Itahari, January 7:

The agitating workers of jute mills in Sunsari-Morang industrial corridor continued their protests today by disrupting vehicular movement in Sunsari and Morang districts. They have also shut down the Biratnagar Jogbani customs point indefinitely.

The protest has crippled day-to-day life in Sunsari and Morang districts. It is already difficult to get petroleum products while market prices of daily essentials have skyrocketed in Itahari, Dharan, Inaruwa and Duhabi among other areas.

The workers are demanding the implementation of the minimum daily wage of Rs 190 as announced by the government for workers in the industrial sectors. They have also been demanding the government to provide security for them and declare the industrial areas as power cuts free areas.

More than 20,000 workers of nine jute mills in the corridor have been staging protest for the last two weeks.

“Despite our continuous protest, the government and jute entrepreneurs have remained indifferent to our demands,” president of the Sunsari-Morang joint struggle committee Ganesh Adhikari said.

The workers have also disrupted day-to-day business in Biratnagar Jogbani customs point, one of the busiest in the country.

President of the Nepal Jute Industries’ Association Rajkumar Golchha said the workers’ agitation was not bearing any fruit but only incurring a daily loss of Rs 20 million in jute industries . He also urged the workers to return to their duties.

Golchha said jute industries were ready to offer the minimum daily wage to the workers as announced by the government only if the government offered some compensation to them on electricity and other sectors.

Rights body urges govt to hold talks

Kathmandu: The National Human Rights Commission today called on the government and the agitating workers of the jute mills in Morang and Sunsari to solve the current crisis through dialogue. Demanding the rise in minimum wages fixed by the government, the agitating workers have called bandh in the transport and market and even in the Biratnagar customs.

“This has created difficulty in the public life and now there is an urgent need to hold talks in order to resolve the problem through dialogue,” he added. The rights body also called the government to solve the problem by addressing the demand of the workers. — HNS