Price rise: CPM slams Centre

BHUBANESWAR: The CPM on Sunday took a dig at the Centre for the skyrocketing prices of essential commodities and latter’s failure to check them. Leaders, attending the district convention of the party’s Bhubaneswar district committee, said frequent hike in the petrol price is fuelling inflation making the life of common man miserable. The UPA Government has neither able to check price rise nor rampant corruption. The Centre has completely surrendered before the multi-national companies and the present situation is the outcome of its faulty liberalisation policy, they said. Criticising the industrial policy of the State Government, the party said large-scale displacement to facilitate industrialisation is against the fundamental rights of the displaced families. A group of industrial houses are making all-out efforts to acquire land through forcible eviction. Tribals and farmers are the most affected in the process of industrialisation, the CPM said. Opposing the indiscriminate exploitation of natural resources, the party said the people of the State have the first right over the non-renewable resources. The Government is handing over mines, land and water to private industries without consulting the people. The meeting presided over by Saala Marandi decided to oppose the ‘anti-people’ policies of the Government at the Centre and in the State through public movement. A group of land mafia with the active support of the administration is trying to acquire Government land in the Capital through illegal means. While the City is expanding, the traditional forest dwellers and tribals are now the worst affected due to mindless acquisition of government land, including forest land, said district committee secretary Suresh Panigrahi.