The Hindu : National : Subjecting EPF to market principles not acceptable: CPI(M)

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Saturday, Dec 10, 2005

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Subjecting EPF to market principles not acceptable: CPI(M)

Special Correspondent

Nilotpal Basu warns of "imminent confrontation"

NEW DELHI: Stepping up its pressure, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) cautioned against an "imminent confrontation'' building up with the United Progressive Alliance Government over slashing of interest rate on the Employees Provident Fund.

The party said if the Government did not de-link social security instruments from market principles, " a confrontation is imminent," the party Rajya Sabha leader, Nilotpal Basu, said at a briefing.

Opposing the decision of the EPF Board to lower the rate of interest to 8.5 per cent, the party said the Manmohan Singh Government should heed to the demand and restore it to 9.5 per cent.

However, Mr. Basu did not elaborate the course to be adopted by the CPI (M) stating that the modality would be decided "when the times comes." He said trade unions and the Left parties had protested the decision and it also found support from other parties.

Stating that for the working classes provident fund was the only social security instrument, he said, to subject it to market principles was not acceptable to the trade unions and the Left parties. "We warn the government that this approach is not acceptable," Mr. Basu and party Lok Sabha leader Basudeb Acharia said.

They said the fund rate was brought down from 12 per cent to 9.5 per cent by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance Government and said the present UPA was pursuing similar economic policy and had scaled it down further.

While attacking the ruling coalition, the CPI(M) leader also criticised the BJP for its approach of trying to raise the Volcker issue at a time when other parties were protesting the lowering of the interest rate. This attitude, they said, betrayed the BJP's concern about problems of the people and working class.

Arguing that by raising the interest rate back to the level of 9.5 per cent, the deficit would be in the range of Rs. 750 crores, he said, the move would benefit four crore workers in the country. He sought to know how much the Government lost when it brought down the tax on share market or say by providing tax concessions to the Dabhol power project. Similarly, he said, the Government would give Rs. 700 crores to corporatise security press and mints in the country without any modernisation.

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