Miners call off stir; major demands met

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, JUNE 21. About one lakh employees of the Singareni Collieries called off their 13-day-old strike today, after the Chief Minister, Mr. N. Chandrababu Naidu, intervened and helped in arriving at a settlement acceptable to the Joint Action Committee of unions. The employees will report for duty from the first shift on Friday.

Mr. Naidu himself announced the ``happy end'' accompanied by the Energy Minister, Mr. K. Subbarayudu, the Tourism Minister, Mr. E. Peddi Reddy, the collieries CMD, Mr. A. P. V. N. Sarma, and the elected representatives from the coal belt such as Mrs. C. Suguna Kumari, MP, Mr. M. Damodar Reddy and Mr. M. Narsaiah, both MLAs, while the JAC convener and general secretary of the majority and recognised union, the Singareni Collieries Workers' Union, asked the 1.06 lakh workers and employees to join duty tomorrow.

The union leaders, including Mr. B. Venkat Rao of INTUC, Mr. B. Bikshamaiah of IFTU and Mr. Riaz Ahmed of HMS profusely thanked the Chief Minister for the gesture.

As per the settlement, the management will pay 60 per cent of the arrears of the revised wages under National Coal Wage Agreement- VI, effective from July 1, 1996, by August 15 as against 75 per cent demanded by the JAC.

Those who retired or will be retiring before June 30 will get this payment by the end of August.

It will also pay 10 per cent of the Rs.85-crore profit earned for 2000-2001 as ``special incentive,'' working out to Rs. 8.33 crores, ``within 15 days'' while the Government will ``defer'' collection of the profession tax.

On the issue of employment for dependents of the deceased and medically invalidated staff, three options were given.

First, absorption at the rate of 25 persons a month into the vacancies existing as on December 31 last as against 50 jobs a month sought by the unions; second, lump sum one-time payment of Rs. 3 lakhs enabling the dependent to set up a self-employment venture, and third, continuing the ``monthly monetary compensation'' of Rs. 3,000, and arranging a loan of Rs. 1 lakh with the bank guarantee provided by the management for launching CMEY-type ventures.

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Section  : Southern States
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