Kejriwal's take on contractual workers is baseless, says BJP

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s take on municipal corporations’ contractual employees is baseless, said Leader of the House of South Delhi Municipal Corporation Subhash Arya on Friday.

Contractual employees are given cash payment of Rs 4,000 whereas they are made to sign against the payment of Rs 12,000, Kejriwal had said in the Assembly on Thursday.

But Arya said the contractual employees of group ‘B’ and ‘C’ do not get their salaries in cash or cheque. Rather, the amount is transferred to their accounts through Electronic Clearing Service (ECS) system. “So there is no question of making them sign on inflated pay checks,” he said.

Arya demanded that contractual employees of the three corporations must be regularised immediately or the civic bodies be given the powers to do so by making the necessary amendments in the rules.

“The corporations do not have the powers to recruit employees of categories B and C. The power to recruit the employees of these two groups now vests with Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board (DSSSB),” he said.

“Due to this provision, there is a shortage of about 400 junior engineers, 9,000 school teachers and other technical staff in various departments of the three municipal corporations. The corporations then resorted to recruiting employees on contract basis,” he added.

Old demand

The corporations have been demanding regularisation of contractual employees for many years, he added. “Since the corporations don’t have the power to regularise the contractual employees, they are dependent on the Delhi government for it.”

Arya added that a list of doctors and junior engineers is sent to Union Public Service Commission and DSSSB but due to attractive pay packages in private sector, they do not join the services in corporations.

“Their pay scale be increased accordingly,” Arya said.

He added that a proposal to make amendment in Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957 to regularise the contractual employees of group ‘D’ was also sent to the city government but till now no action has been taken.