116Birthday anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

23 Wednesday Jan 2013

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Today, 23 January 2013, is the 116th Birth Anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, the revolutionary leader of the Indian Independence Movement. Along with Gandhiji and Jawahar Lal Nehru, Subhas Bose was a top leader of the Congress and was elected twice as its President. But he resigned after difference with Gandhiji, who openly expressed his displeasure in the election of Subhas Bose defeating the candidate proposed by Gandhiji. Later he formed his own party, Forward Block.

Subhas Bose formed Azad Fauj (Indian National Army), to fight against the British with the Indians staying in Burma and with the help of Japan, but could not reach India since the British stopped their march and arrested them. They could not capture Subhas Bose.

His death is still a mystery. it is stated that he died in a plane accident in Taiwan in 1945. But it is disputed. The mystery of his death continues.
Netaji Bose was one of the greatest leaders of the Indian Independence movement. My respectful salutations to him on his birth day anniversary!

Private telcos increase tariffs

23 Wednesday Jan 2013

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It is reported that Bharti Airtel has increased its telecom tariffs. The Rs.1/ for one minute will now be raised to Rs.2 for one minute. It is also reported that Idea and Vodafone are also moving towards increasing the tariffs.
It seems that the customer-sweet tariffs are going to end due to fierce competition. Now the time is coming for higher tariffs.

The private telecom companies have already threatened that they will stop roaming services, if the roaming charges are discontinued.The continued surrender of the government to the pressures of the private companies have made them bolder and to threaten the government.

No report has come from BSNL and MTNL with regard to increase of tariff. Of course, they will have to consult the government.

Forum of BSNL Unions/Associations meet on 24th Jan.

22 Tuesday Jan 2013

Posted by in BSNL - Better Service to the Nation

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A meeting of the Forum of BSNL Unions/Associations is fixed to be held at 1100 AM on 24th January 2013. The meeting will have to seriously discuss about the undue delay in implementing the 78.2% IDA fixation, ITS repatriation issue etc. on which the Forum had gone on sustained agitations. In addition, the question of the wage reduction resulted for the recruits after 01-01-2007 has to be taken as already pointed out by many circle units of the Forum and also as pointed out in the last meeting by the Convener himself and supported by others.
The DOT and BSNL management both together seems to be in a pact to delay matters, which can not be tolerated. We will have to seriously ponder on our strategy to deal with the critical situation.

Postal Unions pay homage to late OPG

22 Tuesday Jan 2013

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The Postal Unions organised a well attended meeting at the Speed Post Office premises, Gole Market, New Delhi on 22nd January to pay homage to the Com. O.P.Gupta who passed away on 6th of this month at the age of 91.
Com.Sharma, President R III Union Delhi Circle presided.Com. Suresh GS R.IV Union welcomed all. Coms. S.K.Vyas, Chairman, Confederation of CGE and Workers, V.A.N.Namboodiri, President, BSNL Employees Union, M.Krishnan, SG NFPE and many other leaders addressed focussing on the life, works and services rendered by the late lamented leader.

All the comrades present stood one minute in silence paying homage to late OP Gupta, before start of the meeting.

End the Exploitation of Casual and Contract Workers in BSNL

22 Tuesday Jan 2013

Posted by in BSNLCCWF - Casual and Contract workers

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Despite continuous representations and agitations on the issues of the casual and contract workers, the inhuman exploitation continues at field level. Whenever we meet the management, the sterotyped reply is that the CGMs have reported that in their circles, all rules are implemented including payment of minimum wage. implementation of EPPF / ESI etc. But the ground reality is completely different. Hence it has become necessary for the union to address the mangement with the details in each and every circle/SSA. The BSNL management has also submitted to the Parliament Standing Committee on Labour that all rules and regulations are implemented in the case of casual and contract workers. These utter lies of the management has got to be exposed and action taken to implement all orders. BSNLCCWF is meeting the BSNL C.O. officers continuously on these issues, but the results are meagre.
It is therefore necessary that District Secretaries of BSNLEU and BSNLCCWF together should collect the details and send it to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Labour with covering letter. The following details are required:
1. Name of the casual contract workers
2. Minimum wage eligible according to Govt. notification
3. How much is actually paid.
4. Whether EPF / ESI amount is deducted and along with employers share is deposited in the EPF / ESI.
5. Whether any BSNL officer is present at the time of payment.
Any other important issue may also be included.

