THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Social activist C.R. Neelakantan has said that a Government led by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M) could not justify accepting the conditionalities attached to the Asian Development Bank (ADB) loan for Kerala Sustainable Urban Development Programme (KSUDP).

At a press conference here on Monday, he said that the conditionalities attached to this loan for $222.1 million militated against the proclaimed policies of the CPI(M). The political organisational report adopted at the 18th Congress of the party cautions the Government's led by the party against going in for "loans that involve structural adjustment programmes."

The organisational report observes "such programmes entail conditionalities like privatisation of certain sectors, downsizing staff, cutting subsidies and fiscal conditionalities." Citing specific clauses in the ADB loan agreement, Mr. Neelakantan said the KSUDP involved all such objectionable conditionalities.

He questioned the veracity of Finance Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac's claim that public taps would not be eliminated in the cities where this programme was being implemented. In page 58 of the loan agreement, the State Government assures the ADB that "by not later than March 2007, GoK (Government of Kerala) will formulate a policy on conversion of standposts (public taps) to individual metered house service connections and/or metering standposts, for the purpose of efficient demand side management and reduction of non revenue water."

Another conditionality is that the "GoK will ensure that all the municipal corporations will prepare and implement a financial improvement action plan to (a) introduce a sewerage charge, (b) introduce a solid waste management charge and (c) improve collection efficiency, by no later than one year after related subproject completion."

According to Mr. Neelakantan, the agreement, in page 57, makes it clear that the programme targets imposing levies even on families below the poverty line. While discussing the `affordability' of the programme, the agreement notes that "the impact of the new user charges on people living below the poverty line varies from one municipal corporation to another and the charges represent from 2% to 7% of their household incomes."

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