Govt urged to clear salaries of contract employees

Addressing the media, Goa Forward Party spokesperson Prashant Naik claimed that contract workers engaged by semi-government Bal Bhavan are yet to receive their salaries for the month of November. While the Ministers and the Secretaries, including the Finance Secretary must have received their November month salaries, these contract workers have been left high and dry for want of payments.

“This government is not ashamed of going into a Liberation Day celebration mode when the poor contract workers, whose monthly salaries work out to around Rs 10,000 are yet to receive their November salary,” Prashant said, adding that workers employed by the Human Resources Development Corporation too have not received their salary payments.

He said these workers also have not received the salary arrears even though the authorities have been increasing their salaries time and again.

“The Goa Forward party urges the government to stop the Liberation Day celebrations and instead give justice and relief to the workers awaiting their salary dues. The government should realise that these workers too have families to look after,” he added.

Meanwhile, Prashant said the Goa Forward party is firmly with the students demanding examinations online. “The government should not make a prestige issue by listening to the voice of the college students,” he said.

Referring to the statements made by ABVP, the student wing of the ruling party, call for postponement of the examinations, Prashant said this stand is not acceptable to the students as well as the Goa Forward, reiterating the demand to hold the examinations online in view of the surge in Covid cases.