Cops Evict Protesting TTD Staffers As Medical Conditions Worsen
Tirupati: Protesting 200 outsourced employees of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) forest department and owing allegiance to Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), who had been staging an indefinite sit-in since January 27— were forcibly evicted by the police from the dharna site on Monday, when medical conditions of some of the protesting workers began deteriorating.
As the medical conditions of the some of the fasting workers deteriorated on Monday, doctors at the S.V.R. Ruia Gvernment General Hospital advised them (sick protesting workers) for hospital admission. Acting upon the warnings, police rushed to the dharna site and forcibly took the protesting union leaders and workers to Ruia Hospital.
The protesters were evicted from the dharna site and some them were detained by the police.
The indefinite hunger strike, which began on January 27, was led by CITU Tirupati district general secretary Kandarapu Murali and several senior employees of the TTD forest department.
It is learnt that the TTD employees of the forest department started their agitation when the service of 162 junior contractual workers having 10 years of work experience was regularized while 200 senior employees with over 20-30 years of experience were excluded from the staff on roll list.
“Despite carrying out agitations over the past 1,160 days, our services were not regularized. As per the resolution of the TTD trust board in 2019, several junior staffers who were working on contractual basis were made permanent, whereas 200 senior staffers working under outsourced category were left out. They (senior workers) come under the category of Society Registration Act,” said Kandarapu Murali, the district CITU general secretary.
Reiterating his resolve to continue the indefinite strike until their demands were not fulfilled, the union leader Murali, said, “Our hunger strike will continue. I appeal to TTD Chairman Bhumana Karunakar Reddy and Executive Officer A.V. Dharma Reddy to regularize the service of 200 senior staffers. It help them in supporting their families in a better manner. The crackdown and arrests were undemocratic on the protesting workers.”
