ALLEGED NON PAYMENT OF DUES FOR CONSTRUCTION OF BTS MOBILE TOWER
ANAND OBEROI
GANGTOK, 02 Nov: With unpaid bills of nearly Rs.5 lakhs pending for the past almost 2 years and after having made 36 trips to Siliguri in their attempts to collect their due amount from a private mobile tower company 8 local youth have now decided to sit on an indefinite hunger strike in protest against the attitude of the company.
In fact, the youth had also approached the DC West, S Pradhan a couple of months ago but the said company is reported to have challenged the direction of the DC West that they pay up the due amount.
The 8 youth had taken the contract work for construction of a BTS mobile tower (Vodafone network tower) at Lunchok, West Sikkim. Aster Tele services Pvt Ltd. Kolkata had issued the Work order for civil works through a private construction company called ESSENN Communications and Information Technology Pvt Ltd, in the name of one Bijendra Sharma a resident of Tadong, Gangtok in December 2009. The work, was carried out with the help of his friends as partners, informs Bijendra. The tower was constructed by them with the help of 27 labourers and masons who have still to be paid their full due as their payments have not come through from the said company.
In fact, Tshering Bhutia, one of the affected youth informs that the total bill amount for the construction work was originally over Rs. 8.93 lakhs. But when the youth started feeling harassed over the delay in payment and the frequent trips to Siliguri they accepted the contention of the company that this was an inflated figure and had to be brought down to Rs. 4.98 lakhs. However even this amount is pending for the past so many months.
“We completed the work in August 2010 and submitted a report and there were inspections by engineers from their company but till date the company even after the completion of the said works has not paid the dues of the workers which amounts to a total of Rs.8.93 lakhs” said Tshering Bhutia. The work began in January, 2010 and was completed well within time by August 2010, it is claimed by the protesting youths. “We have have been running from pillar to post. Our delegation visited the Aster office in Siliguri where their representative, one Arvindam Roy had a meeting along with Demak Singh Rai of Dodok village who claimed to be the supervisor of the company and was supervising the works being carried out. Demak Singh is informed to be the person who brought eight self employed youth to the area where the towers needed to be established.
Engineers also were brought to the site for verification by the company represented by Demak Singh who claimed to be the supervisor. The supervision report also stated that the work being carried out was up to the mark and of the highest quality, it is claimed by the youths. Demak Singh then informed the youths that the Bill had to be placed before ESSENN Communications and Information Technology Pvt Ltd, Chanapati More, Bardawan Road, Siliguri. Subsequently, Tshering Bhutia informs that the bill was placed before one Mr. Rahul in August, 2010 who first assured them that it would be cleared but later they were told that the bill amount had to be negotiated and that it would be cleared before 31 March, 2011.
Tshering Bhutia states that they agreed to a reduced negotiated amount to wait till end March, 2011 but even then they were kept in expectation when the company told them to come in end April. This was again extended and the final amount further re-negotiated to Rs. 4.98 lakhs. They made us sign a document since we were so harassed that we signed the document which stated, “This is hereby declared that this is my full and final bill of Lunchok site” says Tshering Bhutia. It is claimed by the youth that on June 31, 2011, when they went once again to ESSENN, the office administration said that they would not pay them a single dime as they had been harassing the company with their constant visits! In fact, they claim to have been harassed and threatened by the company officials.
On their return they filed a complaint with the DC, West, S Pradhan on 8 July, 2011 who then immediately summoned the company officials. It was only after two such summons that a company representative appeared along with a lawyer. The DC, West directed the company to pay the amount within a month, the youth claim, along with the rider that failing the payment the property would be handed over to Bijendra Sharma. The company then sent a responding letter to the DC claiming that he had no right and they denied knowing Dimak Rai and Bijendra Sharma, informs Tshering Bhutia.
“On 15 October 2011 we came to Lunchok site where Parag Dutta, Cluster Manager, Indus Towers also came as we had gathered there in large numbers. He made an agreement with us that they would make an agreement declaring that by 20 October 2011, his company which had sub-let the work to the private contractor would find out why the bill was still not cleared and what were the reasons for this kind of harassment” informs Bijendra Sharma. However there was no follow up action.
The youth inform that then they called a strike on 31 October at the project site and have barred the companyfrom installing Digital Generators and other equipment in the tower. They say that they have battled the cold and have been here for the past three days and still there has been no response from the district administration or the police.
With so much at stake for the youth and the harassment they have decided to go on an indefinite hunger strike from tomorrow till their demands are fulfilled and the pending dues cleared.
