By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
Hyderabad: Bureaucrats at Minorities Welfare Department required the threats of strike to release the salary of the Mecca Masjid employees. 28 odd employees of Andhra Pradesh biggest mosque was deprived from their monthly salary since last month on the pretext of lack of funds.
From Muazzin to Imam, sweeper to superintendent of the mosque was caught in shock on the explanation given by the MWD, because in this fiscal year there have been an increase of almost 110% in minorities welfare budget making it nearly Rs. 1027 crore.
When the continuous representations didn’t yield any result, employees announced the ultimate step to declare strike just when Bakreid is around the corner.
The salaries of the manual workers in the mosque are 6,700 rupees – Muazzin’s salary is Rs 9,500 and the salary of the Imam and the superintendent of the Mosque is Rs 10,500 each. MWD use to sanction Rs. 1,60,800 every month for whole 28 employees. Apart from other general staff there are 20 home guards in the mosque after 2007 bomb blast to provide security, they get around Rs. 6,000 per month; their fate was same as other employees.
Khaja Nayeemuddin, superintendent of Mecca Masjid, told TCN that all the employees of the mosque are economically poor, their sole mean of survival is their monthly salary delay in which has made them frustrated and in emotionally distress condition they had given call for a strike.
But Mr. Nayeemuddin now claims that everything has been sorted out when employee threats landed out loud in deaf ears of bureaucrats, “I immediately after Friday prayers, went to MWD office, where after threats of apparent strike, amount authorization was done, we are now expecting to receive the salary amount in coming working days.”
Mecca Masjid Superintendent was himself shocked in the manner in which the whole episode has unfolded, ‘It happen for the first time’ he said hoping it to be last. He was also clueless on how MWD was running short of funds to provide salary to employees even after 110% increase in this fiscal budget.