Rajya Sabha MPs to raise issues on economy, job loss

After Rajya Sabha discussed slowdown, the state of economy continues to be a talking point in Parliament during the ongoing Winter Session with two Kerala MPs – CPI's Binoy Vishwam and Congress' T N Prathapan – are all set to raise the issue on Friday through separate Private Members' Resolutions.

Another resolution that is coming up is that of BJP's Rajya Sabha MP Rakesh Sinha who wants the government to create a mechanism where those who lose jobs in the private sector mandatorily get social security benefits.

CPI Parliamentary Group Leader Vishwam will raise the issue in Rajya Sabha while Thrissur MP T N Prathapan will bring it before the Lok Sabha when they will demand the government to take immediate steps to address the slowdown in the country.

While Prathapan wants the government to take "urgent steps to review its socio-economic policies in order to ensure all-round development of the country", Vishwam wants the government to present a "comprehensive and holistic report" as to the causes of the current economic situation and future action plan besides immediate action to prevent further decline of the Indian economy and create jobs.

Vishwam's resolution said the last financial year has seen the country's economy face "several setbacks with a continuously declining GDP growth rate, precarious fiscal deficit, surge in unemployment, decrease in domestic demand and a decline/stagnation in key sectors such as manufacturing, FMCG, coal, banking, telecom and automobiles amongst others".

According to his resolution, the decline in the economy has been stated "repeatedly" by numerous national and international agencies including the World Bank, IMF, Asian Development Bank and Moody's International Services.

"The direct consequences of this economic setback are being faced by each and every citizen of our country as the price of daily essential goods, ranging from vegetables to pulses have been increasing rapidly, while consumer spending has rapidly decreased indicating an increasing prevalence of unemployment and poverty in the country," Vishwam said.

Emphasising that the "most devastating" effect of the economic crisis has been on individuals belonging to vulnerable sections of society, he said it would serve national interest if the government provides clarity about the prevailing economic situation and its plans to address it."

In his resolution that will come up in Rajya Sabha, Sinha has said that the space for the public sector has "substantially shrunk", the role of private sectors has expanded in the recent years while "thousands of employees are terminated by the employers due to various reasons without giving compensation and other benefits".

Sinha wants the Centre to create a mechanism in which employees who lose jobs are "compulsorily compensated and provided with welfare measures" like education for children, medical facilities and pension by the employers so that their suffering is mitigated.