T’puram: Labour minister V Sivankutty registered strong protest against the alleged human rights violations faced by workers in the north Indian states. “I am expressing Kerala’s strong protest against the shocking human rights violations faced by millions of workers in the north Indian states, especially in the Delhi-NCR. The issues pointed out in the letter sent by CPM general secretary M A Baby to the Prime Minister are extremely serious. Workers there are not striking for decent wages or better service conditions, but for the right to live,” Sivankutty said in a statement. He said that inflation and the shortage of cooking gas have made life hellish for ordinary people. “With the meagre minimum wages currently in place in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana, it is impossible for a family to live with dignity in today’s times. Therefore, we demand that the minimum wage in the Delhi-NCR be standardized to Rs 26,000 per month. The Kerala model of implementing minimum wages in 85 employment sectors stands as an example for the central govt and other states,” Sivankutty added. The most unfortunate thing is that instead of listening to the workers’ legitimate demands, the govts of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana are confronting them with brutal police repression, he said. Viewing democratic protests as law-and-order issue and imprisoning labour leaders on false charges is unacceptable, he said and added the administration there did not even agree to meet the delegation of MPs who visited Noida, which is arrogance, the minister said. “The central govt must be ready to withdraw the new labour codes that infringe on workers’ rights. We demand that the Prime Minister urgently intervene in this matter, release the arrested workers, and provide migrant workers with cooking gas at subsidized rates. I declare Kerala’s full support in this struggle against policies that are anti-worker,” Sivankutty said.
