Karnataka   

Meal scheme: workers oppose privatisation

DAVANGERE: The Karnataka Rajya Akshara Dasoha Bisioota Tayarakara Okkoota (midday meal workers’ federation) has demanded minimum wages on the lines of those given in Tamil Nadu, and opposed privatisation of the midday meal scheme.

Speaking to presspersons here on Sunday, president of the federation H.K. Ramachandrappa said that 1,06,000 poor women in the State had been working as chief cooks and assistants in different schools under the scheme, and that they were being given paltry salaries of Rs. 650 a month (for chief cooks) and Rs. 450 a month (for assistants).

Questioning the rationale behind such poor payments, Mr. Ramachandrappa said the Government itself had been violating the Minimum Wages Act.

The Tamil Nadu Government, which introduced the scheme 20 years ago, treated midday meal workers as part-time employees and they were being paid Rs. 2,000 a month. Apart from this, the workers were eligible for pension and other retirement benefits on a par with government employees.

The Karnataka Government should emulate Tamil Nadu, he said.

As most midday meal workers were women, it was high time the Government started giving post-delivery allowance to women, he said.

Women working in government offices and companies were given three months salary.

Such benefits should also be given to midday meal workers, he demanded.

Mr. Ramachandrappa said the federation opposed outsourcing the scheme to organisations such as the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), and other organisations being run by politicians. He alleged that these organisations had offered to implement the scheme only to get publicity.

Mr. Ramachandrappa said many women had been injured while cooking food for the children, but had not been compensated.

He said that they should be insured against such risks.

Midday meal workers would organise a “Bangalore Chalo” on March 15 to draw the attention of the Government to their demands.

A public meeting had been organised on that date in which leaders of the Communist parties such as Siddanagowda Patil, H.V. Ananthasubba Rao, M.C. Venkataramu and Murulidhar would participate, he said.

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