Make data from caste census public: Congress demands at Chintan Shivir, focuses on jobs, farmers, workers

Focus on creating jobs and address growing wealth and income inequalities, demanded the Congress of the Government at the Chintan Shivir in Udaipur. Other demands made included an extension of welfare schemes and a comprehensive review of centre-state fiscal relations. The demands were made in the form of recommendations by the six panels set up to study various sectors. Deliberations on the party organisation and political affairs are covered separately on this page.

Economic Group

• Party’s renewed commitment to an open and mixed economy with economic growth driven by the private sector as well as a strong and viable public sector.

• Economic Policy’s focus to be on creation of jobs

• Economic Policy must address issues of extreme poverty, hunger, nutritional deficiency and growing inequalities of income and wealth

• Welfare measures need to be expanded

• Get the Indian economy and the Indian workforce future-ready

• A comprehensive review of Centre-State fiscal relations and to protect and preserve the rights of the states.

Farmers and Khet

Mazdoor Group

• Farmers trapped in a swamp of debt of more than Rs. 16.80 lakh crore up to March 31, 2021 with the Union Government displaying complete apathy over the past eight years

• A “National Farmer Debt Relief Commission” be set up to determine the path from loan waiver to debt relief

• Arrest of farmers and auction of their land for nonpayment of loan be stopped forthwith.

• Farmers be assured free power

• The BJP government promised to form a committee to consider making MSP a legal right, but nothing has been heard since then. The Union government must provide legal guarantee for MSP and ensure the right price of farm produce

• The just demand for determination of MSP by the formula of C2+50% i.e. the cost of capital and adding the rent of land enhanced by 50% for determination of MSP be conceded.

• Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana has become a private insurance company profit scheme. Private insurance companies made Rs. 34,304 crore profit in the last six years but the farmers did not benefit.

• The entire agricultural sector be insured and insurance companies of public sector companies should operate the insurance scheme on the principle of ‘no profit, no loss’.

• A separate “Agriculture Budget” be presented in Parliament in accordance with the Indian National Congress’ 2019 manifesto and an account of all the projects of farmers’ welfare be given to Parliament.

• A “National Farmers Welfare Fund” be created to provide relief to farmers in view of the effects of weather, natural calamities, fluctuations in market prices, etc.

• Tractors and other agricultural equipment of farmers be exempted from GST.

• The NYuntamAay Yojana(NYAY) scheme, proposed in the 2019 manifesto of the Indian National Congress, must be implemented by transferring Rs. 6,000 per family directly into their account every month.

• The number of Krishi Upaj Mandisbe increased from the existing 7,600 to 42,000 to ensure that there is one Krishi Upaj Mandi for every 10 km.

• The mandatory 100 days of work to every person who demands work under MGNREGA be strictly implemented and the annual average income should be made Rs. 18,000 by bringing MGNREGA wages on par with minimum wage.

Social Justice and Empowerment

• The SC-ST subplan be reintroduced with legal recognition in the budgets of Union and state governments.

• The Constitutional amendment to ensure 33 percent women’s reservation in Parliament, Legislative Assemblies and Legislative Councils be passed as soon as possible and women of every category be given the benefit of proportional reservation.

• The Indian National Congress demands to make the caste census data public and give the backward classes their rights.

Youth

• Expensive education, rampant unemployment and massive “digital divide” since the Covid-19 pandemic have increased the learning gap between children of the rich and of the poor.

• Revisit provisions of the New Education Policy which tend to deprive children of the poor and exploited classes of equal rights, and will further increase the huge gap between rich and poor.

• Extend provision of free education for poor students in colleges and universities as well

• Vacant posts lying in all government departments, Government of India undertakings and in all the three services be filled in the next six months by running a special ‘recruitment drive’.

(This was first published in National Herald on Sunday)