Three decades!

On the 30th anniversary of the CPM-led Left Front government in West Bengal, an editorial in People8217;s Democracy delves into its success.

On the 30th anniversary of the CPM-led Left Front government in West Bengal, an editorial in People8217;s Democracy delves into its success. Nearly 13 lakh acres of agricultural land was acquired by the LF government and distributed to the landless poor. Nearly 20 lakh sharecroppers were also conferred hereditary rights to cultivation. Combined, these two measures have radically transformed the lives of nearly 2.5 crore people 8212; if families are included. 8220;It is this simple truth that explains why, unlike anywhere else in the country, the Left Front continues to negate the anti-incumbency factor,8221; said the editorial.

Post-reform, between 1993 and 2003, the average growth of net state domestic product was 7.10 per cent 8212; the highest amongst the 16 big states in India, according to a study done by the Centre for Policy Alternatives. 8220;Studies by the World Bank 2000, Montek Singh Ahluwalia 2000 corroborate such findings,8221; added the editorial.

Towards industrialisation

CPM General Secretary Prakash Karat divided the LF government8217;s tenure into two phases, pre and post 1991, in an article in People8217;s Democracy. During the first phase the LF government faced state regulation in aneconomy following a capitalist path, and industrial development languished in these early years. The second phase, beginning in 1992, is the 8220;phase of liberalisation and the deregulation of the state control and intervention in the economy.8221; There was also a push for neo-liberal policies and the drastic cutbacks on state investments, including from the welfare sector.

On discrimination

CPM patriarch Jyoti Basu raised the issue of discrimination against West Bengal in an interview. For example, when Mrs Gandhi had promised the Left a part in the Salt Lake area electronics project, but 8220;she said that her officers, who had been in the committee constituted to look into this matter, had unanimously suggested to her not to go ahead with that project. Their idea was that no investment should be made in West Bengal because it was a border state. Ridiculous!8221; Basu did not believe this. 8220;Later, without any help from the central government, we built up this electronics complex on 300 acres of land,8221; he said.

Left versus Left

There are differences of opinion in the Left over public-private partnership PPP. In an article in People8217;s Democracy, Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee wrote, 8220;It is necessary to appreciate the fact that the state government alone cannot develop, upgrade and maintain the infrastructure sector. We believe that the PPP can harmoniously work to offer adequate infrastructure facilities.8221; In another article, eminent Leftist scholar Prabhat Patnaik offered a different view: 8220;Neo-liberalism wants the state only to promote private corporate capital, both domestic and foreign, through the so-called 8216;public-private partnerships8217;8221;.

Compiled by D.K. Singh