Gramin Dak Sevaks stage indefinite strike demanding implementation of Kamalesh Chandra Committee rep
Udupi, May 22: Members of the All India Gramin Dak Sevak Union and its Udupi branch began their indefinite strike in front of the Udupi general post office here on Tuesday, demanding implementation of Kamalesh Chandra Committee recommendations.
All India Gramin Dak Sevak Union president Basava Billava said that even after one year of implementing the recommendation of the Seventh Pay Commission for central government employees, the Grameen Dak Sevaks were deprived of that benefit. Within eight months of the Commission’s recommendation, the government has implemented it for 48 lakh central government employees and the same number of pensioners. In order to revise the pay scale of 2.42 lakh Grameen Dak Sevaks, the central government has constituted the Kamalesh Chandra Commission which had submitted its report in 2016. They have prevailed upon Lok Sabha Members like Shobha Karandlaje, Yeddyurappa and BJP national president Amit Shah to prevail upon the government to implement the recommendation. But nothing was happened, he said.
National Postal Employees Association Group-C divisional secretary Suresh K said that except a few MPs of North India, no Lok Sabha Member from the South have supported their cause. But they could increase their salaries and other benefits within no time, he said.
201 post offices closed
As part of their indefinite strike, total 201 rural post offices were remained closed in the district. In 201 rural post offices, total 525 Grameen Dak Sevaks have been working and they would not attend their duties till their demand is fulfilled, he said.
All India Gramin Dak Sevak Union divisional secretary K Santosh Madhyastha, National Rural Dak Sevaks Association divisional secretary Ashwath Kumar, deputy secretary B Suresh Sherigar, vice president Shanker Shetty, assistant secretary Praveen Jattan, All India Postal Employees Association Postman and MTS unit state president Vijay Nari, district president Vasudev Thottam and others were present.
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NDA's win in Bihar Assembly bypolls a matter of concern: Prashant Kishor
Patna, Nov 23: Political strategist turned activist Prashant Kishor on Saturday dubbed as "a matter of concern" the NDA's win in assembly by-polls in Bihar despite "failure" of the BJP-led coalition to end the state's chronic backwardness during it's decades-long rule.
Talking to reporters here shortly after the results were out, Kishor also drew succour from the fact that his fledgling Jan Suraaj won "10 per cent" of the total votes polled in four seats, but rubbished the claim that it had played a role in the RJD's defeat in three of these.
"RJD is a 30-year-old party. The son of its state president finished third. Can Jan Suraaj be faulted for that? In Belaganj all Muslim votes went to the JD(U) candidate. In Imamganj, the Jan Suraaj cut into NDA votes. Else, the victory margin of (Union minister) Jitan Manjhi's Hindustani Awam Morcha would have been bigger", asserted Kishor.
Notably, Imamganj, a reserved seat, was retained by Manjhi's daughter-in-law Deepa, who defeated the RJD candidate by a thin margin of less than 6,000 votes. Jan Suraaj candidate Jitendra Paswan finished third, polling more than 37,000 votes.
When pointed out that in three of the four seats, candidates of Jan Suraaj had polled less than one-sixth of the total votes and ran the risk of losing their deposits, Kishor shot back "That should not be a matter of concern (chinta ki baat). If there is a matter of concern, it is the ability of the NDA to make a clean sweep despite having ruled Bihar for so long and "failed" to end the state's backwardness".
The IPAC founder, who had a brief stint in the JD(U), insisted that the party's supremo Nitish Kumar, the Chief Minister of Bihar, was a "spent force" and its candidate, former MLC Manorama Devi, had won on her own steam.
"We have always said that our fight is with NDA, not with RJD despite its claim of being the largest party in Bihar.....(but) Nitish Kumar is no factor. His party polled just about 11 per cent of total votes", said Kishor.
About his own party's inability to make a mark, Kishor said "We have secured 10 per cent votes..... in seats where Jan Suraaj had no presence since these areas were yet to be covered by my padyatra. Also, please note that we got our poll symbol after filing of nomination papers was over".
He also maintained that the Jan Suraaj will go solo in the assembly polls due next year when it will contest "all 243 seats".
"We were initially written off but by garnering about 10 per cent votes, in a state known to vote along predictable caste lines, we have proved a point. In the next few months we shall be strengthening the organization to ensure that vote share of the Jan Suraaj improves", he said.
