No to 100% FDI in Drug Industry

FMRAI strongly opposed 100% FDI (foreign direct investment) in pharmaceutical industry in the hearing on it by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce. FMRAI’s opposition in the presentation was based on serious adverse impact on self-reliance, pricing and availability of medicines and against violation of Indian laws by the drug MNCs. FMRAI was specially invited to present their views.

On 25 January, in the Parliament Library Meeting Hall at New Delhi, FMRAI’s delegation, led by general secretary D. P. Dubey with H. Syal and Amitava Guha, made their written and power point presentation before the Parliamentary Standing Committee related to the Department of Commerce of the Government of India. The session was chaired by E. M. Sudarshana Natchiappan MP and attended by 10 MPs of both Houses.

Massive Strike & OSG Movement

73% of total 1040 field workers of AstraZeneca, named as Professional Service Representatives (PSRs), Territory Business Managers (TBMs), Sales Development Managers (SDMs) and KeyAccounts Managers (KAMs) inclusive of 15% probationers; abstained from work on 25 January in response to strike notice of FMRAI pursuing 7 points demands. It was AstraZeneca field workers’ first united all India strike since the management resorted to fragmentation of field workers by introducing illegal categories, attempting their deunionization and denying their legal protective coverage under SPE Act and other labour laws. The response to strike was magnificent. Immediate cause of strike was provocation by the management to force changes in the PSRs’ conditions of service and dismissals of 2 TBMs without charge-sheet and enquiry and transfer of one TBM.

Workers of the country will observe strike on 28 February responding to the historic call by all the central trade unions which will paralyse all industrial operations in the country in an unprecedented manner. All central trade unions - CITU, AITUC, TUCC, UTUC, AUCCTU, INTUC, HMS and BMS - in a convention at Delhi on 7 September decided joint actions including nationwide strike demanding containing price rise; protection of employment; strict enforcement of all labour laws with provision of punishment for violation; universal social security; no contractorisation of permanent work; minimum wages to raise to Rs.10,000 at June 2010 price index;removal of ceiling on bonus and P.F. and enhancing of gratuity amount, etc. All these demands have relevance to the working and service conditions of the field workers. Field workers have been fighting for several such demands and had had observedstrikes during past several years.<

Fight Drug Companies Neo-liberal Restructuring

Obviously general council meeting at Bhopal will take note of the socio-economic and political developments at national and global level and development in the industry; review the organizational and movemental work since last GCM and will take new tasks as Road Map, 1012. The major development of the period is the continuing global economic crisis leading to sovereign debt, relief package to perpetrators of crisis and off-loading the burden on the working people through cut in social securities and rising unemployment under global neo-liberal drive.

The response is massive working class and other toiling sections’ resistance movement in Eurozone. However, at political level, the swing is more towards neo-conservatism. Itshows that defensive movement by the working people is not enough to fight.