Category Archives: History

25th death anniversary of Com.N.P.Padmanabhan on 5th March 2019

01 Friday Mar 2019

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the 25th death anniversary of Com.N.P.Padmanabhan (Pappettan) falls on 5th March 2019. He was the militant leader of the P and T workers. He functioned as the Secretary of NFPTE, Convener of the P and T Co-coordinating Committee as also the convener of the Confederation. He was dismissed for leading the 19th September 1968  strike and was taken back only after the Janata Government came in to power in 1977.

I have written a book in Malayalam on the life and activities of Pattettan  “N.P.Padmanabhan – the Militant Leader of the P and T Workers” , which was released in the last of Circle Conference of NFPE at Tirur. The day is being observed by the P and T workers all over Kerala.

Red Salute to Com.N.P.Padmanabhan!

50th Anniversary of 19th September 1968 Strike

31 Friday Aug 2018

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Central government employees’ organisations all over the country are observing the 50th anniversary of the historic One Day Token Strike of Central Government employees on 19th September 1968. The main demands were Need Based Minimum Wage and payment of DA on the basis of cost of living. The Indira Gandhi government put all efforts to suppress the strike by promulgating Essential Service Maintenance Ordinance (ESMO) and other anti-workers orders.

17 workers became Martyrs, shot dead and also beaten to death. Tens of thousands were arrested, jailed, terminated, suspended and severely punished. Recognition of the unions were cancelled. Fake unions were recognised. But all these repressive measures could not extinguish the fire in the  minds of the workers. By about three years, all were taken back and the victimization was almost over.

NFPTE was in the forefront of the struggle and the P and T workers were the maximum victimised. But in no time, it has risen back and a new chapter of struggle started.

All these will be discussed and evaluated during the observation of the 50th anniversary. In this connection, I am publishing a book on the strike, which will be released at Thrissur on the same day. Major developments in connection with the strike, victimization, the aftermath etc. will be explained in the book.

Let us move forward with inspiration f the 19th September strike!

 

Telecom Trade Union Movement – A Saga of Struggles, Sacrifices and Achievements (4) – To Delhi

26 Thursday Jul 2018

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To Delhi

OPG supporters had already started conspiracies how to torpedo the election of the All India Conference and create problems in the organisation. As part of it, they raised the strange demand that the polled ballots and other records should be handed over to the outgoing office-bearers, since Com. Moni Bose is yet to take charge as the General Secretary. Coms. N.T.Sajwani and R.K.Kohli led the group and pressurised the election officers for the same. Well knowing that this was intended to manipulate the votes and results later, the Asst. Presiding Officer Com. J.Renganathan firmly refused to consider the unjustified request.
Workers have not forgotten, how Com. OPG, General Secretary, manipulated the records after the Gauhati All India Conference in 1969, by declaring after reaching Delhi, that election of Com. K.G.Bose as Federal Councillor, is nullified. The plan now was to repeat the same and nullify the Bhopal elections.
(Com.J.Renganathan, Asst. Presiding Officer, who took the correct and firm decision, was the Vice-President of the All India Union, who has resigned the post protesting against the revisionist line of the General Secretary, along with Moni Bose and V.A.N.Namboodiri, who were respectively, Vice-President and Asst. General Secretary of the union, just before the All India Conference. He entered the services in 1959 in Ramnad Telephone Exchange as Telephone Mechanic and became a leader of the union within a short time. His close connection with leaders like Com. A.Pirmanathan, Pasupati, Gurumurthy and others helped him to develop as a militant leader. He was suspended and transferred to Coimbatore for leading the 1968 historic one day token strike of the Central government employees. He reached back to Madras in 1970. In 1989, he became the Circle Secretary of Madras Telephone District Circle after defeating the then circle secretary and a close associate of OPG, Com. B.Srinivasa Rao. JR, as he was popularly called, was already elected as the Asst. General Secretary in the Madras All India Conference. He voluntarily retired from service in 1993 with commitment to social service. He worked as Editor of the labour magazine “ Uzhaikkum Vargam” for a number of years .
During my last visit to Chennai, I went to his house and met him and wife and had discussion about the various aspects of the present situation of BSNL. He was a comrade who stood firm during his entire service in telecom for the correct policies and is one of my close associate for decades).
I, as the newly elected President, intervened and took hold of the entire documents, ballots etc. which was handed over to me by the Com. JR, Asst. Presiding Officer and kept it in a safe place. Com. Ramachandran, Secretary of ITEF, M.P., Com. S.C.Shrivastava, Circle Secretary T.III Union, M.P.Circle and others gave full support and assistance in the matter.
Com. Moni Bose and I stayed at Bhopal for two days arranging everything for moving to Delhi. Comrades who came along with me including my wife returned to Calicut. I had no other way but to go to Delhi and stay some time there, according to the promise I had given to Com. Moni Bose. The situation was serious since any move from OPG group had to be countered.
What will be the situation in Delhi? We were very apprehensive. Whether we will be allowed to function in Dada Ghosh Bhawan, CHQ of the union? Where we will stay? How to effectively strengthen the organisation? What will be the reaction of the DOT? A lot of questions were in our mind.
Any way, we prepared for our Delhi journey along with the ballot papers and election materials etc. No prior information was given to anybody, as we expected some protest demonstration etc. since the OPG group was very angry, which we have seen at Bhopal after the elections.
But after considering everything we firmly decided that we will face everything calmly and courageously and started for Delhi by train. All options were discussed. Our final option was that after getting down, we will directly go to Dada Ghosh Bhawan, the citadel of E.III Union. We will function from there. (To be continued)

