Panipat refinery unrest: Stop workers’ exploitation, DC tells contractors, calls lathicharge unjust

The contractors have accepted the workers’ main demands regarding delayed salary disbursement and extended working hours; the police have registered an FIR against unknown persons

A day after scores of construction labourers engaged in a violent face-off with security forces at the Panipat refinery at Baholi, deputy commissioner Virender Dahiya on Tuesday chaired a meeting at the facility and issued directions for no more “exploitation” of workers by contractors. The contractors accepted the workers’ main demands regarding delayed salary disbursement and extended working hours. The police have also registered an FIR against unknown persons.

Panipat deputy commissioner Virender Dahiya chairs a meeting with officials at the refinery on Tuesday.

The main point of contention involved working hours as workers alleged they were paid for eight hours of duty despite regularly working for 12 hours.

The DC said there should be no discrimination against the workers and the contractors should “stop exploiting” them. The DC directed the contractors to ensure that wages are paid between the 1st and 7th of every month. “If more than eight hours of work is taken, overtime should be paid. Demands related to washrooms and drinking water facilities must be addressed,” he added.

The DC also termed the lathi-charge (by CISF personnel) against the protesting workers as “unjust” and said it was not a solution at a place where so many unorganised workers were employed.

The DC said the contractors accepted a total of nine demands and gave a written assurance. “I hope all the workers will join work from Wednesday,” he added.

Apart from DC Dahiya, the meeting saw the presence of superintendent of police Bhupendra Singh, refinery’s executive director ML Deharia and representatives from firms like L&T Construction, which employs a maximum of 9,000 workers, and Toyo Construction among others.

On Monday, scores of workers engaged at the under-construction P-25 expansion project at the refinery stopped work and assembled at the main gate in support of their demands. The situation turned volatile after the CISF engaged in a brief lathicharge on the workers. In return, the protesters pelted stones and damaged at least two security vehicles, and injured two security personnel. The CISF personnel fired two warning shots in the air to restore order, after which the district administration was informed and a large police force was rushed to the spot.

The Panipat Refinery and Petrochemical Complex is India’s largest integrated refinery-petrochemical hub, operated by Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), with a current capacity of 15 million tonnes per year, eyeing 25 million tonnes per year with the ongoing expansion.

Nearly 20,000 workers employed by nine construction contract firms are currently working at this expansion unit, officials said.