The Pragatisila Shramik Mancha (PSM) on Wednesday demanded stringent action against the Jharsuguda District labour Officer (DlO) for his alleged anti-labour policies and also urged the Government for an impartial inquiry into his activities.
Mancha general secretary Rakshakar Anupam told reporters that Jharsuguda DlO Arun Roy has allegedly collected over Rs 10 lakh towards registration fee from nearly 15,000 labourers of five blocks and three municipality areas of the district in 2013 by organising special camps violating the Building And Other Construction Workers Act, 1996.
“At that time, the DlO assured the labourers that he would provide them identity cards within one month but did not give the same. When the labourers asked him about the issue, the DlO threatened to implicate them in false police cases,” Anupam said. He further charged that though the State labour Commissioner has given as many as 211 identity cards between 2009 and 2013 to distribute among the registered labourers, the DlO is yet to provide the cards to the deserving poor labourers.
He alleged that the DlO along with a racket is engaged in anti-labour activities. Social activists Amiya Pandav and Ganesh Das along with many labourers attended the Press conference. The Mancha has also submitted a memorandum to the Odisha Human Rights Commission (OHRC) urging it to ensure justice to the victims, besides taking strong legal action against the DlO.
