Demonetisation – nothing but a torture of the people.

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It has now been reported by the Reserve bank authorities that about 99% of the cancelled high value notes have been received back. The claim of the central government was that black money will be caught and exposed. Where is the black money caught? All the money has come back and the people with black money has also got the new notes.

Demonetisation has been a torture of the people. More than 100 people have died standing in the queue for getting their own money from the ATMs. There has been many reports of certain political parties, especially the ruling BJP, having changed their notes of crores of rupees just one day before demonetisation. The government has in fact given chance to the corporates and big business to make their ill gotten wealth in to legal money.

Why untouchability for ‘Black’?

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Whether in English or even in Indian languages, the word ‘black’/ similar word in the respective language, is used to denote some thing wrong, ugly, useless, brute, low standard and so on. black list, black money, black law, black Art, black Knight, blacksmith blackmail, black out, black sheep, black leg, black Monday, black mark, black English etc. are some of these words.

What is the justification to defame the ‘black’ thus? ‘Black’ is one colour just like others. But it is the colour of the Africans, the Dravidians etc. who have been conquered by the whites. It is used to humiliate the conquered. And the colour itself became part of this humiliation through centuries. Lord Krishna, though black, is mentioned only as blue in Bhagavatham and other epics, as it will be something derogatory.

It is time to change this humiliation of black and black people. ‘Black’ colour is to be treated as any other colour and all the derogatory words connected with ‘black’ should be withdrawn. Black is a beautiful colour and black people are also beautiful just like others. There can not be any discrimination between the black and white or with any other colour.

Floods in Mumbai

The incessant rains for the last two days have flooded Mumbai. Trains have been stopped, flights did not start and all the roads and low places are completely flooded. This has become an annual affair during the monsoon. It is not much different in Chennai or some other cities in the country. It is the common people, who are facing serious difficulties. We share their sorrow and hope for early restoration of normalcy.

The Central / state governments as well as the corporations are looking helplessly, instead of taking necessary action, for which funds are available. The misery of the people and the necessity of making arrangement for such eventualities are not taken seriously by the authorities.

A judicial inquiry should be conducted and the culprits punished.

NCCPA Circular – Massive Dharna at New Delhi on 25-10-2017

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National Coordination Committee of Pensioners Associations
NATIONAL EXECUTIVE DECISIONS – MASSIVE DHARNA IN DELHI
Posted: 27 Aug 2017 10:35 AM PDT

NATIONAL CO-ORDINATION COMMITTEE
OF PENSIONERS ASSOCIATIONS..

Website: nccpahq.blogspot.in.
E mail: nccpahq@gmail.com.

13.c Feroze Shah Road,
New Delhi. 110 001
PRESIDENT: COM.SHIV GOPAL MISHRA.(97176 47594)
SECy. GENERAL: COM.K.K.N.KUTTY. (98110 483030)

Dated 26th August, 2017
Dear Comrades,
National Executive Committee
meeting and decisions.

