Diploma engineers hold protest march

Patiala, September 8

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The Council of Diploma Engineers, Punjab, held a state-level protest rally here today over the Punjab Government’s Sixth Pay Commission recommendations.

They said the government should revise pay scales as per their suggested multiplication factor and demanded re-implementation of the old pension scheme. Nearly 3,000 protestors gathered at the new grain market on the Patiala-Sirhind road. They also stopped at the PSPCL headquarters and submitted a memorandum to officials.

Sukhminder Singh Lovely, chairman of the council, said, “Engineers working in different departments, boards, corporations and institutions are perturbed over the recommendation of the Sixth Punjab Pay Commission according to which pay scales and allowances of the JE cadre has been lowered. Fixed travel allowance of 30 litres paid to JEs has also been withdrawn.”

“We want the government to provide the 3.1 multiplication factor in increment of pay and reduce probation period of new recruits,” protesters added. They also demanded enhancement in the initial pay of power JEs from existing Rs17,450 per month to Rs19770 per month from December 2011.—TNS