Migrant workers back to work

IMPHAL, Mar 6: Amid heightened security measures and humanitarian initiatives migrant workers resumed their normal chores of earning livelihood away from their homes here in the State.Migrant workers had been shunning wage earning activities for the past few days following unidentified gunmen slaying three of them at different location of the capital city.Apparently fearing more such attacks the migrant work force had been taking refuge with security cover at the Marwari Dharmshala under the aegis of Imphal Bazar Board.Bazar Board convenor Amrik Singh Pahwa informed of the number of camper today decreasing to 70 from the original high of about 150 as they (migrant workers) returned to their works.Amrik Singh Pahwa also informed of a team of doctors having attended to medical requirements of the campers at the dharmshala where the Governor Gurbachan Jagat led other individuals/officials in extending financial and material assistance.Unidentified persons gunned down a barber at Bijoy govinda area of Sagolband on February 28, with two others – a sugar cane juice seller and a porter – killed at Kwaikethel and Chinga Makha respectively the following day.Bodies of all the three hailing from Bihar were cremated at Imphal.When contacted, Sub divisional police officer (Imphal West) AK Jhaljit described the situation as ‘improved’ in the capital with no fresh attacks being reported.“Nevertheless the state security forces continue to maintain sharp vigil to protect the non-locals and thwart any attempt to attack them,” the SDPO said.Meanwhile, the district authorities have taken up steps for payment of ex-gratia to families of the three slain migrant workers, officials sources said.On the otherhand, senior citizens for society, in a statement conveyed deep sense of shock and sorrow over the migrant workers’ killings and appealed to the perpetrators to ‘deeply introspect’ and stop such killing in the interest of peaceful co-existence and harmony in the pluralistic society.A statement released by the society’s general secretary, L Sadananda Singh appreciated the initiatives taken up by the State government for protecting the non-locals.

Debate on PWD CE post rages ‘CE is PWD employee’

IMPHAL, Mar 5 : Reacting to the news report which appeared in the March 5 issue of this paper under the caption, ‘PWD Engineers protest, to take mass casual leave,’ the Electrical circle of the PWD has clarified that the Engineer who has been as the Chief Engineer-in-charge is an employee of the PWD and not an employee of the Power Department (We stand corrected). A source said that the PWD has three circles, Civil, Electrical and Mechanical and added that an officer of the rank of Additional Chief Engineer, who has been in this position for three years, is eligible to become the Chief Engineer of the PWD. Earlier too there have been Chief Engineers of the PWD who were not from the Civil division, they maintained. The present Chief Engineer of the PWD is from the Electrical circle, said the source and added that other than him there is no one who is serving as Additional Chief Engineer (Regular) in the Department. Even all the SEs are in in-charge category, said the source and added that other than the present Chief Engineer there is no one who fulfils the criteria. According to the Rules and Regulations of the PWD, there is no clause which says that only Engineers from the Civil circle can be eligible for the post of the Chief Engineer. Interestingly two officers from the Mechanical circle served as the CE of the PWD