VDC members hold protest, demand release of pending salaries

Excelsior Correspondent
DODA, July 3: Village Defence Committee (VDC) members of Malwana Jagir area of Tehsil Gundna held protest and demanded release of their pending salaries.
Large number of VDC members along with their weapons assembled in Malwana area of Tehsil Gundna and held protest. They raised slogans in favour of their demands including release of their pending salaries.
A VDC member Sulinder Parihar said that the VDC members have been performing their duties since 1998 and have played an important role in the security related issues at the cost of their lives.
“The Government is not acknowledging our struggles and has kept our salaries pending since years”, he added.
We approached District Administration, UT J&K Government and Centre Government several times with our genuine issues, but no one paid any heed’, he said.
“We are going to organize district level hunger strike and if needed will block the highway to get our demands redressed”, he added.
Families of VDC members are at the verge of starvation, another VDC member Suresh Kumar said and appealed to the Government to do the needful in favour of VDC members, who are performing their duties round the clock by putting their lives at risk.
“How a member of VDC can feed his family without getting salaries”, VDC member Om Parkash Parihar questioned.
In one voice, all the protesting VDC members demanded release of their pending salaries viz enhancement of their salaries at par with Special Police Officers (SPOs).