Mid-Day Meal workers express resentment over unpaid salaries in Jammu
Aman Zutshi
Jammu: Several Mid-Day Meal (MDM) workers of Govt Girls Middle school in Jammu on Monday, who are among the lowest paid in the J&K UT, have expressed resentment over unpaid salary for a year and also demanded higher honorarium.
The workers, mainly women, who are getting a monthly honorarium of Rs 900/month since their recruitment also said the local authorities to increase the amount as surviving on a meagre amount is impossible, especially with prices of everything shooting up.
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“We’re perturbed as we have not been given our monthly honorarium since a year. We leave our chores and come here to cook food for these kids.
“Why should we work here if we don’t get our salaries here. Nobody from the education department come here to ask our woes.
“We are just coming to the school doing our job and leaving. We want govt to pay us our wages on monthly basis.
“The govt has increased wages of Anganwadi workers but why they’re not hiking ours. We have been getting Rs 900/month which is very difficult for our survival, said Zareena Khatoon, one of the perturbed midday meal worker.
“I have been working as midday worker in this school since a year and I haven’t got my salary yet.
“We just want the local regime to pay our wages on time as it takes hard work to prepare food for 200-300 kids in this scorching heat.
“The govt atleast should pay us for our hard labour. The ZEO sir should come here to listen our woes”, added Monika, another midday meal worker.
“In 2012 the govt increased our salaries to Rs 900 per month after that the administration having been ignoring us.
“The govt has increased wages of employees working in other department but this is not the case with us. We request to PM Modi to raise our wages as we consider the school children like our kids.
“We will not prepare food for children if the govt didn’t raise our wages”, said Shama Praveen, one of the midday meal workers.
 workers of a govt school in Jammu on Monday, who are among the lowest paid in the state, have expressed resentment over unpaid salary for a year and also demanded higher honorarium.){kind=link}