The National Executive Meeting of NCCPA was held at Nagpur on 19.08.2017 under the Chairmanship of Comrade Shiv Gopal Mishra.. Excellent arrangements were made by the Reception Committee headed by Comrades Dhaktod and Petekar.
Comrade Shiv Gopal Mishra elaborately dealt with the attitude of the Government and the official side on 7th CPC related issues of both employees and pensioners. He also narrated that Option Number 1 has been taken up as an anomaly in the NAC for discussion. Several other issues including the NJCA meeting scheduled in September and the impending indefinite strike by the Central TUS and Federations of Central, State Government and PSUs were covered by him during his speech.
The subject session that commenced thereafter was chaired by Com. S.S.Roy, working president, NCCPA. The discussion on the items of agenda was initiated by the Deputy Secretary General Comrade Pavitra Ranjan Chakraborti ably supplemented by the other Deputy Secretary General Comrade K.Ragavendran. The Secretary General Comrade KKN Kutty could not attend the meeting due to his sudden illness. More than 90% of the Office Bearers and National Executive Members attended the meeting despite the situation of flood and torrential rains in different parts of the country. A lively discussion on the agenda items followed. The following decisions were taken at the meeting Com. K. Raghavendran moved the resolution which contained the crux of discussions at the meeting and on the future course of NCCPA functioning.
Decisions and Resolution:
1. Option 3 being the belated acceptance of the demand of parity by pensioners is welcome. However, fixing the notional pay of Pre-2016 Pensioners in the replacement scales instead of actual pay scale provided for to the serving employees by successive pay commissions is an irritant and requires to be removed.
2. Option 1 as recommended by the 7thCPC being feasible to be implemented ought to have been retained as it would provide better pension for those who stagnated in the part for no fault of theirs. Rejection of option.1 as infeasible is not only unprecedented, untenable but unethical too especially viewed from the angle that the top bureaucracy had a personal axe to grind in its rejection. The meeting endorsed the correct stand taken by the Staff Side JCM National Council to treat the same as another option for pensioners.
3. The continued adamancy of the Government in refusing to grant the benefit of fixing pension to Pre-2006 Pensioners from 1.1.2006 based on the pay scales implemented to the post or cadre in which the Pensioner had retired or dead is unjustified. The rejection by Department of Expenditure even after several courts decision in favour of higher pay scales instead of replacement scales and the acceptance and implementation of the judgment in the case of the litigants shows the double standard of the Government. This benefit should be granted to all Pre-2006 Pensioners.
4. While welcoming the orders for admission of P&T Pensioners in CGHS Scheme without any conditions by withdrawing the retrograde orders of the Health Ministry, it is found that the decision that the beneficiaries must make the one time lump sum payment @ post 7thCPC rate is unjustified. The late admission in to CGHS belatedly after two decades delay should not result in penalizing the past Pensioners. The rate of subscription at the time of retirement should alone be the charges.
5. The discrimination against some other departmental pensioners who are continue to be denied entry into CGHS must be ended.
6. While ending discrimination to P&T Pensioners, the Directorate General of CGHS has issued another discriminating order to preclude the CG Employees and CG Pensioners in Union Territories from joining CGHS. This order also aims to send out those employees and pensioners wrongly admitted in to CGHS. This stand of the Government is totally unjust and should be withdrawn.
7. Many important positive recommendations of the 7thCPC on health related issues like (1) Merger of existing Postal Dispensaries with CGHS; (2) Issue of Medi-insurance Cards to employees and pensioners to facilitate cashless medical treatment; (3) Merger of all existing different medical systems into one single large umbrella medical system for CG Employees and CG Pensioners; (4) Extending the benefit under CS MA Rules 1944 to Pensioners also to end the disparity between the employees and pensioners needs to be expedited for positive implementation.
8. While the doubling of the existing rate of Fixed Medical Allowance from 500/- to 1000/- is welcome, the fixing of FMA @ 1000/- after 7th CPC while the employees of PF Department are being paid @ 2000/- per month even during 6th CPC period is very less in comparison to the mounting medical costs. The FMA must be enhanced to 2000/- per month.
9. Many orders are not being implemented in a time-bound manner. Due to this the aging pensioners cannot get the benefits in time. The GO on extending full pension to Pre-2006 Pensioners who had retired without putting 33 years of qualifying service; the GO on fixation of pension on the basis of ‘pay in the pay band’ instead of ‘minimum of pay band’ w.e.f. 1.1.2006 for all Pre-2006 Pensioners; the issue of revised PPOs to all Pre-2006 Pensioners etc were either inordinately delayed or still being delayed. The main reason for such non-implementation or slow implementation is due to staff shortage in accounting offices. Under such circumstances the recent 12th May, 2017 orders also is likely to be delayed in many departments. Therefore drawing of the services of qualified retired officials to function as ‘implementation cells’ to speed up the work under the supervision of serving Accounts Officers in all accounting offices may be considered to facilitate completion of work of Refixation of pension to all Pre-2016 Pensioners before 30.09.2017.
10. The Pay Commission and also the Government have not come forward to consider the issues of rationalizing the additional pension and reducing the period of commutation of pension. The additional pension system should be improved and the period of commutation should be reduced to 10 years.
11. The grant of additional pension should be given on attaining the age of 80, 85,90,95,100 instead of waiting for the completion of the above ages as per the verdict of Bengaluru CAT.
12. The recovery of income-tax from Pensioners is most unjustified. The Government should immediately consider payment of pension net taxes.
13. The National Executive has resolved to authorize the National Secretariat to chalk out appropriate Programme of Action on the above demands.
The under-mentioned organisational decisions are also taken unanimously:
1. NCCPA organization should be strengthened by approaching new organizations for affiliation; strengthening the existing affiliates with more membership; forming State COC of NCCPA in all States.
2. The State units of affiliates will get in touch with other Pensioners Associations operating in the State and get them associated with NCCPA.
3. This National Executive Committee meeting of NCCPA calls upon all its affiliates to take all possible steps to join the agitational programmes chalked out by all organisations of serving employees and the Central trade Unions.
4. Extending total solidarity to NFPE sponsored strike on 23.08.2017 for getting the GDS Committee recommendations immediately implemented.
5. NCCPA units and affiliates will take all possible steps to take part in the mass Dharna programme stated for 9,10,11 Nov. 2017 at Delhi under the auspices of the joint platform of Central Trade Unions.
6. NCCPA will organize an independent programme to project the CG pensioner related issues and most prominently against NPS

