Opposing the West Bengal government's proposal to do away with the right to strike of its employees, major Central trade unions have decided to support the government employees' unions in their agitation for protection of their rights. Describing the comments of State Labour Minister Purnendu Basu as unfortunate, Gurudas Dasgupta, general secretary of All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) and MP of the Communist party of India (CPI), said the right...

-The Financial Express   The government today announced discontinuing releasing weekly primary and food inflation data based on the Wholesale Price Index. "Weekly WPI is discontinued henceforth," the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, which releases the inflation data, said. The government, however, will continue releasing the monthly headline or overall inflation data, which also contains the break-up for all segments including food, non-food, fuel and manufactured items. The headline inflation figures for January are scheduled...

Seven Maoists, who surrendered to police in Chhattisgarh's Kanker, claimed their leaders forced them to undergo vasectomy to ensure the ultras' cause doesn't get lost in domestic compulsions.  Besides three senior commanders, East Bastar divisional committee member Sunil Kumar and his wife Jayanti, a senior member of the Maoist cultural wing, are among those who surrendered. All the four men claimed they had to undergo vasectomy.  Maoist veterans said vasectomy of members...

-The Indian Express   The West Bengal government announced Tuesday that it had decided to withdraw the trade union rights of its employees. The announcement, made at the secretariat by the labour minister, triggered outrage among state government staff. Minister Purnendu Bose said the government would withdraw a clause in the service rules, introduced by the LF government in 1981, giving full trade union rights to state government staff. Withdrawal of the amendment will...

Unlike the dearness allowance that accrues to the salaries of workers every six months without any hassle, the linking of National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) wages to inflation or the Consumer Price Index for agricultural wages has not led to a smooth annual revision. The revision for NREGA wages is supposed to happen every January after it was introduced last January. However, even a month into the new year, the...