‘Working class people should fight together to win over capitalistic ideas’

 The working class section by defying the capitalistic ideas and mindset should stand together to fight for their rights and livelihood, said C. Thiruvetai, State vice-president, Centre of Indian Trade Unions. 

Speaking at the first CITU street vendors conference here on Saturday, he said capitalism had trained the public to wait for a saviour to solve their problems and to uplift them from their hardships.  

“Because of this reason, we wait for different leaders starting from politicians to actors to lead us. The mirage into which the ideology has led us has only worsened our problems and issues,” he added.  

Another escapism capitalism has taught the working class people were to blame their fate for whatever happening to them, Mr. Thiruvetai noted.  

“By putting the blame on fate and absence of a leader, we are only prolonging our problems. The ideology which we are to embrace was socialism which teaches us to learn and identify the root cause of the problems troubling our livelihood,” he observed.  

The reason for the street vendors to join together as a force was to disrupt the mindset among the public and government that they were not encroachers of public spaces, he added.  

“Whenever the government forces us to clear out shops and treat us as criminals disturbing the public and the traffic, nobody realises of our future and the family dependent on us, “he pointed out.

While the problems of sanitation workers and several other working-class people were reciprocated by various sections of the people and approached with empathy, street vendors alone were left out to suffer on their own, he noted.  

Noting that the usage of the term ‘encroacher’ as a strategy of the government, Mr.Thiruvetai said that to change the narrative of the ruling class, the mobilisation of the street vendors to demand their needs should be on a mass scale to become an unavoidable force.  

The conference unanimously passed resolutions pressing the State government and district administrations to stop the illegal and forcible eviction of street vendors. 

They also urged action to protect the livelihood of street vendors.  

“The loan amount provided to street vendors under the PM svanidhi scheme should be continued and provided as an interest-free loan. Free pushcarts must be provided to all street vendors,” it demanded.

It noted that action should be taken to stop the oppression by lessees against vendors holding public weekly markets in Ramanathapuram district. 

The system of leasing ground space in the market to private individuals must also be stopped, it added.  

The conference also elected Mr. Thiruvetai as president, P. Karuppaiah as general secretary and S. Selvi as treasurer.