Shillong, Aug 25: Social activist Cherian Momin has petitioned the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and the Labour Commission of India, seeking their intervention in resolving the non-payment of salaries, amounting to over Rs 270 crore, to employees of the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC).
Momin termed the non-payment of salaries to GHADC employees for a staggering period of 43 months as a “human rights crisis”.
In a separate letter to the NHRC and the Labour Commission of India Momin said the denial of salaries for 43 months violates multiple layers of constitutional and statutory rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, to which India is a party and which obligates the state to secure fair wages and decent living for its workers.
“The silence of the State Government and the GHADC authorities cannot be tolerated in a constitutional democracy. The right to life with dignity cannot be suspended for political convenience or administrative inefficiency,” Momin said, urging the NHRC and Labour Commission to intervene decisively and restore justice, dignity, and hope to the employees of GHADC.
Stating that the situation has already resulted in widespread human suffering, the social activist said, “There are documented instances of employees unable to pay for their children’s education, resulting in school dropouts. There are reports of families unable to afford essential medicines, leading to preventable illnesses and deaths. Women employees and spouses of employees have been disproportionately affected, facing humiliation in local markets for unpaid dues, struggling to provide for their families, and enduring unimaginable psychological trauma,” Momin said.
