MCC staff members continue strike for second day
citizens struggle as department offices remain shut
Mangaluru: The locals struggled to get necessary facilities and works completed as the staff of the Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC), led by the SK Municipal Employees’ Union, Mangaluru, gathered outside the MCC building and continued their indefinite strike for the second day on Friday, putting forth various demands.
As more than 400 staff members of the MCC participated in the strike, work in various departments was stayed on both days. Waste collection and disposal within the MCC limits was postponed by a day and undertaken on Friday. The staff working in other departments, including Revenue, Urban Development, Health and Engineering, also participated in the protest.
The services of MangaloreOne, which is operated by outsourced staff members, however, remained unaffected, with citizens making their payments at the centres as usual.
The staff members have pointed out that the C&R Rules (Cadre and Recruitment Rules) have not been amended for 14 years, since 2011. Staff members who have more than 35 years of experience are retiring without promotion. The MCC employees do not have job security. The Arogya Sanjeevini health facility is reserved only for senior officers and not lower-level staff members, the protesters have pointed out, in relation to their demands.
MLA D Vedvyas Kamath, who met the staff members, called senior IAS officer and Secretary of the Urban Development Department Deepa Cholan and directed her to call a meeting with the protesters to discuss fulfilling their demands.
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Man arrested with Rs 2.54-crore heroin in Mumbai
Mumbai (PTI): Police have arrested a man and seized over 500 grams of heroin worth Rs 2.54 crore in the illicit market from him in Mumbai, officials said on Friday.
The police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) made the drug seizure in Santacruz in the western suburbs. The operation was conducted by the Kandivali unit of the ANC on Thursday as part of a special crackdown against drug trafficking in the area, they said.
Acting on specific inputs, an ANC team conducted a raid in Santacruz (East) and intercepted a man. During a search, the team recovered 508 grams of high-grade heroin from his possession, an official said.
The seized contraband, a highly addictive, opioid drug derived from morphine, is estimated to be worth Rs 2.54 crore in the international market, he informed.
Following the seizure, a case was registered against the man under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and he was formally placed under arrest in the early hours of Friday.
The police are currently investigating the source of the drug and trying to identify the intended recipients of the consignment, he said.
