Civic body employees staged protest against 'government apathy' in Tezpur

TEZPUR: With the rest of the State, in Tezpur also, under the aegis of the All Assam Civic Body Employees' Association, the Tezpur chapter of the civic body also registered a strong protest against the government's apathy towards their long-pending problems on Monday.

At the end of the protest programme that was held in front of the Deputy Commissioner's office under the leadership of the secretary of the Tezpur chapter of the civic body, Prabin Borah, the protesters comprising over 100 civic employees, later submitted a seven-point memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner, that was addressed to the Chief Minister, State Health Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sharma and minister of State for Urban Development, Pijush Hazarika.

The demands included implementation of the Regularization of Civic Body Employees' Bill, 2014 (as per the cabinet decision taken on September 4, 2013), release of pending salaries, announcement of a fixed staffing-pattern as per the resolution passed in the cabinet under 4th Finance Commission 2013, regularization of posts of cleaners and sweepers, closing of illegal appointment process carried out in different civic bodies, providing of all facilities, including salary to the civic body employees working in Sixth Schedule areas taking them under the State Finance Commission and releasing the pending salaries of the retired employees of the civic body and introduction of pension policy for them like the employees of Guwahati Municipality Board.

Prabin Borah, later briefing the media, urged the government to come forward with a positive notion to address their grievances. Borah further added, "We expect the government to come at the forefront to settle the legitimate demands and implement their promises." The civic body workers will stage sit-in on Tuesday in front of the DC's office here as part of their three-day protest programme.

LAKHIMPUR: Along with the other parts of the State, the civic body employees of Lakhimpur district stages one-hour long dharna on Monday in front of the Lakhimpur Deputy Commissioner's office. The employees of North Lakhimpur Municipal Board, Dhakuakhana, Bihpuriya and Narayanpur Town Committees took part in the protest programme.By staging the programme, the civic body employees unitedly demanded the State Government to implement ordinance in order to execute the cabinet decisions adapted in 2013 regarding civic body employees, to release the unpaid salaries of civic body employees pending from three months up to 27 months immediately, to ensure the release of their salaries on the last day of the month, to implement ordinance on staffing pattern approved on September 4 in 2013, to regularize the services of safai karmis, fixed pay and contractual employees and to release their scale pay, and to terminate all the illegal appointments which were conducted even after the ban of appointment process in the civic bodies. The civic body will initiate three-day long 'non-co-operation' from September 1 to September 3 in support of their aforementioned demands.

Also Watch: Power Lines or Death Traps?