Workers’ groups plan protest against Exim policy

Addressing a press meet today, Surendra Dharap, general secretary of LUB said: “The government’s free trade policy and its lifting of duty impositions will lead to the closure of small scale industries.” The World Trade Organisation (WTO) agreement signed last year by the BJP-led government was implemented on April 1 this year by lifting export duties on 714 goods in the domestic, consumer and agriculture sector.

According to the agitating groups, this policy will leave one crore families unemployed in India. Dharap said: “On the one hand, we are promoting employment policies, and on the other, giving the West’s industrialists and labourers a good bargain. This will lead to further unemployment in our country. Even in America they have a slogan `Be American buy American’ as they face a threat from Japan.”

The organisations have demanded that the government negotiate with the WTO and place restrictions on the quantity of foreign products entering India. Companies bringing in products that are easily available in India, like silk, foodgrains, milk products and pharmaceuticals, should be subject to stringent conditions, he added.

Dinesh Kulkarni of the BKS pooh-poohed the suggestion that the new policy would create healthy competition. “Competition has to be fair, it cannot take place between unequals. Though the quality of our products is equally good as that of the MNCs, we suffer from numerous deficiencies of finance, power scarcity, automation, etc in comparison with them. And with the foreign markets making inroads, our labourers will be forced to sell their goods below the cost of production, like in the case of silk.”

Asked why the groups wanted to protest against a government that was essentially of the same view, Sharad Joshi, general secretary of BMS said: “We are against any government that is anti-labour. Besides, the Central government was forced to sign the agreement due to the promises made by the previous governments.”

Demonstrations will soon be carried out in different states and in 10 big cities across the country. The organisations are confident that they will succeed in forcing the government to withdraw the Exim policy. Sanat Rathod, director of Swastik Oil Products said: “A mass protest can achieve anything as the ultimate power lies with the masses.”