COVID-19: Top TU demands Rs 5 lakh crore package, as marginalised 'left in lurch'

Counterview Desk
One of India’s top trade union organizations, All-India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), in a statement, has taken strong exception to a “meagre” allocation of Rs 15,000 crore to fight the deadly coronavirus, has said that little is being done to help the marginalized sections of society, especially daily wagers, migrants, agriculture workers and self-employed persons like hawkers-vendors, porters, loaders, domestic workers etc. who are “losing their livelihood in the lockdown.”
Signed by AITUC secretary Amarjeet Kaur, the statement demands a package of Rs 5 lakh crore, pointing out that even a small state like Kerala has announced a package of Rs 20,000 crore.

Text:

We at the All-India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) while take the lockdown as necessary step as a preventive measure to stop spread of Covid-19 infection, are extremely disappointed at very meager amount of Rs 15,000 crore allocated by the Prime Minister in his address to the nation on March 24, whereas for small state like Kerala government announced Rs 20,000 crore package.
The dire need of the country is for testing and provision of all out medical help to all those infected cases. A war like preparation is needed for provision of ventilators, masks, increased bed capacity, availability of medicines, maintenance of hygiene etc.
The front soldiers in the case of medical help are our doctors, nurses, other para-medical staff and cleaning staff etc. who need to be taken care of. But it is they who are being neglected and not fully equipped as the requests and complaints from them including from the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Resident Doctors Association are all in open for all to see.
We deplore that the government of India allowed export of all these required equipment in fighting Covid-19 till March 19, 2020 despite World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines to stop it in the beginning of February itself.
The harassment of doctors, nurses etc to vacate residential premises is most shameful act which must be taken cognizance of by the concerned authorities and the guilty be booked to give clear signal to the society. The shameful instances of harassment of those working in airlines including air India staff which brought stranded Indians from abroad have also come to light.

Workers and employees of permitted essential services are not being allowed to commute to the work places by police in many areas

The workers and employees of the permitted essential services by the government are not being allowed to commute to the work places by police in many areas despite they have ID proofs provided by the government departments and public sector offices.
The poor masses, who are daily wagers / casual/ migrant/ agriculture workers or are self-employees as hawkers-vendors, those who are coolies/porters/loaders unloaders, domestic workers etc. are losing their livelihood in the lockdown/ curfew situation have been left in lurch for nothing to bank upon. They need immediate financial relief, free ration and free fuel to cook food. In many a cases for destitute food should be provided from government-run outlets.
This requires big economic package from the government. The clean drinking water and otherwise water needs for washing hands and bodies, the needs of hygiene and sanitation are very essential and especially in this pandemic situation.
The Finance Minister was only busy in announcing increase in deadlines for filing Income Tax (IT) returns, Goods and Services Tax (GST), about Tax Deducted as Source (TDS) or the cases under bankruptcy act etc. but no announcement for the 40 crore out of about 54 crore of working people who are looking towards the incumbent government for help.
We demand from the Modi government to immediately come out with clear policy and package to deal with all these issues at the earliest otherwise anxieties of no work and no food amongst masses will create problems in dealing with Covid 19 pandemic. The government has to immediately increase the financial package for health to tackle emergent needs of medical fraternity and the expansion of health infrastructure.
AITUC demands of Rs 500,000 crore package from the Central government to meet this calamity.

Comments

Sergei Vasilyevich Gerasimov, the artist who survived Stalin's cultural purges

By Harsh Thakor* Sergei Vasilyevich Gerasimov (September 14, 1885 – April 20, 1964) was a Soviet artist, professor, academician, and teacher. His work was posthumously awarded the Lenin Prize, the highest artistic honour of the USSR. His paintings traced the development of socialist realism in the visual arts while retaining qualities drawn from impressionism. Gerasimov reconciled a lyrical approach to nature with the demands of Soviet socialist ideology.

