Jignesh Mewani has been detained by Gujarat Police late om the evening of Friday, September 16 as he returned to Ahmedabad. Just two days before he had declared on Facebook, ""I had a Dream that Tables were Flung at PM Modi’s Rally". Jignesh Mevani had vowed to protest at Modi’s Rally in Gujarat on September 17. Clearly the detention is to try and de-rail this protest. Sabrangindia has been tracking developments in Gujarat since July 11. Read: Badbu Gujarat Ki, Greetings to Amitabh Bachchan.

Reactions to this detention have been widespread:

Brinda Karat, Polit Bureau Member, CPIM – "Strongly condemn. Modi proxy can not tolerate criticism of Gujarat model. It will invite anger. Voices for Justice can't be suppressed."

Subhasini Ali, Senior Leader, CPIM – "This is a shocking display of intolerance and it will be resisted all over the country."

Teesta Setalvad, Sabrangindia.in – "Days ago Jignesh challenged Prime Minister Narendra Modi openly. There is no doubt that the Government of Gujarat is trying to silence this challenge. Jignesh had said, 'I dreamt that tables were flung at Modi's rally on his birthday, September 17;' Detaining him is the greatest act of repression."

Umar Khalid, JNU- "I strongly condemn the illegal detention of Jignesh Mewani by the Gujarat Police, which is nothing short of a kidnapping. The fact that it comes on the eve of the PM's birthday, for which he is going to Gujarat, shows the morbid fear of the present ruling dispensation to the oppressed people's struggle for justice and dignity. The una movement in the den of the Hindutva forces had shaken them immensely, and these are just desperate measures to break that movement which is spreading like wildfire across the country. But little do they realize that through such actions the end of their oppressive regime comes near. In complete solidarity with Jignesh Mewani. "

On Friday, Jignesh Mevani had addressed a rally in Delhi, sharing a stage with senior leaders of the left parties.Taking part in the rally, Jignesh Mevani, who floated the Dalit Atyachar Ladhai Samiti following flogging of Dalits in Gujarat’s Una, seconded Yechury and said his front will struggle for self-respect of community members in the light of the alleged attacks and also for ensuring “roti, kapada aur makan” for them. He also sought to pick holes in the Gujarat model of development, accusing the BJP-led state government of not keeping electoral promises on providing housing facilities and employment. “We will expose this hollow development model…besides protesting casteism, we want to expose this hollow Gujarat model of development,” he added.

DEVELOPING STORY

1) He has been arrested in light of Prime Minister Modi's birthday tomorrow and will be released on Sunday .

2) CPI(M) Lucknow and progressive groups have called out people to protest in Lucknow on 17th September at 4pm near Ambedkar statue at Hazratganj.

3)  Rihai Manch Lucknow-

दलित आंदोलन के नेता जिग्नेश मेवाणी की गुजरात पुलिस द्वारा अवैध हिरासत लोकतंत्र की हत्या – रिहाई मंच
 
लखनऊ 16 सितम्बर 2016। रिहाई मंच ने ऊना दलित अत्याचार लड़त समिति के संयोजक जिग्नेश मेवाणी को दिल्ली से लौटते हुए गुजरात पुलिस द्वारा अवैध हिरासत में लिए जाने को लोकतंत्र की हत्या करार देते हुए तत्काल दलित आंदोलन के नेता की रिहाई की मांग की है।
 

जारी प्रेस विज्ञप्ति में रिहाई मंच प्रवक्ता शाहनवाज आलम ने कहा कि दिल्ली में दलित स्वाभिमान संघर्ष रैली में जिग्नेश मेवाणी के 1 अक्टूबर को रेल रोको के ऐलान से घबराई मोदी सरकार ने मेवाणी को गिरफ्तार करवाकर अपनी दलित विरोधी राजनीति को एक बार फिर से उजागर किया। उन्होंने कहा कि आज जब गुजरात के दलित अपने हक-हुकूक और अधिकार के लिए खड़े होकर मोदी के गुजरात माॅडल का पोस्टमार्टम कर रहे है जिसने संघी ताकतों का मंसूबा ध्वस्त कर दिया है। मंच प्रवक्ता ने कहा कि जिग्नेश की गिरफ्तारी ने साफ किया है कि ‘गाय की पूंछ तुम रखो, हमको हमारी जमीन दो’ के नारे से आक्रोशित दलित चेतना से मोदी सरकार कितनी भयभीत है। यह गिरफ्तारी जहां पूरे देश को आंदोलित करेगी वहीं यह मोदी सरकार की ताबूत में आखिरी कील साबित होगी।

3) Pradeep Sharma's Facebook post- The Dalit Swabhiman Sangharsh Rally saw massive participation of Dalits and toiling masses from across the country. It reaffirmed the commitment to fight caste oppression and RSS brand of cultural nationalism. The Rally also points to the possibility of building broadest Issue-Based Unity on these issues while also retaining differences on certain issues. In the course of the united Struggles the issues of differences should be addressed with continuous engagement and in a genuine manner. That will help build a unity that can resist reactionary forces and achieve historic victories. It is a long drawn Struggle and addressing genuine concerns are part of cementing the unity.  (From the wall of Pradeep Sharma, Lecturer of Sociology in Shia College Former SFI leader)

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Years of struggle for Tamil Nadu garment workers paid off when the Madras High Court’s dismissed about 550 petitions filed by garment employers opposing a government order to increase the minimum wages for tailoring industry workers.

