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Strike by industrial workers
From Tribune Reporters and PTI

CHANDIGARH, Sept 15 — Workers’ unions here today claimed “complete” strike in all industrial estates in Punjab in support of their demand of hiking the minimum wages.

In a joint statement issued to the Press here today, Prof Balwant Singh — President, CITU, Punjab, Dr Subhash Sharma, President, INTUC, Punjab, Mr Bant Singh Brar, General Secretary, AITUC, and Mr S.D. Kapoor, President, HMS, Punjab, said industrial workers’ strike in support of their demand for Rs 3,500 per month for the unskilled, Rs 5,000 for the semi-skilled and Rs 7,000 for the skilled industrial workers was successful.

A large number of FCI, forest and brick-kiln workers also joined the strike.

ROPAR: Contract labourers of the Guru Gobind Singh Super Thermal Plant and the Ambuja Cements Ltd on Friday observed a strike in support of their demands.

About 1,700 contract labourers of the thermal plant organised a rally.

Representatives of both these unions have been sitting on a chain fast since the past three months.

Mr Tiwari, president of the Contract Labour Union of the thermal plant alleged that the Punjab State Electricity Board authorities were trying to oust the contract labourers working in various thermal plants of the state. The board was shifting surplus labour from various projects to the thermal plants to replace the contract labourers.

This was being done because the union had approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court for the regularisation of the services of the contract labourers who had been working since several years, he alleged.

AMRITSAR: On a joint call of the state units of CITU, AITUC, INTUC and HMS the industrial belt of Amritsar, Asron belt of Nawan- shahr, Rajpura, Sangrur, Malerkotla, Hoshiarpur, Dhuri, Barnala, Malout in Jalandhar, Ludhiana and Patiala observed a strike.

Rallies were held which were addressed by state union leaders. They rejected the proposed minimum wages for unskilled workers and others.

They said the proposed minimum wages were lower than Haryana, Delhi and Chandigarh even though the per capita income of Punjab was higher than other states.