K'pong GTA casual employees join TMC

The entire GTA pay band workers, around 800 of them, joined the TMC (Hills). 

REZA PRADHAN, SNS, DARJEELING, 7 NOVEMBER 2020 : The Kalimpong chapter of the United Employee Association (UEA), consisting of pay band employees of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA), today claimed that around 800 of them from their unit joined the Trinamul Congress (Hills).

The development comes as a surprise with the UEA central committee, a frontal organisation of the Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha (Binoy Tamang camp) announcing on 2 November that it was remaining independent entity. However, the Kurseong unit had then decided to stay on with the Tamang camp.

Addressing a joining function at the Marwari Bhawan in Kalimpong, the district UEA president, KC Rai said, The entire GTA pay band workers, around 800 of them, joined the TMC (Hills). They have been employees since 1988 when the DGHC was there, with the GTA formed later on. We have been taking up our demand for regulerisation since then, but everyone turned a deaf car."

"We should have done this earlier and gone with those who would have met our demand. We became sentimental and waited and became frontal organisations of different political parties, which were also in alliance with the TMC, but they never worked on our case," he said.

The UEA, which was earlier called the Asthayi Karmachari Sangathan, was affiliated to the Bimal Gurung camp of the Morcha, but it was reconstituted around 2017 and decided to stay independent, while it later got affiliation from the Tamang camp. There are around 4,900 such workers, with most of them getting appointment during the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council.

Observers were of the opinion that this decision of the UEA could be due to the political equation in the Hills being unpredictable after the Gurung camp also pledging allegiance to the TMC.

"They tried to stop us from joining the TMC, which proves that we are a factor and they are desperate. But this is a democracy, and moreover, we are joining their main party, so we cannot be stopped. After a few days, the Darjeeling unit will also join the "TMC," said Mr Rai. He, however, did not want to disclose as to who tried to stop them.

According to TMC leader Shanta Chettri, who is also a Rajya Sabha MP the organization unit joined the party by looking at the work being done by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

She said that they would take up their demand both politically and administratively with all departments of the GTA under the Hill Affairs department. The MP also said that more such joining programmes will be held in Mirik and Darjeeling soon.

When contacted, UEA president Anil Rai said he cannot comment much as their units are doing whatever they want as for now. "As for us, we are still independent, but we will have a meeting soon and discuss and see under what conditions they have joined the TMC after which we will decide on our further course of action," he said.

Meanwhile, Morcha leader Binoy Tamang said they will be holding a meeting of the UEA in Kurseong on Monday where the matter will be discussed. "We appeal to all of their units from Kalimpong, Darjeeling, Mirik and Kurseong to attend the meeting," he said.

"The CM has said that an official meeting will be called for that. We would like to say that we are concerned about their issues and we promise that we will fulfill their demands," he said.

(Courtesy & source -The Statesman- https://epaper.thestatesman.com/2883406/Siliguri-The-Statesman/8TH-NOVEMBER-2020#page/3/1)