COVID-19 Lockdown: CITU Steps up to Ensure Ration, PPE and Financial Assistance | NewsClick
Thursday, May 21, 2020
Since after a nationwide lockdown was imposed by the prime minister on March 24 in order to curb the spread of COVID-19, migrant workers and daily wagers who were caught off guard have suffered without work and earnings. While many organisations in their limited capacity have been working to help the vulnerable sections of the society, Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) has stepped up and has been involved in relief work across the country.
Super Cyclone Amphan wreaked havoc in six districts of southern West Bengal on Wednesday night, leaving behind shattered homes, uprooted trees and a collapse of the communication network in the state. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that 72 people have lost their lives as a result of the storm, said to be the strongest cyclone in the state for decades. In a bulletin, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said that as of 5 p.m. on Thursday, Amphan had moved north-northeastwards and would weaken into a deep depression over the next three hours. North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas and Nadia were the worst affected districts with the complete destruction of crops like paddy, groundnut and vegetables in the region. Howrah, Hooghli and Medinipur districts have suffered mild damage as well. Farmers have said that the saline water in farms will seriously compromise prospects of future cultivation.
The ongoing police probe into February riots that left Northeast Delhi smouldering reminds of the investigation processes in cases related to Bhima Koregaon and 2002 Gujarat violence, activists alleged, adding that similar to the later ones an attempt is underway to turn the narrative of Delhi riots on its head. In a joint virtual press conference on Thursday, eminent personalities including human rights activists and political figures accused the Delhi Police of “targeting” the ant- CAA protesters by “framing them under false charges”. This is when the FIRs against BJP leaders for inflammatory speeches have not been registered, even after almost three months of them allegedly inciting violence.
Newsclick Team 21 May 2020 A huge number of migrant laborers continue to make the long journey home on UP's Yamuna Expressway. They had no way to make ends meet and so began this journey. The government has not provided them any facilities. It's the residents of villages on their way who are helping them. Bhasha Singh talks to these migrants
Reduced factory emissions and those from power stations and even from the grounded airline industry have given people a taste of clean air. The lockdown has taken out the equivalent of almost 1.5 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide in China and could curb global emissions from air travel by 11% to 19%, says a March 11, 2020 report by Bloomberg Intelligence. There is thus immense wishful thinking around renewable energy, as the International Energy Agency (IEA) position confirms.
In the villages of Punjab, the labour crisis caused by the Novel Coronavirus pandemic is now leading to growing incidents of nepotism and bias. The prominent farmers and landlords in the villages are taking advantage of the crisis to engineer splits between social groups and communities. So far, it is estimated that about 11 lakh labourers are likely to migrate out of Punjab to their respective states. About 6 lakh of them are from only one region, Ludhiana. This year, the usual inflow of seasonal temporary labourers into Punjab around Vaisakhi also did not take place due to the lockdown. This paddy season, the farmers of Punjab remained dependent on regional labourers.
Monday, May 18, 2020
Amey Tirodkar 18 May 2020 Small Players Hope for Revival Policy Representational Image. Akshay Patil is a young, first-generation, small-time entrepreneur from Aurangabad. He started his own tourism company four years back. He is in an agreement with an international conglomeration of smaller tourism companies. So, he sends tourists to other countries and arranges services in and around Aurangabad for the international travellers.
Newsclick Report 18 May 2020 Swiggy to Lay Off Over 1,000 Employees New Delhi: The axe of COVID-19 on jobs continues, especially in the informal sector and gig economy. Two days after online food delivery major Zomato announced that it was laying 13% of its staff, Swiggy announced on Monday that it was laying off 1,100 employees across cities. In an email to employees on Monday, Sriharsha Majety, co-founder and chief executive of Swiggy, said: “The core food delivery business has been severely impacted and will stay impacted over the short term, but is expected to start growing again after that...While we are very fortunate to have raised capital just before Covid hit and have sufficient runway today, it is incredibly important to prepare for worse scenarios in the macro environment and make sure we are protected."
Sunday, May 17, 2020
Within the serious constraints of the lockdown the working class in the country has made it clear they were not going to take these attacks lying down. In almost all the states wherever these changes were being carried out or being considered, in Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Punjab, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Bihar etc., protests were held in front of the labour commissioners’ officers, work places, or houses etc., by CITU independently or jointly along with other trade unions. On May 14, the central trade unions in the joint trade union platform discussed online about the future course of action to resist these measures. The secretariat meeting of CITU scheduled to be held online on May 15 will finalise its campaign and struggle programmes on the basis of the call of its 16th conference ‘to defy and resist’ anti-worker policies of the government.
In addition there is no empirical evidence that prohibiting labour laws or reducing wages would lead to economic growth. In Rajasthan, while the labour law amendments of the former BJP government were hailed by the corporates, what followed was fall in wages, increase in unemployment and decline in the state GDP. The Economic Survey of 2018-19 stressed that a high minimum wage does not impact employment generation. Besides, it is not only the trade unions, even eminent legal experts point out that ‘to say our labour laws are strictly implemented is a myth and thus to infer that their implementation is the primary cause for losses in productivity would be very erroneous’.
However, this argument that foreign companies would relocate themselves from China to India is totally misplaced. Even Indian firms are not investing in the country, particularly during the last few years. The major reason is the deteriorating purchasing power of the people and the inability to sell the manufactured products. Further suppressing demand through these measures will only worsen the disease.
Commending the UP, MP and Gujarat government’s initiatives as ‘one of the boldest and bravest initiatives since reforms in 1991’, Amitabh Kant, CEO of NITI Aayog recommended further reforms in other sectors as well. ‘It’s now or never; states are driving bold reforms; we will never get this opportunity; seize it’, he egged on the corporates.
This atrocious annulment of labour laws, meant to push workers into slavery is being done ostensibly in the name of attracting investment and supported by some in the name of weaning foreign firms from China. In the context of the corona pandemic, ‘China has become unpopular and many companies would exit from China. India should take this as a big opportunity, attract these firms and replace China as the ‘factory of the world’ – so goes the argument.
It is in such conditions that the employers and the governments serving them are trying to push workers into conditions of slavery. The employers don’t want to pay them wages; but they also won’t allow them to go back to their native places either. They want the workers to be available, homeless, starving but ready to work with low wages and without any legal protection whenever the establishments are open. But, that is what capitalism is. In their rush for profits, capitalists trample underfoot workers, human beings, nature, anybody and anything; no feelings of justice, humanity or morality here.
These demands and the response of the governments are nothing short of cruel. The corona pandemic has further increased the distress of the working class whose situation was already worsening due to the economic crisis. The workers are now facing unprecedented deprivations. ILO has estimated that half the workers globally would lose their jobs; in India around 40 crores workers are estimated to be pushed into poverty. The Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) has reported that 120 million Indians have lost their jobs. Unemployment rate has risen to around 27 per cent. Crores of migrant and other workers who have lost their jobs suddenly find themselves homeless and hungry; lakhs of migrant workers have been walking hundreds of kilometres to their homes, hundreds succumbed to exhaustion and accidents on their way.
These attacks on the hard won rights of the working class, its display of authoritarianism are part of the attacks on the basic democratic and human rights of the toiling people by the desperate capital in crisis. These must be defeated and reversed through united struggles, not only of the working class but by the entire toiling masses.
That the government is acting as per the demands, rather dictates of the employers is very clear. Representatives of 12 employers’ associations and industries including Council of Indian Employers, FICCI, ASSOCHAM and PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry have demanded government of India to suspend labour laws for the next two to three years and to increase working hours to 12 per day. The Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry demanded that trade unions be prohibited for at least one year. They complained that minimum wages were too high and bringing them down was nearly impossible; and they reiterated their long time demand for freedom to hire and fire.
It is to be noted that all these are in total violation of the ILO conventions to which India is a signatory. The first convention that ILO, which India had signed, stipulates eight hours of work in a day and 48 hours of work in a week. India is also a signatory to the Tripartite Consultation International Labour Standards Convention, 1976, which requires it to consult stakeholders – employers and workers’ bodies – before taking any policy decision. But the state governments did not engage with trade unions, thus violating the Tripartite Consultation Convention C144. This is not the first time that the BJP government led by Modi is ignoring tripartism. CITU had to raise this with the ILO, during the first tenure of the Modi government.
On May 9, the Congress government in Punjab withdrew its own notification issued on May 1, increasing DA to industrial workers, which would have increased the minimum wages of workers by over Rs 350 from March 1. It is highly significant that in this mad rush to amend labour laws to satisfy the employers, it was only the LDF government in Kerala, where the state labour minister has categorically asserted that the state was not going to amend the labour laws in favour of the employers.
In addition, several state governments – not only BJP led ones as in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Assam but also Congress led governments in Punjab and Rajasthan as well as the BJD led Odisha government have increased daily working hours from 8 to 12 and from 48 to 72 in a week with 12 hour shifts. The BJP led governments in Karnataka and Tripura too are joining the bandwagon. Tripura government has also decided to increase the threshold number of workers in establishments to 300 for the employers to hire and fire as per their wishes.
Similarly, the threshold for the applicability of Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970 in Assam will be raised from the present 20 to 50. Contractors can limit the number of their workers to 49 and exploit them with unlimited freedom. The BJP government in Karnataka is also on the same path. It is reportedly considering relaxing labour laws related to minimum wages, working hours and also others. It has suddenly transferred the principal secretary of its labour department, who was reportedly considered a thorn in its attempts.
As it is, most of the factories in our country do not have proper ventilation facilities, toilets, crèches, potable drinking water etc. Thousands of workers die every year of industrial accidents due to the neglect of the employers, the latest being the accident in LG Polymers in Visakhapatnam in which 12 people in the nearby village died and hundreds became seriously ill. Besides, when the economy is being opened up even as the fight against the corona virus needs to be continued, it is essential to ensure safe workplaces with facilities for washing hands, sanitisation and physical distancing etc. Instead of doing this, the BJP led governments are putting workers’ safety and lives to greater risk.
The state cabinet in Assam, again ruled by BJP, decided to implement Fixed Term Employment and exempt large number of employers from following labour laws like the Factories Act and the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act. It has decided to increase the threshold number of workers for applicability of the Factories Act from 20 to 40 in the case of factories not using power and from 10 to 20 in the case of those using power. This will throw large number of workers in the manufacturing units out of legal protection under the Act related to occupational safety, health and welfare.
The chief minister of BJP ruled Madhya Pradesh announced that his government was going to follow his counterpart in Uttar Pradesh to annul labour laws for 1000 days and liberate the employers. New establishments in the state will be exempt from their obligation under the Factories Act, Madhya Pradesh Industrial Relations Act, Industrial Disputes Act, Contract Labour Act etc through appropriate amendments by executive order or ordinance. They have been assured that there will be no labour department’s intervention in the establishment during this period; no inspections; only self certification. They can hire and fire workers as per their choice. Nobody can prevent them if they want to fire existing workers and hire new workers at lower wages. Trade unions will not be allowed to raise workers’ issues or bargain with the management. Employers are even exempted from payment of Rs 80 per worker to the Madhya Pradesh Labour Welfare Board.
The lockdown imposed to contain the pandemic brought the entire economy, which was already sliding, to a halt. It wreaked havoc with the lives and livelihoods of the workers, particularly the migrant workers and the unorganised sector workers. This was seen, by the distorted minds of the ruling classes and their pen pushers, as an opportunity to crush workers’ rights, shove them into slavery and protect their own profits. Again the lead was taken by the BJP ruled state governments, with the silent approval and blessing of Prime Minister Modi and his government. One by one BJP led state governments took up the process of nullifying all labour laws; state governments led by the Congress or other regional parties also followed.
