Contractual cleaners start indefinite stir

From our Correspondent

Bongaigaon, November 15: The contractual cleaning labourers of New Bongaigaon Railway Workshop have started an indefinite stir demanding payment of proper salary and stopping exploitation of labourers.

Balin Baruah, secretary of the contractual labourers’ body of the New Bongaigaon workshop, said that they were working under two railway contractors, mely Dilip Brahma and Ramchandra since last few years. “But they are not paying us proper salary. In the tender paper they showed salary of each staff as Rs 6,900 per month. But in practice they are giving us Rs 3,200 per month. With the intention of hoodwinking the Railway administration, in 12 cases they had deposited salary of two staff in one account. They produce these accounts as example to show the Railway administration that they are paying Rs 6,400 per month to each staff. But actually this is payment of two staff. And the remaining others are given payment in cash,” said Baruah.

He added, “When we came to know about this and protested against it, they fired several staff. For example, they fired five staff on November 12 and eight on November 14. Helpless, we have been compelled to adopt the path of agitation. All contractual cleaning labourers of New Bongaigaon Railway Workshop have decided not to go for duty from today till we get a fruitful result. We demand that the labourers who have been fired should be brought back and proper salary according to government rules should be paid to us.” He also alleged that the basic things like identity card and safety shoes were not provided to them.