Differently-abled persons working as Multipurpose Rehabilitation Workers (MRW), Village Rehabilitation Workers (VRW) and Urban Rehabilitation Workers (URW) across the State will launch an indefinite protest at Freedom Park in Bengaluru on Thursday over their various demands, including regularisation of their service.
As many as 6,860 workers will participate in the agitation to be organised under the banner of Nava Karnataka MRW, VRW and URW Vikalachetanara Gouravadhana Karyakartara Sangha.
State secretary of the sangha Khasim Sab Dongargaon, addressing a press conference in Kalaburagi on Monday, said that the State government had, in 2007-08, identified a few physically–challenged people under the rehabilitation programme and provided jobs for meagre honorarium.
“Initially, we were paid just ₹750 a month for more than 10 years. In 2019-20, our honorarium was revised. Now, those working as Village Rehabilitation Workers are being paid ₹3,000 and those working as Multipurpose Rehabilitation Workers are getting ₹6,000 a month. Now, we are getting honorarium in the range of ₹9,000 to ₹15,000,” he said.
Besides regularisation of service, the government should appoint MRWs in newly announced panchayats and also appoint one URW in each ward in the city corporations across the State, he added.
Mr. Dongargaon urged the State government to provide basic amenities for physically challenged MRWs and VRWs working in taluk and gram panchayats, by utilising the funds allocated under welfare schemes for the differently-abled.