After returning to power with increased mandate, labour laws amendment was again taken up by the BJP government led by Modi as a priority. All the labour code bills were introduced in parliament. But, despite its majority in Lok Sabha, BJP government could pass only the Code on Wages. Even as it wanted to push through the others – the Code on Occupational Health and Safety and Working Conditions, the Code on Industrial Relations and the Code on Social Security – it was compelled to refer them to the parliamentary standing committee on labour. Before it could get them enacted, the corona pandemic struck.
DURING its first term, the Modi led BJP government fast tracked the process of dismantling the labour laws that provided some protection to the workers, though to a very small section of them. It embarked upon codification of the 44 central labour laws into 4 codes. When this met with stiff resistance from all central trade unions with massive countrywide strikes, it was the BJP led state governments that carried the baton to amend labour laws in their respective states, Rajasthan taking the lead. BJP government at the centre directed all state governments to follow suit.
जेएनयू के पूर्व छात्रसंघ अध्यक्ष एवं भारतीय कम्युनिस्ट पार्टी के नेता कन्हैया कुमार ने मज़दूरों की मौजूदा स्थिति को लेकर चिंता व्यक्त की है और मज़दूरों की इस बदहाली के लिए केंद्र की मोदी सरकार को ज़िम्मेदार बताया है। उनका कहना है कि सरकार मुश्किल की इस घड़ी में मज़दूरों का ख्याल नहीं रख रही है। सरकार पर तंज़ कसते हुए कन्हैया ने ट्विटर के ज़रिए कहा कि वादा- सबका साथ, सबका विकास, सबका विश्वास का किया गया था। लेकीन ये नहीं बताया गया था कि इस वादे में कुछ शर्तें भी हैं और वो शर्तें ये हैं कि सरकार के सब में ग़रीबों, मज़दूरों और बेरोज़गारों को शामिल नहीं किया जायेगा।
वादा था- 'सबका साथ, सबका विकास' लेकिन अब शर्तें लागू- ग़रीबों, मज़दूरों और बेरोज़गारों को छोड़कर : कन्हैया
देश के कोने-कोने में सैकड़ों मजदूर भूख-प्यास, पैदल चलने की वजह से मर चुके हैं। इस बीच भाजपा नेता और योगी सरकार में राज्यमंत्री उदयभान सिंह ने मजदूरों को ही चोर-डाकू बोल दिया। ये बयान तब आया है जब उत्तर प्रदेश के औरैया में हुए एक सड़क हादसे में 23 मजदूरों की मौत हो गई है। वहीँ पिछले दिनों मुज्जफरनगर में भी रोड़वेज की बस से कुचलने की वजह से 6 मजदूर मार गए थे। इतना ही नहीं योगी के बड़बोले मंत्री ने मजदूरों को अपराधी तक बता दिया। उदयभान ने जो कि यूपी के सूक्ष्म, लघु और मध्यम उद्योग (एमएसएमई) राज्यमंत्री हैं। सिंह ने कहा कि, सरकार खाना-पानी दे रही है और मजदूर खेतों से होकर जा रहे चोर डकैत की तरह हैं!
“We appeal to you, being true to the oath that you have taken at the time of assuming office of the President of India, to urgently intervene to stop such naked savagery against the working class and the working people, at this crucial juncture when the unity of all our people is our biggest strength in fighting and defeating this pandemic,” the leaders of the seven parties wrote.
“Instead of moving towards a vibrant modern secular democratic republic, India is today being pushed back to medieval barbarism and slavery. It is simple, honourable president, workers under the Indian Constitution are not slaves. Reducing them to this status is not merely a violation of the Constitution but its nullification.
The letter mentioned that the manner in which the migrant workers in various states, except with honourable exceptions like Kerala, have been treated, leaving them without any support is deplorable. Worse, they are now being charged for their travel to return home. Many restrictions are also being placed on their movement virtually treating them as bonded or indentured labour.
“’Your government’ has done very little to look after the people who have lost all their livelihood and all capacity to meet their hunger needs. They are languishing. Fourteen crores of workers have lost their jobs since the lockdown began. Surely, you will agree that India cannot have more deaths due to hunger, starvation, poverty and deprivation than those infected by this deadly virus,” they wrote.
“ Already ‘your government’ has initiated the legislative process of codifying 44 existing labour laws into four codes. One of these has been adopted by the parliament – the Code on Wages Bill. The others are in the process. Even before this codification gets a legislative sanction, the existing laws are being violated with impunity. Once this code gets the legislative sanction, then the executive i.e., the government can through an executive order change this without the need for any reference to the parliament or state legislatures. This is patently anti-labour and draconian,” they wrote.
The letter said that using the pretext of battling the pandemic, the daily working hours have been increased from eight to twelve hours through executive orders in various states like Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Punjab without amending the Factories Act. Some other states are likely to join this growing list. The state government of Uttar Pradesh has suspended all labour laws, except three, for a period of three years. The Madhya Pradesh government, similarly, announced a cabinet decision to exempt all establishments from obligations under all labour laws for a period of a thousand days. The fundamental right for the workers to organise themselves into unions is also being gravely threatened.
Already the country is witness to the most inhuman tragic dimensions of the plight of the migrant works since the national lockdown has been enforced. Far from protecting the fundamental right to life and dignity, today’s conditions are barbaric. Last night, sixteen migrant workers, mainly tribals, forced to walk thousands of kilometres back to their homes with no arrangements being made for them, were crushed to death by a goods train in Maharashtra. The easing of restrictions have not been accompanied by the required safety measures and environmental concerns. Such negligence has led to the Vizag industrial accident claiming 12 lives and hundreds hospitalised. The concerns for the safety and survival of the workers is grossly neglected by ‘your government’. Such is the state of affairs in our country.
LEADERS of seven political parties – CPI(M), CPI, CPI(ML)-L , AIFB, RSP, RJD and VCK – have, in a letter addressed to the president of India on May 8, raised concerns over the security, welfare, livelihood and future of crores of Indian working class and working people. They said that this in fact, concerns the well being and prosperity of our entire country and its future. The issue is the nullification of the labour laws and the hard-won democratic rights of the vast majority of Indian people in the name of fighting the Covid-19 pandemic and the consequences of this prolonged national lockdown. They drew the attention of the president to these issues which they thought are anti-constitutional, hence against the law of the land.
Friday, May 15, 2020
यूथ कांग्रेस द्वारा बीजेपी के राष्ट्रीय प्रवक्ता संबित पात्रा के ख़िलाफ़ एफआईआर दर्ज कराए जाने के बाद सोशल नेटवर्किंग साइट ट्विटर पर उन्हें गिरफ़्तार किए जाने कि मांग उठ रही है। ये मांग इतने यूजर्स ने की है कि इस वक़्त ट्विटर पर #ArrestSambitPatra टॉप ट्रेंड बन गया है। संबित पात्रा के खिलाफ यूथ कांग्रेस ने एफआईआर उनके एक विवादित ट्वीट को लेकर दर्ज कराई है। जिसमें उन्होंने देश के दो पूर्व प्रधानमंत्री जवारलाल नेहरू और राजीव गांधी के बारे में अपमानजनक टिप्पणी की है। दरअसल एमपी कांग्रेस ने ट्वीट कर कहा था कि अगर इस समय कोरोना संकट में कांग्रेस की सरकार होती तो हम टेस्ट उपचार व्यवस्था राहत मदद और तकनीकी में सबसे आगे होते।
#ArrestSambitPatra बना टॉप ट्रेंड, श्रीनिवास बोले- BJP के इस 'नफ़रती वायरस' को जेल में डाला जाना ज़रूरी
झारखंड के बाघमारा से बीजेपी विधायक ढुल्लू महतो ने सोमवार को न्यायिक दंडाधिकारी संगीत की अदालत में सरेंडर कर दिया। अदालत ने विधायक को जेल भेज दिया है। ढुल्लू महतो पर रेप का आरोप भारतीय जनता पार्टी की जिला मंत्री रह चुकी एक नेता ने लगाया है। बता दें कि बीजेपी विधायक पर बीजेपी की ही जिला मंत्री रह चुकी एक नेता ने एक साल पहले यौन शोषण का आरोप लगाया था। उस समय झारखंड में इसको लेकर सियासी बवाल मचा था। राज्य में तब बीजेपी की रघुबर दास सरकार थी। रघुबर सरकार के दबाव में पुलिस ने महतो की गिरफ्तारी नहीं कि थी। हालांकि बाद में महिला नेता ने बीजेपी से नाता तोड़कर कांग्रेस का दामन थाम लिया था।
बीजेपी की सहयोगी जननायक जनता पार्टी (जजपा) के नेता सतविंदर राणा को शराब तस्करी के मामले में गिरफ़्तार किया गया है। पानीपत पुलिस ने उनको चंडीगढ़ के सेक्टर -3 स्थित एमएलए हॉस्टल से गिरफ़्तार किया। पुलिस के मुताबिक़, सतविंदर राणा ने बुधवार रात को लॉकडाउन के दौरान समालखा के एक सील किए गए गोदाम से शराब चुराई। इस मामले की जानकारी जब पुलिस को हुई तो डीएसपी क्राइम राजेश फोगाट की टीम ने उनकी तलाश शुरू कर दी। पुलिस को जब पता चला कि राणा सेक्टर -3 स्थित एमएलए हॉस्टल में हैं तो पुलिस सीधे वहां पहुंच गई और उन्हें गिरफ़्तार कर लिया।
औरंगाबाद के बाद अब उत्तर प्रदेश के मुजफ्फरनगर से बेहद दर्दनाक खबर सामने आई है। यहां रोडवेज की बेकाबू बस ने प्रवासी मजदूरों को कुचल दिया। जिसमें 6 मज़दूरों की मौत हो गई, जबकि 4 गंभीर रूप से घायल हो गए। बताया जा रहा है कि मज़दूर पैदल ही पंजाब से बिहार के गोपालगंज जा रहे थे। ये घटना थाना नगर कोतवाली क्षेत्र के मुजफ्फरनगर देवबंद सहारनपुर राजमार्ग टोल प्लाजा के करीब हुई। जानकारी के मुतबिक, बुधवार रात 11:45 बजे प्रवासी मज़दूरों की एक टोली इसी जगह से गुज़र रही थी। तभी पीछे से एक रोडवेज बस आई और इन्हें कुचलते हुए निकल गई। घटना की सूचना पाकर पुलिस मौके पर पहुंची। पुलिस के मुताबिक़ इस घटना में 6 लोगों की मौके पर ही मौत हो गई, जबकि 4 लोग गंभीर रूप से घायल हो गए। सभी घायलों को इलाज के लिए जिला अस्पताल में भिजवाया गया जहां उनकी हालत को गंभीर देखते हुए डॉक्टर ने उन्हें मेरठ रेफर कर दिया जहां उनका इलाज चल रहा है।
मुज्जफरनगर हादसे पर बोले अखिलेश यादव- पहले ट्रेन और अब बस हादसा, मज़दूरों की ज़िंदगी इतनी सस्ती क्यों? उत्तर प्रदेश के मुजफ्फरनगर जिले में बुधवार रात घर जा रहे प्रवासी मजदूर भीषण सड़क दुर्घटना का शिकार हो गए। इस हादसे में 6 मजदूरों की मौके पर मौत हो गई है, जबकि 5 मजदूर घायल हैं। जानकारी के मुताबिक, राज्य परिवहन की बस ने सड़क पर पैदल चल रहे मजदूरों को टक्कर मार दी। ये मजदूर पंजाब से बिहार के गोपालगंज जा रहे थे। समाजवादी पार्टी सुप्रीमो अखिलेश यादव ने मुजफ्फरनगर हादसे पर गहरा दुख जताते हुए मोदी सरकार के विदेशों से लाए जा रहे वंदे भारत मिशन पर जमकर बरसे। उन्होंने कहा कि, “उप्र के मुजफ्फरनगर बस हादसे में प्रवासी मज़दूरों की दर्दनाक मौत पर गहरा दुख. श्रद्धांजलि! पहले ट्रेन और अब बस हादसा, मज़दूरों की ज़िंदगी इतनी सस्ती क्यों। ‘वंदे भारत मिशन’ में क्या देश की गरीब जनता नहीं आ सकती। इतना ऊपर भी उड़ना ठीक नहीं कि ज़मीन की सच्चाई की उपेक्षा हो जाए।”
उत्तर प्रदेश में लॉकडाउन के चलते पलायन कर रहे मज़दूरों की सड़क हादसों में मौत का सिलसिला जारी है। ताज़ा मामला औरैया से सामने आया है। यहां एक सड़क हादसे में घर लौट रहे 24 मजदूरों की मौत हो गई, जबकि 35 मज़दूर गंभीर रूप से घायल हो गए। हादसा शहर कोतवाली क्षेत्र के मिहौली नेशनल हाईवे पर हुआ। बताया जा रहा है कि दिल्ली से अपने घरों को लौट रहे मज़दूरों की एक टोली यहां एक चाय की दुकान पर खड़ी थी। तभी उनके ऊपर एक चूने से लदा एक ट्रालर पलट गया। ट्रालर मज़दूरों पर एक ट्रक की टक्कर से पलटा। औरैया के डीएम अभिषेक सिंह ने बताया कि यह हादसा सुबह तकरीबन साढ़े तीन बजे हुआ। इस हादसे में अब तक 24 लोगों की मौत हुई है। कई लोग घायल हैं। घायलों को अस्पताल में भर्ती कराया गया है। इनमें से ज्यादातर मजदूर बिहार, झारखंड और पश्चिम बंगाल के रहने वाले थे।
