KARACHI, Oct 31: Over 100 families of Sindh government employees have been pushed to the verge of starvation due to non- payment of their salaries since July. Some of them have gone to the extent that they have withdrawn their children from schools.

A delegation of the affected staff of the Social Welfare Department, on Wednesday, told Dawn that they were regular employees with a service period of 18 to 25 years, but since July they had not been paid salaries despite provision in the department budget.

They appealed to Sindh Governor Mohammedmian Soomro to look into the matter and order release of their salaries immediately otherwise they threatened to commit self-immolation in front of Karachi Press Club.

The employees said they were fed up with running to the secretary of the department and other officials, only to be told that their matter had been under consideration.

They recalled that the department had 1200 employees, out of which 310 were sent to the surplus pool of the Services and General Administration, while 103 employees — between grade one and six — were retained for adjustment.

“We are performing our duties regularly but since July at the end of every month we have been asked to wait for the salaries.”

The delegation pointed out that the suffering 103 employees also included 55 women social workers. The delegation pointed out that all the officials in the department had already been adjusted except the lower grade workers.