Bengaluru: Officers and staff of the BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) and 10 other city corporations across Karnataka will observe mass casual leave and stage a protest at Freedom Park on July 8, urging the government to address a list of long-standing demands.
The protest is being organized by the BBMP Officers and Employees Welfare Association and the Federation of Karnataka Urban Local Body Employees’ Associations, leaders announced at a preparatory meeting held at the BBMP Employees’ Bhavan.
Association president A. Amruth Raj stated that employees have submitted 12 major demands from BBMP and 6 key demands from other municipal corporations. “Due to excessive workload both in offices and in the field, we demand an end to the ‘loss of pay’ (LOP) system. Over 6,000 posts remain vacant and must be filled urgently,” he said.
Other demands include:
- Withdrawal of departmental inquiries against headmasters and senior educational staff
- Promotions for assistant and executive engineers
- Retention of the earlier rules for e-property registration
- Extension of state government employee health benefits to corporation staff
- Transfer of deputed officers back to their parent departments
- Finalisation of employee seniority lists
- Authority for health supervisors to issue commercial licenses
- Cancellation of illegally appointed marshals
- Implementation of 7th Pay Commission benefits, and regular sports meets for municipal staff
- Provision of KGID, GPF benefits, and rollout of the Arogya Sanjeevini health scheme
Amruth Raj said if the government fails to act on these justified demands, employees will intensify their agitation.
The protest has received full support from the Karnataka State Municipal, Town, and City Corporation Civic Workers’ Federation, as well as the BBMP Civic Sanitation Workers’ Federation.
Prominent leaders including K.G. Ravi, Saayi Shankar, S.G. Suresh, A.J. Babu, M.L.A. Manjunath, Rudresh, Santosh Kumar Nayak, Tippesh, Renukamba, K. Narasimha, Sridhar, H.B. Harish, and Market Manjunath participated in the preparatory meeting.
