SIVAGANGA
In protest against the district administration ‘neglecting their just demands’, the members of Tamil Nadu Grama Nirvaga Aluvalargal Sangam here said they would abstain from check post duty with immediate effect.
At a high-level meeting held in Devakottai on May 8, the association members had passed a number of resolutions and submitted a memorandum to their higher officials.
Speaking to reporters, sangam district president K. Krishnakumar and secretary R. Arulraj said that the VAOs were posted at check posts for seven continuous days. Hence, they were unable to execute their routine work. Several appeals to post them at the check posts on shifts, as was the case with police personnel, had been ignored by the district administration, they said.
Though the State government had announced that it would issue sufficient protective gears and sanitisers to the staff on COVID-19 duty, it was not implemented in Karaikudi revenue division. In spite of several representations to the Tahsildar and the Deputy Tahsildar in Karaikudi, their grievance was not redressed, Mr Arulraj said, and added that it was agreed to exempt the VAOs above 55 years from COVID-19 duties, but they were still posted in violation of guidelines.
They were also not provided proper shelter and could not take even four hours of rest, they alleged.
Instead of just posting the VAOs, the district administration could deploy staff from revenue wing also on COVID-19 duty and at check posts. In that case, there would not be so much strain on the VAOs and village assistants, the sangam office-bearers said.
They threatened to intensify the stir if the situation continued unaltered. Many associations across Tamil Nadu would join the stir, they added.