Minimum wages for garment workers were last revised in 2004. In 2005, the employers went to the court and stopped the wage revision

In 2012, the government formed an advisory committee and in October 2014, a government order announced new minimum wages revision for tailoring industry. Accordingly, the minimum wage for a cutter, the most skilled position, is Rs 8480 (US$ 127) while the helper, at the bottom of the skill pyramid, will receive Rs 7201 (US$ 107).

Although a low wage revision, employers still petitioned the court to cancel the government order. Garment workers’ unions also approached the court to contest the employers’ petition and to implement the wage revisions.

On 15 July, the Madras High Court ruled that the government’s order be upheld and stated that:
“minimum wages as notified shall be paid to the workers by the petitioners/management on and from the date of the notification as published in the Government Gazette, i.e. from December 2014.”

The court further directed the employers to pay the minimum wages along with the arrears within two months from the date of receipt of the court order, along with a 6 per cent interest from the date of notification till date of payment.

However, even after the court verdict, implementation of the new wages remains a major concern as large number of workers are not aware of the wage revision. Further, the Tamil Nadu government created a loophole when announcing a different set of very low minimum wages for the hosiery industry in January 2016, which will help employers to avoid paying higher wages.

Apoorva Kaiwar, IndustriALL Global Union South Asia regional secretary, says that:
“Most of the government workers are precarious workers employed on piece rate and weekly wages with no regular employment contract. As employers do not regularize the employment of precarious workers, they are forced to shift from one factory to other factories frequently. Trade union presence in the garment factories in Tamil Nadu is also very low as employers strongly resist the formation of unions.

“Together these factors pose challenges for workers to get statutory minimum wages and arrears. It is imperative that we organize strong trade unions among garment workers to ensure that the new provisions are implemented”.

The Garment and Fashion Workers Union (GFWU), which played a crucial role in representing workers, welcomed the court verdict and called for the implementation of the high court order in letter and spirit.

“Irrespective of the fabric they are working, all tailoring workers should be considered on par and minimum wages should be implemented equally for all workers."

Courtesy: Industryall

The post Garment Workers in Tamil Nadu Win Minimum Wage Hike appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said-

"That (Nehruvian) model of development was the reason India couldn't get up to a growth rate of even 1 percent in those early decades," Jaitley said in Mumbai at a discussion on the Good and Services Tax regime (GST

Here is a random list of achievements of Congress under the leadership of Nehru-Gandhis to build a poverty-stricken, illiterate, disunited resourceless India in 1947 into a modern nation, virtually from the scratch, brick-by-brick, institution-by-institution, project-by-project:

