Govt subsidises caravan to Caracas

While the shortest route to Venezuela would have been via the US, the delegates did not bother to try, convinced that the US will not grant them transit visas. ‘‘Already, delegates from the US are facing so much problem to reach the festival. So we decided to go via Europe or Africa,’’ said CPI(M) youth leader Balagopal, one of the co-ordinators.

Unable to make any headway in their initial efforts, the Left is said to have taken up the matter with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as senior Left leaders like D Raja pushed the case on behalf of the delegates. At first, the committee tried to get the government to lend them a special aircraft to fly down all the delegates to Caracas.

But with Air-India not in a position to spare an aircraft and the shortage of pilots to go with it, the pressure was built up on the PM. ‘‘It is not new. Governments in the past have also given financial support so why can’t it be done this time also?’’ said Raja.

With the Indian Youth Congress also doing its bit of the lobbying, the delegates managed to secure a sanction of Rs 1.35 crores. ‘‘The government has agreed to finance air travel of 150 participants. This is nearly 50 per cent of the cost and we are grateful to them for it,’’ IYC president Ashok Tanwar told The Indian Express.

The last time these groups received such assistance was back in 1997 when the United Front government doled out Rs 30 lakh to help cover travel expenses to Havana for some 100 delegates. The festival, held every four years, was last held in 2001 at Algiers but these outfits did not approach the NDA government for obvious political reasons.

The week-long 16th World Festival of Youth and Students begins in Caracas on August 8 with about 15,000 delegates expected to participate from some 130 countries. Prior to 1991, the festival was organised by countries of the Socialist block with North Korea being the only Asian country so far to have hosted the event.

With Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez—among the few prominent Left leaders in power—dishing out the best for these delegates, the Indian Left is fielding a large contingent. Though the head of the national preparatory committee is the IYC president, bulk of the delegates are from the Left outfits. They plan to send over 90 participants. The IYC is likely to send about 40 members.

The festival will have conclaves and seminars that will target US action in Iraq, criticise globalisation besides condemning religious fundamentalism. The West Bengal government is also sending a 11-member cultural troupe to the festival.