Nostalgic Memories of Telegraph/ Telegram Services

16 Monday Jul 2018

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Morse Key Board for sending telegrams.

Five years have passed since the government of India closed the Telegraph / Telegram services in India. Despite strong protests from the union and the public, the telegraph / telegram services were closed on 15th July 2013 by the Government of India. BSNL Employees Union organised protest actions, but the decision was already taken by the government stating that the service is in loss. It is true that telegram services lost its attraction and use to a certain extent after the mobile services and various message applications started, but it was a record for courts, banks and such organisations. Our plea that at least it should be kept in the four metro cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkatta and Chennai in which Central Telegraph Offices a minimum of at least about 500 messages were received and dispatched was also not conceded. However, our demand for a Telegraph Museum was accepted and is now situated in former CTO Building, Kolkatta.

The history of telegraphs started long back. The electrical telegraph was invented in 1775. The first commercial telegraphs were introduced by the Western Railways in Britain in the 1830s. It was introduced in India in 1854 along with the railways.The telephones were not invented and the fastest communication system was the telegraphs. Only the Britishers were employed as telegraphist both in Railways and in Telegraph Offices in the initial stages due to its utmost importance and secrecy. The Britishers used the telegraphs and Railways effectively to crush the First Independence War of 1857, which they called as ‘Sepoy Mutiny’. The Telegraphs grew fantastically during the second part of the 20th century and there were telegraph offices in all important cities and towns. In small places, the services were manned by the Postal officials called ‘Singnallers’, who kept the connection between the cities and the villages through telegraph wires.
Telegrams were sent by government as also by public to inform urgent and important news. The CTOs in the metro cities used to have about 100 or 200 telegraphists at the same time and round the clock. The telegrams were taken as official records in the court etc. It was authentic and clear. Since the charge for sending telegram was on the basis of the number of words, the message was constructed briefly with minimum number of words. The message may be of great happiness or that of sorrow like death or disease. The unions used to organise ‘telegram campaigns’ as a method of protest sending the same in large numbers to the concerned authorities.

After the growth of telephones and mobile services, the importance of telegraphs started to wane. By the second decade of 21st century it was almost limited to certain official messages. According to the government and the BSNL, there was much loss and it can not be continued as a viable service.

When the government decided to close the telegraph offices and telegraph/telegram services from 15th July, BSNL Unions put up strong protest and organised protest meetings. As President of the Union, I went to Mumbai and Kolkata offices and held press conferences for getting the support of the people at large for continuing the services.

Telegraph is a heritage service and accommodated in heritage buildings in the big cities. CTO buildings in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata etc. are heritage buildings, which have to be maintained as such. Lakhs and lakhs of documents connected with the history of the Mughal, British rule etc. are there in the old documents of the telegraph offices. Just like Western Court building in Delhi is occupied by a hotel, there are proposals to turn these heritage buildings also in to such posh hotels. You can see that many of the historic palaces have already been converted in to hotels.

