Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Jan 20: The workers working under various schemes took out a rally here today in support of their genuine and long pending demands.
Amid slogans, large number of ASHA, Anganwari and Mid-Day Meal workers from different districts of Jammu region participated in the protest. They were demanding implementation of recommendation of 45th India Labour Conference, recognition as workers, Rs 18000 minimum wages, all social security benefits like pension, EPF, ESI and stop privatization.
The rally started from Press Club Jammu and after passing through the various areas culminated at Indira Chowk.
While addressing the rally, MY Tarigami, President, State Committee of CITU said that the recommendation of 45th Indian Labour Conference to regularize all scheme workers, to pay them minimum wages and to provide them all social security benefits and pension, have not been implemented by the Government and also the 46th ILC again emphasized the need to implement these, but this has not been done.
“The common response they receive from the authorities when they ask for implementation of the above issues for improvement their working conditions is that the NHM will be discontinued in 2017”, Tarigami said, adding that it is also fact that the allocation in the central budget for the health sector has been decreasing for the past two years.
He said that ICDS Scheme is the only scheme to address the serious issues of child and maternal mortality and child malnutrition.
Sham Parsad Kesar, senior leader of CITU said that ASHA play a crucial role enabling the poor population to access the public health services as well as imparting health education and primary health care to the rural and urban poor. He urged the Government to make NHM a permanent health programme of the Government, pay minimum wages of Rs18000 per month, appropriate training and promotion as ANM on seniority basis, social security benefits, no harassment of ASHA workers at workplace, rest room for ASHA workers at every health centre, provide uniforms to ASHA workers, ID cards, bus passes and all facilities applicable to BPL card holders, stop termination of services of ASHA workers and recruit facilitators and coordinators from existing ASHA workers.
Om Parkash, General Secretary of J&K State CITU, Om Parkash Khajuria, Rani Devi, Sunita Bhagat and Kanta Devi also addressed the gathering.
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