Tarun Karthick
Port Blair, 13 February 2024
During his recent two-day visit to Diglipur, D. Ayyappan, Vice President of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) A & N State Committee, engaged in a series of meetings addressing workers and employees’ concerns.
Ayyappan’s itinerary included sessions with various groups, including the RD Engineering Wing Employees, Community Resource Persons, and a joint meeting of trade unions in the Diglipur area, held on different dates. At these gatherings, Ayyappan voiced sharp criticism against the central government’s policies, alleging them to be anti-working class and anti-farmer in nature.
In his address, Ayyappan squarely blamed the Modi government for what he described as attempts to diminish the rights and benefits of workers. He highlighted the government’s actions, such as the repeal of several existing legislations, and the introduction of four Labour Codes, which he deemed as detrimental to labor interests, favoring corporate entities instead.
A particular point of contention raised by Ayyappan was the central government’s rejection of the A & N Administration’s proposal to regularize the services of daily rated mazdoors (DRMs) working across various departments under the Administration. He criticized the government’s refusal to even consider the proposal, without proper examination by the Finance Ministry.
Ayyappan referenced the case of Admiral DK Joshi –vs- ASNVMS, where the Administration had assured the Supreme Court that the services of 7524 DRMs would be regularized with the approval of the Government of India. However, the government’s stance on this matter has evidently fallen short of expectations, according to Ayyappan.
Sunil Bepari, President, and Barun Biswas, Secretary, of the CITU Diglipur Area Committee also took the opportunity to address the meetings, echoing Ayyappan’s concerns and advocating for the rights of workers and employees.
The visit concluded with a resounding call for action against what was perceived as unjust policies, with Ayyappan and other CITU representatives vowing to continue their efforts to safeguard the interests of the working class.