MeECL succumbs, strike suspended

By Our Reporter

SHILLONG, JULY 26: The agitating qualified linemen (jugalies) today suspended their indefinite strike after the Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MeECL) decided to extend the validity period of their merit list for another six months.

The office order issued by the MeECL’s joint secretary D Warjri here on Wednesday stated – “In pursuance to Board of Director’s Resolution dated July 7, the notification dated August 1, 2016, notifying the list of candidates for appointment as Jugalies, which is due to expire on August 1, 2017, is hereby revalidated for another period of 6 months upto January 1, 2018.”

This came after candidates refused to be convinced by the MeECL’s verbal assurance to extend the list by another of three months and demanded that the decision be given in black and white.

The notice was pasted at the wall of the entrance gate to the MeECL office which has remain closed during the three-day strike launched by the aggrieved jugalies, who are backed by the KHNAM state youth wing.

“We are temporarily suspended the agitation as a mark of respect to the MeECL’s decision to allow the office to take necessary step to complete the process of appointing all the jugalies – which is our main demand,” KHNAM-SYW president Thomas Passah told reporters here.

He however said but it would be wrong on the part of the MeECL, if it thinks that by extending the validity period of the merit list for another six months is to further delay issuing of the appointment letters to these candidates.

Passah further announced that the candidates have decided to demand the MeECL to speed up the appointment of all the remaining 466 qualified candidates under the second and third phasewithin three months time.

“Failing which they (candidates) will be compelled to intensify their agitations till their demand is met,” he said while threatening the next phase of agitation will be an indefinite hunger strike and will also include families and children of the aggrieved candidates.

Pointing out that the state elections is also just a few months away, he said that the candidates are not willing to accept if at that time the MeECL attempt to put excuses that due to election the process of giving appointment cannot be completed.

“The chairman-cum-managing director PS Thangkhiew should also keep his promise when he stated during our discussion recently that he would step down if the MeECL cannot give appointment to all these jugalies,” he said.

According to him, this is because the MeECL’s assurance to complete the appointment of candidates under the second phase within the month of August still stands till today.

It may be mentioned here that the MeECL had on August last year declared as many as 772 successful candidates for the jugali posts, which were advertised way back in 2011. Some of these candidates are those already appointed as casual jugali.

A total of 466 candidates under the second and third phase are yet to be issued with appointment letters till date. The MeECL so far had appointed only 306 out of 772 candidates following series of protests launched since last year.

Asked, the KHNAM-SYW president said that despite honouring its decision, they would still continue to stage a peaceful agitation at least two days of every month to remind the MeECL on the need to speed up the implementation of the demand.

As per information sought under the RTI Act, 2005 by the candidates, the MeECL in its reply has revealed that the total number of sanction post of jugali is 1073 and regular jugali and casual jugali appointed so far is 596 and 462 respectively.

Interestingly to a query seeking information on the vacancy post of jugali, the reply was that till date there are around 477 vacancies. With this, Passah maintained that the MeECL has no reason to deny appointment to these candidates.

Condemning the government for ignoring the trend of backdoor appointment that is happening right under its nose, he said that it is an irony that people in the state are made to fight for their rights like this.

Meanwhile, the candidates have also recently filed a writ petition before the Meghalaya High Court for its necessary intervention into the matter to ensure justice is achieved.