Workers' unrest in Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor's Haryana-Rajasthan belt: Demand for unionization at Honda

Workers' solidarity protest on February 19

By Our Representative
The Rajasthan-Haryana border region of the high-profile Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) is burning with industrial unrest. Following the unprecedented unrest by Maruti-Suzuki workers at the Manesar plant, workers at the Honda Motorcycles and Scooters India Ltd (HMSI) in Tapukara are up in arms against the alleged resistance from the management to allow a recognized union.
With about 466 permanent workers, 100 casual workers, and 3000 contract workers, the dispute at the HMSI plant began soon after the application for union formation was given on August 6, 2015 to the Registrar of Trade Unions, Labour Department, Jaipur, initially signed by 227 permanent workers, with claims of support from other sections.
“The company responded by retrenching a few hundred contract workers from September 2015 to early February 2016”, says a statement issued by the Workers’ Solidarity Centre (WSC) at Gurgaon-Bawal, which is organizing the workers’ struggle.
The proposed union president Naresh Kumar was transferred to a Bihar facility of Honda in November 2015. When Naresh refused to bow down, he along with Union Secretary Rajpal and two more workers leaders were terminated. Fiveother worker leaders were suspended, 20 worker leaders, including the entire union body, were given ‘warning letters’.
Things came to a flashpoint on February 16, when at 2.30 pm, a supervisor, an executive engineer, allegedly physically attacked a contract worker in the paint shop for refusal to work overtime. The contract worker was ill because of having worked overtime for three days. Around 2,000 workers stopped production, demanding action against the supervisor.

Workers' protest at Honda plant, February 16

The workers also raised voice for reinstatement 400 contract workers, apart from the nine permanent colleagues, who were terminated. “Instead of peaceful negotiation, the management called in bouncers and the police. This was followed by an unprovoked lathicharge by the Rajasthan Police at around 7 pm, and a reign of terror”, says WSC.
The workers ran for their lives in and around the factory premises. There was tear gas shelling and gun firing as well as stone throwing. The police chased and detained some workers, with things continuing to remain at the boiling point over the next three days. Five workers of the union leadership were kept in police custody till February 23, where they were allegedly tortured, and then transferred to Kishangarh Jail on February 24.
Parallel to this, On February 19, thousands of workers gathered in Gurgaon’s Tau Devilal Stadium to protest against the repression. These included workers and trade unions from the Honda plant in Manesar, the four plants of Maruti Suzuki (Gurgaon, Manesar, Powertrain and Suzuki Motorcycles), two plants of Hero Motocorp in Gurgaon, Mico Bosch from Jaipur, Rico Dharuhera, Endurance, Sunbeam, Baxter, Delphi, Lumax, Bajaj Motors.
Apart from the WSC, Gurgaon, Inqlabi Mazdoor Kendra, Shramik Sangram Committee and central trade unions – AITUC, CITU, AIUTUC, HMS, BMS, and INTUC came in solidarity. A 13 member committee from among these factory-level and central trade unions was formed to support the struggle”, the statement said.
On February 26, when HMSI workers gathered to protest in Tapukara industrial area after the district magistrate, Alwar, denied permission, police detained 14 workers till late in the evening. “The Rajasthan and the Haryana government have refused to allow workers any space in Alwar, Rewari, Gurgaon and Jaipur for their peaceful demonstration”, says WSC.
On March 1, 39 of the 44 Honda workers got bail from Jaipur High Court, after the lower court rejected their bail application. Five workers in the leadership, including union president Naresh Kumar, whose names were put in multiple FIRs, got bail similarly three days later.
Meanwhile, says WSC, the company is sending suspension letters on a mass scale to workers. At least a 100 of the 466 permanent workers have already received such letters. It has brought in a few hundred contract workers from Odisha and other far-away states to illegally restart production.
---
For more details click HERE

Comments

'Enough evidence' in Indian tradition to support legal basis for same-sex marriage

By Iyce Malhotra, Joseph Mathai, Sandeep Chachra* The ongoing hearing in the Supreme Court on same-sex marriage provides space for much-needed conversations on issues that have hitherto remained “invisible” or engaged with patriarchal locker room humour. We must recognize that people with diverse sexualities and complex gender identities have faced discrimination, stigma and decades of oppression. Their issues have mainly remained buried in dominant social discourse, and many view them with deep insecurities.

