Excelsior Correspondent
NEW DELHI, Mar 15: Referring to the announcement of the Government of India to revive the honorarium of VDC members rechristened as VDGs, Harsh Dev Singh (chairman-JKNPP and former Minister) sought the release of unpaid honorarium of the VDC members pending for the last 4-5 years besides increase in the amount being offered to them.
In a memorandum submitted to Union Home Minister (HM) Amit Shah in New Delhi, Singh said that while the VDCs of Rajouri and Poonch had to be compensated for non-release of their honorarium for over 10 years, the VDCs of Udhampur, Reasi etc were without any relief for the last 5 years. Moreover, several VDCs who were earlier getting between Rs 8000-11000 as honorarium were being subjected to gross injustice by reducing the amount to Rs 4000.
He said that the honorarium of VDGs should be equivalent to minimum wages as being paid in other centrally governed UTs under the Minimum Wages Act. He stated that the VDCs continued to exist and perform their routine duties but they had been divested of their paltry honorarium for the last several years after detachment of SPOs from the Committees. He said that the assurances for meager payments to existing VDCs in future without settling their past claims would be a grave injustice to those who had been performing their duties during the past years without being compensated in any way.
Singh said that the VDCs had been protesting on roads for the last several years not only for revival of their honorarium but clearance of their pending claims which needed due attention of the Government of India. He said that Panthers Party had stood shoulder to shoulder with VDCs for settlement of their genuine claims and grievances and would continue to agitate the issue till full justice was done to them.
Follow our WhatsApp channel