The first Orissa State Conference of AICCTU was held on 17th April 2008 at Rourkela. 657 delegates from the districts of Sundargarh, Raigada, Puri, Kendrapara, Keonjhar and Bhubaneswar attended the Conference.
Comrade Radhakanta Sethi presided over the Conference, which was inaugurated by Comrade D P Buxi, PB member of CPI(ML). Discussing the organizational report, delegates spoke of the anti-workers policies pursued by the BJD-BJP State Government as well as the UPA Government at the Centre, as they pampered corporates with SEZs. The unorganized workers’ plight was worst. Delegates spoke of the challenges AICCTU faced as it organized workers in Sundargarh, Raigada, Puri, Kendrapara and Keonjhar, and made an entry into Jagatsinghpur and Jajpur. AICCTU General Secretary Swapan Mukherjee called upon the delegates to resolve to expand AICCTU in Orissa.
Comrades Jatish Chandra Barik, Rupesh Rajhans, Santi and others spoke of the condition of workers in contract, construction and other unorganized sectors and demanded Rs. 200 per day as wages for them. Comrade Kedar Pradhan, Secretary of Ispat Labour Union spoke of the struggles of workers in Rourkela Steel Plant and demanded an early wages settlement in the steel industry.
The Conference elected a 12-member State Committee, with N K Mohanty as President and Radhakanta Sethi as General Secretary.
A procession of workers marched from the Railway Station, culminating in a mass rally at Telephone Bhawan, Sector-6, Rourkela. Apart from the AICCTU leaders, the Rally was also addressed by CPI(ML) State Secretary Khitish Biswal.