A PLI case was filed in the court, but did not get any relief. It can only be said that the BSNL management had taken an unwise anti-people decision as also without taking in to confidence of the unions, which were trying to improve the services and make the company financially viable.

Despite all efforts to ensure that the telegraph services are kept as a token of the past, as in the case of trams in Kolkata, neither the government nor the BSNL agreed. It was finally decided to close it on 15th July 2013 forever.

Nobody expected what happened on the day. It was a pleasant surprise. Thousands of people gathered in front of telegraph offices to send their last telegrams to their near and dear ones. Even after midnight of 15/16 July, the queue did not stop and many people had to return disappointed that they could not send the last telegram. Their spontaneous response on the last day showed their love and appreciation of the telegraph services.

Five years are over after closure of telegraph services. The people have almost forgotten the ‘telegram’. The new generation may wonder what is ‘telegraphs’ and ‘telegram’. But those who knew telegram and sent or received it will always remember the same – A nostalgic memory!

Telecom Trade Union Movement – A Saga of Struggles, Sacrifices and Achievements (1) The Historical Bhopal All India Conference

14 Saturday Jul 2018

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Telecom Trade Union Movement – A Saga of Struggles, Sacrifices and Achievements (1)
The Historical Bhopal All India Conference

More than 26 years are over after the All India Conference of All India Telecom Employees Union Class III (affiliated to NFPTE) held at Bhopal on 24th to 29th October 1991, which heralded a new progressive and militant leadership in the organisation.
The new leadership with Com. V.A.N.Namboodiri as President and Com. Moni Bose as General Secretary was elected defeating the four decades revisionist leader Com. O.P.Gupta and his camp, who were in the leadership of the union since 24th November 1954, when National Federation of P and T Employees (NFPTE) was formed merging all the existing unions in Telecom department with 9 affiliated All India Unions, including AITEE Union Class III. The change was heartily welcomed by the vast majority of the workers.
Back ground
We have to go back a little to find out the importance of the AIC and the election. As already stated earlier, NFPTE was formed in 1954, but P and T unions existed from the first decade of 20th century and has a long and great tradition as one of the pioneers in the country. Postal service in India started in 1756 and the Telegraph service is 1854, both under the British rule. Telephone service started in the early 20th century, in a limited way which developed fast. The service conditions were very strict and offensive and the wages very meagre. Though there were some spontaneous agitations in the last decade of 19th century in Poona etc., the unions were formed only after 1900.
Formation of Unions
Indian Telegraph Association (ITA) was formed in 1908 under the leadership of Henry Barton, an Anglo-Indian Telegraphist, who was also called Harry Barton. Almost at the same time, Babu Tarapada Mukherjee formed the All India (including Burmah) Post Office and R.M.S. Union, although it functioned earlier as Calcutta Postal Club, since the Department did not allow unions to be formed. Both the unions were formed in Calcutta, the capital of India at that time. However, the All India Postmen and Lower Grade Staff Union was formed in Bombay under the leadership of Shri V.G.Dalvi, Bar-at Law, a well-known Advocate. Another union, All India Telegraph Union (AITU), was formed in Calcutta. All these unions organised agitations for bettering their service conditions and wages.
The Postal Strike of 1946, which continued for 22 days, was withdrawn only after the British rulers accepted all the 12 most important demands raised by the union. It was a great victory for the workers. The appointment of the First Central Pay Commission, separate memorandums submitted which were contradictory and the unsatisfactory recommendations –all convinced the leadership of the various unions to join together in to one union. Accordingly, the Union of P and T Workers (UPTW) was formed on 13th August 1947, two days before India’s Independence, merging almost all unions.
NFPTE was formed on 24th November 1954, merging all the existing unions, including UPTW. Nine All India Unions were formed affiliated to NFPTE, two each in Postal, Telegraph, RMS and Telephone section, one for class III and another for class IV. One union for both the class III and Class IV in administrative offices was also formed. Unification or Realignment, as it was called, was a very important and favourable development. The first Secretary General was Com.B.N.Ghosh, respectfully called Dada Ghosh.
The 5days of strike of CG Employees from 11/12th July 1960 and the One Day Token Strike on 19th September 1968 were historical in all ways, including the number of participants, the brutal victimisation, the sustained fight against dismissals, termination, arrests etc. More than two dozen comrades became martyrs in these struggles shot dead by the police or run over by the trains during the strike period. Two persons committed suicide unable to bear dismissal/termination.
There have been serious differences in NFPTE on the policy and programme to be adopted. One section wanted to fight against the anti-worker policy of the government tooth and nail through militant struggles. The revisionist side did not want to fight against the policies of the government, but wanted to limit it to only on some benefits to the workers and no struggles. The crisis resulted in a hard fought election in the Federal Council in 1970 at Vijayawada where the revisionists lost and the leaders of the militant section were elected with Com. K.G.Bose as President and Com. A.S.Rajan as Secretary General. In the next Federal Council at Calcutta in 1971, the defeated section floated a parallel list of office-bearers, well knowing that they cannot win. The government utilised the opportunity and recognised the fake list. The result was that while the KG Bose section went on strike in the 1974 Bonus Strike, the section led by Com.O.P.Gupta opposed the strike and did not participate.
The impasse continued till the end of National Emergency declared in 1975 by Smt. Indira Gandhi. After sustained discussion and adjustment unity was restored in NFPTE by 1976.
NFPTE was bifurcated in to NFPE and NFTE in 1986 consequent to the bifurcation of the Department in to Postal and Telecom. There was no other alternative, though the workers wanted a united organisation.
In NFPE, the militant leaders Coms. K.Adinarayana, N.J.Iyer and others took the lead, while in Telecom, the leadership of the revisionists under Com.O.P.Gupta continued. The workers were not happy about the revisionist leadership and each and every opportunity, including the Circle and All India Conferences were utilised to fight for the correct policies.
It was in this context that the All India Conference of All India Telco Employees Union Class III was held at Bhopal was held from 24th to 29th October 1991. (to Be continued)
(NB: ‘The History of the P and T Trade Union Movement’, a book published by this author has described in detail all these developments till 1986.Copies of the book are available with Com. R.N.Parashar, General secretary, AIPEU Group ‘C’, Dada Ghosh Bhawan, 2151/1, New Patel Road, New Delhi – 110008, who published the same. The Price is Rs. 100/.)