Massive Dharna at the National Capital: DELHI.
In deference to the decision of the National Executive, consultations were held amongst the Secretariat members about the feasibly of organizing an independent programme by NCCPA. The consensus is that the NCCPA must organize a massive Dharna at Janter-Manter, New Delhi on 25.10.2017 from 11.00 AM to 3.00 PM eliciting participation of members of all affiliates and from all states. To make the programme successful, a serious campaign will be undertaken by the National Leadership consisting of President, Working President, Vice President Secretary General, two Deputy Secretary Generals. Detailed circular will be issued shortly. Affiliates and unites are requested to convey the issues/ demands to be included in the Charter immediately on receipt of this letter.
The Office bearers and the National Executive Members especially the Chief Executives of affiliated organizations and the State CGPA organizations are requested to mobilize and ensure the participation of the largest number of pensioners in the Programme to highlight our issues before the Government. The Charter of Demands will be circulated shortly after causing consultation with the members of the National Sectt.
With Greetings,
Comradely Yours,
Sd/-

KKN Kutty
Secretary General

Why not a University for the senior citizens?

The government of Kerala and the Departments of Social justice and Education should think about opening a University for the aged and the senior citizens, who could not get higher education due to various reasons. It will empower the senior citizens not only on their own issues, but also to serve the society in a bigger way.

Next round of Spectrum Auction soon – TRAI

The process for the next round of auction of Spectrum (air-waves) is expected shortly. TRAI has given indication in this direction. Spectrum in almost all category is available. Last time, the government got Rs. 65,789 crore in the auction.

The government should concede the demand of the BSNL and the Unions for allotment of spectrum free, considering that BSNL is a 100% government company and is short of funds at present. It is serving the people in all parts of the country, including lakhs of remote villages, where the private companies are shy of providing service due to high costs and losses.

NITI Ayog against labour laws

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NITI Ayog has asked the government for further reforms of labour laws and make them more flexible to make it easier to do business in the country. (Hindu-29-08-2017)

The government has already moved for dropping away many of the existing rules favouring the working class to satisfy the corporates. The newly proposed Labour Code has taken away many of the existing rights of the workers with regard to EPF, ESI etc as also registration of union. NITI Ayog is asking, probably, to take away even the balance rules on labour welfare.
This is atrocious. The working class will give suitable reply. The Maha Dharna at Delhi from 9th to 11th November 2017, called by the Central Trade Unions will be an opportunity to expose the anti-labour policy of the government.

Kerala shows the way – Transgender a judge in the Lok Adalat

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Just like in many other areas, Kerala has shown its priority for the transgenders also. Not only the Kochi Metro has engaged many transgenders, a transgender is appointed as part of the Lok Adalat. Riya, the transgender, acted along with the other judges in the National Lok Adalat held at at Manjeri, Kerala and settled cases to the satisfaction of the complainants. ( Courtesy: Hindu Daily).

Many such decisions are required for empowering the transgenders to be part of the common society and take their place.

‘Severe underemployment in India’ – NITI Ayog

NITI Ayog has stated that there is severe under employment in India and that ” what is needed is the creation of high-productivity, high wage jobs.” The first part is correct. But in the second part, it is not only that high productivity, high wages are to be created, more jobs should be created so that the unemployment is removed. NITI Ayog has to see not only highly paid wages sector, but the ordinary unemployed young people also.

The guilty will be punished – Prime Minister. Then why not Khattar is removed?

Prime Minister Naredra Modi has told in his ‘Man Ki Baat’ that guilty will be punished. Then, why not Khattar, Chief Minister Haryana, is not removed from his post, for his criminal inaction which resulted in the death of about 30 people during the riots by the followers of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh ?

Action should follow assurances.