State govt lists out casual staff names

Statesman News Service

MALDA, 10 NOV: Last year the Congress, Trinamul and BJP led English Bazaar Municipality (EBM) had submitted a report to the directorate of local bodies (DLB) that it had no casual staffs.However, following a direction of the state government, the civic body is preparing a list of more than 1,000 casual staffs who have been working since 1992.It may be noted that following a complaint lodged by the English Bazaar Congress MLA, Mr Krishnendu Choudhury and in response to a clarification of the DLB, the Congress led board had to submit a report that it had no causal staffs.Interestingly, the CPI-M backed English Bazaar Municipal Workers’ Union (EBMWU), after objecting to rampant appointment of causal workers, demanded that the chairman would have to include all names of casual staffs for its better future.The EBMWU has formed a separate union for 150 casual staffs out of the total figure listed by the board.It may be noted that following the government's instruction all causal workers are expecting that they would be appointed as permanent staffs in the civic body by 2011, just before coming Assembly election.The chairman of the EBM, Mr Narendranath Tiwari said: “Following the recent instruction of the government we are preparing a list of all those working as casual workers for providing services to the people. The final list would be submitted to the directorate of local bodies (DLB) soon”.The DLB has directed to prepare two separate lists ~ that between 1 January 1992 to 31 December 1998 and also 1 January 1999 to 31 December 2008 based on acquaintance.The general secretary, the EBMWU, Mr Prasanta Thakur, said: “When the government has asked to submit the list of causal staffs the civic body should not deprive a single person who have been working as causal staff here”. To detect ghost casual staffs we have demanded that the civic body issue identity card for the causal staffs so that we can detect them, Mr Thakur claimed. The CPI-M backed union is expecting that workers who are working for more than 10 years and are nearly more than 35 years of age may be absorbed permanently here.