Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, May 8: Normal work in many Government and Public Sector Undertakings (PSU) offices remained paralysed today with the strike of employees across the region while the Joint Consultative Committee of the employees leadership will announce next course of action tomorrow.
Responding to the two-day strike call given by the JCC on May 8 & 9, a large number of employees under the leadership of Ram Kumar Sharma, Mohd Gafoor Dar, Balwan Singh and others assembled near Exhibition Ground, in front of Press Club here around 10 am and held strong protest demonstration. Many employees were carrying banners and placards in their hands, depicting their demands. They raised loud slogans in support of their demands.
The general public had to suffer as the strike was observed in the entire State today on the call given by JCC leadership including Abdul Qayoom Wani, Khursheed Alam, Ram Kumar, Gafoor Dar, Kulwant Singh, Balwan Singh Jamal, Rafiq Khaniyari, Ganesh Khajuria, Devanand Gill, Parshotam Sharma, Amrik Singh, Babu Hussain Malik, Balwinder Singh, Nazeer Ahmed and others.
All the sections of State Government, Public Sector Undertakings, temporary and permanent employees observed nearly complete strike. The employees held demonstrations, staged dharnas at district and tehsil headquarters to lodge their protest against the Government. In majority of the offices in the region the work was affected due to strike but in some of the offices, the work continued though the attendance was found thin. The emergency units in hospitals and other essential services had been kept out of the purview of strike.
While addressing a large gathering at Exhibition Ground senior JCC leaders strongly condemned the attitude of the Government. They said that due to non-serious approach of the Government, the employees have been forced to go on strike. The Government has failed to honour its commitment. Nothing has been done on ground to address the agreed demands during meeting with employees’ leaders on 19-2-2009, 14-5-2010 and recently on September 15, 2011. They said several representations were given to the Government from time to time but it seemed to be in no mood to respond to the employees’ demands.
JCC leaders further alleged that Government has done nothing to formulate the policy for regularization of casual, seasonal and daily rated workers. The committees constituted by the Government for enhancement of retirement of age from 58 to 60 years and for removal of Govt anomalies in different cadre, have not done their job within the framework of stipulated time. The PSU workers are being deprived of the Sixth Pay Commission benefits, arrears, DA, linking it with profit and loss. They claimed that it is only due to mismanagement and negligence of politicians that some PSUs are running into huge losses.
As decided earlier, the employees would move towards Civil Secretariat for conducting its `Gherao’ tomorrow in Srinagar.
In Kishtwar town also, the employees under the banner of district Masters Teachers Association held demonstration under the leadership of M A Qazi and others. They also took out a protest march. Haji M S Naik, T Masood and Mohd Rafi Kitchloo (PDD) trade union leaders addressed gathering.
In Poonch and Rajouri, the employees protest rallies were also held. The employees from several departments assembled at PHE complex Poonch and held day long dharna and protest rally. In Rajouri town, protest demonstration/ dharna was held at DC office and some other offices today.
Reports from Samba, Kathua, Udhampur, Ramban, Kishtwar, Doda and Reasi said that similar protest demonstrations were held by employees and the normal works remained affected. The emergency units of the hospitals, operational staff of urban local bodies, PHE and PDD remained out of the purview of the strike.
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