States gear up to meet rice procurement target

As the Congress leadership struggles to overcome recent electoral debacles, the CPI(M) has some advice to offer: The UPA government should improve its delivery mechanism and offer more pro-poor schemes.

"Growing popular discontent will lead to stronger anti-incumbency during elections as has been seen recently in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. If communal forces are to be prevented, then the policy direction must shift more favourably towards people's welfare," the latest editorial of the party mouthpiece, People's Democracy, said.

The CPI(M) is also pressing for the introduction of a long-term capital gains tax in the forthcoming Budget.

The strong criticism by a key supporter of the government has come in the wake of the dismal performance in the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) and controlling price-rise.

Taking note of the recent CAG report, which said that in the last financial year, the average employment was just 18 days as against the 100 days promised by the scheme, the CPI(M) today said: "If this is the efficacy of the delivery system, then even the most well-meaning pro-people initiatives can be prevented from delivering some benefits and relief to the poorest of the poor. The NREGS is to extend all across the country. If this is the state of its implementation, then it can only extend further benefits to the corrupt rich at the expense of the rural poor."

At a time when the Sensex has breached the 21,000 mark, the CPI(M) reminded the Congress that every 30 minutes, a farmer was committing suicide somewhere across the country. On the issue of price-rise, the CPI(M) believes the government has only taken partial measures.

Demanding that all essential commodities be removed from speculative trading and the public distribution system be 'urgently strengthened', the party said: "The government must plug these loopholes and make the delivery systems work more efficiently if it doesn't want the communal forces to further benefit politically and electorally. The pro-people promises made in the Common Minimum Programme, which continue to remain only on paper, need to be implemented urgently."

It has also asked that "popular pressure must be strengthened for a change in the policy direction in favour of improving people's welfare during the remaining tenure of this UPA government".

Meanwhile, the reported move to form the Second States Reorganisation Commission has met with strong opposition from the Left parties, which feared it might open a Pandora's box.

Left leaders have told Congress, which heads the ruling UPA, that they would not support any such move as it was not part of the Common Minimum Programme agreed to by the coalition and its allies.

Such a move could lead to sections demanding division of some states across the country, the Left parties, which are staunch opponents of a separate Telengana, are understood to have conveyed to the Congress.