CPI(M) calls for public investment in agri sector
CPI(M)’s all-India general secretary Prakash Karat called for priority treatment to manufacturing and agricultural sectors alike, to enable the country achieve a breakthrough in terms of unemployment and sustained economic growth.
By TNN |
KOLKATA: CPI(M)’s all-India general secretary Prakash Karat called for priority treatment to manufacturing and agricultural sectors alike, to enable the country achieve a breakthrough in terms of unemployment and sustained economic growth.
Mr Karat was addressing members of the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Ficci), eastern regional council, on Thursday.
“Growth rate in agriculture sector remains stagnant for the last few years. Between 1998 and 2003, the GDP had gone up by 5.3 per cent. But employment during the period had gone down by 4.4 per cent. Unfortunately, the ruling parties in Delhi and different states are not very keen to understand the nature of crisis being faced by the agriculture sector. Private investment in this sector has increased considerably in the past few years, but it will not help removing the crisis. We want more public investment in the agriculture sector,” Mr Karat said.
“GDP growth does not necessarily promote equality and social justice all the time. Our government should work hard to wipe out the regional divide and establish social justice to sustain the economic growth and stability of the country”, he said.
He praised the UPA government for promulgating the National Rural Employment Guarantee (NREP) Act which will ensure jobs for at least 100 days a year to unemployed youth in rural India. He claimed credit for the Left that the UPA could be forced to also include that a third of the total jobs under the scheme would go to women.
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He also appreciated the Union government’s decision to sanction Rs 16,000 crore to increase seats in technical studies to accommodate students belonging to minority community and backward classes. “The Centre has decided to increase the present capacity of admitting students in engineering and medical courses by 54 per cent,” the CPIM general secretary informed. He described the move as an attempt by the Union government to offer social justice to the backward class people.
Karat criticised the Centre for making efforts to privatise profit-making central public sector undertakings (CPSUs).
“We had advised the government to close down loss-making CPSUs once the government failed to revive those at any cost. Instead, the Congress-led UPA government is making efforts to privatise the profit-making CPSUs. We oppose the move vehemently,” he added.
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