Bhubaneswar, March 19: Outsourcing employees have been staging protests for several days, including sit-ins at Gandhimarg, highlighting the government’s responsibility towards them.
Despite working for salaries of only ₹8,000–9,000, they have not been given permanent appointments. The BJP, while in opposition, had repeatedly promised to address this demand. Now, in power, the government is being urged to fulfill its earlier commitments.
The Congress has frequently raised this issue in the Assembly. Congress Legislature Party leader Ramchandra Kadam stated that the government is exploiting outsourcing employees, who are working for very low wages. Currently, about 3.5 lakh government positions are vacant in the state. Most outsourcing employees manage work in these positions, including over 40,000 in the health department, 30,000 in municipal bodies, and thousands across other departments. Yet, there are no job security or social protection measures for them.
Senior Congress MLA Taraprasad Bahinipati criticized the government in the Assembly, reminding them that when outsourcing began, the government had promised to eventually regularize these employees. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, while in the opposition, had visited protest sites to show support for their demands. The BJP had also promised reforms during elections, but has not fulfilled them, Kadam remarked.
Currently, agencies charge outsourcing employees ₹20,000–25,000 as service fees, but the employees themselves receive only ₹8,000–10,000. Many employees have been working as outsourced staff for 15–20 years, and many reach the end of their contract without permanent employment. There is no provision for EPF or GPF, leaving employees struggling to support their families. The previous government had initiated the outsourcing system, but the current BJP government has not provided permanent jobs, raising widespread frustration.
Congress MLA Safia Pirros criticized the government, stating that outsourcing employees have full faith in the Chief Minister and continue to present their demands to him, yet the double-engine government has not responded. While other states like Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh have regularized outsourcing employees, Congress has demanded that Odisha follow suit immediately.
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