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UPA Government : Left to review its performance |
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The Left parties are to review the performance of the UPA Government after the Presidential poll. This was decided at a meeting between CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat and CPI general secretary A.B. Bardhan in New Delhi on May 28. According to Left Front sources, apart from the Presidential poll, the two leaders discussed the deviation of the Congress-led UPA from the Common Minimum Programme. Other Left parties like the RSP, have also raised the issue of reviewing support to the Government on the ground that the UPA is not following CMP guidelines.
UPA not sincere on Sachar Report
CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat has accused the UPA Government of not being sincere in implementation of the Sachar Committee recommendations on the uplift of the Muslims in the country. Addressing a convention in New Delhi on May 27, he said the Government’s move to form panels to implement the Sachar report is a tactic to postpone acting on its recommenda¬tions. Karat said the UPA Government has failed to take practi¬cal steps to implement the recommendations, seven months after they were submitted.
CPI(M) for regulation of retail trade
The CPI(M) has said that there is an urgent need to regulate the operations of private players entering retail trade and agri¬culture in a big way. Releasing a six-page document comprising its proposals on a national policy of organisational sector in retail trade, party general secretary Prakash Karat said in New Delhi on May 30, the UPA Government and political parties should consider the proposal seriously and take immediate initiatives to frame a national policy in this regard.
Several Indian corporate houses had entered the retail sector and were expanding their operations aggressively. This had an adverse impact on the livelihood of a large section of people engaged in unorganised retail across the country, Karat said.
The party proposed that licensing be introduced for organ¬ised retail. Any outlet with floor area over an appropriate minimum area should require prior licence from the local authori¬ties (city corporations or municipalities).
Licences should be given on the basis of population - not more than X number of large format retail stores per Y popula¬tion.
The criteria may vary between States and cities depending upon the nature of the retail sector and the needs of consumers. Besides, other steps should be taken by the Government to prev¬ent the emergence of private monopolies in retail trade.
A single large format retailer should not be allowed to capture a large market share. For this, it is important to re¬strict the number of retail outlets that a single party entity can open in a city, State as well as a region, the note said.
On measures to regulate and monitor contract farming to protect the interests of farmers, the CPI (M) demanded that necessary changes be made in the Model Agricultural Produce Marketing Corporation Act of the Centre as well as the new APMC Acts adopted by several State Governments to incorporate the regulations suggested.
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