Split doesn’t affect ABGP event; says the group not for single person

Even as Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat is in the throes of a split, it held a state-level workshop in the city on Sunday signalling that things are moving on.

Even as Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat is in the throes of a split, it held a state-level workshop in the city on Sunday signalling that things are moving on. Two days ago, the erstwhile founder of the organisation, Bindu Madhav Joshi, who headed a split, held a press conference to say that his organisation was the original one. In June, Joshi had split ranks and started his own organisation with the same name and logo.

However, the members of the Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat said that they were not worried. “Ours is an organisation for the common people, not for a single person,” said Arun Deshpande, central committee member of the organisation. On Monday, these members are expected to meet with the media to clarify matters further.

The organisation was started in Pune in 1974 before it spread to other parts of the country.

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It has over 1,000 branches in the country with membership running into lakhs.

Members of the Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat said they had helped the consumer movement in the 1980s by the formation of consumer courts and consumer redressal forums and Joshi was among the key leaders at that time.

“Our biggest achievement is that we have managed to take consumer awareness to the people. Our network is such that we have district-level presence across the country and taluka-level across Maharashtra,” said Deshpande.

At the state-level workshop on Sunday, economist Bajranglalji Gupt spoke about the present economic recession affecting the world.

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“Excessive production, consumption and indiscriminate use of natural resources have resulted in the present crisis. Sustainable production and equitable distribution is the way ahead,” he said.

He accused the central government for blindly adopting the western economic policies without considering the social and economic conditions of our own country.

The workshop was attended by over 300 members from all across the state. “India needs a self-sufficient development model for the economy,” said Gupt adding that it could be achieved with balance production of goods and services, curbing consumerism and equitable distribution systems.

He also said that the Indian economy is increasingly turning more FDI dependant, which is dangerous as has been proved by the ongoing global financial crisis.