जिस देश में कामगार तीन-तीन हजार किलोमीटर पैदल चल रहे हैं, उस देश के पीएम ने लोगों को आत्मनिर्भरता और आत्मसंकल्प पर भाषण दिया. अगर यह देश की आर्थिक आत्मनिर्भरता के बारे में था, तो इसके साथ करोड़ों लोगों की जान बचानी पहले जरूरी है. लाखों लाख की संख्या में सड़कों पर चल रहे मजदूरों के बारे में एक भी शब्द न बोलकर प्रधानमंत्री ने संकेत दे दिया है कि कामगार और गरीब वर्ग सरकार से कोई उम्मीद न करे. वह आत्मनिर्भर बने और दिल्ली या मुंबई से यूपी बिहार की यात्रा अपने पैरों पर करे. कई अच्छी बातें भी कहीं, लेकिन जिसकी जान पर बनी हुई है, उसे आर्थिक पैकेज का क्या काम? आर्थिक पैकेज सेे उद्योगों को जरूर राहत मिलेगी. पहले तो जान बचानी चाहिए. यह भाषण निहायत चुनावी भाषण था जिसमें संकट में फंसे, भुखमरी और जान के संकट से जूझ रहे लोगों के लिए कुछ नहीं था.
इस तस्वीर को देखिए और याद कीजिए कि भारत के पास दुनिया का चौथा सबसे बड़ा रेल नेटवर्क है. भारत विश्व में अहम स्थान रखने वाली अर्थव्यवस्था है. इस व्यवस्था की रीढ़ अब भी खेती और असंगठित क्षेत्र है. इन क्षेत्रों में काम करने वाले लोग, रेल की पटरियां बिछाने वाले लोग इतिहास का सबसे भयावह पलायन झेल रहे हैं. यह व्यवस्था मूक दर्शक बनी उन्हें देख रही है. इस देश में 20-20 साल के युवा कभी फांसी पर चढ़े थे. उन युवाओं की चिट्ठियां, उनके भाषण, उनके पर्चे इस बात के गवाह हैं कि वे सच में एक आजाद और आत्मनिर्भर भारत चाहते थे. ऐसा भारत, जहां जनता की चुनी हुई अपनी सरकार हो और किसी बच्चे को ऐसे मौत के मुंह में न झोंक दिया जाए.
Newsclick Report 15 May 2020 Allahabad HC Grants Anticipatory Bail to The Wire’s Siddharth Varadarajan New Delhi: The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court has granted anticipatory bail to Siddharth Varadarajan, co-founding editor of independent news portal, The Wire. The Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government and UP Police had last month filed two FIRs against Varadarajan, booking him under criminal charges under was booked under Sections 188, 505(2) of the IPC and Section 66D of the IT Act for allegedly making "objectionable" remarks in a story published in the portal, according to a report in LiveLaw.
Karwan e Mohabbat 15 May 2020 Mostly involved in the making of mortars and pestles, the meagre earnings of the residents of Majnu ka Tila in New Delhi have been completely halted by the nationwide lockdown. People struggle everyday to find enough food for survival. With public utilities charging them Rs. 5 for even taking a bath, it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to maintain the levels of hygiene being prescribed by the government.
How Modi Govt Aggravated Corona Crisis by Overlooking Scientists’ Opinion This special presentation by NewsClick has senior journalist Bhasha Singh speaking with the team of Reporters Collective, whose recent investigative reports disclose that the Modi government did not heed the opinion of scientists to deal with the COVID-19 crisis.
Lucknow: Over 60 members of the Tablighi Jamaat who have been quarantined in the Sikandra area of Agra have not been released, despite repeated requests. They have twice tested negative for COVID-19 and their 14-day quarantine period was over long ago. Twenty four persons from among them have health issues, ranging from diabetes to heart-related ailments. Most of the Jamaat members in the quarantine centre are residents of Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. All of them reached out to the district administration after the state government urged everyone that had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Nizamuddin, Delhi, to immediately report to the nearest government hospital or call their helpline number.
Agra: Despite Twice Testing Negative for COVID-19, Tablighi Jamaat Members Continue to Remain in Quarantine | NewsClick
Marxism teaches us that every totality is composed of elements which are different and hence among these there are contradictions. Even when the totality is conceptualised as a totality, there must be an implicit awareness of these contradictions. This injunction should not be forgotten when we study the political economy of authoritarian or fascistic regimes. Marxists have for long seen such regimes as being based on the solid support of monopoly capital; indeed, this is crucial for their coming to power. The renowned Marxist economist Michal Kalecki, for instance, saw the European fascist regimes of the 1930s as resting upon a “partnership of big business with fascist upstarts”.
The Manbendra Nath Roy or MN Roy we know of, was born on the campus of Stanford University in the United States at the age of 29. Until then, he was Narendranath Bhattacharya, who had left India to travel across the world, participating in movements. When he left India in search of arms to fight the British, it is said, he assumed a new name to dodge the police and CID in India. Reminiscing in his memoir, Roy says that the day after he landed in the US, newspapers carried headlines such as “Mysterious Alien Reaches America: Famous Brahmin Revolutionary or Dangerous German Spy?”
After becoming the closest warrior to Babasaheb, he became a Communist and remained one all his life. He never parted from his struggle against caste oppression, and decided to become a Communist only to fight it effectively. No one can deny the truths of his life. There is a need to learn from them and use them. Recently, LeftWord Books published the English translation of More’s biography, Memoirs of a Dalit Communist: The Many Worlds of RB More, written by Comrade Satyendra More. It will soon be available in other languages, including Hindi.
To push any segment of society back, it is necessary that its talented heroes are forcefully riven from it. This has also been happening. Rohith Vemula, who had sought to fashion a new path for the liberation of Dalits was institutionally murdered; Anand Teltumbde has vanished from sight, pushed behind bars. Both of them had sought to bring the struggle for liberation from oppression, including untouchability, and the class struggle closer. Both these streams of thought flow at a considerable distance from each other. Yet, somewhere, their goals also cleave to each other today. What is needed is a strong bridge between these two movements. Surely Comrade More’s life struggle and his guidance can become that bridge.
That the government is carrying out attacks on the workers and working classes is clearly evident. The concerted attacks against Dalit rights and Dalit self-respect are no less obvious. Behind these attacks stands Manu-wad, the justification of inequality which prescribes terrible punishments for the Dalits and opposes their equal status. Financially too, there are constant attempts to weaken Dalit communities. Manu-wad desires to remove the Dalits from the field of education and deny them employment opportunities. That is why Dalits are being deprived of many rights and entitlements, their judicial protection against atrocities is being neutralised.
To achieve this, the communist movement will have to participate in the social and cultural campaigns striving for Dalit rights and support the organisations that run them. It will have to demonstrate its full vigour, so as to instil the confidence and desire in these movements to join hands with the communist movements. A movement to overcome untouchability and social oppression will require continuous proof of being prepared to suffer and face martyrdom.
These words of Comrade More in his letter have become very relevant in a new way today. Now at the Center and in many states there are governments inspired by the RSS, which had announced in 1950 itself that it upholds the Manusmriti as justice and law and not the Constitution written by Babasaheb. In the wake of this misguided thought process, governments, under direction from the RSS, are making all-out attacks on Dalits, labourers, women and the minorities. Bringing those sections and communities that are victimised by these attacks together is the duty of the communist movement, which has always brought about radical changes in society.
Working with Babasaheb, he acquired this new knowledge with full force and, after a deep study of the Communist Manifesto, in 1930, decided to join the Communist Party. He informed Babasaheb about it. Instead of being angry, he encouraged Comrade More to pursue this path, but also told him that he was worried whether the organisation he is joining will give him the respect he deserves. Until the end, Comrade More remained a communist. In 1964, he decided to join the CPI(M). The same year, he sent a letter to the party leadership, in which he mentioned a few things: that Dalit society is the largest, most oppressed and exploited part of the working class. That only by fighting the social exploitation of this section, which is a moral and ethical duty, can the Communist Party attract them to its movements in large numbers.
At the same time, through members of the left unions, he became acquainted with the leaders of workers as well. He started participating in union activities; distributing pamphlets, writing on the walls, preparing for strikes, and so on. His experiences of class struggle came not from a book but from the lives of people just like him. To transform these experiences into practice and thought, he held long debates and discussions with Marxists such as SV Deshpande, BT Ranadive and RM Jambhekar. The caste oppression which he had knowledge about from the moment he was born now took the form of the flame that emanates from the furnace of class struggle.
Comrade More spent most of his time in Bombay with Babasaheb, helping him with his work. He used to stay in the workers’ chawls and had many conversations and discussions with those who lived with him—especially the workers in the cotton factories. He had a keen interest in cultural activities and actively participated in them. This strengthened his relations with all the workers’ communities.
After the 25th December session, the crowd marched towards the Mahad Tal again. It was attacked once more. But that day Babasaheb gave the most compelling evidence of his resistance by publicly setting the Manusmriti afire. By holding a religious scripture responsible for a grossly inhumane crime such as untouchability, Babasaheb posed a major challenge to the populist movements of the day. It was now an imperative for the liberation movement in India to accept and acknowledge his movement.