1. The Constitution of India (the very Foundation of our Nationhood)
2. Integration of 600-odd small and big Prncely Kingdom to create the Indian State
3. Abolition of Zamindari
4. Enactment of The Hindu Code Bill
5. Set up Planning Commission
6. Built Huge Dams (Bhakra, Hirakud, Idukki, Narmada, Tehri, Ukai, Indira Sagar, Sri Sailam, etc)
7. Expansion of Rail Network, including Konkan, Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramullah links, etc
8. Built Chandigarh and Bhubaneshar Cities and several State Secretariat Buildings
9. Huge Bridges (across Ganga, Brahmaputra, Yamuna, Mahanadi, Krishna, Godavari, Kaveri, AND Bandra-Worli Sea Link, Farakka, Vikram Shila, Rajendra Sethu, etc)
10. Built and/or expanded several Ports
11. Massive Expansion of Highways, Rural Roads and Border Roads and Highway to Burma
12. IITs (Indian Institutes of Technology)
13. IIMs (Indian Institutes of Management)
14. CSIR (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research)
15. AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Sciences)
16. IARI (Indian Agricultural Research Institute)
17. UGC (University Grants Commission)
18. NCERT (National Council of Educational Research and Training)
19. AICTE (All India Council of Technical Education)
20. DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organization)
21. Massive Expansion of Ordnance Factories
22. ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization)
23. IMC (Indian Medical Council)
24. IAE (Indian Atomic Energy Commission)
25. BARC (Bhaba Atomic Energy Commission)
26. ISI (Indian Science Institute, Bangalore)
27. Airports Authority of India
28. IMA (Indian Military Academy, Dehra Dun)
29. NDA (National Defence Academy, Kadakvasla)
30. NHAI (National Highway Authority of India)
31. SAIL (Steel Authority of India: 1. Bhilai Steel Plant, 2. Rourkela Steel Plant, 3. Durgapur 32. Steel Plant, 4. Bokaro Steel Plant, 5. Visakhapatnam Steel Plant)
33. Shipping Corporation of India
34. Ship building, including Submarines, Aircraft Carrier
35. HEC, (Heavy Engineering Corporation, Ranchi)
36. HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd., Bangalore)
37. HMT (Hindustan Machine Tools, Bangalore)
38. Coal India Ltd
39. Locomotive Factories
40. Fertiliser Corporation of India
41. Cement Corporation of India
42. Rajasthan Canal Project
43. Engineers India Ltd
44. Indian Forest Institute, Dehra Dun
45. ISI ( Indian Standards Institution)
46. UPSC (Union Public Service Commission)
47. IAS/IFS/IPS/IRS pTraining Academies in Mussorie and Hyderabad
48. National Library, Kolkata
49. National Museum, New Delhi
50. Sports Authority of India
51. Indian National Science Academi
52. Sahitya/Lalita Kala/Natak Academi
53. Indian Film & Television Institute, Pune
54. National School of Drama, New Delhi
55. Zonal Cultural Centres (in Five Zones)
56. Children's Film Society
57. Expansion of All India Radio
59. Doordarshan
60. Space Exploration and Satellite Programs
61. Food Corporation if India
62. Expansion of Civil Aviation
63. Construction of New Modern Airports
64. NBCC (National Building Construction Corporation)
65. ITDC (India Tourism Development Corporation)
66. STC (State Trading Corporation)
67. KVIC (Khadi and Village Indutries Commission)
68. ONGC (Oil and Natural Gas Commission)
69. IOC (Indian Oil Corporation)
70. MMTC (Mines and Metals Trading Corporation)
71. BHEL (Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd)
72. NTPC (National Thermal Power Corporation)
73. MTNL (Mahanagar Telephone Network Ltd)
74. GAIL (Gas Authority of India Ltd)
75. Bharat Electronics
76. Bharat Earth Movers
77. National Fertiliser Corporation
78. Hindustan and Cochin Shipyards
79. NTDC (National Textile Development Corporation)
80. IIPA (Indian Institute of Public Administration)
81. IGNOU (Indira Gandhi National Open University)
82. NID (national Institute of Design)
83. New Central Universities
84. Agricultural Universities
85. Green Revolution
86. White (Milk) Revolution
87. Abolition of Privy Purse
88. Bank Nationalisation and expansion of Banking services
89. CBSE (Central Board of Secondary Education)
90. Kendriya Vidyalayas and Navodaya Schools
91. Computer Revolution
92. Telecommunication Revolution
93. Auto Revolution
94. MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme)
95. RTI (Right To Information)
96. RTE (Right To Education)
97. Right To Food
98. Land Compensation Act
99. Adult Literacy Mission
100. Minorities Commissions
101. Metro and Mono Rail systems
102. Introduced AADHAR Identity Cards
103. Established Boards to promote Coir to Coconut to Cashewnut
104. Massive expansion of Food Processing Industry
105. Conducted First Nuclear Test
106. Nuclear Deal with USA
107. Manifold increase in production of electricity

INTRODUCED ECONOMIC REFORMS/LIBERALISATION BY CONGRESS IN 1991
# Opened up India's Equity Market in 1992 for investment by Institutional Investors
# Established SEBI Act in 1992
# From 1994 the National Stock Exchange (NSE) emerged as a Computer-based trading system, which served as an instrument to leverage reforms of India's other Stock
# Exchanges. By 1996, the NSE emerged as India's largest Exchange.
# Massive Foreign Direct Investment
When Indira Gandhi became Prime Minister, 65% of country's population was below poverty line.
# By 2013, it has come down to 25%.
# Similarly, literacy has Increased by 30-35%.
# Longevity has also gone upto 67+ years
# India is Self-sufficient in food/Second largest food producer in the world
# First in Milk production
# Fourth largest producer of Steel in the world
etc

Jaitley are you unhappy that GST will always be credited to Congress?!

‪#‎JaitleyWhatHasRattledYou‬

Response to Vasudevan's post on social networking sites-

Prerna Bindra– I would also list the legal protection to wildlife, forests, Project Tiger. the many sanctuaries and tiger reserves -thanks to which we have whatever forests and wildlife left today. a fraction of it is here:

Malreddy Shankar Reddy- Indira Gandhi brought Land ceiling act which was major reform against the big and influential/feudal landlords.But what is the progress made by BJP/NDA government in their 8 1/2(Eight and half ) of their regressive rule except trying to bring back the draconian British Land Acquisition Act of 1894.?

G Pandarang Rao– Jaitley lives in la-la land. He really believes in the RSS line. And the BJP seems to have its own version of the truth or history, which says that India had no development until two years ago.

Aparajita Krishnan– There is a pattern to this madness. This govt too must be discredited to Nehru.

Rakesh Thind- Don't be unfair to Modi. Dekho Kaam toh Yeh bhi kar raha hai.

Robin Roy– He has gone senile

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