Nepal votes amid regional rivalry: Why New Delhi is watching closely

By Nava Thakuria* As Nepal holds an early national election on Thursday (5 March 2026), the people of northeast India, along with other regional observers, are watching the proceedings closely. The vote was necessitated after the government of Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli collapsed in September 2025 following widespread anti-government protests. The election will determine the composition of the 275-member House of Representatives, originally scheduled for 2027, under the stewardship of an interim government led by former Supreme Court justice Sushila Karki.

From plagiarism to proxy exams: Galgotias and systemic failure in education

By Sandeep Pandey* Shock is being expressed at Galgotias University being found presenting a Chinese-made robotic dog and a South Korean-made soccer-playing drone as its own creations at the recently held India AI Impact Summit 2026, a global event in New Delhi. Earlier, a UGC-listed journal had published a paper from the university titled “Corona Virus Killed by Sound Vibrations Produced by Thali or Ghanti: A Potential Hypothesis,” which became the subject of widespread ridicule. Following the robotic dog controversy coming to light, the university has withdrawn the paper. These incidents are symptoms of deeper problems afflicting the Indian education system in general. Galgotias merely bit off more than it could chew.

'Policy long overdue': Coalition of 29 experts tells JP Nadda to act on SC warning label order

By A Representative In a significant development for public health, the Supreme Court of India has directed the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to seriously consider implementing mandatory front-of-pack warning labels on pre-packaged food products. The order, passed by a bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and K.V. Viswanathan on February 10, 2026, comes as the Court expressed dissatisfaction with the regulatory body's progress on the issue.

From non-alignment to strategic partnership: India's ideological shift toward Israel

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak* India's historical foreign policy maintained a notable duality: offering sanctuary to persecuted Jewish communities dating back centuries, while simultaneously supporting Palestinian self-determination as an expression of its broader anti-colonial foreign policy commitments. The gradual shift in Indian foreign policy under Hindutva-aligned governance — moving toward a strategic partnership with Israel while reducing substantive engagement with the Palestinian cause — raises legitimate questions about ideological motivation and geopolitical consequence.

Development vs community: New coal politics and old conflicts in Madhya Pradesh

By Deepmala Patel* The Singrauli region of Madhya Pradesh, often described as “India’s energy capital,” has for decades been a hub of coal mining and thermal power generation. Today, the Dhirouli coal mine project in this district has triggered widespread protests among local communities. In recent years, the project has generated intense controversy, public opposition, and significant legal and social questions. This is not merely a dispute over one mine; it raises a larger question—who pays the price for energy development? Large corporate beneficiaries or the survival of local communities?

Indian ecologist urges United Nations to probe alleged Epstein links within UN ranks

By A Representative A senior Indian ecologist and long-time United Nations environmental negotiator, Dr. S. Faizi of Thiruvananthapuram, has written to António Guterres, urging the United Nations to launch a high-level investigation into alleged links between certain current and former UN officials and the late American financier Jeffrey Epstein, following disclosures of email communications by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Vaccination vs screening: Policy questions raised on cervical cancer strategy

By A Representative A public policy expert has written to Union Health Minister J. P. Nadda raising a series of concerns regarding the national Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination campaign launched on February 28 for 14-year-old girls.

The new anti-national certificate: If Arundhati Roy is the benchmark, count me in

By Dr. Mansee Bal Bhargava* Dear MANIT Alumni Network Committee, “Are you anti-national?” I encountered this fascinating—some may say intimidating—question from an elderly woman I barely know, an alumna of Maulana Azad College of Technology (MACT, now Maulana Azad National Institute of Technology - MANIT), Bhopal, and apparently one of the founders of the MACT (now MANIT) Alumni Network. The authority with which she posed the question was striking. “How much anti-national are you? What have you done for the Alumni Network Committee to identify you as anti-national?” When I asked what “anti-national” meant to her and who was busy certifying me as such, the response came in counter-questions.

Search This Blog