Nine months later, on 25 December 1927, Comrade More and his comrades announced another Satyagraha. As Babasaheb left for Mahad from Bombay taking the water route, workers of the Samata Sainik Dal saluted him in farewell. It is Comrade More who had founded this historical party. This gives an indication of his position in the Dalit movement of the time. It is this party’s members who confronted the tyranny of the Savarnas in the Dalit colonies. It is believed that the irritation this party caused was one reason why the RSS was established in Nagpur.
In the end, Babasaheb’s program for Mahad was set for March 1927 and Comrade More was its chief organiser. He visited all the villages in the Konkan belt and mobilised thousands to join Babasaheb’s program. On that day, when thousands of Dalits reached Mahad’s Chavdar Tank under Babasaheb’s leadership and people lined up to touch its water, they were fiercely attacked—but they had already touched its water. The Savarnas proved this when they carried out a “purification” ritual of this water.
In 1923, a very important decision was taken at this base. A resolution had been passed in the Bombay Legislative Assembly to make all public places accessible to the “untouchables”. To implement this, on the very next day, Comrade More decided, along with all the people gathered at this base, that a big convention for the rights of untouchables would be organised at Mahad, which would be presided over by Babasaheb. After this, Comrade More went to Bombay and invited Babasaheb, but it took a long time to persuade him. During this time, he became very close to Babasaheb and began assist him with his publication-related work, and got a good hold over the craft of journalism.
Mahad was also a market hub for all the nearby villages. Comrade More used to interact with the Mahars, the other Dalits and poor agricultural labourers and farmers who came there from far-flung areas. He became well-acquainted with every aspect of their lives. With his efforts, a tea shop operated by a Mahar was opened, where all untouchables got drinking water, which they were earlier denied. This shop became their base. Here he would meet people, write down their requests and get all the information about their problems. After some years, this tea shop took the shape of a small hotel, where people could spend the night.
In Alibaug, he took the entrance test of the English school at Mahad. He was the only Dalit to appear in that examination, but he scored the highest marks and also earned a stipend. The difficult circumstances in which he took the test included not only the fatigue and humiliation of the journey, but also the misery of having lost his father just a few days ago. Yet he was denied admission in the school, because its landlord said that if an “untouchable” was allowed to enter, he would vacate the entire school altogether. Incidentally, several decades later, during the Mahad Satyagraha, members of the very same landlord’s family also opposed the attempt of the Dalits to drink water from the Mahad Tal under Babasaheb’s leadership.
Subhashini Ali 15 May 2020 Dalit and Communist Movements The month of April is filled with memories of Phule and Babasaheb and narratives of their birth, life, writings and struggles. Then comes May, which brings reminisces of comrade Ramchandra More, who fought for the Dalits in the tradition of Phule and participated in the great revolutionary movements of Babasaheb. He died on 11 May 1970. Comrade More was born in 1903 in a part of the Konkan which was the birthplace of all the Mahar caste members who, like Babasaheb Ambedkar’s father, were soldiers and freedom fighters. This section of Dalit society, having joined the army in large numbers, had been able to access some education. Permanent jobs, followed by assured post-retirement pensions provided the members of this section considerable strength, and social respect too. Many of them were associated with the social reform movements of their time: they met Jyotiba Phule, they visited Shahuji Maharaj, and they worked to spread both egalitarian literature and ideas. It was in this society and in this environment that Comrade More was born, with an instinctive desire to struggle for self-respect. This desire, once it arose, very soon became an indelible part of his attitude and demeanour. He was uniquely talented. At a young age, took a three-day walk to Alibaug. It is during this journey that he experienced for the first time the implications of being an “untouchable”. Because he was not allowed to enter the dharamshalas that fell along the way, he had to spend the nights with animals.
Comrade More was born in 1903 in a part of the Konkan which was the birthplace of all the Mahar caste members who, like Babasaheb Ambedkar’s father, were soldiers and freedom fighters. This section of Dalit society, having joined the army in large numbers, had been able to access some education. Permanent jobs, followed by assured post-retirement pensions provided the members of this section considerable strength, and social respect too. Many of them were associated with the social reform movements of their time: they met Jyotiba Phule, they visited Shahuji Maharaj, and they worked to spread both egalitarian literature and ideas.
The month of April is filled with memories of Phule and Babasaheb and narratives of their birth, life, writings and struggles. Then comes May, which brings reminisces of comrade Ramchandra More, who fought for the Dalits in the tradition of Phule and participated in the great revolutionary movements of Babasaheb. He died on 11 May 1970.
Sonali Kolhatkar 15 May 2020 Theories Are So Dangerous Representational Image. A mysterious new video documentary, slickly produced, and offering answers to the coronavirus pandemic, has been viewed millions of times on the internet in spite of the fact that various platforms have repeatedly removed it. The “Pandemic” video is, according to the BBC, “filled with medical misinformation,” and claims that, “the virus must have been released from a laboratory environment and could not possibly be naturally-occurring; that using masks and gloves actually makes people more sick; and that closing beaches is ‘insanity’ because of ‘healing microbes’ in the water.” It offers a scientific and authoritative-sounding basis for the far-right anti-lockdown activists protesting across the country, some of whom are even holding up signs that say “Pandemic.”
As the nationwide lockdown to contain the COVID-19 pandemic continues, a study has highlighted the inadequate coordination between the Centre and states as one of the reasons leading to poor implementation of relief measures, funding concerns and delayed response mechanisms for marginalised groups during the lockdown. A working paper “Human Rights Assessment and Compilation of State Relief Measures” prepared by Shivani Chaudhry, Anagha Jaipal, and Aishwarya Ayushmaan of Housing and Land Rights Network points out the impact of the lockdown on human rights and gap in social protection and human rights along with others.
Thursday, May 14, 2020
भारत में टीवी मीडिया के ऐसे बहुत से कथित पत्रकार हैं जो सच और झूठ दोनों को बेच रहे हैं। सच में मिर्च मसाला लगाकर उसे एक अलग ही रंग दे रहे हैं, और झूठ बेचना तो उनके लिए अब खेल बन चुका है। आए दिन झूठी खबरों से TRP कमाने वाला ये गोदी मीडिया अब दंगाई मीडिया बन चुका है। एक ऐसा मीडिया जो लोगों के दिलों में एक दूसरे के लिए नफ़रत घोलता जा रहा है। न्यूज़ 18 का एंकर अमीश देवगन मुंबई के कुर्ला में लोकल्स और पुलिस के बीच हुई झड़प को सांप्रदायिक रंग देकर बेचता है। वो कहता है कि मस्जिद में नमाज़ पढ़ने के बाद मुस्लिम बाहर आए और पुलिसकर्मियों की पिटाई की। सच तो ये है कि “पीआर एजेंट” अमिश देवगन ने जिस घटना का ज़िक्र किया वहां आस पास कोई मस्जिद ही नहीं थी। इसी तरह दंगाई मीडिया के दूसरे पत्रकार भी फ़र्ज़ी खबरें फैलाते रहते हैं, नोटों से चिप निकालते रहते हैं। लेकिन उनके ऊपर कोई कार्यवाही नहीं होती।
Wednesday, May 13, 2020
It is therefore incumbent upon us, the CPI(M), to rally the maximum sections of people, political parties, mass organisations and people’s movements to put pressure on this government to implement a minimum programme to look after the people’s needs and concerns while at the same time to revive and rebuild the Indian economy. The roadmap for the economy, in this situation of battling the pandemic, has been put in the public domain by the CPI(M). This must be the focus of our campaigns and outreach to the people.
Finally, the intensification of this communal polarisation and the widespread surge of hatred against the minorities is again undermining the strength of the united struggle that all of India must conduct in combating this pandemic. Many countries in the world have reacted against the rise of such Islamophobia. This, apart from alienating India from large number of countries, weakens our fight against the pandemic.
At another level, this situation is being used to strengthen the authoritarian control of the central government. This over centralisation is robbing the democratically elected legitimate state governments of the basic rights, in the federal system as contained in our Constitution. The states are being forced to take up the responsibility for meeting the people’s needs while combatting this pandemic. The central government refuses to even pay back the legitimate dues to the states leave aside financially assisting them.
It is clear therefore that using the battle against the pandemic, the BJP central government is intensifying the exploitation of the people to generate greater profit maximisation for the ruling classes and the crony capitalists. Labour laws are being changed with impunity. The eight-hour working day is being increased, in many states, to 12 hours. There are massive cuts on the wage and savings of the workers and employees.
PURSUING RSS AGENDA The worst is the single-minded manner in which this BJP government is pursuing the agenda of advancing the RSS project of converting the secular democratic republic of India into a theocratic fascistic State. The hatred that is being spread against the Muslims, the minorities and the manner in which they are being targeted as the cause of the pandemic, is to polarise deeper the society on communal lines. The CPI(M) Party programme notes this aspect in para 7.14 of the dangers of BJP, when being in control of State power advancing the RSS fascistic agenda.
ALARMING AUTHORITARIANISM The ruling classes have always used the outbreaks of health emergencies for strengthening their authoritarian control over the government and the people. This is happening more nakedly, clearly seen when all expressions of dissent against this government are being booked under draconian laws like the UAPA and the NSA. The activists, students and prominent people who participated in the constitutionally guaranteed peaceful protests against the CAA/NPR/NRC are being arrested and jailed. Such trampling of the democratic rights of the people and such witch-hunting of all those who express dissent is being strengthened during this period.
While claiming that there are no resources, while refusing to increase the fiscal package even when countries across the world are giving massive packages of fiscal stimulus and looking after the people – Japan for instance has announced a package of nearly 20 per cent of its GDP. USA has announced 10 per cent and promised to increase it further. But in India we continue to remain at less than one per cent of our GDP. At the same time, this central government has cleared the proposal for the construction of a Central Vista which includes a grand new house for the prime minister costing over Rs 20,000 crores. So there is money to carry forward their agenda. Additionally, the special fund, PM Cares, has amassed a huge amount. Not a paisa of this so far has been spent to meet the people’s needs or the needs to combat the pandemic. This fund is neither auditable by a government auditor nor is there any transparency or accountability.
PROFIT MAXIMISATION During the period of the lockdown the quest for profit maximization by the capitalists and corporates continues to be criminally pursued. Reliance has reported an increase in its profits during this period by 17.7 per cent. At the global level ten top US billionaires have reportedly added $208 billion to their wealth. On the other hand, crores of workers have lost their jobs and more are subjected to salary cuts. The CMIE estimates that, since the national lockdown began, nearly 14 crore people have lost their jobs and joined the ranks of the unemployed. These are the levels of inhuman exploitation under capitalism.
THE BJP’S SINGLE-MINDED PURSUIT OF ITS AGENDA While abdicating the responsibility for people’s welfare and health concerns during this pandemic, the central government is single mindedly focused to carry forward its agenda. While crores of people have been pushed into misery and hunger, this central government, during this period of national lockdown, waived off a sum of Rs 68,800 crores of loans taken by industrialists close to the Prime Minister. Such is the merciless crony capitalism that they claim to have no money to look after people’s hunger or their travel home but they have money to allow their cronies to get away looting people’s monies that are deposited in banks.
On May 5, the Supreme Court of India was hearing public interest litigation on the issue of migrant workers being asked to pay for their return travel home. The central government declined to give the supreme court a break up of the share of ticket fares on what the centre and states have to bear to transport the migrant workers back home. It also declined to submit before the court the amount of money being taken from the workers. India’s solicitor general admitted before the three judge bench that he had “no instructions” to reveal the details. Such is the duplicity of this BJP central government, where it relies on propagation of untruths and disinformation.
