1,600 MGNREGA contractual employees state-level stage sit-in, urge government to address their issues
Threatened to hold massive protest on June 26 at Vikas Bhawan Mohali
1,600 MGNREGA contractual employees state-level stage sit-in, urge government to address their issues
Threatened to hold massive protest on June 26 at Vikas Bhawan Mohali
Ferozepur, June 23, 2020: While the nation is fighting with the Corona pandemic, around 1,600 contractual employees of the MGNREGA, today hold protests throughout the state demanding regularisation of their services by merging their services in the Panchayat Department. The employees on protest since June 18 have further intensified their agitation to register their protest.
Speaking to media persons said, Randhir Singh, Senior Vice President, Amrit Singh, Press Secretary and Manse Khan, Financial Secretary said, the contractual employees working under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employees Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) in Punjab had appealed to the government number of times, to address long-pending issue of regularisation of their service in Rural Development Department.
They further said, the appointment of 1,600 employees was made by adopting the procedure for appointment as regular employees in a transparent manner and the government before coming to power had promised to regularize the direct recruitment contractual employees on priority. In this context, the employees under Sarv Sikhya Abhiyan –SSA and RMSA as teachers have been regularized, showing discrimination and ignoring the MGNREGA contractual employees.
Last year, it was promised to regularize the MGNREGA employees on the pattern of teachers after a massive protest but despite the passing of nine months, the government is still adopting the dilly-dallying attitude on regularization issues.
During the last financial year Rs.767 crore has been spent which was highlighted by putting up hoardings of the CM the credit of which goes of MGNREGA staff. Such staff has stood by the government almost in every duty including the emergency duties. We are being threatened to relieve whereas the aim of MGNREGA is the demand of the work.
They said, earlier also the government had made recruitment in various departments ignoring the MGNREGA department for which there is great resentment among the staff.
Highly educated youth have been working in MGNREGA with full dedication for years on a meager honorarium that is not enough to support their families, they said uring the government to regularise their services without any further delay.
Further added that a proposal has been submitted a number for the absorption of contractual in the panchayat department but to date, there has been no further exercise by the Govt. in this regard thus putting the career of thousand at stake.
They appealed to all the employees unions to support them for the regularization of their services also. Giving a warning to the government, they said, in case there is no solution to this issue, a massive protest will be held at Vikas Bhawan Mohali on June 26.
