[Marxistindia] Stop Privatisation of Commercial Coal Minining

[news from the cpi(m)]

June 25, 2020


Press Statement

The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued  
the following statement:

Stop Privatisation of Commercial Coal Mining

The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) extends is support to the three-day  
countrywide strike by all the federations and unions of workers  
demanding the scrapping of the government decision to allow commercial  
mining of coal by private sector including foreign entitles and the  
move to privatise public sector coal mining companies.

This decision is tantamount to completely reversing the  
nationalization of coal mining which was undertaken in national  
interests to ensure energy security of our country. This destroys the  
self-reliant basis of our economy and converts our country into one of  
self-subservience to profit maximisation of foreign and domestic  
private corporates.

Coal is an essential input for several vital industries like power  
generation, steel, aluminum, fertilisers and cement. This move by the  
central government will result in starving domestic industries of  
essential inputs as now exports will be unregulated.

The 41 coal blocks identified for such privatization fall in different  
parts of the country – Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand,  
Telangana etc. Most of these blocks are located in forest areas which  
is the traditional habitat and source of livelihood for crores of our  
tribal people. This will uproot the lives of our tribal communities.

Such privatization is accompanied by further deregulation of  
environmental norms. This will lead to severe environmental  
degradation posing serious threats.

Instead of single-mindedly focusing on combatting the pandemic and  
providing sustenance to crores of lives that have been destroyed due  
to the unplanned unilateral lockdown announced by Prime Minister Modi,  
the BJP government is going ahead with its core agenda of further  
intensifying the exploitation of the people particularly the working  
class.

The PB of the CPI(M) demands that this decision be withdrawn with  
immediate effect in the interests of our country.



For CPI(M) Central Committee Office