made to him.

Those who were ardent believers in unity however did not rest here. The war-time unrest which was already visible due to political and bad economic conditions brought about by steady increase in cost of living index, and the wide spread discontentment amongst the post – 1931 young P and T workers are the main factors which continued to strengthen the hands of those who were moving for unity. The records of the different unions will show that within a couple of months, all the unions had to think in terms of organizing joint deputation with the DG P and T, which move in actual sense could be called of laying of foundation stone for building greater unity at a later stage. (To be continued)

P and T Trade Union Movement in India during II World War and thereafter (1939 – 1954)
(B.N.Ghosh)
(This is the book written by Com. Bhupendra Nath Ghosh (Dada Ghosh), the first Secretary General of National Federation of P and T Employees (NFPTE) and one of the leaders of the historic 1946 P and T Strike. Com.N.J.Iyer, former General Secretary, R.III Union, entrusted me to type some copies from the original document during 1990s. I typed two copies and handed over the original and one copy to him, keeping one copy with me. While I was arranging my book shelf, this typed copy came to my notice. I think the book will be interesting and beneficial to the new generation. The book will be serially published by chapter in my blog vannamoodiri.com daily, if possible, since it has to be retyped. )
CHAPTER – 1
SECOND WORLD WAR
It was at 3 O’ clock on the first of September 1939, while I was passing under exuberance of sunshine being profusely in sweat, through the Dalhousie Square, Calcutta, I found men in their hundreds running towards the South West corner of the Square, each procuring a copy of the special issue Amrita Bazar Patrika with bold headlines, “Germany declares war on Poland”. This happened within a couple of days of signing the Russo-German non-aggression pact. In fact, the air was so much charged during those days with war possibilities, that every man in the street was awaiting receipt of such horrible tidings from the West. The Great Britain and France who were pledge bound to Poland to give her protection against all aggression on her, declared war on Germany and the Second World War began. India which was under the control and suzerainty of Great Britain became, as a matter of course, a party to this war. It is not my intention to discuss the political aspects of this war and I, therefore, cautiously refrain from discussing as to whether or not the war was a people’s war or as to whether the war ultimately did deliver the goods to India. As one connected to the Posts and Telegraphs trade union movement having in mind the well-being of the P & T workers and at the same time in employment of Government, my entire study and reading of this eventful period will be in that context only. As to how the average Indian with anti-British feelings received the news of the war between Germany and Great Britain in which Soviet Russia remaining neutral can be well imagined than described. I reached the office of the Provincial Union of the All India Postal and R.M.S.Union, Bengal and Assam Circle at the day’s end and as its General Secretary took it to be my bounden duty to send the following telegram to the Director General of Posts and Telegraphs: “On behalf of entire Postal and RMS employees Bengal and Assam Circle assure full co-operation and loyal service to the Government at the critical juncture and place my own services unreservedly at the disposal of the Govt”.
It can well be imagined than described as to with what feelings the news of a war between Germany and the British people who have been exploiting and ruling over India for nearly 200 years – Russia remaining silent – could be received by a Bengali born in pre-Bengal partition days of 1905 and had seen anti-partition movement, the intensive struggle of the Congress for independence, boycott of British goods and the Bengal youths going to gallows in large numbers for the sake of the country’s cause, could receive. Despite, as one belonging to the most essential service of P and T Department and being at the helm of the Postal and RMS organization of Bengal and Assam, I preferred to send the above telegram, copy of thereof being sent to the 40 branch unions, who in return endorsed my views. This is unique indeed! In sending the telegram my heart and brain refused to work together, but I must candidly confess that there was not an atom of insincerity in me while sending the telegram. Later on it came to light that I was not the singular person to send such assurance of co-operation and loyalty to the Government but the P and T Unions throughout the country had followed suit and within a couple of days of the beginning of the war, the P and T staff throughout the length and breadth of the country had showed their inclination to volunteer for field service. A full scale analysis of the back-ground of the stand we have taken is not possible due to various reasons. In short, we were loyal Government servants and as in duty bound preferred to remain loyal.
Three days after the declaration of war, by Great Britain on Germany, the Governments of Bombay and Bengal issued ordinance permitting 20% and 10% rise in prices of all commodities in their respective provinces so as to make it easy for the Government to make heavy purchases of food stuff and other raw materials necessary in war connection in Calcutta and Bombay markets. The Government of India had in circulation on the day of declaration of war 228 crores of currency notes against which there was a gold reserve of equivalent amount but it will be seen in September, 1945 on the day of closing of war, it had in circulation 1500 crores worth of currency notes against which there was no gold reserve in India but entire reserve had been transferred to British Treasury in London, what was later on known to be India’s Sterling Balance. This measure began to fluctuate the market and therefore the attention of the entire P and T workers specially those in the lower rank and in low pay were diverted from the theatre of war to the stomach problem. The situation, however, did not aggravate so much during the first two years of war but even then the cost of living index had gone up to the extent that the lower middle class workers within the P and T Department or anywhere else found it difficult to meet both ends. The Government of India finished its business by sanctioning dearness allowance at the rate of Rs.1/- for the Postman and Class IV employees only. An important Member of the Parliament connected with the Postal and RMS Union had declared the measure adopted to be unworthy on the part of the Government to sanction such meager allowance, viz. Rs.1/- and beneath the dignity on the part of the employees to accept it. (To be continued).