MORARJI TEXTILES WORKERS PROTEST OVER UNPAID WAGES

Nagpur: Not paid wages for three months, with the festive season around the corner, about 1,000 workers of Morarji Textiles, one of the oldest industrial units of MIDC's Butibori estate, began a march towards the chief minister's official residence at Ramgiri to beg for alms as a mark of protest.

As the police stopped them near Dongargaon, district collector Dr Vipin Itankar, engaged in talks with them and assured them that their dues would be cleared. The workers ran out of patience as the festive season was nearing. MSEDL's decision to cut the company's power supply further worsened the situation. The company is under a resolution professional as part of the insolvency proceedings. The power cut brought its operations to a halt, further worsening the cash crunch, said a source in the state's labour department.

Ravi Sethia has been appointed as the resolution professional by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). The resolution professional also has a mandate to explore changes of reviving a company undergoing insolvency proceedings.

Sethia is now expected to arrange the funds and pay off MSEDL dues. He could not be contacted despite repeated attempts. Sethia did not answer the labour department's calls either, said officials here. Workers are in dire straits while managing household expenses, children's education, bank loans, and daily needs. Some workers even attempted suicide, but the tragedy was averted as the police arrived in time, said union sources.

A meeting was held with the management representatives at the labour commissioner's office. The workers were assured that their dues would be cleared. With no breakthrough even after the assurance, the workers planned a protest in front of the CM residence, said sources. As they took off from Butibori, traffic on Wardha Road was disrupted for about three hours. Also, heavy police deployment was arranged to prevent any untoward incident.