Imphal, January 30: Irked with the failure of the Government to pay bills and provide indent in time for contractors engaged in constructing Individual Adult Rearing House (IARH) of the Manipur Sericulture Project, the District Council Sericulture Contractors' and Sub-Contractors' Association has threatened to launch democratic forms of agitation from February 10 .

Speaking to reporters at Manipur Press Club here today, secretary of the contractors' association M Bijoy Meitei informed that contractors and sub-contractors of the association were entrusted to construct 4000 IARH in all the nine districts of the State.

Subsequently, the contractors took up the construction since 2004 .

Even as all the 4000 IARH were scheduled to complete by the current year, only 2700 IARH have been constructed so far.

Of the total liability of Rs 12.15 crores for construction of these 2700 IARH, only 25 per cent ( Rs 3.37 crores) has been released till date, Bijoy conveyed.

Repeated appeals to the authority concerned to release the pending liability of more than Rs 9 crores have always fallen to deaf ears thereby causing severe hardships to the contractors and sub-contractors, he lamented.

The contractors' secretary asserted that denying bills for completed deposit works is an act of human rights violation.

The authority is also cheating the wage earners and the contractors by not paying the exact amount/cost given in relevant work orders, Bijoy alleged.

The alleged act of charging Rs 500 each for providing indent of one IARH by the store in-charge of Sericulture Department and the inability of the authority to fix work sites after issuing work orders have been not only impeding work progress but also discouraging the contractors and the labourers, he noted.

With a fervent appeal to release the pending liabilities, the District Council Sericulture Contractors' and Sub-Contractors' Association has threatened to launch a series of democratic agitation if their demand is not met by February 10 .

Moreover, all construction activities of the remaining IARHs will also be suspended, Bijoy added.

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