The states must be immediately assisted financially. Instead, the central government comes up with flimsy explanations to claim that 85 per cent of the cost of running the special trains is being paid by the Indian Railways. The railways are a system of mass public transport whose costs cannot be calculated on the basis of profit and loss. Every civilized country in the world runs public transport as a service that contributes to the overall wellbeing of the people and propels economic growth.
Worse, the state governments are now being asked to pay for the special trains that have been started by the Indian Railways to transport migrant workers. This is criminal. This amounts to a financial emergency as contained in Article 360 of our Constitution. This is seriously undermining our capacity to effectively combat this pandemic.
The fiscal package announced by the central government of Rs 1.7 lakh crore has more than half of this amount from rehashed old central schemes. Even this total amount is less than 1 per cent of our GDP. This must be increased to at least five per cent of our GDP i.e., around Rs 10 lakh crore and the state governments must be liberally assisted with finances to meet this challenge. In the absence of this, the only avenues left for revenue raising by the states are by hiking the prices of petroleum products and alcohol. This will only put further burdens on the livelihood conditions of crores of our people making them more vulnerable to fall victim to this pandemic.
OVER CENTRALISATION The worst is the manner in which this central BJP government is dealing with the elected state governments. First the GST dues to the states have been kept pending for the last two quarters of the financial year. This is starving the states of resources to meet the challenge of the pandemic. The states are on the frontline of this battle. Having declared a national lockdown without consulting the state governments, now the states are being asked to provide for and look after the lakhs of migrant workers. The centre has so far not dispersed any money from the special fund to which it is forcing all government employees to part with a day’s salary and cutting the salaries in the name of battling the pandemic.
The central government has refused to come forward to do this despite there being no shortage of resources. Hundreds of thousands of crores are being collected in the name of fighting the pandemic by a trust that carries the Prime Minister’s name. This money would be more than sufficient to create the support infrastructure that can play an effective role in containing the pandemic.
The support infrastructure that was required to look after the needs of the people who lost their jobs or are going hungry was not put in place. We have been demanding from the very beginning that a sum of Rs 7,500 monthly, for a period of three months, be transferred to all those who do not come in the income tax bracket. The 77 million tonnes of food grains currently stocked in central government godowns should be used to distribute free rations to all those who are going hungry.
The lockdown period should have been utilized to augment our health facilities, acquire personal protective equipment for our health workers, creating adequate hospital space along with needed equipment like ventilators. This however did not happen. Private health facilities should have been commandeered to be utilised for public use based on requirement. Some countries like Spain have, in fact, gone to the extent of nationalising all private health facilities in their country.
LOCKDOWN NOT PROPERLY UTILISED The manner in which the lockdown was suddenly announced giving a mere four hour notice which did not allow either the state governments or the people to prepare for such a prolonged situation created conditions for crowds of migrant workers surging together to return to their far away homes. This, in a sense, defeated the purpose of maintaining a physical distance so critical in containing the transmission of this deadly virus.
THE KERALA MODEL This is the model that the Kerala state government under the leadership of the Left and Democratic Front had undertaken which has now gained international recognition as one of the most effective and scientific ways in meeting the dangers of this pandemic i.e., test-trace-isolate-support. Unfortunately, despite being forewarned, given the lead time we had before the outbreak of the pandemic in India, this has not led the country under this BJP central government to prepare ourselves to be forearmed. Our testing rate continues to remain one of the lowest in the world (864 per million. Compare with Spain 41,332 per million. As of May 5, 2020).
THE relaxation of restrictions from May 4 onwards, even as the national lockdown continues till May 17, as was widely anticipated, led to a record peaking of the Covid positive cases and consequent deaths. On May 5, India recorded 3875 new cases in a single day spike, 2.5 times higher than the daily average increase over the past week. The highest number of deaths recorded are between May 4/5 - 194. This is the highest single day death toll recorded since the outbreak of the pandemic.
We have been repeatedly saying that a mere lockdown is not the answer for containing the pandemic and protecting lives. A lockdown postpones a severe outbreak form occurring but its prevention can only happen if this period is properly and scientifically used for testing, then tracing contacts of those who tested positive, isolating such people and quarantining them, while establishing the support infrastructure to look after the needs of the people during this period.
The spread of the new coronavirus has forced all nations to reckon with the health of their own healthcare systems. The virus has extracted the greatest toll of our elderly – not only because they have weaker immune systems but also because many of them haven’t been able to access good-quality healthcare soon enough. The rest of the population plays the important part of transmitting the virus.
As the emaciated Indian healthcare system attempts to break the tide of the novel coronavirus pandemic, perhaps the highest cost for this fight is borne by the non-COVID-19 patients. For close to a month now, OPD and non-emergency services have been stopped in several hospitals so that all resources are diverted for combatting COVID-19 and emergency medical care.
Non-COVID-19 Patients Are Paying the Price of India's Efforts Against the Coronavirus - The Wire Science
Kolkata: A 76-year-old man from Bihar who had multiple age-related ailments died due to alleged negligence of a private hospital in Kolkata that denied admission suspecting him to be positive for COVID-19, his family members said on Wednesday. Shahid Ahmad Yahya, a resident of Darbhanga, was brought to Kolkata on May 9 for admission to the Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals on the recommendation of the doctor who used to treat him, his son-in-law Mokhtar Alam told PTI. Yahya who was diagnosed with parkinsonism induced by sepsis used to consult the Kolkata-based doctor.
Ultimately, their deaths proved how closely, during the lockdown, their fates were linked with trains. The trains they waited for to take them home, which did not come; the train they were not expecting but which came with a sense of finality early Friday morning (May 8), cutting short the homeward journey of 16 migrant workers near Aurangabad. Driven by a distress the rulers of the land have been impervious to, the group of men and women had started walking from Jalna, in Maharashtra, towards Madhya Pradesh, on Thursday (May 7) evening. Adding to the civilisational journeys of the dispossessed that have become synonymous with the lockdown.
Perhaps I shouldn’t be so taken aback by these reactions, because blaming the victim is not a new phenomenon. After all, rape victims are shamed for getting raped, and the poor are held responsible for their penury, so it should come as no great surprise that those who died under the goods train are now being squarely blamed for their own deaths.
Kolkata: On Saturday, 22-two-year-old Asif Iqbal Mondal hung himself from a mango tree in Kodanad, in Kerala’s Ernakulam district. He had run out of food and money several days before, and desperately wanted to return home. Not once but twice he had managed to book train tickets from Kerala to his hometown in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district – but both times, it had been cancelled. Asif’s father, Jabed Mondal, was beside himself while speaking to The Wire. “Everything is finished,” he said and broke down. Anwarul, Asif’s cousin, took the phone and said, “He can’t talk anymore. This is the situation at home since the news came. His mother has fainted several times.”
A substantial lifting of the lockdown, even with a ban on huge gatherings, weddings, cinema halls, theatres and restaurants, could lead to upto two million deaths in India says Jayaprakash Muliyil, the former principal of the Christian Medical College in Vellore and present Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Committee of the National Institute of Epidemiology. However the alternative is to subject hundreds of millions of poor vulnerable Indians to destitution and starvation and, as a result, possible death. He also said that a prolonged lockdown means children are not getting vaccines for diseases like diphtheria and whooping cough, which can also be killer diseases. In an interview to Karan Thapar for The Wire, professor Muliyil said he had done certain calculations which suggest that a substantial lifting of the lockdown could lead to 7.5 lakh deaths in the age group over 60 in urban Indian.
Since the outbreak of the coronavirus in India, incidents of hatred towards people from Northeast India have again come under the spotlight. Many cases of people from the Northeast being called ‘Coronavirus’ were reported from the National Capital, Pune and other parts of the country. This is indeed a sorry state of affairs where despite using many soft and persuasive techniques, such incidents keep repeating. Since the Nido Tania incident (2014), a slight tinge of satisfaction still prevails that print and digital media did their bit to sensitise people regarding the issues related to their fellow citizens from the Northeast. But amongst all the other stakeholders of society, the government has done the least to address the challenges related to racial violence/comments on people from this part of the country. Currently, the police file an FIR under Section 509 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) if any derogatory remarks are passed against a woman from the Northeast, which is no different from the pre-2014 situation.
Outside, on the kerb of the majestic tomb of the Sufi saint, Haji Ali, in Mumbai sits an aged widow. She sat in another tomb in another time, not in Mumbai, but in Lahore. Both the times, feeling perhaps the same – lonely and without a home. This was Mehmooda Beghum or Mammo, the protagonist in the critically acclaimed film Mammo. What makes Mammo relevant for us today is the dangerous route we have taken in our citizenship laws in the past few months. While the debate has taken a backseat for a while, in light of the COVID-19 global pandemic, with all the protests having been stopped, the challenge is far from over.
On May 11, the Supreme Court rejected a petition seeking the restoration of 4G internet services in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The plea was premised on the rights violations caused by suspending the internet during a pandemic and national lockdown, including the rights to health, education, freedom of speech, freedom of trade and access to justice. Specifically, the petition alleged violations of a January 2020 judgment of the Supreme Court, in Anuradha Bhasin vs Union of India. The court had then laid down important safeguards that the government should follow before imposing an internet shutdown.
Mumbai: In a strange turn of events, two policemen from Mumbai’s crime branch landed at civil rights activist and lawyer Susan Abraham’s residence in Andheri asking the whereabouts of her husband Vernon Gonsalves, who has been in jail since 2018. Gonsalves, who was arrested in August 2018 for his alleged involvement in the Elgar Parishad case, is currently lodged at Taloja central prison located in Thane district.
Seventy-one-year-old K.P. Mehta* has been going to Apollo hospital thrice a week for dialysis for his kidney treatment for the last four years. In the first week of this month, the hospital asked him to get tested for COVID-19 once every week before his weekly dialysis sessions. Mehta, who is a retired man and preferred to go to Apollo for his treatment since it was the hospital closest to his home, paid an additional Rs 4,500 (the price of the RT-PCR COVID-19 test) along with his dialysis fee for the first time. In the following weeks, patients paid Rs 3,500.
