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HYDERABAD, Feb 6: The Sindh Sugar Mills Trade Unions’ Federation (SSMTUF) has criticized the large-scale retrenchment of workers from the mills and non-payment of salaries and allowances to workers.
A meeting of SSMTUF executive committee, held here on Thursday, also criticised the managements of the sugar mills for inordinate delay in the start of sugarcane crushing season, resulting in losses to growers.
The meeting observed that silence of the government on the issue had created an impression that the mill owners enjoyed the blessings of the authorities in committing excesses against the workers and farmers.
Speaking on the occasion, the secretary general of the federation, Bashir Ahmed, said that whenever workers observed a strike, which was their right under the labour laws, the government was quick to take action against them, but it always ignored illegal actions of mill owners.
The meeting rejected the Industrial Relations Ordinance-2002 as anti workers.
It called upon sugar mill workers of Sindh to launch a joint struggle to regain their usurped rights.
It demanded of the government to order reinstatement of retrenched workers and abolish the contract system.
The meeting urged the government to stop the managements of the Shah Murad and Al-Noor sugar mills from terminating services of workers and direct the Al-Noor Sugar Mills to do away with the contract system.
It criticized the Workers’ Welfare Board for withholding the facilities to workers for the last 18 months and demanded that facilities should be restored without delay.
It insisted that it should also be ensured that under the education cess, children of workers were provided shoes, according to the size of their feet and not at random.
FAREWELL: A fare-well party was organized here on Thursday for the out-going DCO, Mir Hussain Ali, by the officers of the local government, reports our Correspondent
Speaking on the occasion, the departing DCO urged the officers of the government departments to maintain close coordination among each other to redress the people’s complaints, adding that the extent of
public grievances were a challenge to the public welfare departments.
He said that he had served the people of the interior of Sindh for many years, adding that he would continue to serve them from the capital of Sindh.
Many mega projects, he said, had been launched during his tenure as the DCO, Hyderabad, adding that with the completion of these projects, the city would be guided on the path f development.
Shakeel Hyder, EDO (revenue) and the acting DCO, Ibrahim Qureshi, EDO (community development), Tariq Khokar, DDO, and other officers also spoke on the occasion.
