Seeking relief and effective utilisation of the funds available with the Construction Workers’ Welfare Board, scores of construction workers staged an online protest on Saturday.
The protest was held in response to the call given by the Karnataka Rajya Samyukta Karmika Sangha affiliated to the All-India United Trade Union Centre (AIUTUC) to highlight the poor state of the construction workers and to seek fulfilment of their demands.
Scores of construction workers took part in the online protest holding placards and pamphlets seeking relief.
Speaking during the protest, president of the Dharwad district committee Gangadhar Badiger said that because of the pandemic many poor families of construction workers had been forced to come on the street and thousands among the workers had become victims of the pandemic. In Karnataka, there were funds to the tune of ₹8,500 crore with the Construction Workers’ Welfare Board and steps should be taken to utilise the same for the welfare of the construction workers.
He demanded that immediately all the construction workers should be given a monthly relief of ₹10,000 for three months and this apart construction workers who did not get any relief during the first wave of the pandemic should be given a compensation of ₹1 lakh immediately apart from providing free treatment and vaccine to the workers and their family members.
Mr. Gangadhar also demanded that a compensation of ₹10 lakh should be announced for those registered members who died of COVID-19 and ₹5 lakh to unregistered workers.
District secretary Ramesh Hosamani emphasised the need for construction workers to get united to fight for their rights.
Other office-bearers, including Ningamma Huded, Ravi Kittur, Dyamannava Chaluvadi, Iranna Itagi Rafiq Kanaki, and others, took part in the online protest from their homes.