The address to which the memorandum is to be submitted is:
The Chairman,
Parliamentary Standing Committee on Labour,
Parliament Annexue
New Delhi – 110001
A copy should be sent to CHQ BSNLCCWF (Both to President at Delhi address and General Secretray at Kolkata address)

It is a shame to BSNL and even to the unions and employees tht such inhuman exploitation is taking place in BSNL, a prestigious PSU. We have to put an end to this exploitation. If all of us are deermined, there is no doubt that we can change it and changee it quickly. Let us start the campaign. Let us win.

BSNL Casual/ Contract Workers will join 20-21 Feb, Strike

21 Monday Jan 2013

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The BSNL Casual and Contract Workers Federation has called upon the casual and contract workers in BSNL to join the 2 days General Strike on 20-21 February along with the other workers in the country. The strike has been called by the 11 Central Trade Unions on the major demand of the people and the workers.

Many demands in the Charter are directly connected with the demands of the casual and contract workers including the minimum wage of Rs.10,000, implementtion of social security benefits, Recognition of Unions, Implementation of ILO resolutions by India etc. Already, the BSNLCCWF has started maximum propaganda to make the strike a complete success.

Elections in Tripura notified – Left to win again.

21 Monday Jan 2013

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Official notification for the state assembly elections in Tripura has been issued. There are 60 seats. The voting will be on 14 February and the counting will be on 28 February 2013. The results will also be announced on the same day.

The Left Front has been ruling Tripura continuously for the last six terms. In each elections, the CPI(M) has been getting more and more votes and also seats. Manik Sarkar Government has implemented many programmes which have benefitted the ordinary people.
Irrespective of the high level propaganda, money and muscle power of the Congress and its allies, the Left is going to win the elections for the 7th time and form the government once again.

“This is the best governed state in the country in terms of maintaining law and order, giving safety and security to the lives and properties of people and improving the standard of lives of people,” CPI(M) General Secretary Com. Prakash Karat said in an election meeting held in Agartala.

VRS will neither help BSNL, Country, nor the Workers.

21 Monday Jan 2013

Posted by in BSNL - Better Service to the Nation

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After a lapse of silence for some time, the BSNL Management seems to focus attention on the issue of VRS once again. It is reported in some papers today quoting some top management officers that VRS is urgently required to save the BSNL and reduce the expenditure on salary, which is about 46% to 48%. It is also stated that the workers lack technical knowledge and are aged, hence they should be retrenched through VRS.

Let us see how much sincerity and facts are involved in the above arguments focussed in the reports.
1. 46-48% of the revenue/expenditure is to pay the salary, is one argument. The % has increased, not because the number of workers has increased but due to the fact that the revenue of the company has gone down for which the main responsibility lies upon the management. When there were more than 3.5 lakh workers some 6-7 years back, the % of salary to the total revenue/expenditure was less, since the revenue was about Rs. 40,000 crore. The main reason for the % of salary increasing is because the revenue decreased to about Rs. 27,000 crore in the last few years. Management is fully responsible for the same and not the workers.
2. Aging is a natural phenomena and the workforce recruited 20-25 years back will naturally be above 45-50 years. They have worked dedicately all these years and have increased the wealth of the DOT/BSNL. With regarding to their technical capability, despite the unions continuously demanding, training and retraining were not given to them as required. While top level officers were deputed to ALTTC, BRBRAITT, RTTC etc. for continued and regular refreshment courses, the non-executives were mostly discriminated. And now what right has got the management to state that they are not technically capable? If the BSNL management had got common sense and business culture, it would have trained all the staff to enable them to work effectively. The complete fault lies upon the management.
3. Whether VRS will help any company to save itself? The answer is a clear NO. MTNL has implemented VRS 2-3 times. What is the present situation? The services have become worse due to shortage of staff. What happened to the Nationalised Banks which implemented the VRS ‘effectively’? Due to acute shortage of staff after the VRS, the customers have been suffering and have to wait a long period at the bank counters. And the Bank managements have now been compelled to recruit more than 70,000 employees this year. As can be seen from these experiences VRS will only weaken the BSNL.
4. According to BSNL Management about Rs.18,000 crore is required to implement VRS for retrenching about one lakh workers, which is the target. Where is this huge sum for VRS? BSNL do not have the funds.Government is reluctant to give. It is reported that when the Management approched the Banks for loan, instead of Rs. 18,000 crore, they are willing to loan only Rs.1,000 crore or so. Why the management wants to take loan for VRS and why not for the development and expansion of the services? The approach of the management is completely negative and anti-worker.
5. VRS is a big loss to the workers. If they continue in service, every year they will getting 3% increment, promotion as per the Promotion Policy, there will be a wage revision, and the pension will be almost double if he/she retires after superannuation compared to the Voluntary retirement now.
These are only some of the issues to be considered.Earlier three times the management had tried to implement VRS, but due to the strong opposition from the Unions, especially BSNLEU, the decisions had to be dropped. The present move also will face the same fate, since the proposal is not in the interest of the BSNL, customers, the workers or the country. It is only part of the neo-liberal policy of the government which wants the PSUs to be disinvested and privatised. The slogan raised by the first Prime minister of the country Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru that ‘ the Public Sector Units are the Modern temples of India’ is being changed by the present rulers in to that ‘ the PSUs are the new cemetaries of the neo-liberal period’.
All the unions should together fight this attack of VRS and defeat it once again in the inerest of the workers, BSNL and the country.

