Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, July 20: Hundreds of Maali-cum-Chowkidars serving in Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Department today staged a noisy protest under the banner of All Jammu and Kashmir Panchayat Conference (AJKPC) and demanded their absorption as permanent daily wagers in the Department.
The protestors, who have donated their landholdings for various purposes, made an unsuccessful attempt to block the busy Tawi Bridge and later courted arrest to protest against the Rural Development Department’s insensitive approach towards their genuine demands.
Led by the UT president of AJKPC, Anil Sharma and other PRI members, the protestors raised slogans against the department and demanded that their demands should be fulfilled without any delay. “We demand that the Government should seriously look into their matter for absorption as permanent daily wagers in the Department. They have donated their landholdings without charging any single penny from the Department,” Sharma said.
The AJKPC leader said the Government is natural and lawful guardian of all citizens and it is expected that it would not cheat its subjects and fulfill all its promissory and lawful duties but in the present case of Panchayat Maalis and Guards, the poor villagers are not only defrauded of their own land but also exploited in the name of Government job.
He said the Government should ensure that minimum wages of Rs 9,000 per month is paid to these Maalis-cum-Chowkidars which are being paid to permanent daily wagers, while their attendance must be ensured through biometric mode to give legitimacy to their appointments. He urged the LG Manoj Sinha to look into this issue of injustice with these villagers.
Prominent among those who accompanied the AJKPC president during his protest against RDD were AJKPC vice president Ram Swaroop Sharma, Sarpanch Narinder Singh Nanna, Shahnawaz Ahme, Nayaran Singh, Parbhat Singh and others.
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