Jaipur: Scores of prison guards in Rajasthan are organising a complete boycott of mess food to draw the government’s attention over discrepancies in pay scales. Talking to TOI, jailor Wilson Sharma said that prison guards are demanding an equitable pay scale.
“From 1988 to 1998, prison guards and Rajasthan police had a similar pay scale. However, in March 1998, the finance department introduced amendments that created pay disparities for the employees of the prison department,” he said. Sharma said that prison guards are performing their duties, but they are boycotting mess foods. “As many as 40 guards have been admitted to hospitals because they refused to eat the food,” he said.
The issue of equitable pay scale has been raging for past several years now. Back in 2017, prison guards went on an indefinite hunger strike for several days. Senior officials in July 2017 intervened to stop the strike.
He said that the government had agreed to their demands in 2017 but nothing has happened since then. According to prison guards, the officials back in 2017 had agreed in principle to their demands. “The officials had given in writing that all discrepancies in our pay scales will be resolved. However, since 2017, several DG jails came and went but none of the promises was fulfilled,” said a prison guard.
“From 1988 to 1998, prison guards and Rajasthan police had a similar pay scale. However, in March 1998, the finance department introduced amendments that created pay disparities for the employees of the prison department,” he said. Sharma said that prison guards are performing their duties, but they are boycotting mess foods. “As many as 40 guards have been admitted to hospitals because they refused to eat the food,” he said.
The issue of equitable pay scale has been raging for past several years now. Back in 2017, prison guards went on an indefinite hunger strike for several days. Senior officials in July 2017 intervened to stop the strike.
He said that the government had agreed to their demands in 2017 but nothing has happened since then. According to prison guards, the officials back in 2017 had agreed in principle to their demands. “The officials had given in writing that all discrepancies in our pay scales will be resolved. However, since 2017, several DG jails came and went but none of the promises was fulfilled,” said a prison guard.
