Government employees and pensioners in Manipur launched a mass casual leave agitation and held a protest meeting demanding payment of pending dues and pension benefits.
Imphal, June 22: Government employees and pensioners in Manipur on Monday launched a mass casual leave agitation to press for the fulfilment of various pending demands, including the release of employee benefits, pension payments and other service-related entitlements.
The agitation is being jointly spearheaded by the Manipur State Pensioners Union, the Manipur Government Services Federation and the Manipur Secretariat Services Association.
As part of the protest programme, pensioners and employees gathered at Singjamei Chingamakhong and held a protest meeting demanding the full disbursement of pending dues to both serving employees and retired government personnel.
Addressing the gathering, Manipur Government Services Federation president L. Sarat said the organisations had repeatedly sought appointments with the Chief Secretary, Finance Commissioner and other concerned authorities to discuss issues affecting government employees and pensioners. However, he alleged that despite repeated requests, no opportunity for a formal discussion had been granted so far.
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He said several longstanding grievances remain unresolved, including the non-granting of promotions to eligible employees, the non-payment of Dearness Allowance (DA) and Dearness Relief (DR) at rates applicable to Central government employees, delays in salary payments to contractual employees and pending pension-related issues.
According to Sarat, the organisations have been raising these concerns for a considerable period but have not received a satisfactory response from the authorities.
He maintained that remaining silent in the face of these unresolved issues was no longer an option and that the agitation was intended to draw the attention of the government and concerned departments to the difficulties being faced by employees and pensioners.
The protestors urged the authorities to take immediate steps to address the demands and ensure that the legitimate entitlements of government employees and retired personnel are released without further delay.
Sarat also appealed to government employees and pensioners across the state to actively participate in the agitation and strengthen the movement.
The mass casual leave programme began on Monday and is scheduled to continue till Tuesday as part of the organisations' ongoing campaign for the settlement of their demands.
The employee bodies have been seeking parity in DA and DR benefits with Central government employees, timely payment of salaries and pensions, and the resolution of service-related issues, including promotions and other pending benefits.
The agitation comes amid growing concerns among employees and pensioners over delays in the release of financial benefits and what they describe as a lack of engagement from the authorities on their grievances.
