February 6, 2002	Wednesday	Ziqa’ad 22, 1422

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DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Feb 5: Specific political figures of the area are using the sugarcane indents as a tool to influence the voters in rural areas and are increasing pressure on the mills administration to issue open indents to them.

This was claimed by Akhtar Shah, general secretary of Chashma Labour Union of Chashma Sugar Mills, at a Press conference on Tuesday. He claimed that a councillor, and a Naib Nazim, had forced one of the mills worker Inayatullah, cane clerk and member of the union’s working committee on Monday for getting open indents.

Akhtar Shah said total crushing capacity of the mill was only 7,000 tons a day and the indents were being issued judicially but these elected representatives wanted to issue them maximum indents for distribution in a single zone which was not applicable and admissible under the rules.

He said closure of the mills as a protest, was out of question as it could cause trouble for the small farmers and the seasonal staff. However, he reiterated that Labour Union would fully protect its worker’s rights and would not allow anybody to interfere in the mills affairs.

He told the newsmen that although they were making proportionate payments towards Social Security Fund they were not being provided any treatment or other facility from Social Security Department.

He said there was no qualified medical team available with the mills and in case of any emergency, the patients were sent to Dera Ismail Khan.