Excelsior Correspondent
UDHAMPUR, May 1: Senior Trade Union leader and president, Jal Shakti (PHE) Employees and Workers Association (Distt Udhampur), Som Nath today urged the LG Administration to regularize the services of all the daily wagers and clear their pending wages.
Addressing a large rally of the employees and workers of Jal Shakti/PHE Department here today, Som Nath strongly criticized the UT Administration for not addressing the long pending issues of the PHE daily wagers despite assurance by the Lt Governor and the top BJP leaders including Ravinder Raina (UT president) and Jugal Kishore (MP).
The hapless workers who had come from various areas to join the rally from Chenani, Kud, Patnitop, Majalta, Ramnagar, Tikri, Jaganoo, Jib, Thathi etc raised loud slogans in support of their demands. They said that their issues be addressed without any delay.
Som Nath alleged that UT Government was violating Central/UT norms and not providing Minimum Wages to these workers as per the Act. He demanded that Minimum Wages Act be implemented in letter and spirit and moreover, all the pending wages of the workers be released without further delay. He said that all the daily wagers/consolidated/land cases workers of the PHE be regularized. He said there was shortage of staff in various offices and in the field, this deficiency be fulfilled.
The Trade Union leader further demanded release of 4 % DA in favour of employees and pensioners and declare holiday on May Day throughout the J&K UT. He further urged the UT Administration to fulfill the pending demands of the PHE employees/workers.
Prominent among those who addressed the rally included – Vijay Kumar Sharma, Suraj Parkash, Dinesh Kesar, Tej Bahadur, Ganesh Chand, Kuldip Kumar. Krishan Chand and others.