Senior BJP leader and National Council Member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Sanjay Tandon, met with Amit Kumar, Municipal Commissioner of Chandigarh, along with a delegation of general employees of the UT Municipal Corporation led by its convener Surmukh Singh to discuss various long-pending issues concerning civic employees. The meeting took place on Thursday.
“We apprised the Municipal Commissioner of four major demands related to the welfare and service conditions of employees working in different departments of the Municipal Corporation. The first issue pertained to tube well operators, who, according to the delegation, were not being granted casual leave or weekly offs,” he said.
According to Tandon, the Commissioner took immediate cognisance of the matter, summoned the Chief Engineer during the meeting, and directed that necessary arrangements be made without delay to ensure all tube well operators receive casual leave and weekly offs.
Tandon informed that the second demand concerned the promotion of tube well operators who have completed three years of service and are eligible for promotion as trade mates. On this matter, the Commissioner instructed the Chief Engineer to examine all legal and labour law aspects and submit a decision within the current month.
The third issue related to the Horticulture Department, where eleven posts of Head Mali are lying vacant. The delegation highlighted that eligible employees had not been promoted despite vacancies existing for a considerable period. The Commissioner directed the concerned officials to convene a Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) meeting and complete the promotion process for eligible candidates from among the existing gardeners at the earliest.
The fourth matter raised was regarding sanitation workers engaged in toilet maintenance, whose wages were allegedly not being paid according to prescribed DC rates. The Commissioner sought detailed information regarding the concerned locations and wage structures so that the matter could be addressed effectively and expeditiously.
Tandon said, “We presented the employees’ concerns in a very constructive manner and I appreciate the positive response shown by Municipal Commissioner Mr Amit Kumar. It is encouraging that immediate directions were issued on key issues concerning employee welfare.”
He further said, “Employees working at the grassroots level are the backbone of the city’s civic infrastructure. Their genuine demands deserve timely attention and resolution. We will continue to ensure that their voices are heard at every appropriate forum.”
The employees’ delegation expressed satisfaction over the outcome of the meeting and thanked Sanjay Tandon for facilitating the discussion with the Municipal Commissioner. Among those present in the delegation were Chairman Raja Ram, Convener Surmukh Singh, Co-Conveners Jagmohan Singh and Swaran Singh, Patron Surinder Sharma, Secretary Ravinder Bindu, besides Kamal Kumar and Raj Kumar.