IMPHAL, August 19: Even though the Manipur Pollution Control Board (MPCB) is being considered as one of the vital departments, employees of the Dept have been kept in a pitiable condition.
According to reports received by the IFP, a report has been sent to the state Chief Secretary demanding release of dues of five months` salaries.
The written report was handed over officially by the Manipur Pollution Control Board Employees Association to the Chief Secretary and a copy of the same report was also submitted to Deputy Secretary (Forest and Environment).
It is also said that another copy of the report was again submitted to Thoudam Devendra Singh, Minister (Forest and Environment, Law) who is also the chairman of the board on August 3 last.
The report was sent urging the minister to release the due salaries of five months.
Since there has been no positive response given afterwards the report was submitted so far, a representative of the association had met with the minister.
To the representative’s surprise, the minister had said that he could not find the submitted report and that it must be lying somewhere in his bag.
Infuriated at the response of the minister, the employees of the board submitted the report to the Chief Secretary today again.
Notably, the annual budget amount of the board was earmarked at Rs 2 crores in the Financial Year 2010-11. However, the board had failed to initiate any substantial works even after the allocation of the budget and the same condition has been going on for the last three/four years.
Following the inaction of the board, the annual budget of the department was reduced to Rs 1.20 crores. Forget about developmental works to be taken up in the board, the sanctioned annual budget amount was even not enough for salaries to be given away to regular and contract employees of the Dept, informed the source.
Already caught in a limbo over the shortage of salaries, the problem of the employees of the board could only aggravate further as the salary of the Chief Conservator of Forest (Environment Eco Tourism & FEA) K Jagadishwor who is also the Drawing & Disbursing Officer (DDO) as the member secretary of the board has been withdrawing his salary from the Forest Department.
The employees of the board termed the action of the board’s chairman, member secretary and the government as an attempt to defunct the Manipur Pollution Control Board.