Modi demands pulling out labour reforms from Concurrent to State Lis

New Delhi, July 24 (UNI) Gujarat firebrand Chief Minister Narendra Modi today put the ball in the court of the Centre regarding labour reforms, demanding that the subject be moved to the State List from the Concurrent List to give a free hand to state governments on the issue, and complained that the Union government did little while he was fighting the unions on his home turf.

''When I moved a resolution in the state assembly seeking closure of unviable units, I had to incur the wrath of labour unions. I fought the battle alone but ended up getting nothing,'' Mr Modi told reporters after emerging from a meeting of regional consultation on the Approach Paper to the Eleventh Plan in Yojana Bhavan.

Mr Modi was accompanied by a battery of his senior government officials during his discussions with Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia, which lasted over two hours.

The Chief Minister was of the view that in order to sustain the growth momentum, it was of utmost importance that the state governments be given a free hand in evolving their own labour policies, talkng into account the development imperatives and the socio-political situation.

Dr Ahluwalia is trying to evolve a consensus on the Approach Paper with the political leadership of the country for the economic model to be followed in the XIth Plan, including contentious issues like disinvestment and labour reforms.

While there has been much heat and dust on the subject of labour policy, the pressure from the Left and other allies of the UPA government have put fetters on any forward momvement in this regard.

Analysts say that the fast modernising and industrilaising states like Gujarat feel constrained in getting larger inflows of domestic and foreign capital in the absence of labour reforms.

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