Fwd: Bengal news letter

From B Prasant/INN

BENGAL LF GOVT GOES IN FOR RS 5106 CRORE WORTH

OF INCOME GENERATION, ADDITIONAL EMPLOYMENT

 

Kolkata, February 24: The Bengal LF government has declared a plan for additional generation of income and employment especially amongst the poor.  This is a step to fight the recession that has spread its hydra-headed tentacles around the Indian economy.  

 

Finance Minister Prof Asim Dasgupta would prefer to describe the plan as a move towards farther empowerment of the mass of the people in distressing times.  The plan aims at carrying beneficent economic and financial measures to the poorest of the poor as part of the LF government's policy outlook.

 

The measures set in motion can thus be summarised:

 

v    One thousand crore earmarked for non-BPL rural poor for housing

v    BPL families to get ration at Rs 2 for a kg of rice

v    Self-help groups to receive loans at a rate of 4% from banks

v    Rs 50 thousand to be disbursed as compensation to farmers whose potato crops have been affected with disease

v    Al l districts to have decentralised setting up of godowns with a capacity of two lakh MT

v    Rs 500 crore allotted for land banks for medium and heavy industries

v    Rs 55 crore allotted for the handloom sector

v    One thousand vocational centres to be set up

v    Two new universities to be set up at Purulia-Bankura, and Jalpaiguri

v    50 thousand fresh employments of primary school teachers

v    Increase in the pay of para-teachers, school and college par-time teachers, and secondary education centres including some education centres

v    The pension of workers of closed factories and closed tea gardens to be increased to Rs one thousand from the existing Rs 750

v    • Increase of pension of the old, the widows, the physically challenged, as well as of kisans and workers

 

 

Item 2

SPREAD OF EDUCATION IS FACILITATED BY

THE USE OF THE MOTHER TONGUE

 

In order to ensure a fast spread of education, especially scientific education amongst the people, the use of the mother tongue is essential. This was said by CPI (M) leader Biman Basu while addressing a seminar on 'study of science in Bengali', on the occasion of the international mother language day in Kolkata on 21 February.  The Bangiya Sakhsharata Prasar Samity (BSPS) organised the seminar at Calcutta University.

 

Biman Basu said that language had always played a crucially central role behind the process that led to the growth of a state.  Bangladesh is a potent example of this tenet.  Imperialism was at work in ensuring that languages became fewer and fewer and diversity was done away with. This must be resisted.  

 

Bengali language, too, was under attack from the forces of imperialism and their lackeys.  The role emoted by such stalwarts in the development of the Bengali language like Vidyasagar, Madhusudan Dutta, Akhshaykumar Datta, Ram Mohan Roy, the Tagore family, J C Bose, and P C Roy were mentioned.  Their tradition must be carried forward 
The occasion also saw the celebration of the 18th year of the organ of the BSPS, Lekha O Pada.

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