Remember Salvador Allende

10 Sunday Sep 2017

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It was on 11th September in 1973 that Salvador Allende, the Socialist / Communist leader, President of Chile, was murdered by the military junta headed by August Pinochet with the full support of the United States. Allende was elected as the President of Chile in 1970. He implemented people friendly decisions, including nationalisation of industries and collectivisation. This created big rift with the United States and other capitalist states. With the help of the military junta headed by Pinochet the Le Monde Palace was surrounded and he was shot dead there. His last speech before being murdered will be remembered long by the Chilean people and the whole world.The military junta that took over dissolved the Congress of Chile, suspended the Constitution, and began a persecution of alleged dissidents, in which thousands of Allende’s supporters were kidnapped, tortured, and murdered. US gave full support to the junta.
This was a dark chapter in the history of Chile till Pinochet was removed in 1990. A big statue of Salvador Allende has been installed later at Palacio de le Moneda, in the capital.

 

“History of P and T Trade Union Movement” Book released

07 Monday Aug 2017

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The newly published book ” History of P and T Trade Union Movement” authored by Com.V.A.N.Namboodiri, Founder General Secretary of BSNLEU, was released on 6th August 2017 by veteran TU leader Comrade Tapan Sen, M.P. General Secretary CITU by handing over to Com.M.Krishnan, Secretary General, Confederation of C.G.Employees and former Secretary General NFPE, in the Annual Conference of the All India Postal Employees Union Group C being held at Bengaluru. The book is published by Com. R.N.Parashar, Secretary General of NFPE and GS oF P.III Union.

The book chronicles the history of the Posts and Telegraphs in India, the formation of unions in Posts and Telegraphs in the first decade of the last century, the formation of UPTW, NFPTE, the historical strikes organised in 1919, 1946, 1960, 1968, 1974, 1982 etc. and also the various developments in the sector. Brief notes on the lives and activities of the founder fathers and other leaders are also given. Foreword and introduction of the book is written by Com.A.K.Padmanabhan, Vice-President, CITU, Com.M.Krishnan and Com.R.N.Parashar. The book is priced at Rs.100/-.

