Tomorrow is Holi, the all colourful festival of Indians. It is time for play, food and enjoyment.

I Wish all our viewers a Very Happy Holi!

The meeting of the JAC held today, 18th March, has decided to organise massive lunch hour demonstration on 5th April 2011 against the proposal of VRS for one lakh workers in BSNL, which is being examined by the committee appointed for the purpose. The JAC has decided that in no way VRS/CRS will be allowed in BSNL.

Earlier, three times, the Management/government had tried to impose VRS which have been stopped by the strong protest and agitation under the leadership of Joint Forum / Joint Action Committee. This time also the JAC will ensure that no VRS/CRS is implemented.

Let us organise the 5th programme with maximum participation.

The meeting of the Joint Action Committee of BSNL Associations/Unions of Executives & Non-Executives will be held today, 18th March 2011. One of the main agenda is to make a plan for mobilising all the workers to start a new campaign and work plan to save and strengthen BSNL. It will have to think about and plan our strategy in view of the New Telecom Policy 2011 being prepared by the Government of India. What should be our alternative plan. All these are to be discussed in the meeting of the JAC today.

The time is passing out. BSNL is in loss in 2010-11 for the first time. It may be in loss for 2011-12 also. But if all of the management and the workers together strive hard, there is every chance that we may be able to bring BSNL to profit by 2012-13. Of course, the government should be compelled to change its anti-PSU policy. That can only be done by sustained campaign and public pressure. Our task is to facilitate the same.

Let us take suitable decisions in the JAC.

The latest report from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) says that there is worldwide unemployment of 250 million ( 25 crore) in 2010. It shows that the job market is slumping in except in emerging economies like Brazil. The unemployed have been continuously increasing in 2009 to 2010 and now in 2011. The hardest hit countries are stated as the most developed countries. ( from FLASHES FROM WFTU).

It clearly shows that the huge subsidies and assistance given by the state to the big business and MNCs has not been used for maintaining or increasing the jobs. It has been used for increasing their profits only.

The radiation threat in Japan is increasing. It is feared that even Tokyo, the capital of Japan may be hit by the nuclear radiation. People are naturally panicky and are starting to move to other places.

At Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, the situation has become very serious with the explosions in the nuclear plants. Most of the employees and workers have been evacuated. But, it is reported in the media, that still there are 50 workers in the plant who have volunteered to work in the extreme dangerous area braving the nuclear radiation. They continue there to ensure cooling of the plants and to do whatever is possible to stop further spread of the radiation. Whatever respirators, oxygen tanks or full body jump-suits they use for safety, still it is seriously dangerous.

Just like moving to the war front, these workers are prepared to sacrifice themselves for the people of their country. It is always like that. Whether it is any natural calamity, the war front or any other crisis, it is the workers who will be there to defend the country and the people.

We hail these 50 workers who are sacrificing themselves for the people. Let us hope that they will be able to extinguish the radiation and save themselves out of it. (inputs from Hindu dated 17-03-2011)

A meeting of the Joint Action Committee is going to be held on 18th March 2011 at New Delhi. The main agenda is how to improve BSNL services, improve its financial viability and to strengthen it. Now is a crucial time. BSNL has posted loss last year for the first time. This loss incurring process can not be allowed to be continued. We could not allow it to go to the ITI, HMT route, caused due to the anti-PSU policy of the Central Government.

What is to be done?
1. The Government has to change its anti-PSU policy. It should assist BSNL to serve the entire country so that the social commitment of the government could be implemented effectively. Private companies have already shown that they are only after profit and are not prepared to provide services in the loss-making areas even if they have to pay some paltry penalty to the government for violation of the licence provisions.

2. The government should honour the commitments given to BSNL and its workers at the time of formation of BSNL, with regard to its financial viability.

3. Thirdly the discrimination shown to BSNL and the favouritism shown to private companies should end. The government should always remember that BSNL is the company of the people and help accordingly.

4. A casual ineffective leadership is no leadership. A vibrant, capable and committed management should be nsured for BSNL. ITS officers should get absorbed in BSNL. Otherwise suitablee alternate management should be brought.

5. The middle management should come forward to take more responsibility and enter the field, especially in the marketting. They should give the lead in the marketting in such a way that the entire executive and non-executives unitedly are brought in to the field.

6. The workers should reach each and every house/office through out the country and ensure increase of telephone connections as also connected additional services. Three lakh workers should be capable of doing this work.

7. Our dealing with the customers should be most friendly and helpful. Courteous and efficient service will bring more and more customers and ensure less surrended of phones.

8. There are are many more sugestions which can be discussed and decided. For that the JAC should be strengthened. The small differences should be kept aside and the work should start with one agenda of saving BSNL and its workers.

Whether the JAC will be able to do that work? Let us try.

5.

The Central government is changing its rules and decisions one after another on the pressure of the private telecom companies. The latest is the proposal to reduce the penalty for security breach. Now it proposes to reduce the maximum penalty for security breach by the telcos to Rs.1000 crore. Earlier there was no such limit and even 100% contract value was imposed on them as penalty for spyware or malware found in the imported mobile equipments. It is to be noted that the private telcos have been pressurizing the government to reduce the penalty.

In the same way, after insisting for the encryption codes of the foreign companies like Research In Motion (RIN) for Blackberry to security check, the Government has now decided that it is the responsibility of the security agencies to find out the method of checking up, thus relieving the MNCs of handing over the encryption codes.

How much the government is bending on its decisions to favour the private companies!

Japan is in serious danger of nuclear radiation after the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear plant units started exploding consequent to the devastating earthquake and Sunami. The four units of the nuclear plant have been affected by the disaster and radiation has started spreading causing panic and alarm not only in Japan, but in the whole world. Japan Government is trying its best to control the radiation effect.

This is the second time that Japan had to face nuclear disaster. First it was the United States which put hydrogen bombs in Nagasakhi and Hiroshima at the end of the II World war destroying completely both the cities and causing radiation ill effects to millions of people. This time it is the fury of the nature that resulted the radiation.

Let us hope that with the help and support of the people all over the world, Japan will be able to sustain and pass over this great tragedy to the nation and its people.

” During the last six years from 2005-06, the Government of India wrote off corporate income tax worth Rs.3,74,937 crore – more than twice the 2G fraud – in successive Union budgets. The figure has grown every single year for which data are available. Corporate income tax written off in 2005-06 was Rs. 34,618 crore. In the current budget, it is Rs. 88,263 crore – an increase of 155 per cent. That is, the nation presently writes off over Rs. 240 crore a day on average in corporate income tax. Oddly, that is also the daily average of illicit fund flows from India to foreign banks, according to a report of the Washington-based think tank, Global Financial Integrity”.

This is the first para of an article in Hindu dated 7th March 2011 under the caption ” Corporate socialism’s 2G orgy” by Shri P.Sainath, veteran journalist. The article deals with the neo-liberal policy of the government under which the big business and corporates are given all kinds of subsidy, while the ordinary people are fleeced. I would recommend viewers of my blog to read the article, which a gives a lot of information on this aspect of the present Union budget.