HC irked over salary issue in civic bodies

New Delhi: Anguished over non-payment of salaries to municipal school teachers for over four months, the Delhi high court on Thursday rapped the authorities for the treatment they meted out to teachers, doctors nurses and sanitation workers saying this cannot be countenanced.

A two-judge bench of acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C. Hari Shankar said it was not just the teachers who were not getting paid, but even the doctors, nurses and safai karamcharis of the municipal corporations were also at the receiving end. The bench said, “There was a court order to pay wages to the teachers, but the authorities including the Delhi government have not complied with that direction.”

It observed that “between the Delhi government and municipal  corporations, the poor people of the society are suffering, who are only dependent on their monthly wages”.

The court was shocked to know that the teachers of the schools run by the East and North Delhi municipal bodies had been paid wages only till November last year.

“What? You have not paid them since November? This cannot be countenanced. How can you expect the teachers to do a service if you do not pay them,” the bench said.

“It is truly unfortunate for the resident of Delhi that not only the teachers, but the doctors, nurse and corporation safai karamcharis are also not being paid their salaries timely,” the bench noted.

The court issued contempt notice to Delhi government and the commissioners of East and North Delhi Municipal Corporations and fixed the matter for April 11. The court also asked the Delhi government to inform it why the pay commission’s recommendations have not been implemented and who is the custodian of funds that are to be released to the three corporations.

The court was hearing an NGO’s plea seeking contempt action against the two civic bodies.