RIMS authority probes Daily Wage Earners issue
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, September 15 2014: The RIMS authority has launched an investigation on how 47 Daily Wage Earners engaged in the institution were utilized and how their due wages were paid.

The Daily Wage Earners were engaged in RIMS in 2011 when Prof Sekharjit, now demoted, was the Director.

RIMS authority took up the initiative of conducting a thorough investigation after some Daily Wage Earners voiced their grievances including non-payment of overdue wages against Prof Sekharjit and his wife Dr Damayenti a couple of days back.

Preliminary investigation revealed that a certain amount for payment of wages to the Daily Wage Earners from January to March this year were sanctioned.

Even though it was claimed that the sanctioned amount was distributed to Daily Wage Earners, it is not yet clear whether the Daily Wage Earners actually received their wages for the three months, informed an official source.

RIMS building-File pic

All the 47 Daily Wage Earners would be asked whether they received their wages for the three months or not.

Daily Wage Earners were paid their wages but not through proper official channel.

They were paid reduced wages not through the cashier but on roads and in the quarters of Dr Sekharjit, said another source.

It is suspected that the Daily Wage Earners were paid wages for just eight days or a week for working one full month.

Of the 47 Daily Wage Earners, 41 were confined by the Hostel Development Committee and they were used by the committee in any manner and types of work it fancied.

Exploitation of Daily Wage Earners in such inhuman manner has been unearthed in the course of the investigation and efforts are on to streamline all the functions and activities of RIMS administration.

Due procedures have been initiated to pay wages of Daily Wage Earners through the cashier as per the rules.

Relevant authorities have been issued strict instructions to submit a bill in the next couple of days with details of number of working days and the aggregate amount needed to pay wages of all the Daily Wage Earners for the months of April to August, added the official source.