People's Democracy

THE WEEK IN PARLIAMENT

CPI(M) Parliamentary Office

THE week saw discussions on the rail budget and general budget in both houses.

RAIL BUDGET

DISCUSSION

While speaking on the railway budget in upper house, Prasanta Chatterjee said the circumstance of the railway minister’s resignation was unusual. He referred to the recent pre-budget hike in freight charges and the proposed hikes in passenger fares of all classes, saying the government was imposing burdens on the people in order to cover up its own inefficiencies which have led to the bankruptcy of the Indian Railways. In one year, it missed its freight loading target by 23 million tonnes. False promises are being made to push up large-scale privatisation in the railways. The rail budget documents also show a gradual reduction in the staff strength of the railways. The member referred to some long pending railway projects and the consequent cost escalations, and demanded that the proposals for PPP model in all projects must be scrapped. He concluded with the demand that passenger fare hikes must be withdrawn.

P Rajeeve said the unprecedented way the minister had resigned questioned the rail budget’s credibility. While demanding a reconsideration of the tariff hike and withdrawal of passenger fair hikes, he said the fuel adjustment component and tariff regulatory authority are dangerous things, and urged the new railway minister to scrap these two proposals. The member demanded modernisation of Ernakulam junction station, more trains from Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad and Bangalore to Kerala, a Duronto Express service between Cochin and Bangalore, permission to season ticket holders to travel in second class coaches, suburban train services, and speedy doubling and electrification of lines in Kerala.

T K Rangarajan agreed with the minister’s contention that the Indian Railways now stand at a crossroads, but asked: Who is responsible for it? Twenty million passengers pay money for travel but suffer. Approximately, 15,000 people die every year in rail accidents. There is no dearth of plans and committee reports. But the targets are not met and recommendations not implemented. Today the loco running staff, gatemen and station workers work for 12 hours a day. Will this not jeopardise the safety? The member asked the minister to ensure only eight hours of work for these categories. It is good that women are working in workshops, but they lack many facilities. In the Southern Railways, there is no hostel for women. The Sixth Pay Commission recommended child care leave for women employees, but it is not implemented there because vacancies are not being filled up and hence there are not relievers. The member demanded more new trains for the southern region, doubling of lines, speedy electrification, and more special trains for Melmaruvathur, a pilgrimage spot.

DISCUSSION

IN LOK SABHA

In lower house, Dr Ramchandra Dome drew attention to the situation in the Indian Railways. Referring to the Anil Kakodkar committee report, he said it strongly recommended against introduction of new trains without commensurate augmentations in the infrastructure. The railways’ financial situation is clear from its operating ratio. It was 91 per cent in year 2004-2005 and 95 per cent in 2011-12, showing high and increasing inefficiency. The fare hikes must be seen in the backdrop of this severe deterioration in the performance of Indian Railways. The member pointed out how the railways are losing freight traffic to other modes of transport while passenger traffic is not growing as per the projection. This is because of the deteriorating quality of services on the one hand and lack of concern for safety in the railways on the other. As many as 55 train accidents occurred between April and November 2011, leading to loss of 104 lives. Tellingly, in the same morning the discussion took place there was a tragic accident in Mathura section, resulting in 15 deaths. Demanding a thorough enquiry into this accident and adequate compensation paid for the losses, the member demanded immediate recruitments for the vacancies and steps to clear the backlog of vacancies to be filled up with scheduled caste and tribe candidates.

P R Natarajan said with Rs 122 crore to its credit the Coimbatore region is the highest revenue getter in the Southern Railways, but yet the people here are not heard. They have been demanding overnight express trains to Bangalore, Thiruvananthapuram, Rameshwaram and Mayiladuthurai, re-routing of 13 pairs of trains via Coimbatore which are at present being run on the Irugur-Podanur sections, speedy completion of the Coimbatore-Dindigul gauge conversion, and additional train service to Chennai etc. But the ministry continues to neglect this region. The member insisted that these demands must be conceded without any further delay.

M B Rajesh said while 75 new express trains were announced in the budget, Kerala got only one train. He demanded speedy completion of Palakkad-Pollachi gauge conversion and Palakkad Coach Factory project. Among other things, he demanded urgent attention to the plight of hundreds of platform vendors who have been thrown out of employment mercilessly.

