PWD contractors to provide JCBs for snow-clearing ops

Shimla, February 6

The Public Works Department (PWD) contractors have agreed to provide machinery for snow clearance but remained adamant on going on strike from tomorrow across the state.

The president of the State Contractors Welfare Association Satish Vij said it has been decided to provide JCB machines for snow clearance to the government to save the public from facing inconvenience. “As decided by the executive members along with the C and D Class Contractors’ Association, we have decided to cooperate with the government on humanitarian grounds as life has been paralysed due to snow in many parts and snow clearance is an emergency,” said Vij.

Adamant to go on statewide strike

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Our strike for stoppage of works and boycott of all tenders and negotiations will remain as planned till our issues are resolved. Satish Vij, State contractors’ welfare assn

The association had decided to provide machines on the request of Urban Development Minister Suresh Bhardwaj and the Engineer-in-Chief but the decision to go on compete strike from tomorrow remains. “Our strike for stoppage of works and boycott of all tenders and negotiations shall remain as planned earlier till our issues are resolved,” he said.

The PWD contractors association had earlier warned the government that they would resort to a statewide complete strike from February 7 to 22. During this period they had threatened not to provide machinery for snow clearance work and boycott all tenders and negotiations. They had stated that despite repeated requests, problems are being faced by them in transporting mined material from one place to another in the absence of transit forms. —