More than 2,000 temporary workers of Hooghly-Chinsurah municipality are in great distress after being unpaid for three months.
The temporary municipality workers are entrusted with public related services, the street lighting system, security work, public health assistance, booster water pump operation and other public services.
The affected municipality temporary workers in demand of regular payment of salary, number of times resorted to protest agitation and even gheraoed the municipality chairman but all in vain .
The affected workers are agitating in front of the municipality gate and have resorted to stop some of the essential services. Garbage has not been cleared, the drainage system remains blocked and the dirty water remains stagnant in the blocked drains.
One of the affected workers, Debashis Chakraborty said, “We are unpaid for the last three months, there is no money to buy groceries. Unable to pay the electricity bill, the power supply to my residence has been disconnected. Finding no other option left I am driving toto but the earned amount is too less to sustain my family. My son is appearing for an examination but is not used to reading under the candlelight.”
The Chinsurah-Hooghly municipality chairman Amit Roy said, “The central funds towards the municipalities have been stopped. Though we have sufficient funds in the water department but at present as per rule, available funds for specific departments cannot be diverted to other departments. The municipality’s own funds are not sufficient to clear the dues of temporary workers.
The municipality finance department officials admitted that the situation at present is beyond their control since every month the municipality suffers from insufficient funds.