VELLORE: As part of a statewide protest, government employees under the banner of the Tamil Nadu Government Employees' Association (TNGEA) staged a protest in front of the district collectorate on Thursday morning, raising 12 demands, including the restoration of the old pension scheme.
Around 200 government staff, including 50 women, who participated in the protest were arrested, and detained in a nearby wedding hall by the police. They were released later around 5:30 pm, sources said.
The protest, which was presided over by TNGEA (Vellore) president TT Joshi and led by secretary MS Dhinadhayalan and treasurer Sumathi, also saw the participation of Joint Action Council of Tamil Nadu Teachers Organisations and the Government Employees Organisation (JATCO-GEO) members.
The protesting staff urged the government to scrap the contributory pension scheme and restore the old pension scheme. Additionally, they demanded the government to fill the existing vacancies and regularise the 41-month dismissal period of highway workers. Other demands included continuing the compassionate appointments at 25% and introducing special government schemes for women employees.
"The government should also be 'model employers' and ban consolidated pay, contract pay, outsourcing and ensure time-scale wages for all. Despite repeated protests, no action has been taken. The DMK government had in fact mentioned in its manifesto that they would restore the old pension system, but they failed to keep the promise," said SN Janardhanan, high level committee member, JATCO-GEO.