More than 400 members of the BBMP Computer Operators’ Association held a protest in front of the BBMP head office on Tuesday demanding the immediate release of their pending payment.
The BBMP has outsourced the work of computer operators in its offices across the city to Keonics, which distributed the work among various private agencies, which, in turn, had deployed around 600 persons for the job.
The protesters, who also submitted a memorandum to BBMP Additional Commissioner (Administration) N. Jayaram, said most of them had not been paid for over four months now.
Association president Tanujakshi K.M. said: “We do all the work, from managing the database to census data collection, but we never received our salaries on time.” Though Ms. Tanujakshi said most of the computer operators had not received salaries for four months, the exact time frame differs from one private agency to another. Prashanthlakshmi, who has been a computer operator at the civic body’s Konanakunte Help Centre since October 2011, said her employers — a private agency — blame the BBMP for the delay in payment. “Each time we ask our employers for our salaries, they tell us that the BBMP officials have not sent them the cheque.”
Pushpalatha, who works at BBMP’s Rudrahalli Help Centre, said she hasn’t been paid in seven months.
The agitators urged the BBMP Additional Commissioner to call for a meeting with the private agencies and association representatives for discussions within the next fortnight.
