ISLAMABAD, April 13: The sacked security guards of National Agricultural Research Centre (NARC) have faxed letters to President Gen Pervez Musharraf, Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali and Minister for Food and Livestock Sardar Yar Mohammad Rind, requesting them for reinstatement.

As many as 29 security guards, who were working on daily wages since 1993, had been replaced by guards of a private security agency.

The sacked security guards told Dawn that the centre’s administration had promised them that they would be reinstated, but these appeared to be delaying tactics.

They said Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC) chairman Badaruddin Soomro held a meeting with a delegation of the sacked guards, and assured them that they would be reinstated within a month. But, not a single guard was reinstated in the given time, they added.

They said the NARC administration told them that the contract of all security guards, who had been working for the last three to 10 years, would not be renewed in future.

The sacked guards said hiring private security guards at the cost of the jobs of 29 security guards could be of monetary interest to someone in the NARC.

“To accommodate a private agency for any sort of kickback or commission at the cost of the jobs of security guards is tantamount to committing a crime,” the sacked guards told Dawn.

They said the security guards had crossed the age of 30 years and now they were ineligible to qualify for jobs in the government sector where the age limit was 25 years.

Meanwhile, a deputy-director of the NARC had served a notice on the private security agency for the failure of its guards to perform according to the agreement signed with the centre.

The NARC deputy-director (administration), Bashir Ahmed Hijaz, in the notice served on the owner of the private security agency, said: “I am directed to convey with great concern that the security staff deployed by your company is not up to the required standard as agreed in the agreement signed between the NARC and your company.