Pump operators protest near CM’s residence

A large number of members of Gram Panchayat Water Supply Pump Operators Association today staged a dharna near the residence of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on the Sangrur-Patiala road to urge the state government to concede to their demands. They also took out a protest march in the city and raised slogans against the CM Bhagwant Mann-led state government. However, they ended their protest today when the district administration arranged their meeting with the Cabinet Sub Committee for September 27.

The pump operators said they have been urging the state government to pay heed to their plight since October 2023 through various dharnas. They said they have organised protests at a waterworks at Gharachon village, near Bhawanigarh and have had several meetings with the state government, but to no avail. They said due to this, the pump operators were resentful of the state government.

The demands include payment of fixed wages to gram panchayats' pump operators similar to Haryana, stoppage on retrenchment of pump operators after every five years, deployment of gram panchayats’ pump operators on canal water schemes, shifting of pump operators from gram panchayats to the Water Supply Department, payment of arrears of wages to the pump operators, and compensation and jobs to the families of the deceased pump operators.

The state president of the pump operators’ association, Sukhjit Singh, said there were a total of 955 pump operators who had been trying to urge the state government to pay heed to their demands. He said the state government had been ignoring their demands for a year, adding that they believe that the state government was not serious about their demands. He said that was the reason the pump operators had gathered to organise a dharna.

He said they were totally dependent on the gram panchayats, due to which they had been facing several problems. He said the panchayats had been giving wages ranging from Rs 1,200 to Rs 5,000 per month. He alleged that sometimes when they sought wages from the gram panchayats they would be threatened with termination of service. Sukhjit Singh said they would intensify their stir if the state government did not accept their demands.