MORE than five thousand workers, under the banner of MNREGA Mazdoor Union Punjab (affiliated to CITU), marched to the office of the Punjab rural development and panchayats department director in Mohali on September 23, and organised an impressive dharna against the government’s move to weaken the rural job scheme. The workers raised anti-government slogans and warned against any move to dilute the scheme. More than 3,000 women MNREGA workers participated in the dharna and demonstration. Some jathas were accompanied by drum beating squads. It was for the first time that MNREGA workers organised a massive state-level dharna in support of their demands. The dharna was addressed by CITU Punjab general secretary Raghunath Singh, president Vijay Misra, vice president Chander Shekhar and former MLA Tarsem Jodhan. The speakers branded the Modi government at the Centre and the Badal government in the state as anti-people. They said under pressure from big capitalists and landlords, the Modi and Badal governments are planning to weaken MNREGA through a deep rooted conspiracy. The speakers slammed Union rural development minister Nitin Gadkari for his statement advocating changes in MNREGA i.e. to convert it into a scheme, to change the present ratio of 60:40 of wage sharing between the Centre and the state and to limit MNREGA only to tribal- and poverty-dominated areas. Raghunath Singh said the statement of Gadkari has very well established the fact that the Modi government is determined to please the corporate houses and landlords and to sacrifice the interest of crores of workers who have got employment opportunities under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Gurantee Act (MNREGA). They said the workers will give befitting reply to Modi’s designs by organising joint agitations all over the country. Addressing the dharna, Chander Shekhar warned the government that if the just and genuine demands of MNREGA workers are not accepted immediately, CITU will launch statewide agitation in Punjab. The mass dharna passed resolutions against illegal contract labour system and in support of demands of MNREGA workers, TET-qualified unemployed teachers, rural health employees and pharmacists working in rural veterinary dispensaries. The director of rural development and panchayats department was asked to receive the Charter of Demands at the dharna, but he declined. But when an ultimatum was given that the workers will be forced to enter the office building then deputy director Mohinder Singh came to the dharna venue and received the Charter of Demands. While receiving the Charter of Demands, he announced that an amount of Rs 45 crore will be sent within 10 days. The deputy directors assured the workers to look into their demands. The workers’ demands also included ensuring of payment of 100 full days’ wages or unemployment allowance equal to that; implementation of the new rate of wages (Rs 258.34 per day) from March 1, 2014 as notified by the Punjab government; issuance of job cards to needy workers; fixing 10 per cent increase in the wages of workers who had to work beyond five kilometres from the village; stopping use of JCB machines under MANREGA work and removing interference of contractors; ensuring government expenditures on treatment of workers who are injured while working under MANREGA; and revising minimum wages of MNREGA workers to Rs 500 per day as recommended by the 44th and 45th India Labour Conferences.