Report by Kamgar Ekta Committee (KEC) correspondent
Haryana stat government employees have been agitating for last many months for their demand of the restoration of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS).
To intensify their struggle, on 19th Feb thousands of current and retired employees of from all over the state gathered at Panchkula, near Chandigarh and started their march towards the residence of the state Chief Minister in Chandigarh.
They overcame the barriers put up by the Panchkula police. After that they were stopped at the Panchkula – Chandigarh border by barricades put up by hundreds of policemen. When the militant employees refused to relent police fired many rounds of tear gas shells, used water cannons and lathi charged them.
Employees are angry since the state government is refusing any discussion on the issue even though the state governments of Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Punjab have declared the restoration of OPS.
Due to the militant action by Haryana workers the state government has relented and have hurriedly put together a committee of state government secretaries, and when the news last came in, the workers’ representatives have been invited for discussion. (State government letter enclosed.)
