BRUHASPATI
SAMAL
Circle Secretary, AIPEU, Group-C &
Leader, RJCM (Staff Side), Odisha Circle
The time is advancing relentlessly
with the ticks of the clock as a new
year starts and old one ends reminding us the same customary attitude to
contemplate all our agonies and ecstasies reviewing our resolutions made in the
beginning of the year and looking back
on months gone by. While it’s no wonder to recall all the happy times that enriched our lives, realize
the fondest dreams which made us recognized, memorize the best rewards of our deepest and finest feelings and great
satisfactions, refresh and revitalize the pleasures with people, material and
personal successes on one hand, it becomes, on the other also inevitable to weigh our ignorance /
mistakes to find out the hurdles for unachieved goals, to examine the reasons
for failures and to establish the deviations from our promises and commitments
so that we can greet the New Year with a
stronger attitude and a better commitment than ever.
2019 reelected the new Govt. with much
hope and anxiety that it will understand the psychology of 130 crore Indians including
farmers, unemployed youths, workers and employees and secure all its citizens
liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship, equality of status
and opportunity and promote among them all fraternity assuring dignity of
individual and the unity and integrity of the Nation rendering social/political/economic
justice as enjoined in the holy Constitution of India. But the present
political, economic, social and religious status of the country especially
during 2019 speaks something different. The national unity, social cohesion,
secular and federal structure and democratic ethos of this
vast sub-continent of heterogeneous racial, lingual, religious and social
culture which upholds its rich cultural heritage through religious pluralism
with Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Budhists, Jains etc are witnessed to
be affected in many ways during 2019.
While the negative impacts of
demonetization, GST etc during yesteryears were carried forward to 2019,
economic slowdown and unemployment situation added with CAA/NRC issues during
the last part of 2019 have increased violence and vandalism grossly affecting
the peace-loving minds of the common citizens and environment of the country at
large. People are seen to be divided in the name of caste and religion. In
between, the commitment of the Govt. is seen to be more inclined towards the
big corporate houses rather than Govt. establishments through writing off of
major part of huge default of corporate houses amounting nearly ten lakh crore
rupees and concessions in direct taxes to the tune of 5.84 lakh crore. The
scalars and vectors of massive outsourcing and aggressive corporatization / privatization
with mass scale closure / merger of Central Govt. establishments and PSUs are
highly alarming. Railway Production Units and Platforms, Ordnance Factories,
Printing Presses, Airports, Seaports, Posts and Telecom are not spared. Trade Union rights are under attack through arbitrary
amendment of 44 Labour Laws to 4 codes prioritizing the benefit of the
employers. The unemployment rate in the
country has been reached to a 45 years high. As many as 7 lakh posts are lying
vacant in the CG establishments. There is no control on price rise. Income inequality and disparity between rich
and poor have become abhorrent. The rich is becoming richer and poor is
becoming poorer. The Pension has been taken away and the future of the younger
generation has been darkened in the name of NPS. The job security is being
snatched away through Fixed Term Employment.
With so many unsolved and unwarranted
issues of 2019 before us, we are going to greet 2020. The challenge in the
beginning of the year 2020 is now much bigger before us, especially before the
common citizens and entirety of workers and employees for which ten Central
Trade Unions and hundreds of independent federations including Confederation of
Central Govt. Employees and Workers have decided to register their protest
against all policy deficiencies of the Govt. through one day nationwide general
strike on 08.01.2020. The most crucial task before us, therefore is to further
widen the unity of the working class movement and heighten the struggle towards
all offensive measures adopted against the working class. Central
Government employees have a rich history and legacy of heroic struggles and
sacrifices right from the colonial days. That rich history which we
proudly inherit will certainly inspire and give us confidence to confront and
combat.
In this context, it is a proud moment
for all of us to recollect the glorious journey of Postal / Central Govt.
employeesTrade Union Movement through National Federation of Post & Telecom
Employees (NFPTE) alias National Federation of Postal Employees (NFPE) which
enters the 66th year of its existence. During our long strenuous
journey, we have not only experienced the Divide and Rule Policy of the British
Government but also the administrative dilemma and miseries of Postal workers
in particular and Central Govt. employees in general even during
post-independent era without minimum wage, holidays, fixed duty hours,
recreation, promotion, bonus, advances, overtime allowance, retirement benefits
etc., They
were badly treated, severally punished and personally abused. Corruption was
rampant. The service of the employees was hopelessly insecure.
The
P & T Trade Union Movement which was initiated in the name of a Postal Club
in Kolkatta GPO during 1905 became recognized as National
Federation of Post and Telegraph Employees (NFPTE) on 24th November,
1954 after 50
years of uncompromised struggles and sacrifices. Till
it was bifurcated in February, 1986 to National Federation of Postal Employees
(NFPE) and National Federation of Telecom Employees (NFTE) consequent upon
separation of the Department to Department of Posts and Department of
Telecommunications, NFPTE continued its struggle to give its members the benefits they deserve.
