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HYDERABAD, Aug 11: A group of the former employees of the Zeal Pak Cement Factory, Hyderabad, continued token hunger strike outside the local press club, on the 28th consecutive day, here on Sunday.
They were protesting against the non-payment of their dues and the alleged fraud, committed by the factory management and the former secretary of the CBA union, who had issued fake cheques to the workers.
On Saturday, a group of political leaders, including Prof Ghafoor Ahmed, Taj Haider, Rasool Bux Palijo, Dr Qadir Magsi, Dr Dodo Mehri, labour leader Qamoos Gul Khattak and others visited the hunger strike camp.
They were shown the cheques, dishonoured by the bank, and other documentary evidence of the fraud.
The workers complained that Rs130 million from the workers’ provident fund had also been misappropriated by the chairman of the provident fund trust, who was also the managing director of the Zeal Pak Cement Factory.
The leaders expressed solidarity with the protesting workers.
HUNGER STRIKE: About 50 activists of the Sindh Taraqqi Pasand Party (STPP), Jamshoro taluka, staged a token hunger strike at the Jamshoro Railway Crossing here on Sunday to protest against the nonpayment of compensation to affected people of the Thermal Power House poisonous water and construction of the greater Thal canal.
Talking to the hunger strikers, STPP senior-vice president Haider Shahani, Muzaffar Kalhoro, Gotum Channa and others said when the Thermal Power House was under construction, the growers were promised payment of Rs5,000 per acre as their lands would be rendered useless due to the disposal of poisonous water.
They regretted that even after 12 years the compensation had not been paid.
They also opposed the construction of Thal canal and warned the power house administration that if the compensation was not paid to the affected people of poisonous water, thousands of people would besiege the power house.
