Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Aug 12: The protest dharna and agitation of the Jal Shakti/PHE Department workers entered the 54th consecutive day here today.
These poor daily rated and consolidated workers are on strike since June 22, 2022 and demanding regularisation of their services, release of pending wages and enhancement of their wages. The Government failed to resolve the issue despite three rounds of talks through higher authorities in the department.
Today again, a large number of PHE workers from various Divisions and Sub Divisions/ Water stations assembled outside the office of Chief Engineer PHE Jammu, at BC Road in the morning under the banner of PHE Employees United Front and started protest demonstration. They were shouting slogans in support of their demands and also against LG’s Administration, BJP and other higher authorities in the J&K UT. Many of them were carrying placards in their hands depicting slogans.
After holding protest demonstration for some time then they sat on dharna inside PHE complex for the whole day. Some of the Union leaders addressed the gathering and criticized the LG’s administration for its indifferent attitude towards working class.
The employees representatives including Ravi Hans, Hoshiar Singh, Navdeep Singh, Rajinder Singh Taj, Mohan Lal Sharma and others said that in the past, they had called off their strike merely on assurances several times but nothing happened after that. They were cheated every time. Therefore, they were not prepared to call off strike until an order from the Government is issued.
They resolved to extend strike till any logical conclusion is reached. These daily rated and consolidated workers of the PHE/ Jal Shakti Department are on strike since June 22. The workers are demanding regularization, enhancement of Minimum Wages as per Central norms in J&K UT and release of pending wages of 70 months of PHE workers.
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