CITU supports SJVNL workers on indefinite strike at Rampur hydro power station
In support of the 400 workers who have been on an indefinite strike for the past sixty days at the Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited’s (SJVNL) Rampur Hydro Power Station (412 MW), Shimla city unions affiliated with CITU staged a strong protest outside the DC Office in Shimla. Present at the protest were Vijendra Mehra, Balak Ram, Ramakant Mishra, Himi Devi, Ranjeev Kuthiala, Vivek Kashyap, Ram Prakash, Dalip, Vinod Birsanta, Puran Chand, Kapil Negi, Virendra, Nookh Ram, Nisha, Rakesh Sallu, Pawan, Bharat, Dalvindra, Shivram, Naresh, Ashok, and Sanjay Samata.
CITU has demanded an immediate resolution to the demands of the striking workers and announced that if the SJVNL headquarters in Shimla does not intervene promptly, CITU will soon lay siege to the office of the Chief Managing Director in Shimla.
Addressing the protest, CITU State President Vijendra Mehra, District Treasurer Balak Ram, and District Secretary Ramakant Mishra stated that SJVNL is grossly violating labor laws in the 412 MW power project. The workers employed in the project are not being paid minimum wages. According to the provisions of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, workers should be categorized based on the nature of their work to ensure they receive the appropriate minimum wage for their category. However, in the 412 MW project, SJVNL is having workers perform skilled tasks but paying them unskilled labor wages.
The workers are not being provided with employment cards or pay slips, and they are being denied gratuity benefits. Additionally, the demands include the implementation of a promotion policy, group insurance, uniform allowance, uniform washing allowance, increased travel allowance, patient transport, shift vehicles for shift workers, and the running of buses through Jagatkahana for workers coming from Kushwa, Kharga, Tunan, Posha, and other panchayats. These were the main demands agreed upon in the agreement between the union and the Rampur Hydro Power Station management on November 24, 2023.
The anti-worker management of the Rampur Hydro Power Station is not implementing the agreement. Workers who raise their voices for their rights are being identified and harassed. SJVNL’s 412 MW management is using illegal tactics and pressuring contractors to intimidate the workers.
