Chennai: DMK working president M.K. Stalin on Friday urged the state government to pay the monthly salary for the protesting staff of Annamalai University, besides fulfilling their other demands.
Though, over 12,500 workers of Chidambaram Annamalai University are holding protests for the last five days demanding their monthly salary, Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam and higher education minister K.P. Anbalagan are ignoring the agitations. The delay in their salary had severely affected their family and ruined their peace in the new year.
The AIADMK government took over the administration of the university through a special Act on September 25, 2013. The salary benefits of the staff had been affected since the day of government take over of the university, Stalin said.
Dearness Allowance had not been paid from January 2012, leave encashment had not been given for the last four years and pension benefits had not been given to the retired staff, Stalin said. Even the Pongal bonus had not been paid given to the employees, he added.
There are allegations that the state government is showing a step-motherly attitude to the Annamalai University staff. Stalin said he had sent former minister M.R.K. Panneerselvam to meet the protesting employees, console them and support their demands. The Chief Minister should call the protesting workers for negotiations and fulfil their demands.
He recalled that the university moulded the great leaders of the Dravidian movement and said the December salary should be immediately disbursed. The government should not allow the situation of teachers and other education staff resorting to continuous agitations, besides creating a conducive atmosphere for the staff to return to their works, Stalin said.
