Union Home Ministry, the nerve centre of country's internal security today witnessed a protest by over 200 contractual employees outside the office of a senior official over non-payment of dues.
As many as 204 employees stood outside the office of Joint Secretary (Administration) Bhagwan Shankar inside the ministry in support of their demand for release of wages.
The Home Ministry had hired the services of a private manpower firm -- Xecute Solutions -- in 2011 under which these 204 employees -- 99 data entry operators and 105 peons -- were provided.
Every month, the Ministry used to release Rs 18,43,239 from miscellaneous head of its budget towards meeting the wage bill of these employees.
As per the agreement, the Ministry paid Rs 9,876 for every data entry operator and Rs 8,243 for a peon to the company which in turn paid Rs 7,500 to operators and Rs 6,321 to peons, Shankar told reporters after pacifying the employees.
He said the ministry had conveyed to the service providing company in October last year that MHA's funds under miscellaneous head had exhausted and they would be able to pay the remaining dues only in 2013-14 fiscal.
However, in the wake of the agitation, the ministry immediately released the March 2013 salary with an assurance that the remaining wage would be released only by June this year.
