Contract workers block Sirhind road in Morinda

Morinda, October 6

Contract workers of various departments, sitting at a dharna for the past few weeks, under the banner of Theka Mulazam Sangharsh Morcha, blocked the Sirhind road here today.

They raised slogans against the government, demanding regular jobs. Union leaders Varinder Singh Momi, Jagrup Lehra, Gurwinder Pannu and Parminder Singh said the Congress-led government of former CM Capt Amarinder Singh and his incumbent Charanjit Singh Channi failed to fulfil their pre-poll promise of regularising their jobs.

Momi said contract workers had been rendering services in various government departments for the past 15-20 years but were forced to work at low salary. He said Capt Amarinder had promised to regularise their services. “During his four-and-a-half-year tenure , he didn’t bother to be true to his words though we staged a 15-day dharna along with our children near his residence in Patiala recently. Now, even after the change of guard, the new CM is oblivious to our plight,” he added.

The protesters, however, lifted the blockade and shifted their dharna to road side after SDM Ravinder Singh’s assurance that their demand was being considered sympathetically by the higher authorities and a meeting in this regard would be held shortly. — TNS