JK Cements staff without salary for six months

Srinagar, March 12: For the first time in 38 years, due to the collapse of production and revenue in Jammu and Kashmir cements Ltd, around 600 employees of the corporation are without salaries from last 6 months.
The corporation was once a profitable public sector undertaking in the State.
The insiders of the corporation appealed governor to intervene into the matter as early as possible so that hundreds of families are not adversely affected.
One of the employees of corporation told a local news gathering agency that their families are facing starvation as they have not been paid their salaries by the Management of this Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) for the last six months.
The corporation was once the only profitable public sector undertaking in the state.
“The current management has failed to release the salaries of the employees. Around 600 hundred poor employees including the laboures are without salaries from last six months, one of the insiders wishing anonymity said.
They further added that they approached the Managing Director Ishtiyaq Drabu many times, but he always responded by saying that the corporation has no funds for salaries. “We are without salaries from last six months. Managing Director hardly listens to our pleas” they added.
Another insider wishing anonymity said, “The employees are very worried and feel unsure about their future. Wrong policies wrong decisions, embezzlements are the reasons for its failure,” he alleged and added that the present Managing Director is enjoying his Jammu office and is not addressing the real problem of the plant.
The Insiders of the corporation appealed governor to intervene into the matter as early as possible so that thousands of families are not adversely affected.
JKCL has a monopoly on sale and supply of cement to government funded projects and departments. As per government orders, the state agencies have to give first preference to JKCL for purchase of cement.
The insiders further said that besides being without salaries for last six months “the CP fund of the employees has not been credited during past so many years. Similarly, the welfare fund contributed by the employees is pending for last three years due to which the retired employees have suffered badly,” they added.
“The employees find it difficult even to feed their families, pay the school fees of their kids and meet day to day medical expenses,” they added.
The further said that no interest is being shown by the management to run JKCL plant at Khrew which is not operating for last several months for want of raw material.
Despite repeated attempts, the Managing Director Ishtiyaq Drabu was not available for comments.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Kashmir Monitor staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)