Friday, October 6 2006 12:29 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Apparently angry over the rejection of its alternative resource mobilisation proposals, the CPI(M) yesterday(Oct 5, 2006) threatened protests demanding a shift in the direction of the Government's economic policies whose 'current sole preoccupation' it alleged was to bolster corporate profits.

It also stood by its opposition to financial sector reforms, including any move towards full capital account convertibility and increase in FDI cap in insurance and the amendments to Pension and Banking Regulation Bills.

"The Left parties will continue to mount pressure both within the Parliament and outside through mass mobilizations so that the promises made in the CMP are implemented," he said.

"Through strong public pressure, this UPA government must be made to shift the diretion of the economic policies towards fulfilling the CMP promises," CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury said in an editorial in the latest issue of party organ People's Democracy.

Yechury reminded the Congress-led coalition that a long way has to be traversed to achieve the targets of spending six per cent of the GDP on education from the current two-three per cent and three per cent of the GDP on public health from the current 0.9 per cent.

"The entire expenditure currently being made in areas of rural development, employment generation etc aimed at improving people's welfare is a woeful 2.75 per cent of the GDP today. This has to increase vastly if the assurances of the CMP are to materialise," he said.

The editorial was virtually a point by point rebuttal of Government's position on the nine-page note submitted by the Left on the performance of the Congress-led coalition.

"The thrust of the economic policies must shift from the current sole preoccupation with bolstering corporate profits towards improving people's welfare," Yechury said in the article, which came a day after the Left-UPA Coordination Committee meeting.

He said that while it was commendable that the gross tax revenues have been growing at over 20 per cent during the first three budgets of this Government, there is a scope for further increasing revenues so that the required public investment can be undertaken.

"This, however, would require a change in the direction of the economic policies pursued by the UPA Government," he said.

Turning to the agriculture scenario, he said unless something is done urgently the country's food security can itself come under severe jeopardy.

"The deepening agrarian crisis requires urgent intervention by the Centre as the packages announced by the Prime Minister has not made any dent in the spate of farmer suicides," he said.

He said unless massive investments is made to increase the levels of irrigation which currently stands at 34.8 per cent, 'true and complete' self sufficiency in food could not be achieved.

The Polit Bureau member said the production of food grains has at best stagnated if not declined during the decade and half of liberlisation policies.

During the meeting, the Left parties highlighted the need to prevent forward and future trading in essential commodities as a necessary prerequisite to contain the spiralling price rise as speculative profits in this trade has been the single largest contributor for the current inflation.

On the issue of full capital account convertability of the Indian rupee, Yechury cautioned that such a move would only expose the country to the vagaries of international financial capital which is in search of 'predatory speculative profits.'

He said the UPA Government informed the Left parties was being examined only and no such decision has been taken.

"Keeping in view the need to protect the Indian financial system from the flows of speculative capital, the Left parties call for institutionalisation of effective regulatory authorities," he said.

Noting that the the Left-UPA meeting saw a detailed discussion on the government's foreign policy, Yechury said that the Left parties highlighted the 'recent departures' which have patently been undertaken from US imperialism.

He said the Government maintained that they were adhering to an independent foreign policy as defined in the Common Minimum Programme.