Water supply to VIP zones in both capital cities may be snapped by the daily wagers, CP workers and casual labourers’ association after February 15 if their issue of regularisation of service is not taken up seriously by the state government.
They want people at the helm of affairs to feel the pain of families of these workers who have given everything to the government, but in return are not even getting monthly remuneration on time.
This was decided in a meeting held under the chairmanship of the All J&K CP Workers, Daily Wagers, Casual Labourers Association president, Tanvir Hussain here today.
“We have been left with no option but to intensify our struggle to get the due share which is our right. Be it previous government of the late Mufti Muhammad Sayeed or earlier ones, all have resorted to verbal assurances, but have done nothing on paper,” Tanvir Hussain said.
“When the water supply to the homes of these leaders, bureaucrats and other VIPs will be snapped, they will feel the pain of our families who are not able to have meals two times a day at times,” he said.
There are around 63,000 daily wagers, CP workers and need-based workers working in different departments of the government with the major chunk in the PHE Department. Some of them have been working for the past 20 years, but deprived of regularisation of service due to absence of any policy in this regard. Successive governments have only done lip service, but no policy has been framed to adjust these workers in their respective departments.
Even they are not being paid the monthly remunerations regularly.
As per the minimum wages Act they have to be given monthly remuneration of Rs 4,500 (6,000 for ITI-trained workers). But departments have no proper funds available in a particular head for this purpose and such workers are given remunerations on festivals only.
“Departments have adopted a trend to pay remuneration on festivals, but this practice has also been stopped. We have asked the government to clear the pending wages and regularise our services,” Hussain added.
Meanwhile, the association has threatened to gherao Raj Bhawan on February 1 (Monday) to protest against the delay in framing a policy for their regularisation of service.