THE CPIML Central Committee in its meeting held at Kolkata on 14-16 March announced that it is suspending all mass mobilisations till 31 March as a precaution to prevent the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

With such a virus, all people including the most privileged are only as safe as the weakest and most deprived sections of society. India's lack of a robust public health infrastructure and affordable and quality healthcare makes India especially vulnerable. The vast majority of Indians dependent on daily wage labour and other forms of precarious employment in the informal sector will find it hard to survive with so many avenues of work being shut down. They will also find it impossible to maintain social distancing and preventive hygiene without adequate compensation and support.

The CPIML demands that the Central and State Governments

• Increase capacities for free Coronavirus testing and quarantine in Govt hospitals and health centres


• Ensure paid leave for all waged workers, and compensation and free rations for all non waged workers to facilitate social distancing.


• Announce postponement of census and other surveys, formally announce cancellation of NPR survey plans. This is important since enumerators will be potential victims and carriers of the virus.


• Urgently release all persons from detention centres, and release all undertrials to prevent overcrowding in jails. Take steps to ensure that hygienic precautions are maintained in jails, shelter homes, relief camps and the like.


• Provide soap, water and hand sanitisers to every poor and deprived household in India. Strictly prevent hoarding of sanitisers, masks, and other essential items.


• Certain sections of people will have no choice but to continue to work, to maintain essential services. These include health workers, as well as farmers and farm labourers who need to perform harvesting and sowing work at the right time. These sections of people must be provided with all the necessary means (at public cost) to maintain hygienic precautions.

We appeal to all people to resist rumours and not succumb to panic, and to responsibly maintain all the necessary precautions.

CPI(ML), Central Committee