Tuesday, May 12, 2020
बीबीसी से बातचीत में दिल्ली एम्स के ठेका कर्मचारी यूनियन के जनरल सेक्रेटरी मृगांक कहते हैं, 'दिल्ली एम्स में 600 सैनिटेशन कर्मचारी हैं। इसमें से अधिकतर सेनिटेशन स्टाफ कॉन्ट्रैक्ट पर काम करते हैं। अस्पताल इन्हें अपना कर्मचारी नहीं मानते। वेस्ट मैनेजमेंट के काम में लगे सेनिटेशन कर्मचारियों को मास्क और सैनेटाइज़ेशन के लिए बहुत संघर्ष करना पड़ता है। वेस्ट डिस्पोज़ल करने वाले सैनिटेशन स्टाफ़ को भी प्रोटेक्टिव गियर चाहिए होते हैं, ताकि वो उस वेस्ट के संपर्क में ना आ जाएं। लेकिन ये शुरू में मिल नहीं रहे थे। हमने अस्पताल प्रशासन को चिट्ठियां लिखीं। अब कुछ जगह मिलना शुरू हुए हैं। लेकिन अभी भी परेशानी बनी हुई है।'
आंकड़ों के अनुसार सन 2017 तक भारत में उत्पन्न होने वाले लगभग 200,000 टन बायोमेडिकल कचरे का लगभग 78 फीसदी भाग देश की “कॉमन बायो मेडिकल वेस्ट ट्रीटमेंट फैसिलिटी” (CBWTF) निस्तारित कर रही थी। बाकी कचरा या तो अन्य विभाग निस्तारित करते थे या उसे ज़मींदोज कर दिया जाता था। ये सब मिलाकर भी 92 प्रतिशत कचरे का निस्तारण कर पा रहे थे। ऐसे में कोविड-19 की वैश्विक महामारी से इस कचरे की उत्पादन मात्रा में कई गुना इजाफा हुआ है।
कोरोना वायरस अपने साथ तमाम चुनौतियां लेकर आया है। इनमें से एक चुनौती कोरोना के इलाज और संक्रमण से बचाव के दौरान इस्तेमाल होने वाले मॉस्क, दस्तानों से लेकर दवाइयों और उपकरणों के सही तरीके से निस्तारण की भी है। कचरा प्रबंधन को लेकर जानकारी रखने वालों के मुताबिक, प्रतिदिन हर राज्य से औसतन एक से 1.5 टन कोविड वेस्ट निकल रहा है। इससे निपटने के लिए तमाम तरह की गाइडलाइन भी जारी की गई है। कोरोना वायरस की वैश्विक महामारी के लगातार फैलाव को देखते हुए संयुक्त राष्ट्र के पर्यावरण कार्यक्रम ने दुनिया भर की सरकारों से कोविड-19 से सम्बंधित कचरे के सावधानीपूर्वक निस्तारण की अपील की है।
Newsclick Team 11 May 2020 When the country is faced with a pandemic, it is the responsibility of the government to bring everyone together and use its energies to fight the disease. However, the BJP seems to be doing exactly the opposite. It is engaged in trying to increase the Prime Minister's popularity. In this episode of NewsChakra, senior journalist Abhisar Sharma elaborates on how the government is campaigning instead of fighting COVID-19.
One of the important cells of the immune system are the T cells. They are also known as the killer cells, due to their ability to destroy cells that are infected as well as cancerous cells. How exactly the T cells perform their aggressive tasks of destroying the diseased cells, still remains a question to ponder upon. One of the mechanisms, as revealed in a latest study says that the T cells have proteins inside them that are packed with deadly chemicals which unleash an attack on the target cells. The research was published recently in Science.
The ministry in its order under Disaster Management Act had said, “All the employers, be it in industry or in the shops and commercial establishments shall make payment of wages of their workers at their work places on due date without any deduction for the period their establishments are under closure in the lockdown.” It added, “It is further directed that in case of any violation of any of the above measures, the respective State/UT government shall take necessary action under the act. The district magistrate/ deputy commissioner and senior superintendent of police/Superintendent of Police/ Deputy Commissioner of Police will be personally liable for the implementation of above directions and lockdown measures.”
Ravi Kaushal 13 May 2020 Delhi factory workers wait for salaries during COVID-19 lockdown Image Courtesy: US News & World Report Subodhan Kumar, a factory worker in Delhi, is getting restless with every passing day. His savings are almost over and he is completely dependent on the ration distributed by Delhi Government through its schools. His vulnerability has escalated further after his employer declined to pay his salary for April owing to complete halt of operations at his steel factory in Bawana Industrial Area in the national capital. The refusal to pay his salary came despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s request and directions by Ministry of Home Affairs to not cut salaries during the lockdown, which has been extended thrice so far.
COVID-19: Workers Await Salaries While Employers Unsure About Resumption of Operations in Delhi | NewsClick
Sanjay Agrawal, secretary, Road Transport Department, said all the migrant workers who were sent to their respective districts were kept in quarantine centres situated not far away from their native villages, for 21 days. There are reports that workers are not happy with mandatory 21 day quarantine due to lack of basic amenities and supply of poor quality of food. Agrawal said minors coming from outside along with their parents were allowed for home quarantine after proper screening by the medical team. Migrant workers, mostly poor, and working in cement, garment, plastic pipe factories, private firms, construction sector, security guards and others suddenly became jobless after the lockdown began on March 24 midnight to combat the spread of coronavirus.
The Bihar government officially said last week (on the basis of calls received on the helpline) that there were over 28 lakh stranded migrant workers from the state across the country. But some experts estimate that the number would be between 35-40 lakh. Interestingly, the state government has no official data of how many workers from Bihar are employed outside the state. The state government has paid Rs 1000 assistance to more than 19 lakh migrant workers who registered their calls for help .The amount has been deposited in their bank account after validating through the CM special assistance fund.
Mahendra Yadav, an activist working among migrant workers in flood-prone Koshi region of North Bihar from where a large number of poverty-stricken workers migrate to earn livelihood, said initially Nitish Kumar was not in favour of bringing back migrant workers on one pretext or the other. It was only after Opposition pressure and reports of stranded migrant workers from the state staging protests in Gujarat, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Delhi and other places that the state government finally woke up early this month to make half-hearted efforts to bring the back, he told NewsClick. Yadav said it was the sheer failure of the state and Central governments that had forced thousands of stranded migrants, along with women and children, to walk hundreds of kilometres, ride cycles, or board trucks and other heavy vehicles in desperation in the past over one-and-half months. ”There is no exact record with the government as to how many migrant workers have reached Bihar walking, cycling and by other means. Going by reports, hundreds are reaching the state on a daily
Mohd. Imran Khan 12 May 2020 Late- Starter Bihar Govt Plans to Bring Back Only 2.22 Lakh Out of 28 Lakh Stranded Workers Image Courtesy: The Hindu Patna: Nearly 2.5 million migrant workers from Bihar, who have been stranded across the country after the sudden lockdown on March 24 midnight, have been struggling to survive without ration and source of livelihood and are eager to return to their home state. But, the Bihar government has so far targeted to bring back only 2.22 lakh migrants by 169 special trains. Ten days after the first batch of stranded migrant workers arrived in Bihar by special train, the state government officials claimed that till May 11 about 1.43 lakh workers had arrived by 116 special trains. About 25,000 migrant workers are expected to reach Bihar on Tuesday by 21 trains. State Information & Public Relation Department secretary Anupam Kumar said: “We have managed 169 special trains to bring back migrant workers. We expect 2.22 lakh migrant workers to reach the state by special trains”. This statement is bound to raise many eyebrows, as Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's directive to top officials on Monday was to make arrangements to bring back all migrant workers who are eager to return home, within a week. However, in the same breath, Nitish Kumar also exposed his government inability to bring back more migrant workers on its own and requested Prime Minister Natendra Modi to increase the number of special trains. ”Nitish Kumar has made this statement only for public consumption to send the message that his government is trying to bring back all stranded migrant workers. The reality is something else,” a senior state government official told Newsclick requesting anonymity. The official said: “The government is not just slow, reluctant and hesitant to bring back migrant workers since the lockdown began, it is also against any move to bring them back,” adding that it was because Opposition hue and cry that built a pressure on the National Democratic Alliance government led by Nitish Kumar, which has forced it to bring back migrant workers. “It has carefully chosen to delay it and bring back only a few of total numbers”, the official alleged.
Ten days after the first batch of stranded migrant workers arrived in Bihar by special train, the state government officials claimed that till May 11 about 1.43 lakh workers had arrived by 116 special trains. About 25,000 migrant workers are expected to reach Bihar on Tuesday by 21 trains. State Information & Public Relation Department secretary Anupam Kumar said: “We have managed 169 special trains to bring back migrant workers. We expect 2.22 lakh migrant workers to reach the state by special trains”.
Patna: Nearly 2.5 million migrant workers from Bihar, who have been stranded across the country after the sudden lockdown on March 24 midnight, have been struggling to survive without ration and source of livelihood and are eager to return to their home state. But, the Bihar government has so far targeted to bring back only 2.22 lakh migrants by 169 special trains.
Nearly 2.5 million migrant workers from Bihar, who have been stranded across the country after the sudden lockdown on March 24 midnight, have been struggling to survive without ration and source of livelihood and are eager to return to their home state. But, the Bihar government has so far targeted to bring back only 2.22 lakh migrants by 169 special trains. Ten days after the first batch of stranded migrant workers arrived in Bihar by special train, the state government officials claimed that till May 11 about 1.43 lakh workers had arrived by 116 special trains. About 25,000 migrant workers are expected to reach Bihar on Tuesday by 21 trains.
Late- Starter Bihar Govt Plans to Bring Back Only 2.22 Lakh Out of 28 Lakh Stranded Workers | NewsClick
Patna: Amid the nationwide lockdown, nearly 600 workers of Riga sugar mill in Bihar’s Sitamarhi district have been removed “temporarily” by the mill management without any prior information. The mill management has pasted a notice written in English informing the workers that they were laid off, citing increasing loss and bank loan. The mill management has informed workers, including seasonal workers covered under wage board award of sugar industries, that there will be no work for them due to the temporary stoppage at the sugar plant from May 11 to July 11, 2020. The management has made it clear in its notice the workers will not be paid for this period.
New Delhi: There seems no end to the miseries of migrant workers and their families, as the latest travel plans released by the Home Ministry on Ma y 11, showing 10 glaring gaps that could lead to more chaos and confusion as they struggle to get back home. Pointing out these gaps in procedures based on numerous frantic calls, the Stranded Workers Action Network or SWAN and covid-india.in have written to the Home Ministry, saying that the order dated may11, specifying the standard operating procedure (SOP) is “incomplete and vague.” “Since April 29, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has issued 4 travel related orders for inter state migrant inter state migrant workers. On May 11, the MHA issued an 8 point Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). While the earlier orders were confusing and conflicting, the order dated May 11 is incomplete and vague,” said a joint press rleases by the two organisations, which are doing relief work among stranded migrant workers.
The Janta Ka Reporter report said that founder of NMC health B R Shetty--known to be a close friend of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and recipient of the Padma Shri honour--had also returned to India in February after allegations of the fraud. Shetty was among the key persons behind the ‘Marhaba Namo’ event in Dubai Stadium on August 17, 2015, a year after Modi took over as Prime Minister Krishnamoorthy has managed to follow suit, but the fact that he could do it in the middle of a global pandemic using a special service meant for stranded Indians has also raised questions on the role of the Indian authorities. According to Gulf News, Krishnamurthy was required to be in the UAE to answer questions on how his hospital, NMC Health, managed to pile up $6.6 billion in debts, and of which $4 billion-plus never landed up in the books until recently.
Indian Honcho in Abu Dhabi, to be Questioned in UAE, ‘Escapes’ on Repatriation Flight: Report | NewsClick
Tejal Kanitkar, Associate Professor, National Institute of Advanced Studies, talks about the central government's Electricity (Amendment) Bill. The Bill has been opposed by state governments and employees' unions due to the push towards privatisation and the concentration of power with the Centre while states lose out.
Unseasonal rainfall accompanied by strong winds lashed several parts of Uttar Pradesh in the past 24 hours, affecting mango crops in a big way, especially in Lucknow's mango belt, Malihabad, known for its Dussehri variety. As it is, the price and quantum of exports of the 'king of fruits' this year have been affected by the lockdown, and now around 40% of the mango crop has been damaged in a single day. Ehtesham, the largest mango grower of Malihabad town in Lucknow, is upset that due to lockdown he could not sell produce from even one of his orchards this season.
An editor of an online Gujarati news portal Face of the Nation was arrested by Detection of Crime Branch (DCB) on charges of sedition on May 11. Dhaval Patel, the Editor was arrested after a political article was published on the portal that speculated that Vijay Rupani, the Chief Minister of BJP-led ruling government of Gujarat might be replaced with Mansukh Mandviya, Union Minister of Shipping. The article also claimed that Mandaviya had been called by party seniors in Delhi to discuss the change in leadership as Rupani had failed to manage the situation in the wake of rapid rise of COVID-19 positive cases in the state.
