The PWD Minister for the State of Goa, Deepak Pauskar has announced earlier this week that the contract labor system in the Public Works Department will be done away with, owing to the fact that the State Government has done its part by absorbing all the contract workers under the PWD society, thus imposing a duty on the workers to make enhancement in the water supply mechanisms to the public at large.
Pauskar handed over offer letters to about 325 contract workers belonging to the PWD at Ponda through a function organized at the Opa-Khandepar water treatment plant. The Art & Culture Minister Govind Gaude, Goa Housing Board Chairman and Shiroda MLA Subhash Shirodkar, PWD Principal Chief Engineer Uttam Parsekar amongst others were present at the said function. Stating that the said contract workers have finally got their rights after serving people tirelessly for about 10 years, Pauskar stated that the workers have now been fully absorbed under the PWD’s society and further informed that the network laying work will start only after setting up of the Sewerage Treatment Plant (STP).
Minister Govind Gaude while commenting on the development, urged workers to earnestly do their duty as water supply comes under the garb of essential services in the State and thus the PWD workers in the water department have to be alert and on their toes all the time. While MLA Subhash Shirodkar said that he is happy with the overall decision of the State, he also mentioned that about 165 workers from his constituency have been absorbed, thanks to this move.
Additionally, PCE Uttam Parsekar, while shedding light on the incorporation on the contract workers in the PWD Society, stated that, the Government has made this decision of enrolling 1185 contract workers under categories of skilled, unskilled, semi-skilled workers and drivers with minimum wages as permissible under the Government notification and that, after 8 years of service, these workers would be entitled to Government pay scale and other connected amenities.
