GB works department employees lock down offices as protests continue for the third day
Gilgit/Astore/Ghanche/Hunza/Nagar: Temporarily employed workers of the Gilgit-Baltistan Public Works Department have been protesting for the past three days in all district headquarters. They have locked down their offices and stage sit-ins outside their offices, demanding regularization of services, i.e. permanent jobs.
According to our correspondents base in Astore, Ghanche, Huznza, Nagar and other district headquarters, the employees have refused to finish their protest until the demands are met. Negotiations between administration officials and the representatives of the employees have failed in different parts of the region.
While the government has promised to meet the demands and resolve the issues, the employees maintain that ‘hollow promises’ will not work; they want concrete response from the region’s government.
It is pertinent to note that the government is the biggest employer in the GB region, in the absence of industries and other trade opportunities. Many believe that the previous government has hired thousands of people in different departments for political reasons. There are reports that many people have been hired without creating posts, while on some posts multiple persons have been hired during the last government.
