Railway station contractual sanitation workers stage dharna at Khordha Road

Contractual sanitation workers employed by a third party vendor at Khordha Road railway station have been on dharna in front of the station for the last four days.

They have been demanding 26-day work per month, Provident Fund and ESI facilities, government holiday and bonus.

The protest has been supported by Navanirman Yuva Chatra Sangathan.

Despite sitting on dharna for four days, they have allegedly been neglected and no assurances have been provided to them either from the Railway authorities or from the contractor.

“We have been sitting here for the last four days, but nobody either from the Railways or from the contractor has come to us to discuss our issues. We just need 26 days of work in a month and EPF and ESI for us,” said a protester.

Another protester said, “No Railway authority or the contractor has met us in these four days. The RPF personnel are forcing us to call off the dharna. But we will not buzz from here unless our demands are met.”

No comments could be received either from the third party vendor or from the Khordha Road Railway Division in this connection.

Recently, the sanitation workers under the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation staged a cease-work protest demanding salary hike.

They postponed their strike after the BMC Mayor assured them to comply with their demands.