Excelsior Correspondent
LEH, Apr 17: Raising their long pending demands for regularization, hundreds of PDD daily wagers under the banner “J&K Central Non-Gazetted Electrical Employees Union” sat on dharna forcing complete power shut down in the entire district.
The agitating employees alleged that daily wagers employees of 21 districts including the neighbouring district of Kargil have been regularized so far by the J&K Government but Leh region employees have been neglected. They claim that 172 existing daily wagers also include 47 eligible daily wagers who had been left out in 907 cases considered by the Government in 2013 and these employees under the provision of SRO 381 as per cabinet decision No 151/23/2012 dated 30.08.2012 serving in the department till date.
They claimed that some of these employees have been serving in the department for the past 21 years hoping for their regularization. “We have been sitting on dharna near PDD office Choglamsar for a month but nothing was done to fulfill our demand, which has forced them to go for complete 48 hours power shut down in Leh district”, they added.
District president of the Union, Rinchen Norbo, said that they have been approaching the local Deputy Commissioner and State Government with the same issue since 2013 but nothing has been done till date. He claimed that daily wagers have been performing 70% works of the PDD and performing multiple tasks like meter reading and work of linemen as there is staff shortage in the department.
He said that if the Government did not wake up from its deep slumber even after 48 hours power shut down by the employees, they would intensify their strike.