Тренеры в Багешваре протестуют из-за невыплаты гонораров и расходов по правительственной программе

By Yogesh Nagarkoti BAGESHWAR : Women trainers engaged under a government-backed skill development programme in Bageshwar have alleged that they were not paid their promised remuneration and expenses despite conducting training sessions for nearly five months. The trainers, working under the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) and Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP), protested at the labour enforcement officer’s office on Wednesday. They said they began training women in March after being assured Rs 10,000 in remuneration, along with reimbursement for travel, food, training-centre and sewing-machine expenses. For 30-year-old Savita Kandpal of Matena village in Garur, reaching the training centre was a daily challenge. She said the journey took nearly two hours each way through forested stretches where encounters with wild animals were a concern. Despite rain and difficult terrain, she continued travelling to the centre and conducting four to five hours of training. “After working for five months, we are now being told that we will get only Rs 10,000. We were assured that travel, food, training-centre and sewing-machine expenses would also be reimbursed. Who will pay the remaining dues?” she asked. Another trainer, 50-year-old Neema Devi, alleged that women had faced similar problems earlier. “We are asked to work first and told about the payment later. This has happened to me before too. Is this not exploitation?” she said. A person associated with the NGO implementing the programme, speaking on condition of anonymity, claimed that around Rs 11 lakh was due to women trainers across the district. The figure could not be independently verified. Labour Enforcement Officer Monika Chilwal said the department had taken up the matter with the implementing company and directed it to clear the pending payments. She said the dues would be credited to the trainers’ accounts soon. Former Congress MLA Lalit Farswan also met the protesting women at the labour office. He questioned the decision to award such programmes to companies from outside Uttarakhand and demanded an inquiry into their implementation across the state.