Opinion Rethink reforms
CPM weekly Peoples Democracy devotes its editorial to a reaffirmation of its opposition to a neo-liberal economic policy trajectory.
Rethink reforms
CPM weekly Peoples Democracy devotes its editorial to a reaffirmation of its opposition to a neo-liberal economic policy trajectory,occasioned by the 20th anniversary of economic reforms. It says two decades of economic reforms have succeeded in creating two Indias,and attacks those who are rooting for further reforms,particularly financial liberalisation.
The tenacity of the cheerleaders of neo-liberalism is simply amazing… They seem to forget,in fact,deliberately ignore the fact that but for the Left parties,which prevented UPA 1 from going ahead with reforms like the privatisation of pension funds,increasing the FDI cap in the insurance sector,banking reforms permitting greater role for foreign banks and the full convertibility of the rupee,India would have been severely devastated by the global financial crisis and recession, says the editorial,by Sitaram Yechury.
On the two Indias theory,it says: If the quality of life of everybody had substantially improved,then the growing income inequalities would be seen as an index of relative poverty and not absolute poverty. However,given the widespread agrarian distress,suicides by our farmers,drastic reduction in the per capita availability of foodgrains and pulses all go to show the rise of absolute poverty among certain sections of our people.
It quotes an IMF study titled India is the rising tide lifting all boats to back its argument. This paper measures the universally accepted index of income inequality the Gini coefficient. It shows that this has risen from 0.303 to 0.325 for the country as a whole in the first decade of the 21st century. In the urban areas,the situation is much worse with the Gini coefficient rising from 0.343 to 0.378. There cannot be a greater indictment than this, it says.
No lines to Iran
In an article in Peoples Democracy,CPM General Secretary Prakash Karat says the UPA has succumbed to US pressure to curtail trading and commercial links with Iran. He bases his article on the delay in payments for oil shipments from Iran,claiming that $5 billion in payments is overdue,forcing Tehran to consider stopping supply. The situation is the result of India abiding by the illegal and unilateral sanctions imposed by the US and the European Union,says Karat.
Under pressure of these sanctions,the RBI in December 2010 disallowed all trade-related payments with Iran through the Asian Clearing Union, he says. Subsequently,both the governments agreed payments could be made through an account with a German bank,but under pressure from the US and Israel,the German government has also stopped these transactions.
Karat says Indias traditional relations with Iran have been endangered after the nuclear deal,as the US made it clear that the deal entailed India making its foreign policy congruent to that of Washington. He refers to India voting twice against Iran in the IAEA,and the virtual abandonment of the Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline. Claiming that the US is now asking India to source its oil imports from Saudi Arabia rather than Iran,he says: India can get its crude oil requirements from other countries. But what cannot be retrieved by this craven and servile attitude to the United States is the countrys self respect and damage to national interests.
Monsoon mayhem
As the monsoon session of Parliament gets off to a stormy start,the CPI has slammed the government and the BJP for the disruptions. An article in New Age says that instead of discussing vital issues,disruption and adjournments dominate parliamentary proceedings,because they suit both political sides,except for the Left. It says the government has announced several new bills but has deliberately avoided building a consensus on them so that they become bones of contention and lead to disruption,a way out for the government. While most opposition parties have said the prime minister should be brought under the ambit of Lokpal Bill,the government is not willing to concede.
The article argues that the BJP and the Congress are in the same boat when it comes to corruption,referring to the B.S. Yeddyurappa episode and the 2G spectrum scam. It says that apart from the Lokpal bill,there are many other issues that must be addressed this session,including inflation,FDI in the retail and finance sectors,right-wing terror and Telangana. The monsoon session is really going to be a test for UPA-II if,and this is a big if,it is allowed to function, it says.
Compiled by Manoj C.G.
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