Savarkar 'criminally betrayed' Netaji and his INA by siding with the British rulers

By Shamsul Islam* RSS-BJP rulers of India have been trying to show off as great fans of Netaji. But Indians must know what role ideological parents of today's RSS/BJP played against Netaji and Indian National Army (INA). The Hindu Mahasabha and RSS which always had prominent lawyers on their rolls made no attempt to defend the INA accused at Red Fort trials.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Victim of communal violence, Christians in Manipur want Church leadership to speak up

By Fr Cedric Prakash SJ* The first eleven days of May 2023 have, in many ways, been a defining period of Indian history! Plenty has happened in a rapid-fire stream of events. Ironically, each one of them are indicators of how crimes and the criminalisation of society has become the ‘new norm’; these include, the May Day rallies with a focus on the four labour codes which are patently against the rights of workers; the U S Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its Annual Report on 1 May stating that conditions for religious freedom in India “continued to worsen in 2022”; the continued protest by the Indian women wrestlers at Jantar Mantar for the expulsion of the chief of the Indian Wrestlers Federation on very serious allegations; the Elections in Karnataka on 10 May (with communalism and corruption as the mainstay); the release of the fake, derogative and insensitive film ‘The Kerala Story’; the release of World Free Press Index on 3 May which places India

Delhi HC rules in favour of retired Air Force officer 'overcharged' for Covid treatment

By Rosamma Thomas* In a decision of May 22, 2023, the Delhi High Court ruled in favour of petitioner Group Captain Suresh Khanna who was under treatment at CK Birla Hospital, Gurugram, between April 28 and May 5, 2021, for a period of eight days, for Covid-19 pneumonia. The petitioner had to pay Rs 3,55,286 as treatment costs, but the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) only reimbursed him for Rs 1,83,748, on the basis of government-approved rates.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Unlike other revolutionaries, Hindutva icon wrote 5 mercy petitions to British masters

By Shamsul Islam* The Hindutva icon VD Savarkar of the RSS-BJP rulers of India submitted not one, two,or three but five mercy petitions to the British masters! Savarkarites argue: “There are no evidences to prove that Savarkar collaborated with the British for his release from jail. In fact, his appeal for release was a ruse. He was well aware of the political developments outside and wanted to be part of it. So he kept requesting for his release. But the British authorities did not trust him a bit” (YD Phadke, ‘A complex Hero’, "The Indian Expres"s, August 31, 2004)

India joining US sponsored trade pillar to hurt Indian farmers, 'promote' GM seeds, food

Counterview Desk As many as 32 civil society organisations (CSOs), in a letter to Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and India joining the trade pillar, have said that its provisions will allow the US to ensure a more favourable regulatory regime “for enhancing its exports of genetically modified (GM) seeds and GM food”, underlining, it will “significantly hurt the livelihoods of Indian farmers.”

Polygamy in India "down" in 45 yrs: Muslims' from 5.7 to 2.55%, Hindus' 5.8 to 1.77%, "common" in SCs, STs

By Rajiv Shah Amidst All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) justifying polygamy, saying it “meets social and moral needs and the provision for it stems from concern and sympathy for women”, facts suggest the the practice is down from 5.7 per cent of Muslim families in 1961 to 2.55 per cent in 2006.

Modi govt 'wholly untrustworthy' on Covid data, censored criticism on pandemic: Lancet

By Rajiv Shah One of the world’s most prestigious health journals, brought out from England, has sharply criticised the Narendra Modi government for being “wholly untrustworthy on Covid-19 health data”, stating, the “official government figures place deaths at more than 530 000, while WHO excess death estimates for 2020 and 2021 are near 4·7 million.”

Search This Blog