Chandigarh 25th October; More than 400 members of PGI Employees Union and PGI Contract Workers Union took out the candlelight march to protest against the anti non-faculty employees policies of PGI management.
The candlelight march was taken out under the leadership of Ashwani Munjal, Chairman, Sunil Dutt Sharma, President, PGI Employees Union and Sanjeev Kumar, President, PGI Contract Workers Union. The march started from PU Gate and passed through Sector 14, 15, 16 and culminated at Plaza, Sector 17. The workers raised slogans against the PGI management and its ant non-faculty staff policies.
Besides the Charter of Demands and Grievances dated 6.2.2012, the candlelight march was taken out to protest against the exploitation of down trodden strata of society under the garb of contract labour system for perennial nature of jobs in violation of Section 10 of Contract Labour (R&A) Act, 1970.
The workers raised slogans and opposed the illegal appointment of Swarnjit Singh Saini, OSD to Dr. Yogesh Chawla, Director, PGI and illegal payment of salary to him in violation of Governing Body decision dated 28.4.2012.
There had been two rounds of negotiations on 12th and 19th April, 2012 wherein a number of issues were discussed and sorted out. It was assured to implement the decisions within 15 days to 2 months. It was also decided to convene further negotiations on Part B of the charter of demands and grievances dated 6.2.2012. Neither the PGI management has kept its words to implement the decisions arrived at on 12th and 19th April, 2012 nor any further meeting has been convened after April, 2012 on the memorandum dated 6.2.2012. The repeated verbal and written requests of Union to implement the decisions and to convene further meetings have been ignored with impunity.
The Director, PGI fixed the meeting for 22nd October, 2012 after the notice for agitation was served but no amicable settlement could be arrived at in the marathon meeting.
The Unions will meet shortly to decide future course of action if the PGI management did not act wisely and timely.