Are We Children Of The Lesser Gods ? Defence Civilian Employees Ask Raksha Mantri
We would be forces to take decision for action programme which includes strike, says AIDEF
The Defence Civilian Employees are already a disturbed lot and they are relentlessly fighting against the Government decision in corporatizing the Ordnance Factories and the subsequent problems the Defence Civilian Employees are facing.
www.indianpsu.com has already published about the complaint of the All India Defence Employees’ Federation (AIDEF) that the assurances given for handholding the Ordnance Factories post Corporatization is being forgotten by the Government and that many of the Ordnance Factories including the 4 Ordnance Factories under TCL are not having any workload in the coming years. On 25 th October, 2022 the AIDEF has lodged a protest with the Defence Minister Rajnath Singh where in they have complained that the Defence Ministry is having a step motherly attitude towards the Defence Civilian Employees.
www.indianpsu.com accessed a copy of the Letter which they have written to the Defence Minister. They are very much upset since when all the Central Government Employees have got bonus, the Defence Civilian Employees have not been paid bonus and hence they were forced to celebrate the Diwali Festival without Bonus.
Even Private Companies and Public Sector have paid Bonus to their Employees. The AIDEF has pointed out that even though the Ministry of Defence Budget is Rs. 5.25 lakh crore, the Ministry of Defence is not in a position to take any decision on the welfare and benefits of the employees. For each and every issue the Defence Ministry is approaching the Personnel Ministry and Finance Ministries and those Ministries are indifferent towards the Defence Civilian Employees.
The Federation in its Letter has quoted many examples where they are discriminated when compared with Railways and other Central Government Employees. Their major concern is that for the past 2 years granting compassionate appointment to the dependents of the deceased employees have also been stopped when there is no such Government decision. All other Government Departments are offering compassionate appointment.
There is a Government Order issued on the basis of Supreme Court Judgment that any excess payment made to the employees by the Authorities not due to the mistake of the employees should not be recovered from them. However, in the Defence Ministry this Order is not implemented and lakhs of rupees are recovered from the employees including the retired employees from their terminal benefits.
The AIDEF has further pointed out while the Railway Employees are having full Trade Union rights for all the Non Gazetted Employees, the same is being denied for the Defence Civilian Employees by misinterpreting the rules. Even Trade Union rights are completely denied to the employees of Military Hospitals and Training Centers, despite the fact that the Labour Ministry has clarified that the Hospitals and Educational Institutions are “Industries” and hence Trade Union rights are permitted.
The Federation has brought to the notice of the Defence Minister almost 21 such issues in which the Defence Ministry is giving them a step motherly treatment. Even meetings are not being held with the Federations to settle all these issues. They have also informed the Minister that in their National Convention which is going to be held at Kanpur from 15 th to 18 th of November, 2022, all these issues will be discussed and that they will be forced to take decision for action programme including a strike.
The letter sent to Shri Rajnath Singh, Raksha Mantri, by the AIDEF, is given below for the benefit of the viewers of www.indianpsu.com –
