| Employees get baton charge, humiliation as Diwali gift | | Chenani-Nashri tunnel labourers' protest | | Akshay Azad
CHENANI, Nov 2: As all countrymen are in joyous mood, celebrating Diwali and every employee is getting some gifts from their employers, hundreds of hapless labourers, engaged for construction of vital Chenani-Nashri tunnel by Leighton Welspun, have got gifts in the shape of arrest of their 40 comrades, no salary, baton-charge by police, humiliation and in the name of bonus, still they are protesting for the last eight days in favour of their demands.
The demand of Union formation, by the labourers was the bone of contention between the Leighton Welspun management and labourers for the last three years. The Union's formation demand proved too heavy over labourers resulting in termination of services of 10 comrades in the month of March.
Demanding re-instatement of 10 terminated labourers, they went on strike on October 25, and had been holding peaceful protest demonstrations but on November 1, they were forcibly evicted by police from the Dharna site and around 40 labourer leaders' were arrested.
Demanding release of their comrades, hundreds of labourers at Chenani started marching towards the construction site, they were baton charged by police near Pulmada in which more than 50 labourers were injured.
On Saturday, the 80th day of protest, these labourers again assembled at Panchayat Ghar Chenani and staged protest demonstration.
Narrating the pathetic working conditions and blatant violations of labour rights by the Management, a worker Rajinder Singh, who sustained injuries in police baton charge on Friday, said that they were forced to take lunch everyday inside the tunnel where blasting of rocks took place.
"If we defy this order, the management curtail one hour from our working hours. We are not being provided mask inside the tunnel, which even lack blowers, while other required safety equipments are also not being provided", he said, adding that if labourers did gate meeting, labourers had to face one hour curtailment from working hours.
Another labourer representative, Mohinder Singh said that majority of labourers were engaged on contract basis by private contractors. "Leighton Welspun Company has engaged around one dozen contractors namely Vinay Gupta, Rattan Lal, Mohammad Amin, Daya Krishan (DK), Rinku Gupta, Kunal Construction Company, which have kept the labourers and have been paying meager amount. Only 20 percent labourer is directly engaged by Leighton Welspun Company while the labourers engaged by contractors are bereft of benefits under labour laws", he said.
He further said that TIPL (Caterpillar) Bahu Fort Construction, Oriental, SJC Miller, Quippo, Rental, Sudexo, NEENO were among the companies engaged by Leighton Welspun, which have been openly violating all labour laws under the nose of authorities.
Explaining about the anomalies in their wages, Akhtar Hussain said that for eight hours working, Leighton Company paid Rs. 380, plus Rs. 80 per hour for overtime to a Welder along with allowances, but a contractor was paying only Rs. 250 for 12 hours plus Rs. 49 as overtime with no allowances.
"The Leighton Company is paying double wage for holiday (Sunday) but contractor didn't. An operator (driver of construction machines) directly engaged by Leighton, is getting Rs. 20,000 but same engaged by contractors are getting only Rs. 10,000 to 13,000. A driver engaged to ferry officers by Leighton Company is getting Rs. 18,000 as salary but those engaged by contractors are getting only Rs. 5000-8000 per month for working hours from (16 hours) 4 AM to 10 PM", he said.
The agitating labourers further said that forming a Labour Union was their democratic right but management was denying the same and had also terminated 10 labourers in the month of March.
"The flag hoisted by us at Dharna site near entrance of tunnel, has been removed by Company managment, besides the implements and other commodities of labourers has also been seized by the management", they said.
"We have no security cover as we are under contractors, who are getting huge money from the Leighton Company and are exploiting the labourers. These contractors wanted to continue our exploitation, but they knew very well that after formation of Union, the genuine issues of labourers will also be considered, so they are using political, muscle and money power to frame false cases against labourers and denied their democratic right", they said.
The protesting labourers asserted to continue their dharna until their demands would not be conceded by management. Their demands included Right to form Union, releasing of all jailed comrades, re-engagement of 10 terminated employees, direct-engagement of all labourers with company instead of contractors. |
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