‘No More Assurances’: NIT Silchar Workers Resume Hunger Strike, Warn of Sept 1 Escalation

Contractual muster roll workers of the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Silchar have resumed their indefinite hunger strike, demanding regularisation of their jobs and implementation of a Gauhati High Court order concerning their service conditions.

The hunger strike resumed on Thursday, August 27, after the workers said they waited until the agreed deadline but received no positive development on their demands.

The protest is being led by the NIT Workers’ Union. The workers had earlier launched their protest on August 10. Following discussions at the institute on August 13, the hunger strike was temporarily suspended after assurances that a positive solution would be reached by August 24.

However, the workers said no concrete action followed even after the deadline passed.

“We waited till 26, but now we are again starting our hunger strike,” a representative of the workers said on Thursday. He alleged that the treatment of the workers by the NIT authorities was “unconstitutional”.

According to the representative, several workers have served at NIT Silchar for 25 to 30 years, but are now being told that they are not eligible for the posts they have been performing.

The workers have repeatedly approached the Gauhati High Court over the issue. The union claims that the court has ruled in their favour on several occasions, but alleges that the NIT authorities have continued to delay action by citing different reasons.

The workers’ main demand is the regularisation of their jobs and implementation of the court’s directions. The union has previously said that around 54 muster roll workers are currently involved in the protest, with some having served at the institute since the early 1990s.

The workers had earlier said that there were around 122 muster roll workers, of whom only about 20 were regularised. The remaining workers, they claimed, were assured that they would also be regularised.

The latest protest follows a meeting on August 13, when Borkhola MLA Kishore Nath visited the protesting workers and held discussions with their representatives and NIT authorities. The workers said they were assured that the matter would see a positive outcome by August 24.

With no resolution by the deadline, the union has decided to resume the hunger strike.

The workers have now warned that the agitation will be intensified if no concrete step is taken by August 30. The representative said that from September 1, the workers would involve their wives and children in the protest.

He further warned that any developments after that would be the responsibility of the NIT authorities.

The allegations regarding the court orders and their implementation are those made by the workers’ union. The institute’s response to the latest allegations and its position on the interpretation and implementation of the court orders were not available at the time of publication.

The renewed hunger strike has once again brought the long-running regularisation dispute at NIT Silchar into focus, with the workers maintaining that their agitation will continue until their demands are addressed.