LAL SALAAM: Leaders of Left parties paying tributes to martyrs of the anti-power tariff hike agitation, in Hyderabad on Sunday.

HYDERABAD: Eight Left parties have accused the Congress Government of following the diktats of the World Bank and vowed to wage a united struggle against globalisation and privatisation.

Speaking at a convention on "World Bank policies--electricity reforms in Andhra Pradesh" here organised by the parties here on Sunday, CPI(M) State secretary, B.V. Raghavulu, demanded an amendment to the Electricity Act, empowering the Government to review power purchase agreements (PPAs) with private developers.

The convention was organised to pay tributes to Left parties workers who were killed in police firing on demonstrators protesting against the power tariff hike on August 28, 2000, at Basheer Bagh here.

YSR put on notice

He said the bank was pressuring the Government to continue reforms in the power sector and faulted the ruling party for not effecting any changes in the PPAs as promised before the elections. Warning that privatisation of discoms would lead to "severe consequences," he said the move would be totally opposed.

He feared that Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy might cite fiscal control bill as reason for not spending on irrigation projects and welfare programmes. The bill was the result of the bank's pressure, he said, urging the Left parties to offer stiff resistance to the policies.

Paying tributes to the three persons who were killed in the police firing, five years ago, he urged the Government to ensure that the financial assistance of Rs.1 lakh was properly disbursed to their families.

CPI State secretary K. Narayana said PPAs were not being revoked due to "pressures" from the World Bank and Delhi. Criticising the Government for "faltering" vis-à-vis the bank, he warned that the Left parties would not keep quiet if the policies were continued.

D.V. Krishna Reddy, CPI (ML-New Democracy) central secretariat member, accused the UPA Government and the Congress regime in the State of continuing the policies of their predecessors. He called for resistance to the "anti-people" policies.

`Unearth black money'

MCPI State secretary M. Venkat Reddy said there would not be any need for tapping loans from international institutions if the estimated 22 lakh crores of black money was unearthed. CPI(ML) State committee secretary G. Vijay Kumar, SUCI leader Murahari, ML committee State secretary, K. Venkateswara Rao and CPI( ML) Liberation city secretary P. Subhash, spoke.

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