SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, April 18: Ninth meeting of the Joint Bipartite Committee for the Coal Industry (JBCCI) began today at Coal India Limited (CIL) headquarters in Kolkata to discuss salary and other benefits for 2.62 lakh miners under National Coal Wage Agreement (NCWA) XI.
Almost after 12 years for the first time all five national trade unions-INTUC (Indian National Trade Union Congress), BMS (Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh), CITU (Central Industrial Trade Union), AITUC (All India Trade Union Congress) and HMS (Hind Mazdoor Sabha)-are sitting together at the JBCCI meeting.
Till 8 meetings of JBCCI for XI NCWA, INTUC was not allowed in the name of factional feud in the organization but following the Calcutta High Court order ( February 10), CIL has invited the Indian National Mines Workers Federation ( INTUC) representatives to attend the 9th meeting of NCWA XI today.
The last time INTUC representatives, when Rajendra Prasad Singh was alive, attended the JBCCI meeting for IX NCWA constituted in January 2012. In the 10th NCWA in 2017 INTUC was not allowed.
A senior leader of the Indian National Mines Workers Federation said that his organization does not expect any major breakthrough at the meeting today. His representatives would assess what achievement has been earned by four other national trade unions and CIL management so far in talk. Their motive is the welfare of miners.
At the JBCCI meeting today Jayamangal Singh alias Anup Singh(MLA), S Q Jama, Soubhagya Pradhan and B Janak Prasad are representing INTUC.
For Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh K Laksham Reddy, Surendra Kumar Pandey, Sudhir H Ghurde and KP Gupta are attending.
Nathulal Pandey, Shiv Kant Pandey, Sidharth Gautam and Shiv Kumar Yadav ( from Hind Mazdoor Sabha), DD Ramanandan, Arup Chatterjee, Sujit Bhattacharya (from CITU) and Ramendra Kumar, V Seetharamaiah from AITUC are attending the meeting.
At the 8th JBCCI meeting for NCWA XI held in Kolkata on January 3, 19% MGB was decided. Since INTUC was a non-signatory of it, its representatives are likely to raise the issue today during the meeting.
