MMC set to regularise daily wage workers' services

MARGAO

In a major victory for the beleaguered Margao Municipal daily wage workers awaiting regularization of services, the Margao Municipal Council on Thursday submitted before the High Court that the Court directions dated August 4, 2025 would be given effect  and the difference in payments would be paid to the workers within a period of four weeks from Thursday.

The Court accepted the statement made by the Counsel representing the Margao Municipal Council as an undertaking made before the court when the contempt petition filed by the workers came up for hearing before the High Court Bench comprising of Justice Amit Jamsandekar and Justice Valmiki Menezes.

In fact,  the MMC counsel upon instructions from the Chief Officer Madhu Narvekar, who was present in the Court, submitted that the office memorandum dated 28.11.2025 would be withdrawn and the directions of this Court contained in paragraph 20 of the High Court Judgment dated 04.08.2025 would be given effect.

The beleaguered daily Margao Municipal workers had filed the contempt petition after they pointed out that the civic body made no effort to regularize their services as per the High Court order. They had further pointed out that the MMC had even gone to the extent of reducing their wages for reasons  best known to the Municipal administrators and powers that be despite the court directions, leaving them with no option than to knock the doors of the High Court with a contempt petition. They had even claimed that the Municipal officials had coerced them to fill up the temporary staff forms when the High Court had allowed their petition for their regularisation of service.

The High Court had in August last allowed the petition filed by the Margao Municipal workers whose services were regularised on March 2, 2020 before keeping the order of regularization in abeyance on June 10 the same year.

In the petition, the workers had prayed to the High Court to issue a writ of Mandamus or any other order or directions and quash the decision of the government to keep their appointment orders in abeyance dated April 23, 2020 and June 10, 2020 and to direct the authorities to implement and honour the appointment orders dated March 2, 2020.

Commenting on the development in the High Court, former Margao Municipal Chairperson Savio Coutinho has said that justice has prevailing, saying this is the second victory won by the beleaguered daily wage workers in the High Court.