EDITORIAL - POSTAL CRUSADER.

UNITED  WE  STAND,

TOGETHER  WE  CONQUER

                  Battle lines for a showdown of the Central Govt. Employees are drawn.  Confederation of Central Govt. Employees & Workers and National Federation of Postal Employees (NFPE) had served notice for 48 hours strike on 2014 February 12th & 13th, to Cabinet Secretary and Secretary, Department of Posts respectively on 21st January 2014 alongwith 15 point Charter of demands.

                   The demands raised by the entire Central Govt. employees includes DA merger, Interim relief, Grant of civil servant status and inclusion of GDS in 7th CPC, Regularisation and revision of wages of casual labourers, Rescind PFRDA Act and scrap new Pension Scheme, Date of effect of 7th CPC 01-01-2014 & Five year wage revision in future, Fixation of minimum pay based on Need-based minimum wage formula worked out by 15th ILC and modified by Supreme Court later, settlement of anomalies, Implementation of Arbitration awards, five promotions, cashless hassle free medical facilities, Removal of restrictions on compassionate appointments, removal of bonus ceiling, stop downsizing, outsourcing, contractorisation, casualisation and privatisation, Filling up of vacant posts. Stop price rise and strengthen public distribution system.  Right to strike, vacate victimisations and revive JCM forums are also included in the charter.

                   The neo-liberal economic policies pursued by the Central Govt. from 1991 onwards is threatening the very existence of Central Govt. departments.  Many Govt. functions are already outsourced and some departments are at the verge of closure.  Eventhough Govt. proclaim that there is no ban, six lakhs of vacant posts remain unfilled, out of which three lakhs are in Railways.  Downsizing, contractorisation and privatisation has become the order of the day.  Exploitation of  three lakhs Gramin Dak Sevaks of the Postal department and casual labourers is still continuing.  Hard-earned statutory Pension of the Govt. employees has been snatched away and  share market oriented New Pension Scheme is introduced. Both the congress-led UPA Govt. and BJP led Opposition NDA had joined together in the Parliament to pass the PFRDA Bill.  Prices of all essential commodities has shooted up and grant of permission by the Govt. to  oil companies to raise the prices of Petroleum products including Gas has further aggravated the situation.  Life of the workers and common people has become miserable.  To compensate the price rise and to prevent further erosion in the real wages.  Govt. is not ready to grant DA merger or interim relief.  Entire negotiating forums called JCM has become totally ineffective and defunct due to the negative attitude of the Government. 

                   General Election to Parliament is going to be declared shortly.  Parliament is in session upto the second or third week of February 2014 only.  Once election is declared, we cannot expect any positive action from the Government till the end of 2014.  Confederation has framed the charter of demands in its National Council held at Mumbai in 2010 December 1st & 2nd and submitted to Government in 2011.  Series of Nationwide campaign and agitational programmes has been organised and a massive rally of about 20000 Central Govt. employees was conducted in front of Parliament on 26th July 2012.  As the Government remained indifferent one day’s nation-wide strike was conducted on 12th December 2012 followed by two days strike on February, 20, 21 along with the Central Trade Unions.  Strike ballot for indefinite strike was also declared in the month of August, 2013.  Due to the agitations conducted by  Confederation, Government was compelled to announce 7th Pay Commission in September, 2013, of course, with an eye on the votes of the Central Government Employees and Pensioners in the by-election to four states including Delhi.

                   Now four months are over since the announcement of the Prime Minister assuring constitution of Seventh CPC.  Till this day the notification constituting the 7th CPC is not issued by the Government and the Chairman and other committee members are also not appointed.  DA merger, Interim Relief and terms of reference are also pending.  In fact, Government has fooled about 50 lakhs Central Government employees including defence personnel and 40 lakhs Central Government Pensioners.  Nobody can tolerate this type of humiliation.

            We cannot expect any positive action from the Government, unless and untill we organise ourselves in a decisive manner and go for a strike action.  Central Government Employees have the potential to get their due rights from an unwilling Government.  For that there is no short-cut.  Unity and struggle is the only way.  2014 February 12th & 13th 48 hour strike will be an outburst of resentment and anger of the entire Central Government employees.  Let us unite together and make the 48 hours strike a show of our uncompromising determination, courage and unity.

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