Atanu Chakravarty

Agrave crisis is looming large in the jute industry of Bengal on which thousands of workers families and a vast section of jute growers depend on to earn their bread and livelihood. The century-old traditional labor-intensive industry employs more than 2.5 lakh workers. Of late, the textile ministry of central government informed the state that procurement from the industry will be slashed due to the dearth of gunny bags and 45 percent of synthetic bags will be allowed for packaging wheat in the forthcoming rabi season.

Demonetisation in 2016, ‘Asset Monetisation’ in 2021.

In yet another move of dismantling the central sector, the Modi Government, in a swift move, decided to convert 41 Ordnance factories into 7 corporations which is expected to lead to privatization eventually. The Government ignored all previous commitments and implemented its well-designed plan of corporatization when negotiations were pending and when the conciliation process was inconclusive.

The lethal second wave of COVID has devastated the country's job market to unimaginable proportions. Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) has published data exposing the horrific reality of joblessness during the ongoing pandemic and recorded a loss of one crore employment, one of the steepest falls during the last four months!

 When the pandemic is raging the state with all ferocity, when health system is collapsing fast, the mill owners are closing the jute mills one after another in West Bengal causing severe resentment among workers and throwing thousands and thousands of workers' out of employment. 

India is now in the grip of an unprecedented health emergency. The countrywide second surge of coronavirus caught the Modi government napping and exposed the callous unpreparedness of Modi's mode of governance where insensitiveness, apathy and criminal nonchalance are the essential ingredients of this fascist regime. While the WHO cautioned India of an imminent second wave, and predicted it to be more virulent, the despot duopoly had their other priorities and set out for a royal hunt to Bengal with the sole aim of grabbing the state power in the assembly election.