Excelsior Correspondent
UDHAMPUR, Sept 2: After being denied their wages for the last over 55 long months, hundreds of PHE workers and their families have been left to face starvation by the State Administration.
A large number of PHE workers/ daily wagers from Reasi and entire Udhampur district assembled at the PHE Complex Udhampur under the banner of Water Works/ PHE Employees Association led by Som Nath and strongly condemned the attitude of the previous BJP-PDP Government and the State Administration led by Governor SP Malik.
While addressing the large meeting of workers, Som Nath alleged that despite representations to senior officers, bureaucrats and the Advisors and ministers in the previous Government, the authorities failed to clear the wages of the workers, who are performing their duties at their respective water stations. They are facing worst kind of exploitation at the hands of the Government. No Human Rights body has even bothered to listen to the plight of these `bonded labourers’ in the J&K PHE department.
These helpless workers are unable to feed their families and continue the studies of their children. Some children have dropped out as their parents failed to pay school fees. He said that Governor and the concerned Advisor must take cognizance of the matter and clear the wages of the workers in phased manner if not in one go.
Som Nath further demanded regularization of CP/ ITI and Land case workers of PHE, remove shortage of staff at water stations and other PHE offices, clear pending SRO-43 cases. Conduct DPC meet at Divisional and Provincial level, change the designation of the employees as per their nature of work and also release wages of imprest workers engaged about 15 years ago. He appealed the PHE United front Jammu to take drastic action against the policies of the Govt and support proposed Kam Chhor Hartal of the workers.
Senior trade union leaders – Vijay Kumar, Suraj Parkash, Jagdish Mangotra, Makhan Chand, Baldev Raj, Krishan Chand and others also spoke in the meeting.
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