PANAJI: The Goa Convention of Workers took out a morcha in the city on Tuesday morning, in support of the call given for nationwide strike in protest against the Congress government’s policies on labour besides  the rise in prices of essential commodities.

The workers, drawn from various industrial estates in the state, met near the KTC bus stand and the morcha wended its way through the main streets of the city, shouting slogans against the government at the Centre, as well as in the state.
They converged near the Customs House, where, various leaders hailing from different unions addressed the rally.
A large posse of police personnel drawn from Panaji, Mapusa, Porvorim, Old Goa and Agacaim were present to ensure that matters did not go out of hand and law and order was maintained.
Present were the Sub-Divisional Police Officers from Panaji, Mr Deu Benaulikar, from Mapusa, Mr Sammy Tavares and from Bicholim, Mr Bossuet Silva. There were nearly 6 to 8 busload of police to ensure that peace was maintained.
The morcha route was cordoned and traffic was diverted along alternative routes. No untoward incident was reported.
Addressing the gathering,  Mr Suhas Naik lashed out at the Congress government, saying that thousands of people had courted arrest to make their demands heard, yet the demands were still pending and that the labourers were forced to come on the streets time and again, in support of their demands.
He further said that the price rise has made the life of the people miserable.
The convenor of CCP Workers Convention, Mr Keshav Prabhu, said “Today is a ‘black day’ in our lives, as people have to come on the streets because they cannot get their genuine demands met. Goa had abolished the system of contract labour, but it is being encouraged again through contractors.”
The LIC union chief, Mr Raju Naik said, “Around 60 crore Indians do not have money even to buy a Rs 30 meal and lakhs of people sleep without food and shelter, due to the faulty policies of the government against the worker class.”
Mr Suhas Kundaikar, INTUC, said that whenever there is a crisis, they would back the workers, regardless of the union they are affiliated to and support their cause, while Mr Subhas Naik George said that prices keep spiraling but salaries remain static and the middleman eat into the contract and the wages of the working class. He appealed to the government to ban the system of contract labour and added that if our demands were not met, we would give a call for an indefinite industrial bandh.
Mr Ajit Singh Rane informed that people from all walks of life have gathered by sinking religious and political party affiliations, in order to get justice for the working class.
Mr Rane appealed to the media and judiciary to work towards narrowing the gap between rich and the poor.
The gathering submitted a memorandum, which will be forwarded to the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, on behalf of the working people of the state on Tuesday, expressing serious concern, resentment and dissatisfaction over the faulty economic policies pursued by UPA II government, at the diktats of International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, World Trade Organisation, multi-national companies and corporate houses, violating the basic statutory rights of the working people and the masses of the country.
The AITUC leader, Mr Christopher Fonseca said, “We Goans lodge a strong protest over the manner in which the wealth of the nation i.e. natural resources and strategic enterprises is thrown open to the multi-national and trans-national companies, with an aim to achieve the objective policies which are evolved to systematically eliminate the organised labour class and trade unions in the country.”
He said that the statutory labour legislation is being blatantly violated by these corporates and MNCs. The right to organise, right to strike, and other beneficial labour laws are proposed to be changed to suit the policies of ‘hire and fire’ being pursued by the big corporate houses.
He asked the Prime Minister, why a handful of rich industrialists like the Tatas, Birlas, Ambanis, Mahindra, Mittal and Vedantas can become billionaires, while 55 crore people do not have money even to buy their daily necessities, even after 63 years of independence and added that the economic policies of the government have resulted in the rich getting richer while the vast majority of working masses continue to languish in poverty.
He said Tuesday’s strike was to highlight the demands once again and called for the immediate attention of government at the Centre. Demanding rolling back of the hike in prices of petrol, kerosene, diesel and LPG, he asserted  that the prices of essential goods like food items should be controlled.
He also called for a stop to the violation of labour laws and asked  to strengthen the public distribution system and to recognise the right to organise strike as a fundamental right of the working class.