Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Sept 25: The daily rated, ITI trained and CP workers of PHE Department remained unpaid even on the Eid festival and continued their massive protest demonstration and dharna in support of their demands at BC Road office complex of the department on 17th consecutive day here today.
Despite Eid holiday, a large number of workers, under the banner of All J&K PHE, ITI Trained & CP Workers Association, headed by its provincial president, Tanveer Hussain assembled at BC Road office of the Chief Engineer here in the morning and held protest demonstration against the higher authorities. Pulling off their shirts and under shirts, the workers were raising loud slogans against the Chief Engineer, PHE and I&FC, Minister for PHE, I&FC Sukhnandan Choudhary, Finance Minister Haseeb Drabu and Chief Minister Mufti Mohd Sayeed. They also raised slogans against BJP Ministers from Jammu region.
The agitating workers are demanding to frame proper policy for their regularization and release of their pending wages. They have threatened to stop the water supply to all the areas including Katra Mata Vaishno Devi in near future. They alleged that Government has turned a deaf ear towards to their plight.
These agitating workers were raising slogans in support of their demands including regularization, timely and regular payment of their wages and enhancement in the rate of their daily wages. They demanded that disparity in the wages of the Valley based and Jammu region workers be removed and unique wage system be adopted in all the three regions of the State.
Provincial president Tanveer alleged that despite assurance given by Minister for PHE and senior officers, their demands have not been addressed. Many of them have been working for the last more than fifteen to twenty years but they are waiting for their regularization.
Tanveer further alleged great discrimination was meted out to the workers of Jammu region. He said the money which was released for the ITI trained workers vide Govt order No. FD-VIII-23/1/2009 dated 30-6-2015, was to the tune of Rs 1400.36 crore whereas, Jammu’s share was kept just Rs 287.79 crore while lion’s share of Rs 1116.57 crore was kept for the workers of Kashmir. This is glaring example of discrimination by the Government with Jammu workers and Jammu Ministers from BJP still sleeping. They have failed to protect the interests of Jammu workers and have surrendered for ‘chair’. He said with the delaying attitude of the Government, the workers are facing starvation and their families will not celebrate this Eid.
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