No permission for fresh hydropower projects in Darjeeling hills: GTA
The Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) has taken an in-principle decision not to allow setting up of fresh hydropower projects in the hills of Darjeeling and Kalimpong.
The North Bengal Basfore and Harijan Welfare Organisation (NBBHWO) demonstrated here on Friday, before ‘requesting’ the District Magistrate to look into their problem of low wages and “insufficient benefits.”
The organization has been working for the welfare of street workers in five districts of Kalimpong, Darjeeling, Cooch Behar, Jalpaiguri and Alipurduar.
According to members of the organization, temporary street labourers of Kalimpong, who have been working under the Municipality, have been deprived of their rights and benefits which they are supposed to receive from the government.
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“Permanent workers have no such problems, but workers working on a temporary basis, and who sweep the town in the morning and look after the cleanliness part of the town and offices, are a pitiable lot,” the organization said.
“Few workers have rented a room as they don’t own houses here, and what they get paid is very less. They have to send their children to school and look after the family. They earn a mere Rs 200 per day and the pay for Sunday is deducted,” Rajesh Basur from 11th Mile Topkhana, a member of the Kalimpong branch of the organization, said.
Around 80-82 workers are temporary here, while a majority of them work under the Kalimpong Municipality, and some are spread to various other departments, Mr Basur said.
The general secretary of the core committee of the NBBHWO, Gautam Basur, demanded that such workers here should get the facilities that the government provides.
“We are here on Friday to raise our voice for the development of the workers, while we also want them to be made permanent. We will request the District Magistrate to look into our problems and help us,” he said.
The District Magistrate, meanwhile, assured them that he would look into the matter by identifying the problems of the workers from various departments.
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