AAP supremo announces 7 guarantees for govt staff
With days to go for the Assembly elections, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday announced seven guarantees, including a job portal, staff hostels, legal protections on wages and working hours and access to essential welfare schemes, for staff working with government officers, MPs and ministers.
Under this, employees will get life and health insurance, marriage assistance for daughters and scholarships for children.
The AAP chief also vowed that AAP MPs would push for Central Government action, ensuring comprehensive reforms for this workforce.
“In several government residences, people working there are referred to as ‘servants’ (staff) and they face several problems. Whenever a government officer, MP or minister is allotted a bungalow, it comes with a ‘servant’ (staff) quarter. These quarters house the people who work in their homes,” Kejriwal said.
The guarantees are aimed at the staffers who mostly reside in the New Delhi Assembly seat.
He alleged that around 70-80 per cent of the workers are not paid salaries. Some MPs and ministers even rent out servant quarters in the official bungalows.
He said when an MP’s term expires or an officer is transferred, the staff working there become homeless.
“Their lives have no stability, and when they are forced onto the streets, the future of their children is also in jeopardy. Where will they live? What will happen to them? These are serious concerns,” said Kejriwal.
Among the seven guarantees, the first one is servant/staff registration portal. It will function when a staff member is let go, and a new employer needs to hire someone.
“This portal will serve as a database where those seeking employment can register, making it easier to match them with new employers. This will help resolve many problems,” the former Delhi Chief Minister said.
Second, a government personal servant/staff card similar to that of a labour card with akin benefits. Third, staff hostels would be made. Fourth, EWS houses of the Delhi government would be made available to them.
Fifth, mobile mohalla clinics will be made for them. Sixth, regulations regarding working hours, salaries and working conditions will also be established. Last, benefits recently announced for auto drivers, e-rickshaw drivers and taxi drivers — Rs 10 lakh life insurance, Rs 5 lakh health insurance, Rs 1 lakh financial assistance for a daughter’s wedding, and scholarships for children’s education — will also be extended to servants/staff.
The AAP supremo said MPs Sanjay Singh and Raghav Chadha would strongly raise the concerns of government staff in the Parliament and discuss the matter with the Centre.
Meanwhile, Sanjay Singh said the issue was raised in an all-party meeting, but no action was taken.
“With the Parliament session about to begin, every AAP MP will raise this matter with full force. I assure you of our complete commitment on behalf of Arvind Kejriwal and AAP,” he said.
