Hyderabad: Union minister of state for home affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar has urged the state government to bring an end to the indefinite strike of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) employees. They are on strike for past 28 days. He recommended the government to promptly address the legitimate demands of the employees, including salary hikes and other proposed resolutions.
Several SSA state leaders met Bandi Sanjay this afternoon in Charlapalli and submitted a representation highlighting their grievances. They stated that around 19,600 employees have been working on a contract basis under the SSA for nearly 20 years and lamented that even minimum wages were not being implemented. They expressed their disappointment over the lack of access to health cards and financial aid for employees' families in case of death.
They pointed out that during the last Assembly elections, Revanth Reddy, then PCC president, had promised to regularise their jobs and resolve their issues if the Congress came to power in state. However, even after coming to power, those promises remain unfulfilled. They expressed frustration that even after 28 days of their strike, no substantial steps have been taken, and the state government is merely stalling under the guise of discussions.
They urged the government to provide job security, implement pay scales in the interim, offer health insurance benefits of Rs10 lakhs and provide Rs 25 lakh in retirement benefits. Responding positively to their concerns, Bandi Sanjay extended his support to the protesting SSA employees. He assured them that pressure would be mounted on the state government until the promises it made to various sections of society, including SSA employees, during the elections were fulfilled. The minister highlighted that the Central government has consistently provided 60 per cent of the funds required for SSA programmes, but the state government has failed to release its share on time.
He urged the state government to recognise the challenges faced by poor students due to the SSA employees' strike and to act immediately to resolve the employees' legitimate demands and bring an end to the strike without further delay.
