EBM deadlock resolved

Statesman News Service

MALDA, June 7: The new English Bazaar Municipality chairman, Mr Narendra Nath Tiwari, finally managed to solve the EBM deadlock today after he announced that the present board would appoint 73 casual workers as permanent staff as per the former chairman’s order. He also agreed to promote a number of staff working with the EBM. For the last two days, the CPI-M-backed employees’ union were agitating against the decision of the new EBM chairman, Mr Narendra Nath Tewari, who had cancelled an appointment order for 73 casual workers, issued by the former chairman of the board.The agitating union members alleged that the cancellation order was passed on the basis of a government report rather than on a resolution adopted at the board of councillors’ meeting. On the other hand, it was learnt that the new chairman, who joined office on 5 June, without taking an oath, had cancelled the appointment order as it lacked the approval of the BOC. “I received an undertaking from the employees’ union, which the CPI-M backed and another which is non-Left. We informed both that the decision would be taken after a meeting of the board of councillors soon,” Mr Tiwari said. The new EBM chairman alleged that the administration was reluctant to arrange the oath-taking programme to prevent him from efficiently executing his job in the civic body. Mr Tiwai said: “I discussed the matter with the SDO. He said that without any gazette notification from the government, he cannot arrange the oath-taking ceremony.” Sources revealed that it would take some time before the government published a gazette notification after the ongoing scurry for municipal election in the state.