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Ludhiana: State employees defer Chandigarh rally to Aug 7 amid PM visit
The decision was taken at a joint meeting of the Joint Employees Forum Punjab, Joint Employees and Pensioners Front and Ministerial Staff Union Punjab in Ludhiana on Sunday
Punjab government employees and pensioners have rescheduled their proposed Chandigarh mega rally from July 17 to August 7 and announced district-level ‘Black Day’ protests on Friday to press for their long-pending service and pension-related demands.
The decision was taken at a joint meeting of the Joint Employees Forum Punjab, Joint Employees and Pensioners Front and Ministerial Staff Union Punjab in Ludhiana on Sunday.
Union leaders said the Chandigarh rally was deferred in view of the Prime Minister’s proposed visit to Chandigarh and the security arrangements in place.
Instead, employees and pensioners will stage protests at district headquarters across Punjab on July 17 and burn copies of the July 17, 2020, notification on the implementation of Central pattern pay scales.
The unions alleged that the notification was detrimental to employees’ interests and said other pending issues would also be highlighted during the demonstrations.
The meeting also reviewed the statewide protests held between July 1 and 11 outside the residences and offices of cabinet ministers, terming the agitation successful. District units were assigned responsibilities to mobilise employees for the Chandigarh rally on August 7.
The organisations also extended support to the Pensioners’ Joint Front’s protest rally scheduled in Sangrur on July 29.
The unions accused the Punjab government of failing to address long-pending demands, including the release of pending dearness allowance instalments, correction of pay commission anomalies, constitution of the Seventh Pay Commission, restoration of the Old Pension Scheme, implementation of Punjab pay scales, restoration of rural border and other allowances, an end to contractual recruitment, and regularisation of temporary employees.
Warning of a stronger statewide agitation if their demands remain unresolved, the unions urged employees and pensioners across departments to participate in large numbers in the July 17 protests and the August 7 Chandigarh rally.
