DK FlipBook-Magzter January 2019

EVENTS / ‘Anti-Hartal Year’
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH, NO MORE
HARTALS: ENTREPRENEURS
A string of hartals, numbering almost 100 in a year, has prompted the business
community to come out and say in unison, ‘No, Not Anymore’
A
whopping 97 hartals called
by different political parties
and organisations in Kerala
this year caused enormous trouble
to the businesses and industries
alike in the State, whose economy
was even otherwise reeling under
tremendous damage caused by
unprecedented floods which hit the
State in August. Against this backdrop,
various organisations have
jointly come forward openly declaring
their strong opposition to the
scourge called hartal and resolved to
observe 2019 as ‘Anti-Hartal Year’.
The Kerala Tourism Task Force,
an initiative of Kerala Travel Mart
(KTM), stated that the tourism
industry would vehemently oppose
the forcible enforcement of hartals
which, according to it, had become
detrimental to the sector. A joint
meeting of 28 organisations in the
tourism sector has adopted a sixpoint
resolution calling to ensure
that the tourism industry remained
unaffected during the forced shut
down on hartal days. The forum also
made it clear that they would not
participate in the nation-wide strike
on January 8 and 9, 2019.
Baby Mathew, President, KTM
said, “Though we are not opposing
a person’s right to disagree, we will
in no way associate with forcibly enforced
hartals. Tourism was the most
affected industry during Nipah virus
outbreak and floods, but we somehow
withstood it. However, hartal is
a ‘man-made disaster’ which we will
oppose.” The task force will also take
steps to file cases seeking compensation
from those who call hartals and
cause troubles for the industry, by
presenting clear evidence.
M S A KUMAR
PRESIDENT, TiE KERALA
Through a resolution the meeting
also urged the government to provide
police protection to ensure the safety
and security of tourists and the uninterrupted
functioning of institutions
and services in the tourism sector
during hartals. As far as tourism sector
is concerned, a single day’s hartal
on an average causes a total loss of
around Rs. 200 crore.
On parallel lines, the Kerala
Vyapari Vyavasayi Ekopana Samithi
(KVVES) also convened a meeting
ANATHALAVATTOM ANANDAN
STATE PRESIDENT, CITU
“I do not agree with the declaration
of hartal on short notice.
But if the hartal is called well in
advance, like the general strike
on January 8 and 9 which was announced
in September, people will
get time to prepare for the same.
Hartal is a form of protest and I do
not believe in banning it.”
of representatives of 36 organisations
along with associations of
private truck and bus operators and
endorsed the call to observe 2019
as ‘Anti-Hartal Year’. An anti-hartal
committee was also formed at the
meeting which included representatives
of various trade bodies.
T Nasiruddeen, State President
of KVVES, pointed out that Kerala
witnessed 97 hartals in 2018 alone
and one-fourth of the trade and business
houses in the State were badly
affected by this. Most of the hartals
were also announced on short notice,
he said. The committee also explored
ways to hold hartal organisers
responsible for the damage caused
during hartals. A final meeting of the
KVVES to be held in January will
chart out plans in this regard.
A meeting of the Joint Action
Council Against Hartal (JACAH) was
held in Kochi recently.
“Just like there is a ‘right to hartal,’
there is a ‘right to work’ as well. We
understood that if people come out
openly in support of this move, there
will be no hartals. All shops and organisations
of those who have gathered
here for the meeting will remain
open during hartals in future,” said S
Gopakumar, President, Better Kochi
Response Group and a TiE Kerala
Charter Member.
“Just as political parties have the
right to organise hartals, we as members
of the industry have right to do
business. Moreover, we are going to
tell political parties that ‘no vote for
parties that call hartals!’, “said M S A
Kumar, President, TiE Kerala. Discussions
on strengthening the ecosystem
to counter the fear of hartal were
also held during the meeting. DK
January 2019 • Destination Kerala / 19