Gujarat Journalist Slapped with Sedition, Arrested for Speculative Story on CM’s Replacement | NewsClick
On April 1, Admiral Philip Davidson—the head of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command—told the U.S. Congress that he would like $20 billion to create a robust military cordon that runs from California to Japan and down the Pacific Rim of Asia. His proposal—titled “Regain the Advantage”—pointed to the “renewed threat we face from Great Power Competition. … Without a valid and convincing conventional deterrent, China and Russia will be emboldened to take action in the region to supplant U.S. interests.”
On International Labour Day, the Union Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Arjun Ram Meghwal, a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), wrote an opinion piece commemorating the role of Babasaheb Ambedkar in institutionalising labour rights in India—the right to strike, living wages, decent working conditions, social security and so on. He argued that inspired by Ambedkar the current government has taken steps to improve the quality of life of workers. Strikingly, Meghwal makes this claim at a time when at least five states—Rajasthan, Gujarat, Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh—have amended the Factories Act, 1948, to extend the permissible working hours from eight to 12 hours a day, or 72 hours a week (for a period of three months), which defeats the very foundations of May Day.
The Modi government’s decision to impose a national lockdown, on since 24 March, to check the spread of the Novel Coronavirus has caused tremendous hardship to the poor. Its most lamentable symbol has been the sight of lakhs of migrants fleeing cities to villages, walking or cycling down the highway or hitching rides on trucks. Was the lockdown the best possible strategy to counter the Coronavirus? To answer this question, Indian media has interviewed, over the last 50 days, several economists and development experts, who have bitterly differed from each other.
One morning in January 2018, four Supreme Court justices called a press conference. It is hard to overstate what an astonishing sight this was: Over the course of seven decades since independence, the highest level of India’s judiciary had cordoned itself off from the public eye, battling any oversight into its affairs, including from the media. Now, sitting before a beehive of cameras, the justices looked distressed. “All four of us are convinced,” Justice Jasti Chelameswar said, “that unless this institution is preserved and it maintains its equanimity, democracy will not survive in this country.”
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has made a large amount of medical information available in the public domain across the globe. However, the mainstream Indian media’s response in the fight against COVID-19 raises serious concerns about fake news and misinformation, the inclusivity of the coverage, and the state of medical journalism, among others. The coverage and discussions surrounding the Tablighi Jamaat incident in Delhi by popular media outlets in India is an excellent example of a twisted media response during a massive public health crisis which communalised the situation by diverting attention from the grave concern at hand.
Monday, May 11, 2020
All the trade unions under the banner of Joint Committee of Trade Unions (JCTU) organised a protest on Monday in front of the Kousalya Bhavan, Labour Commissioner Office in Bangalore against the proposed decision to exempt implementation of labour laws in Karnataka. The BJP-led government in the state plans to ease the existing labour laws to help the employers in the name of helping them get rid of the losses in the wake of Covid-19. Earlier, in a release, JCTU said: “Under the pretext of the COVID-19 lockdown, employers’ bodies are lobbying with the State government to increase working hours to 12 hours a day.” The release also pointed out that amendments were being proposed to permit industries to announce layoffs, terminations and closures without prior permission and exemption of contract labour registration. On May 18, the trade unions plan to hold a statewide protest. The JCTU noted that eight-hour working days and right to stable employment were hard-won rights of the workers.
Leaders of eight political parties have written a letter addressed to the President of India condemning the recent spate of arrests of activists and students under the draconian UAPA while the country and the world is reeling under the COVID-19 pandemic. The political leaders have called for an end to the politics of vendetta against protesters and political dissenters. Stating that the Supreme Court has “advised the release of prisoners on bail or parole to reduce crowding in prisons” during the pandemic, the political leaders have expressed their shock at the Indian Government’s continuing persecution of academics, activists, women, and students, putting their health and safety at grave risk. The letter added that the Delhi Police, which is directly under the Home Ministry has been arresting “prominent activists including women involved in the totally peaceful anti-CAA movement under the draconian UAPA on totally manufactured charges seeking to link them with the communal violence in Delhi.” The signatories also expressed their shock at the arrests of activists Gautam Navlakha and academic Anand Teltumbde, terming these arrests as trampling of civil liberties. Not only that, the letter also alleged that “certain communities are being targeted while the perpetrators of communally charged violence, established in various video recordings, including prominent leaders of the ruling party are moving around scot free.” The letter has been signed by Sitaram Yechury of Communist Party of India (Marxist), D Raja of Communist Party of India, Dipankar Bhattacharya of CPI (Marxist-Leninist), Debabrata Biswas of All India Forward Bloc, Manoj Bhattacharya of Revolutionary Socialist Party, Sharad Yadav of Loktantrik Janata Dal, Manoj Jha of Rashtriya Janata Dal and Thol. Thirumavalavan of Viduthalai Chiruthaigai Katchi. The complete text of the letter is given below. The President of India Rashtrapathi Bhawan New Delhi Dear Rashtrapathi ji, We, the undersigned, are writing to you to express concern and condemnation at the spate of arrests of students and activists under the draconian UAPA during the time when the country and people are dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic. This is a time when people all over the country, and the world, are experiencing fear and uncertainty about their well-being, and the safety of their loved ones. The central government’s priority must be to single mindedly focus in effectively dealing with this pandemic while catering to the needs of the people and their requirements. “Your government’s” priority must be to deal with the problems that have emerged affecting the lives and livelihoods of crores of people, as reflected in the plight of the migrant workers, many of whom have lost their lives due to hunger, exhaustion and walking many kms to reach their homes. The central government has done very little to provide relief and rations to such people. Many countries in the world are seeking to release prisoners so as to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in prisons. In India too, the Supreme Court advised the release of prisoners on bail or parole to reduce crowding in prisons. The situation at the Arthur Road prison in Mumbai is a testimony to such dangers. Even physically disabled people with known serious medical conditions like Dr. G N. Saibaba and others are not being allowed to seek competent medical treatment. At such a time, it is shocking to see the Government of India jailing academics, activists, women, and students, putting their health and safety at grave risk. • In Delhi, the police directly under the Home Ministry is arresting prominent activists including women involved in the totally peaceful anti-CAA movement under the draconian UAPA on totally manufactured charges seeking to link them with the communal violence in Delhi. In addition, scores of students are being called for interrogation by the Special Branch and intimidated. The victims in the violence perpetrated in JNU are being targeted while there has not been a single arrest of those outsiders who unleashed this violence against students and teachers. It is also shocking to note that certain communities are being targeted while the perpetrators of communally charged violence, established in various video recordings, including prominent leaders of the ruling party are moving around scot free. • In the communal violence in north east Delhi, in spite of prima facie evidence of police connivance and the involvement of mobs attacking minority areas identified in the videos, the Delhi police is making one sided arrests of young Muslim men and interrogating only members of the minority community, creating a sense of insecurity among them. • The arrests of Anand Teltumbde and Gautam Navlakha in the Bhima Koregaon case even while continuing the detention of activists Sudha Bharadwaj and others without any evidence is another shocking example of how civil liberties are being trampled. • In Kashmir the continuing detention of former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and many others is condemnable. So also is condemnable that prisoners from Kashmir are locked up in various jails across the country. • The vindictive approach of the Government in continuing the detention of Shri Laloo Prasad Yadav in spite of his ill health and the stringent conditions of his imprisonment is condemnable. We request you to urge the Government to reverse this course by releasing opposition leaders and human rights activists and ceasing the pursuit of a politics of vendetta against protesters and political dissenters at a time when the country and people have to be united in dealing with this Covid pandemic. Sitaram Yechury, General Secretary, CPI(M) D Raja, General Secretary, CPI Dipankar Bhattacharya, General Secretary, CPI(ML) Debabrata Biswas, General Secretary, AIFB Manoj Bhattacharya, General Secretary, RSP Sharad Yadav, General Secretary, LJD Manoj Jha, MP, RJD Thol. Thirumavalavan, MP & President, VCK
Political Leaders Write to President Demanding Release of Activists, Students Arrested Under UAPA | NewsClick
In the backdrop of scarcity of labour in the state amid the nationwide lockdown, the Maharashtra government has allowed employer companies to increase working hours of the workers from eight to 12 per day till June 30. The labour unions are perceiving this as an attempt at “undermining the workers’ rights”. However, the companies will have to pay double to the workers for this extra work; the weekly work hours can not exceed 60, and a shift longer than 13 hours at a stretch can not be assigned to the workers, said the government. These guidelines were reportedly brought in after the Confederation of Indian Industry and the Maratha Chambers of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture submitted a memorandum to the state government reporting reduced labour force.
In his 6 years as Prime Minister of this country, Narendra Modi has not held a single open press conference where journalists are allowed to ask him questions. This makes India the only democracy in the world where the leader doesn't believe that he's accountable to the media. In this interview, Prabir Purkayastha and P Sainath discuss press freedom, the role of corporates and government in influencing the media, and the possible ways to save journalism under the current authoritarian regime.
In the face of the situation of hunger and poverty caused by the previous right-wing government and aggravated due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Argentine social movements, such as Ciudad Futura and the Frente Patria Grande, have proposed a food sovereignty plan. The movements seek to promote a law that allows the creation of a public food company to ensure the access to food to historically neglected sections of the society.
Mumbai: The coronavirus-enforced lockdown has severely affected Mumbai's fisher folk as many of them have been rendered jobless and are finding it hard to sustain their livelihood since fish markets are lying closed. Some of the busiest fish markets, including at the Sassoon Dock in Colaba, Crawford Market in south Mumbai, Bhaucha Dhakka, or ferry wharf near the Dockyard, the Kasara fish market in neighbouring Thane and others, which used to be bustling with activity and business every day are shut. Thousands of fishing boats are lying useless and the community members are staring at a financial crisis.