Mass Signatures and All India Jatha on people’s issues.

20 Sunday Jan 2013

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The CPI(M) Cental committee in its meeting held at Kolkata from 17th to 19th January 2013 has decided for All India Jathas to be organised on the major and urgent issues facing the people of this country. Portion of the statement issued by the CPI(M) is given below:

Mass Signature Campaign
The Central Committee exhorted all its Party units to complete the mass signature campaign on food security and for a universal public distribution system being conducted by the Left Parties. The good response to the signature campaign indicates that more than five crore signatures will be collected. These will be submitted to the Prime Minister when the budget session of parliament begins in February.

All India Jathas
The Central Committee finalized the programme of the all India jathas to be conduced by the Party. These jathas which will traverse the length and breadth of the country will propagate the Party’s stand on various major issues affecting the people and the alternative policies of the Left. The issues of food security and price rise; land and house sites; employment; education and health; and the fight against corruption will be focused in these jathas.

The four jathas will be from Kanyakumari to Delhi led by Ramachandran Pillai; Kolkata to Delhi led by Prakash Karat; Mumbai to Delhi led by Sitaram Yechury; and Amritsar to Delhi led by Brinda Karat. Jathas to link up with the main jathas will be conducted from Srinagar, Guwahati, Parlakhemundi (Orissa), Ahmedabad and other centres.

The jathas which will begin from February 25 and the first week of March will culminate in a mass rally in Delhi on March 19, 2013.

Qutb Minar – Whether the flights will endanger it?

19 Saturday Jan 2013

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Today, I took the opportunity to visit the Qutb Minar once again along with my wife.Earlier, the visits have always been in a hurry due to being on a a tour package or with many friends so that there was time limit and one can not see all. This time it was different. We spent mch time to see the whole historic area.
Delhi is stated to be the capital of of seven empires from the time of Delhi Sultanate (13th Century). But it has got a long history even before that, with the Hindu kingdoms of Tomars, Chahamanas (Chauhans) etc. Prithiraja Chauhan was defeated (and killed in the battle field) in 1192 by Muhammad Ghur who left to his native land after entrusting Qutbud-Din- Aibak as his viceroy. The latter captured Delhi next year. The Slave Dynasty is stated to have started in 1206 and continued till 1526 when Babar captured Delhi. The Qutb Minar was constructed during this period of slave dynasty.
Qutbud-Din Aibak laid the foundation of the Qutb-Minar, probably as a victory-tower, but he could not complete it. It is also stated that it is minar attached to the mosque, one of the first mosques in India, for calling people to prayer. The tower was completed by the next three Sultans who followed Aibak. Certain repairs also have been made later. The tower have five storeys with a height of 72.5 meters and with 379 steps. ( Though Qutb Minar is considered as the tallest tower in India, it is interesting to note that Taj Mahal is 5 feet higher than Qutb Minar, as mentioned in a plaque put by the Archeological Survey of India nearby).
There are a lot of tombs, the famous Iron pillar which is stated to be centuries older than the tower and brought from some other place by the earlier Hindu kings etc., to see there.
I remembered the first time I visited the Qutb Minar, probably in 1964. At that time the Minar was open for visitors to climb up to the 3rd storey. I also climbed and saw the entire Delhi fom tht height. It was really an experience. I still remember that the curving steps were narrow and very slippery due to continuous use by thousands of visitors every day. A few years later accidents happened when many students were inside and some of them got killed also. After that, the authroities closed the stair cases and no visitor allowed to climb up. Even now it is completely closed.
During my visit today, I saw planes flying down to the Delhi airport almost every two to three minutes through the space over the tower with very much noise. I have also seen the Qutb Minar once or twice when flying from or to Delhi. I do not know at what height the planes are flying over the Minar, but I feel that the strong vibration may affect the tower. Of course the authorities might have considered this also when the route might have been secided. Still I have got doubt.
Any how, we enjoyed visiting the tower and seeing the old mosques the historic area with so many tombs as also an unfinished tower, which was proposed to have twice the height of Qutb Minar, but the construction of which was sdropped after that particular Sultan was dead.