Kerala - Alappuzha

Call to fight support to MNCs

Staff Reporter

Boat rally organised against proposed trade pact

ALAPPUZHA: Veliyodi Venugopal, patron of the anti-Coca Cola Agitation Committee, Plachimada, has called for an all-out fight by farmers and workers against the support being extended by the Union and State Governments to multi-national companies (MNCs).

Inaugurating the boat rally organised by the Swadeshi Jagaran Manch and the Bharatiya Kisan Sangh at Kuttanad on Thursday to demand that the country should not sign the agreement on trade in agricultural produce, Mr. Venugopal said awareness campaigns were not of much use now. A real fight was needed to protect the interests of farmers.

Mr. Venugopal said the Governments were siding with foreigners and sacrificing the interests of the financially backward.

The Centre was working against the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi in the issues that affected the agriculture sector, he said. He said the seed patent bill would deal a deathblow to the financially backward farmers.

The sovereignty of the nation was being questioned and there was no one to protect the interests of the country, he said.

The ruling class was encouraging consumer culture, he added.

The manch all-India joint convener Abraham Varghese delivered the keynote address. Kisan Sangh state general secretary E. Narayanan Kutty the manch State organiser K. Govindan Kutty spoke on the occasion.

The rally will end at Pulincunnu at 5 p.m. on November 13.

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