In spite of hurdles and attacks by the Govt., NFPE has never looked back and is
continuing its struggles as the biggest constituent of Confederation of Central
Govt. employees and Workers not only to protect the interest of the postal and
RMS employees in particular but also to give justice to the entire working
class in general. It is needless to
reiterate that the benefits now we are enjoining as Central Govt. Employees are
the gifts of the sacrifices of the leaders and loyal workers of NFPTE /
Confederation without caring for brutal murders, mass scale arrests,
termination, suspension and above all de-recognition of our Federation by the
administration/Govt. NFPE’s struggle movements in particular are not just
confined to pay or leave etc. The story of success and sacrifice of NFPTE/Confederation
is too long to describe.
In the name of transformation of India
Post, the problems of the postal employees have been multiplied during the last
two decades. With formulation of National Postal Policy, Strategic Plan,
Corporate Plan and introduction of Project Arrow and I T Modernization Project,
the employees are now treated in similar nature prevailed during
pre-independence era. With acute shortage of staff due to arbitrary abolition
of posts, increased working hours due to down-sizing, additional pressure due
unachievable targets for POSB, PLI/RPLI and business products, frequent system
problems due to improper software, inadequate professionals and outdated
accessories, compulsion of cent percent delivery in the absence of adequate staff
and support system, introduction of new products and services without proper
education and training to the employees and such other problems arising out of
computerization and modernization, the employees are suffering like anything.
In addition, corporatization / privatization of India Post through
implementation of Task Force report in the name of India Post Payments Bank
Limited has added salt to the injury. Over Time duty has already lost its
concept due to non-revision of the allowance for more than two decades.
Contradictorily, the promotional avenues in postal department have been twisted
to be confused. The fates of 3 lakh Gramin Dak Sewaks have remained
unpredictable for decades together. Thus, we are still demanding to fill up all
vacant posts, creation of new posts, to stop corporatization / privatization /
down-sizing, to give five promotions, to give status and pension to GDS etc.
The struggles have not yet ended.
Adding salt to injury, the 7th CPC submitted its report with most
disappointing, retrograde and worst ever recommendations to the Govt. on 19th
November, 2015 restricting the pay hike to 14.29% without any change in the
annual increment and promotional avenues even after a gap of 10 years and more
importantly withdrawing all the 12 interest-free advances and 52 allowances and
thus deceiving as many as 47 lakh Central Govt. employees and 52 lakh
pensioners. The demands of the JCM Staff Side to implement the recommendations
from 01.01.2014, to fix the minimum wage at Rs.26000/- with multiplying factor
of 3.27, annual increment to 5%, 5 promotion during the entire service career,
abolition of Grade Pay etc have been squarely rejected by the Commission. No
change has been recommended for Casual Leave, Maternity Leave and Leave
encashment. Rather, the Commission has recommended to reduce the HRA from
30/20/10% to 24/16/8% and 20% less pay in the 2nd year of Child Care
Leave. Relating to our specific issues, the
commission finds no justification for enhancement of minimum educational qualifications
for Direct Recruits for Postal Assistants/Sorting Assistants from Class XII to
Graduation and the entry grade pay from GP 2400 to GP 2800 and also no
justification for upgrading LSG, HSG-II & HSG-I. Similar is the case of
Postman, Mail Guard and MTS. The demand for separate cadre for S As / B Es has
been denied straightway. The issues relating to GDS remained untouched.
Thus, the revolution has just begun
which needs the effort of every single individual for retaining the hard-earned
benefits we have achieved through our struggle movements. Human revolution, in
just a single individual can help achieve a change in the destiny of a nation
and further in the destiny of all human kind. So unfettered by narrow
nationalist or sectarian concerns, it should be considered that every
individual is equally empowered with inner brilliance of life and however small
the effort, every individual effort certainly makes a definite difference. The
thing is that everyone should be loyal to the voice of conscience that issues
forth from deep within.
Workers
are not beggars. To make ourselves free from all worries and anxieties, to live
with a status and to serve our nation whole heartedly on one hand and to retain
the hard-earned benefits already achieved through rigorous struggles and
sacrifices on the other, we have to go for united struggle and bring a
thundering success to the one day nationwide general strike on 08.01.2020 which
needs just a promise by every individual on the eve of this new year.To
be more active and more progressive, let’s promise to be more militant and
aggressive on our issues.
Together we can move the world. One,
who can’t be taught by reason, shall be taught by force. And our force is our
togetherness and unity. We have already proved it through our several rigorous
struggle programmes from pre-independence era till date. We have fought and
achieved. The glorious history of P & T Trade Union Movement tells us that
nothing can stop us. We can achieve all
our demands through our unity and agitation, through one platform and one
voice. We have just to carry forward our glorious traditions with additions of
new ideas that will suit our future needs with an eye to the current
transformation. And it is quite possible in the era of digital world. Just a
commitment is required. A recall to our historic struggles in the past will definitely add
to our future success.
Let the New Year unite all under one umbrella to
fight for common causes and welfare of the society and bring peace and
prosperity for all. Let truth and
justice prevail.
Happy New Year, 2020.