Com. AKP, in his introduction states:
” I am aware that there are books in different languages covering some aspects of the book. But I have not come across one covering all aspects dealt with by the author. I am sure that in the hands of the young generation of employees, who are struggling to carry forward the militant tradition of the class oriented trade union movement, this book will also be a tool to advance the cause.
Without understanding the history, we will never be able to successfully plan our future.”

Leaders of NFPTE from 1954 to 1986.

02 Sunday Jul 2017

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National Federation of P&T Employees (NFPTE) was one of the mighty organisations in the central sector, which has a great tradition. It was formed on 24th November 1954 at New Delhi by merging all the existing unions. NFPTE was bifurcated in to NFPE and NFTE after the bifurcation of the P and T department in to Department of Posts and Department of Communications. The
bifurcation of NFPTE was done in the Federal Council held at Calcutta on 17-21 March 1986. During the 32 years of its existence, it has fought many battle for the employees and their advancement. Below is given the Federal Councils held during the period and the officer bearers who were elected to lead the organisation. (Only the name of the President, Secretary General and Treasurer is given)

(This is part of the book being published by NFPE on the history of the NFPTE authored by V.A.N.Namboodiri)
NFPTE Office Bearers ( 1954 to 1986).

Formation of NFPTE at New Delhi Federal Council on 21-24 November 1954
President : V.G.Dalvi
Secretary General : Dada Ghosh (B.N.Ghosh)
Treasurer : Makhan Singh

Federal Council at Calcutta on 28th Dec. 1955 to 2nd January 1956
President : V.G.Dalvi
Secretary General : Dada Ghosh
Treasurer : B.K.Raina

Federal Council at Hyderabad 26th December 1956 to 1st January 1957
President : V.G.Dalvi
Secretary General : Dada Ghosh
Treasurer : B.L.Raina

Federal Council at Bombay 5-10 December 1957
President : V.G.Dalvi
Secretary General : Dada Ghosh
Treasurer : B.L.Raina

Federal Council at Jaipur on 26-31 December 1958
President : V.G.Dalvi
Secretary General : Dada Ghosh
Treasurer : G.D.Jhingam

Federal Council at Gauhati, on 19-25 April 1960
President : V.G.Dalvi
Secretary General : P.S.R.Anjaneyulu
Treasurer : G.D.Jhingam

Federal Council at Nagpur on 20-24 October 1962
President : Nawab Singh Chauhan, M.P.
Secretary General : P.S.R.Anjaneyulu
Treasurer : G.D.Jhingam

Federal Council at Madras on 27th December 1963 to 1st January 1964
President : Mahesh Dutt Mishra M.P.
Secretary General : P.S.R.Anjaneyulu
Treasurer : G.D.Jhingam

Federal Council at Ambala on 21-26 February 1965
President : Mahesh Dutt Mishra M.P.
Secretary General : D.Gnaniah
Treasurer : Waryam Singh

Federal Council at Patna on 26-31 March 1966
President : M.D.Mishra M.P.
Secretary General : D.Gnaniah
Treasurer : Waryam Singh

Federal Council at Jabalpur on 22-27 January 1967
President : M.D.Mishra M.P.
Secretary General : D.Gnaniah
Treasurer : Waryam Singh

Federal Council at Vijayawada 9-14 May 1970
President : K.G.Bose
Secretary General : A.S.Rajan
Treasurer : Sadaram Tanwar

Federal Council at Calcutta 28th Oct. to 3rd November 1971
President : K.G.Bose
Secretary General : A.S.Rajan
Treasurer : Sadaram Tanwar.

