The Aryavarth Express
Agency (New Delhi): The Congress party has launched a scathing attack on the Narendra Modi government, accusing it of perpetrating six major injustices against workers during the “Dus Saal Anyay Kaal” (10 years of injustice). The party claims that its “Shramik Nyay” (labour justice) guarantees will dispel the darkness of this era and bring much-needed relief to the country’s working class.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge highlighted the dismal growth rate of real wages between 2014-15 and 2021-22, which was less than 1% per year. He pointed out that during the UPA-2 government (2009-10 to 2013-14), real agricultural and non-agricultural rural wages grew at 8.6% and 6.9% per annum, respectively. In contrast, during the second term of the Modi government, the growth rate of real rural wages has turned negative for both agriculture (-0.6%) and non-agriculture rural wages (-1.4%).
Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh enumerated the six major “anyays” (injustices) inflicted upon workers during the Modi era. These include declining real wages, anti-worker labour codes, rising contractualization, deindustrialization, a decline in salaried jobs, increasing self-employment, the slow death of MGNREGA, and apathy towards workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ramesh claimed that inflation has outpaced daily wages for Indian workers, resulting in stagnant or negative “real” wages over the past decade. Even salaried workers have seen a 12% decrease in their inflation-adjusted earnings between 2017-18 and 2022-23, according to Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) data.
The Congress party’s “Shramik Nyay” announcement guarantees a nationwide minimum wage of Rs 400 per day to address wage stagnation. The party also pledges to conduct a comprehensive review of the Modi government’s anti-worker labour codes and make necessary amendments to strengthen labour rights.
Ramesh alleged that the Modi government has initiated the premature “de-industrialisation” of India, with the share of manufacturing in employment dropping from 12.6% in 2011-12 to 11.6% in 2021-22. He also claimed that the share of manufacturing in India’s GDP has been falling since the beginning of the Modi regime, hitting an all-time low of 13% in 2022.
The Congress party further accused the Modi government of “killing MGNREGA” by slashing its budget, making it more difficult for workers to demand work, and not increasing wages enough to keep up with inflation. The budget allocation for MGNREGA in 2023-24 is at 0.25% of GDP, the lowest in its history.
Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit, addressing a press conference at the party headquarters, emphasized the importance of the context behind “Shramik Nyay.” He alleged that the Modi government’s claim of reduced unemployment rates is misleading, as India is the only country where unpaid family workers are considered employed. According to Dikshit, the number of unpaid family workers has reached 9.5 crore, which the Modi government uses to reduce its unemployment figures.