JCC March Broken Up In Srinagar, Held In Jammu
SRINAGAR: Marching state employees were broken up by the police in Srinagar on the last day of a three-day strike on Thursday, their leaders threatening to paralyse the government if it failed to meet their demands.
The employees amalgam Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) said that 150 marchers were taken into custody and several injured in police cane-charges in central Srinagar, but authorities said that those rounded up in precautionary measures had later been released.
The JCC is mainly pressing for the regularisation of temporary employees and increase in retirement age after having fallen silent on their demands over 6th Pay Commission arrears in a row that has caused heavy losses to the public exchequer with repeated strikes over the past years.
The government has held several rounds of talks with the Committee in the past, sometimes to avert strikes, but has not come out with any decisions on promises it purportedly made, despite at least two-self imposed deadlines.
Though its procession in the summer capital today was dispersed, the JCC led a march through the winter capital of Jammu and held a sit-in before the divisional headquarters, reports said.
Earlier, rallying supporters at Srinagars municipal park, JCC leader Khurhseed Aalam accused the government of backtracking on its promises, and said that authorities were forcing employees to take a tough stance.
If the powers-that-be do not meet our demands, we will be forced to take tough measures which will paralyse the government, Aalam said.
The governments duplicity and dilatory tactics have caused us immense mental torture, he said. It has not implemented written agreements made with the JCC, forcing us to take to the streets, he said.
We have given the government ample time to uphold its agreement. We will not give it any more time now, he said.
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