DISCUSSION ON

GENERAL BUDGET

Initiating the discussion on the general budget 2012-13 in Lok Sabha, P Karunakaran said a budget is not merely an account tallying the assets and liabilities; it is a vision and the main concern is how to realise that vision. But on the most important issue of resource mobilisation, the government has adopted a regressive tax structure by which it would lose Rs 4,500 crore from direct taxes but gain Rs 45,000 crore or more from indirect taxes. Thus this budget is pro-rich rather than pro-poor. Another source of income is the sale of shares of public sector undertakings. Last year the government got Rs 22,500 crore, and now it would try to get Rs 30,000 crore. Thus the public sector undertakings, which give the government substantial amounts in form of excise duty, customs duty and sales tax, are being sold to private hands for a song.

Expressing concern over the fall in GDP growth rate to around 6.9 per cent and the poor plight of agriculture, Karunakaran said the prices of essential goods are going up due to wrong policies. In the budget, tax concessions worth 5 lakh 28 thousand crore rupees have been given. If these taxes had been collected, there would have been a fiscal surplus. To reduce the fiscal deficit, the government has reduced the subsidy on fuel and fertilisers as it considers such incentives to the poor for growth as burdens. But growth rate cannot be increased unless the people’s purchasing power goes up. According to an official report, 80 crore Indians are living on only Rs 20 a day. Then, how can their purchasing power go up? Whatever amount of cheaper capital the government makes available to the corporates, it will not boost growth unless our people have money in hand.

In the course of his submission, the member also raised issues like failure to allot six per cent of GDP for education which the Kothari commission recommended 40 years back, inadequacy of bank loans for agriculture, its high interest rate etc. With regard to health, the combined expenditure of the centre and states in 2010-11 came to about one per cent of GDP, while the target is four per cent. The Planning Commission set up a high level expert committee on universal health coverage, but not a single recommendation of this committee has been implemented so far.

An important issue is food security. If we reduce the subsidy on fuel and fertilisers, how can we attain the target of food security? Also, it is surprising to see how the government accepted the Planning Commission’s criteria for determining the poverty line. There is a decline in the budget provision for rural development, from Rs 74,001 crore to Rs 73,150 crore. The scheduled castes and tribes facing dual discrimination -- economic and social -- need more assistance. There is no mention of minorities in this budget.

The member also raised some Kerala specific demands, like an IIT for the state, a special package for farmers as some 50 farmers have committed suicide here in the last ten months, assistance to the victims of Endolsulphan in Kasargod. Though the MGNREGA is a model scheme for creation of assets and employment, the member said the minimum wage in Kerala is higher than the wage under MGNREGA. This must be increased to Rs 200.

In Rajya Sabha, Tapan Kumar Sen said the concern of the budget is to prune the subsidies being given to the people. If there is anything to be reversed in this budget, first of all it is the approach towards subsidy because, after all, growth is created by the mass of the people. A bunch of currency notes cannot produce goods and services, nor contribute to GDP. And what about pruning the subsidy given to corporates? Year after year, the taxes due from them are not collected. On the contrary, they are given tax exemptions. This is also a subsidy and a totally unjustified one. What about Rs 3.5 lakh crore of subsidies given to the big business houses? The gains of GDP growth are being looted by less than three per cent of the population; them the government is subsiding to the tune of 4 per cent of GDP unlawfully.

The member also ridiculed the poverty line definition, saying even a beast cannot survive on such amounts. The government is playing a cruel joke upon the people. As for food security, what are they giving to the poor? There is a marginal increase in food subsidy, bringing it to Rs 75,000 crore. But if we take inflation into account, the allocation has actually declined. How can they talk of food security if they cannot maintain the existing public distribution system?

As for inclusive growth, allocations to agriculture and rural development have declined in terms of GDP and also in terms of total budgetary expenditure since the UPA-2 came to power. The budget is grossly biased against the rural economy. In his tax reform proposals, the finance minister has also missed the workers who really produce the wealth. The tribunals are not having enough judges to address their grievances. There are only Rs 990 crore for pension and social security in unorganised sector. It is a joke. Though the parliamentary standing committee unanimously recommended four per cent contribution to the employees’ pension scheme, the government did not bother about it. Nor did it hesitate to reduce the interest rate on EPF. Sen then demanded reversal of the entire policy paradigm that patronises 10 per cent instead of 90 per cent.