Some central trade unions on Tuesday termed the Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman as a “farce, anti-people and another step towards the Centre’s privatisation goal”.
The Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) said in a statement that the Budget had “little substance” and reflected “insensitivity” towards the problems faced by workers during the pandemic.
“The Budget is presented in the overall background of desperate and destructive privatisation drive embracing the infrastructure, manufacturing and mineral sectors in entirety, facilitating transfer of resources from the national kitty to private hands, both domestic and foreign,” the CITU statement read.
It added that the union would go ahead with the general strike on March 28 and 29.
The All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) said the Budget was “another bonanza for corporates”, while common citizens were left to fend for themselves.
“The whole exercise appeared to be a farce as it was claimed to be budget vision for 100 years of Independence. In 2015 also, the Budget presentation was claimed to be for 25 years. The Finance Minister failed to give account of what happened to all the tall claims and targets set up for employment, smart cities, Skill India, double income of farmers, relief to poor and middle income groups, improvement in health infrastructure etc.,” the AITUC said in a statement.
The RSS-affiliated Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh welcomed some aspects of the Budget, including the focus on infrastructure development through ‘PM Gati Shakti’, but pointed out that a “major disappointment” was the status quo in pension under EPS 95. “Revised fiscal deficit of 6.9% is a matter of concern. It seems that the government is tilting towards privatisation,” BMS said.