the goan I network
PANAJI
Alleging that the government is delaying in fulfilling their assurances to regularise their services, members of the Public Works Department workers organisation gathered at the official residence of the Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar on Tuesday demanding immediate regularisation of their jobs.
The public works department workers organisation delegation met the CM’s PRO Sanket Arsekar, but Arsekar’s efforts to pacify the workers was in vain.
The delegation refused to leave and decided to protest outside the CM’s residence until their demand was met.
“Arsekar has told us that the process of regularisation is going on and the file pertaining to the same is being processed,” said the Public Works Department workers organisation president Dinkar Gaude.
“But we are fed up with the assurances. We want to know the exact status of the file,” he added.
Gaude also informed the media that the earlier government had given them a categorical assurance that regularisation of their services would will be done in the month of September after Chaturthi. But till date nothing has happened.
“Now, we fear that as the Chief Minister is ailing, the procedure of regularisation will be scrapped,” he said.
“We are feeling bad to raise this issue when the Chief Minister is not well, but we cannot help it,” added Gaude.
It may be recalled that workers of the PWD who have been in service for the last 18-odd years have been demanding regularisation of their services since the year 2012.
Back in 2012, then Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar had assured them that as and when vacancies are created, the government would absorb them in the PWD.
Then in September 2013, the Chief Minister issued a direction to the PWD to accommodate these workers on a regular basis. But the PWD bypassed these workers in 2014 and also in 2017 and instead of absorbing these workers did direct recruitments to the department. In 2017, the PWD directly recruited 800 candidates. Recently, too, the Cabinet approved new posts for direct recruitment.