ANAND OBEROI
GANGTOK, 02 Nov: With unpaid bills of nearly Rs.5 lakhs pending for the past almost 2 years and after having made 36 trips to Siliguri in their attempts to collect their due amount from a private mobile tower company 8 local youth have now decided to sit on an indefinite hunger strike in protest against the attitude of the company.
In fact, the youth had also approached the DC West, S Pradhan a couple of months ago but the said company is reported to have challenged the direction of the DC West that they pay up the due amount.
The 8 youth had taken the contract work for construction of a BTS mobile tower (Vodafone network tower) at Lunchok, West Sikkim. Aster Tele services Pvt Ltd. Kolkata had issued the Work order for civil works through a private construction company called ESSENN Communications and Information Technology Pvt Ltd, in the name of one Bijendra Sharma a resident of Tadong, Gangtok in December 2009. The work, was carried out with the help of his friends as partners, informs Bijendra. The tower was constructed by them with the help of 27 labourers and masons who have still to be paid their full due as their payments have not come through from the said company.
In fact, Tshering Bhutia, one of the affected youth informs that the total bill amount for the construction work was originally over Rs. 8.93 lakhs. But when the youth started feeling harassed over the delay in payment and the frequent trips to Siliguri they accepted the contention of the company that this was an inflated figure and had to be brought down to Rs. 4.98 lakhs. However even this amount is pending for the past so many months.
“We completed the work in August 2010 and submitted a report and there were inspections by engineers from their company but till date the company even after the completion of the said works has not paid the dues of the workers which amounts to a total of Rs.8.93 lakhs” said Tshering Bhutia. The work began in January, 2010 and was completed well within time by August 2010, it is claimed by the protesting youths. “We have have been running from pillar to post. Our delegation visited the Aster office in Siliguri where their representative, one Arvindam Roy had a meeting along with Demak Singh Rai of Dodok village who claimed to be the supervisor of the company and was supervising the works being carried out. Demak Singh is informed to be the person who brought eight self employed youth to the area where the towers needed to be established.
Engineers also were brought to the site for verification by the company represented by Demak Singh who claimed to be the supervisor. The supervision report also stated that the work being carried out was up to the mark and of the highest quality, it is claimed by the youths. Demak Singh then informed the youths that the Bill had to be placed before ESSENN Communications and Information Technology Pvt Ltd, Chanapati More, Bardawan Road, Siliguri. Subsequently, Tshering Bhutia informs that the bill was placed before one Mr. Rahul in August, 2010 who first assured them that it would be cleared but later they were told that the bill amount had to be negotiated and that it would be cleared before 31 March, 2011.
Tshering Bhutia states that they agreed to a reduced negotiated amount to wait till end March, 2011 but even then they were kept in expectation when the company told them to come in end April. This was again extended and the final amount further re-negotiated to Rs. 4.98 lakhs. They made us sign a document since we were so harassed that we signed the document which stated, “This is hereby declared that this is my full and final bill of Lunchok site” says Tshering Bhutia. It is claimed by the youth that on June 31, 2011, when they went once again to ESSENN, the office administration said that they would not pay them a single dime as they had been harassing the company with their constant visits! In fact, they claim to have been harassed and threatened by the company officials.
On their return they filed a complaint with the DC, West, S Pradhan on 8 July, 2011 who then immediately summoned the company officials. It was only after two such summons that a company representative appeared along with a lawyer. The DC, West directed the company to pay the amount within a month, the youth claim, along with the rider that failing the payment the property would be handed over to Bijendra Sharma. The company then sent a responding letter to the DC claiming that he had no right and they denied knowing Dimak Rai and Bijendra Sharma, informs Tshering Bhutia.
“On 15 October 2011 we came to Lunchok site where Parag Dutta, Cluster Manager, Indus Towers also came as we had gathered there in large numbers. He made an agreement with us that they would make an agreement declaring that by 20 October 2011, his company which had sub-let the work to the private contractor would find out why the bill was still not cleared and what were the reasons for this kind of harassment” informs Bijendra Sharma. However there was no follow up action.
The youth inform that then they called a strike on 31 October at the project site and have barred the companyfrom installing Digital Generators and other equipment in the tower. They say that they have battled the cold and have been here for the past three days and still there has been no response from the district administration or the police.
With so much at stake for the youth and the harassment they have decided to go on an indefinite hunger strike from tomorrow till their demands are fulfilled and the pending dues cleared.
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