All India Trade Unions Harthal on September 7th, 2010

All India trade unions associations planning to take country wide general strike from 6 am to 6 pm on 7th of September, tomorrow in association with nine national level political parties. The nation wide strike is a protest against, price rise, violation of labor laws and disinvestment of public sector units. Eight major trade unions, including INTUC and the trade unions affiliated to the left parties. Taxi drivers, bus drivers, auto rickshaws etc have assured to extend support to the general strike.

The trade unions are also demanding rehabilitation of workers who lost their occupations due to the economic recession and for Rs. 500bn for an unorganized workers’social security fund. The government has only allocated Rs10bn for 400mn unorganized workers in the country. The other trade unions which have called the strike include the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-affiliated Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) and the Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS). The Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, which is close to the Bharatiya Janata Party, has not yet revealed its position.

INTUC national secretary R Chandrasekharan said it was the first time in the history of sovereign India that the union had joined other trade unions to call for an all-India strike. Dismissing the allegations by certain sections in the Congress that it was a strike against the policies of Singh’ government, Chandrasekharan stressed the strike has been called to highlight the anti-worker policies of both the central and state governments. “he INTUC is always with the Congress Party and the central government. The state governments in the country are not controlled by the Congress alone. This is a movement by the combined workforce to open the eyes of the government,”he said. The union is also demanding government action on approved demands of the government employees into works and implementation of UGC pay bands to college lecturers.

Technopark authorities are arranging a convoy service with police protection on account of the nationwide strike on September 7, 2010.  Since the strike is for 24 hours, Technopark is arranging a return convoy also at 5:30 pm on the same day. So all techies are requested to join the convoy for a safe journey.