Rajkot game zone fire: 2 civic staffers held for tampering with documents
Rajkot (PTI): Two employees of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) have been arrested for allegedly making certain changes in documents pertaining to a game zone after a fire there last month claimed 27 lives, police said on Sunday.
With this, 12 persons, including six government employees, have so been arrested in connection with the May 25 incident at the TRP game zone in Gujarat's Rajkot city, they said
The city crime branch on Saturday arrested RMC's assistant town planning officer Rajesh Makwana and assistant engineer Jaideep Chaudhary for their alleged involvement in making changes in an official register after the fire incident, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Crime, Parthrajsinh Gohil said.
"They made certain changes in government documents related to the TRP game zone after the fire incident. They also forged documents," he said.
"So far we have arrested six government employees and six other persons in connection with the TRP game zone fire," Gohil said.
The four government employees arrested earlier include Rajkot's Town Planning Officer M D Sagathia, assistant TPOs Mukesh Makwana and Gautam Joshi, and former station officer of Kalavad Road fire station Rohit Vigora.
A co-owner of the game zone, Ashoksinh Jadeja, surrendered before the police on Thursday evening.
Jadeja is one of the six owners of the TRP game zone. Five of them have been so far arrested and one died in the May 25 fire.
A manager of the game zone has also been arrested in the case.
During a probe into the incident, it was confirmed that one of the co-owners of the game zone, Prakash Hiran, who was named in the FIR and was missing since the tragedy, died in the deadly fire as he was inside the facility when it was gutted, according to police.
A CCTV camera footage showed the fire started after sparks fell on thermocol (polystrene) sheets during welding work on the ground floor.
Though workers present there tried to douse the blaze with fire extinguishers, it spread quickly and eventually engulfed the game zone.
According to police, the game zone was being operated without a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the RMC's fire department.
After the Rajkot incident, several game zones and other recreation hubs were sealed across the state and FIRs were also filed against the owners for running such facilities without requisite permissions.
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Cong slams Modi govt as 'anti-worker', calls for review of new Labour code
New Delhi (PTI): The Congress on Friday accused the Modi government of being "anti-worker" and demanded that the new labour code be reviewed, MGNREGA be revived as well as a national minimum wage of Rs 400 per day be established.
On International Labour Day, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge took a swipe at the government and said unemployment in India today is a direct consequence of the 'Hum Do, Hamare Do' policies.
"Driven by the 'Hum Do, Hamare Do' policy, the Modi government implemented an anti-worker Labour Code. As a result, unrest has erupted everywhere - be it in Noida, at the IOCL facility in Panipat, Adani's factory in Raikheda, NTPC Patratu, or the Samsung factory in Sriperumbudur," Kharge said in a post in Hindi on X.
Instead of ensuring job security, this Code promotes policies such as contract labour and 'Hire & Fire' practices, Kharge said and called for a review of the new Labour Code.
The Modi government has effectively dismantled MGNREGA by forcibly pushing legislation through Parliament, he alleged.
"Mr. Modi has shifted 40% of the wage burden onto the State governments. State governments are unable to bear this financial strain and will eventually be forced to stop providing work," he claimed.
The Modi government has compelled workers into a state of unemployment and pushed them towards 'gig work', Kharge said.
Currently, 69% of the workforce is working for wages below the statutory minimum wage, he said.
The Modi government has engineered a crisis of stagnant wages, Kharge alleged.
"When adjusted for inflation, the wages of the majority of India's workers have grown by less than 1% annually over the last decade (from 2014-15 to 2022-23)," he said.
The Modi government has created a massive unemployment crisis among the educated workforce, specifically, among graduates, Kharge claimed and added that jobs have been eliminated through the sale of Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs).
"The government has refused to fill approximately 30 lakh vacant government positions. Furthermore, the government's policy blunders have led to the decimation of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)," the Congress chief said.
The Congress reiterates its five demands for India's workers including revival of MGNREGA and its expansion to urban areas, Kharge said.
He said a national minimum wage of Rs 400 per day should be established, with MNREGA included within its scope.
Kharged demanded that a 'Right to Health' law must be enacted, providing Universal Health Coverage of up to Rs 25 lakh for laborers and workers.
"'Life Insurance and Accident Insurance' coverage must be provided for all unorganized workers. Preventing the contractualization of employment must be made a core priority of the government, and the new Labour Codes must be reviewed," Kharge asserted.
