The Hindu : Two instalments of dole by March: Antony

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Feb 04, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

Two instalments of dole by March: Antony

By Our Special Correspondent

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, FEB. 3. Two instalments of farm workers' pension and unemployment dole would be released before March-end, the Chief Minister, A.K. Antony, announced in the Assembly today. He made the promise while intervening in the Labour Minister, Babu Divakaran's response to a calling attention motion on the subject.

Earlier, Mr. Divakaran said in response to the calling attention motion by N. Rajan (CPI) that the Government had released as much as Rs. 37 crores during the current year to provide assistance to farm workers under various schemes. The only head under which payments had fallen in arrears was that relating to farm workers who had remained members of the agricultural workers' welfare fund for three years and sought the minimum assistance of Rs. 5,000. The number of such persons ran into lakhs and the arrears had touched Rs. 57 crores. The Government was in a quandary as to how to tackle the problem, he admitted.

Cases against Maudany

The Chief Minister, A. K. Antony, told V.K. Ibrahim Kunhu (IUML) that the Government would take steps to expedite trial in all the 32 cases registered against Abdul Nasir Maudany. The trial in all the cases would be held in the same court, he said.

Mr. Antony said the Government had limitations in interfering with the cases pending in Tamil Nadu against Maudany in connection with the Coimbatore bomb blasts. However, the Government would request the Tamil Nadu Government to provide proper care to Maudany. He had forwarded to the Tamil Nadu Government a memorandum from Maudany's wife seeking bail for her husband with the request that her pleas be considered favourably, the Chief Minister said.

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