MWCEA on mass casual leave strike

Aizawl, May 16 (UNI) The Mizoram Work-Charged Employees Association (MWCEA) today launched an indefinite mass-casual leave strike to demand regularisation of work-charged employees.

The agitation is likely to affect water and power supply in Aizawl.

''The agitation has been necessitated by the state government's refusal to meet the ten-year-long demand for regularisation of work-charged employees and non-implementation of the Work-Charged Regularisation Scheme,'' the association leaders told newspersons.

According to the association, Mizoram Chief Minister Zoramthanga had earlier promised to regularise all work-charged employees in different departments.

However, the MWCEA leaders alleged that the Chief Minister later refused to implement the regularisation following pressure from the concerned department heads.

The work-charged employees also opposed the government's recent decision to allot a number of regular posts to members of the Peace Accord MNF Returnees Association.

Though the government jobs were given to the former rebels as per the peace agreement in 1986 between the Centre and the then outlawed Mizo National Front (MNF), the work-charged employees insisted that new posts should have been created for the surrendered MNF cadres.

There are about 1,737 work-charged employees in the Public Works, Power and Electricity, Public Health Engineering and Industries departments.

UNI ZS DPM LS DS1532