UPA-Left parties coordination meet unproductive: Brinda Karat

Bangalore, June 28 (UNI) Terming ''unproductive'' the convening of UPA-Left parties coordination committee to discuss the UPA Government toeing the previous NDA's ''anti-poor and anti-labour'' policies, CPI(M) Polit bureau member Brinda Karat today said the party would launch a nationwide stir to mobilise people against it as it would be ''disastrous'' to the country.

''Henceforth, the Left parties will not demand any meeting of the UPA-Left Coordination Committee and revive it either,'' she told a news conference here.

Criticising the UPA Government's draft Bill to delink the banking credit linkage to Self Help Groups (SHG) across the country, Ms Karat alleged that it was being pushed due to pressure from multinational financing companies. ''The UPA Government's move in this direction will cause the collapse of the SHG system,'' she rued.

Alleging that the Centre's food policy was leading to the country losing its food security and hurting the interests of the poor and working class, she said the quantum of food subsidy was being downsized every passing year and expressed the fear that the present Public Distribution System (PDS) would no longer exist.

The Left parties would continue to press for a Social Security Bill for the benefit of the unorganised sector employees, Ms Karat emphasised, warning that ''the pursual of anti-people policies by the UPA Government would ultimately end in eroding people's support.'' Coming down heavily on Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram, the CPI(M) leader charged him with adopting ''double standards'' on many issues. After promising to refrain from meddling with the working of Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) in parliament, he had not kept his words as the very profile of the RRBs' functioning was sought to be changed. The Party would support the nationwide stir announced by the employees of RRBs.

UNI