As per Agreement in Unity Meeting at New Delhi on 25th October 1975 between both groups
President : N.K.Bhat M.P.
Secretary General : A.Pirmanathan
Treasurer : Sadaram Tanwar

Federal Council at Bombay on 6-8 August 1976
President : Shashi Bhushan M.P.
Secretary General : D.Gnaniah
Treasurer : P.N.Mehta

Federal Council at Bangalore on 5-9 May 1978
President : R.G.Sharma
Secretary General : O.P.Gupta
Treasurer : P.N.Mehta

Federal Council at Cochin 27-30 April 1980
President : R.G.Sharma
Secretary General : O.P.Gupta
Treasurer : P.N.Mehta

Federal Council at Bombay on 24-27 February 1983
President : R.G.Sharma
Secretary General : O.P.Gupta
Treasurer : P.N.Mehta

Federal Council at Calcutta on 17-21 March 1986
President : K.L.Moza ( After one year O.P.Gupta)
Secretary General : O.P.Gupta(After one year K.L.Moza)
Treasurer : Mohamed Yunus
First Office-bearers of NFPE and NFTE elected at Calcutta 17-21 March 1986
NFPE
President : N.J.Iyer
Secretary General : K.Adinarayana
Treasurer : Des Raj Sharma
NFTE
President : S.S.Nayar
Secretary General : O.P.Gupta
Treasurer : Dua.

(Taken from the book on ” P&T Trade Union Movement” to be published by NFPE)

Declare Andaman Cellular Jail as National Monument – CPI(M) MP

12 Wednesday Apr 2017

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“New Delhi, Apr 11 A CPI(M) member today expressed concern in the Rajya Sabha that the Andaman Cellular Jail, which represented death-defying heroism of the freedom fighters, has not yet been declared a national monument.
Raising the issue during the Zero Hour, Ritabrata Banerjee said the Cellular Jail in Port Blair has “unfortunately even today” not been declared a national monument and the government seems to have “no records” as far as the jail is concerned.
He said the popular sound and light show there continues to ignore most of the heroes and seems to have ignored historical records and sought a comprehensive portrayal of the realities.
“The Jail and light and sound show is dedicated to one single cell of a particular inmate. Historians belonging to all schools of history and British archive records that no inmates were kept in a single cell for more than a week. They were rotated,” Banerjee said.” (Courtesy: Ganashakti)

I completely agree with the demand raised in the Parliament. Hundreds of freedom fighters belonging all states in the country were put in the Cellular Jail in Port Blair and many of them died there mostly due to the harsh conditions and physical torture. Some of the tools of torture as also the gallows are still there.The names of those martyrs who died while in prison are also kept there. Many of the wings of the building have been demolished to construct a hospital or so. The demand to keep the Jail as a national monument should be accepted by the government.

Five Requisites for an Ideal Trade Union – Babu Tarapada

05 Wednesday Apr 2017

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Babu Tarapada Mukherjee, one of the great leaders of the P&T Trade Union movement, in his famous Lahore Speech (1921) pointed out five important requisites for a successful trade union.

  1. There should be strong feeling of class consciousness. The bond of all unions is this feeling of class consciousness. We all belong to the Postal Services and are, therefore, brothers. We may come from different provinces, we may speak different tongues, we may be separated by wide areas extending over thousands of miles, but all this difference must appear before our common brotherhood. We may have our private disputes, tempting offers may be in work to seduce particular officials to create divided interest, but we must rise superior to all these. Private quarrel never so better and temptation never so powerful, should not alienate us from our allegiance to brother officials and make us traitors to our cause. This feeling is class consciousness, without which no organisation worth the name is possible.
  2. The second requisite is that no official stand  aloof from our union. Union is strength, and we can not afford to have division in our camp. In the interest of service as much as for individual interest, every one should join the union with heart and soul, so that our demands may have behind them, the united strength of the entire body of officials.
  3. The third requisite is to create  a substantial reserve fund. Brother delegates, full purse constitutes the sinews of war, and no special emphasis is at all necessary on this point. You all know without a strong financial backing, satisfactory work can not be done.
  4. The fourth requisite is to give publicity to our grievances through the press. ….The organ of the union should be very largely subscribed, so that every employee may have the opportunity to acquaint himself with the activities of the association and become familiar with the progress of ideas.
  5. The fifth requisite is to influence the members of the Legislative Assembly and the Council of State with a view to bring pressure on the government.  The value of help in this direction, will however, depend to a great extent on the strength of our organisation. The members are in a position to help, no doubt, but their help will not be very effective, unless our organisation becomes powerful. (From the 09-10-1921 Lahore Speech of Babu Tarapada Mukherjee)