Senior journalist Bhasha Singh spoke to Atul Sood, Professor at the Centre for the Study of Regional Development in the Jawaharlal Nehru University, about migrant workers and the deepening economic crisis. Prof. Sood mentions how governments are using the crisis due to the novel coronavirus to kill the rights of workers, and that the move would not bring the economy back on track. He said that while the government needs to invest and spend a percentage of the GDP, it is doing exactly the opposite
पहले की सियासत और अबकि सियासत में सबसे बड़ा फ़र्क़ क्या है? पहले सियासत सिर्फ़ सियासी लोग यानी राजनेता किया करते थे। अब मीडिया कर रही है। एंकर राजनीति और राजनेताओं का साथ बड़ी ही चतुराई से कर रहे हैं। ऐसा इसलिए क्योंकि मीडिया एक माध्यम है लोगों तक सूचना पहुँचाने के लिए। पिछले कुछ सालों में टीवी मीडिया से विपक्षी नेताओं का और पार्टियों का चरित्रहनन, झूठ फैलाने का काम जोरो से किया है। और अब इस काम मे और तेज़ी देखी जा रही है। मसलन जब एक चैनल का ऐंकर जब ये कहता है कि एक भीड़ सिर्फ़ मस्जिद के पास क्यों इकट्ठा हुईं? तब ये ख़बर साम्प्रदयिकता लिए हुई थी।
अर्नब-अमीश के बाद सुधीर पर FIR दर्ज, प्रशांत बोले- सही से मुकदमा चले तो ये आधी ज़िंदगी जेल में रहेंगे
PM केयर्स fund में अरबों-खरबों रुपये जमा हो चुके हैं। देश के गरीबों से लेकर अमीर उद्योगपतियों ने दिल खोल कर कोरोना की इस लड़ाई को लड़ने के लिए दान किया है। जब सरकार जनता के लिए है तो जनता द्वारा pm केयर्स फंड में दिया पैसा भी सार्वजनिक होने चाहिए। इसीलिए अब लोग प्रधानमंत्री मोदी से पीएम केयर्स फंड का सार्वजनिक करने की मांग कर रहे हैं।
छत्तीसगढ़ CM की तरह क्या मोदी भी जनता को बताएंगे- PM केयर्स में कितना पैसा आया और कहां खर्च हुआ? : अलका लांबा
जिहाद का नाम लेकर सांप्रदायिक नफ़रत फैलाने वाले ज़ी न्यूज़ के एडिटर इन चीफ सुधीर चौधरी अब जिहाद की तारीफ़ करते नज़र आ रहे हैं। चार्ट बनाकर जिहाद के ख़िलाफ़ लोगों को भड़काने वाले सुधीर अब लोगों को बता रहे हैं कि अबतक जिहाद की सही व्याख्या नहीं की गई, इसे गलत तरीके से पेश किया गया। सुधीर चौधरी में अचानक आए इस बदलाव की सोशल मीडिया पर जमकर चर्चा हो रही है। यूजर्स का मानना है कि उनके सुर में बदलाव का कारण उनके ख़िलाफ़ दर्ज की गई एफआईआर है। दरअसल, सुधीर चौधरी के ख़िलाफ़ 11 मार्च 2020 के डीएनए शो को लेकर केरल में गैर जमानती धाराओं में एक एफआईआर दर्ज कराई गई है। इस शो में सुधीर ने जिहाद को बदनाम करने के लिए एक चार्ट पेश किया था और अपने दर्शकों को इसी चार्ट के माध्यम से जिहाद की गलत व्याख्या समझाई थी।
इतिहास में इतनी झूठी सरकार कभी देखने को नही मिलेगी। अभी कुछ देर पहले न्यूज़ 18 की खबर है कि रेलवे मंत्री पीयूष गोयल ट्वीट किया है ‘प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी के आदेश पर रेलवे बीते छह दिनों से रोजाना 300 श्रमिक स्पेशल ट्रेन चला रही है. मैं सभी राज्यों से अपील करता हूं कि वे अपने फंसे प्रवासियों को बाहर निकालने और वापस लाने में मदद करे’
सबसे झूठी सरकार! गोयल बोले-हमने 6 दिन में 1800 ट्रेनें चलाई: रेलवे ने बताया सिर्फ 163 ट्रेनें चली: गिरीश मालवीय
संयुक्त राष्ट्र महासचिव एंतोनियो गुतारेस ने पिछले हफ्ते कहा कि दुनिया में कोरोना वायरस से सर्वाधिक प्रभावित लोगों में एक अरब विकलांग (दिव्यांग) भी शामिल हैं। उन्होंने कोविड-19 की रोकथाम एवं उपचार को लेकर विकलांगों को समान मौके उपलब्ध कराने का आह्वान किया। गुतारेस ने कहा कि यह महामारी इस बात को सामने ला रही है कि किस हद तक लोग हाशिये पर हैं तथा विकलांग जन गरीबी, हिंसा की उच्च दर, उपेक्षा एवं उत्पीड़न जैसी जिन असमानताओं को सामना कर रहे हैं, उसे यह और बढ़ा रही है। उनका वीडियो संदेश संयुक्त राष्ट्र की एक रिपोर्ट के साथ जारी किया गया है।
महामारी के दौरान रिकॉर्ड बेरोज़गारी से श्रमिकों को होने वाली परेशानियां पूंजीवाद का एक उत्पाद है। ज़्यादातर समय, नियोक्ता श्रमिकों को काम पर रखने या निकालने यानी हायर ऐंड फ़ायर का फ़ैसला लेते हैं और यह फ़ैसला उनके मुनाफ़े को अधिकतम करने के विकल्प पर निर्भर करता है। इस मुनाफ़े का न तो श्रमिकों के पूर्ण रोज़गार से मतलब है और न ही उत्पादन के साधनों से कोई लेना देना है, यह पूंजीवाद का "केंद्रीय बिन्दु" है और इस तरह, पूंजीवादियों का असली मक़सद भी यही होता है। सिस्टम इसी तरह से काम करता है। पूंजीपति तभी ख़ुश होते हैं,जब उनका मुनाफ़ा ज़्यादा होता है और जब मुनाफ़ा नहीं होता हैं, तब वे परेशान हो जाते हैं। लेकिन,यह सुख-दुख उनका व्यक्तिगत नहीं होता है; बल्कि इसका लेना-देना तो सिर्फ़ कारोबार से होता है।
Sunday, May 10, 2020
People who need medical attention find it difficult to get passes for caregivers owing to complicated procedures and lack of transportation. Thalassemia patients too are finding it difficult to get blood for transfusion. For citizens of rural India, the problems are worse because there is no money coming in due to the lockdown and even two meals are a distant dream. This is just a miniscule percentage of problems that are actually haunting people amid the lockdown. Nobody knows when and how, and if help will reach those in dire need.
The ongoing coronavirus crisis has taken a toll on the immunization of children, reported The Telegraph India. As per the advisory by the umbrella association of pediatricians, most toddlers missed their scheduled vaccinations due to their recommendation that vaccinations be postponed till March 31. However, when the doctors came to know that the lockdown wouldn’t be ending anytime soon, they issued another advisory asking doctors to resume scheduled vaccinations following certain guidelines. Countries have also been warned by the World Health Organization about letting their guard down on immunization of children while fighting the coronavirus.
In a curious flip to the charges against Tablighi Jamaat Markaz Nizamuddin head Maulana Saad Kandhalvi, it has now come to light that a volatile audio clip, that was once considered crucial evidence, may have been ‘doctored’. An explosive report in the Indian Express, stated that an “Initial investigation” by Delhi Police’s Crime Branch has found that an audio clip allegedly of a recording by Tablighi Jamaat Markaz Nizamuddin head Maulana Saad Kandhalvi, where he has apparently asked his followers to ignore social distancing protocols and the government's, prohibitory orders may have been “stitched together” using several audio clips.
Will the hate mongering against India’s Muslim community stop if Tablighi head’s viral audio clip turns out to be doctored? | SabrangIndia
I am not surprised these days how our police is behaving. Those who spread hatred, threaten people openly and intimidate them through social media as well as 'popular media', screaming loudly on television channels have never been touched. Look at how hate mongers on TV channels have got full protections by the government. If certain state governments have gone against some of those hate mongers, BJP leaders are defending them as if they are 'champions' of civil liberty and democratic rights. Of course, it is an open secret how much BJP as well as Sangh Parivar 'respect' these rights of the individuals.
"To my utter shock, the police seized my phone citing inquiry into the Delhi violence": Kawalpreet Kaur “Speak Against Delhi Police’s Witch Hunt of Students & Activists During Pandemic and Lockdown”, Civil rights activists ask citizens to join #DelhiPoliceJawabDo campaign today
"To my utter shock, the police seized my phone citing inquiry into the Delhi violence": Kawalpreet Kaur | SabrangIndia
Patna: A group of migrant workers who had arrived from other states were lathi-charged at a quarantine centre in Bihar were lathicharge by police for protesing against poor quality food, lack of cleanliness and basic amenities like proper sanitation facilities. The beating resulted in a worker’s hand getting fractured. The incident is not an isolated one. Upset over poor facilities at quarantine centres, thousands of migrant workers have taken to protesting in over a dozen districts in Bihar over the past day. There are also several reports of migrant workers raising their voice and expressing their anger over the mismanagement at quarantine centres in government-run school buildings, panchayat buildings and other buildings across Bihar.
Saturday, May 9, 2020
The Kerala Police on Thursday filed a first information report under non-bailable sections against Zee News Editor-in-Chief Sudhir Chaudhary for making incendiary remarks about the Muslim community in his show. “The highlight of the show aired on 11 March was the ‘jihad chart’,” the FIR stated, according to The Quint.“The accused presented a programme that is offending the Muslim religion.”
The National Human Rights Commission on Friday issued notices to the Maharashtra chief secretary and Aurangabad district magistrate after a cargo train ran over migrant labourers and killed at least 16 of them. The human rights panel took suo motu cognisance of media reports about the incident. The migrants had fallen asleep on the track while they were walking back to their home from Jalna in Maharashtra to Bhusawal in Madhya Pradesh. Four workers survived the accident, which took place at 5.15 am near Karmad, around 30 km from Aurangabad.
The Madras High Court on Friday ordered the closure of all liquor shops run by the Tamil Nadu government, just a day after they were reopened amid the nationwide coronavirus lockdown, Live Law reported. A special division bench of the court noted that there was a “blatant violation” of its guidelines regulating the sale of liquor at Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) outlets. The court, however, said that online delivery of liquor will still be allowed.
Delhi Minorities Commission chief Zafarul Islam Khan on Friday approached the Delhi High Court seeking anticipatory bail in connection with a first information report lodged against him on charges of sedition, PTI reported. The complainant has alleged that Khan, on April 28, had shared a post on social media which was “provocative”. In the post, the chairperson had thanked Kuwait for “standing with Indian Muslims” in context of the large-scale communal violence in North East Delhi.
The Union Health Ministry on Friday said people should “learn to live with the coronavirus”. This came after All India Institute of Medical Sciences Director Randeep Guleria said India should brace itself for a jump in cases, with modelling showing the peak of infections may come in between June and July. Responding to questions about the predicted trajectory of the Covid-19 transmission curve, the health ministry said community support was needed to fight the virus and contain it. “It is possible that with adherence to social distancing norms and aggressive containment, India may never hit the peak,” Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said. “But as we talk about relaxations and return of migrants, it is important that we learn to live with the virus and practice behavioural changes.”
The World Health Organization’s special Covid-19 envoy David Nabarro said India has reported a relatively small number of coronavirus cases till now because it acted quickly. In an interview with NDTV, the health expert said the pandemic will reach its peak in the country by the end of July before it is contained.
The State Bank of India has filed a complaint with the Central Bureau of Investigation against a Delhi-based basmati rice export firm, alleging that its promoters defaulted on loans from six banks worth over Rs 400 crore, NDTV reported on Saturday. The owners of Ram Dev International Limited have been absconding since 2016.
The Centre on Friday revised its guidelines on Covid-19 patients and said only severe cases will now be tested before being discharged. The two-page revised guidelines replaces the previously existing rule under which patients, who are laboratory confirmed cases, were discharged after two negative tests on day 14 and 21.
On Thursday, the Orissa High Court, in a brief but significant order, directed the Odisha state government to ensure that “all the migrants in queue to come to Odisha should be tested negative of Covid-19 before boarding the conveyance.” On Friday, the Supreme Court stayed this order, holding that the High Court did not take into account relevant guidelines notified by the government of India. The high court order raises critical questions on the role of judiciary in fighting the unprecedented crisis.
Hundreds of locals from RR Venkatapuram and adjoining villages gathered outside LG Polymers India in Andhra Pradesh’s Visakhapatnam city on Saturday demanding immediate closure of the plant, PTI reported. At least 11 people, including a child, died on Thursday after toxic gas leaked from a chemical plant of the company. The villagers also demanded the arrest of those responsible.
My colony has been sealed. They found a positive case just behind the block where I live. An ambulance arrived in the dead of night and whisked the entire family away. I write this on the 38th day of the national lockdown, and for me, it also marks the end of two excruciating weeks under imposed confinement.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)