Defying Weathergods, 3 Lakh Defence Workers Boycott Work On July 9 Demanding Old Pension Scheme And Other Key Issues
Massive Demonstrations Held in Over 400 Defence Establishments Across the Country
In a powerful show of unity and defiance, nearly 3 lakh Defence civilian employees staged one-hour nationwide protests across more than 400 Defence establishments on Wednesday morning, despite challenging weather conditions. The protest was organized under the banner of the All India Defence Employees Federation (AIDEF) in solidarity with the nationwide General Strike called by 10 major Central Trade Unions, excluding the BMS.
The Central Trade Unions, including AITUC, HMS, CITU, INTUC, LPF, and others, had called for the July 9 Industrial Strike to press for a series of long-pending demands.
These include:
- Withdrawal of the four controversial labour codes,
- Restoration of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS),
- Opposition to privatization, outsourcing, corporatization, and fixed-term employment,
- Convening the Indian Labour Conference, which hasn’t been held for a decade.
In a joint press release, AIDEF President S.N. Pathak and General Secretary C. Srikumar warned the Government that if their legitimate charter of demands is not addressed through negotiations, they will be compelled to escalate their agitation with more serious industrial actions in the coming days.
The protest saw enthusiastic participation from workers in key Defence hubs including Avadi, Kochi, Trichy, Hyderabad, Jabalpur, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Delhi, Kanpur, Nagpur, Balasore, and Bengaluru, among others.
Workers raised strong slogans against the Government’s defence policies and reiterated their opposition to:
- Corporatization of Ordnance Factories,
- Abolition of sanctioned posts and non-filling of vacancies,
- Outsourcing and re-engagement of pensioners,
- Fixed-term employment policies and dilution of job security.
- A major thrust of the protest was the demand to scrap the National Pension System (NPS) and Universal Pension Scheme (UPS) and restore the OPS for all Government employees.
Other key demands included:
- Grant of compassionate appointments,
- Retention of Central Government employee status for staff working in the seven Ordnance Factory Corporations.
AIDEF hailed the unity displayed by Defence civilian employees and congratulated the Indian working class for their widespread participation in the nationwide strike. The Federation reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding the rights of Defence workers and cautioned the Government that failure to respond constructively could lead to a much broader agitation across the Defence sector.
