CONFEDERATION OF CENTRAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES AND WORKERS
Chq: Manishinath Bhawan, A/2/95 Rajouri
Garden, New Delhi.110 027
E mail: confederation06@yahoo.co.in
Website:confederationhq.blogspot.com.
28th February, 2013
PRESS STATEMENT
Another
pro-rich budget
The Union Budget 2013-14 presented by
the Finance Minister Shri P. Chidambaram, today in the Parliament was extremely
disappointing to the common working people . No doubt they have not expected
any relief from this anti people Government and especially from its Finance
Minister, Shri P.Chidambaram. However, they hoped against hope that the
Government will read the discontent that is growing fast amongst the people,
manifested admirably in the two day strike of the Indian Working Class on 20th
and 21st. Despite the erosion of the real value of the wages
due to the high rate of inflation, the wage earners genuinely thought that they
would be provided with some relief by way of an adjustment of the non taxable
maximum. While the give away to the corporate sector continued as the
Finance Minister himself has noted in his budget speech in as much as the revenue
foregone on direct taxes did register an increase from a lakh crore rupees to
Rs. 1.13 lakh Crores in the last year he never felt the need to address the
agony of the workers.
Despite the fall in the rate of growth
of economy, the Finance Minister has taken pride in the fact that India
continues to be one of the fast growing economy. What type of growth he
was visualizing is hard to gauge when the number of people below poverty line
had been on the increase year after year. There had been all-round
increase in the prices of all essential commodities including those where the
Government had a say in determining it. The Railway Minister did not
increase the fare for passenger trains for he did it before he presented the
budget. The economic growth and recovery would be a mirage so long as the
purchasing power of people get depleted. There had been substantial
reduction of workforce in the organized sector due to intensified
contractorisation.
The pronouncement of increased
allocation of funds for agriculture, rural development, education etc. is a
travesty of truth. The FM has made comparison of the present
allocation with the revised estimates of the previous year, which in fact was
much lesser than 2011-12. There had been gross underutilization of the
allocated funds in respect of most of the welfare scheme of the Govt. last
year. While presenting the economic survey, the Finance Minister assured
the country that the days of recession were over and the era of growth will
usher in soon, which has only pleased the TNCs and corporate houses in the
country. The FM has unambiguously spelt out the continuance of the neo liberal
economic path of development with much more fervor in the months to come.
To expect that the
Govt. will address the concern of the common people and the working class
is foolish, if the Budget proposal is any indication. But how long
the people are to suffer this agony. Every decision of this
Government being anti-working people and the Budget being a policy pronouncement,
we must strive our best to organize movement to oppose the disastrous
policies being pursued by the UPA Government.
KKN KUTTY
SECRETARY GENERAL
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