West Bengal: State Govt Employees March to Secretariat to Demand ‘Fair’ Hike in DA

Kolkata: Over 25,000 government employees from different districts knocked on the doors of the state secretariat on May 4, demanding a fair hike in dearness allowance to state government employees.

The 3% increase declared by the West Bengal government has not gone down well with the state government employees, who believe that the raise is too meagre when compared with central government employees’ DA – which is 38%.

The march started from Howrah Launch Ghat and continued till Howrah Maidan. A three-member delegation of the state government employees was escorted by the police from Howrah Maidan to the state secretariat where they submitted a deputation to the competent authorities.

Those who were present at the spot claimed that the police were prepared with tear gas and water cannons; however, the protesters were not provoked and continued their programme. The protesting employees also raised slogans condemning inflation and its grave impact on people.

The call for the march was given by the coordination committee of the state government employees; Joutha Manch, which has organised a number of programmes to press for their demands, but to no avail, The government had instead brought out an administrative order prohibiting the march of the state government employees. It was challenged in the Calcutta High Court, where a bench of Justice Rajasekhar Mantha set aside the government’s order and allowed the march.

Advocate Shamim Ahmad, who appeared for the Joutho Manch, said that the court has ruled that to have constitutional rights, there is no need for police permission.

Meanwhile, under the banner of Sangrami Joutho Manch, another group of government employees protested at the Hazra Road – a stone’s throw from the residence of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

“Here is a government which declines to pay DA at all. The government, in its prayer before the Calcutta High Court in a filed affidavit, declined to give DA to its employees, citing it as a non-mandatory exercise to give DA at the central rate. It also refused to admit that any DA of the employees is pending with the state government. Around 35% of DA is already pending with the government, which means an average employee is losing Rs 12,000 to 18,000 per month. Giving DA is an exercise based on the consumer price index, and it’s calculated using a scientific method,” Biswajit Gupta Choudhury, general secretary of the Coordination Committee told NewsClick. He added that the central government will announce an additional 4% DA, which will take the quantum of pending DA of all employees who receive their pay from the state exchequer from 35% to 39%.

In addition to the demands for the payment of pending DA and filling vacant posts, the march also called for the regularisation of casual employees, an end to divisive politics in the state, and the reinstatement of democracy. It is worth noting that government employees participated in a successful strike against the state government on March 10.