Stir intensifies as contract workers lock main gate at NMDC plants

Protests by contract workers at the NMDC pellet plant and beneficiation plant in Donimalai of Ballari intensified on Thursday as members of the Joint Mine Workers Union, affiliated to the All India United Trade Union Centre (AIUTUC), locked the main gate of the facility at 4 a.m. preventing the entry of permanent employees, contract workers and vehicles.

More than 500 workers participated in the blockade demanding that all recently terminated contract workers be reinstated immediately.

Ballari MP E. Tukaram extended support to the protestors and joined the agitation at the gate. He urged the NMDC management to promptly take back the workers who lost their jobs, as the contractor’s tender period ended earlier this month.

Addressing the gathering, union working president K. Devadas said that the workers have been without work for 10 days and accused the NMDC management of shifting responsibility to the incoming contractor.

“The NMDC, a Union government enterprise, is neither showing commitment to restarting the plant nor clarifying whether existing workers will be retained. It is painful that workers who have worked day and night for eight-10 years are being treated this way,” he said and warned of an intensified protest if workers are not reinstated before operations resume under the new contractor.

AITUC district vice-president K. Somashekhara Gowda, union secretary Pramod, treasurer Suresh and several other leaders, including Huligesh, Manjunath, Santosh Kumar, Rajappa and Huliappa, joined the protest.

On Monday, the workers staged a protest in front of the NMDC administrative office and submitted a memorandum to the Executive Director and Project Manager of the pellet plant.

They also petitioned the Deputy Commissioner through the Tahsildar seeking immediate intervention.

Addressing the earlier protest, AITUC State president K.K. Somashekar had said that after the contractor’s tender expired on November 18, the jobs of contract workers at both the pellet and beneficiation plants were abruptly discontinued.

“NMDC, being the principal employer, has not ensured job security. It is asking workers to wait until the next contractor takes over, without giving any assurance of continued employment. Hundreds of families have been pushed to the streets,” he had said.

He had demanded that NMDC instruct the new contractor to take over operations at the earliest and absorb all existing workers and insisted that until new arrangements are made, the existing workers must be paid minimum wages, PF and all other statutory benefits.