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In response to the government's discriminatory policies, the Secretariat Employees Association held a rally in Muzaffarabad, a city in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
The association closed the offices, demanding an increase in the salary of the contract employees. While addressing the employees, the opposition leader of the PoK assembly, Khawaja Farooq Ahmed, said that the members of the assembly and ministers of the government are helpless in front of the current Prime Minister, Chaudhary Anwar-ul-Haq. "Here, even assembly sessions are not held regularly. School fees, electricity bills and gas bills have become a very big issue here. Where will people go if you deduct 15,000 from their 30,000 salary?" said Khawaja Farooq Ahmed. Members of the Secretariat Employees Association are also annoyed over the fact that employees in PoK are not being promoted to permanent positions. The employees claim that they only receive half of the allowance as compared to the other provinces across Pakistan. According to reports, the secretary allowance in all four provinces has been increased from 50 per cent to 100 percent. But still, the employees in PoK are being given a 50 per cent allowance. The people in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir are living a tough life with growing insecurity among all sections of society. Those who are working in government offices are victims of discrimination, which indicates the mistreatment of people in PoK by Islamabad. For instance, the employees of the Maternal Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) programme are also protesting against the regional government's decision to terminate the program without payment of salaries. The protesters are demonstrating in front of official buildings in the Chattar neighbourhood of the city. A large number of protesters include women who have travelled from different parts of PoK to attend the demonstration in Muzaffarabad. According to reports, these employees were inducted into the federal government-funded MNCH programme in PoK 16, 17 years ago. However, the PoK government has failed to fulfill its commitment to shifting these positions to its normal budget. (ANI)
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