Protest by Block Midday Meal Cooks’ Association Over Ten-Point Demand
Astarang:
On Friday, the Astarang Block Midday Meal Cooks’ Association in Puri district organized a protest demanding the fulfillment of their ten-point charter. A rally was taken out from Tarini Temple in Astarang Bazaar, which paraded through the local market. During the march, the cooks and assistants raised various slogans and reached the office of the Block Education Officer (BEO).
There, under the leadership of Puri district president Mr. Pitabas Behera, a protest meeting was held. Key speakers at the event included Sukalata Das, Tikina Pal, Lobha Sahu, Jayanti Nayak, Subhalaxmi Sahu, Padmavati Behera, Namita Baral, Sita Das, Lijarani Barik, and Kunilata Khatoi. They presented demands such as pension for cooks, increase in age limit, provision of uniforms, minimum wage guarantee, fixed-date monthly payments, and extension of working months from ten to twelve in a year.
After the gathering, a group met the Block Education Officer in his office and submitted a memorandum addressed to the Honorable Minister of School and Mass Education outlining their ten-point demands.
Later, a discussion session was held near Maa Jagulai Padia, where participants including Krushna Chandra Kandi, Mita Behera, Mamata Basthia, Shanti Parida, Subash Mohanty, and Kalpana Bishwal talked about the issues faced by women cooks.
More than a hundred cooks and assistants from the block region took part in this gathering.
