DA crisis: Calcutta HC directs govt to hold talks with agitating employees

In West Bengal, on the demand of dearness allowance (DA), the state government will have to hold a meeting with the employees sitting on the agitation at the Shaheed Minar Maidan in Kolkata for the last 70 days. The Calcutta High Court has given this order on Thursday.

A division bench of Acting Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam heard the matter on Wednesday. During this, it was said on behalf of the government employees that the High Court has given concrete instructions to the state government many times that dearness allowance should be given. Every time it is being stopped by getting caught in a legal tangle. Dearness allowance is the right of government employees. Central Government employees are getting 39 percent DA but state employees have to continuously agitate for this.

Apart from this, it was also placed in the court on behalf of the employees that the Chief Minister is humiliating the agitating employees. Calling them thieves and dacoits. On this, the judge made it clear that the movement of government employees has to be respected. Along with this, he told the Advocate General of the state that the state government should find a way out in this matter by holding a meeting with the government employees before April 17.

The court said that the names of three people will have to be given as representatives on behalf of the employees' unions. The state government will have to talk to those three people.

It is notable that the agitating government employees are demanding that they should be given 39% dearness allowance as per the scale of the Central Government. Although the state government has announced only six percent DA in the last two years, due to which there is dissatisfaction among the employees. /Om Prakash