BHUBANESWAR : Even as hundreds of support staff under the Mission Shakti department on Monday staged a sit-in protest outside the Assembly over various demands, the Opposition BJD urged the state government to release their salaries.
Raising the issue during zero hour, Opposition chief whip Pramila Mallik criticised the state government for stopping the salary of about 60,000 women working as support staff in different women self-help groups (WSHGs) across the state.
“Former chief minister Naveen Patnaik had empowered around 70 lakh women in the state by bringing them under the umbrella of Mission Shakti but they are all now afraid that they might be terminated from their jobs,” Mallik said.
Manas Kumar Dutta (BJP), however, said the previous BJD government was responsible for the plight of the support staff under the Mission Shakti as it had not extended their service agreement which expired in April, 2024. Stating that the BJD was in government in April, Dutta alleged that the regional outfit is now misleading the agitating women.
In response, Dhruba Charan Sahoo (BJD) said the previous government could not extend the service of the Misson Shakti support staff as the model code of conduct was in force for the elections. He said the new government should extend their agreement and release salary.