MD of JKTDC assures release of long-standing COLA arrears

MD of JKTDC assures release of long-standing COLA arrears

Deserving employees in great distress after being sidetracked post-retirement

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Srinagar, 25 Nov: The Managing Director of Jammu and Kashmir Tourism Corporation (JKTDC) has displayed great possibility of replenishing the long-standing demand of retired JKTDC employees to take their halted dues. This matter of stagnation of their COLA ­arrears has been older than a decade.

Due to the constant economy of unrest and uncertainty prevailing in the valley, most retired employees have gone through greater hardships. Even pre-COVID-19 times, the deal was always on board. Therefore, over the course of many years, these former employees surmounting a huge group of octogenarians has even occasionally sat bare feet in protests to seek what is their right to seek. Unlike, the adrift lifestyles like the employees and workmen of various economic sectors of the UT of Jammu and Kashmir, most of the corporations poignantly JKTDC has taken naive aisles of developments. Showing fragile stand on being a profound contributor to the overall GDP of the erstwhile state. Apparently, the whole of the tourism department of Kashmir is consolidated to constitute a miniature of 6%, out of the entire numbers of UT’s GDP.

What are the demands of these retired employees in actuality?

All the retired employees from 2008 till 2021 are yet to take their remaining dues in the form of COLA arrears. During this entire time of 13 years, a dismaying number of people have even lost their lives. Ergo, Dante refers it as justice delayed on the part of sufferer’s time in life. Eventually, due to the concomitant era of hiatuses, Tourism alongside a quintessential digit of sub-sectors has restrained to run usually. On the part of this pivotal sector employee’s version of stories, they say their requests have always been sabotaged with diplomatically designed promises. In conversation with a body of journalists, some of the retired employees gleaned that they were desperately vying for their voices to be heard in chaos. One of the ex-employees of JKTDC employee revealed, “COLA arrears of 2007, 2008 and 2009 were issued back 13 years prior today, but we never received them. We are more than 400 retired JKTDC employees accustomed to get leveraged by these arrears. However, we are suffering, and such has been a pervasive scenario since post-2008. Some of our colleagues also passed away while waiting for their part of arrears to be released someday. Our issue was always swept under the rug. Our repeated requests and protests have flunked to restore the justice in our face.” 

He further expected that the Corporation would consider their concern. He said, “the arrears are due in our favor and somehow we need them much essentially in our old age. Certainly, we expect JKTDC to release the funds ASAP.” 

Another retired employee, while narrating his part of the sad and painful saga, said, “After 2009, DA was given to all employees. It’s questionable why a comparatively small amount; the sum of below one crore rupees, is yet to be granted in our favour since the last decade.”

He also said, “Our colleagues have been living a life out of penury and misery. Some of them lost their lives only because of their inapt financial ability to procure a quality medical treatment.” 

Earlier in March 2021, a group of retired employees staged a protest in press enclave Srinagar demanding the clearance of their pending dues while requesting Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to grant funds to the Corporation. Prior to this event, the High Court also had directed the Corporation management and ministry to consider its retired employees’ genuine demands. The court’s directions were clear for the JKTDC administration to make all the withheld payments of all of these retired JKTDC employees.

Analogous, to overcome this freckle of problems expanding on the wall of the reputation of JKTDC, the current Managing Director of the tourism corporation of Kashmir, Mr. Syed. F. Hamid assured that the Corporation would soon come up with a resolution to this long pertaining matter. The MD displayed a vibrant layer of optimism and admitted that the arrears would be given to all the deserving retired employees in installments. While talking to the desk of journalists, Private Secretary Mr. Mohi Ud Din conveyed that the total pending dues of employees are ₹9.20 Crores, while in this year so far the amount of ₹3.80 crores has been released in their favor. He said, “out of our revenue generated, we will be reserving about 20-25 percent of funds for the clearance of pending dues on a priority basis from next month. And, we hope that solves the problems of all of those suffering and retired employees.” (The Lalteen)