The CPI(M) on Thursday demanded a discussion on people’s problems in Parliament.
At a protest organised by the Maddilapalem Zone Committee near the ward secretariat near Kalabharathi on Thursday, the party leaders sought provision of ₹7,500 as financial assistance to workers and withdrawal of the plan to privatise PSUs.
CPI(M) city secretariat member R.K.S.V. Kumar said that the reduction in the time for Question Hour was preventing members from raising issues concerning the people in Parliament. He demanded that the YSRCP MPs pull up the Centre over its reported decision to hand over the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP) to Korean steel major POSCO.
He alleged that the Centre, instead of going to the rescue of people in times of the pandemic, was adopting policies that were detrimental to their interests. The proposed reforms in the power sector would put an undue burden on the common man and farmers. The reforms would also deprive States of their rights. The Centre was not giving States their share of GST and was thereby weakening them, he alleged.
He also alleged that the contributions made to the PM Cares Fund were being given away to corporates, instead of giving them to the States for COVID-19 relief measures. City committee member P. Mani said that the governments were not responding to the demands during the past five months for payment of ₹7,500 as financial assistance to workers in the unorganised sector.
CPI(M) Maddilapalem zone secretary V. Krishna Rao, leaders Appa Rao, Kumari, Simhachalam, Ganta Sri Ram, Ravi and Prabhu Das were among those who participated in the protest.
