The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Heed Left’s suggestions: Raja

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Monday, Apr 28, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Heed Left’s suggestions: Raja

Staff Reporter

ERODE: The Congress-led United Progressive Alliance that banks on Left’s support will do well to listen to its suggestions on controlling price rise, D. Raja, Communist Party of India national secretary has said.

Addressing a press meet here on Sunday, he said the government depended on Left’s support, and that included support for the passage of Finance Bill.

Given the situation, Mr. Raja said the Left had placed before the Prime Minister suggestions on controlling the prices and checking inflation, which at 7.33 per cent was unprecedented in the last four years.

Mr. Raja pointed out that the Left’s demand was the same as that of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Food, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution System.

It wanted universalisation of public distribution system, ban on forward trading and action against hoarders and black marketers.

On the Katchatheevu island issue, Mr. Raja said in the agreement between India and Sri Lanka, Clauses 5 and 6 talked about Indian fishermen’s access to the island, drying nets and participating in the local festival.

It did not explicitly talk about the fishermen’s right to fish around the island and about vessel movements.

That was a grey area, Mr. Raja said and wanted the agreement to be “reopened and renegotiated” to give fishing rights to Indian fishermen.

That would solve most of their problems, he said.

As regards textile industry’s problems in Erode, Mr. Raja said the CPI favoured government intervention. If the State government constructed a common effluent treatment plant, it would save most of the units, he said and added that the government could also recover the project cost by charging a fee from the industries.

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