PPFA demands outstanding payment to NRC temporary workers

Payment to NRC temporary workers

PPFA

Guwahati: Patriotic People’s Front Assam (PPFA), while expressing
concern over the disturbing news related to uptation process of
National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam demands that the
concerned authorities should pay the outstanding amount of money to
around six thousand data entry operators (DEO) as early as possible.
The forum of nationalist citizens also argues that for anybody’s greed
those DEOs must not be deprived of their legal dues.

The forum strongly believes that the draft Assam NRC should be
reverified as the immediate past NRC State coordinator Hitesh Devsarma
publicly stated that it consists of millions of illegal citizens.
Moreover, in two separate official complaints, Devsarma alleged that a
faulty software was used in the process and a huge financial scam (to
the tune of Rupees 155 crore) had taken place, which is indicated in
the account general’s interim report.

The NRC authority spent a sum of Rs 1600 crore in the four-year long
process, where a large number of temporary workers (along with nearly
50,000 government employees) were also engaged as DEOs. The system
integrator (Wipro Limited) had the responsibility to supply DEOs, but
it allegedly engaged sub-contractors, where some media persons were
also involved. Wipro was paid around Rs 14,500 (to 17,500) per month
per DEO, but it provided only Rs 5,500 (to 9,100) accordingly.

“It is unfortunate that the DEOs were denied even the least amount as
per our country’s basic minimum wage. The DEOs, some of whom
approached the State labour commissioner, and many came to the street
demanding their dues, are still deprived of their full payments (which
may be Rs 100 crore in total),” said a PPFA statement adding that
there is speculation about the involvement of three Guwahati-based
television journalists in the financial irregularities.

11-10-2022

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