Salary standoff: MGNREGA staff boycott work, threaten stir

Patiala: The MGNREGA Karmchari Union (Punjab) has issued a final ultimatum to the state govt, warning of a mass march to the rural development minister's residence on May 13 if outstanding salaries are not released. Representing around 1,600 contractual employees—including gram sewaks, data entry operators, and JEs—the union has already begun a boycott of all departmental work to protest a five-to-six-month delay in pay.Harpinder Singh, general secretary of the union, stated that these workers belong to low-income families and are facing financial distress. Despite some staff serving for 18 years, they remain on meager contractual wages and are now demanding regularisation. The union alleges that workers are being threatened with termination and penalties despite performing 80% of the rural development work in Punjab's villages.The crisis follows a series of broken promises, specifically a commitment made by the finance commissioner in late 2025 to address worker demands that remains unfulfilled. The union further alleges that senior officials are deliberately stonewalling their legitimate claims. Since May 4, staff have ceased all non-MGNREGA duties, such as BOC Worker surveys and social audit coordination, in protest of the department's blind eye toward their grievances.This standoff has occurred during a significant policy transition. Last year, the Centre repealed the original Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, replacing it with the new Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Act. The union warns that if dues are not cleared by the May 13 deadline, the protest will expand into an unprecedented show of force. MSID:: 130896767 413 |
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