Mounesh Vishwakarma 

Daijiworld Media Network - Bantwal

Bantwal, Mar 4: The Karnataka State Progressive Akshara Dasoha Workers' Union (AICCTU) staged a protest in front of the Mini Vidhana Soudha in B C Road, demanding the state government fulfill its assembly election promise of increasing their wages by Rs 6,000 and addressing other demands. A memorandum was submitted to the tahsildar in this regard.

Speaking at the protest, AICCTU Dakshina Kannada district president comrade Ramanna Vitla criticized the central government for completely neglecting essential sectors like education, healthcare, employment, and food security. He pointed out that the Centre has been ignoring the mid-day meal scheme since 2010, while the workload of workers in the state has increased without a corresponding wage hike, forcing them into financial distress. He urged the state government to implement the promised Rs 6,000 wage hike for mid-day meal workers.

AICCTU state committee honorary president comrade Mohan K E and AICCTU taluk leader comrade Raja Chendtimar also addressed the protest. Union leaders comrade Sajesh Vitla and comrade Suleiman Kelinja, along with Akshara Dasoha organization taluk president Jayashree R K, secretary Vanishree Kanyana, and vice presidents Vinay Nadumogaru and Sevanti, led the protest.

The protestors demanded that the central government, which has not increased the honorarium since 2010, should now raise it to Rs 26,000. Until then, wages should be set between Rs 7,000 and Rs 12,000, as done in Kerala, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, and Haryana. Following the Uttar Pradesh and Punjab High Court rulings, mid-day meal workers should be employed for 12 months a year and be given minimum wages. They also urged that the working hours be increased from 4 to 6, as per the Akshara Dasoha guidelines, and that the mid-day meal scheme be entirely managed under the education department.

The protestors insisted that in case of a worker's death at the workplace, a compensation of Rs 25 lac should be provided. They demanded that the government order to terminate mid-day meal workers by March 31, 2024, be revoked, and a new order extending employment until April 10, 2025, be issued. The rule of terminating workers based on attendance should be withdrawn. They stressed that the mid-day meal scheme should be made permanent, and until then, workers should be recognized as employees under the 45th and 46th Indian Labour Conference recommendations. They also opposed the handing over of the mid-day meal scheme to private organizations.

Since Group D staff are absent in schools, mid-day meal workers should be assigned tasks like school cleanliness, garden maintenance, and bell ringing, and they should be officially appointed as school staff. The protestors further demanded that summer and Dasara holiday wages should be mandatorily paid. After school hours, workers should be engaged under the MGNREGA scheme for school garden maintenance and be paid accordingly. They also called for job opportunities to be provided to the families of mid-day meal workers who die in accidents and to those of retired mid-day meal workers. Additionally, they urged that each school should have a minimum of two cooks.