Dear Comrades,
CONFEDERATION PRESS
STATEMENT ON BUDGET 2013
28th February, 2013
PRESS
STATEMENT
Another
pro-rich budget
The Union Budget 2013-14
presented by the Finance Minister Shri P. Chidambaram, today in the Parliament
was extremely disappointing to the common working people . No doubt they have
not expected any relief from this anti people Government and especially from
its Finance Minister, Shri P.Chidambaram.
However, they hoped against hope that the Government will read the
discontent that is growing fast amongst the people, manifested admirably in the
two day strike of the Indian Working Class on 20th and 21st. Despite the erosion of the real value of the
wages due to the high rate of inflation, the wage earners genuinely thought
that they would be provided with some relief by way of an adjustment of the non
taxable maximum. While the give away to
the corporate sector continued as the Finance Minister himself has noted in his
budget speech in as much as the revenue foregone on direct taxes did register
an increase from a lakh crore rupees to Rs. 1.13 lakh Crores in the last year
he never felt the need to address the agony of the workers.
Despite the fall in the
rate of growth of economy, the Finance Minister has taken pride in the fact
that India continues to be one of the fast growing economy. What type of growth he was visualizing is
hard to gauge when the number of people below poverty line had been on the
increase year after year. There had been
all-round increase in the prices of all essential commodities including those
where the Government had a say in determining it. The Railway Minister did not increase the
fare for passenger trains for he did it before he presented the budget. The economic growth and recovery would be a
mirage so long as the purchasing power of people get depleted. There had been substantial reduction of
workforce in the organized sector due to intensified contractorisation.
The pronouncement of increased allocation of
funds for agriculture, rural development, education etc. is a travesty of
truth. The FM has made comparison of the present allocation
with the revised estimates of the previous year, which in fact was much lesser
than 2011-12. There had been gross
underutilization of the allocated funds in respect of most of the welfare
scheme of the Govt. last year. While
presenting the economic survey, the Finance Minister assured the country that
the days of recession were over and the era of growth will usher in soon, which
has only pleased the TNCs and corporate houses in the country. The FM has
unambiguously spelt out the continuance of the neo liberal economic path of
development with much more fervor in the months
to come.
To
expect that the Govt. will address the
concern of the common people and the working class is foolish, if the Budget
proposal is any indication. But how
long the people are to suffer this agony. Every decision of this Government being
anti-working people and the Budget being a policy pronouncement, we must strive
our best to organize movement to oppose the disastrous policies being pursued by the UPA Government.
