Tirupati: Trade unions, Left parties demand succour to unorganised workers

Tirupati: Activists of CITU and AITUC trade unions, and left parties, staged protests in various places in the city on Tuesday demanding the government to take steps to provide succour to the unorganised sector employees, migrant labourers, agriculture labourers and farmers who were hit hard due to nationwide lockdown imposed to check spread of Covid-19.

AITUC district general secretary P Murali and CITU city president T Subramanyam said that the government failed to come to the rescue of unorganised sector employees, migrant laborers and also agriculture labourers who are suffering lot with no food and shelter due to the nationwide lockdown.

Demanding the government to make arrangements to ensure food and shelter to thousands of daily wage earners and migrant labourers, they pointed that in many towns they were languishing with no food and shelter. Murali demanded the government to provide monthly financial assistant of Rs 5,000 to each worker who lost lively hood and also arrange transport to the labourers including migrant labourers to return to their native places.

CITU leader Lakshmi led the protest at SVR Hospital, Building workers union leader Narayana at Jeevakona while AITUC and CITU leaders jointly led the protest at Municipal Corporation office. Meanwhile, CPI district secretary A Rama Naidu, Rythu Sangham district president T Janaradhan also participated in protest at CPI district office here demanding the government to take steps to procure all the agriculture produce, paddy, vegetables and flowers from the farmers and ensure them remunerative price.

Janaradhan said due to lock down, the farmers are unable to market their produce and hence are selling at cheaper rate incurring heavy losses. Vyavasay Coolila Sangham district secretary C Penchalaiah said only 90,000 are provided work under NREGS in the district while there are 5.5 lakh job card holders in Chittoor district.